Hey Feds, wanna save money? Don't legalize the rope, legalize the dope!

"A senator known for advocating on behalf of the victims of crime backed off slightly on comments that suggested serial murderers should be given a rope to hang themselves in prison. Sen. Pierre Hugues-Boisvenu made the remarks ahead of the Conservative caucus meeting in Ottawa on Wednesday." - CTV Should serial murderers be given a rope to hang themselves in prison if they see fit?  Wow, way to open up a can of worms. If one of the factors of this idea was to reduce the prison population... I don't know, it just sounds too Hitler-esq.  Why not have softer penalties for non-violent crimes? Why not legalize marijuana?  That would decrease the prison population more than the rope e dope, saving taxpayers money - and not just that.  It would also act a significant source of revenue that would help pay for federal services and chip away at our national debt. "Every year, a widely consumed illegal substance makes potential criminals of millions and actual criminals of hundreds of thousands. And like booze during Prohibition, this substance, marijuana, is the easy revenue of organized crime, contributing tens of billions of dollars to growers, who commit a variety of bad acts both at home and abroad. What about possible tax revenue? From Canada we’ve learned that the production cost of (government-sponsored) marijuana is roughly 33¢ a gram. Currently, U.S. marijuana consumers pay at least $10 per gram retail for illegal marijuana. If the cost of retailing and distribution is the same as for legal tobacco cigarettes, about 10¢ a gram, then selling the (legal) product at exactly the same price as on the street today ($10 per gram) could raise $40 billion to $100 billion in new revenue. Not chump change. Government would simply be transferring revenue from organized crime to the public purse." - Business Week. Absolutely, couldn't agree more with business week on this one.  Don't legalize the rope, legalize the dope. It just makes sense. Some people could say "if the government doesn't save us from it, everyone will use it".   Really? If Cocaine was legalized, would you go try it just because?  NO!  Because you can think for yourself and don't need the nanny state to tell you what is and what is not safe or healthy for you. Hell, alcohol is far more dangerous than weed is. Alcohol is: More toxic Responsible for more deaths More violent behavior Deadlier long/term use  And more.... Yet it's still legal. Why? The money! Now, I know I started this post ranting about the idea of putting ropes in murderers cells so they could hang themselves.. But rather, I looked at the cause of the issue- an overflowing prison population and the tax dollars it takes to keep them in jail.  Legalizing would help solve both of these issues, it could also increase tourism and would definitely stimulate the economy. So what's wrong with that? I say:  don't give 'em rope, give 'em dope. Spock would say: it's only logical.