NORML’s 4/20 legalization ad: “Yes We Can”
posted at 6:15 pm on April 20, 2009 by Allahpundit
The ad’s old-ish but the ad campaign isn’t:
The NORML Foundation launched this pro-marijuana ad campaign to create further political pressure on the federal government to recognize 1) the ever-increasing support of Americans who favor cannabis legalization, 2) the clear sea change of cannabis laws that’s been happening at the state level since Californians voted in favor of medicinal access to cannabis in 1996, and 3) to rally cannabis consumers and anti-prohibitionists on April 20, a date on the calendar that has organically become a national day to both publicly celebrate cannabis as well as protest 70 years of prohibition.
Support may be increasing but, as of last month, fully 58 percent still opposed legalization, notwithstanding the gradual mainstreaming of the drug in pop culture. There would be obvious economic benefits to legalization, needless to say, but maybe not as many as you think: This excellent NPR piece cites one analyst who pegs it at just $20 billion annually, which isn’t enough these days to cover a bailout of even one megabank. The same piece notes that pot use among teens, which is bound to increase if the drug becomes more accessible, can cause developmental delay.
There’s only one thing to do. A Hot Air poll awaits below the clip.
Blowback
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Perhaps. But then again, decriminalization might make more people willing to grow it here, reducing the need for imports. And furthermore, those that favor legalization should very carefully weigh their pro arguments with the possibility of federal regulation and taxation by the idiots currently in DC, which could totally defeat the purpose by making legal weed worthless and forcing stoners to seek weed through the black market as well.
thirteen28 on April 20, 2009 at 7:03 PM
@ Chaz706 on April 20, 2009 at 7:03 PM
I didn’t realize that the black market for cigarettes and alcohol was so large? Oh wait, it isn’t? Maybe that is because Americans are willing to pay more for the ability to stay legal and not worry about going to jail. Of course you will still have a portion of people who work in the black market, but that would be just as minimal as alcohol or cigarettes. That is, unless the government attempts a 1000% sales tax on the marijuana.
thphilli on April 20, 2009 at 7:05 PM
The problem I have with these people is that they’re too narrow in focus. Why not just legalize everything? We can use the money we save on not having to enforce narcotics laws and hire more border patrol, and even militarize the border against security threats from across our borders.
NorthernCross on April 20, 2009 at 7:05 PM
Thanks aengus, nice to have other perspectives on this difficult issue…
Liberty or Death on April 20, 2009 at 7:05 PM
@ thirteen28 on April 20, 2009 at 7:03 PM
Decriminalization would be on possession. I could NEVER see the government decriminalizing the growing of marijuana, as they would argue that people would grow to sell to children, etc. As for government regulation and taxation, the plant is so easy to grow, and so cheap to grow, that there would have to be a HEFTY bit of both to even equal current market prices.
thphilli on April 20, 2009 at 7:07 PM
I was trying humor. I get tired of always adding the “/sarc off” tag.
omnipotent on April 20, 2009 at 7:08 PM
Imagine the quality of gubmint certified weed?
BL@KBIRD on April 20, 2009 at 7:08 PM
How is it that you imagine they will be involved? Do they have some sort of competitive advantage over Phillip Morris (or should I say Altria) that would allow them to undercut them? Do you think they will be able to strongarm RJR for protection money? Are they going to force Monsanto to take them on as a partner?
I’m serious. Just how do you think they will be able to muscle in on a market where every transaction is handled under color of law, with appropriate contracts and regulation?
Might not be?!?!
That’s like saying the common cold might not be as bad as cancer.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:08 PM
Way back in the 70′s and early 80′s when I was in my teens and early twenties and when marijuana laws were supposedly even harsher I must have known fifty people who got busted for possession of marijuana and I don’t think one single one ever even spent the night in jail let alone went to prison. The statement that our prisons are filled with innocent pot smokers is a flat out lie. A lie just like all the lies the liberals repeat over and over until it becomes urban legend. If anyone here knows anyone that went to prison for pot it was because they had fifty pounds, eight thousand bucks and a stolen .45 they got in trade from someone who owed them money, on top of having a prior record. And if anyone on here claims to know of someone with a clean record who went to prison for having an ounce of pot, you are a liar.
peacenprosperity on April 20, 2009 at 7:09 PM
Thanks guys.
