Drug War

[HombrePequeno]

I was wondering what everyone's views on drug legalization were. I personally am for total legalization assuming that only adults could purchase the drugs.

So respond with your reasons for/against the War on Drugs.

Edit: Poll updated with decriminalization options.

 

[Steeplerot]

Alcohol and Tobacco should probably be illegal *although no bans ever work, pot should be legal at least for industrial uses first.

 

[BoberFett]

You should be able to put whatever you want in your body. If anybody wanted help, we'd be money ahead to provide treatment programs rather than prosecuting and jailing addicts.

 

[BoomerD]

Legalize marijuana, tax the sh!t out of if just like alcohol, and sell it in contolled venues, like liqour stores. make it a 21 majority just like booze, with MIP penalties same as drinking.
Granted, there needs to be a more accurate means of testing however, so people don't get busted for DUI for the joint they smoked last week, or even yesterday. The current 30 day test just isn't workable for such kinds of testing. There will be certain jobs that need to prohibit use while at work, just like alcohol, for the obvious safety reasons...
Legalizing it and taxing it would have a dual benefit. The sales would raise a large amount of tax dollars, PLUS, since it'd be legal, it would eliminate much of the crime involved currently with smuggling and selling it, AND, save the various government agencies TONS of $$$ by not having to arrest & prosecute and jail people for marijuana related crimes.

Win-Win-Win...

 

[KurskKnyaz]

I'm for legalizing marijuana. For all practical purposes it already is legalized. It is very very easy to buy and the punishment is not severe because law enforcement doesn't have the resources to send everyone with possession of pot to prison. But don't take my word for it. Richard Nixon's Shafer Commission ruled that marijuana was safe enough to be decriminalized but Nixon Ignored it. Even Jimmy Carter agrees. Being illegal is costing Americans BILLIONS and causing the wrong people to pofit.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Marijuana isn't a big deal but could you imagine legalizing crystal meth? Heroin?

As for total legalization I say with total freedom comes total responsibility. If you get addicted there should be no government sponsored treatment facilities and insurance companies should be allowed to refuse payment on treatment for addiction as well as any ailment that can be attributed to the use of "hard" drugs.

 

[myocardia]

Originally posted by: BoomerD
Legalize marijuana, tax the sh!t out of if just like alcohol, and sell it in contolled venues, like liqour stores. make it a 21 majority just like booze, with MIP penalties same as drinking.
Granted, there needs to be a more accurate means of testing however, so people don't get busted for DUI for the joint they smoked last week, or even yesterday. The current 30 day test just isn't workable for such kinds of testing. There will be certain jobs that need to prohibit use while at work, just like alcohol, for the obvious safety reasons...
Legalizing it and taxing it would have a dual benefit. The sales would raise a large amount of tax dollars, PLUS, since it'd be legal, it would eliminate much of the crime involved currently with smuggling and selling it, AND, save the various government agencies TONS of $$$ by not having to arrest & prosecute and jail people for marijuana related crimes.

Win-Win-Win...

My thoughts exactly. However, not one police or sheriff's department in America agrees with either of us. They get Billions of dollars per year from Washington, plus the ability to seize any car that marijuana is found within. Just like everything else, it's all about the money. And it makes absolutely no difference to any of them that it's actually all coming out of our pockets; it only matters how much.

 

[BlancoNino]

I think it's funny those that are saying "legalize it" are also quick to say "tax the hell out of it". Replacing one government restriction with another. Makes no sense in my book.

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: BlancoNino
I think it's funny those that are saying "legalize it" are also quick to say "tax the hell out of it". Replacing one government restriction with another. Makes no sense in my book.

Well then put down the Readers Digest and open your eyes. Why shouldn't it be taxed like Tobacco and Alcohol? Those products are restricted by taxes, in fact tghe high taxes of those products haven't even restricted the poorest in society from accessing them.

 

[BlancoNino]

Originally posted by: Red Dawn

Originally posted by: BlancoNino
I think it's funny those that are saying "legalize it" are also quick to say "tax the hell out of it". Replacing one government restriction with another. Makes no sense in my book.

Well then put down the Readers Digest and open your eyes. Why shouldn't it be taxed like Tobacco and Alcohol? Those products are restricted by taxes, in fact tghe high taxes of those products haven't even restricted the poorest in society from accessing them.

I hate sin taxes just the same. Why shouldn't drinkers and smokers be allowed to have more money in their pocket?

We've already all discussed this issue before, so I'll try not to get off topic. I support the legalization of all drugs and I support no form of excess taxes on such substances.

 

[Red Dawn]

Originally posted by: BlancoNino

Originally posted by: Red Dawn

Originally posted by: BlancoNino
I think it's funny those that are saying "legalize it" are also quick to say "tax the hell out of it". Replacing one government restriction with another. Makes no sense in my book.

Well then put down the Readers Digest and open your eyes. Why shouldn't it be taxed like Tobacco and Alcohol? Those products are restricted by taxes, in fact tghe high taxes of those products haven't even restricted the poorest in society from accessing them.

I hate sin taxes just the same. Why shouldn't drinkers and smokers be allowed to have more money in their pocket?

Well if the tax some drinkers and smokers are paying hurts them finacially maybe they should curtail their drinking and smoking as they obviously are partaking too much in those activities.

 

[Steeplerot]

Originally posted by: BlancoNino


I hate sin taxes just the same. Why shouldn't drinkers and smokers be allowed to have more money in their pocket?

Because they cost society in additional health care when they inevitably get sick because of their choices.

 

[bsobel]

Originally posted by: BlancoNino
I think it's funny those that are saying "legalize it" are also quick to say "tax the hell out of it". Replacing one government restriction with another. Makes no sense in my book.

