Proposition 19 may or may not pass, but the debate over it has mainstreamed marijuana in a way I don't remember in my adult lifetime (which, in fairness, began in that dark night of the drug war soul, 1986). One small step in this direction was, of all things, this year's World Series, which ended last night with a dazzling pitching performance by the San Francisco Giants' resident longhair and guilty pot possessor, Tim Lincecum. Giants fans and Prop. 19 supporters alike have been sporting "Let Timmy Smoke" T-shirts, and now, with a World Series ring to go with his two Cy Young Awards, Lincecum can take his rightful place just behind Michael Phelps as a guy who just says yes and then kicks your ass, at sports.

And unlike Barack Obama, George W. Bush, and Bill Clinton, Lincecum continues to believe that inhaling is the point: Asked how he thought San Francisco would react to the championship, he said: "A lot of beer flowing, smoke in the air, I'm hoping."

Never underestimate how deviancy in the sporting world can ripple quickly through the culture at large. And never forget that the peaceful, victimless pursuit of happiness would be legal in any sane world:

Reason on Prop. 19 here.