07-01-2008, 06:28 PM
I used to be quite the aficionado years and years ago, but I haven't gone near it in quite some time. Not because I'm all anti...far from it. Sometimes I want to, sometimes I don't. I'm just not in that crowd anymore, so it's a non-issue.
That out of the way, I COMPLETELY support legalization. If you do some easy research, it was criminalized in the early 20th century as a part of a larger political move, nothing more.
Marijuana has been classified by the federal government as non-addictive. You simply can not get addicted to pot. Also, no one has EVER died from pot, because you can't OD on it. Sure, there are idiots who drive stoned, and they died in a wreck, but the WEED didn't kill them.
Reasons to legalize:
~ Dealers will be forced out of business, which means many will get real jobs, and pay real taxes.
~The product will be regulated, quality control standards will be in place, and the cases of laced pot will decrease.
~Taxes will be collected.
~Prohibition has never worked, historically. This is no different.
I'm obviously not advocating the use of marijuana by anyone under 21. It would have to be regulated exactly like alcohol, and the same penalties for driving stoned would be in place.
Think pot is a killer? Take a look at those "anti-weed" commercials. Not one of them tells you how marijuana will harm you. They all highlight people making bad CHOICES and doing things while they're high. Driving, babysitting, etc. None of those things should be done after smoking.
But if you want to smoke a joint some night around a campfire, who cares?
And for those of you citing various state laws legalizing - remember, federal law trumps it. So even if a state allows it, you're breaking federal laws. Why state's have the right to control cigarettes and alcohol, but not pot, is a completely different debate.
That out of the way, I COMPLETELY support legalization. If you do some easy research, it was criminalized in the early 20th century as a part of a larger political move, nothing more.
Marijuana has been classified by the federal government as non-addictive. You simply can not get addicted to pot. Also, no one has EVER died from pot, because you can't OD on it. Sure, there are idiots who drive stoned, and they died in a wreck, but the WEED didn't kill them.
Reasons to legalize:
~ Dealers will be forced out of business, which means many will get real jobs, and pay real taxes.
~The product will be regulated, quality control standards will be in place, and the cases of laced pot will decrease.
~Taxes will be collected.
~Prohibition has never worked, historically. This is no different.
I'm obviously not advocating the use of marijuana by anyone under 21. It would have to be regulated exactly like alcohol, and the same penalties for driving stoned would be in place.
Think pot is a killer? Take a look at those "anti-weed" commercials. Not one of them tells you how marijuana will harm you. They all highlight people making bad CHOICES and doing things while they're high. Driving, babysitting, etc. None of those things should be done after smoking.
But if you want to smoke a joint some night around a campfire, who cares?
And for those of you citing various state laws legalizing - remember, federal law trumps it. So even if a state allows it, you're breaking federal laws. Why state's have the right to control cigarettes and alcohol, but not pot, is a completely different debate.