Duuuddee... Pass the blunt...

[R4GEKILL!!!]

MARIJUANA
Should it be legalized nationwide??? (NOT JUST FOR "MEDICAL" PURPOSES. I MEAN ACTUAL FREE SALE OF MARIJUANA.)

[Megaton666]

Yes. most people on the forum agree.

[Doodles]

Yes. most people on the forum agree.

I wouldn't jump and say most of the people on the forum agree, because the majority of people posting are juvenile and ignorant of the pros and cons of marijuana and are going to post whilst very uneducated in the subject. If you we're to rephrase what you said to "most educated people on the forum agree." I would agree more.


Whilst it is a drug and one could argue a hallucinogenic it would seem it causes as much, if not less damage then cigarettes or alcohol (provided a fair comparison) it is still the drug and does not benefit a healthy person in any way. I'm all for it being used for medical diagnosis, however I don't think it should be free to use for pleasure.

[TheBattleFrontierAsh1]

Let it stay illegal we don't need it.

[R4GEKILL!!!]

Let it stay illegal we don't need it.

Yeah. We kinda do. We could make a ton off the tax dollars, and there have only been 2-5 marijuana related deaths every year. Alcohol is moar dangerous.

[Megaton666]

Let it stay illegal we don't need it.

Shut up!
10char

[ChedWick]

Let it stay illegal we don't need it.

The US economy disagrees with you as well as the DEA's budget.

[R4GEKILL!!!]

The US economy disagrees with you as well as the DEA's budget.

^That
10char

[KickAsh]

The US economy disagrees with you as well as the DEA's budget.

C'mon really? If marijuana is legalized, the DEA will have to come up with a truckload of new regulations to regulate the sale of the drug. They also have to figure out how to catch and punish those who use the drug illegally (like buying it from a dealer on the black market without paying taxes) that will take time, manpower, and a bunch of money. So it really won't help the DEA any. For example, they have to think stuff like, "Do we get the FDA involved in regulating THC?" "How do we deal with the stronger, black market stuff?" "Exactly what about marijuana are we legalizing?".

If weed is legalized, the country won't become a perfect utopia where law enforcement and rules aren't needed. We'll still need the DEA and all that I mentioned above, and plus it won't necessarily save the economy. It's a guarantee that hundreds of people will try to grow their own marijuana and make a profit by selling it without the ($50) tax, because seriously, who wants to pay $50 every time they want to get high? The obvious solution is to monitor and regulate THC, hemp, and whatever, right? But that goes back to the DEA, who will have to deal with the strain of doing that and will definitely not be happy that marijuana was legalized.

[R4GEKILL!!!]

C'mon really? If marijuana is legalized, the DEA will have to come up with a truckload of new regulations to regulate the sale of the drug. They also have to figure out how to catch and punish those who use the drug illegally (like buying it from a dealer on the black market without paying taxes) that will take time, manpower, and a bunch of money. So it really won't help the DEA any.

If weed is legalized, the country won't become a perfect utopia where law enforcement and rules aren't needed. We'll still need the DEA and all that I mentioned above, and plus it won't necessarily save the economy. It's a guarantee that hundreds of people will try to grow their own marijuana and make a profit by selling it without a tax. The obvious solution is to monitor and regulate THC, hemp, and whatever, right? But that goes back to the DEA, who will have to deal with the strain of doing that and will definitely not be happy that marijuana was legalized.

What he meant is that they'll have a lot less work. And people will still buy it legally. Look at music. It's availible for free on the internet, but people still use itunes like retards.

[KickAsh]

What he meant is that they'll have a lot less work. And people will still buy it legally. Look at music. It's availible for free on the internet, but people still use itunes like retards.

And my point is that the DEA won't have a lot less work, and that it is quite possible legalizing marijuana would give them a bigger workload.

To me, all these arguments are bull****. The economy, medicinal marijuana, etc. Pro-marijuana advocates don't really care about that. They just want to get stoned and not have to worry about being thrown in jail for it.

[Mariya Shidou]

C'mon really? If marijuana is legalized, the DEA will have to come up with a truckload of new regulations to regulate the sale of the drug. They also have to figure out how to catch and punish those who use the drug illegally (like buying it from a dealer on the black market without paying taxes) that will take time, manpower, and a bunch of money. So it really won't help the DEA any. For example, they have to think stuff like, "Do we get the FDA involved in regulating THC?" "How do we deal with the stronger, black market stuff?" "Exactly what about marijuana are we legalizing?".

