Decriminalize me?

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ID:60751
 
Apr 3 2009, 11:57 am (Edited on Apr 3 2009, 12:14 pm)

Poll: When do you think Marijuana will be decriminalized in the USA?

Tomorrow 8% (5)
In the next year 8% (5)
in the next 5 years 6% (4)
In the next 10 years 18% (11)
In the next 25 years 8% (5)
Not in our lifetime 20% (12)
Never 27% (16)

Login to vote.

I'm curious as to if/when Marijuana will be decriminalized. Note I said "decriminalized", and not "legalized". There's a difference, just ask Canuhduh. If you feel at liberty to do so, explain your answer below.

EDIT: When you answer, please understand that "within the next 10 years" mean anywhere from 6-10 years. "within 25 years" means between 11-25 years
Apr 3 2009, 12:12 pm
Given the rate of increase of violent drug related crime, the massive government deficit combined with the exorbitant costs that have come from the so called "War on Drugs," the potential gold mine in taxing legal drug purchases, and Obama's own stance on the issue, decriminalization will inevitably happen at some point in the near future.
Apr 3 2009, 12:15 pm
I voted in the next 5 years...but I donno.
If Obama did it he would have to do it on a 2nd term to avoid any bad 2nd term election press.

lol @ people who voted never.
Apr 3 2009, 12:18 pm
I think it will be in the next 10. I don't smoke it myself, but I'm all for civil liberties. And from what I've seen, Weed is no more harmless than Tobacco, so there's no reason to have it be illegal, let alone a Class I Narcotic.
Apr 3 2009, 12:58 pm
I put the next 25. It's bound to happen soon, and there are legal drugs (salvia or whatever its called) that seem worse judging by the descriptions (salvia = hallucinogen).
Apr 3 2009, 1:57 pm
It's going to happen soon. I mean, people don't even really care anymore. I've been caught by the cops with bags, only fined once, the other few times, the cop told me to go home and to have fun.

Even yesterday, me and my friends were smoking a blunt in the car while driving to the movies. It's not a big deal anymore.
Apr 3 2009, 3:48 pm
Its been made a Class B drug in england recently so erm..
Apr 3 2009, 3:56 pm
I don't think it is going to happen in our life time and honestly I don't think it should happen.

Look at the way things are going. The prices of cigarettes are going up, more and more places are banning smoking either in public buildings or even city or state wide.

I don't even think a huge part of it has to do with any sort of health issues. I think it is simply more along the lines of people disagreeing with it. And if people are still going to great lengths to force people out of smoking something they find annoying, do you think they are going to ever decriminalize marijuana?

People can't even be responsible with alcohol and yet we still have people advocating the right to own marijuana. And then we have the coolest people I know talking about how they are just riding down the street smoking off a big ol' fatty. Nice. Hearing stuff like this just makes me want to vote against it over and over again.

Salvia is already being banned in a number of cities around the area I live in. I find it a sad, sad place that people can't deal with the reality of real life so much, they have to go around smoking and growing things until they find something that makes them high, just so in a few months or so it'll get banned again.

Pot heads are going to have to deal with the fact that it most likely will never happen.
Apr 3 2009, 4:20 pm
@anti-pot guy.

I'm not going to quote what you said, but it's obvious you're someone who's never even been around marijuana, let alone aware of it's effect on a person.

Think about how marijuana is perceived by the youth, plenty of people in my school smoked it, and while most didn't smoke it, they probably tolerated it. The people who hated it are obviously the minority in this situation. So maybe the potheads won't become politicians, but the tolerators most certainly will in the near future. To say it won't happen in the near future is a stretch, but not in our lifetime is ridiculous. Cough medicine is more lethal than marijuana.
Apr 3 2009, 4:43 pm
Trosh Kubyo wrote:
I don't think it is going to happen in our life time and honestly I don't think it should happen.

Look at the way things are going. The prices of cigarettes are going up, more and more places are banning smoking either in public buildings or even city or state wide.

I don't even think a huge part of it has to do with any sort of health issues. I think it is simply more along the lines of people disagreeing with it. And if people are still going to great lengths to force people out of smoking something they find annoying, do you think they are going to ever decriminalize marijuana?

People can't even be responsible with alcohol and yet we still have people advocating the right to own marijuana. And then we have the coolest people I know talking about how they are just riding down the street smoking off a big ol' fatty. Nice. Hearing stuff like this just makes me want to vote against it over and over again.

Salvia is already being banned in a number of cities around the area I live in. I find it a sad, sad place that people can't deal with the reality of real life so much, they have to go around smoking and growing things until they find something that makes them high, just so in a few months or so it'll get banned again.

Pot heads are going to have to deal with the fact that it most likely will never happen.

Your line of thinking ran in completely the wrong direction. The issue of cigarettes is the issue of money. Cigarette prices are going up because they're historically a reliable way to collect tax money for the government. Public smoking bans are appearing, but the penalty for violating these bans is just a fine. Guess why these bans exist? To make money. This is the only reason. Finally, your post makes it seem like Marijuana is a much more dangerous substance than Alcohol, which it isn't. Research your facts before posting, please.
Apr 3 2009, 4:54 pm
Trosh Kubyo wrote:
I don't think it is going to happen in our life time and honestly I don't think it should happen.

