Let's have a reasonable and open-minded objective discussion about marijuana.

[brokenarrow]

[Marijuana is not addictive.

 

[brokenarrow]

[marijuana is relatively harmless.

 

[Momanohedhunter]

As has been pointed out in other post, if Pot were legalized tomorrow it would take the bread and butter cash cow from the cartels on the border. It would remove some of the burden on our prison system, and free up law enforcement for bigger and badder folks. I do see how legalization would deeply sting all the law enforcement officers who have dedicated there careers and in some cases have given there lives in the war on drugs. Marijuana is basically the drug they declared war on and haven't really made a dent in its availability or use. The war on drugs is one area that the Government can do some cutting in my opinion.

 

[editec]

MJ can trigger mental illness. Am I going to be paying for other people' self inflicted mental instability?

What about driving under the influence of MJ? Is it gonna be acceptable to kill other people because of your inability to lay off the weed?

I have enough shit picking up the tab for other people's obesity, and alcohol problems. I don't see why I should have to take on yet more shit because other people want to get stoned.

Get stoned. Kill yourself. I don't care. Just keep it out of my life, you self-centered SOBs.

What a complete load of horse pucky.

Go read a book, ya' ignoramous.

 

[Midnight Marauder]

As has been pointed out in other post, if Pot were legalized tomorrow it would take the bread and butter cash cow from the cartels on the border. It would remove some of the burden on our prison system, and free up law enforcement for bigger and badder folks. I do see how legalization would deeply sting all the law enforcement officers who have dedicated there careers and in some cases have given there lives in the war on drugs. Marijuana is basically the drug they declared war on and haven't really made a dent in its availability or use. The war on drugs is one area that the Government can do some cutting in my opinion.

No one is in prison strictly for personal marijuana use or possession for personal use. That's some of the BS I was hoping to avoid in this discussion. Most marijuana related "crimes" are misdemeanors, not felonies. If a marijuana user is indeed in prison, it's not due to being charged with a misdemeanor, it's because of conviction on a unrelated felony.

 

[chikenwing]

Good god its a freaking weed that has grown out of the ground since the dawn of time.

Ever see anyone with weed muscles?? legalize it today,and get on with more important stuff.

 

[Momanohedhunter]

As has been pointed out in other post, if Pot were legalized tomorrow it would take the bread and butter cash cow from the cartels on the border. It would remove some of the burden on our prison system, and free up law enforcement for bigger and badder folks. I do see how legalization would deeply sting all the law enforcement officers who have dedicated there careers and in some cases have given there lives in the war on drugs. Marijuana is basically the drug they declared war on and haven't really made a dent in its availability or use. The war on drugs is one area that the Government can do some cutting in my opinion.

No one is in prison strictly for personal marijuana use or possession for personal use. That's some of the BS I was hoping to avoid in this discussion. Most marijuana related "crimes" are misdemeanors, not felonies. If a marijuana user is indeed in prison, it's not due to being charged with a misdemeanor, it's because of conviction on a unrelated felony.

First off, the weed will aggravate any other charges that are racked up for other crimes. There is also the fact that possession can rise to felony from misdemeanor in no time depending on your location at the time, and how the pot is contained. On top of that, laws vary from State to State. Go one Mile over the speed limit in a school zone and get caught with Dirty paraphernalia or a roach in your ash tray. Or live across the street from a school and get busted burning a fat one and see what happens. Sure, some guy with a quarter ounce that gets busted will get a stupid misdemeanor, but let him get caught with two bags of weed. Now he is a dealer and that can be elevated to a felony depending on the circumstances. It all depends on law enforcement and ware you are located. A friend and some times co/worker is at Huntsville now after getting busted with a QP. They dont send you to prison in Texas for misdemeanors. You need to also remember that the D.A.'s and Judges play a large roll in weather or not felony charges are brought and successfully applied.

 

[editec]

MJ can trigger mental illness. Am I going to be paying for other people' self inflicted mental instability?

What about driving under the influence of MJ? Is it gonna be acceptable to kill other people because of your inability to lay off the weed?

I have enough shit picking up the tab for other people's obesity, and alcohol problems. I don't see why I should have to take on yet more shit because other people want to get stoned.

Get stoned. Kill yourself. I don't care. Just keep it out of my life, you self-centered SOBs.

You know what is interesting about those studies, they don't take into fact that, that is the age when you develop mental illness and that people with a mental illness self medicate.

It is kind of like saying vaccines cause autism.

You know what's suspicious about these so called studies?

Their findings do NOT jibe with reality.

If their findings were true, then schizophrenia would have increased tens of thousands of percent between the WWII generation and the boomers.

Did it?

No, as a matter of fact the rate of incident of schizophrenia in the boomer generation is DOWN in comparison to their fathers.

If I have to explain why REALITY beats a clinical trial for discovering the truth, then no amount of ascii I employ will be enough to have a rational discussion about this subject..

 

[brokenarrow]

MJ can trigger mental illness. Am I going to be paying for other people' self inflicted mental instability?

What about driving under the influence of MJ? Is it gonna be acceptable to kill other people because of your inability to lay off the weed?

I have enough shit picking up the tab for other people's obesity, and alcohol problems. I don't see why I should have to take on yet more shit because other people want to get stoned.

Get stoned. Kill yourself. I don't care. Just keep it out of my life, you self-centered SOBs.

You know what is interesting about those studies, they don't take into fact that, that is the age when you develop mental illness and that people with a mental illness self medicate.

It is kind of like saying vaccines cause autism.

You know what's suspicious about these so called studies?

Their findings do NOT jibe with reality.

If their findings were true, then schizophrenia would have increased tens of thousands of percent between the WWII generation and the boomers.

Did it?

No, as a matter of fact the rate of incident of schizophrenia in the boomer generation is DOWN in comparison to their fathers.

If I have to explain why REALITY beats a clinical trial for discovering the truth, then no amount of ascii I employ will be enough to have a rational discussion about this subject..

Then why when asked, it is hard to find criminals who have NEVER smoked pot?

 

[strollingbones]

nc has a dirty little secret...tax stamps for illegal drugs....you must have tax stamps....for pot and coke...if you do not have these tax stamps when busted you suddenly owe 3x the amount....now bear in mind we are still talking about an illegal drug.

but with that said...tax stamps would make sense....growers would love to be legal, it will take a few season for growers in the us to catch up with growers where there has been free seed exchange and where cloning exchanges can go on.

its really rather simple...i grow a lb of pot...i pay tax stamps for a lb....

or you could do it like they use to do tobacco an acreage allotment where you paid so much to grow an acre of the product regardless of harvest....

here is one of the biggest issues....hard to nail stoned drivers...no quick test that proves you are smoking at the time....so you would have to go to some type of law similar to the open container law that ones has for booze

 

[MikeK]

No one is in prison strictly for personal marijuana use or possession for personal use. That's some of the BS I was hoping to avoid in this discussion. Most marijuana related "crimes" are misdemeanors, not felonies. If a marijuana user is indeed in prison, it's not due to being charged with a misdemeanor, it's because of conviction on a unrelated felony.

With some notable exceptions that essentially is true. However it should not soften the reality that a simple pot bust, for as little as a half-inch roach or a pipe with only residue in the bowl, will result in a (drug offender) criminal record which effectively has ruined the futures of millions of otherwise decent, law-abiding people. And the cost, including police, court and probation activity, for each such arrest cumulatively amounts to billions of utterly wasted tax dollars.

Marijuana prohibition is precisely analogous to the persecution of witches in the early American colonies and in Medieval Europe. It is a goddam shame!