Marijuana - Should It Be Legalized or Not? And Why?

[King Adam]

Well this is a long debate and I'm sure there will be mixed reactions.

My vote is for YES .. legalize it already. There are so many reasons as to why, that it makes my head spin.

1 - NOT manmade. Unlike most drugs, Marijuana comes ready to use. There is no need for man to do anything to it. Alcohol, ciggerettes, coke, LSD, crack, meth, herion are all man made.

2 - When eaten, not even bad for you. Smoking is bad in anyway, but there are no additives or preservitives, unlike ciggerettes.

3 - Government could be making a killing. Instead they would rather spend millions on stopping mexican brick weed from coming across the border. Man, if it was legalized .... there would be no such thing as mexican brick weed.

I have plenty more reasons but its time to hear some from others.

Peace, love and happiness to all !!!!

[CuriousToyBoy]

Legal.

If they legalized and government regulated supply of nearly all (some exceptions) so called illicit substances, crime as we know it would almost disappear overnight.

2c

[Tom_PM]

Yeah, tax it and put some big illegals out of business.. I'd rather see stores pop up and generate revenue than "war on drug" people being misused. We need those people to patrol the borders, fight terrorism and all that jazz anyway.

[Downtime]

hell no, like society isn't stupid and lazy enough

[Fetish Gimp]

It should be legalized because I like to smoke it and don't want to end up in pound-me-in-the-ass prison because of it.

[travelingmike]

legal.. yes very very legal...

[Cyrano]

Without a doubt, legal.

1. Studies have established that marijuana is generally harmless with the exception of lung damage if smoked, no worse than tobacco or alcohol.

2. The U.S. government wastes millions of tax dollars imprisoning people found in possession of marijuana.

3. Marijuana does not necessarily lead to lethargy and unproductiveness. As with alcohol it can be used responsibly, not abused.

4. Marijuana use will always be highly prevalent in society, governments need to recognize this, legalize it, and tax it; removing profits from organized crime.

[dynastoned]

Originally Posted by Downtime

hell no, like society isn't stupid and lazy enough

we all have our own opinions. but it just puts a bad taste in my mouth when i read about some person who was put away for years. all because he had 3-4 plants in his basement. were not talking about drug dealers here. in some cases its normal everyday joe. all of the sudden hes eating up our tax dollars sitting in prison for 4 plants in his basement which he wasn't even dealing.... its ignorant and i think its bullshit.

[Thurbs]

legalize it .. its harmless and brings joy to many.

[Azlord]

Bring back money to the farmers in the midwest. With the law in place, weed is still the US's #1 cash crop for farmers.

If you want a good read, "Reefer Madness" by Eric Schlosser is great. I was against legalization before I read this book. The book is broken down into 3 parts, weed, imigrant workers, and porn laws. It's a really good book.

[Babagirls]

fuck ya, legalize it. i think cigs are ALOT worse than weed.

[SetTheWorldonFire]

Originally Posted by King Adam

Well this is a long debate and I'm sure there will be mixed reactions.

My vote is for YES .. legalize it already. There are so many reasons as to why, that it makes my head spin.

1 - NOT manmade. Unlike most drugs, Marijuana comes ready to use. There is no need for man to do anything to it. Alcohol, ciggerettes, coke, LSD, crack, meth, herion are all man made.

2 - When eaten, not even bad for you. Smoking is bad in anyway, but there are no additives or preservitives, unlike ciggerettes.

3 - Government could be making a killing. Instead they would rather spend millions on stopping mexican brick weed from coming across the border. Man, if it was legalized .... there would be no such thing as mexican brick weed.

I have plenty more reasons but its time to hear some from others.

Peace, love and happiness to all !!!!