Easily answered questions:
#1: Because they regulate tobacco, I think they probably would.
#2: We arrest the dealers and seize their drugs, possibly for redistribution. (Here's another simple solution: We introduce, commercially, a large variety of types of marijuana of varying strengths. We do this already with tobacco; cf. cigars, where you can probably find, if you look, all varieties from double claro all the way up through oscuro.)
#3: Use and possession, possibly cultivation if people actually get their hands on seeds.

Really, adjusting laws is probably less of a problem than you're implying, and absolutely not a reason to not legalize. Any costs will be paid for by the revenue generated by marijuana taxes and reduction in costs spend on regulation (because those costs will be reduced, unless the government ****s up REALLY badly).

Nice ad-hominem later, though. Why don't you ask Paul Armentano at NORML about that and find out how wrong you are. In fact, you don't have to: read these arguments. That's a lot of work and legit scientists on a case for something that's, in your words, "just [because they] want to get stoned and not have to worry about being thrown in jail for it."

What he meant is that they'll have a lot less work. And people will still buy it legally. Look at music. It's availible for free on the internet, but people still use itunes like retards.

I would maintain that that's a different issue (supporting the artist).

The ironic thing is that I see people from the anti-smoking thread supporting Marijuana use here.

Maybe I forgot what irony is somewhere down the way, but smoking marijuana is far from the only way to take it. So, there's no irony here. Anti-smoking people who support legalizing pot are not necessarily supporting the smoking of it... or even the use of it. They're just saying it should be legal.

[R4GEKILL!!!]

Easily answered questions:
#1: Because they regulate tobacco, I think they probably would.
#2: We arrest the dealers and seize their drugs, possibly for redistribution. (Here's another simple solution: We introduce, commercially, a large variety of types of marijuana of varying strengths. We do this already with tobacco; cf. cigars, where you can probably find, if you look, all varieties from double claro all the way up through oscuro.)
#3: Use and possession, possibly cultivation if people actually get their hands on seeds.

Really, adjusting laws is probably less of a problem than you're implying, and absolutely not a reason to not legalize. Any costs will be paid for by the revenue generated by marijuana taxes and reduction in costs spend on regulation (because those costs will be reduced, unless the government ****s up REALLY badly).

Nice ad-hominem later, though. Why don't you ask Paul Armentano at NORML about that and find out how wrong you are. In fact, you don't have to: read these arguments. That's a lot of work and legit scientists on a case for something that's, in your words, "just [because they] want to get stoned and not have to worry about being thrown in jail for it."



I would maintain that that's a different issue (supporting the artist).

There already is a large variety of marijuana strands. Have you ever been to a marijuana shop in california? It's pretty facinating S.hit.
(Sorry for double post. damn lag.)

[KickAsh]

Nice ad-hominem later, though. Why don't you ask Paul Armentano at NORML about that and find out how wrong you are. In fact, you don't have to: read these arguments. That's a lot of work and legit scientists on a case for something that's, in your words, "just [because they] want to get stoned and not have to worry about being thrown in jail for it."

I'm not denying that marijuana has medicinal uses. I'm just saying that the vast majority of the pro-marijuana group don't care about that. They don't have cancer, they just want to get high. And if we do legalize medical marijuana, as 14 states and Washington, D.C. already have, its a guarantee we will see an upshot in people having "chronic pains" or using it for "stress relief".

And while marijuana can be used medicinally, it can also go way the other direction. Marijuana causes the heart rate to shoot up between 20% and 100%--making marijuana smokers 5 times as likely to have a heart attack right after smoking. In younger smokers, it can stunt basic emotional development and cause paranoia in their still-growing brains. And if you have an anxiety disorder, marijuana may actually cause a panic attacks. Overall, marijuana users are more likely to get sick and miss work than non-users. And finally, it hasn't been proven, but it's been suggested that marijuana may causes schizophrenia in young users. Not to mention, smoking in general is bad for you--it deteriorates lung tissue.

I can link to things, too.
Here's the heart rate study. Here's the panic attack one. This is the one about paranoia. The one regarding illness. Here's the one that contends marijuana causes schizophrenia.

Yes really. Maybe you didn't think your comments through very well but the budget for the war on drugs is outstanding. All to stop the import of it, the low level sell of it and street level use/possession of it. Make it legal and the need for black market trafficking greatly goes down as well as the need to stop it. Legalize it and we cut down on the need to try and jail non-violent "criminals." Coming up with new regulations wont take long. The government even with its habit of not ever doing anything constantly come up with hundred page proposals as if they are making instant mac. The tax argument you have isn't the DEA problem, it's an IRS problem and like the majority of other stuff bought and sold between street dealers will likely have a blind eye turned to them.

