Marijuana

[thefiestygoat]

I have never smoked pot, and I never will. I can really go either way if it should be legal or illegal, as long as no one bothers me, then I don't care what other people do on their time, with their money.

[TravisZajac]

I smoke one time WEED,one time HASCH

I will never smoke again...Never.I'm not that type of guy..

[LetsGoDevils]

Keep it illegal.

[squishyx]

Alchohol and Marijuana are both impairing agents and thus create situations where you are more likely to hurt other innocent people then if you didnt consume either substance. They should both be banned and outlawed, the problem with the former is its pretty much grandfathered in since its so socially acceptable. While pot might even predate the use of alchohol it just never because a societal norm atleast in this country. Its never been legal therefore its hard to switch, same with alchohol except reversed, its always been legal and as we learned in the turn of the century very hard to make illegal.

Im an avid drinker, so that statemnt is kind of hippocritical but I would surrender my rights to consume alchohol in a second if it meant no more drunk driving accidents.

There is no benefit to legalizing pot.

[Guest]

Alchohol and Marijuana are both impairing agents and thus create situations where you are more likely to hurt other innocent people then if you didnt consume either substance. They should both be banned and outlawed, the problem with the former is its pretty much grandfathered in since its so socially acceptable. While pot might even predate the use of alchohol it just never because a societal norm atleast in this country. Its never been legal therefore its hard to switch, same with alchohol except reversed, its always been legal and as we learned in the turn of the century very hard to make illegal.

Im an avid drinker, so that statemnt is kind of hippocritical but I would surrender my rights to consume alchohol in a second if it meant no more drunk driving accidents.

There is no benefit to legalizing pot.

[Derek21]

I don't care either way. Whatever makes people happy. I don't smoke either.

[Guest]

I don't care either way. Whatever makes people happy. I don't smoke either.

[Guest]

First they came for the Jews

and I did not speak out

because I was not a Jew.

Then they came for the Communists

and I did not speak out

because I was not a Communist.

Then they came for the trade unionists

and I did not speak out

because I was not a trade unionist.

Then they came for me

and there was no one left

to speak out for me.

"Speak out so everyone knows how you think,and the knife makers will be out of business."

- Kicksave Brodeur!!

[Guest]

I guess thats why I've always liked guns

[annabelle]

I used to use it every day/night/evening/holidays..lol Whatever was pretty hardcore but don't anymore for various reasons. I don't see why it shouldn't be legalied..think of how mch the gov could make off of it if it were legal......maybe thats a reason for it not to be.

The fact is that it doesn't matter, legal or not people who smoke pot are going to do it regardless..

[ghdi]

sorry for the long winded post

The problem with the prohibition of marijuana is that the gov't overstates its harm to the public. That said, the benefits are also overstated by the supporters of legalization. Like anything, it can be abused. Those of you have never smoked, or say it should still be illegal, I wonder why. Once you've used it, you see for yourself that its not that much different (in terms of impairment) than having 3 or 4 cocktails and if you dont like the effects, thats just you. Gateway drug is BS as well, I would say cigarettes and alcohol are more of a gateway to illegal intoxicants simply because of the abundance/legality of them and the fact kids are exposed to both at early ages. I didnt discover pot till I was in HS but I stole one of my grandmothers cigarettes at age 7 just to see what it was, and I was sometimes allowed a sip of beer from my dad at about that same age. A cigarette buzz does a lot to a psyche, especially if thats your first intoxicated moment.

I don't think legalization is the answer though. I think an across the board lifting of the prohibition would do more harm than good at the beginning, but decriminalization or at the very least a major lessening of penalties at the federal and most state levels is warranted, the federal penalties alone are so archaic it's not even funny. Imagine going to federal prison for a year because you had a pound of pot in your house? The same amount that first time assaults, and some sex crimes get. I can understand penalties for marijuana on some levels but most of the people doing time for it should never get as long as they sometimes do.

