Should marijuana be legal? Before I answer that question, I’d like to examine the argument for legalization. The main reason given for why the US should legalize marijuana is that it has medical properties.
Yawn. I have one word for this argument: Pretense. 95% of people that make this argument do not really give a crap about marijuana for medical use. They use this in the hopes that if it becomes legal for medical purposes, it will eventually just get legalized because they like to get high. Drop the pretension and be honest about it. You like to get high and would like to do so without the threat of arrest.
Now, I do not use drugs. I do not like drugs. However, I do not care if other people want to do drugs. If you want to destroy your brain, and hopefully eventually remove yourself from the gene pool, feel free! The government should legalize it. Any person in prison for a drug related crime should stay right where they are. It is illegal now and they broke the law. However, it will free up police to patrol for crimes that have direct, obvious victims. Eventually the prison population will decrease. Less money on enforcement and holding plus more money in taxes is an overall good thing.
Finally, all drugs should be regulated just as alcohol is regulated. If you get high and then drive, you have a DUI. Loss of license and fines. Multiple violations would result in greater punishments. Drugs are not going away. Control it and regulate it. Just drop the pretension that you give a crap about cancer victims.
3 comments:
This is a complicated subject. And there is much more at risk then a few people getting high if it is legalized.
1)It's a pandora's box. Legalizing this drug would be a step in the direction of legilization of other things that are not only harmful the individuals but to society. (don't argue with that point yet, I'll cover it later) Give an inch, the'll take a mile.
2)The legalization of weed would distroy some of the third world. Naturally, if it was made legal, it would be ok to grow it here in the US, but like tabacco, refinement and packaging would take place. It would also need to be mass produced and the rich agricultural soil of the us would not be wasted on such a crop. So we would import the weed. This would cause wide spread growing of the product in countries that do not need to be focusing on producing a product that will be sold for export. Weed would inevitably be cheep and so it would take a large amount of land to grow it. This land would be taken from growers of other products and raped to give a maxium amount of profit to a small elite few.
3)Weed is a drug, just like alcohol. It will create a new group of accepted users who will become dependent on it's use, just like alcohol. Drugs like weed and alcohol are most commonly used by the segment of society that feels that like is unsatisfying. In studys time and again, users of drugs both legal and illegal have been found to be below the poverty line. This would add to the histary.
3)And most important. Chuck Norris already said that it's bad on countless episodes of walker texas ranger and per the list of chuck norris facts, you don't know you made chuck norris made until your dead.
=)
But seriously. It's something that we will fight now, and always will. But were fighting it the wrong way. We don't need to treat users. As mentioned before we need to put children in a place where they will be satisfyed with their lives through better education which will lead to more carrer fullfillment. And also more fourin aid to countries who depend on drug money to support their economys. Build up their societys so that they can focus on a better future the way many americans can.
But then, there is the other hand...
it does make movies a whole lot funnyer.
-Joe
www.teammangakitty.com
Honestly, this wasn't meant to be a "legalize marijuana" post, but more of a "all of you folk that want to legalize pot, don't you understand that your stated reasons are crap?" post.
I'm very much a Libertarian and believe that more freedom is a good thing.
Legalization hasn't affected Holland negatively. Their drug use ratio actually decreased after legalization. Of course, the flaw with this argument is that Holland is a tiny little country and the US is gigantic, making a comparison difficult at best.
I did, however, hear that Chuck Norris' tears cure cancer. Too bad Chuck Norris never cries. ;)
Actually the issue isn't that complicated.
1. Lot's of things are bad for people. Big Macs, soda, sitting on a couch all day, all of which are legal. The funny thing is that is pretty much what smoking pot causes a person to do.
2. As a country that was founded on the ideals of Locke, Hobbes and other social contract philosophers I am amazed at how many Americans are concerned about what other people do.
3. The gist is this, we all give up certain right to ensure our safety. The rights and individual may enjoy are limited to things that do not physically harm others.
Should smoking pot be legal, yes.
Shoudl people be held accountable for the dumb shit they may to while under the influence, yes.
4. Pot is illegal and so far it hasn't stopped people from smoking it. If it's legal it can be regulated and taxed. People act as if prohibition is the answer to everything. Take the prohibtion of booze for example, we all saw how well that worked. All it did was create a black market and crime.
5. Sure gowing weed would deplete the soil....growing anything depletes soil of nutrients, that 's why farmers rotate crops. that's a dumb argument.
Post a Comment