What do you think? Should pot possession be decriminalized? The government of Canada has proposed for this to happen. Instead of decriminalizing, should it be made legal? Here is the story.

Prime Minister Jean Chretien was never a pot head, in fact, he’s never even lit up once. But that doesn’t mean that he thinks the law should come down hard on those who do.

The P.M. wants to change federal law so those caught smoking up won’t be overshadowed by a criminal record for the rest of their lives. But before people start running into the streets with bags of marijuana and lighters, they should heed his message. “We're not legalizing it, we're decriminalizing,” he explained during a Liberal fundraising dinner on Tuesday.

Amendments to the Criminal Code are expected to land in the Commons within the next two months. The changes will make possession of a little bit of the drug a minor offence, that could be handled like a traffic violation. “So you will have another ticket,” Chretien explained. “For losing your senses, or something like that.”

And no, a softer line on the pot possession front isn’t triggered by his own background with the substance. “I never tasted it in my life,” he said.

Chretien said that the move to ease up on simple possession will come hand-in-hand with a more all-encompassing anti-drug plan that will still be hard on traffickers.

Its legal in so many countries. I know Holland and Germany both allow it for 'social' use.

I personally don't think it should be legalized in the US, but that is just my honest opinion, and I surely don't hold it against anyone who believes otherwise.

It's still illegal in Germany, but there is talk of decriminalizing it, since it is legal in Holland, and has also been decriminalized in Switzerland. I personally don't think it should be made legal, but decriminalizing it would unburden the justice system to some extent. I don't think it should be treated like heroin, cocaine, ecstasy, etc..

Possession of amounts, less than an ounce, has been a misdemeanor, for a long time here. Possession for sale or distribution is the the big felony.

There's a lot of pro and con, to this. I never used it much and haven't, in over 20 years. It never affected me any differently, than alcohol but it wasn't worth the price or the hassle.

There are certain health considerations and I wouldn't want anyone driving under the influence - but that's another law. These days, showing dirty on a drug test, will keep you from getting a lot of jobs. I've been drug-tested, prior to getting my last three jobs.

For the record, I think it should be legalized. It really isn't any worse than alcohol or cigarettes, and just imagine what kind of tax revenues we could get! We could be out of a federal deficit in a year, at most. And that's not even taking into consideration the industrial and manufacturing uses of hemp, the benefits to the farmers (it has a short growing season, and nurishes the soil, so it could be planted IN ADDITION to the regular season crops). Or the possible medical uses of it, which could be boundless. (Yes, I have done a lot of research on it, and no, I never used it regularly.)

Knowing that it won't be legalized in my lifetime, I think decrimalizing it is a very good idea. I'm sorry, but pot doesn't hold a candle to cocain, heroin, meth, ecstasy, etc. Cops should be going after the hard drugs, not the people who just smoke dope.

Originally posted by valanhb
For the record, I think it should be legalized. It really isn't any worse than alcohol........

Look at how many deaths are attributed to alcohol, yet it's legal. People are dying daily from driving under the influence, alcohol poisoning, etc.

As Heidi stated, pot doesn't compare at all to the harder drugs and right now I wish the people who need it, like the cancer and AIDS patients, have access to it.

;)

I really don't know, good or bad things could come from it. What works in one nation might not work in ours, I think a lot of American's are a very differnet breed if you will.

I think it should be legalized. I'll admit that I've used it in the past, but never had an "addiction" like I do to cigarettes. I gave it up over a year ago, because Mike doesn't approve. It helped my depression quite a bit and I can feel the difference in my systems now compared to when I used it. I get depressed a lot more easily now. I don't think people should do it all the time, but at least for medical uses, it should be legal. It's still legal for medical in some states but it's so controversial that it's hard to find a doctor to proscribe it when it's needed.

A lot of drugs have legitimate medical uses and a lot of legal drugs are abused. Just as people need to use alcohol, responsibly (don't drink and drive) they need to use their medication responsibly. I'd be crazy to drive, after taking my migraine meds.