I agree with all but number 3.

mexican brick weed = Stress

Stress is'nt that bad when you don't have any kush lol

[cool1]

Legalized It cause it is good medicine

[After Shock Media]

1. It works and when something does as advertised it is near impossible to keep from people.
2. It is not the dreaded "gateway" drug as propaganda suggests.
3. Nobody has died directly from ingesting or using it.
4. There are currently laws on the books that would prevent driving under its influence.
5. Just having something legal does not make more people use it.
6. It is only dangerous due to it being illegal and people dealing in the black market.
7. Legalizing it would make it a taxable product.
8. The US Government has spent billions fighting it, hundreds of millions additionally each year.
9. It currently costs tax payers vast sums of money to keep marijuana related criminals behind bars.
10. It puts a burden on the courts with marijuana related cases and violations.
11. It was initially made illegal purely for racial reasons and not scientific or medical and that is reason enough.
12. It would then allow for US farmers and industries to proceed with hemp production.
13. It would open up the every medical research facility the ability to use and check for other possible medications using cannaboids.
14. It would free up the man power of the DEA and other law enforcement agencies.
15. It would allow proper education of its effects and demystify it to the youth.
16. It would end the use of harmful chemical spraying and eradication due to US foreign policy.

[uno]

Legal. While I might agree with some of the secondary reasons in this thread, it all boils down to the fact that the gov't has NO RIGHT to tell a grown, consenting adult what they can or cannot do to their bodies in the privacy of their own home barring hurting someone else. The gov't making most drugs illegal is a patriarchal move. I don't need another father and I sure as fuck don't need the gov't to regulate morality. It's not their role and it never should be their role. It's not the gov'ts job to control any aspect of "morality".

[Cyrano]

I should add that there have been no marijuana-related deaths reported, ever.

[bastardsquad]

Legal...

To those who say its a gateway drug, makes people lazy/lethargic, or is the cause of a good chunk of crime...If you stand by that then you should have no problem if we bring back prohibition of alcohol and ban the sale of cigarettes...

[brand0n]

Originally Posted by After Shock Media

1. It works and when something does as advertised it is near impossible to keep from people.
2. It is not the dreaded "gateway" drug as propaganda suggests.
3. Nobody has died directly from ingesting or using it.
4. There are currently laws on the books that would prevent driving under its influence.
5. Just having something legal does not make more people use it.
6. It is only dangerous due to it being illegal and people dealing in the black market.
7. Legalizing it would make it a taxable product.
8. The US Government has spent billions fighting it, hundreds of millions additionally each year.
9. It currently costs tax payers vast sums of money to keep marijuana related criminals behind bars.
10. It puts a burden on the courts with marijuana related cases and violations.
11. It was initially made illegal purely for racial reasons and not scientific or medical and that is reason enough.
12. It would then allow for US farmers and industries to proceed with hemp production.
13. It would open up the every medical research facility the ability to use and check for other possible medications using cannaboids.
14. It would free up the man power of the DEA and other law enforcement agencies.
15. It would allow proper education of its effects and demystify it to the youth.
16. It would end the use of harmful chemical spraying and eradication due to US foreign policy.

yea what he said

[King Adam]

Originally Posted by Downtime

hell no, like society isn't stupid and lazy enough

You must be a none smoker than.

I got news for you, I am way more creative and productive under the influence. I have bought some of my best domains when I was high. I've come up with some of my best ideas when high. I get in a zone and work for 4 hours straight when I get high.

I even exercise when I'm high. I love hiking up mountains and biking when high.

You should not generalize people. I'm not some 16 year old dumb ass that just sits in his basement watching tv like the shit they show you on TV. Open your eyes amigo.

[tyler.]

i'd say legalize ...

[MetaMan]

HmMMmmmm, i have definatley used my fair share, but to tell you the truth im not 100% sure if i would want it fully legalized,

maybe take out criminal punishment for it and impose fines, that may be better. (just like getting a speeding ticket, we already do this in calgary)

with weed readily available in stores it really couldnt help, i mean i personally didnt start to smoke until i was in high school, and i really never even heard of it that much before then.

we need to keep kids sheltered from certain things until they are old enough to understand certain consequences.

i am dam glad i didnt start to smoke when i was like 12 or at a really young age.

