If the drug war has resulted in 28,000 deaths in Mexico and marijuana is the cartel's #1 money maker, why not?

If the drug war has resulted in 28,000 deaths in Mexico (since 2006) and marijuana is the cartels' #1 money maker (accounts for appx. 60?f their total revenues), why not legalize marijuana? You could regulate and tax it at the state level just like alcohol. (Could produce $40 billion in tax revenues annually).This would mean it could be grown (jobs), processed (jobs), bought and sold (jobs) domestically and would completely undercut a huge portion of the Mexican cartels' revenues while creating jobs and local tax revenue in the process.

What do you think?

http://www.politicsdaily.com/2010/08/03/just-say-now-marijuana-advocates-launch-national-legalization/

"Legalization has the potential to generate billions of dollars in revenue," Just Say Now said in a news release. "A report authored by Harvard University economist Jeffrey Miron and endorsed by Nobel Laureate Milton Friedman said it would produce $40 billion a year in taxes."

Bruce Fein, former deputy attorney general under Ronald Reagan, takes it a step beyond tax revenue, claiming the federal government should simply butt out.

"This is a fundamental issue of states' rights," said Fein, representing the conservative voices of Just Say Now.

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2010/08/03/world/main6740078.shtml?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed:+CbsNewsTheEarlyShowPetPlanet+(CBS+News:+The+Early+Show:+Pet+Planet)

(AP) Mexico says more than 28,000 people have been killed in drug violence since President Felipe Calderon launched a crackdown against cartels in 2006.

Intelligence agency director Guillermo Valdes says authorities have confiscated about 84,000 weapons and made total cash seizures of $411 million in U.S. currency and $26 million worth in pesos (330 million pesos).

Valdes says drug violence in Mexico "is still growing."

http://www.fbi.gov/congress/congress10/perkins050510.htm

Marijuana: Mexico is the number one foreign supplier of marijuana abused in the United States. In fact, according to a 2008 inter-agency report, marijuana is the top revenue generator for Mexican DTOs—a cash crop that finances corruption and the carnage of violence year after year. The profits derived from marijuana trafficking—an industry with minimal overhead costs, controlled entirely by the traffickers—are used not only to finance other drug enterprises by Mexico’s poly-drug cartels, but also to pay recurring “business” expenses, purchase weapons, and bribe corrupt officials. Though the GOM has a robust eradication program, many of the military personnel traditionally assigned to eradicate marijuana and opium poppy have recently been diverted to the offensive against the cartels.
wounded duck........."Wouldn't solve the VIOLENCE problem."

But it would seriously undermine the cartels' ability to fund their war against the Mexican govt.
Ird00a........"
They'd just shift drugs to make up for the loss in profits"

You can't sell drugs if there is no demand for those drugs. Demand for hard drugs is MUCH lower than the demand for marijuana.
Eugene..........."we don't bow our heads to illegal activity."

So do you feel the same way about those who "bowed their heads" to alcohol legalization by repealing the 18th amendment?
mmm-kay............"marijuana leads to harsher drugs to get the next bigger better high.fact"

Typing "fact" doesn't make it so. Do you have a source, or are you just making things up?
cleetus........"Why do libs always see the response to a problem as causing the damage not the problem?"

A) Not a "lib". But don't let that fk with your simplistic worldview :)

B) The laws are the reason the drugs are profitable in the first place. If you've ever studied history, you know that organized crime THRIVED during alcohol prohibition. This is no different.
Huckleberry........."Do you really believe that if Mexico legalized weed tomorrow that this drug cartel problem would just go away? C'mon now :-)"

I'm talking about the United States legalizing marijuana. The U.S. is the number one consumer. The U.S. is who the cartels are supplying.
scruffy.........."No, because then the thugs would go for the next money-making drug. "

Again, you can't sell drugs there isn't a demand for. Demand for hard drugs is much lower than that of marijuana. Marijuana could be classified as a soft drug along with alcohol and cigarettes. The hard drugs (cocaine, heroin, crack, meth, etc.) although abused by a small percentage of society don't have nearly the demand marijuana does. This is simply economics.
Ird00............."They'd combine MJ with harder drugs to make it stronger...the cartels evolve quickly."

If it's legal and regulated, then the black market (cartels, organized crime) can no longer dictate quality.