I didn't see a topic on it, so I decided to make one.
Should they?
I think there's some merit to the idea. There'd be a lot less violence involved in the drug trade. Many gangs commit acts of violence against people because of fear of being reported to the police, if selling drugs were legal much less people would be targets of gang violence. I think it'd be a good idea if cities had small areas where drug trafficking is legal, and doing drugs is legal. As long as the areas were monitored by police, there'd be no "set tripping" or rivalry violence, because all the dealers would share the same turf, and there'd be nothing to beef about.
I'm hoping that was long enough for serious discussion.
What are your thoughts?
Well, marijuana should obviously be legal.
I'm indifferent on drugs like cocaine and heroin, though. It'd stop some drug trafficking and it's your freedom to do drugs, but that shit is lethal. America isn't ready for all drugs to be legal yet, but it's about time we make weed legal.
If the Government isn't making profit off of it, don't expect it to happen.
Quote from: Jester on April 24, 2008, 04:31:29 PM
If the Government isn't making profit off of it, don't expect it to happen.
The government loses shitloads with the "war on drugs".
Quote from: Co-Z on April 24, 2008, 09:46:00 PM
The government loses shitloads with the "war on drugs".
Shit isn't ever going to end if things stay the way they are.
Quote from: Way down in the hole. on April 25, 2008, 02:09:58 PM
Shit isn't ever going to end if things stay the way they are.
Yup.
They can't stop drugs. They shouldn't even bother with this bullshit 'war on drugs'.
The government could make profits off of weed. If weed was legal, most people wouldn't plant their own and the drug dealer would be obselete; they'd just walk over to 7-11 and buy a pack of joints. More taxes for the government.
Quote from: Co-Z on April 25, 2008, 02:56:09 PM
Yup.
They can't stop drugs. They shouldn't even bother with this bullshit 'war on drugs'.
The government could make profits off of weed. If weed was legal, most people wouldn't plant their own and the drug dealer would be obselete; they'd just walk over to 7-11 and buy a pack of joints. More taxes for the government.
We can't stop murder, so should we stop any and all form of punishment for murderers?
And the government already profits off tobacco, so we don't need them to make even more money off our death.
Quote from: Lawlz on April 26, 2008, 09:35:36 PM
We can't stop murder, so should we stop any and all form of punishment for murderers?
And the government already profits off tobacco, so we don't need them to make even more money off our death.
Your arguement failed. Marijuana doesn't kill you.
Drug traficking, however, does.
Quote from: Co-Z on April 27, 2008, 12:11:44 AM
Your arguement failed. Marijuana doesn't kill you.
Drug traficking, however, does.
so inhaling thick smoke is good for the lungs and taking in something that inhibits your ability to think clearly is a-ok
Hauling around and distributing harms no one; it's the turf wars and grudges and evasion of police and what you do when high and all that slop, which people have been doing since the dawn of time and will continue to do.
protip: anyone that says "lol marijuana is harmless" is a dumbass. people that say it's something that'll strike you down with the power of god, like the government, are just as stupid, but that doesn't mean it should be legalized. Issued for medical reasons, sure, but that's it. If I'm dying of cancer and there's no real chance of surviving, I may as well try to enjoy it.
Bullshit.
People still smoke weed, even though it's illegal. How will throwing people in jail for having a pound of pot solve any problems?
Weed is like alcohol. If you try to do something stupid like drive under the influence of it, yeah, you'll probably die. If you sit around and don't do nothin' while you smoke weed, it's harmless.
Quote from: Co-Z on April 27, 2008, 09:11:30 PM
Bullshit.
People still smoke weed, even though it's illegal. How will throwing people in jail for having a pound of pot solve any problems?
Weed is like alcohol. If you try to do something stupid like drive under the influence of it, yeah, you'll probably die. If you sit around and don't do nothin' while you smoke weed, it's harmless.
did i say prison was a solution
People will commit murder, burglary, rape, and other crimes, and prison doesn't discourage many of them. Most feel guilty after they do it or don't want to harm someone else (or have their friends/family be ashamed of them), and that's what prevents them from doing it.
The problem is if marijuana is legalized, there would have to be a method to measure how much is in someone's system to determine what is a "safe" limit. People will get high and drive around and do stupid things; legalizing it and essentially saying the government approves of it helps absolutely nothing. Permitting it in all states solely for medical use has very few detriments compared to just selling it to everyone. It'll still be acquired by those it's not prescribed to, but at least not everyone in the nation will have an ounce.
