Marijuana legalization?

El Guapo

It's not a silly question at all - it makes absolutely NO sense that pot is illegal while alcohol and tobacco (both of which are MORE harmful and MORE addictive) are legal. As I understand it, marijuana is illegal because hemp is a much cheaper and more efficient crop with which to make paper, and this threatened corporate timber interests, who mounted an all-out fear campaign in the 1930's to make the plant illegal (if you get a chance, rent Reefer Madness - one of the great propaganda films of all-time).

Legalization would:

- Create thousands of jobs
- Deal a massive blow to criminal networks, which would suddenly be without a HUGE source of income
- Provide an enormous windfall for the government, which would bring in billions in taxes (ending Prohibition played a big part in getting the U.S. out of the Great Depression)
- Allow police, courts and prisons to focus their resources on DANGEROUS criminals, rather than potheads

lar_dawg08

Don't really have an answer for you Dude, I can't remember.. Later, I need to fire up another bowl.

Rachel

So many people consider marijuana a drug, but it's really not.
Drugs have harmful effects on you, or cause a bad impact.
However, weed doesn't do this to you whatsoever
I think it should definitely be legalized
And what really ticks me off is that Obama said he's legalize it if voted into office
He was voted in, but did he ever legalize marijuana? Of course not.
Typical Democrat for you.
Anywho, I don't consider it harmful to anybody at all.
So it should most certainly be made legal to smoke.

systemofadown20001

marijauana is illegal for a few reasons. None of them have to do with it's health or safety issues (because it is healthier and safer than alcohol and cigarettes).
Some of it has to do with racism. Back in the day when americans employed mexicans to work their fields they saw these "degenerates" smoking marijuana and assumed that was what made them so lazy and made them "less" human.
Some of it's propaganda. Like with "reefer madness".
Some of it has to do with the fact that the government can't control or tax it.
And some of it is just plain ignorance.

rich k

Marijuana was made illegal after the legalization of alcohol so that the Prohibition Cops would still have jobs. That was supported with a lot of outright government sponsored propaganda to plant the popular misconceptions which still exist in the public consciousness. When you consider that 80% of the U.S. prison population is non-violent drug related offenders and figure the arrest, prosecution, and incarceration costs of that many people and how much more could be accomplished if the money was put into treatment and prevention the sheer lunacy of those laws is overwhelming.

PLURfreak77

Marijauna is a natural grown plant, so the government can't tax it. It they can't make a profit out of it, they don't want it to be legal. But medical marijauna is a different make up of Marijauna, which means they can sell it, which means more states can legalize it. Does that answer?

Lauren A

WHY did you have to post this question?? You're going to get a lot of straight-arrows with silver spoons up their butts on here, and they're all going to say stuff like "because it's a drug, and it's bad for you!"

Of course, that's what the government wants everyone to think. I don't believe any of the propaganda they spew out.

Someone already stated the taxation reasons for it being illegal, so I'll just add one more reason: gasoline and oil. Marijuana was first made illegal when cars became more popular, because hemp burned cleaner and better than gasoline. So they eliminated the competition.

Bethany J

It's illegal because it is considered a drug. Maybe the U.S. government should get into the business of selling it and chipping away at our national debt with the profits.

John U

Seems this one keeps going around and around and it is interesting that I haven't bumped into any scholaraly or legal/government sites that address this question. The one I did find seemed to bring up some valid points/arguments as to why it is illegal and can be found here.

http://civilliberty.about.com/od/drugpolicy/tp/Why-is-Marijuana-Illegal.htm

It is perceived as addictive
It has "no accepted medical useâ€
It has been historically linked with narcotics, such as heroin
It is associated with unfashionable lifestyles
It was once associated with oppressed ethnic groups
Inertia is a powerful force in public policy
Advocates for marijuana legalization rarely present an appealing case

One can read the particulars under these headings. I suppose this is one argument that will go on forever and falls in line with why is alcohol legal or cigarettes but not marijuana. One argument I made a few years back in one of my papers was that if it was made legal guess who would be next, the heroin users, cocaine users and it would seem to be turning the justice system into kindergarten court where the argument would be well you can smoke marijuana legally now why canâ€™t I use my cocaine or whatever substance. I believe the issue is there has to be a limit and for the time being there obviously appears no budging on the Federal Government to amend legislation and current laws to legalize the substance. I would also encourage everyone to look at the cases where in Amsterdam it is legal (to a point) and the ensuing societal issues they now face as a result. And yes, alcoholism, dui etc. is just as big of a problem but for right now, banking, taxes and apologizing to the world that the US is a free and viably economic country are bigger issues as opposed to if you can smoke your blunt without police interference or not.

thomas

its a type 2 controlled substance, with means that it can be additive. the FDA regulates the use of all drugs to ensure the public will not be harmed.

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