Legalize Marijuana?

[too droll to troll]

Read Jack Herer's book, The Emperor Wears No Clothes. Or view the video, Run From the Cure.
There are few plants on the planet that offer so much...from food, fiber, CO2 capture, and medicine.
The vilification of hemp or cannabis has been one of the greatest canards of the 20th century, foisted by politicos prodded by the pharmaceutical/industrial complex.

[Mike]

Hell no. If the the government legalizes it, there goes my lucrative business.

OK, teasing...but it does make one wonder: with all the money drug dealers have and the harm that legalized weed would do to them, how many politicians are taking under the table bribes to keep it illegal and the big time dealers in business?

[Tyler]

I heard that Obama is going to try and decriminalize it. I don't like Obama, I think he is a total fraud but I do support this one.

[Wallmaster23]

Labrat28 wrote:

The drug war has claimed 6,800 lives in Mexico in the past two years according to the LA times. How much longer are we going to send good people to jail just for indulging in this innocent pastime?
You cannot die from smoking too much pot at once. You can die from alcohol poisoning. In order for the most avid of smokers to quit pot only takes a little willpower since there are no physical symptoms of addiction. The biggest alcoholics can die if not properly treated while drying out. While pot does slow reaction time it does not incapacitate someone as alcohol does, yet while almost 13,000 were killed last year as a result of drunk driving. Possession of a dime bag of weed still gets you put in the pokey.
Who's fault is it really that marijuana is in the hands of organized crime? Is the DEA not busy enough intercepting cocaine and heroin that they need to busy themselves intercepting pot too?
Think of the revenues brought into organized crime by selling 1 gram of marijuana for $20 or more. Think about what our economy could gain just off of the sales tax.
Let's throw away our paranoia's about this "gateway drug" and all the other nonsense we learned watching reefer madness. It's time to legalize it and let people decide for themselves what's good for them. What happened to live free or die?

I`m just a man that was born and raised in Ann Arbor, Mich. To most of us that lived there during the 70`S WEED was not the problem. I tried, unsucessfulliable to achieve a $5.00 ticket by smoking WEED many times in front of the courthouse, the jail, or just by trying to pas a joint to a cop. It amazes me that pot is considered an evil drug. Just ask any glaucomo person. Or, older people that just need it to releave their pain for a short time. Some of us old hippies know that this pot is not the bad one of choice. Look at Meth, heroin, or many others. A little weed is alot better than others.

[HELL YEA]

YES!! that would be great..

[Wallmaster23]

I`d like to say something about weed.

[Wallmaster23]

My Dad served for 5 years in WW11, how he made it out of there is totally amazing. In New Guinie,sp, but, after sufferring through malaria, a couple heart attacks, a brain anyrysium, and countless other afflicted things. He liked to smoke a little to get it up. C`mon everybody.You have to give him a little love. He used to drink with Billy Martin, and Boog Powell. Let alone the Mick. Other than than that, he met 3 of our presidents personally. If you can`t vote for my Daddy and others that were like him, I feel sorry for anyone that wont vote hell yeah for weed.

[Mike]

Xcntrik InVidor wrote:

<quoted text>
Cowards are usually scared a lot.

Well if you scare me you put your self in danger cause I am violent when somebody threatens me are scares me and I do it sober with my bare hands. And lets see who you call coward when some pot smoking driver kills one of your love ones.

[Labrat28]

Now I've never grown pot, so I can't speak from experience. But, when you think about how many ounces of marijuana one plant yields (if it's a high quality plant one ounce can be sold at street value for $300). Then you can really think about how many millions of dollars are going towards organized crime, some localized, but mostly drug cartels over the border.

When you think about it, what was the reason we repealed prohibition? Because of organized crime right?(amongst other factors) Why do we not have this attitude about marijuana when marijuana is a much less harmful drug? Why do we decide to not dirty our hands with these goods and instead allow criminals to become rich with them?

Now wouldn't this do exactly what law enforcement has been trying to accomplish with seizing assets of known traffickers? Hit them financially? If they were forced to compete with innocent merchants wouldn't they just take up their time with other businesses? Riskier businesses that would probably yield more incarcerations and longer sentences?

Or those that really do get into the business of weed for love of weed? Why not decriminalize them, let them set up shop, let them sit behind a counter with their little scale and do what they do now illegally? Let them pay their taxes on it and make an honest living.

Think about tobacco revenues, surgeon general's warnings and such. There shouldn't be any misinformation about the product, it should still be known, it should still be something that is recognized as dangerous if used in excess. But to have it in the same categories as crystal meth, heroin, ecstacy, cocaine, and the lot of really bad drugs that destroy lives and families is a falsehood that should not be allowed to stand.

[Legalize]

Labrat28 wrote:

The drug war has claimed 6,800 lives in Mexico in the past two years according to the LA times. How much longer are we going to send good people to jail just for indulging in this innocent pastime?
You cannot die from smoking too much pot at once. You can die from alcohol poisoning. In order for the most avid of smokers to quit pot only takes a little willpower since there are no physical symptoms of addiction. The biggest alcoholics can die if not properly treated while drying out. While pot does slow reaction time it does not incapacitate someone as alcohol does, yet while almost 13,000 were killed last year as a result of drunk driving. Possession of a dime bag of weed still gets you put in the pokey.
Who's fault is it really that marijuana is in the hands of organized crime? Is the DEA not busy enough intercepting cocaine and heroin that they need to busy themselves intercepting pot too?
Think of the revenues brought into organized crime by selling 1 gram of marijuana for $20 or more. Think about what our economy could gain just off of the sales tax.
Let's throw away our paranoia's about this "gateway drug" and all the other nonsense we learned watching reefer madness. It's time to legalize it and let people decide for themselves what's good for them. What happened to live free or die?