Do you realize the War on Drugs is international and targets more than just marijuana, right? Legalizing marijuana won't stop the war on drugs, and if it does lower the cost of the WoD it won't be a huge difference at all. The U.S. gives hundreds of millions of dollars to Colombia alone, and Colombia isn't distributing marijuana, it's mostly exporting cocaine. If we make marijuana legal, we still have to help Colombia with cocaine. And that's just one example.
And yes, black market distribution of marijuana will go down, but it won't stop altogether. The proposed tax on marijuana (the one that would "fix" the economy) is $50. You know as well as I do that people won't want to pay $50 to get high, so there will still be black market sales of marijuana. And just because someone is non-violent doesn't mean they aren't a criminal. That's ridiculous. Prisons are full of robbers, embezzlers, etc. Do you remember Bernard Madoff? How about Rod Blagojevich? Neither of them committed acts of violence, but do you consider them criminals?
Ok, even if coming up with new regulations doesn't take long, it will still be a pain to enforce. It's easier for the DEA when everything about marijuana falls under the umbrella of "illegal". If heavier types of marijuana are illegal, etc, the DEA has a harder time because it has to investigate, test the sample, and more before it can tell if the weed is illegal or not. So it won't save time for the DEA.

[Skorge]

Let it stay illegal we don't need it.

Marijuana can aid in fighting some diseases and conditions, but most people don't need to be smoking since they don't have conditions and it is currently against the law (in most places)

[Hejiru]

I've heard it's less dangerous than alcohol, so I don't see why not. We already waste a lot of police resources of this reletively harmless drug. But then, I'm no expert.

Also, COMIC SAAAAAANSSSS!

[Mariya Shidou]

I've heard it's less dangerous than alcohol, so I don't see why not. We already waste a lot of police resources of this reletively harmless drug. But then, I'm no expert.

It is. I'd have to dig up the Lancet article, but marijuana is less addictive and less harmful than either tobacco or alcohol, both of which are legal. Marijuana contains tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which, as we know, has various health benefits, up to and including staving off cancer.

Legalizing Marijuana and levying a tax on it could save us a huge amount of money... not only by making a major cut to spending on the Drug War (I think possession of marijuana is actually classified as a greater crime than possession of cocaine, but I could be wrong on this one.), but also by raising revenue from sales of marijuana.

Legalizing and taxing marijuana is a good thing. End of story. I also believe that if you oppose its legalization, you should also be in favor of illegalizing tobacco and alcohol, but this is personal opinion.

[Lightning Raider]

[QUOTE=Mariya Shidou;13196503]It is. I'd have to dig up the Lancet article, but marijuana is less addictive and less harmful than either tobacco or alcohol, both of which are legal. Marijuana contains tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) which, as we know, has various health benefits, up to and including staving off cancer.

Yes, THC is the medicine used to help treat nausea which people prefer to smoke than take tablets as it is easier to control and prevent an overdose. A great reason alone to legalize marijuana.

Legalizing and taxing marijuana is a good thing. End of story. I also believe that if you oppose its legalization, you should also be in favor of illegalizing tobacco and alcohol, but this is personal opinion.

Agreed. If the government legalizes marijuana, then they can tax it, control the potency and the purity (to check the marijuana isn't spiked or laced with other crap) to reduce health risks. Legalizing marijuana would boost revenue and remove the 'anti-social' tag it has. It's a win, win situation for everyone, especially me as I currently have a police warning for being caught smoking marijuana and now I got to hide it in my socks when I go pick some up :/

[lugia p]

Agreed. If the government legalizes marijuana, then they can tax it, control the potency and the purity (to check the marijuana isn't spiked or laced with other crap) to reduce health risks. Legalizing marijuana would boost revenue and remove the 'anti-social' tag it has. It's a win, win situation for everyone, especially me as I currently have a police warning for being caught smoking marijuana and now I got to hide it in my socks when I go pick some up :/

It's very easy to grow taxing wouldnt work well unless they kept it illegal to grow. Then I can see someone driving to a handy store and buys a pack like they would cigarattes, and gets high on the way home and boom he thought the minivan was a giant hot dog and starts chasing it and dies in a crash or kills others.

[Lightning Raider]

It's very easy to grow taxing wouldnt work well unless they kept it illegal to grow. Then I can see someone driving to a handy store and buys a pack like they would cigarattes, and gets high on the way home and boom he thought the minivan was a giant hot dog and starts chasing it and dies in a crash or kills others.

Yes if marijuana was legalized, the taxes would be obviously reasonable to prevent growers needing to sell it in the black market to avoid high taxes. The supply and demand for marijuana would be higher if marijuana is legal and taxes would be a fair price for that.

Then I can see someone driving to a handy store and buys a pack like they would cigarattes, and gets high on the way home and boom he thought the minivan was a giant hot dog and starts chasing it and dies in a crash or kills others.

You have a wild sense of imagination.