Of course it's not okay for them to drive and do stupid things while on weed. That's the same with alcohol.
Y'know what'd be worse? Continuous drug trafficking problems, with violence over drugs making streets very dangerous. See: Pablo Escobar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pablo_Escobar). Escobar killed over 500 to make sure his drugs would sell. Amount of people killed from puffing weed: none.
Anyone can get marijuana. Chances are, your parents have probably smoked it at least once in their lifetime. People will still smoke pot, even if it's illegal. Making pot illegal isn't accomplishing anything.
Alcohol is more dangerous then weed is.
Some people smoke weed only because its illegal, because they want to do something illegal and "wrong" just to prove themselves. In other countries where alcohol is legal to everyone at any age, they don't have as many issues with alcohol because there is no curiosity in it.
Those people know at an early age what alcohol is, and know that it's not a big deal. They don't have a problem because the kids are allowed to drink it.
I can bet you 100 dollars that if you told 10 kids not to open some door, at least 70% of them if not all, would open the door out of curiosity. Same with weed, you tell them not to smoke it, and make it illegal, and many of them, if ever offered it, would smoke it.
Now if we never made it illegal, they probably wouldn't
If we made it legal for everyone today, they might but thats only because it was illegal, and they were curious about it and now it's legal and their curiously is still present.
Quote from: Lawlz on April 27, 2008, 12:23:30 AM
so inhaling thick smoke is good for the lungs and taking in something that inhibits your ability to think clearly is a-ok
Hauling around and distributing harms no one; it's the turf wars and grudges and evasion of police and what you do when high and all that slop, which people have been doing since the dawn of time and will continue to do.
protip: anyone that says "lol marijuana is harmless" is a dumbass. people that say it's something that'll strike you down with the power of god, like the government, are just as stupid, but that doesn't mean it should be legalized.
Inhaling smoke isn't as harmful as people make it to be. Cigarettes are more harmful then weed. Alcohol is more harmful then weed.
People have died from an overdose of alcohol, no one has died from an overdose of weed ever. Sure, some dumb ass drove while high and died but same with alcohol, same with pain killers, same with tons of other medical drugs.
People don't die from hauling alcohol and selling alcohol, at least anymore, because its legal. During prohibition they did die from selling and hauling it, you know why? Because it was illegal.
QuoteIssued for medical reasons, sure, but that's it. If I'm dying of cancer and there's no real chance of surviving, I may as well try to enjoy it.
So you're saying it'll help you enjoy life but it should be illegal because it's harmful though it's less harmful then most anything outside of your room.
Cars are harmful, dogs are harmful, airplanes are harmful, bricks are harmful, computers are harmful.
Show me proof of someone dying of weed because I think you don't know what you're talking about. And of course if you're under the influence while driving, it would be illegal if weed was legal to smoke.
Marijuana would be legal.Only problem is the Goverment likes to tax all drugs.Drugs like weed
Would be hard to tax,Cause it can be grown with great ease.
Other drugs like meth and crack,Which have shown actual proof they can harm you should not
be legalized.I envy the folks who live in holland.They have legal weed,And are allowed to smoke it when
they turn 18.
Quote from: Hardcore on May 12, 2008, 02:30:38 PM
Marijuana would be legal.Only problem is the Goverment likes to tax all drugs.Drugs like weed
Would be hard to tax,Cause it can be grown with great ease.
Actually, that would be a good thing. The ability to easily grow pot puts power, however insignificant, into the hands of the people. I think this is one of the reasons why marijuana hasn't been legalized.
Quote from: Hardcore on May 12, 2008, 02:30:38 PM
Other drugs like meth and crack,Which have shown actual proof they can harm you should not
be legalized.
Alcohol can harm you, as can cigarettes, as can sodas, as can McDonald's, and so on. That's not really the point. Obviously, people will do meth and crack regardless of their legality. The main point of making them legal is to eliminate the illegal drug trade that dominates many third world countries.
I sit by a pothead in math class. He says that if pot was legal, he'd rather buy it than grow it.
The government can't tax you when you grow your own pot, but if someone went to 7-11 and bought some weed, they could tax that. By keeping weed illegal, the government can't make any taxes at all off it, yet shitloads of people smoke it. Instead, tax money is spent on this fake "War on drugs".
Honestly, I'd rather the Government not make it legal because that would mean they're making some profit off it (or I imagine that they would) and that bothers me a bit.