Look at the way things are going. The prices of cigarettes are going up, more and more places are banning smoking either in public buildings or even city or state wide.

I don't even think a huge part of it has to do with any sort of health issues. I think it is simply more along the lines of people disagreeing with it. And if people are still going to great lengths to force people out of smoking something they find annoying, do you think they are going to ever decriminalize marijuana?

People can't even be responsible with alcohol and yet we still have people advocating the right to own marijuana. And then we have the coolest people I know talking about how they are just riding down the street smoking off a big ol' fatty. Nice. Hearing stuff like this just makes me want to vote against it over and over again.

Salvia is already being banned in a number of cities around the area I live in. I find it a sad, sad place that people can't deal with the reality of real life so much, they have to go around smoking and growing things until they find something that makes them high, just so in a few months or so it'll get banned again.

Pot heads are going to have to deal with the fact that it most likely will never happen.

You can't kill a your friends and an entire innocent family with pot, but you can with alcohol.
Apr 3 2009, 5:02 pm
The crap I hate the most is the stupid marijuana commercials. I hate when that dumb kid goes "I got high last night and got in a fight with my friends, and made them all walk home." First of all, that is what alcohol does, not pot. I can't tell you how many times I have fought with my friends because of alcohol. If anything, weed solved those problems.


Trosh Kubyo wrote:
And then we have the coolest people I know talking about how they are just riding down the street smoking off a big ol' fatty. Nice. Hearing stuff like this just makes me want to vote against it over and over again.


Uh...why? There is no reason for that to make you vote against pot. You obviously never smoked before. You are the kind of person who believes those commercials that pot can make you crash into a girl riding her bicycle. If anything, smoking and driving makes you more aware than when you don't smoke. When you are wasted, and driving, your judgment is obviously screwed and you're swerving everywhere and doing stupid crap. When you smoke, you are more aware of your surroundings, and since your mind is expanded, you are aware of certain situations that can happen if you do something, so you drive even safer. You notice every little detail, and you don't drive any worse.

I can see how people who first start smoking might not want to drive, but someone who smokes a lot, well, they drive better.
Apr 3 2009, 5:35 pm (Edited on Apr 3 2009, 5:45 pm)
yeah I'll believe that mind expanded stuff when pigs fly. Sounds like another excuse from a pot head.

I had a roommate who used to smoke pot when he needed to go the sleep because it made him sleepy and lethargic. It quickly disposed of him putting him to sleep. He has admitted it slows down his thought process and his reflexes. So yeah, I believe a bunch of pot heads could easily smack into a little girl on her bike in their car after lighting up and getting high.

I sometimes take my girlfriend's hydrocodone when I have severe back pain and it messes me up bad. It's hard for me to concentrate, I have to concentrate as hard as I can just to get up and use the bathroom. I'd never use it outside of my house, or even try to go driving while under the effects of it. The same roommate heard me talking about it and said I could get similar effects by smoking pot and it would be cheaper. If what he says is even half accurate, if I knew anyone was driving like that, I'd want them thrown in jail post haste.

* Pot tilts the balance of chemicals in the brain that regulate mood, energy, appetite, and attention.

* It affects learning and memory processes, and can cause forgetfulness and reduced concentration.

* Pot also reduces logical thinking and calculation skills, and can impair a user's ability to perform complex tasks, including driving a car.

I was never comparing Marijuana to alcohol in the sense of danger. I was simply pointing out that people are simply irresponsible. Case closed. Driving while stoned is just a example of that.

I love how people always come up with the, you haven't smoked it, you don't know line. That is usually the only damn thing any of you stoners can come up with.

But you know, thats cool, apparently because I have never smoked pot and drove around stoned, I have no right to voice an opinion. But hey, its cool, I live in America, where my opinion matters and where I get to choose how I vote. Your ignorant aggression to me on this topic only makes me want to oppose your own opinions even more.
Apr 3 2009, 5:44 pm
Also on a side note, I am also going to disagree with the old statement Marijuana is not habit forming.

On a chemical level I am willing to admit it may not be. But a habit isn't pure chemical addiction. There are plenty of things that can be habit forming that you never actually put into your body. Look at gambling and video games. Look at World of Warcraft or Ever Quest. These are all examples of habit forming hobbies that have practically destroyed people.

Everyone knows that damn stoner, the one who all he does is talk about pot. He can't wait to smoke it again. He spends all his money on it, or spends all his time trying to mooch it off his friends. You rarely see him sober, if at all.

Anything can be habit forming if you give in to it enough.
Apr 3 2009, 7:45 pm (Edited on Apr 3 2009, 7:53 pm)
I guarantee you the type of stoner you're talking about is someone who had a bad future in the first place...he's probably taking more drugs other than marijuana. I know stoners which smoke weed as their only hobby, but I also know stoners who balance it out with their careers, and go to college and make high marks in school.