I also agree with full legalization but tax. And it's not trading two equal restrictions for each other. It's trading criminal prosecution for a consumption tax. We did this when we repealed prohibition, why should this be different?

 

[Strk]

I'd say at least decriminalize marijuana. It has very genuine medical uses, that, quite frankly, are a lot better than many current options.

 

[smack Down]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Marijuana isn't a big deal but could you imagine legalizing crystal meth? Heroin?

As for total legalization I say with total freedom comes total responsibility. If you get addicted there should be no government sponsored treatment facilities and insurance companies should be allowed to refuse payment on treatment for addiction as well as any ailment that can be attributed to the use of "hard" drugs.

It is good thing crystal meth and heroin is illegal right now so no one uses it.

 

[dmcowen674]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Marijuana isn't a big deal but could you imagine legalizing crystal meth? Heroin?

As for total legalization I say with total freedom comes total responsibility.

If you get addicted there should be no government sponsored treatment facilities and insurance companies should be allowed to refuse payment on treatment for addiction as well as any ailment that can be attributed to the use of "hard" drugs.

So what do you do with them? Shoot em?

What about the huge portion of the population addicted to nicotine?

 

[xeemzor]

I'm a fan of the model in the Netherlands, as it keeps most of the harmful drugs illegal, like heroin, and legalizes the less harmful drugs likes marijuana and mushrooms. Total legalization just doesn't work because it will make it much easier to get access to horribly addicting drugs for cheaper than ever. As long as a drug isn't too damaging to society and doesn't gets it's users physically addicted, it should be legal. Anything else is a violation of free speech, if you don't cause harm to anyone you should be allowed to do whatever you want to do with your body. Even then, no one should get one of the ridiculous jail sentences like they hand out now.

I question the use of incarceration in drug enforcement, as it only leads to another form of segregation due to the fact that Blacks and Hispanics get charged and sentenced for it much more often than any other races. In addition, it does nothing to stop the proliferation of drugs. When you lock a bunch of criminals together, they only become better criminals, form better contacts, etc.

 

[fitzov]

Decriminalization would be the better option, but it's not in your poll.

 

[HombrePequeno]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Marijuana isn't a big deal but could you imagine legalizing crystal meth? Heroin?

As for total legalization I say with total freedom comes total responsibility. If you get addicted there should be no government sponsored treatment facilities and insurance companies should be allowed to refuse payment on treatment for addiction as well as any ailment that can be attributed to the use of "hard" drugs.

Well that's the thing is that we can afford to treat them because rehab is a hell of a lot cheaper than jail. Rehab also has a success rate whereas I'm sure the percentage of people who get clean in prison is pretty low.

I don't think the usage rates for the harder drugs like heroin or meth would change much. I don't know of anyone that would use them even if they were legal. Plus the money saved from fighting the drug war could easily go into better education (currently the education on drugs is a joke) to help fight any increase in usage.

 

[Whoozyerdaddy]

Originally posted by: dmcowen674

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Marijuana isn't a big deal but could you imagine legalizing crystal meth? Heroin?

As for total legalization I say with total freedom comes total responsibility.

If you get addicted there should be no government sponsored treatment facilities and insurance companies should be allowed to refuse payment on treatment for addiction as well as any ailment that can be attributed to the use of "hard" drugs.

So what do you do with them? Shoot em?

What about the huge portion of the population addicted to nicotine?

It's a personal responsibility issue. If you make the choice to take the drug you should assume responsibility for the results.


How does nicotine relate to anything?

Nicotine is not a substance that impares your driving nor is it a substance that impares your ability to perform complex tasks. For the most part, people who wish to break their nicotine addiction either quit cold turkey or buy the gum/patch out of their own pocket.

I guess I just don't see the logic...

"Ok... we're going to make all these dangerous drugs legal so we can tax them. Then we're going to set up a tax sponsored system to treat all the additional junkies we've created by making the drugs legal."

And yes, I do think there will be more junkies. Legalization means there will be more people willing to experiment with the drug. More people experimenting with the drug means more addicts. I don't know how many more but there is no question there will be more. And it won't stop with treatment. Once a junkie is out of treatment they will need counelling and job training. They will need maintenance councelling to keep them from getting back on the drugs. I just don't think the trade off is worth it.

Like I said, I could care less about marijuana. But the really dangerous stuff... cocaine, meth, heroin, etc. That's asking for disaster.

 

[KAZANI]

What is the difference between legalization and decriminalization?

 

[blackllotus]

Originally posted by: KAZANI
What is the difference between legalization and decriminalization?

Legalization means that you could go out and smoke marijuana anywhere you could smoke a cigarette without penalty. Decriminalization means anyone caught smoking marijuana would be forced to go to rehab (for example).

 

[Tab]

Originally posted by: Steeplerot

Originally posted by: BlancoNino


I hate sin taxes just the same. Why shouldn't drinkers and smokers be allowed to have more money in their pocket?

Because they cost society in additional health care when they inevitably get sick because of their choices.

Why should society have to pay anything? They get cancer from smoking, they should have to pay for the treatment.

 

[BlancoNino]

Originally posted by: Steeplerot

Originally posted by: BlancoNino


I hate sin taxes just the same. Why shouldn't drinkers and smokers be allowed to have more money in their pocket?

Because they cost society in additional health care when they inevitably get sick because of their choices.

Last I've seen, alcoholics and smokers have to pay more for health insurance.

 

[Tab]

Originally posted by: Whoozyerdaddy
Marijuana isn't a big deal but could you imagine legalizing crystal meth? Heroin?

What difference would it make? Do you choose to not use meth, herion, cocaine because they're illegal?