Oregon NORMAL society says that just there state alone would bring in over a million in revenue a year, it would create jobs, and reduce crime. That's information coming from a group of attorneys, if alcohol can be legal, I don't see why marijuana can't; if people only really knew. It is just like a prescription drug; some people can do it and be fine with no side affects and other can't do it. If it were legal, more people might know that.

[Legalize]

Labrat28 wrote:

Now I've never grown pot, so I can't speak from experience. But, when you think about how many ounces of marijuana one plant yields (if it's a high quality plant one ounce can be sold at street value for $300). Then you can really think about how many millions of dollars are going towards organized crime, some localized, but mostly drug cartels over the border.
When you think about it, what was the reason we repealed prohibition? Because of organized crime right?(amongst other factors) Why do we not have this attitude about marijuana when marijuana is a much less harmful drug? Why do we decide to not dirty our hands with these goods and instead allow criminals to become rich with them?
Now wouldn't this do exactly what law enforcement has been trying to accomplish with seizing assets of known traffickers? Hit them financially? If they were forced to compete with innocent merchants wouldn't they just take up their time with other businesses? Riskier businesses that would probably yield more incarcerations and longer sentences?
Or those that really do get into the business of weed for love of weed? Why not decriminalize them, let them set up shop, let them sit behind a counter with their little scale and do what they do now illegally? Let them pay their taxes on it and make an honest living.
Think about tobacco revenues, surgeon general's warnings and such. There shouldn't be any misinformation about the product, it should still be known, it should still be something that is recognized as dangerous if used in excess. But to have it in the same categories as crystal meth, heroin, ecstacy, cocaine, and the lot of really bad drugs that destroy lives and families is a falsehood that should not be allowed to stand.

They say marijuana has more tar then cigarette tobacco. Coming from experience, I've ran out of cigarettes and of course had no weed, so I smoked some cigarette butts through the screened pipe and could only get a couple of drags. I know when you smoke marijuana through a screen pipe, it will go for several more bowels. Now I was sober so I know it wasn't a mystifying illusion.
Now I'm not a marijuana user, but if it were legalized, I would sure embark upon my new legal right; it sure beats rot gut from alcohol.

[Labrat28]

In regards to cancer

This:

http://www.norml.org/index.cfm...

[Labrat28]

I don't understand it, so far the poll shows 3 to 1 in favor of legalization and no one has come in to oppose anything I've posted so far.

So why isn't it legal?

[Freemind]

As a former cop, and a sensible person, I detest marijuana and the fools who smoke it and lurch and stumble around acting like idiots, however, I am for legalizing marijuana. The "war on drugs" at least as far as marijuana is concerned, is un-winnable. Time to give up and use that money elsewhere. Tax the holy hell out of it. Stoners want it so badly, I could see marijuana produced like cigarettes, 20 joints to a pack, and see the stoners paying $10 bucks a pack easy. Could be a nice boost to the ecnomoy. If alcohol is legal, then marijuana should be legal too. It can be regulated in the same way, same penalties for DUI, etc...Marijuana imparment can be clearly determined by a properly administered field soberity test, and vertical gaze nystagmus. I don't entirly like it, but it's time to give the stoners what they want so they can be happy just like the drunks. Just regulate it and punish those who abuse it and/or do stupid things because of it.

[Indigo Child]

Labrat28 wrote:

I don't understand it, so far the poll shows 3 to 1 in favor of legalization and no one has come in to oppose anything I've posted so far.
So why isn't it legal?

I voted yes, most definitely...I'll try to vote again if I can! lol

[Indigo Child]

I just checked the poll and it said 67 in favor and 22 apposed, 66 to be fair because I voted twice! lol

[too droll to troll]

As I said before, hemp has been vilified beyond belief by politicos and the paharma/industrial complex.
Consider this: the original Stars and Stripes sewn by Betsy Ross was done with hemp. The Guttenberg Bible and the Declaration of Independence were printed on paper made from hemp.
Hemp paper out lives papyrus.
And a final note, my dad's military khakis from WWII, made from hemp are still as crisp as new.

[Freemind]

too droll to troll wrote:

As I said before, hemp has been vilified beyond belief by politicos and the paharma/industrial complex.
Consider this: the original Stars and Stripes sewn by Betsy Ross was done with hemp. The Guttenberg Bible and the Declaration of Independence were printed on paper made from hemp.
Hemp paper out lives papyrus.
And a final note, my dad's military khakis from WWII, made from hemp are still as crisp as new.

You gonna roll up you dad's pants and toke on them? Could be the world's biggest fatty. Let's be glad that some stoner from the past didn't get the bright idea of firing up the Declaration. We could have lost one of history's most valuble items so some fool could "party dude".

[Xcntrik InVidor]

Mike wrote:

<quoted text>Well if you scare me you put your self in danger cause I am violent when somebody threatens me are scares me and I do it sober with my bare hands. And lets see who you call coward when some pot smoking driver kills one of your love ones.

You don't need to explain why you're a coward to me.

I could care less.

[gotnatas]

Mike wrote:

It would be good for the 7'11 store when they get the munchies will help out the economy also will bring money for the city when they bust em for driving stone. I feel bad the people killed its bad enough with the drunk driver killing people now the stone driver people will be doing the same.

Now while I don't support being intoxicated while driving or doing any thing else, the intoxication from marijuana is no were near as bad or in the same ball park as alcohol. there was a study on the intoxication of weed a few years back, and it was found that the effects of weed on peoples reaction times was very little.

By contras we should worry more about people talking and texting on cell phones than driving while high.

but people should still wait till there at home to do that stuff.