If I'm going to smoke weed (/do any other drug) it really won't matter to me whether or not it's legal anyways, and I imagine that most people who are going to be doing drugs feel the same way.
If you're smart about it chances are you aren't going to get caught. (Please, don't call me stupid or names because I can almost FEEL that coming on. I know what I'm talking about.) You can really get away with a lot if you do it correctly.
I don't want to sound stupid and be all "fuck the government" *excuse the profanity, please. but I really feel that way sometimes. At least as an American.
Quote from: skylark-e on May 15, 2008, 06:50:34 PM
Honestly, I'd rather the Government not make it legal because that would mean they're making some profit off it (or I imagine that they would) and that bothers me a bit.
Tobacco is taxed too. I'd rather the money go to the government than to some South American drug lord.
Quote from: skylark-e on May 15, 2008, 06:50:34 PM
If I'm going to smoke weed (/do any other drug) it really won't matter to me whether or not it's legal anyways, and I imagine that most people who are going to be doing drugs feel the same way.
It would be much cheaper if it were legal, though.
Quote from: skylark-e on May 15, 2008, 06:50:34 PM
If you're smart about it chances are you aren't going to get caught. (Please, don't call me stupid or names because I can almost FEEL that coming on. I know what I'm talking about.) You can really get away with a lot if you do it correctly.
A lot of people still get caught. Keep in mind that a lot of people are taking up space in jail and eating up our tax dollars just because they got busted for possessing or selling drugs.
What I never got about the drug trade...why can't you just sell the shit... and move on?
Police wouldn't be on their damn backs all the time if it wasn't for the murders.
Why don't we elect Ralph Nader into office?
Pros:
Increased death rate to balance out the alarming birth rates lately.
We could tax the hell out of it.
Cons:
Everyone is doped out on PCP and kills their neighbors because they thought they were going to steal their baby rooster "Tulip".
(insert several more scenarios like the one above)
Quote from: skylark-e on May 15, 2008, 06:50:34 PM
Honestly, I'd rather the Government not make it legal because that would mean they're making some profit off it (or I imagine that they would) and that bothers me a bit.
If the government can't fund itself, it just falls apart.
it needs taxes or some sort of income to sustain itself and uphold stuff like health care, public museums, schools, etc.
Weed should definitely be legal. All reasons have been stated in the thread already.
Lol @ Lawlz's lack of knowledge on the topic
They should be legalized of course.Alcohol and tobacco are legal..I don't see the problem with some weed or heroine. If people wanna be dumb and ruin there lives, so be it.
Quote from: Meta Ridley on July 18, 2008, 11:35:54 AM
They should be legalized of course.Alcohol and tobacco are legal..I don't see the problem with some weed or heroine. If people wanna be dumb and ruin there lives, so be it.
If a 13 year old girl tries a drug and gets addicted, it's not necessarily her fault because she wasn't making a wise decision and more than likely didn't think things through. If a young person is pressured into doing something, so long as it doesn't result in immediate death or irreversible damage, most will do it and you can't just say "hey you're an idiot you deserve to die."
As far as weed, psychedelics, etc. go it shouldn't be in the government's power to control what we put into our own bodies. Besides, alcohol is far worse, in my opinion, than most of these. When you start talking about addictive substances, though, people are doing them against their will (or at least would not be doing them as much were they not addicted), so I think these should at the very least be regulated somehow.
Quote from: Lawlz on July 18, 2008, 01:17:58 PM
If a 13 year old girl tries a drug and gets addicted, it's not necessarily her fault because she wasn't making a wise decision and more than likely didn't think things through.
(Technically it is her fault.) Say what you want, but I've been pressured into doing shit since I was 12, and I've still never done any of it. I'm not saying someone deserves to be addicted or die because they bad a bad decision, but you can't use age or peer pressure as an excuse for not being stupid. It's stupidity nonetheless.
As for my opinion, I'd say legalize weed and only weed. Isn't weed now very similar to alcohol during prohibition? I mean,
so many people are growing/selling/buying it that it seems absolutely rediculous that it's something we consider illegal. It just makes sense to legalize it. Despite being difficult to tax, America would still be making money rather than spending it.
Other drugs are too dangerous and risky. Also, weed shouldn't be legal to minors. In fact, maybe it should be paired with the drinking age. Too many high kids in schools is never a good thing.
