http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.p...oryId=103276152

All the major media are starting to run stories. I think maybe in Obama's hypothetical 2nd term, we may actually see soft drugs legalized)

Strange how they don't mention Portugal at all, its been a real-world test of alternative policies applied to every drug. Actually, the whole article seems like naive (or misleading) conjecture. In all reality, marijuana legalization would most likely lead to something similar to what has happened with beer microbreweries in the US. You'd have a multitude of competing 'micronurseries' who try to provide something unique and enjoyable in order to establish a name for themselves.

The idea of a foreign cartel improvising by creating superstrength pot that hospitalizes people is absurd. That implies that you could make illegal 150 proof low-quality beer to get an edge on American microbreweries. They would have to improvise by providing quality at a competitive price, which is exactly how free markets within a legal framework have been demonstrated to work throughout history.

If the Obama administration halts federal raids on California dispensaries and possibly intervenes in federal cases like the one involving Charlie Lynch, I'll take that as an extremely positive sign, but I haven't seen that yet.