New York Times Editorial: Repeal the Ban on Marijuana!

[unokitty]

Repeal Prohibition, Again

It took 13 years for the United States to come to its senses and end Prohibition, 13 years in which people kept drinking, otherwise law-abiding citizens became criminals and crime syndicates arose and flourished. It has been more than 40 years since Congress passed the current ban on marijuana, inflicting great harm on society just to prohibit a substance far less dangerous than alcohol.

The federal government should repeal the ban on marijuana.

The social costs of the marijuana laws are vast. There were 658,000 arrests for marijuana possession in 2012, according to F.B.I. figures, compared with 256,000 for cocaine, heroin and their derivatives.

...long past time to repeal this version of Prohibition.

Let States Decide on Marijuana

...For too long, politicians have seen the high cost — in dollars and lives locked behind bars — of their pointless war on marijuana and chosen to do nothing. But many states have had enough, and it’s time for Washington to get out of their way.

In the future, young people are going to ask why this took so long. And why the nation spent so much money on the war on drugs.

Lets not forget the cost of lost opportunity. Every dollar spent in the 658,000 arrests for marijuana possession in 2012 is a dollar not available for education, social welfare, or other program.

What's your opinion?
Time to stop the war on drugs?
Time to reallocate that money to more productive uses?
Time to dry up the flow of money to criminal gangs?

Uno

 

[michal1980]

should be done.

But it wont stop gangs.

 

[Jhhnn]

Well, yeh, but the NYT is just a buncha soft headed libruhl dope smoking hippies anyway.

 

[Spungo]

should be done.

But it wont stop gangs.

It would help. Right now drugs are very profitable. You'd be amazed at how much crime can be funded with drug money. Drug cartels in Mexico have tanks and helicopters. It's unbelievable.

If hardcore drugs were legal, all of that money would go to legit companies like Pfizer, Philip Morris, and Jack Daniels. Their profits would be paid out as dividends to ordinary people like you and I. Of course, this will absolutely never happen because groups like prison guard unions and private prisons have ungodly amounts of political power.

 

[OverVolt]

Wouldn't smoke it even if legal.

 

[Texashiker]

Marijuana is a victimless crime.

The laws prohibiting it should be repealed.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

Wouldn't smoke it even if legal.

Oh, you're one of them.

 

[Babbles]

I don't partake, but it is complete idiotic nonsense that it is managed at the federal way that it is. Copy Colorado's laws and roll them out nationwide.

 

[MagnusTheBrewer]

I know two people doing 8 years for possession under the three strikes rule. I think that's pretty excessive.

 

[unokitty]

From USNews:

Data released Monday by the Federal Bureau of Investigation show there were an estimated 1,552,432 arrests for drug-related crimes in 2012 – a slight uptick from the 1,531,251 drug arrests in 2011. Marijuana offenses accounted for 48.3 percent of all drug arrests, a slight reduction from 49.5 percent in 2011, which itself was the highest rate since before 1995.

Most marijuana-related arrests were for possession...

"As a former prosecuting attorney myself, I believe it is irresponsible to squander our limited law enforcement resources on this disastrous public policy failure," said Dan Riffle, Marijuana Policy Project federal policies director, in a statement. "That is especially true when so many violent crimes remain unsolved. Every second spent arresting and prosecuting adults for marijuana is time that could have been spent preventing and solving real crimes."

From the Houston Chronicle: DA candidate calls for no arrest for marijuana

"We can save up to 10 million dollars a year, folks," Ogg told campaign supporters and reporters at a Friday news conference. "We think that taxpayers deserve to have their money spent wisely."

Ogg said more than 12,000 people were charged in 2013 with marijuana possession of less than 4 ounces, then jailed for an average of five days, costing taxpayers $4.4 million a year...

"Law enforcement officers can expect to be tied up on a misdemeanor marijuana arrest at least three hours or more," she said. "My program means more police officers on the streets to respond to rape, burglary and gang-related crimes."

In Houston alone, saving millions of dollars? Freeing Law Enforcement to respond to rape, burglary, and gang-related crimes?

What's not to like?

Uno

 

[master_shake_]

Won't happen there are soooo much money to be made by private prisons for drug offences.

 

[Jaskalas]

New York Times Editorial: Repeal the Ban on Marijuana!

Would painkillers be next?

America's war on drugs has severely injured people living in pain.

 

[Kadarin]

Wouldn't smoke it even if legal.

Wouldn't it be nice if that were your personal choice, rather than mandated by federal law?

 

[MovingTarget]

I think that we have reached the tipping point wrt pot laws. That tipping point is where those of us in society that recognize how much drug use harms society also realize that the current drug laws create more social ills than they purport to solve. Its time that Congress stepped up to the plate and righted this wrong, but with the reactionaries/regressives running the show, I fear that I may not see that for another decade or so.

 

[Spungo]

America's war on drugs has severely injured people living in pain.

Yep. I know several people who get the run around when they ask for pain medication. My dad was in pain due to a failed root canal. Doctors refused to help him, so he was in constant pain with no sleep for about 3 days until he could get the tooth pulled.
I can understand doctors being cautious with long term dosing of opioids since we know how addictive those are, but wtf. My dad's medical records clearly show that he doesn't abuse pain pills. The people who started and continue the war on drugs really deserve some kind of street justice. Every single person who voted to restrict painkillers should have their knees broken with a hammer then not given pain killers. Then they would bitch and complain that this isn't fair. Oh, so you didn't want to restrict your own rights to access medication, you wanted to restrict the rights of other people. These fucking people are nazis to the core. They use the same arguments: people in pain are inferior, we are the master race of politicians and we know better, we're hurting/killing you because we care, we put you jail because it's for the good of society, we smash and loot your marijuana dispensary because we can, etc.