No prob.
aengus on April 20, 2009 at 7:10 PM
Tell that to U.S. Grant and Winston Churchill.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:10 PM
@ JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:08 PM
You make a very good point. Companies that own vast stretches of farmland would have such a financial advantage, and could produce the drug at such a low cost, that it would force out much of the criminal underworld. Not all of it of course, but a vast majority of it.
thphilli on April 20, 2009 at 7:10 PM
They wouldn’t. They’d stop selling it because the legal risk would outweigh the profit motive.
When the government cracks down prices necessarily increase to entice and recruit more producers and distributors. Legalize it and that network will crash. It may have been worth the risk of a lengthy prison sentence, even death, for a million dollars, but for a thousand dollars?
It’s the basic economic law of supply and demand.
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 7:13 PM
No one saw Family Guy last night?
Everything is better with a bag of weed!
http://www.hulu.com/watch/68615/family-guy-bag-of-weed
JetBoy on April 20, 2009 at 7:13 PM
So are you arguing that somehow getting criminal organizations to “go straight” and become born-again good citizens is somehow a bad thing?
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:13 PM
I’m sorry… did I miss the press release where Mexico legalized cannabis?
Of course I didn’t. Please… if you’re going to use straw men, at least make them believable ones.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:17 PM
The kids next door in a very dense So California neighborhood grew weed in plastic pots on the roof of their parent’s house. I first noticed it when it was a lush two feet high and almost as wide. Parents were surprised when the cops showed up and confiscated it. Amazing plants: really green despite being “hidden”, hardly watered, and it grew faster and better than garden mint.
marybel on April 20, 2009 at 7:19 PM
Let me be the first (or second?) who’s never tried it to support legalization, not just for medical purposes either. It should be sold in liquor stores and smoke shops or similar establishments.
Free Constitution on April 20, 2009 at 7:23 PM
I dunno. Pot use among teens would probably increase in the short term, but long term would see a decrease…as teens usually want to use “taboo” or illegal methods, as that’s part of the draw.
JetBoy on April 20, 2009 at 7:24 PM
By that… ahem… logic… we would expect the white lightning business to be booming, since all the legal liquor would be crap.
Is that the case? Seems to me that Jack Daniel’s is a thriving enterprise, making a pretty good product.
Of course as a non-drinker, I have to rely on the word of others…
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:25 PM
It’s bad enough walking through cigarette smoke whenever I enter a building. Personally I don’t wanna try to work/shop/whatever with a contact buzz.
Just adding a point. Carry on.
- The Cat
MirCat on April 20, 2009 at 7:31 PM
The economic illiteracy of some who claim to be conservatives never ceases to amaze me.
Limerick, does the term risk premium mean anything to you.
Risk premium , for purposes of this argument, is what you have to pay someone to engage in an illegal activity, as compensation for taking the chance that they might do jail time. That is the reason that illegal drugs are so expensive. No matter the alleged “slave labor” benefit, or lack of tax liability… those simply will not make up for the risk premium cartels would have to charge to remain in the black market. That risk premium makes them unable to compete with legitimate businesses allowed to sell marijuana in a legal market.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:32 PM
The economic illiteracy of some who claim to be conservatives never ceases to amaze me.
Limerick, does the term risk premium mean anything to you.
Risk premium , for purposes of this argument, is what you have to pay someone to engage in an illegal activity, as compensation for taking the chance that they might do jail time. That is the reason that illegal drugs are so expensive. No matter the alleged “slave labor” benefit, or lack of tax liability… those simply will not make up for the risk premium cartels would have to charge to remain in the black market. That risk premium makes them unable to compete with legitimate businesses allowed to sell marijuana in a legal market.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:33 PM
The economic illiteracy of some who claim to be conservatives never ceases to amaze me.