I think it should be legal. People need to take responsibility for themselves and what they put in their own bodies. Also, just think of the millions of dollars that would be saved each year if law enforcement officials didn't have to hunt down and arrest growers and those in possession. It will also put the pot pushers out of business.......pretty much.

I don't see a problem with it, though I've never used it and probably wouldn't, but that's just me.

The thing they're talking about at school is how it is supposedly a "gateway" drug that leads to the usage of harder and more dangerous drugs. But I don't see how it could be any worse than tobacco. :confused: But I've never even smoked a cigarette, so I really don't have a clue what I'm talking about...

Jenn, the only way I can see pot as a "gateway drug" is because you have to find drug DEALERS who will make more money if they get you addicted to the harder stuff.

Yet another argument (in my mind anyway) for legalizing it. ;)

I was a teen in the 70s, and I smoked pot. It was not a gateway drug for me, and I'm more scared of my prescription painkillers that are synthetic codeine drugs than I am of pot, which as an adult I choose not to smoke. (Funny enough, I went to a strange college where I got serious about life, so I stopped smoking when I went to college, which is somewhat ironic as that's when many people start).

But my personal opinions of pot really aren't what drive my thinking here.

I see it as far more of a practical issue, and I agree with Heidi. There are so many arguments for legalizing it. To help reduce the number of dealers on the streets. It isn't addictive, like alcohol and tobacco, and they're legal. It doesn't impair you like alcohol, and it doesn't harm your health as badly as does tobacco. These are all great arguments for legalization. To help reduce crime. To regulate it. To make its proven medicinal qualities available to those who need it.

But my main reason for believing in the legalization of marijuana hasn't been mentioned here.

There are approximately 1.9 million inmates incarcerated in this country. They cost us approximately $42,000 per inmate per year. Approximately 60% of those incarcerated are there because of drug-related crimes. Approximately 25% of those are because of marijuana.

Let's save the U.S. taxpayer close to $12 billion a year by not incarcerating people for marijuana-related charges. Then let's tax the sale and distribution of marijuana, and create untold billions a year in revenue.

For me, it's not a question of ideology at all. Marijuana is safer than other legal forms of recreation. It is not addictive like other forms of recreation. It has medicinal value. And we could save taxpayers millions, reduce crime, reduce access to the "gateway," and generate much needed revenue.

It's that simple, IMO.

Back when I used to teach a college course titled Drugs, Alcohol and Behavior I always had students debate the topic of legalization of marijuana. It was really interesting that once they began investigating the topic, no matter how anti-pot they were, almost every student concluded that it should be legalized, taxed, and controlled.

One of my favolite things that I would say while lecturing on pot was that it is easier to kill yourself by eating green potatoes than by using marijuana! :lol3: It is true...TCH by itself is not dangerous (as long as you're not operating heavy machinery while high), but the tar and other poisons in the smoke sure can do lung damage.

Anyway...I really don't get the appeal of pot except to those with medical conditions that are improved by the THC. But, I know pot is a heck of a lot less dangerous than alcohol, cigarettes, or any other illegal drug AND as y'all pointed out, legalizing would reduce the number of people in prison while also bringing in many needed tax dollars, so why not make it legal? :confused:

While I dont do pot, I agree that it should be legalised - imagine how much money the government would make from taxes on it alone.
A friend of mine was seriously injured in a motorbike accident and the only way he can allieviate the pain is smoking the green stuff - he does not want to take prescription painkillers and I respect him for that.
Besides, banning pot wont make it go away. The thrill of taking an illegal drug makes more people take it. Suppose if its legal, drug smuggling will reduce, crime MAY go down (this is just my opinion), and like Laurie says, less people in prison - they are already overpopulated as it is.

I helped teach a class in Germany called "Cocaine Addiction in America". In that class we had pictures of spider webs spun by spiders on different drugs. The only drugs upon which the spider could not spin a web that would work were caffeine and nicotine.

When I first moved to CA I met an officer of NORML. She had a back that was literally disintegrating on her and marijuana was the only thing that would kill the pain. Here's the deal: whenever anybody I've known who has smoked pot as a pain killer they've never gotten high--it's only been those who's smoked it recreationally that have gotten high.