 

[AyashiKaibutsu]

Won't happen there are soooo much money to be made by private prisons for drug offences.

Twenty years ago it might have made sense to say that maybe even ten. Now though, there's just too much society pressure to legalize and it's only shifting more and more as people realize just how ridiculous the whole thing is. It might be a while yet, but it's definitely going to happen.

 

[OverVolt]

Wouldn't it be nice if that were your personal choice, rather than mandated by federal law?

I don't care if its legal though.

 

[master_shake_]

Twenty years ago it might have made sense to say that maybe even ten. Now though, there's just too much society pressure to legalize and it's only shifting more and more as people realize just how ridiculous the whole thing is. It might be a while yet, but it's definitely going to happen.

that might be true but think of all the lost jobs when they decriminalize marijuana...

its not just the guards and what not but everyone one from janitors to food suppliers to laundry and furniture suppliers too.

do you hate jobs.

^up there^ some serious sarcastic bs im sure of it

 

[RandomWords]

It's not just lost opportunity in the amount they can spend elsewhere - but the amount the government could gain by allowing it and taxing it... there will be job opportunity for businesses starting everywhere. it should be done away with for marijuana. Gangs will still exist for things like cocaine and harder core drugs that I'm still undecided whether they should be allowed in this "stop the war on drugs" part. If they regulate it like alcohol, plenty of people will still go to jail for DWI - so they will make their money - it's a win win all the way.

 

[RandomWords]

Wouldn't smoke it even if legal.

Neither would I - I would put it in brownies because I love brownies and then eat it with milk - because I like milk with my brownies.

 

[Babbles]

that might be true but think of all the lost jobs when they decriminalize marijuana...

its not just the guards and what not but everyone one from janitors to food suppliers to laundry and furniture suppliers too.

do you hate jobs.

^up there^ some serious sarcastic bs im sure of it

I'm sure some people will use those arguments, "They took our jobs. . ."

However, I think in several states there is severe prison over-crowding, so even if they reduce sending marijuana users to prison I suspect the prisons will still remain full. As such, Big Prison™ will still have the jobs.

 

[Pr0d1gy]

Can common sense spread like a virus? If so, more of this please.

 

[HOSED]

I will go with the slippery slope argument - Ganga>Hashish>Oil extracts>angel dust>designer drugs>cocaine> where will it stop?
Also if people get sick from it (allergic reactions, over doses, long term lung and brain damage) will the insurance rates for lawful citizens not have to increase?
Does the government really need more tax money to use toward military actions, bridges to nowhere, pork barrel spending...
PLUS all of the illegal dealers out of work who can get on welfare, food stamps etc.

I can just see the ads.. more doctors smoke Maui Wowie than any other brand of pre rolled blunt .... :wub:

~~ Master_Shake's input gives me some hope!

 

[Jhhnn]

I will go with the slippery slope argument - Ganga>Hashish>Oil extracts>angel dust>designer drugs>cocaine> where will it stop?
Also if people get sick from it (allergic reactions, over doses, long term lung and brain damage) will the insurance rates for lawful citizens not have to increase?
Does the government really need more tax money to use toward military actions, bridges to nowhere, pork barrel spending...
PLUS all of the illegal dealers out of work who can get on welfare, food stamps etc.

I can just see the ads.. more doctors smoke Maui Wowie than any other brand of pre rolled blunt .... :wub:

~~ Master_Shake's input gives me some hope!

Meh. Marijuana's role as a so-called gateway drug has always been contextual & highly exaggerated. It's because dope dealers sell whatever kind of dope they can & because people like to get high. If you go to Willie to score & he's out of pot but has other stuff, you just may try it. You already know that the govt is lying about marijuana, so the tendency to discount their message about other drugs will be strong. That was exacerbated years ago when pot supplies would dry up from time to time, at least locally. Now, when you go to the pot shop, they have pot of several varieties, along with extracts like hash, BHO & even edibles. No cocaine. no qualuuds, no hillbilly heroin, no meth. In that context, it's no more a gateway than going to the liquor store.

Long term brain & lung damage? PUh-leeze. That boogeyman can't even stand up w/o being held up by ignorance & fear. There is no fatal dose for cannabis. It can't kill you, unlike alcohol & nicotine which def can.

Marijuana is easily the least harmful of all widely used intoxicants. For the vast majority of people, being arrested is the most harmful possible outcome of its use.

Food stamps & welfare? Gawd. Small time dealers are already on food stamps & welfare if they qualify, which of course they do having no real job per se. Sheesh.

 

[Babbles]

I will go with the slippery slope argument - Ganga>Hashish>Oil extracts>angel dust>designer drugs>cocaine> where will it stop?
Also if people get sick from it (allergic reactions, over doses, long term lung and brain damage) will the insurance rates for lawful citizens not have to increase?
Does the government really need more tax money to use toward military actions, bridges to nowhere, pork barrel spending...
PLUS all of the illegal dealers out of work who can get on welfare, food stamps etc.

I can just see the ads.. more doctors smoke Maui Wowie than any other brand of pre rolled blunt .... :wub:

~~ Master_Shake's input gives me some hope!

Slippery slope is an idiotic argument not based on any evidence at all. There is nothing at all to substantiate that claim, and arguably data to support otherwise (e.g. prohibition). It's the argument for the ignorant.