Advantages.... Lower pot related crimes (trafficking), Lower instances of possession charges (frees up courts for more serious crimes), Revenue (Colorado posted 75mil went into their coffers in first year alone) Disadvantages.... Pregnant women (who for example take pot for nausea) may cause damage to fetuses. From cognitive problems to behavioral issues. Teens can damage their pre frontal cortex. Also leaves them more susceptible to schizophrenia. It is a neurotoxin after all. 1 in 11 adults will develop an addiction to pot. 1 in 6 teens. By addiction I mean a reliance on daily use. This compares to 1 in 12 for alcohol. That's right... more addicting than alcohol! But hey no one tokes and drives right? I quote "After alcohol, cannabis is the second most widely used impairing drug in the world, and many Canadians drive after using cannabis. The rate of cannabis use in BC drivers is particularly high. A 2008 BC survey in the Lower Mainland and on Vancouver Island found that 8.1% of drivers had been drinking and 10.4% tested positive for drugs, including 4.6% for cannabis." -BC Medical Journal So in an area where it is not legal stoned drivers accounted for more than 1/2 of the percentage of drunk drivers. That was in 2008. Pot use/ acceptance has gone up considerably since then. Who knows what the current numbers are. I love people who claim that it is natural thus non harmful. So is belladonna, castor beans (makes ricin), oleander (yes that plant grown around schools) etc. etc. There are piles of plants that grow naturally but are poisonous. And while yes some (very rare) animals eat weed in the wild they are far and few between. Those that do don't go for seconds. Just like other poisonous plants. My biggest issue is how accepted it already is. I see more people comfortable with having a puff in the morning before work, while driving, walking down the street etc than I do with say a beer in hand. It is that level of acceptance I have issues with. One joint affects a person more than 1 beer. And these people then go to work, drive etc like this. Mark my words.... the societal issues that legalization will cause will be catastrophic. The groups that push for legalization seem to have forgotten that it is not just the evening tokers they have been selling their "It is harmless and better for you than beers and cigs" propaganda that the youth of today believe it all. By the way, for all you people who think that government is bad... Right now, across all your US of A, Governors,, Senators, Congressmen are racing to legalize it in your states. Do you think they are doing it for the health reasons or the $$$?