Legalize Marijuana?

What happened to me? Well, I'm not sure.

I thought that maybe a victimless crime, like some guy that buys a small amount of pot, and smokes it on the weekend when he's fishing or something, being punished by a multi-thousand dollar fine or a prison term, was a little out of proportion.

He's hurting who, exactly?

How about we go after the cartels that are bringing the stuff over the border by the multi-ton loads? Follow it back to the source and stamp out the problem there.

Right now we're in control of the biggest opium producing region in the world, and yet it's still being grown, gathered and exported. Once it's here, they grab the guy that bought it and slam him in prison.

You see any kind of logic in fighting a "war on drugs" like that?

It's conducted so stupidly, they've lost my support. I guess that's what happened to me. You keep rooting on that never ending "chase the doper" program, though. Just don't ever expect to win, because that's not the intention.
 
Yeah let's make the penalties so harsh that no one will consider breaking the law. Death penalty to anyone who knowingly violates, and hard labor for "unknowing" or "accidental" crimes.

Speeding...DEATH

Jay walking...DEATH (hard labor if it's not properly signed)

Littering...DEATH

A friendly brawl at a bar/party/dance...DEATH (for everyone involved)

You can see where it's going. Harsh penalties DO deter crime, but you'd better save them for really serious offences or you have a repressive totalitarian society.
 
Ok so maybe I should have been more specific.I did'nt think about things like that.I had my mind on more serious things like drugs,child abuse,murder and things like that.I think maybe just a fine for littering,speeding and all that stuff would be a better deal.But fines dont cut it when it comes to the serious things that are going on in this country that people realize are a huge problem in this country but yet those things keep happening again and again.And even though there are prisons to keep people like that out of society it does'nt do any good at all.They get 3 meals a day,a bed to sleep on,a TV to watch and exercise equipment.They dont have to pay for it and as a matter of fact they dont have to do anything at all.So why would they care if they went back once their finally out?I'd say its about time to quit being so nice to people like that.Because it just aint workin.
 
How about we get rid of the speed limit while we are at it. There are more serious criminals to go after..... All I was trying to get across is that if there is a law....enforce it and make a penalty harsh to make it a deterant. With out a deterant, it is worthless to have the law.

I don't know how you can call it a victimless crime. Sometimes maybe, but I am willing to bet that there are many more people that can't afford necessities like health insurance or they neglect their children because of their habit.

nmleon,

One can make fun of almost any comment on here. You should have known what I ment by my statements. Do you think they penalties by our justice system is doing any good?

I agree that we need to go after the producers and drug dealers, not the users. But again, if it is against the law and you get caught, there should be a real punishment of some kind.
 
Quote:I don't know how you can call it a victimless crime.

Easy. It doesn't have any negative effect on anyone except the person that makes the decision.

I'm beginning to think there are very few actual Conservatives on this site.

That's kind of surprising.

Quote:Do you think they penalties by our justice system is doing any good?

You mean like property seizures without due process?

Yeah, they're filling somebody's pockets.
 
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I agree that serious crimes, child abuse, murder, rape, etc should carry very serious penalties, much more so than is usual today.

By the same token, if it's not something that warrants a serious penalty, maybe it shouldn't be a crime in the first place?

I don't think some college kids smoking pot warrants a serious penalty. Would you if it was your kid?

I remember seeing the FL attorney general on the news a few years back. She was literally almost in tears. The courts had just ordered that Fl had to release prisoners because of the severe overcrowding in FL prisons.

The problem was that they had mandatory sentences for drug possessions and so she didn't have the option of letting those (non-violent) inmates go. She had to let violent (non drug) offenders go instead.

Great system.

We went through prohibition once already and it didn't work. It's not working now either.
 
Originally Posted By: Evil_Lurker

Easy. It doesn't have any negative effect on anyone except the person that makes the decision.

I'm beginning to think there are very few actual Conservatives on this site.

That's kind of surprising.


I was going to keep quiet about this, but some things just get me a bit upset and DOPE is one of them. I am taken aback at some of the things that I read and hear when it concerns illegal drug use and the attempts to minimalize or justify its use.

No effect on anyone except the person that makes a decision to use it? BS.

The dirtbags that sell this crap will sell to anyone, even grade schoolers. So, there's no problems with this junk in schools? Again, more BS.

Of course, you need money to buy dope, an appropriate name BTW, so how does one get the money to support your habit? Yup, you go out and get a job to keep yourself stoned. Again, more BS.

I see NO need to legalize this trash. And another thing, medical marijuana my butt.
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MI VHNTR

 
One of the problems associated with a discussion like this is it brings out a bigger problem that can't be corrected with a simple solution. Dealing with overcrowded prisons is another part of the problem. One shouldn't lessen the penalty for a crime because of overcrowded prisons. That is sending the message that if we have enough people breaking the law, they can't punish everyone. Case in point is again the illegal immagration. Funding for prisons could be helped out by increased fines. Remove cable TV from the cells, etc. If the FL attorney gerneral couldn't let the non-violent inmates go then the problem was with the sentences for the violent crimes. I believe it is a mistake to legalize drugs because there is a problem with sentencing the violent criminals or overcrowded prisons.

If the college kids are not deterred from smoking pot, then I think the penalty is not harsh enough. They know the risk they are taking. If a society is not willing to provide a harsh sentence, then yes I do think the law should go away. It would then be just a waste of time and resources. I, though, would still be for a harsher sentence. Not jail time but maybe a larger fine or suspension from school.
 
