I find it odd that someone with no interest in pot would post this. I agree with much of what you said, but I'm curious as to where you get your stats and info from. You say that only 40,000 people are in jail because of MJ related charges, but I'm inclined to believe there are more, especially if 800,000 people a year are arrested for ganja possession offenses, which in some states is a felony if over an ounce. I haven't smoked regularly in a good while (about a year) due to competitive mtbing, but it is definitely something I enjoy and consider a worthy issue to bring up with my congressman, which I have done several times, and still do. I live in the Midwest by the way and the state I live in has some of the toughest penalties in our region (it should be pretty easy to figure where I live from that statemen.) Any reform is better than none, but statements that pot can cause brain problems and birth defects are kind of no, duh! statements, because so do cigarettes and alcohol, not to mention too much caffeine causing heart problems. Regulation of a plant such as MJ would lead to better quality control which means safer product, which means lower prices, which means less drug dealers, if any at all, which means no need for illicit activities or gangs or cartels, which means more money for the government in taxes from legitimate sales not to mention a lessening of law enforcement activity due to cartel activity alleviation. If ganja is one the the biggest cash crops in the United States while it is illegal, just think what it could do for our country if it were legal. I hate to sound cocky, but I smoked pot everyday all day for about five years and I'm not even remotely mentally impaired (in fact I have an IQ of 138), and my reflexes are phenomenal (they have to be, I mountain bike.) Marijuana hype is just what it says HYPE. Yes we need legalization, but we also need the public to be better informed. If we as a nation can look at alcohol in commercials without batting an eye, I'm pretty sure a pretty plant like cannabis can win the hearts of millions. Sorry to rant, just my two cents.