Limerick, does the term risk premium mean anything to you?
Risk premium , for purposes of this argument, is what you have to pay someone to engage in an illegal activity, as compensation for taking the chance that they might do jail time. That is the reason that illegal drugs are so expensive. No matter the alleged “slave labor” benefit, or lack of tax liability… those simply will not make up for the risk premium cartels would have to charge to remain in the black market. That risk premium makes them unable to compete with legitimate businesses allowed to sell marijuana in a legal market.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:33 PM
We don’t need to add “stoned” to the list of the already fat, lazy and stupid people in this country.
roninacreage on April 20, 2009 at 7:37 PM
Sorry about the repeats…. browser hiccup I guess.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:40 PM
Sung to it’s a small world afterall ….
It’s a BraveNewWorld afterall.
It’s a BraveNewWorld afterall.
It’s a BraveNewWorld afterall.
It’s a BraveNewWorld afterall.
More Soma please.
Yup. George Soros is gonna get his Brave New World after all.
BowHuntingTexas on April 20, 2009 at 7:43 PM
I am all for legal pot and whatever else, bring it on. One caveat- abolish our current welfare state first. I am not doling out one red cent more to lazy pot head slackers that choose to watch sponge bob and not work.
shannonkelly on April 20, 2009 at 7:48 PM
@ shannonkelly on April 20, 2009 at 7:48 PM
How about legalized pot, with public intoxication laws, with mandatory drug testing prior to receiving any public aid, etc?
thphilli on April 20, 2009 at 7:55 PM
Who are these people?
Tzetzes on April 20, 2009 at 7:59 PM
A number of founding fathers felt the same way about rum. They thought the British were overbearing with their taxes and so they smuggled their Rum. But if it is legal it is pretty hard to enforce anyway. Elicit cigarette sales go on all the time. People used to walk around with suitcases full of Delaware cigarettes when I lived up north. I am all for that. Frankly I hope under the table cigarette smuggling gets even bigger, serves the gubmint right.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:00 PM
So…..I’m supposed to feel sorry for these people because they chose to break the law and smoke pot…. and they served jail time….and its “not that dangerous”. Wow, I wish I could break the law and then come up with a swell ad spot that made it look like it wasn’t my fault….
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:01 PM
Pot is nothing but a gateway for gain. It hasn’t been proven to do anything beneficial for health yet it’s always been a boon to liberals looking for votes. It’s use for pain is a canard. So many other venues could do the same. Potheads want it legalized. Yeah, I know about glaucoma… so many more treatments are available. Oh,and cancer?…. you couldn’t smoke enough pot!
MNDavenotPC on April 20, 2009 at 8:01 PM
Oh and the fact that the majority on the poll says we should legalize pot in some way really scares me…..
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:03 PM
By the way, that’s a GREAT way to cure cancer. Kill pain AND introduce carcinogenic chemicals into your body!
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:04 PM
I would wager that most of your life is consumed with fear of things you know nothing about.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:07 PM
Legalizing weed is a Megan McCain type issue. The only people who support it are the ones who think it makes them oh so hip and rebellious.
clearbluesky on April 20, 2009 at 8:07 PM
MNDavenotPC on April 20, 2009 at 8:01 PM
Well tell that to the Pharmaceutical companies, have you ever heard of marinol?
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:09 PM
Yeah… Milt Friedman and Bill Buckley… real lightweights.
/sarc
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 8:09 PM
…or those of us that don’t want to throw people in jail who didn’t hurt anybody. You must be Christian, I can tell by your sadism.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:10 PM
Considering the massive number of laws we have these days, chances are you have broken the law, maybe several, and don’t even know it.
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 8:13 PM
Haha, yeah, how could such great men possibly be involved in an issue for shallow reasons
No, i’m agnostic, but thanks for showing everyone what bigots those who want to legalize weed are.
clearbluesky on April 20, 2009 at 8:14 PM
EEEKKK! A MOUSE!
