Five years ago state Rep. Melissa Sargent rejected the backward thinking of those who seek to maintain a failed “drug war” and announced: “The facts clearly show that legalization is right for Wisconsin and that the most dangerous thing about marijuana is that it’s illegal.”

Since then, the Madison Democrat has led the legislative fight to legalize marijuana for recreational and medical use. She has done so for all the right reasons.

“Adults choosing to use marijuana in the safety of their own home is a matter of personal liberty and freedom,” said Sargent, who argued that legalization would save time and money for law enforcement. She noted that responsible regulation and taxation of marijuana sales would raise needed revenues for the state. And, she said, legalization would address the stark racial disparities when it comes to marijuana-related arrests in Madison and across Wisconsin.

“With limited resources, and an overextended prison system, it is not sustainable to continue imprisoning people for these offenses,” explained the state representative. “It is a travesty that we are putting millions of taxpayer dollars into victimless crimes when we should be doing the exact opposite: creating revenue and letting our police officers focus on keeping peace in our neighborhoods.”