[King Adam]

Should have made this a poll. See, I'm sober and not thinking straight. Maybe its time to start the celebration

[King Adam]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

HmMMmmmm, i have definatley used my fair share, but to tell you the truth im not 100% sure if i would want it fully legalized,

maybe take out criminal punishment for it and impose fines, that may be better. (just like getting a speeding ticket)

with weed readily available in stores it really couldnt help, i mean i personally didnt start to smoke until i was in high school, and i really never even heard of it that much before then.

we need to keep kids sheltered from certain things until they are old enough to understand certain consequences.

i am dam glad i didnt start to smoke when i was like 12 or at a really young age.

All I have to say is CIGERETTS and ALCOHOL. Both legal and both much worse for youths ... PERIOD. I am not saying that its good. No kid should use drugs.

[After Shock Media]

I forgot one of my reasons.

17. It was responsible for a good amount of music we all love and lets face it music has really started to suck and could use the help, and it may bring back album covers (some may be to young to understand that one).

[Cyrano]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

HmMMmmmm, i have definatley used my fair share, but to tell you the truth im not 100% sure if i would want it fully legalized,

maybe take out criminal punishment for it and impose fines, that may be better. (just like getting a speeding ticket, we already do this in calgary)

with weed readily available in stores it really couldnt help, i mean i personally didnt start to smoke until i was in high school, and i really never even heard of it that much before then.

we need to keep kids sheltered from certain things until they are old enough to understand certain consequences.

i am dam glad i didnt start to smoke when i was like 12 or at a really young age.

When I was in high school, I had far more difficulty obtaining alcohol than I did weed.

[MetaMan]

Originally Posted by King Adam

All I have to say is CIGERETTS and ALCOHOL. Both legal and both much worse for youths ... PERIOD. I am not saying that its good. No kid should use drugs.

i never said it wasnt worse, i am saying readily availble drugs of anykind is really not good.

and believe me i smoke probly just as much or more then the highest of the high tokers on here.

in calgary weed is accepted, decriminalization is the way to go. imposing fines is a better step then sending someone to jail, or having it available in corner stores.

[MetaMan]

Originally Posted by Cyrano

When I was in high school, I had far more difficulty obtaining alcohol than I did weed.

yep i cant argue with that, in Calgary weed is accepted as a part of lifestyle, you can roll down the main road and smoke a joint like it is nothing.

and thats in high school, how about in jr high? i only knew maybe 1 person in our entire school who smoked weed,

[Canibal-7]

Originally Posted by King Adam

3 - Government could be making a killing. Instead they would rather spend millions on stopping mexican brick weed from coming across the border. Man, if it was legalized .... there would be no such thing as mexican brick weed.

You think they ain't making a ton of money off it now? Please.

[xroach]

PC's are better than mac

[detoxed]

Yes, I'm much safer after smoking 7 blunts than after drinking 7 beers.

[After Shock Media]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

HmMMmmmm, i have definatley used my fair share, but to tell you the truth im not 100% sure if i would want it fully legalized,

maybe take out criminal punishment for it and impose fines, that may be better. (just like getting a speeding ticket, we already do this in calgary)

with weed readily available in stores it really couldnt help, i mean i personally didnt start to smoke until i was in high school, and i really never even heard of it that much before then.

we need to keep kids sheltered from certain things until they are old enough to understand certain consequences.

i am dam glad i didnt start to smoke when i was like 12 or at a really young age.

Please keep in mind nobody wants kids using drugs of any type. Therefore I doubt anyone would want or allow it to be sold to minors. Some would want it to be 21 and others would be ok with it being 18.

Having it legal would also be a lot easier to enforce and prevent minors from obtaining it that it currently is. Stores can and would be fined and so forth. As it currently stands kids have plenty of access to it and few (the criminals) have problems with them selling it or using it since the criminals already have weighed the risks envolved.

[dynastoned]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

HmMMmmmm, i have definatley used my fair share, but to tell you the truth im not 100% sure if i would want it fully legalized,

maybe take out criminal punishment for it and impose fines, that may be better. (just like getting a speeding ticket, we already do this in calgary)

with weed readily available in stores it really couldnt help, i mean i personally didnt start to smoke until i was in high school, and i really never even heard of it that much before then.

we need to keep kids sheltered from certain things until they are old enough to understand certain consequences.

i am dam glad i didnt start to smoke when i was like 12 or at a really young age.