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 8:16 PM
Thanks for giving me my opening anyway. Religion has killed a whole lot more people than weed. It causes people to be more delusional, I have heard a lot more Christians talking about ghosts and people rising from the dead than stoners and even acid junkies, the only drug that is on par with religion is crack. Just saying. For something that is supposed to preach tolerance and being kind to your neighbor, marijuana seems to have a better track record at mellowing people’s violent tendencies than religion. Yet I will allow people to be as stupid as they want as long as they don’t injure or rob me.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:18 PM
…………………………………………………………………….Huh?…what?
ericdijon on April 20, 2009 at 8:21 PM
And back to religion, for those that are delusional and suffer from hallucinations. Doesn’t Genesis say that all the plants and seed bearing stuff that God created are good? If you guys believe in that nonsense how do you rectify that?
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:21 PM
@ thphilli on April 20, 2009 at 7:07 PM
Maybe, but who knows.
Honestly, I’m pretty ambivalent about it either way. I’ve had my own experiences with weed long ago (tried it … at least 1000 times LOL), and I don’t think it’s the devil weed that many of its detractors do. I turned out just fine. Not that I think it’s good for you or anything (it’s not), or that you can drive better when you’re high (you can’t) as some stoners say. But consumed in moderation by an adult, behind closed doors, and away from kids, I don’t think it’s all that terrible, and I agree with Denis Leary’s take (paraphrasing “marijuana doesn’t lead to harder drugs … it leads to f’ing carpentry!”).
My caution along the lines of “be careful what you wish for” is more or less a reflection of my cynicism towards government (particularly federal government) these days, as they could pretty much f**k up anything. In giving the feds power to regulate legal marijuana, you are giving them the power to screw that up and defeat the purpose of legalization in the first place. Caveat emptor, or something.
thirteen28 on April 20, 2009 at 8:23 PM
That’s called projection. All I want to do is exercise my freedom and liberty in the pursuit of my own happiness and for the government to leave me alone, but you want to use the power of the government to inflict your will upon me and interfere with my personal life, yet you claim that people like me are the bigots?
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 8:25 PM
You have a decent counterpoint, but I have a lot of cynicism towards the feds getting their hands in an area where they haven’t had it before (I would expect with your screen name you do too). Currently, with weed illegal by federal law, they have less power over that market than they would if it was legal.
thirteen28 on April 20, 2009 at 8:26 PM
Wow, you pegged me there. You are just so darn omnipotent! Seriously, your arrogance is a little wearing. Frankly a society full of potheads just doesn’t appeal to me all that much for some strange reason….
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:27 PM
In fact, considering the circumstances I explained above, the fact that you falsely labeled people like me as bigots is itself proof of your own transgression on that count.
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 8:28 PM
EEEEK! A hack!
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:28 PM
@ JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 7:25 PM
Oh, BTW, forgot to mention that some moonshining still goes on, but probably not enough to get worked up about.
thirteen28 on April 20, 2009 at 8:28 PM
Nothing like a good discussion about pot to turn us all into philosophers waxing idyllically about legalizing or not or adding a personal encounter about why we should and it can only logically be discussed between rational individuals as a group united to separate all the wrong concepts rightfully like you might discard the stems and seeds instead of the bathwater because nothing is handier than a double album cover to use your library card and planting the seeds is always a big joke on you so someone has to keep growing it and finally… I lost my train of thought. Did I? Did you?
ericdijon on April 20, 2009 at 8:31 PM
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 8:25 PM
And that’s the thing. If I see someone on the street talking about God I will be nothing but polite, but if I come into a blog thread your whole worldview is on trial, just as my own is. That is not bigoted, it is defending my beliefs and questioning the rationality of their own. I don’t seek to regulate someone’s way of life no matter how stupid I may think it be as long as they do not harm me. And for all the things I do say about religion and just how harmful I think it may be to one who partakes in it, I would fight for your right to partake in it, because I value freedom much much more than having everyone agree with my worldview. I think that putting someone in jail that does not harm me or others is despicable and sadistic, yet to many it seems that sadistic line of thinking is somehow moral. And I use religion as a perfect example of hypocrisy because there is so much in those fable books that is completely against persecution and pro plant that I don’t see how they even have a leg to stand on. Or would they rather go to “hell” for their convictions on this issue because it is “blasphemy”.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:35 PM
BTW, here’s a very stern warning about the dangers of marijuana, as my public service to the discussion … heh!
thirteen28 on April 20, 2009 at 8:38 PM
Perfect, you invoke a guy that has a song, “But if you continue to burn up the herbs, we gonna burn down the cane fields.”