The fact is, you haven't mentioned a good anti-marijuana argument even once, which makes me think that you're nowhere near qualified to say anything on the subject. If I were arguing it I would've brought up things like gateway drugs and foreign drug cartels, but you don't sound like someone who's against marijuana, you sound like you're some kid who got bullied in school.

I'd find you and kill you right now if I wasn't high on marijuana.
Apr 3 2009, 8:11 pm
I don't need to make a good anti-marijuana argument though. Because in the end, we all have equal rights on the argument on it, and we all have equal rights on passing that judgment and I happen to be one of the people who disagree with legalizing it or even having it decriminalized.

I don't think any one of you are close to being any more qualified then I am to say ANYTHING about it, at all. Unless you have done comprehensive case studies in a scientific setting. And lighting up a fatty doesn't count.

Bullied in school? Wow, thats just classic. I guess I also have no life, job or a girlfriend either. Would you like to toss a few more at me?
Apr 3 2009, 8:37 pm
I think weed should be illegal for one reason, and one alone.

IT SMELLS SO GOD DAMN AWEFUL. LIKE DOG TURD. And people who smoke it tend to be just as bad.
Who the hell can stand to smoke a drug that smells THAT BAD DXXXX????


Also, I know a lot of people who smoke it, and do no other drugs, my brothers are two good examples.
They are all lowlifes and good for nothings that will never do anything in their entire lives.
Sure, the drug might not do anything particularly bad to their body, but they are addicted to the drug, and need to have it, and will go to extreme lengths to get it, including committing crime.

If you ask me, that is more than enough of a reason to make something illegal.
Apr 3 2009, 9:27 pm
dog turd? no.

And trosh, I said sound. However, you're always free to give me more suggestions. The thing is, there are plenty of legal things that people screw themselves over with that are legal that are worse than marijuana. I'm not saying go out there and hand it out to kids, I'm just saying it could do the world more good than bad right now if people weren't penalized for having some of it.

But we can agree to disagree.
I'm done here.
Apr 3 2009, 10:11 pm
Trosh Kubyo wrote:
I don't need to make a good anti-marijuana argument though. Because in the end, we all have equal rights on the argument on it, and we all have equal rights on passing that judgment and I happen to be one of the people who disagree with legalizing it or even having it decriminalized.

There have been NUMEROUS studies done that support the fact that marijuana is no more harmful than tobacco. I'm not saying it's okay to smoke weed then go drive around, however there's no pertinent evidence showing why it should be illegal.

Studies have shown that Marijuana is NOT chemically addictive. And since humans can become psychologically addicted to anything(even dog grooming), this isn't anything close to a valid argument.

If you have no evidence against something, yet continue to be against it, you're a retard, and need to move to Cuba, where you can live with you totalitarian friends. Baseless arguments don't help democracy, they hurt it.

I don't think any one of you are close to being any more qualified then I am to say ANYTHING about it, at all. Unless you have done comprehensive case studies in a scientific setting. And lighting up a fatty doesn't count.

I've read case studies done by several universities, and research that has been done in Canada. There's articles on the internet that have been published that show Marijuana is -not- nearly as harmful as we make it out to be. There are even more cases that prove that it isn't anything close to a Class I narcotic. I base my arguments on these studies.

And before you say I smoke it, don't. I don't smoke weed, never have, and I won't until either it's legal or I travel to a country where it is legal.
Apr 3 2009, 10:31 pm
The Magic Man wrote:
[legality should be based on] IT SMELLS SO GOD DAMN AWEFUL. LIKE DOG TURD. And people who smoke it tend to be just as bad.
Who the hell can stand to smoke a drug that smells THAT BAD DXXXX????

Some people like it. You can't base laws on how things smell, or how they taste. Especially considering everyone poops, and if they banned poop, we'd all either break the law, or die. Also, you haven't ever been around a meth lab, or someone smoking crack. Weed is a pleasant aroma compared to those.

Also, I know a lot of people who smoke it, and do no other drugs, my brothers are two good examples.
They are all lowlifes and good for nothings that will never do anything in their entire lives.

Stating one or two cases is not a valid basis for argument. Your "brothers" are Archetypes of the "pot smoker". Yeah, they exist. However the numbers of these types of people are a small minority compared to those who smoke weed and function in our society. Montel Williams is a great example of someone who smokes Marijuana. If it did what you said, Canada's economy would have collapsed into itself, and the Netherlands would be long gone.

Sure, the drug might not do anything particularly bad to their body, but they are addicted to the drug, and need to have it, and will go to extreme lengths to get it, including committing crime.

There's no chemical addiction. Also, not everyone who smokes is addicted. You can't base the legality of something based on a psychological addiction, because no two people will handle it the same. Look at hte post below this for more on psychological addiction. Your statement that people will "commit crimes" to get a joint is moot, because it's just as likely that someone who's an alcoholic will compared to someone with an "addiction" to marijuana. Neither is common enough to make it illegal, only restricted.

If you ask me, that is more than enough of a reason to make something illegal.

Okay, so if it smells, and people can have an addiction to it, it should be illegal? That's interesting, Poop stinks. It smells so bad, it smells like poop. Also, there are some cases of coprophilia(poop fetish) where the subjects are psychologically addicted to sex with fecal matter, and need both.
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