Marijuana Decriminalization in Texas Goes Up in Smoke

On the surface, it looks like Lt. Governor Dan Patrick of Texas went out of his way to kill marijuana decriminalization.

We all know that weed is not dangerous, yet there are still folks who think you should go to jail for it. It's now become a game where people who have cash can smoke almost freely, while folks who can't afford to fight marijuana charges go to jail. It's ridiculous.

Two states over, weed is completely legal, and they've seen benefits almost completely across the board. Even then, we weren't talking about making it legal in Texas; we were talking about not ruining lives over something as ridiculous as marijuana.

The Texas House had voted overwhelmingly in favor of the bill, but it was killed in the Senate, presumably by Lt. Gov. Patrick. Tuesday, he tweeted: "I join with those House Republicans who oppose this step toward legalization of marijuana".

What's crazy about this is, even Governor Greg Abbott, who has said marijuana would not be legalized on his watch, was in favor of decriminalization of two ounces or less.

Polls show that between 70-75 percent of Texans support decriminalization or outright legalization. If we were allowed to vote on legalization, it would pass overwhelmingly. Instead, pot smokers continue to be targeted by politicians playing to the most hardcore elements of their base.

I think, once again, it's important to point out that I'm not a smoker. What I am is someone who supports common sense and an adult's right to make the choices they want to make.

Marijuana should not be a party politics issue. It should be an issue about who we want to be and how we want to treat each other.