I keep wondering if this is a Republican plot to protract american low-income classes in generating blue collar labor, instead of relying on import labor.
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That would make sense if it wasn't the Republican party that was busy painting weed as worse than opiates and crack. The states that have passed legal marijuana laws so far have done so largely with support from Democrats and independents.
On the addiction point, practically anything that causes a dopamine spike (in other words, is pleasurable) can be addictive. There are two types of addiction--addiction to due disturbed psyche (you feel your life sucks and you have a lot of demons, and then something that is SO GOOD enters your life and you get sucked into it and can't break free) and the more clinical dependence/risk-taking/decreasing reward addiction (typically seen with substances like booze, cigarettes, cocaine, heroine--stuff that not only makes you feel good, but substantially alters your body in a way that it needs the substance to behave normally. Like a crack addict crashing when not high, or a heroine addict's nervous system activity spiking when sober and wreaking havoc on their body).
Sadly, both types tend to be found in individuals with a history of mental illness, who are prone to self medicating. This is where drugs in particular get REALLY nasty, as even mental illnesses without a substantial risk of increased violence can be affected by addiction in such a way that violence is far more likely. That said, that's not too substantially different from individuals who
aren't mentally ill on the same drugs. It's just that it's far more visible in the mentally ill, because it can make them do really freaky, disturbing things rather than purely being more aggressive.
For the record, I'm for legalizing weed, but I personally won't use it. There's no real argument against using weed that you can't use against alcohol or cigarettes. Even the "it won't get rid of dealers" argument is bunk, because when prohibition was repealed people still continued to make moonshine and try to sell/drink denatured alcohol. In fact, name any business that is regulated and you will find someone performing it without the right qualifications/license and hurting people. The big difference is that with weed legal, there will be a safer alternative.
