Today's "Weakest Argument Award" Goes To...

Mr. John Lovell, lobbyist for the law enforcement community! Congratulations, sir! You have just made one of the silliest arguments against legalizing marijuana. A little background will be needed here.

The New York Times has an article today discussing the efforts of states to find new revenue streams. One of the more interesting proposals is the taxation of marijuana. Now, regardless what your opinion is on this topic you would hope that the sides would come up with better arguments than this:

John Lovell, a lobbyist for several groups of California law enforcement officials, said the plan would create a large, illicit — and thus untaxed — black market...

Psst...Mr. Lovell. Lean over here for just a second. I want to make you aware of something that you seem not to have figured out. There's ALREADY a "large, illicit — and thus untaxed — black market" for marijuana out there. So you may want to come up with a more compelling argument for your side. That's all. You can go back to talking now.