Legalize Marijuana?

I'm really bored at work. I've been here for 4 hours, and I've had one person come into my store. They asked me for directions. So...here is a topic that should go for a while.

Do you think marijuana should be legalized? Explain.

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i really have no problem with it. while i've chosen not to smoke it, many of my friends have. to be honest, i think if it was legalized, fewer people would be using it.

nice intro LOL, anyway....

If Marijuana was that effective medically, then why not use it. Treat it like Morphine and other narcotics, lock it up in the narcotics cabinet. Only medical professionals would only use it. If it had really dangerous side effects, that the drug is considered harmful.

Lol, wow, suprised you're thread got this far! (Had one like this deleted as an early member, lol)

Lets see here...Confesses I smoke weed every now and then when I can find it! It makes me feel good inside, The weed I smoke either is purple haze or some other good bud that I can find. I been smoking out since I was 17 and now im 24 so yeah. Back to the subject, I say yes because some people probaly need a every now and then highness to past the time.

Well, considering Denver, Co (No, not Co, just leagal in Denver) has leagalized it... adults 21 and older may possess up to an ounce ( for one person?!) of marijuana without penalty in the city.


My point of view:

There is nothing wrong with weed, not at all. The chemicals inside it are the problem. My main issue: it's not hard for teens to buy cigarettes (I bought my first pack when I was 14, don't smoke cigarettes anymore, thank God [Nasty Habit! Kids who do: bad!] lol), so how hard would it be for them to get ahold of drugs? It raises some morality issues. Let's look at the definition of a "drug":

Drug

Any substance, other than food, that is used to prevent, diagnose, treat or relieve symptoms of a disease or abnormal condition. Also refers to a substance that alters mood or body function, or that can be habit-forming or addictive, especially a narcotic.


Marijuana is a drug, alachol is a drug, hell, even Caffiene soda's and coffee is considered to be a drug. But it's the chemicals in it that's the difference. Between being "high" and being "drunk", it's two totally different things. You can be high and function a lot better than being drunk (IE driving). It's not like on the movies "Oh... I'm so stoned dude... I can't see". It's not like it's good for you, in all means no. But leagal adults SHOULD be able to choose what they want... alachol can leave you in the same way pot does... brain dead in the end.

My main question: Do we want to risk our kids picking up this habit?

Originally Posted by Robb4248

Between being "high" and being "drunk", it's two totally different things. You can be high and function a lot better than being drunk.

I agree with much of what you say, but I disagree completely with this statement. I served as a Probation Officer for 7 years, in a city that was one of the first to "legalize" possession of small amounts of Marijuana. I was constantly amazed at the rate and speed of degradation of drug addicts vs. alcoholics.

Admittedly, marijuana users were not quite as bad over time as, say, cocaine addicts, but they certainly had their own issues. I found that persons who were high on Marijuana were 3-4 times more likely to do something really stupid than those drunk on alcohol. In fact, I had more probationers show up to my office high on marijuana than drunk on alcohol.

True enough that there is a difference between the symptoms of intoxication between drugs and alcohol. However, to say that someone who is high can function better than someone who is drunk, well that is the very distortion that proves my point. I would not want to ride in a car with someone who is stoned any more than I would with someone who is drunk. Your perceptions are skewed while under the influence of any drug. Peripheral vision is decreased, depth perception is reduced, reaction time is increased and you become a rolling hazard.

As for my opinion on the legalization of marijuana, well, I see it like this: alcohol was legalized and millions of people still abuse it regularly. Why do people think that legalizing marijuana will reduce instances of abuse? Hey, while we are at it, let's legalize murder... then there won't be as many homocides in the world! Sure, that is an extreme statement to make, and even a little off topic, but I think it makes my point. Legalizing a substance will not reduce the use and abuse of it. It is the height of folly to believe that it will.

That is just my opinion. You don't have to like it.

Oh, I respect people's oppinions, hell, I didn't compeat in debate club (shut up, yeah I'm the geek! ) in HS for nothing!

I found that persons who were high on Marijuana were 3-4 times more likely to do something really stupid than those drunk on alcohol.

That's true, I was refferring to driving... Being drunk driving can be a lot more dangerous (not saying driving high is safe, lol) then driving high, and no, I wouldn't want to be in the car with somebody like that.

Legalizing a substance will not reduce the use and abuse of it. It is the height of folly to believe that it will.

I compleatly agree with this. Alcohol is still widley abused, my mother divorced my father when I was 13 becuase of it. Although, a lot of people do it to look cool, to say "yeah, I get high, it's illegal, I don't care if I get caught." most of these people... yeah, they get hooked.

The bottom line, it's an expensive habit ($90[+] a week for the average addicted user [if buying a bag every 3 days]). The only thing making it leagal will do is reduce the price. Morality is the issue here... do you feel that it is right or wrong?

Originally Posted by Robb4248

Oh, I respect people's oppinions, hell, I didn't compeat in debate club (shut up, yeah I'm the geek! ) in HS for nothing!

I debated in college. Ranked in the top 50 in the nation before I was done. Mwa ha ha...



Anyway, I started this topic and then never got the chance to throw in my input. This is what I think...

