Balance the State Budget in One Easy Step

There may actually be an almost free lunch for revenue-starved states like Kentucky on the verge of completely shutting down state services: legalize pot and tax the ever-lovin' shit out of it.

Hey, Stevie boy! You wanna bring shoppers from surrounding states pouring into Kentucky to spend every dime they've got? Forget gambling: Entice 'em with legal pot. Very heavily taxed legal pot.

Billions in new tax revenue, tens of thousands of new jobs, huge savings in the corrections budget from not imprisoning recreational users. It's win-win-win.

Zandar says it's already happening:

With states strapped for cash, more of them are turning to legalizing medical marijuana as a new revenue source. New Jersey's legislature overwhelmingly approved the measure last night, and outgoing Gov. Jon Corzine is expected to sign the measure this week.

But west coast states are considering going significantly further along the legalization road in order to raise revenue, specifically California and Washington State. The Golden State in particular needs cash flow with its wrecked budget.

The state assembly will make history on Tuesday, when it holds a committee hearing on whether to legalize marijuana and tax it.

It is the first time in U.S. history that any state legislative body has ever considered repealing marijuana prohibition.

California's laws have been in place since 1913.

The bill by Democratic Assemblyman Tom Ammiano of San Francisco would tax and regulate marijuana like alcohol.

The fact that legalizing marijuana for recreational use is even being considered seriously shows you how dire the fiscal situation is right now, and the issue will also be on the state's initiative ballot in November.

Industrial hemp, the non-narcotic cousin of marijuana, grows wild in Kentucky. A hundred years ago, hemp was our number one cash crop. Drug enforcement officers will tell you that marijuana is now our number one cash crop. A billion-dollar industry that goes completely untaxed.

The day either industrial hemp or marijuana is legalized in Kentucky will be the last day you'll see a leaf of tobacco growing here. Even corn and soybeans might disappear.

Texas during the oil boom of the Twenties will pale in comparison.

Right now, Governor Beshear and legislators are staring into a $1.5 Billion Deficit Abyss. Only legal pot can save them, the Commonwealth and us. We have nothing to lose.