Marijuana Legalization
American pot smokers have been punished with everything from life in prison to having one's "mellow harshed." Like their early 20th Century teetotaling counterparts, marijuana prohibitionists appeal to public health and safety.
Both Sides of the Issue (According to the Internet)
1. According to advocates, marijuana was made illegal in 1937 thanks to a wide-ranging conspiracy involving the manufacturers of paper, textiles, plastic and racism, all of which they say would be put out of business if hemp was made legal.
2. Despite the prohibition, more than 40 percent of Americans over age 12 have tried marijuana and were subsequently willing to say so on a survey.
3. In light of the recent economic collapse, many are asking if the legalization and taxation of marijuana can save the economy, though critics claim this campaign is driven by corporate lobbyists for Taco Bell and Frito-Lay.
4. President Barack Obama took a question about marijuana legalization during a townhall meeting in 2009, but implied that the Internet in fact does not care about bolstering tax revenue, but only wants to openly light up their bong on the sidewalk outside Chipotle. Thus, many pro-Obama Internet commenters have now switched their support back to Ron Paul.
5. Contrary to President Obama's claim, the Internet has come up with a number of economic arguments for marijuana legalization, and has even gone through the trouble of getting high and Photoshopping some of them for us, such as:
Creating new industries
by Gh0st
Bolstering existing industries
by badephemeris
by Necbromancer
Bolstering industries that the government pretends don't exist
Making certain tourist industries way more appealing
And even making the space race interesting again
by ponposessed
Forcing youths to find creative outlets besides hiding places for weed
by Navigator2001Plus
and MadPiper6
Despite how amazing it would be to see it legalized, I kind of doubt it will happen. Seriously, if it's legalized, do you know much less money various corporations are gonna make? Private prisons, considering a majority of prisoners are in prison on drug charges, and pharmaceutical companies (I can see the anti-depressant market losing money at least)will make so much less money. Depressing, but whoever said legalizing it was a good idea anyways. As someone below said, the price would probably rise to absurd amounts. Plus it makes me feel like a rebel. I like feeling like a bad ass.
ReplyI have never had a negative experience with weed. I have a 4.0 GPA at UNCA, have never been in trouble with the law, and have never had a crazy experience with weed. The only effect I have had is a very calming, happy high. I have never known anyone that has had a bad experience, excluding minor law violations which have only included possession and paraphernalia.
ReplyNow, what I do know is that smoking it is harmful. Vaporizing it significantly decreases the harmful effects as it is delivered through water vapor rather than harsh, tar-ridden smoke. I'm not claiming to be an expert or anything, but there is a safer alternative to smoking.
One more thing, calling people idiots for smoking is just silly.
"It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it." -Aristotle.
This was boring and unfunny. Oh wait, it was about weed! Silly me!
ReplyMaybe it would be better if cracked just avoided political bias
ReplyDon't listen to these marijuana supporting douche-bags. They are just some cousin-banging losers who dropped out of high school so they could smoke marijuana and dwell in their parents basements for the rest of their lives...
Reply Hide All See All 4 RepliesYou're right. We should drink instead and become belligerent, beer swilling pigs who dropped out of high school because of the all night partying and take out the frustration of having to work at burger hell by beating our wives until we eventually get pulled over by cops for speeding, swear at them and try to fight them because we're piss ass drunk and finally head to jail where we can be everyone's best friend..whether we want to or not :p. Ain't life grand.
To Mr_Meng: Or you could just not do either, and be a productive member of society.
@SandMan Or you could just do both (separatly) in moderation and be a productive member of society.
I smoke marijuana and I have a 3.8 GPA at The University of Michigan...
I think one thing we can all agree on is that if marijuana is ever legalized 'Doctor Who' ratings are going to skyrocket, eventually reach critical mass, and then collapse, forming a wibbly wobbly, timey wimey hole in the universe that will lead to the Doctor actually coming to our reality.
ReplyWelp, first time I've ever used up all my downvotes. So many idiots on both sides of the argument, it is ridiculous.
ReplyI'm writing a research paper for AP English on why the prohibition of marijuana is silly :p Yay for having a brain AND blazing!