I don't really like the idea of taking anything to "get high" but I don't see why people can't use it medicinally. I feel the same way about all drugs (including Heroin and Cocaine), but I also feel that the doctor has to take responsibility in making sure the patient does not become addicted.

Uh--for your information I'm one of those Americans taking psychotropic drugs. I don't do it to get high. I do it to stay alive--the same reason people use marijuana medicinally.

I also don't agree with using legalized drugs to get high. Also, anti-depressants will not get you high and will not work unless you have a chemical imbalance. Some will be right for you and some will not (that's if you need them), but why take a drug that your body does not need? That's nearly akin to swallowing draino because your constipated!

You can do it if you like, just please don't do it around me and we'll get along fine. I've seen it destroy too many people when they use things recreationally (including drugs like Ritalin and Vicodin).

Oh--and addiction is much higher when you use something recreationally and it's not fun to try to break. I've done it 3 times now and I'm working on a 4th (food).

No--I don't think pot is a gateway drug--I don't really think there is such a thing, but I do believe that some drugs will lead to others. What I mean is something like this--someone gets addicted to Cocaine and then it becomes extremely expensive and/or hard to get so they go for something with a similar high like Crystal Meth. I've seen that happen and it's not pretty.

Also--to be honest, people who smoke pot just to get high aren't usually the people you have to watch out for either.

But I classify emotional dependence as an addiction--it's just as difficult to work with. Done them both. But I can see why people would want to break it out.

Canada's legislature has gone on to the next step. (Sorry, I don't know the whole process....perhaps one of our Canadian friends can help?) I THINK it passed the legislature and will become law at a later date. Of course, the US government is saying all kinds of horrible things, that it is irresponsible and will increase use in the US (??????). Hey, Canada's it's own country, let them run their own damn country!

The other thing that isn't as talked about is that the bill decriminalizes marijuana for the casual user, making it more like a traffic ticket with a fine. However, they INCREASED the penalites for mass growing, distributing and dealing.

I don't know why governments have to bitch and moan about one another. If the US government is so darned dead set against anything Canada is doing--beef up the borders! They're supposedly against a lot of the stuff Mexico allows, but the borders down here are still lax.

Marijuana decriminilisation....must be the flavour for governments. It's happenning here in Australia two, not a federal law, (nationwide), just two individual states doing it but on very different terms.

In Western Australia, the Premier and the ALP wants the law softened so the occasional user pays a fine and the incident isn't recorded on any permanent criminal record. In effect, it's like paying a traffic fine. As I understand it, marijuana will still be illegal if you are found with an amount that deems you to sell and supply.

In New South Wales, they are wanting to start a trial of marijuana use on terminally ill people, people on chemotherapy and other cancer treatments. If successful with no backlash from the community, the New South Wales government will consider legalising marijuana for medicinal use. What this means is that tablets of the active agent THC will be sold rather than actual marijuana. (Does anyone else see the potential for a new black market here?? Or am I just being too cynical??) Great Britain has just done a similiar thing.

And on a different note, in South Australia, yet another state in Australia, it is legal to have two or three plants growing in your backyard. Any larger quantities, and people will be charged with various offences in relation to dealing. (I'm not too familiar with the legislation.) However what has occurred is that there is a disturbing trend in that there is a higher use of harder drugs. This is what a few studies have found. Due to this and community backlash the state government was considering reversing the current legislation on marijuana.

And my opinion, well I'm against legalising marijuana. However, I would like to see it used medicinally though only after more research done into the effects of THC. We still don't know all of them yet.

The change was not enough. They need to control it in an LCBO fashion. So you could say, go to LCBO and buy a pack of joints with proper id. heh.

Mags, you're right that we don't know the benefits or side effects of using marijuana or THC medicinally. The problem stems from the fact that pot is considered the same as cocaine and herione, so even testing with it by scientists (unless it is to study how harmful it is, there always seems to be studies on that) is illegal. I'm not sure why it hasn't been studied in Amsterdam, but I don't actually know the laws there. Basically, until the laws are made that takes pot off of the same lists as the hard drugs, we can't study the medicinal effects of it.

