George Soros
10/26/2010

Soros details the reasons he supports California’s marijuana legalization initiative, Proposition 19. He says the criminalization of marijuana has resulted in extensive costs and negative consequences to society. We should invest in effective education rather than ineffective arrest and incarceration. While legalizing marijuana wouldn’t solve all the problems connected with the drug, it would represent a major step forward and its deficiencies can be corrected on the basis of experience. He concludes that proposition 19 already is a winner, whatever happens on Election Day. The mere fact of its being on the ballot has elevated and legitimized public discourse about marijuana and marijuana policy.

Soros is chairman of Soros Fund Management and founder of the Open Society Foundations.

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