Marijuana should not be legalized. There are too many harms that will come from it. If you look at Amsterdam, there are a ton of new government funded facilities (rehab centers, etc) that need to be put in place with legalization. The price of marijuana would skyrocket with taxes, required licenses to sell, coming up with money for the aforementioned rehab centers, etc, etc. It also puts too much power into the hands of the police. There are two ways to officially detect marijuana in the blood stream. Piss test and blood test. If an officer were to pull you over for whatever reason and thought you were high, they can't give you a piss test on the side of the road. This means either training officers to give blood tests or allowing them to cuff you and take you to somewhere to give either a piss test or a blood test. Police would be able to temporarily arrest anyone under the excuse "suspected DUI." There's no way in hell I'm going to let a cop on a power trip haul me off to jail or a hospital or whatever just because we're having a disagreement.

On the other side of that, I think that the criminal charges against marijuana are waaaay too steep. If it were decriminalized to a fineable offense, there would be no need for the government regulations I mentioned above. It could still be a controlled substance, but instead of having someone go to court over having a little bit on them, they could get a $50 fine and be done with it. This would do a great deal to declog prisons and free up much needed time in the court systems.

I don't smoke myself, but I know a lot of people that have for a long time. It doesn't seem to effect them at all. I don't see the harm in people doing it on their own time in their own space. As mentioned before, anything can be abused and become dangerous. I just don't see a problem with letting people use it responsibly. I think decriminalization is the way to go.

Originally Posted by spum

There are two ways to officially detect marijuana in the blood stream. Piss test and blood test. If an officer were to pull you over for whatever reason and thought you were high, they can't give you a piss test on the side of the road.

Actually, there is only 1 way to detect THC (the primary substance in marijuana) in the bloodstream. A urine test only detects THC that has already passed out of the bloodstream into the excretory system (the bladder in this case). The biggest problem with drug testing for THC is that there is really no efficient way to determine if an individual is actively high or has just used recently (barring a blood test, which is not only cost prohibitive, but requires a considerable amount of training as Spum pointed out).

Originally Posted by spum

On the other side of that, I think that the criminal charges against marijuana are waaaay too steep. If it were decriminalized to a fineable offense, there would be no need for the government regulations I mentioned above. It could still be a controlled substance, but instead of having someone go to court over having a little bit on them, they could get a $50 fine and be done with it. This would do a great deal to declog prisons and free up much needed time in the court systems.

First, people don't go to prison for misdemeanor possession of marijuana. Most jurisdictions do not even waste time with jail or probation (unless it is a habitual offense or felony offense). For the most part, a fine is assessed and maybe a little community service. If an individual gets charged again, they may get treatment and probation along with the fines and costs. Only those individuals charged with felony intent to distribute marijuana (usually possession in the "pounds" range) will ever go to prison.

Originally Posted by spum

I just don't see a problem with letting people use it responsibly.

Breaking the law is never responsible. No matter how you spin it.

Originally Posted by paulcman

Breaking the law is never responsible. No matter how you spin it.

I disagree, but I'm also a bit of an anarchist. There are laws on the books which are completely ridiculous (state laws like "don't drive after 6pm unless you have someone walking in front of you with a lantern") which people break all the time. In this example, it would be pretty irresponsible to HAVE someone walking in front of you holding a lantern. So to say that breaking the law is NEVER responsible isn't really correct...although, I can see where you're coming from with the marijuana thing. I disagree, but I can understand your point of view.

Originally Posted by spum

I disagree, but I'm also a bit of an anarchist. There are laws on the books which are completely ridiculous (state laws like "don't drive after 6pm unless you have someone walking in front of you with a lantern") which people break all the time. In this example, it would be pretty irresponsible to HAVE someone walking in front of you holding a lantern. So to say that breaking the law is NEVER responsible isn't really correct...although, I can see where you're coming from with the marijuana thing. I disagree, but I can understand your point of view.

There are also laws on the books that direct people from the south to bathe at least once a month. Those laws get broken all the time as well! LOL

Archaic, outdated laws from over 100 years ago not withstanding, it is always irresponsible to break the law. Especially if you have a family that relies on you.

Now, before someone says that the drug laws are outdated, please note that the Controlled Substances Act only dates back to 1970, with amendments made as recently as 1993. It should also be noted that the CSA was challenged where it regards so-called "medical marijuana" in 2003. Upon appeal in Supreme Court, the CSA was upheld in 2005, keeping all marijuana illegal, even in those states where it has been approved for "medicinal purposes".

I'd rather just get rid of government and laws altogether, but whatever...


Like I said, I can see where you're coming from when you say it's irresponisble. Meaning that if you get caught, it can possibly effect the people around you. My original intent was saying that people can abuse anything, but if used in moderation, marijuana is mostly harmless. Just like having a beer once a week, smoking a joint isn't going to do any damage as long as you keep it under control.

The most beautiful and sacred thing about a country where democracy and law can be allowed to flourish is that we can agree to disagree. While I understand your viewpoint, I just can't agree that commiting any illegal act is "mostly harmless".

Again, that is just my opinion... I could be wrong...

Last year it was downgraded to a Class B drug here in ireland, so its basically just a name taking and a warning if your caught. And it's illegal to drive after a few smokes here aswell. But i read there people comparing being stoned and drunk...
In the great words if Bill Hicks, Have you ever head of anyone coming home after a few joints and beating their wife close to death? but you hear of this with alocohol all the time.

My opinion, it should be legalized, beacuse in all fairness its easier to get than drink these days, i could make one call and have any amount i wanted by 7 tonight, And it's not that hard to get away with using it either, when you have the muppets who go and hide in a back lane skinning joints with a nagan in their hands, thats how you get caught, but lets say you buy a 1/2 ounce, or even a 1/4 for yourself, to have a few after work during the week, not doin anyone harm.