- The Cat
MirCat on April 20, 2009 at 8:38 PM
They should arrest all those aholes in that commercial. They are basically admitting that they are potheads..which is illegal.
Yeah, lets make weed legal…and then crack…and other cocaine and all the other drugs that destroy lives. Its bad enough that alcohol is legal….two wrongs dont make a right…or something.
The Wall on April 20, 2009 at 8:38 PM
When we do not prosecute crimes the government commits, yes it is time.
Time for illegal amnesty too.
Open up the prisons.
getalife on April 20, 2009 at 8:40 PM
Doesn’t appeal to me either. Fattening cheeseburgers from McDonalds is legal, yet I would not want everybody gorging on them because we would be a nation of fat@sses. Drinking alcohol is legal but I would not want a society full of alcoholics. Cigarettes are legal but I would not want a society full of smokers.
And the idiocy of thinking that because something is legal, everybody will do it is completely legal as well, but I would not want that either because a nation of irrational people like you who argue against things based nonsensical arguments dreamed up in fantasyland would just be unbearable.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:41 PM
Dude, all you have to do is look at old pot smokers to see the effects.
Do you really wanna wanna end up like this guy?
- The Cat
MirCat on April 20, 2009 at 8:42 PM
Heeeeeeeere’s Johnny! Seriously getalife, I was wondering when you’d get here.O.k. now to start the flame war….(ahem)
Everything you believe is wrong and I am right. If you are for legalization, I’m against it. If you are against it, I’m for it.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:44 PM
Yeah that’s a good point, however, pot is a psychotropic drug, has no redeeeming characteristics, and has created Cheech and Chong. That is damning evidence against it my friend.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:46 PM
MirCat on April 20, 2009 at 8:42 PM
Worse yet, if you smoke pot, and if that serves a gateway for you to become a full blow alcoholic and cokehead, you might end up like this guy.
See I’m doing a better job at scaring people straight than any of you.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:49 PM
Oh and LevStrauss, would it kill you NOT to be an arrogant, all-knowing, liberal? Some humility…. and maybe some humor, might make you more tolerable…just saying…..
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:49 PM
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:46 PM
Neither does alcohol, cigarettes, trans fat, etc.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:50 PM
O.k. Alcohol makes life more bearable, cigarettes act as a great way to weed out morons on our wonderful planet (smoking kills ya know), and trans fats make everything oh so tasty. Pot is well….stupid.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:52 PM
Or this guy
- The Cat
P.S. But what’s the real harm man. It’s natural. It’s from mother Earth. It’s just a green plant man. I smoke poison ivy. . .
MirCat on April 20, 2009 at 8:53 PM
True. But it is small, and exists to circumvent high federal and local taxes on liquor. I have yet to hear of ‘shine that was of superior quality to top-shelf brands.
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 8:55 PM
Heck NO… it shouldn’t be legalized.
It’s bad enough that I have to walk down the sidewalk and choke on the smoke of tobacco smokers, I don’t want to get high also. If marijuana is such a wonder plant, why the hell doesn’t the losers use it to fuel powerplants.
ThomasB. on April 20, 2009 at 8:56 PM
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 8:49 PM
No it wouldn’t liberals are even worse. I said that I don’t care about what stupid things people do as long as they don’t rob or injure me, well they seek to rob me.
Like I said I meet plenty of stupid people with their ill informed beliefs in the real world everyday and am very polite to them. I need somewhere to vent and what better than a place where you are supposed to debate? Arguing is the whole point.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 8:57 PM
It’s pretty funny actually seeing people advocate for their own version of Soma.
