Poll: Should Marijuana be Legal or Illegal?

[whycantibelinus]

It is proven that marijuana is harmful in the long term, and unlike alcohol there is not a known safe dosage.

Where is it proven? By the U.S. government? An organization that supremely benefits from it's criminalization. Read this.

http://blog.norml.org/2009/07/28/marijuana%E2%80%99s-impact-on-brain-function-%E2%80%9Cminimal%E2%80%9D-new-study-says/

Read this too.

http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3418

 

[kalakashi]

I have no problem with more drugs being legalized, but there are some that will send you aggressively insane (even if it's just whilst you're using) and obviously those should not be legalized.
As a rough rule of thumb, I think Class B and C should be legalized but age restricted. Class A most likely should stay illegal (that being said, I would like some shrooms)

 

[Lemon Of Life]

I know it's all cool and street to give thumbs up to pot, but it's been proven to cause severe mental harm to users, leading to conditions such as schitzophrenia. I honestly don't know that much about the subject for my opinion to have any serious weight, but from what I've heard, it being illegal isn't completely unjustified.

The U.S. government is the only organization to have ever come to that conclusion. read my previous post. Or better yet read the link in my post, I'll put it here so you don't have to go searching around for it.

http://blog.norml.org/2009/07/28/marijuana%E2%80%99s-impact-on-brain-function-%E2%80%9Cminimal%E2%80%9D-new-study-says/

Well, not just the US, since the British Government had a few adverts expressing concern over the link between mental illness and cannabis. But if that study you linked is correct, then there's no reason for it to be illegal.

 

[whycantibelinus]

I know it's all cool and street to give thumbs up to pot, but it's been proven to cause severe mental harm to users, leading to conditions such as schitzophrenia. I honestly don't know that much about the subject for my opinion to have any serious weight, but from what I've heard, it being illegal isn't completely unjustified.

The U.S. government is the only organization to have ever come to that conclusion. read my previous post. Or better yet read the link in my post, I'll put it here so you don't have to go searching around for it.

http://blog.norml.org/2009/07/28/marijuana%E2%80%99s-impact-on-brain-function-%E2%80%9Cminimal%E2%80%9D-new-study-says/

Well, not just the US, since the British Government had a few adverts expressing concern over the link between mental illness and cannabis. But if that study you linked is correct, then there's no reason for it to be illegal.

There is absolutely no reason for it to be illegal. What happened was the U.S. banned it first, then we became a world power, and being the bullies that we are we spread our misinformation to our allies and they all followed suit.

 

[whycantibelinus]

Don't forget about how much money it could put into the economy. i don't smoke it but just about everyone i know does. Also isn't it Puff puff Pass. not Puff puff give.

Crops of marijuana to the value of $778 Million dollars of tax revenue could be generated according to whitehousedrugpolicy.gov, usdoj.gov, fbi.gov amongst others.

Instead $14 billion is used to reduce drug use ineffectively.

Doesnt take a rocket scientist to work out why NASA isnt on Mars right now.

Indeed indeed. There was a thread yesterday asking why Ronald Reagan gets so much hate, well here's another reason. The war on drugs is a complete and utter epic fucking fail. It's one of the largest misappropriation of tax dollars in U.S. history.

 

[Deleted]

Don't forget about how much money it could put into the economy. i don't smoke it but just about everyone i know does. Also isn't it Puff puff Pass. not Puff puff give.

All the smoking lingo I know is from the movie Friday so its rather limited.

 

[whycantibelinus]

Yes, of course, legalize it. More ways for people to cause accidents on roads, run over pedestrians and kids to get high.

/sarcasm.

The way I see it is, more people die from alcohol poisoning and cancer from smoking, the chances of developing the horrific mental issues are relatively slim, in comparison. And besides, if anyone is stupid enough to use it THAT much, they deserve the brain issues.

Legal, and regulated.

Yeah, and what happens when someone on drugs gets into a car?

"Duuude, relaaax maaaan, it's leeegaaal so it can't be baaad."

"Motorist on THC kills 7 people at a bus stop. More about it at eleven."

It wouldn't really work that way, since weed makes you really just want to sit still the furthest most stoners go is the kitchen. Weed also makes you paranoid so when you're high you're actually smarter about not operating heavy machinery, such as a car. If the stoner does so happen to make it past the previous two obstacles and gets in a car the paranoia will actually make them concentrate more and thus be more alert to things going on around them. Also the furthest a normal high person would drive is to the drive-thru down the street, whereas a drunk will decide to take an epic fucking road trip when wasted.