Medical marijuana should be made legal in all states. Anyone scoffing at the use of medical marijuana is probably not familiar with the relief it can provide to seriously ill individuals. The idea that the 'drug war' should actually be intensified and penalties increased seems self defeating.
 
nmleon-I dont have any kids so thats a hard question to answer.But I can't seem to think that I'd want my kids treated any differently than anyone else that smokes dope just because they were mine.I'd want them to get the harshest punishment that the law allowed when it comes to someone smokin dope to be completely honest.I'd want them to walk away from that experience knowing that smokin pot is'nt worth it.

t/c223encore-Are there many people in California that are'nt for it?I actually thought it might have already been legal there to be completely honest.
 
It's legal in Alaska, and I don't read about any major crime sprees or out-of-control gang activity as a result.
Possession of less than an ounce is decriminalized here, and it doesn't seem to be any big problem.
Sale or manufacturing of any amount is a felony (go figure that logic out)
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There's a huge meth problem here, though. Maybe they could concentrate their resources and get that stamped out and actually benefit society.

I had a bunch of tweekers rob my place and beat my son up a few years back. I went after them and 3 or 4 of them ended up doing 7 years in the state pen, so now I get to watch my back 24/7.
 
From what I hear gun laws are'nt very strict in Alaska either.That probably helps quite a bit.It aint that the dope smokers aint a problem.Its that the problem gets solved in Alaska more often than it does in.......oh I dont know,California might be a good example.
 
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Folks, I've changed my mind on this issue somewhat. From my perspective, right now we're in the same boat as we were during prohibition. This situation parallels it nicely. People will find a way to get it if they want it, whether it be alcohol or drugs. Anyone who took economics knows that when you have the same demand and limit the supply, the price goes up.

Because of our “war on drugs”, cartels have been able to make LOTS of money getting rich because of this artificially limited supply. Because of the high profits, these cartels have had to increase their firepower to keep their competition from selling to “their” customers and to keep upstarts from springing up. So, you now have rival cartels bribing police and shooting people to maintain and increase their standard of living. It takes money to keep Pablo in a new Escalade and to maintain his harem. This leads to increasing police firepower to combat the drug cartels. SWAT teams are found everywhere, waiting to be deployed with their black armor in the middle of the night.

By legalizing drugs, we open the floodgates of production, which keeps the price down, severely limiting Pablo’s ability to pay his hired guns and to maintain his standard of living. When people can buy it at the local selling station, legally, they don’t have to buy from Pablo as they used to, at any price.

Some people will say that by legalizing drugs we will see a massive amount of pot heads. But from my perspective, how is that different from the alcoholics we have now? The pot heads are here anyway.

It’s a win/win for everyone in America except the bureaucrats who see their “drug war” budget greatly reduced. This is why it won’t come to pass. Why would the government give up more control of its citizens? Those SWAT teams are just too easy to deploy.
 
What happens if "Pablo" starts saling cocaine and raises the price on that because he can't sale pot anymore?Legalize that too?Or do you think all drugs should be legalized?
 
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When it gets right down to it, what is the difference between alcohol and illegal drugs? It all alters your mind. Why do people do any of it?

I don't use any of those, though I do like a good cigar. As far as I'm concerned, if we dump a big pile of cocaine on the street in every big city in the country and let the abusers od on the stuff, we'll get rid of much of the problem, but I doubt that's the answer you wanted to hear.

I think by legalizing it and treating the folks who go overboard, we'd still be dollars ahead as a country. That doesn't make it right or mean that we all should use it. There are many people hooked on alcohol and tobacco now. Likewise there are casual users of the other vile stuff that aren't hooked and are productive members of society. Again, that doesn't make it right in the eyes of many, but we'd all be at least free to make that decision for ourselves. If we as parents really taught our children about the dangers of drugs, we wouldn't have near the problem we have today. There'd still be those who won't listen to whatever we tell them.

If we were really focused on liberty and the Constitution in this country, this wouldn't even be an issue we'd discuss.
 
I agree with farm boy. If you are inclined to abuse narcotics, there isnt much chance anyone is going to convince you not to. So how bout this. Legalize everything. I mean everything. Marijuana, LSD, Cocaine, Meth, Heroin, Crack, Oxycontin, etc....Have a federal/state agency to oversee the production and distribution. No expense at all to the user. COMPLETELY FREE. To sign up for the free drugs of your choice, you merely sign a wavier to any, and all other governmental assistance programs, and voluntarily agree to permanent birth control. Vasectomies for men, tubal ligation for the gals. Within five to ten years, the drug problem in this country would be negated to just a handfull of inner city problem neighborhoods. The vast majority of the drug addicts will have already succumb to their drugs of choice, in a massive decade long die off. Its a win, win for all tax paying, non drug abusers. The gene pool is purged of hundreds of thousands of individuals who would never have made a positive contribution to society. The tax dollars that are currently being wasted on the "War on Drugs", and budgeting correctional institutions, could go to more worthwhile endeavours such as education, defense, taking care of Veterans, energy exploration, shoring up Social Security, etc.....
 
Originally Posted By: HunterBear71Medical marijuana should be made legal in all states. Anyone scoffing at the use of medical marijuana is probably not familiar with the relief it can provide to seriously ill individuals. The idea that the 'drug war' should actually be intensified and penalties increased seems self defeating.

BS. I'm very familiar with it and its purported necessity as a pain killer. It is legal in Michigan and I've never seen so many "seriously ill individuals" that "require" the use of it. Darn near anyone that's breathing can get a BS EXCUSE to use medical marijuana.
 
Medical marijuana is about the only drug that effectively treats nausea in patients suffering during cancer treatment and the late stages of AIDS.
 
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