ReplyI think people get too caught up in the "moral" or "health" reasons to legalize or not legalize marijuana. What it really comes down to is the government shouldn't be making our choices for us. Perhaps some people think smoking marijuana is bad decision making. That doesn't mean there should be a law against it. We should be free to make our own bad or good decisions.
Reply Hide All See All 6 Repliesthat would be a moral reason
My argument for legalization goes like this: I want to get high. That is all the argument you should need, provided I'm notI hurting anyone. And if smoking cannabis has some health perks, that's awesome, but it isn't why I'll be smoking.
The entire reason for government existing is to make choices for us. The entire reason for laws existing is to tell us what we can or cannot do. I don't necessarily hate pot, but all this libertarian "the government can't tell us what to do!" argument is really stupid.
Also,
"My argument for legalization goes like this: I want to get high. That is all the argument you should need, provided I'm notI hurting anyone."
Yeah, it's the last half of that sentence there - that's the rub, ain't it? The fact is that if you ingest substances that change the way you think and act and perceive things, you can't just wave your hand and say "I should be able to do what I want without no gubmint getting in the way!" Forty years ago you heard the exact same thing about people driving while drunk. It's not that simple, folks.
"The entire reason for government existing is to make choices for us. The entire reason for laws existing is to tell us what we can or cannot do. I don't necessarily hate pot, but all this libertarian "the government can't tell us what to do!" argument is really stupid."
first, this misses the point; secondly, it contains an incorrect assertion (that laws can tell you what you CAN do).
the point is that laws are only justified in expense, effect or constitutionality if the harm they prevent is greater than the harm caused by the law (in cost, prison terms or infringement of personal rights).
the argument rests on the idea that cannabis smoking (please let's use the correct term) has very few health consequences, and thus the prevention of people smoking is not justifiable compared to the minimal harm possible.
libertarian does not mean no government, no legislation, no influence whatsoever; most libertarians accept the morality of, for example, being compelled to stop at stop signs.
"Yeah, it's the last half of that sentence there - that's the rub, ain't it? The fact is that if you ingest substances that change the way you think and act and perceive things, you can't just wave your hand and say "I should be able to do what I want without no gubmint getting in the way!" Forty years ago you heard the exact same thing about people driving while drunk. It's not that simple, folks."
cannabis is objectively less harmful than driving drunk; it's objectively less harmful than WALKING drunk. the crux of the argument is that it doesn't harm others, and we can easily make that argument; cigarettes kill tens of thousands of people a year, but the tax on cigarettes covers their medical bills AND THEN SOME. any argument that cannabis is more deadly is ridiculous, given the statistics, meaning that even a moderate tax on cannabis would more than pay for the medical bills associated with cannabis' health effects. beyond that, the only way it could harm someone is passive smoke, and there are already laws in place to prevent that (the smoking ban) or through the criminal aspects of its supply, which cannot be controlled UNLESS it is legalise.
it is important to note that the phrase is not "decriminalize it", it's "LEGALIZE" it. legalise it means "legislate and license it", in a similar fashion to the sale of alcohol. can we just take a moment and compare the deaths from bootleg liquor and gang violence during prohibition compared to the deaths from bootleg liquor and gang violence immediately before prohibition?
even if you deny that licensing would have the same effect as it did on prohibition-era methanol blindness statistics, you've still got to note that a street dealer makes a tiny profit because overheads are massive, risk is intense and marketing is virtually impossible. any moderately-sized company could force street dealers out of business; the current price for cannabis where I live is a markup of thousands of percent over the costs of manufacture, because it has to pay for import, chains of people used to insulate dealers from growers, inability to do anything about a stolen shipment... and it still doesn't make the dealers at street level any money.
I guess as usual we'll just have to agree to disagree. I don't think you understood what I said, and used it to get on a legalize-pot soapbox - as if what I said was that pot was "deadly" in any way, shape or form.
I'm not going to even attempt to counter the argument "pot should be legalized" on a website that consists of 85% 18-30 year old readers. Just please try not to argue with strawmen you've set up. It's annoying to your opponent and a logical fallacy.
You guys don't have to ''agree to disagree'', you brought bogus claims and anaris well argued how you were wrong.
