Marijuana legalization could ease Mexican drug war

A column from The Progressive Media Project in Madison, Wisconsin, syndicated by the McClatchy newspaper chain and published here in a Kentucky paper. We say, "Yes!" to his closing statement.

Marijuana legalization could ease Mexican drug war - McClatchy Network - Kentucky.com: "As in the booze-running days of Al Capone, drug prohibition similarly drives the trade further underground, swelling the coffers of the violent narco-syndicates. Investigations by Mexican authorities have linked this financial clout to increasingly vast corruption networks in which police and local politicians are on the cartels' payroll.

Passage of Proposition 19 - and the possibility that other U.S. states might follow suit - would sap an important source of revenue for the drug traffickers, driving down both violence and corruption.

So, Proposition 19 is not just about allowing the recreational use of marijuana in California. It's also about the survival of Mexico.

ABOUT THE WRITER

Teo Ballve is a writer for Progressive Media Project, a source of liberal commentary on domestic and international issues; it is affiliated with The Progressive magazine. Oct. 22, 2010, Lexington, (KY) Hearld-Leader