 

[Plurralbles]

The only issue is that weed has three times as many carcinogens as normal cigarettes, so if it being legal entices more people to use it, which, if we're all honest with ourselves, could very well happen, and then those people get addicted to it (and yes, you can get psycologically addicted to weed the same way you can get psycologically addicted to anything that you do a lot), and then those people all get cancer, because they are three times more likely to get it, and now the medical system has to treat tons more lung cancer patients, and that is a huuuuuuuuge drain on resources. The only debate is whether that drain is offset by the current drain on prisons or holding cells for holding a bunch of minor possessors for a short time.

The only real way to get rid of the money drain is to shoot drug users on sight, which is a permanent and cheap fix, which also stops new users from trying it because they know how dangerous it is (not that drugs aren't already life or death). Then demand for drugs drop, and because there is no demand, supply will have to drop as well, and the drug empires fall, and then BAM: No drug users, no drug dealers, no drain on resources. But the moon will turn into cheese before Congress passes that motion.

Personally I hate drugs. I view drug users as idiots who don't have an ounce of self control. I know that serious abusers have a serious problem, but they dug themselves into that pit. No one is born addicted to heroin or alcohol. People have to make that choice. And I despise them for it. I have friends, good friends, who have everything going for them right now, one runs track and is one of the fastest runners as a sophmore, but she got kicked off the program for alcohol abuse, and the other is fighting marijuana addiction after seeing her magic 4.0 disappear after she lost her ambition. It took 4 months to convince to her that she had a problem, and now she has turned to alcohol, so I guess it's a little personal, but still: drugs ruin lives. Why make that legal?

the illegality of it is what caused the problem with your two friends.

If it was legal you friend wouldn't have been kicked off the team.

if it was legal your friend would have been more open about her use and someone could have done something about it much, much sooner.

oh, and people naturally grow out of a 4.0 as they age. Life happens.

 

[ostro-whiskey]

It is proven that marijuana is harmful in the long term, and unlike alcohol there is not a known safe dosage.

Where is it proven? By the U.S. government? An organization that supremely benefits from it's criminalization. Read this.

http://blog.norml.org/2009/07/28/marijuana%E2%80%99s-impact-on-brain-function-%E2%80%9Cminimal%E2%80%9D-new-study-says/

Read this too.

http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3418

Bah, dont waste my time with bias reports. Anyone who has been to the Netherlands can see the long term damage.

 

[AndyFromMonday]

]

I agree with you Andy, people should have the right to be fucking idiots. I mean shit, they still let Uwe Boll make movies, why not let junkies do heroin?

You can easily identify a junkie and you can just as easily not sell him the heroin.

The fact of the matter remains. A consenting adult should have the right to buy w/e drug he wants to because he's a CONSENTING ADULT. He should have the right to use w/e drug he wants to because he's a CONSENTING ADULT and the government has no right to deprive a consenting adult of drugs until those drugs start to cause problems for other citizens.

The same way you can drink as much alcohol as you want in regulation with the law (Don't drive whilst under the influence) the same way should be able to use heroin in regulation with the law.

Bah, dont waste my time with bias reports. Anyone who has been to the Netherlands can see the long term damage.

I've actually been to the Netherlands and sadly for you I've seen absolutely no "long term damage" from the use of weed.

Cities I've visited:
- Heereenveen;
- Amsterdam;
- Eindhoven;
- Groningen;

And one more I totally forgot the name of. I know it had a big zoo with penguins but that's about it.

 

[Corkydog]

the illegality of it is what caused the problem with your two friends.

If it was legal you friend wouldn't have been kicked off the team.

if it was legal your friend would have been more open about her use and someone could have done something about it much, much sooner.

oh, and people naturally grow out of a 4.0 as they age. Life happens.

Okay, all of that is true, and I guess that is why this issue is so...ambiguous for a lot of people, because they are torn between what makes logical sense and what makes sense to their heart.

And yeah, the four-point is tough to maintain, but most people don't drop from there to a 2.7.

 

[whycantibelinus]

It is proven that marijuana is harmful in the long term, and unlike alcohol there is not a known safe dosage.