Marijuana doesn't cure cancer you idiots, it's basically a painkiller. It helps you ignore the pain while cancer kills you. You might as well be saying Advil cures colds, or turning off the lights cures epilepsy.
Reply Hide All See All 7 RepliesAlso, if marijuana was legalized, the price wouldn't go down. You know all that money that's supposedly getting taken off because the drug is legal? The government will tax the living hell out of your weed.
No price change, just easier to get...
"...or turning off the lights cures epilepsy. "
I know what you're going for, but that was really dumb on so many levels.
Price would definitely change. Look at what happened with alcohol during prohibition. Illegal > price increase, huge profits for 'suppliers' Legal > price decrease, I can buy a half gallon for ten bucks[making it so cheap you have to be a HARDCORE alky to go broke buying the stuff] and the gov't still makes tons in revenue through taxation[and fines related to it's use].
Also, comparing "Mafia" to "Afro Man" isn't exactly accurate[though made me laugh]. It's more like "American Mafia" to "Mexican/Jamacan Mafia, and to a lesser extent, very few Americans who manage to make a fortune off of smuggling or growing]. At least during prohibition it offered income for more Americans[albeit illegal income]. All pot criminalization does is outsource our drug manufacturing industry[keep in mind, legal or illegal, industry is still industry, and we cut ourselves off from it].
yeah, but that's just it: all that taxation would greatly benefit our economy.
cannabis (using the correct term might improve my confidence in your scientific know-how) has been shown in some studies to reduce the sizes of tumours.
that is as close to curing cancer as can be got.
Wrong Skippy, more and more studies have shown some promising results in eradicating cancer. Prices would definitely go down for cannabis just as it did for other previously prohibited substances. Remove the risk and the black market and the price plummets. Don't be such an a*****e when you don't know what the f**k you are talking about. http://www.rawstory.com/rawreplay/2011/08/pbs-documentary-sheds-light-on-marijuanas-cancer-killing-properties/
Pot should be legea for several reasons. Less violence south of the border paid for by smuggling effects. Note:smuggling related violence is bad. just so ya know. I personely don't want American money paying for a civil war just a few miles from Our border(over it in some casese) And yes tax money is sorta the point. Legealize it and buy American brand pot! And I thank you in advance for the asuming that every one who has a diffent view point is an idiot. We know it's for pain managment it's common knowledge. Any way have fun!
There are components in canabis that inhibit the growth of tumors. Surely you can see how that can help against cancer?
As well as legalising it, I think one of the most important things to do is to educate people about it more. Everyone knows the bad effects that alcohol causes but not that many people seem to know about the negative effects of marijuana - a lot of people seem to assume it's 100% harmless when in actual fact it isn't. Now don't get me wrong, I'm all for legalising it and I have nothing against people who want to use it, but people should be educated to use it responsibly and to know of the bad effects so that they don't overindulge in it thinking that no bad can come of it.
Reply Hide All See All 3 RepliesYeah, bad s**t can happen if you don't know what you're getting into. Like two hour freak-outs hiding in your boyfriend's cousins bedroom. Not touching that again!
The problem is that DARE didn't exactly educate people about it very well. Cry wolf, and... well...
i hear ya. i think people should have the right to put whatever kind of smoke they want into their lungs, but i get a little irritated when people act like it isn't still a drug. doesn't mean it will kill you, that's just what it is. a drug.
There is a simple test to determine if someone is high. Ask them about snozberries.
ReplyThey were disappointing. They tasted like wallpaper.
Figure out an effective road side test that LEOs can use to test drivers and I'll rethink my position, but until that's an easy thing to do, they're not the same issue. I don't know the medical details concerning THC, and I know there are people who are practiced at hiding the signs(which isnt possible with alcohol), but maybe a blood test/finger prick? They're minimally invasive, but I'm sure it would never be approved. Clearly written by someone on one side of the argument.