Heidi,

In relation to scientists testing THC and other components of marijuana, I think all previous testing is legal as it's gotten approval from higher up somewhere in the upper recesses of government. In the New South Wales study, I believe that all side affects and benefits will be recorded. It is also a human trial too, (I've heard it referred to it as that), so there will be some people who will get tablets that do not have THC. I just hope that for these people, the placebo affect kicks in as their pain level won't be reduced from THC. (This is the part that stinks about trials, some people always miss out in order to determine whether something works.)

Currently there is a medication on the market that has has THC in it. I believe the name is Marinol or something like that. It does help increase appetite and decrease pain, but apparently nowhere near as quickly or effectively as smoking pot. When you smoke, the THC goes directly into the mucous membranes and lungs, where it is immediately absorbed and very quickly passes into the brain. Whereas with a pill it has to be digested first, so it takes a while and the "hit" is not as strong. So, most people don't bother with the Marinol. --- This information is from about 8 years ago when I taught a class on Drugs and Alcohol. So the information might be a tad out of date by now.

"There are approximately 1.9 million inmates incarcerated in this country. They cost us approximately $42,000 per inmate per year. Approximately 60% of those incarcerated are there because of drug-related crimes. Approximately 25% of those are because of marijuana.

Let's save the U.S. taxpayer close to $12 billion a year by not incarcerating people for marijuana-related charges. Then let's tax the sale and distribution of marijuana, and create untold billions a year in revenue."

If possible, could someone please post a link to a site where I can document this information as have coming from? I have a speech due in the morning on this topic, and I can't seem to find any sources on this aspect of the issue. Thanks!

I did an internet search and came up with this:


These first three are from a definite pro-pot legalization POV, but numbers shouldn't lie. Theoretically.

http://www.mpp.org/arrests/fas61699.html

http://www.mpp.org/arrests/arrests.html

http://www.lindesmith.org/news/pressroom/pressrelease/pr102902.cfm


Here's a good source: Time magazine has done a couple cover stories on marijuana. http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101021104/

To verify their statistics, or to compare with total numbers of those arrested, and total for those arrested for drugs in general, here is a link to the Uniform Crime Report that the FBI puts out. In each year there is a "Persons Arrested" category, which does include drug related offenses, but in the internet version it isn't broken down further into which drugs were involved. http://www.fbi.gov/ucr/ucr.htm

Hope this helps! I know how hard it is to find good sources for this topic. I did a number of speaches on it in high school and college.

:heart3: http://216.40.249.192/s/otn/happy/stonedsmilie.gif :heart3:

Ha!! Best response ever.....

Cheers, Sicy :beerpals:

Thanks a bunch for the links! They helped a ton. I've been searching for info for the past two days but wasn't able to come up with what I needed. Thanks for such a quick response!

Legalize it!:D

This is an interesting topic to me because in my class at the University of Phoenix, my group has chosen to debate on the legalization of pot for medical reasons. It's me and my husband being for it, and the other 2 in our group against it, or maybe it;s the other way around.
Personally, I don't care ... If it helps people with terminal illnesses, then yes, let them smoke it. If you look at it for recreational use though, I think there might be less crime than now.

I think it should be legalized and controled like alcohol. I saw a report on the news today on a new study that just came out. It said contrary to popular belief, Pot doesn't affect memory and other cognitive skills as much as previously thought.

Personally, I don't use it. I've also heard that legalizing it will make it less desired by some and harder to get for the underaged. Would put the dealers out of business!

I think it should be legal, although I do not use it myself. I think if it was legal the Goverment would have better control over it, and then there would be less crime.

I think they should make it legal and TAX IT BIG TIME!!! it would need to have rules just like beer does. Can't drive when you are under the influence and so on. I also think less people would do it, some people do it just because it is illegal.

I have never tried it and never will, but i think it should be legal.