Marijuana should be legal. Even though I smoke it and it is coming from my mouth it should still be legal. I'm not saying this because I smoke it but it has helped a lot of people. To start off, marijuana isn't a drug. Drugs are considered to be chemical substances and marijuana is just a plant. Marijuana contains HTC and it is grown with it. Nobody throws shit in it and puts it under fire. I dislike the people that say marijuana is bad for you and can kill you. Where the fuck is the proof? Show me one proven document that someone has died from smoking marijuana. Smoking it then dying is a different story. They died from a car crash not from marijuana, for example. Marijuana happens to be good for it. Let's say you have a long stress day from work, you go home and smoke marijuana and feel so relieved. Marijuana opens up the lungs and relaxes your body. I find that our government is stupid, and they all smoke themselves. Marijuana should be legal...
Quote from: Paul on July 21, 2008, 12:16:47 PM
Marijuana should be legal. Even though I smoke it and it is coming from my mouth it should still be legal. I'm not saying this because I smoke it but it has helped a lot of people. To start off, marijuana isn't a drug. Drugs are considered to be chemical substances and marijuana is just a plant. Marijuana contains HTC and it is grown with it. Nobody throws shit in it and puts it under fire. I dislike the people that say marijuana is bad for you and can kill you. Where the fuck is the proof? Show me one proven document that someone has died from smoking marijuana. Smoking it then dying is a different story. They died from a car crash not from marijuana, for example. Marijuana happens to be good for it. Let's say you have a long stress day from work, you go home and smoke marijuana and feel so relieved. Marijuana opens up the lungs and relaxes your body. I find that our government is stupid, and they all smoke themselves. Marijuana should be legal...
um.. is this a joke?
Quote from: Vostroya on July 21, 2008, 10:24:12 AM
The fact is that many people have no common sense until well into their 20's, but you can't make the age for legal adulthood 30. There has to be some attempt to protect people from harmful things such as drugs, even if it's a personal choice to use them. Marijuana shouldn't won't be legalised because the government is fighting a "war" on it, and it shouldn't be legalised because, like I said earlier, as soon as that happens within a few years there will be one or two companies who own all the marijuana going into the country. Additionally the kinds of effects it would have on international politics are not desirable.
The system works fine right now because truly stupid people are protected from not being able to pick up drugs besides nicotine in a gas station, but for anyone who really wants to, finding a dealer is not a difficult thing to do.
yeah.. I see what you're saying. But.. people do have common sense as teenagers and youg adults. Some more than others, yeah, but that holds true for later in life as well. The
only reason I would think it would be smart to keep marijuana illegal is that it could lead to the possible usage of actual dangerous drugs. That, however, is beyond the control of the government. The people who would seek past using weed for something else are the ones who are already doing it.
Yes, the United States is fighting a 'war on drugs', but that's the thing. Marijuana isn't harmful. It's safer use weed than alcohol. If made legal, we'd just be fighting a new war, a war on
illegal drugs. Technically it's the same thing, weed's just not included.
If marijuana actually hurt people, I'd agree with you Snorkel. Keeping it illegal for the safety of our mindless citizens is important. But it's really not bad for the human body at all. If it's okay to poison our public's bodies with tar and nicotine, then I should think a little plant would be fine too.
Quote from: Paul on July 21, 2008, 12:31:27 PM
no it's not a joke
paul.. paul.. paul.
meh, snorkel already said most of the stuff I would have.
Quote from: Paul on July 21, 2008, 12:16:47 PM
Marijuana should be legal. Even though I smoke it and it is coming from my mouth it should still be legal. I'm not saying this because I smoke it but it has helped a lot of people. To start off, marijuana isn't a drug. Drugs are considered to be chemical substances and marijuana is just a plant. Marijuana contains HTC and it is grown with it. Nobody throws shit in it and puts it under fire. I dislike the people that say marijuana is bad for you and can kill you. Where the fuck is the proof? Show me one proven document that someone has died from smoking marijuana. Smoking it then dying is a different story. They died from a car crash not from marijuana, for example. Marijuana happens to be good for it. Let's say you have a long stress day from work, you go home and smoke marijuana and feel so relieved. Marijuana opens up the lungs and relaxes your body. I find that our government is stupid, and they all smoke themselves. Marijuana should be legal...
Any sort of smoke is dangerous to the lungs.
If a person gets high and can't think straight and gets in a car crash, it's a result of the marijuana. If it impairs your abilities, it's at least dangerous to some degree.