Reply Hide All See All 9 RepliesI have to say I agree with you to an extant. I'm pro 4/20 myself however, not having a cheap, easy, and constitutional test for marijuana creates a severe problem with "legal limit of thc". The tests exist. However price becomes an issue. Also whats the legal limit of thc before your judgement becomes "impaired"?
by that logic, all prescription medication (xanax, painkillers, etc.) should be illegal because there is no roadside test to tell if someone is on them and too impaired to drive
Solid comparison, Xanax is exactly as accessible as marijuana. Regardless, the amount of people who use those recreationally is a vastly smaller number than regular marijuana users, so it's not a great comparison. I'm not trying to ruin anyone's 420 crusade, but there are plenty of more issues than "if more rich white people smoked weed it would have already been legalized dude!"
Why not just use the already existing laws that deal with reckless driving? The drunk driving laws are superfluous and are just another way to tack on expenses. Basically, reckless driving, for any reason, should be dealt with. The reason for it is irrelevant.
Driving under the influence isn't only about reckless driving, barbiturates(marijuana included) slow your reaction time. You could be driving relatively well until you had to react to something, and then be unableto do so in time. That's why it's a separate law from reckless driving, not because "the man" wants to tack on an extra fine.
Okay, well first Marijuana isn't considered a barbiturate, it is a Psychotropic and creates a state of relaxation first in the mind and then in the body. It is possible that reaction time may be affected in certain individuals as Marijuana effects every differently but an experienced smoker with a tolerance should have no problem driving. I agree with you that People should not operate a car while impaired, but i have never heard of anyone getting into an crash while high only on marijuana. And i know from my experience driving while High feel's basically the same as when sober except I DON'T GET f*****g PISSED OFF WHEN SOMEONES DRIVING LIKE AN IDIOT. But ultimately its up to the individual to deiced if getting into a car will endanger the life's of others (unless your black out drunk... then its your friends responsibility)
isn't possible with alcohol? wow..i..i cannot help you if that is honestly what you think.
Hiding the effects of alcohol is all too possible for hardcore alcoholics. I personally had a colleague that always drove drunk, as we found out. You couldn't tell, and neither could the police. Despite several routine checks over the years, he wasn't stopped until a cautious police officer decided to give him a breathalyzer test for good measure. So over the limit you wouldn't believe it.
By the way, there are now efficient roadside tests for marijuana, but they're not that widespread yet.
Australian scientists did a test that showed statistically, those under the influence cannabis are no more likely to cause accidents or harm than sober drivers.
"Im a bluntsmith, and i love two things: Splitting cigars and filling them with fuzzy gold...yeesss."
ReplyYou know what sounds good? If someone would take soft serve ice cream and deep fry it very quickly in funnel cake batter, so you would have the crunchy sweetness of a doughnut with an ice cream center. Has this happened yet? HAS IT?
Replyfap, fap, fap...
It has, actually. Fried ice cream is totally a thing.
I find the Afro Man graphics to be offensive. Most of the stoners and dealers I know are not African Americans.
Reply Hide All See All 3 Repliesafro man is a rapper who got famous with songs about pot. the caption said who profited from prohibition. not offensive, dude.
The graphics aren't there because he's black, dumbass. It's because he has songs that relate to marijuana.
Yes, why don't you be that p***k that brings up race issues on a completely irrelevant topic? Ass.
Wouldn't Mexican cartels be the analogue for weed?
Don't legalize it, de-criminalize it. It should be ruled the same as alcohol(not at work, while driving, walking down the street), even though I believe alcohol to be more harmful than weed. I do like my bong hits with a bit of whiskey, I will admit.
Reply Hide All See All 12 RepliesAlcohol more dangerous than weed? Are you insane? Weed ruins lives and kills people daily. Alcohol has never once done any significant harm.
i thin kits the other way around mate
I think that's the point he's trying to make?
Weed must make you not understand sarcasm...
Balsam you are an idiot...
"Don't legalise it...the same as alcohol" Well that would be legalised, wouldn't it.
Sarcasm just blew over 14+ heads.
i see what you did there balsam
Apparently, nobody's familiar with verbal irony. Don't fret, Balsam. At least more people got it than didn't.
Creeping like a communist, it's knocking at our doors
Turning all our children into hooligans and whores
Voraciously devouring the way things are today
Savagely deflowering the good ol' U.S.A.