Legalize it!

Study its medicinal capabilities. Use hemp fiber for paper instead of decimating our forests. Use hemp fiber for clothing - the plants are naturally pest resistant and less harmful to soil, and better for our environment than other traditional fibers.

Our prisons are letting violent criminals out early to make room for people caught with drugs. The cost of incarceration has already been brought up here.

I think the best defense against irresponsible drug use is education...educate people about the negative effects of drugs AND alcohol AND cigarettes. If, knowing the consequences, an individual is foolish enough to abuse these substances, then so be it! We can come down hard on anyone endangering others by driving under the influence, but if a person wants to ruin his or her own body and mind by abusing drugs, then that is his or her choice.

I really don't think things will change anytime soon though - seized propery currently provides financing for a great deal of our law enforcement. They have a great stake in maintaining the status quo. The drug war is a big business here.

Last year Arizona tried to pass a law that if a person was found with pot and had less than 1 oz. then they wouldn't be charged. I really wish it would have passed because I thought it was a great idea. I don't smoke but I don't see anything wrong with people who do. I just think it's stupid that so much money is wasted everytime the cops arrest or a kid has to go to court for possesion. I liked that the cap off was 1 oz because I do think that their are problems with the people that deal pot in large amounts, they are often involved in a lot of crimes. But if you are at home smoking a little I don't really see the problem with it. I figure if you aren't hurting anyone then what's the big deal.

I'm all for it, considering that I used it quite often in high school and college and it didn't affect my grades! It was peer pressure ma and dad! Honest! :emba: :afro: It makes such excellent ground cover and shade! :D Awww I'm rambling...personally I think alcohol does more damage physically, mentally and affects others around you, number one cause for domestic violence, car accidents and deaths caused by car accidents. :emba: These small offense for possessing pot (anyone has a crock pot? :D ) is clogging up our prisons and releasing the sick, perverted, pyscho freaks on 'good behavior!' :mad:

But now that I'm a mother, I would not want my son to touch it, gives the munchies and makes you gain weight! ;)

Ok, I might as well get myself in trouble right away.

1. Pot does not come from Hemp plants. The plants are in the same family, but the THC levels of Hemp plants are miniscule. Calling Pot HEMP is just a generality of language like calling beer and scotch booze. You could smoke a bale of Hemp and accomplish nothing but getting sick from smoke inhalation.

2. Pot, like alchohol, is NOT a stimulant but rather a depressant. That's one reason both are dangerous. Pot is given to Cancer patients because it MASKS the pain, not because it is medically beneficial. I suppose you can argue that is in itself beneficial in those cases and I can see that Ok..no prob there. It's the idea that this makes it ok as "recreation" or "cool" that irks me. I'm a child of the 60's..yeah, hippies and all that scene. No, I didn't get into drugs..booze was my thing. I came within a whisker of being a full-blown alchoholic and dang near killed someone because of that. Several of my Cool druggie friends weren't so lucky. They're dead.
BTW, they ALL started out on Weed.

3. As a depressant, like alcohol, Pot makes you feel "Better" by numbing our response to outside stimuli. What would "ring your alarm bells" while sober make little or no impression while "stoned". Your reaction time to danger, etc is shot all to hell, just like alcohol.
I've been a professional driver for 30+ years and I'm tired of seeing young kids splattered all over the pavement because they were being "cool".

4. Pot isn't addictive. Of course it is. Agreed that chemically it's not in the same class as Heroin, etc. but it is Psychologically so, just like booze or tobacco. Think about it; "Oh, I just use it to mellow out", "It helps me unwind", "It makes me more creative/fun", "It's a party drug man, loosens me up". So you use it to make yourself into a more desirable, altered state? That's a dependancy, a habit..an addiction.