Where is it proven? By the U.S. government? An organization that supremely benefits from it's criminalization. Read this.

http://blog.norml.org/2009/07/28/marijuana%E2%80%99s-impact-on-brain-function-%E2%80%9Cminimal%E2%80%9D-new-study-says/

Read this too.

http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3418

Bah, dont waste my time with bias reports. Anyone who has been to the Netherlands can see the long term damage.

Are you kidding me? The burden of proof is on you. The argument you just used is similar to this, "One could ascertain that all Mexican's are poor and dirty because they've been to downtown Tijuana." That's ridiculous.

You said it's proven, so fucking prove it, don't just push aside proof that I have provided you just because you don't agree with it.

 

[Abedeus]

Yes, of course, legalize it. More ways for people to cause accidents on roads, run over pedestrians and kids to get high.

/sarcasm.

The way I see it is, more people die from alcohol poisoning and cancer from smoking, the chances of developing the horrific mental issues are relatively slim, in comparison. And besides, if anyone is stupid enough to use it THAT much, they deserve the brain issues.

Legal, and regulated.

Yeah, and what happens when someone on drugs gets into a car?

"Duuude, relaaax maaaan, it's leeegaaal so it can't be baaad."

"Motorist on THC kills 7 people at a bus stop. More about it at eleven."

It wouldn't really work that way, since weed makes you really just want to sit still the furthest most stoners go is the kitchen. Weed also makes you paranoid so when you're high you're actually smarter about not operating heavy machinery, such as a car. If the stoner does so happen to make it past the previous two obstacles and gets in a car the paranoia will actually make them concentrate more and thus be more alert to things going on around them. Also the furthest a normal high person would drive is to the drive-thru down the street, whereas a drunk will decide to take an epic fucking road trip when wasted.

What if he gets drunk AND smoke pot? Make the alcohol will affect him stronger? The the pot will kick in half-way on the high-way?

Also, clouded judgment is still a clouded judgment.

 

[ostro-whiskey]

It is proven that marijuana is harmful in the long term, and unlike alcohol there is not a known safe dosage.

Where is it proven? By the U.S. government? An organization that supremely benefits from it's criminalization. Read this.

http://blog.norml.org/2009/07/28/marijuana%E2%80%99s-impact-on-brain-function-%E2%80%9Cminimal%E2%80%9D-new-study-says/

Read this too.

http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=3418

Bah, dont waste my time with bias reports. Anyone who has been to the Netherlands can see the long term damage.

Are you kidding me? The burden of proof is on you. The argument you just used is similar to this, "One could ascertain that all Mexican's are poor and dirty because they've been to downtown Tijuana." That's ridiculous.

You said it's proven, so fucking prove it, don't just push aside proof that I have provided you just because you don't agree with it.

Im not pushing it aside because I dont agree with it, Im pushing it aside because the source is as far from objective as you can get. I have seen the long term effects of marijuana smoking so I dont need to prove it to myself. I strongly doubt any scientific report will say anything that contraries what I have seen.

Your example makes no sense, I see no connection between your so calld analogy. Nehterlands has legalized marijuana and as such is a perfect subject group. Ill ad that it wasnt in Amsterdam where I saw and was told about these degenrates but in rural Netherlands.

 

[The Singularity]

I say legalize it.But have a buyers limit,so that one can only buy so much weed every week/month.Sure,some would just make others buy it for them.But it would still hold some people back from buying overdoses.

Ehm.. You can't overdose on weed..

Given that it does not help anyone it should be illegal. This also applies to other things like beer. I will post the real reason why pot is illegal due to medical problems later, iPods the worst researcher ever...

It does help people. It gives people with AIDS and eating disorders such as anorexia reasons to actually eat, it helps people with cancer with pain and vomiting problems, it can help those with insomnia and stress conditions, people with heart problems. It has many uses. Not to mention that it's not really addictive at all and like I stated above cannot be overdosed on. Also, saying that it doesn't help anyone is dumb. By this logic, porn should be outlawed, videogames should be outlawed and any recreational activities and objects should be outlawed.