It's Reefer Madness, Reefer Madness!
Reefer Madness, Reefer Madness!
Oh so mad!
alcohol is not decriminalized, it is legalised; it is a controlled substance that one has to have a license to sell or produce.
^ i think Balsam was being sarcastic. :3
People are always going to want to be entertained, and that is what weed is for a lot of people, entertainment. The problem with legalizing it is that everyone can use it and it has been known to decrease motivation of people. However, that's not as bad as the international crime problems created from the huge amount of revenue that criminals get from it.
ReplyWould prices for cannabis drop dramatically if it were legalized? Taking the risk out of growing and distributing would knock about how much off the cost of a bag, 25 maybe 30 percent?
Reply Hide All See All 7 RepliesFar more I'd think.
Do you really think people would kill over an item with 20 % profit, before protection money, cop bribes, transportation to and smuggling across borders, hand to hand distribution, with in-build losses at each step.
Producing cannabis is extremely cheap. Legalising it and taxing it heavily,would however increase revenues, reduce profit for criminals (most people are willing to pay a little to avoid criminals), thus reducing their incentives.
It might also have negative side-effects however.
Why get it from a dealer if you can just grow it? Prohibition prevents people from growing their own plants because the penalties are much worse. Marijuana distributors will have to compete with your hall closet and backyard, if it is legalized.
If it came down to a choice between buying a pack of Budweiser Buds or setting up a horticultural paradise in your closet, which would most people choose?
How many people do you know who grow their own tobacco? Or their own hops? Not just brewing from store-bought ingredients.
Legalization won't necessarily drop the price If you're already paying 20 bucks for a gram or so, they won't charge less just because their risk went down. Instead, they'll just keep the extra profit.
AndrewMcK, you need to study up on basic economics. The price will drop because of competition. If it's insanely profitable there will be a company willing to sell it for cheaper in order to sell more. Price war ensues, the price drops and then levels out, cheaper than it was when it was on the black market.
Everyone should just grow their own vegetables and raise their own livestock too, quit letting companies rip you off!
@jayman419 - actually, marijuana isn't comparable to booze; it IS comparable to growing your own veggies, which is actually quite a bit easier than people would think. I grow tomatoes, lettuce, blueberries, strawberries, zucchini, onions, apples, potatoes... well, you get the idea. I live in the middle of a desert, and it still works.
Now, brewing alcohol is quite a different story. There's a recipe to making great tasting beer, and equipment needed to produce it. It's a manufactured item. Marijuana is, at least in a basic sense, simply consumed grown out of the ground. Granted, you don't just pluck it and smoke it, but it's far easier to reach the end product of marijuana than it is to reach the end product of booze.
Similarly, people don't grow their own tobacco because they still have to make the cigarettes, the filters, etc. Plus, tobacco is a s**t ton harder to grow than a vegetable.
I love how you can walk around with a personal pharmacy and drive totally whacked on scoobie snacks and it's all good with "The Man" (yes he exists) but smoke a lil wack tobacc and ur a criminal.....Mad World...dahduhdahduhdeeduh...
Reply Hide All See All 3 RepliesActually, in most countries it is illegal to drive under the influence of medicinal pharmacutical drugs, and I imagine it would be in America too (if that is where you are from). The thing is: it's harder to detect so people don't really get pulled on it, unless they're driving really badly.
yea dude, I'm a former smoker (and popper) myself, and you can get in trouble for pills w/o a prescription, or driving when impaired on pills that you are perscribed to.
It's illegal to drive under the influence of any intoxicating drug or liquor. Heck, in most places it's illegal to drive under the influence of being tired.
Alcohol is a special case because the causal link between use and driving is so clear and consistent that we can say .x % B.A.C. equals per se reckless driving regardless of who the person is, or their tolerance to alcohol. Not so with weed or percocet or xanax.
If you are pulled over for speeding or a broken tail light, you can be arrested for DUI if you are drunk. Even if you did nothing wrong or at least nothing that suggests your driving is impaired. That is not the case with a person under the influence of prescription drugs.
Then again, when someone is following a prescription, we assume they are OK. No one is prescribed 14 beers.