[white-rob-like-whoa]

Alcohol can kill you in the course of one evening of drinking. But, in USA, it's legal.
It is impossible to smoke yourself to death (overdose) on ganja, it's not toxic to your body in the way alcohol is. Notice when you drink to much you blow chunks, because that shit is poison to your body.

So lets all be safe, and smoke a BIG FATTAY!

[aimeesweet]

Originally Posted by Azlord

Bring back money to the farmers in the midwest. With the law in place, weed is still the US's #1 cash crop for farmers.

If you want a good read, "Reefer Madness" by Eric Schlosser is great. I was against legalization before I read this book. The book is broken down into 3 parts, weed, imigrant workers, and porn laws. It's a really good book.

That is a good read... puts things into perspective. Have you read his other book Fast Food Nation? Now that'll turn you off fast food for awhile!

But back to the subject at hand....

I say Legalize it! It's far less dangerous than alcohol... and even in marijuana is not legalized, hemp should be made legal for economic reasons like helping struggling farmers. Hemp has many,many uses and because of stupid laws dating back to the reefer madness of the 1930's we have to import all of it...

[King Adam]

Originally Posted by Canibal-7

You think they ain't making a ton of money off it now? Please.

I'm not stupid. I know they are making money off it. My point is that if it was legalized you could take the money they are making off it and multiply it by at least 10. They would make WAY more.

[MetaMan]

Originally Posted by After Shock Media

Please keep in mind nobody wants kids using drugs of any type. Therefore I doubt anyone would want or allow it to be sold to minors. Some would want it to be 21 and others would be ok with it being 18.

Having it legal would also be a lot easier to enforce and prevent minors from obtaining it that it currently is. Stores can and would be fined and so forth. As it currently stands kids have plenty of access to it and few (the criminals) have problems with them selling it or using it since the criminals already have weighed the risks envolved.

i dont agree with that at all, having things legal make them more readily available. the gov't would also probably grow some low grade bullshit.

there will always be a market for primo weed.

and legalizing drugs WILL NOT stop criminals like alot of people think, they are CRIMINALS for a reason, they will always find another way to make money. develop a new drug etc.

[Cyrano]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

yep i cant argue with that, in Calgary weed is accepted as a part of lifestyle, you can roll down the main road and smoke a joint like it is nothing.

and thats in high school, how about in jr high? i only knew maybe 1 person in our entire school who smoked weed,

That's true. But consider how difficult it is for kids to get their hands on tobacco. If governments controlled marijuana in the fashion of tobacco underage access would definitely be limited.

[Deej]

i think were doing an ok job on semi -legalizing it....i agree its not for everyone, but it ceretainly is necessary for medical patients...

the government could be more lax especially on the personal users....

but all in all, i like that they atleast let a person prove to you they need it then issue it to them, what i dont like baout it is....the fact you have to pay for the prescription......who pays for their right to use medication....here in Oregon if your a medical patient you have to pay an annual fee to be legit....and do people pay for their prescription for hydrocodone or oxycontin? huh huh.....and tell me, wich is FAR FAR worse for someone???

and some people absolutely do not need it....they should take it upon themselves to either dose themselves properly, stay off it, or you better keep them in a cage in the bushes....

it could all be real easy, but how often is the government easy

[Canibal-7]

Originally Posted by Cyrano

I should add that there have been no marijuana-related deaths reported, ever.

This is not true. I'm a smoker but a cardiologist told me once of a young teenage soccer player who died of a heart attack from smoking weed. And yes, it was from smking weed.

[uno]

Originally Posted by After Shock Media

I forgot one of my reasons.

17. It was responsible for a good amount of music we all love and lets face it music has really started to suck and could use the help, and it may bring back album covers (some may be to young to understand that one).

Bill Hicks paraphrase?

