I never thought I would see a TV commercial featuring a prominent lawman plugging legalized pot. Never in a thousand years.

But that is what we see in a spot featuring Rep. Mark Dion, (D-Portland), a former Cumberland County sheriff urging voters to approve Question 1.

Dion is a spokesman for a pro-pot group called Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Maine.

As summarized by BallotPedia, the encyclopedia of American politics, here are the main reasons the pro-pot group wants you to vote Yes on the measure on Nov. 8.

First: they argue it will make our communities safer. Regulating marijuana will replace a dangerous underground market with a system of licensed businesses that ask for ID and only sell marijuana to adults. Products will be tested, packaged, and labeled to ensure marijuana is not contaminated and consumers know what they’re getting. Law enforcement officials will be able to spend more of their time and limited resources addressing serious crimes instead of enforcing failed prohibition laws.

Second: It will bolster our economy. Taxing marijuana sales will raise millions of dollars in new revenue each year. Legitimate marijuana businesses will create thousands of good jobs for Maine residents and utilize the products and services of other Maine businesses.

Third: It just makes sense. Marijuana is objectively less harmful than alcohol to the consumer and to society — it is less addictive, less damaging to the body, and less likely to contribute to violent and reckless behavior. Adults who can legally consume alcohol should not be punished simply for using a less harmful substance.

In the TV commercial, Dion says the current system is not working and the elimination of criminal penalties for recreational use would free up police so they could concentrate on serious crimes, like murder, sex crimes and finding missing children.

OK, we understand there are a lot of illicit drugs on the street. And, we understand there is an epidemic of heroin/opioid abuse that threatens many of our friends and neighbors. Lincoln County Sheriff Todd Brackett has partnered with other law enforcement agencies in an effort to urge addicts to seek treatment. His deputies carry Narcan, a substance used to revive opioid abuse overdoses.

Well, what does our “local guy” think about question 1?

”You can say our ‘local guy’ is not in favor of Question 1,” said Brackett.

He explains his views on the measure are formed after talking to sheriffs in Washington and Colorado, states where pot is legal. Lawmen out there tell him legal pot, while it has restrictions on its use by minors, is easier for kids to access.

“A few months ago, I talked to one sheriff in Colorado who said a routine sweep of a school, using a drug sniffing dog, turned up school lockers full of marijuana gummy bears and other candies. The kids were just peddling them around the school,” he said.

Rather than making it easier for his deputies to concentrate on “serious” crimes, Brackett explains that it would make it tougher for them to detect impaired drivers.

“While I believe medical marijuana is worthwhile and beneficial, I just don’t think legalizing it for recreational use is the right thing to do.”

OK, sheriff. What about the possible benefits of a new source of tax money?

“A new revenue stream would be nice to have, but I am not sure what would happen to it,” he said.

The Maine Office of Fiscal and Program Review estimated sales tax collections would increase by $2.8 million. The measure would impose a 10 percent tax on marijuana sales. In Colorado, the state revenue department collection website reports total marijuana taxes, licenses and fees collected for the first eight months of 2016 exceed $53.5 million.

In recent days, Maine Attorney General Janet Mills said the measure is flawed. She said it would permit anybody of any age — 2 years old, 20 years old, 80 years old, to possess up to 2 1/2 ounces of marijuana.

A lawyer for the pro-pot campaign disputes Mills’ assessment.

The Marijuana Legalization Act also allows municipalities to license marijuana social clubs.

Well, we know where Sheriff Brackett stands on the ballot question, what about Boothbay Harbor Police Chief Bob Hasch?

“It is our job to enforce the law, and the law is whatever the people and the legislature say it is,” he said.

P.S. Ms. Pig, our favorite porcine political prognosticator, is in route to a rehab facility where she will undergo a bit of botox and other cosmetic treatments. We hope to see her at her post on Route 27 again in the spring.