5. It isn't a "gateway drug". Sorry, folks but I still know some folks in the drug trade. Pot, as it is cultivated these days, has a monumentally higher THC level than the Pot we dealt with. That's for a reason folks. Dealers aren't trying to give you a "better deal", they don't give a damn about you. All they want is for you to buy more and more and the more expensive the better for them. They LOVE the perceptions that Pot is harmless. In addition, much of the Pot is LACED with stuff like Coke. THEY WANT YOU HOOKED ASAP. That's all they care about. That's why they deal in schools, hook 'em while they're young. 10 yr olds don't have the bucks for the Big Profit items; but if they grow up as users they will one day. Or they can be turned out as prostitutes, etc. It's all for money folks. Think making it "legal" and "corporate" will change that?? You been reading about the crap that tobacco companies have been adding to their product???

Ok, time to get off my soapbox. Suffice it to say that I rank drug dealers several steps below child molesters and serial killers. At least those are mentally deranged and do their crime face to face. Dealers are a disease which kills indiscriminately. And yeah, those people I alluded to before know what I think of them; they think that's funny as all get out.

While I agree that Pot is a psychological addiction, its not a physical one. Of course I'm speaking of the 'pure' stuff here, not the laced. Our own brains produce THC, so to me its like a super rush of stuff I already have in my veins.

Of all my friends who smoked weed in the past, and still do NONE of them ever 'graduated' to anything more hardcore. We're all a very mellow bunch who can for the most part take it or leave it. If ya got it, smoke it. I have only one friend who is psychologically addicted- his life is crap and he started over-using to the point that he thinks he needs it to 'level out'. He is definitely the exception.

I have seen my friends do stupid things while drinking- trying to drive being the stupidest(I've physically stopped them before by sitting on the hood of their car). But NEVER have I seen one of them attempt anything more reckless than trying to play Super Mario Brothers , while high.

If any 'drug' should be illegal- its alcohol, IMO.

Ok..... here is my opinion, short and sweet!!!!
(I aint as long winded as Wayne) :D :D :D

I think it should be legal for medical reasons ONLY. And then only when precribed and watch over by a doctor. My son has an extremely bad back. By the end of each work day he can hardly move. He will go outside away from the kids and have half a joint. Then a bedtime he will smoke the other half. If not for that I dont think he could work and support his family. But I respect him for doing so only when in bad pain and NOT in front of the children.

I smoked it a few times in the 70's and to be honest 2 puffs and I was out like a light. So I just never bother with the stuff!

I also read somewhere that they are using it in a study with anerexic adults- since it promotes the munchies. The study will take 3 years to complete.

Tybalt, I think it safe to say that you and I will never agree on this.;) However, I want to clear up a couple of misconceptions.

Marijuana helps to quell the nausea that is caused by chemotherapy. Exactly, it does not CURE the cause of nausea, it reduces your ability to FEEL it. In the same way and for the same reason they used to prescribe opiates to people with painful illnesses. Or getting the patient drunk before amputation.

Either way, I have no problems with medical usage.

So far, pot has not led me one step closer to being a violent alcoholic I wasn't violent, just STUPID. I was one of those idiots who think booze makes you MORE alert, MORE confident, etc, etc.
I chugged a water glass full of whiskey while partying with my "friends". Then, like a TOTAL fool, I drove them to get more. I blacked out and hit another car. It tossed a little baby from the back seat of the other car to the front. Thank God it wasn't thrown into the dash or windshield. That was MY wakeup call. I haven't been able to drink since.

I think they would have to charge a little extra for that. No, in business parliance it's called a "Loss Leader". You sell a lower profit item to get your potential customer into your "store" and expose them to stuff you make big bucks on. Business 101 guy.

Don't move. I'll be right back with an eleven foot pole. Here, you can use mine.:D Seriously tho, do you think these people sell in grade schools for lunch money for some benevolent reason?? It's for the same reason the tobacco companies used to sell cigarettes in bunches of 2 or 3 in stores near schools exclusively. That was the only places you could buy them that way. That's not anecdotal btw, it came out in the legal hassles with the tobacco companies and made page 1 in many papers. It was a deliberate policy to generate "lifelong customers". Their phrase, not mine.

