The reason why they don't legalize it is because they wouldn't be able to control who was selling it (cause almost anyone can grow it) and they couldn't tax it. Unlike alcohol which is much harder for the average person to make and thus makes it easier for the government to impose laws about it for their own benefit.
It's certainly not harmless, but it's not as bad as other drugs. I think it should be highly regulated and allowed to be smoked in private or in designated places but obviously not in public places or people might come into work high. I think it's kind of like Alcohol, don't abuse it and it's not THAT bad for you. At the very least, they should allow it for people who are terminally ill. Other drugs like Cocaine ,Heroin, Ecstasy, Meth etc... should of course never become legal because they destroy lives. Though apparently in the early 1900s, Heroin was sold as cough syrup, until people started getting addicted.
Legalize it! Ive already had to deal with paying about $1,000 in fines/court costs/lawyers being caught with weed/pipes, and friends have gone to jail for it. IT IS JUST A PLANT, and alcohol is WAY worse, make alcohol illegal if anything! Tax it and make millions for our government, and save millions keeping people out of jail.
For real. Make it so that only certain companies and people and manufacture and sell it and tax it that way. Of course there are still going to be people who grow it and sell it illegally just like there are some people who still make moonshine, but it's a start.
Begin rant: What business does the government have telling me what I may or may not put in my body anyway? They don't monitor what I eat, so why should they care if I smoke a plant or whatever else? Am I physically infringing on any others' rights when I sit in my room and smoke? No. What matters to them is their sense of morality, their sense that doing anything that might alter my perception is inherently evil. But sense when does the government legislate morality? Some might argue that doing drugs is unhealthy. My response: So what? I can eat unhealthy food, can't I? I can drink (if I were over 21) can't I? What's so special about "drugs" that they require special legislation. Speaking of which: anyone here familiar with how pot was first banned? They banned it because they said it made white women have sex with Mexicans. That was their argument. Also, pot does not kill brain cells. It is less harmful when smoked than cigarettes because of a chemical in pot that removes the damaged lung cell (or something like that, I can't remember the specifics). A very large percentage of Americans have admitted to using the drug at least once. All of that, though, skirts the main issue: prohibition does not work. Remember alcohol prohibition? It failed. How's that war on drugs going? Miserably. It wastes taxpayer money, and the use of paramilitary tactics in conducting raids on homes of suspected drug users unnecessarily draws innocent people into the fray (and kills many innocent dogs). I cannot think of a single valid argument for the prohibition of marijuana or other drugs that doesn't involve either "it's wrong" or "it's bad for you." I suppose some might say that bystanders could be harmed should the user do something dangerous, like driving under the influence, but that's already a problem with alcohol and it isn't banned. And any other harm a person under the influence of some drug might do to another would most certainly already be illegal; no need for special penalties. /rant (Note: I do not now, nor do I currently plan to use drugs of any sort for whatever reason. I will, as a general rule, look down on those who do use drugs, but I respect their right to do with their bodies what they will.)
Legalize it. The only reason I can see for NOT legalizing it, is that there is currently no test (chemical) to prove the use of these drugs (that are accurate to the day). You can't charge someone with driving impaired if you can't properly test for it. Same applies for the workplace. I'm torn between knowing how bad crystal meth, cocaine and heroine are for you and my views on liberties and freedoms. My acceptable box is pretty big, but those three drugs ruin people. Destroy them. It's not so much the bodily effects as the mental ones. The people who are addicted to these drugs are trapped in a vicious cycle. I can't, in good conscious, say they are fine to sell legally. ALSO: I am quite pleased with how well the school system has brainwashed everyone into believing that all drugs (alcohol, ciggarettes, weed, whatever) are bad for you. Everything in moderation is fine (ie. if you smoke a cigar at the party you go to once a month, you probably won't get lung cancer because of it). The except to this rule are the three drugs I mentioned above. So yeah, legalize it.
Legalise it. I used to smoke when I was younger, but gave up because I hate the act of smoking. It makes me feel like I'm choking myself. I'm quite comfortable with edibles though! I don't believe the government has a right to tell me what to do with my own body though.
You can actually test someone who is driving under the influence of any sort of drugs. Well, at least, they do here in Victoria - brought it in a couple of years ago - combined booze buses with drug testing. With a debate like this, the main question is about the rights of an individual, versus the government's role to protect society as a whole. Some people believe that with drugs being banned, that the government is becoming a nanny state. But we have to take into consideration that this may not necessarily be a negative thing. Every country has a different system of government, even if they are all democracies. For example, Australia is more left wing than the United States, with our health care system that provides free service to all who need it. So maybe, legalizing would work in some countries, but in others it wouldn't be met with too much public interest. So therefore, it may cause more people than who otherwise would have, to try marijuana. There are always going to be some people who smoke weed, regardless of its legality, as well as some people who will never do drugs. The law makes no difference for these people. So, we have to look at how the middle band - those who may or may not try these drugs, but don't really have a personal opinion on it - will react to a legalization of marijuana. I believe that this would encourage more people to take marijuana, which, as previously stated, may not have too many negative effects, and may not be worse than eating junk food, smoking, or drinking alcohol, but we've got to remember that these people won't automatically quit eating junk food just because we've legalized marijuana - and therefore, it is just another factor in the unhealthy lives that we live in today. I guess it depends on the percentage of usage by the general population as to whether it should or should not be legalized. Because it may encourage usage in some places where it is very low, while in others, it may just make the behaviour of thousands of people be legal, and nothing more.
Yea I use, and yes I think it should be legal, but I acknowledge that everyone might not agree with me, and in terms of priority this is a cause that's near the bottom of my list of things to fight for.
While it may have such a chemical that reduces damaged lung cells (i don't know either way), it does damage your brain! Also remember 'most' people who use pot, also smoke cigarettes.
I don't know about the negative affects on your brain. I actually started doing better as an undergrad when I started smoking regularly because I found myself stressed out a lot less, and I never encountered any negative affects on my memory or cognitive functions. That said, I tend to do it in moderation, and have met my share of potheads who seem like they are permastoned or have smoked themselves stupid. Also, most of the pot smokers I know don't smoke cigarettes.
I've always considered that a good argument for legalization. If the drug war is to stop illegal cartels, then perhaps legalizing and having government taxed and controlled sale of marijuana would certainly help with that. I would rather have the money from the sale of marijuana be placed someplace where it can do some good (ie public education, health care etc...), rather than placing it into the hands of criminals that harm society.
I don't see why it's such a big issue anyway. I don't get the point of drinking/smoking/what have you to the point of being mentally impaired. I guess it doesn't really matter to me whether or not it's legalized, but I will still have slightly lower opinions of people who choose to smoke it regularly, just as I do of people who drink regularly. I don't smoke it, never have, and most likely never will.
i use my voice a lot so personally i dont smoke anything, except occassional hookah, but i dont have a problem with it. my opinion on people is lowered when i see they heavily abuse the drug, but if it's done in a safe matter not putting any other person at risk, i dont see the main issue. im just not comfortable doing it and my friends doing it because i know the dangers of smoking, but i would never go against the idea of it being legalized.
I definitely stay away from it, but I think it would be beneficial if it were legalized. 1. There could be all sorts of taxes on it. 2. Police officers could be dealing with bigger issues/We wouldn't have to pay police officers to deal with it. 3. I think there would be less shady-ness involved if it were legal.
If it were legalized, then employment wouldn't look AS unfavorably on it and I could finally try it for the first time without having the large guilty feeling of ruining my innocence.. yes, the government decides what makes me innocent and pure. I'm a bit.. odd But I don't know many of you personally so I idk