[MetaMan]

Originally Posted by Cyrano

That's true. But consider how difficult it is for kids to get their hands on tobacco. If governments controlled marijuana in the fashion of tobacco underage access would definitely be limited.

when i was in jr high i dont remember a single person having trouble gettins smokes.

the local corner store used to give out a small sticker to kids that they would put on their school picture card.

so that they would be able to buy smokes even underage.

ACCESS WOULD NOT BE LIMITED!!!!!

you would have everyone and their dog growing weed, it would make it WAY more available.

[After Shock Media]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

i dont agree with that at all, having things legal make them more readily available. the gov't would also probably grow some low grade bullshit.

there will always be a market for primo weed.

Who the fuck said the Government should grow it. Fuck I do not even trust the Government with getting a letter somewhere on time.

I know I had a harder time getting alcohol and or tobacco in school than I ever did have getting marijuana. Yet alcohol and tobacco are legal products prohibited from being sold to minors. So please explain that.

[Canibal-7]

Originally Posted by King Adam

I'm not stupid. I know they are making money off it. My point is that if it was legalized you could take the money they are making off it and multiply it by at least 10. They would make WAY more.

Never said you were stupid, dude, just trying to get my point across.

[MetaMan]

again DECRIMINALIZATION is the way to go, not "ILLEGAL", and not legal.

[Barefootsies]

I've never smoked, or done any drugs beyond prescription and alcohol. However, my is that they should legalize it.

I think that it's assinine to lock druggies up for 10-25 years for something so stupid, and at an enourmous cost to taxpayers.

A lot of the states were for medicinal uses as is. So I think the government should just legalize it, and tax it like they would anything else. Not only would it put a lot of people out of business, but it would also save on the enourmous waste of time, and resources to chase down people for this when they should be concentrating on harder drugs, or terrorism. Plus generate more of the all mighty dollars for a government that's much in need of revenue.

If they do not want to make it a federal thing, then leave it to the states to decide on a case by case basis via the voters.

[King Adam]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

i dont agree with that at all, having things legal make them more readily available. the gov't would also probably grow some low grade bullshit.

there will always be a market for primo weed.

and legalizing drugs WILL NOT stop criminals like alot of people think, they are CRIMINALS for a reason, they will always find another way to make money. develop a new drug etc.

Now I don't agree. The government would never grow low grade weed. If it was legal, there would be far more home growers than ever before. If the government wanted to sell, they would have to produce good quality shit or people would just continue to do what they do now, buy chronic through the black market. If they grew high grade stuff, people would be happy just going and buying it legally from the government.

[King Adam]

Originally Posted by Canibal-7

Never said you were stupid, dude, just trying to get my point across.

Happy 420 my friend

[uno]

Originally Posted by aimeesweet

That is a good read... puts things into perspective. Have you read his other book Fast Food Nation? Now that'll turn you off fast food for awhile!

But back to the subject at hand....

I say Legalize it! It's far less dangerous than alcohol... and even in marijuana is not legalized, hemp should be made legal for economic reasons like helping struggling farmers. Hemp has many,many uses and because of stupid laws dating back to the reefer madness of the 1930's we have to import all of it...

Most weed is domestic.

[MetaMan]

Originally Posted by After Shock Media

Who the fuck said the Government should grow it. Fuck I do not even trust the Government with getting a letter somewhere on time.

I know I had a harder time getting alcohol and or tobacco in school than I ever did have getting marijuana. Yet alcohol and tobacco are legal products prohibited from being sold to minors. So please explain that.

99% of people who smoke do not grow tabaco, 99% of people who drink do not make their own alchohol.

99% of everyone has a friend who has a friend who grows weed. last time i checked the grower doesnt check your ID at the door.

do i really need to explain these things to you? please go to google and copy and paste some info like it was your own, it should help you.

[After Shock Media]

Originally Posted by MetaMan

you would have everyone and their dog growing weed, it would make it WAY more available.

People are lazy, if they can buy it they will not grow it. Hell people can grow and or raise everything they need to eat yet do most people do this? People could produce alcohol but do many people do that? No.