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7 big myths about marijuana and legalization

The Justice Department recently announced it would not enforce federal anti-marijuana laws in Washington and Colorado. This is regrettable. Legalizing marijuana endangers public health and safety. But that's not what these seven popular myths maintain.

4. Myth: The legality of alcohol and tobacco strengthen the case for legal marijuana

鈥淢arijuana is safer than alcohol, so marijuana should be treated like alcohol鈥 is a catchy, often-used argument in the legalization debate. But this assumes that America鈥檚 alcohol policy is something worth modeling. In fact, because alcohol and cigarettes are used at such a high rate due to their wide availability, the country鈥檚 two legal intoxicants cause more harm, are the cause of more arrests, and kill more people than all illegal drugs combined. Alcohol happens to be legal for cultural reasons, and it would be difficult to turn back the clock on its legalization. But why add a third drug to the list of legal killers?

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