The positives to it being decriminalized (contrary to belief it is not "legal" in the Netherlands, its decriminalized, there are limits to possession amounts) are huge. The massive amounts of money spent by countless administrations on the so called "war on drugs" would be lessened as a major amount of that goes to fighting marijuana on both the FL, Mexican and Canadian borders. There would be less people put in jail amongst violent offenders for selling weed. The quality could be controlled and it would virtually eliminate the black market that exists in virtually every town in this country. Taxation alone would show an immediate spike in gov't surplus, especially considering that as of 2006, marijuana was the biggest cash crop in the US http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=2735017&page=1 it's cheap to produce and with gov't oversight it can be controlled at virtually every level from THC level to pesticide usage. Hell, most of the best weed in the united states comes from the gov't themselves in places that allow medicinal use and the few pot dispensaries for those with prescriptions. The Alaska experiment has worked for a few years now, and although the population is much sparser up there (its decriminalized to have an ounce in possession but all sale is illegal), it still shows that Americans can handle it.

The negatives are there though, although there is a argument that alcohol, cigarettes and even some prescription drugs are far worse, its still something that can be abused and the culture surrounding it now promotes recreational use so it has to be treated as something that can potentially cause problems, however there are benefits to it especially when suffering from certain diseases/ailments like glaucoma or to counteract the side-effects of chemotherapy and radiation treatments. If alcohol and cigarettes and major narcotic prescriptions can be controlled, so can marijuana. Don't give me the kid argument either, when I was in HS it was easier to get a dimebag than it was to get a pack of cigarettes.

It's a shame that marijuana is so stigmatized in the US in terms of a law level. I implore all of you, especially those with a negative perception to watch "In Pot We Trust" which is a recent documentary that aired on Showtime, it has people from both sides of the argument speaking about the issue.

Edited September 8, 2007 by ghdi

[Eltab213]

Its never been legal therefore its hard to switch

Edited September 8, 2007 by Eltab213

[LizDevil30]

Eh that Jefferson what they hell did he know.

Edited September 8, 2007 by LizDevil30

[squishyx]

"Those who desire to give up Freedom in order to gain Security, will not have, nor do they deserve, either one." Thomas Jefferson

[Don]

I dont consider the right to smoke pot or consume alchohol a freedom. I consider it a luxary that I would sacrifice to save the lives of my fellow man who I may or may never meet. You can quote old dead guys until you are blue in the face but if you think Mr. Jefferson wouldn't make the same statement I made before or any rationale caring person on the planet, then you are dillusional.

[ghdi]

I dont consider the right to smoke pot or consume alchohol a freedom. I consider it a luxary that I would sacrifice to save the lives of my fellow man who I may or may never meet. You can quote old dead guys until you are blue in the face but if you think Mr. Jefferson wouldn't make the same statement I made before or any rationale caring person on the planet, then you are dillusional.

Edited September 8, 2007 by ghdi

[Super 17]

Edited September 8, 2007 by Super 17

[Guest]

The problem with this logic is that there's millions of people who wouldnt agree. They tried prohibition before and it led to one of the biggest crime waves in US history. Taking away a freedom is exponentially worse than giving one. Especially one that generations of Americans have had for decades. It would hurt every single bar owner, liquor store owner and convienience store owners.

I completely respect the sentiment but the ramifications from another era of alcohol prohibition would be ten times worse than the rise of Al Capone, prohibition does nothing but promote organized crime. Same with illegal drugs and foreign cartels and domestic drug runners.

In your lifetime, in my lifetime it's never been legal.

There was a time in this country when cocaine was even legal but it was abused. Marijuana prohibition started in the 30s because of idiots with agendas who demonized it for their own gains. The stigma surrounding it in this country is almost absurd.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_history...e_United_States

[Don]

From the Wikipedia article

In 1938, DuPont patented the processes for creating plastics from coal and oil and a new process for creating paper from wood pulp. If hemp would have been largely exploited and also become a comercial success, it would have likely been used to make paper and plastic, and may have hurt DuPont’s profits. Andrew Mellon of the Mellon Bank was DuPont's chief financial backer and was also the Secretary of Treasury under the Hoover administration.