Perhaps Huxley was right…
catmman on April 20, 2009 at 8:57 PM
I’m sure it would take well over a mandatory minimum to even attempt that. Also with the inflated prices caused by prohibition it wouldn’t even be cost effective to do so. Next.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 9:00 PM
First of all, who the hell still has albums?
Second of all, who still smokes pot with seeds?
JohnGalt23 on April 20, 2009 at 9:00 PM
We do have open carry laws with alcohol, I’d think that be pretty common sense.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 9:03 PM
O.k. I recognize your point. There is a current inequality in the system. Many things that are bad for you (as you have kindly pointed out) are legal and arguably just as bad as pot. The question then becomes where do we draw the line if we legalize it? There are some people who should not have access to pot at all due to their jobs (Police, military, firefighters, etc.) So how do we then deal with that issue? How old do you have to be to smoke pot?
I’ll amend my earlier statement btw: “The idea of a bunch of sailors getting blazed on the smoke deck scares me.” I do not want to see a Boatswains Mate blazed off of MJ. They are crazy enough AS IS.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 9:03 PM
I’ll amend my earlier statement btw: “The idea of a bunch of sailors getting blazed on the smoke deck scares me.” I do not want to see a Boatswains Mate blazed off of MJ. They are crazy enough AS IS.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 9:03 PM
They can’t drink on the boat either. They can’t have alcohol. Police can’t be drunk on the job. The code of conduct is very similar to alcohol. Keep in mind we currently have these same issues, yet chicken little hasn’t been proven right. If someone shows up to any job out of it, whether drunk, drugs, sleep deprivation, etc. they are sent home and usually fired. The answer is that the code of conduct is already in place because a large percentage of the population is already doing drugs or drinking. You people act like just because it is illegal it doesn’t exist and that frankly doesn’t make any sense.
LevStrauss on April 20, 2009 at 9:09 PM
As I used to say to my troops…smoke ‘em if ya got ‘em.
coldwarrior on April 20, 2009 at 9:09 PM
First of all, I’m flattered by receiving recognition from any John Galt.
Secondly, let me have a little slack – I’m over 50.
Finally, This argument is so old it isn’t even interesting anymore. I don’t mean old as in a couple hours, I mean it in decades.
Lastly, my sole intention of contributing a topic as dopey as this is to treat it as dopey as it is.
ericdijon on April 20, 2009 at 9:21 PM
You’re right, i really shouldn’t use the power of government to stand in the way of anyone’s pursuit of happiness. If you’ll excuse me, i’m going to let all of the murders and rapists out of jail now, try not to get to stoned, you’ll want to be alert when they come knocking on your door to pursue their happiness.
clearbluesky on April 20, 2009 at 9:45 PM
pffft. Like that would happen. Like someone mentioned up thread- the state will more than welcome this version of soma to keep the masses asleep and compliant. Look, I am no bible thumping prude, it’s not about the drugs. You wanna zone out and disconnect, go ahead. Just not on my dime.
shannonkelly on April 20, 2009 at 9:50 PM
Yeah, just like ever since they legalized booze I can’t get into my office without being accosted by drunken coworkers.
DaveS on April 20, 2009 at 10:03 PM
LOL – I’m probably one of the 10% of the commentariat who knew precisely what you were talking about!
Bradky on April 20, 2009 at 10:34 PM
Well, I actually have that problem, you know. Its not fun. Pretty soon when they legalize gay marriage and pot it will be homosexual hippies drinking Wild Irish Rose (which should be banned along with Pot, btw)and getting high.
All joking aside, I have zero pity for people who break the law, even if its a dumb one. I still don’t think Pot should be legal, but I do understand the arguments for it. The problem is, drug abuse affects everyone. People get behind the wheel drunk and cause deaths, people will probably get behind the wheel high and cause deaths, so the whole “if it doesn’t hurt anybody” argument becomes moot. Should we ban alcohol, then? Well I lived 20 years without booze and I could probably live the rest of my life without it.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 10:35 PM
What’s your point, that freedom, liberty and the pursuit of happiness can’t be permitted in the world without allowing murder and rape?
