Read the tea leaves: It’s time for marijuana legalization in Michigan

Jermain Jones was born and raised in Detroit and now works with youth in Farmington.

Although legislatures across the country have made failure to compromise their hallmark, one thing we might all agree on is the futility of keeping marijuana illegal. The opponents of recreational marijuana are living in 1932. It is only a matter of time before recreational pot’s savior arrives and we see its long-overdue decriminalization.

Michiganders must decide whether recreational marijuana use should continue to be taboo.

In Colorado, legal marijuana – both medical and recreational – has generated $91 million in taxes, licensing and fees this fiscal year to date – an accolade any fiscally responsible lawmaker would be proud to claim. Marijuana is taxed at different rates for medical and recreational use, with the latter at 28 percent.

Gov. Rick Snyder should take a serious look at those Colorado numbers. With road repairs requiring every spare dollar and then some, marijuana could help close the gap. Some money could also go towards education, as well as the municipalities in which the stores (dispensaries) operated.

Legalizing recreational marijuana would be a win for politicians and people. By decriminalizing marijuana, we’d enable law enforcement to fight more serious crimes. Legalization would also ensure consumers aren’t getting street products with cutting agents that are unhealthy. In California, Massachusetts and New Jersey and in a dozen other states, medical marijuana can be legally prescribed to patients suffering from epilepsy, Crohn’s disease, posttraumatic stress and multiple sclerosis. Decriminalization would allow more to use it for its health benefits.

Democrats and libertarians – some, anyway – until recently have been the movers behind legalization of pot. Now the political right is starting to come around; 63 percent percent of Republican millennials believe marijuana should be legalized. Throw in Ron Paul libertarians and fiscally responsible conservatives and legal pot slowly begins to make sense. Let’s legalize pot.