Edited September 9, 2007 by Don

[XxLancerHockeyxX]

I dont smoke, I've never smoke and I dont plan on smoking. I cant stand pot heads. They piss me off to no extent.

Dude17's picture pretty much says it all. Lmao. My friend Dan smokes quite a bit and his reactions and responses are so slow...its quite sad.

I dont know..do people like think they are cool or something when they smoke? Because they aren't. They look like a bunch of a$$holes and most teens only smoke because they think it will make them cool and .... frankly, it doesnt.

Ps. Crack is also whack.

Edited September 8, 2007 by XxLancerHockeyPridexX

[stevestevens]

Yeah pot is very stupid and not anything i would ever use or try. Its gross because most of the time they are made in dirty places who want profit so they just move it out.

[LizDevil30]

I dont smoke, I've never smoke and I dont plan on smoking. I cant stand pot heads. They piss me off to no extent.

Dude17's picture pretty much says it all. Lmao. My friend Dan smokes quite a bit and his reactions and responses are so slow...its quite sad.

I dont know..do people like think they are cool or something when they smoke? Because they aren't. They look like a bunch of a$$holes and most teens only smoke because they think it will make them cool and .... frankly, it doesnt.

Ps. Crack is also whack.

[Eltab213]

I dont smoke, I've never smoke and I dont plan on smoking. I cant stand pot heads. They piss me off to no extent.

Dude17's picture pretty much says it all. Lmao. My friend Dan smokes quite a bit and his reactions and responses are so slow...its quite sad.

I dont know..do people like think they are cool or something when they smoke? Because they aren't. They look like a bunch of a$$holes and most teens only smoke because they think it will make them cool and .... frankly, it doesnt.

Ps. Crack is also whack.

Edited September 8, 2007 by Eltab213

[Eltab213]

I dont consider the right to smoke pot or consume alchohol a freedom. I consider it a luxary that I would sacrifice to save the lives of my fellow man who I may or may never meet. You can quote old dead guys until you are blue in the face but if you think Mr. Jefferson wouldn't make the same statement I made before or any rationale caring person on the planet, then you are dillusional.

Driving is considered to be a luxury and not a "freedom", should we sacrifice that because it could "save the lives of my fellow man who I may or may never meet" ?

My point is, you should never surrender a freedom or "luxury" as you call it, because it *could* save lives. Would you surrender your privacy rights, if it prevented terrorist attacks, or your second amendment right, so that no one would die from firearms?

[ghdi]

I dont smoke, I've never smoke and I dont plan on smoking. I cant stand pot heads. They piss me off to no extent.

Dude17's picture pretty much says it all. Lmao. My friend Dan smokes quite a bit and his reactions and responses are so slow...its quite sad.

I dont know..do people like think they are cool or something when they smoke? Because they aren't. They look like a bunch of a$$holes and most teens only smoke because they think it will make them cool and .... frankly, it doesnt.

Ps. Crack is also whack.

how do you feel about people who drink or smoke cigarettes?

I'm fine with people not wanting to smoke or not liking it or what not, but the absolute cluelessness and stererotyping of this post is absurd. Not everyone who fires up a joint occasionally is a blithering idiot or stinky hippie with no aim in life. There's a big difference between a stoner and a occasional user or even someone who smokes a joint after work every day, same as theres a difference between an alcoholic and someone who goes to the bar once or twice a week or has a drink every night after work.

The point is, marijuana ABUSE is bad, same as alcohol abuse, painkiller abuse, etc is bad. There's a difference between abuse and use. Hell, you can abuse McDonalds and Id say a Big Mac a day is a lot worse in the long run than a joint a day.

Edited September 8, 2007 by ghdi