War on Drugs a Lost Cause?

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California will be voting on the decriminalization of marijuana in November. If the proposition passes, it will undoubtedly change the game for the drug cartels of Mexico as the price for the now-outlawed herb will start to go down. Supposedly, California always sets the pace at which the rest of the country embraces change. I think if passed it would allow more room in prisons for the real criminals: violent and repeat offenders, free up more time and money for the police to arrest such criminals, and ultimately take some wind out of the Mexican drug cartels by taking away their profits. I say it is about time we end the war on drugs once and for all! Who really doubts that it is a failed war? If we had spent 1/2 of the money we spent fighting the war, we could have already bought all the land in the world used for the production of drugs and also opened enough rehabilitation clinics to house every single drug offender arrested so far. What an utter waste of money and lives. For every felony conviction of a nonviolent drug offender, we lose that space in prison for someone who truly deserves to be there. Also, with those convictions, that person also automatically becomes a second-class citizen because they lose their right to vote, travel abroad or own a gun. They also fall into a category of people who can be discriminated against for federal student or housing loans and federal employment. The U.S. Constitution demands that punishments fit the crime committed. We have let the atrocities of this war on drugs affect to many lives already. Enough is enough!