Why not get High?
Honestly, how many Americans are taking Prozac, Alprazolam, Effexor, Paxil, Trazadone, Xoloft, Welbutrin, Celexa, Serzone, Nortryptiline, Pamelor, Remeron, etc. So why the prejudice against those who use marijuana to feel better?

DEAREST TYBALT. The purpose for taking any the above medications is to control a chemical imbalance and to ease the problems of clinical depression or to help a bipolar person to cope. I have been prescribed several of the above to try to control severe depression. Believe me, none of them could ever be said to make you GET HIGH! Personally, I never had a problem with Marijuana, being a teen in the 50's. I never heard of it in high school and never ran into it after high school and in my dating days. So, I am absolutely ignorant about the drug and plan to stay that way. And, by the way, Effexor is the one that helped me cope (1 a day), and I am not sad anymore.
TALLYHO and Carry On Luv.
__________________

Originally posted by Kittyfoot

5. It isn't a "gateway drug". Sorry, folks but I still know some folks in the drug trade. Pot, as it is cultivated these days, has a monumentally higher THC level than the Pot we dealt with. That's for a reason folks. Dealers aren't trying to give you a "better deal", they don't give a damn about you. All they want is for you to buy more and more and the more expensive the better for them. They LOVE the perceptions that Pot is harmless. In addition, much of the Pot is LACED with stuff like Coke. THEY WANT YOU HOOKED ASAP. That's all they care about. That's why they deal in schools, hook 'em while they're young. 10 yr olds don't have the bucks for the Big Profit items; but if they grow up as users they will one day. Or they can be turned out as prostitutes, etc. It's all for money folks. Think making it "legal" and "corporate" will change that??

IMO, you have unwittingly given one of the prime reasons it *should* be legalized. What makes pot a "gateway drug" is the dealers. They do lace it, they convince kids to "just try this" other, harder drug and get them hooked. They are businessmen, and quite successful ones at that. They certainly understand fundamental business practices, especially when it comes to making lifetime customers - no matter how short that lifetime is. If it's legalized you at least take that part out of the equation. It can be regulated, and the opportunities for introduction to the harder, more harmful drugs is minimized.

Valanhb, you have one heck of a lot more faith in Govt and Big Business than I have. The Canadian Provincial Govts own all the liquor stores and licence all the bars, clubs, etc. They supposedly have VERY strict controls on these through the licensing systems. In reality the bars can do pretty much as they please. Fines are minimal, licence suspensions are for 2-3 days. Local bars in this university city regularly advertise 1/2 price shooters for students and "all you can drink" nights, especially for "the ladies". Nothing is said about that by the licencing boards.

When Govt took control of lotteries and such there was just one. Now there's hundreds and we have verified evidence of people pouring their whole paychecks, or seniors their entire pension checks, into the video gambling terminals that have popped up everyplace. Their "answer" was to place the gambling machines in the "private hands" of their friends and look innocent. Again, "regulation violations" are winked at.

The Tobacco Wars should show everyone how willing Big Business is to go after schoolkids.

When Billions of dollars are involved, "respectable" people have no more concience than the meanest street dealer.

Just wanted to say welcome back to Kittyfoot and Meme! Haven't seen you for a while - you were missed!

No, I don't trust the corporate world or government regulations inherently. However, who even attempts to regulate the dealers? No one. At least under government control and regulations you could have a minimum age to buy (which I know will be usurped and that many kids will still get access), and what additives can and cannot be put in there. Granted, they will probably approve some not-very-good things, like added nicotine to put that physically addictive punch in it, but I would certainly rather have added nicotine than cocain. If we're looking at the lesser of two evils, I would much rather the government regulations that the dealers.

I personaly am a non smoker but I do belive that it should be legalized. I am married to a HEAVY smoker. more then a 1/2 oz a week. Like it was said in here by numerous people.......alcohal is far more worse then pot is.....heck my hubby doesn't drink because it just makes him feel worse! but when he smokes it relaxes him to where ha can Fix his back when it is out of place........he has a very bad back.


anyway......if anyone is interested in a site concerning this topic go to......Norml.com or is it .org not sure right now. but look for it if you are interested.