I’m glad you weren’t around during the American Revolution.
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 10:37 PM
Uhmm btw, LevStrauss, have you actually been on a ship? You aren’t SUPPOSED to have alcohol on a ship. At any rate, when my shipmates get blazed because you wanted Pot legalized, I’ll send them to you so you can deal with them. As long as it doesn’t hurt you, right? :-)
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 10:38 PM
Actually, there was a study done that found smoking MJ doesn’t significantly hinder driving performance and safety. I don’t advocate people do it, at least not without further study, but there you are.
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 10:42 PM
That’s interesting. I didn’t know that.
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 10:45 PM
The military clearly sets it’s own rules about this sort of thing, but believe me, a stoned shipmate will be far more useful in a emergency than a drunk one. MJ doesn’t slow your reflexes like alcohol does.
FloatingRock on April 20, 2009 at 10:46 PM
Yeah, but Midrats (midnight rations) will interesting, what with all those guys getting the munchies….
Rightwingguy on April 20, 2009 at 10:49 PM
I say legalize Pot … we’re all going to need it to get through the next four years – and possibly eight at the rate the Republicans are going.
HondaV65 on April 20, 2009 at 10:54 PM
The way we are inundated with drug advertisements on TV, and every time you turn around there’s a new drug for this or for that, why not?
Ask your doctor if Dubane is right for you!
Buck Turgidson on April 20, 2009 at 11:03 PM
Doooood,
So much hostility to weave through.
It makes me hungry.
OkieDoc on April 20, 2009 at 11:08 PM
Bound to? Which law of nature dictates that? All evidence points to the opposite effect in teen drug use when drugs are decriminalized.
Mark Jaquith on April 21, 2009 at 12:01 AM
This arrogant twit must be stoned, unless he thinks that posting his comment three times somehow improved his argument.
Combining flaming arrogance with pseudonym chosen from one of the worst books I have ever read – Brilliant!
Jaibones on April 21, 2009 at 12:10 AM
Source? Or was that just your opinion?
Jaibones on April 21, 2009 at 12:11 AM
So profoundly wrong. Have you ever actually smoked pot?
Jaibones on April 21, 2009 at 12:12 AM
ok, I admit I didn’t read all of the posts. I read as many as I could stand.
Let me see if I got all this straight…
I am a fascist…
(I am a Detective for a police department and yes I sometimes kick in doors and arrest people for narcotics possession)
Marijuana is NOT a gateway drug…
(I am willing to bet that ALL of the geniuses who wrote that one are smoking a WHOLE LOT MORE of it than they used to since their body has built up a tolerance for it. Although it may or may not have led them to the next drug, it leads a hell of a lot of other people to the next high)
Marijuana is a harmless vegetable…
(VEGETABLE? HERB? Why are you afraid to call it what it is? It is a DRUG! Deal with it. Drugs are illegal. Deal with it. If you use drugs you are a criminal. Deal with it.)
Marijuana doesn’t affect reflexes or reaction time…
(Obviously you have been smoking again while on the computer! I hope your mothers basement has a good ventilation system or you are gonna get busted dude!
I have worked several accidents where the offender was high and not drunk. Unfortunately I have made more than a couple of death notifications where a loved one was run over/crashed into/ etc… by an offender who had not drank a drop but was high.)
Nobody ever smokes weed without smoking cigarettes or drinking alcohol first…
(BULLSHIT… Unfortunately I have smoked marijuana before. The first time I was in the SECOND GRADE! I had never touched alcohol or smoked a cigarette before.)
This is an assinine thread full of assinine comments. I am sad to see that so much of conservative America is even willing to have this discussion. So far the best comment I have seen was on page one where the posted stated that there are those who would argue that sex with children is harmless so we should legalize that too! Obviously I disagree with the comment, but it makes just as much sense as legalizing NARCOTICS.
fumpbump on April 21, 2009 at 12:14 AM
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