Quote from: Samwise Gamgee on July 21, 2008, 12:30:16 PM
Marijuana isn't harmful.
every drug has some negative effects. it may not be as bad as meth, but regardless, it is still a harmful drug
Quote from: Samwise Gamgee on July 21, 2008, 12:30:16 PM
If it's okay to poison our public's bodies with tar and nicotine, then I should think a little plant would be fine too.
so in other words: we're not poisoning our population enough so we should legalize some more dangerous substances to kill them faster
Quote from: Lawlz on July 21, 2008, 12:41:41 PM
Any sort of smoke is dangerous to the lungs.
If a person gets high and can't think straight and gets in a car crash, it's a result of the marijuana. If it impairs your abilities, it's at least dangerous to some degree.
every drug has some negative effects. it may not be as bad as meth, but regardless, it is still a harmful drugso in other words: we're not poisoning our population enough so we should legalize some more dangerous substances to kill them faster
I should probably clarify that when I say things aren't harmful I'm thinking in relation to alcohol. It's probably not the best way to make my judgment, but it just makes sense to be. Yes, if a person gets high then gets in a car crash, there's a good chance it's because their judgement is somewhat fogged. But in that sense there's no difference from alcohol. I would assume that paired with the legalization other laws will be set into place... like no driving. And a minimum age for buying it.
Alcohol and cigarettes kill more people than marijuana. baddood;
I agree a little on both sides. What we should do is swap out the legality of weed with tobacco. Also, you can't make alcohol illegal. And lol sam
tobacco should be illegal.
Quote from: Paul on July 21, 2008, 01:37:44 PM
Alcohol and cigarettes kill more people than marijuana. baddood;
and if marijuana is sold in every shop and more people use and abuse it, you can expect death rates from marijuana to rise greatly
You said teenagers have common sense
Coming in late I assume.
But anyway, Marijuana should be legalized most definetly, sure it can be harmful and does have mind altering capabilities, but it has medicinal use and isn't that bad of a "drug".
However, on the flip side; I don't think that more potent drugs should be legalized. Mainly because I don't think it will cut down on crime at all. These people rob and kill not only because they don't want to get caught, but because they can't aford it. So by legalizing it you're basically just rubbing it in their faces that, "Hey, you CAN buy it now, but oh wait, you're life is so screwed you still have to steal it, ha ha".
There's my take on it for now.
Hm.. You're right, I did make that stereotype. X:
Wasn't thinking I guess.. But either way, some are and the OP's original thread seemed to me that it hinted that the theives and murderer kind of drug dealers are who it was targeted at. But that's just what I caught from it.
Also, yes, medical marijuana should be legalized, certainly heavily controlled and not given out to anyone who asks.
Quote from: Kingmush on July 21, 2008, 03:04:44 PM
Coming in late I assume.
But anyway, Marijuana should be legalized most definetly, sure it can be harmful and does have mind altering capabilities, but it has medicinal use and isn't that bad of a "drug".
However, on the flip side; I don't think that more potent drugs should be legalized. Mainly because I don't think it will cut down on crime at all. These people rob and kill not only because they don't want to get caught, but because they can't aford it. So by legalizing it you're basically just rubbing it in their faces that, "Hey, you CAN buy it now, but oh wait, you're life is so screwed you still have to steal it, ha ha".
There's my take on it for now.
My brother, a huge pot head, stated: how will they find out easily if someone was smoking weed in a car? Open bottle containers are a pretty easy way to tell if someone has been drinking. But weed is a bit harder to tell if someone has been smoking.
I really don't see why they shouldn't be legalized. You have a right to do what you want to your body, as long it doesn't interfere with the rights/safety of others. They should just make overdosing on drugs a crime, slap a tax on them, and be done with the situation.
Quote from: Rycerz on July 22, 2008, 01:02:04 PM
I really don't see why they shouldn't be legalized. You have a right to do what you want to your body, as long it doesn't interfere with the rights/safety of others. They should just make overdosing on drugs a crime, slap a tax on them, and be done with the situation.
and you shouldn't be able to smoke at all in public or if you have children since you're harming everyone around you while exercising your "personal freedom"
Quote from: Lawlz on July 22, 2008, 01:17:13 PM
and you shouldn't be able to smoke at all in public or if you have children since you're harming everyone around you while exercising your "personal freedom"
Swinging around with a sharp steel ax in the proximity of others is against the law, so should smoking next to others be as well. Just because you don't see it doesn't mean the harm is not there. (No shit you can see the smoke billowing around, but what I meant was you don't see the cancer forming in your lungs as it happens.. unless you've got some expensive technology. )