Yes and these by logic should be illegal. Except recreational activities, as these can benefit you by physical exercise, also with video games the same is true, shooting games should be gone but games that increase intelligence should remain. Theres no real reason why beer, and tobacco are legal except the fact we like them. Of course we do need things to relieve stress but we should pick the best ones without negative effects.
Can I get some reliable sources from any marijuana advocates?
Here are just some of the biggest sources why its illegal:
England http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/full/178/2/116
Harvard http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/evidence99/marijuana/Health_1.html
Possibly biased http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/drugfact/marijuana/marijuana_ff.html
No idea http://press.thelancet.com/cannabis.pdf
The Constitution- Your rights only extend until they infringe on others rights, free speech but you cant yell bomb in a public place and make everyone panic. This applies to BOTH pot and tobacco, if someone is smoking either you get the diluted effects also. Making others get high is not your choice to make, as they could get addicted or get cancer from it.

People abuse things- People advocating marijuana can state how it can be used reasonably, however as we see with both tobacco and alcohol they are not usually used reasonably. One beer shouldn't be too bad, one cigarette a day probably wont kill you, but does anyone actually manage to do this? People will abuse things. People abuse everything. Worst case scenarios for each:you get drunk pass out and drown in your puke, you smoke too much and give yourself and kids lung cancer, or so smoke pot and fall asleep with a cigarette(Blunt? Are cigarettes purely for tobacco?) of it lit in your hand and burn the house down.

It is not addictive? Neither is tobacco(Regular), what mainly gets people addicted is everything businesses add to it, if marijuana was legal this would happen too.

Medical Marijuana is fine, doctors can judge if it should be used to treat things. However regular people should not make that decision.

 

[Eggsnham]

I say legalize it.But have a buyers limit,so that one can only buy so much weed every week/month.Sure,some would just make others buy it for them.But it would still hold some people back from buying overdoses.

Ehm.. You can't overdose on weed..

Given that it does not help anyone it should be illegal. This also applies to other things like beer. I will post the real reason why pot is illegal due to medical problems later, iPods the worst researcher ever...

It does help people. It gives people with AIDS and eating disorders such as anorexia reasons to actually eat, it helps people with cancer with pain and vomiting problems, it can help those with insomnia and stress conditions, people with heart problems. It has many uses. Not to mention that it's not really addictive at all and like I stated above cannot be overdosed on. Also, saying that it doesn't help anyone is dumb. By this logic, porn should be outlawed, videogames should be outlawed and any recreational activities and objects should be outlawed.

Yes and these by logic should be illegal. Except recreational activities, as these can benefit you by physical exercise, also with video games the same is true, shooting games should be gone but games that increase intelligence should remain. Theres no real reason why beer, and tobacco are legal except the fact we like them. Of course we do need things to relieve stress but we should pick the best ones without negative effects.
Can I get some reliable sources from any marijuana advocates?
Here are just some of the biggest sources why its illegal:
England http://bjp.rcpsych.org/cgi/content/full/178/2/116
Harvard http://cyber.law.harvard.edu/evidence99/marijuana/Health_1.html
Possibly biased http://www.whitehousedrugpolicy.gov/drugfact/marijuana/marijuana_ff.html
No idea http://press.thelancet.com/cannabis.pdf
The Constitution- Your rights only extend until they infringe on others rights, free speech but you cant yell bomb in a public place and make everyone panic. This applies to BOTH pot and tobacco, if someone is smoking either you get the diluted effects also. Making others get high is not your choice to make, as they could get addicted or get cancer from it.

People abuse things- People advocating marijuana can state how it can be used reasonably, however as we see with both tobacco and alcohol they are not usually used reasonably. One beer shouldn't be too bad, one cigarette a day probably wont kill you, but does anyone actually manage to do this? People will abuse things. People abuse everything. Worst case scenarios for each:you get drunk pass out and drown in your puke, you smoke too much and give yourself and kids lung cancer, or so smoke pot and fall asleep with a cigarette(Blunt? Are cigarettes purely for tobacco?) of it lit in your hand and burn the house down.

It is not addictive? Neither is tobacco(Regular), what mainly gets people addicted is everything businesses add to it, if marijuana was legal this would happen too.

Medical Marijuana is fine, doctors can judge if it should be used to treat things. However regular people should not make that decision.

You're over-thinking it. I can see a mother breathing smoke from a cigarette practically onto her child's face and watch a drunk man staggering out of a bar to his car in the same day. I can also see a stoner, strike up a conversation with him as he walks to a 7/11 to get some fritos and have him compliment me on my t-shirt. Also marijuana is not addicting and has anti-carcinogens in it. And if you're still paranoid about weed smoke, then use a vaporizer which doesn't use fire so you won't burn your house down either .