Why is marijuana illegal?

[I Luv the Chariot OH]

Or, let me rephrase that: if alcohol and nicotine are legal, and both are exponentially more dangerous/unhealthy/addictive than marijuana, then why is marijuana illegal? Far more intense drugs (I'm thinking salvia, kava, kratom, peyote, and the like) are perfectly fine, according to the government--I'm aware of how, historically, mj got singled out, but it that nonsense still relevant in this day and age? Now that we know better, why don't we rectify this silly error?

 

I warn you, baby boomers--I am physically and mentally prepared to be berated for this, and I am also counter-prepared with my debating shoes!

[LucreziaBorgia]

If you google the phrase

 

"why is it illegal"

 

you'll get an interesting article about why it is. It is infuriating to read, actually.

 

Personally, I would like to see it legalized - for hemp if nothing else. There are so many useful things that hemp can be used for. I don't smoke pot anymore, but I don't have a problem with people that do. It is far less worse in my opinion than cigarettes. I know plenty of functional users (and a few not-so-functional ones - but they wouldn't be functional otherwise when it comes right down to it).

 

I think eventually it will be decriminalized.

[Green]

first off pay no attention to the spelling. Second I'm going to assume you're talking about the US. First off to point out the fact that so called greater dangers are legal there for we should logicaly make this legal. Finaly the US is a democracy and it would be relativly easy and quick to legalize it if thats what the majority of people wanted, and in fact it has been legalized in some area's. The majority of voters seem to be against, or atleast thats what I assume since it is still illegal.

[Dark-N-Romantic]

I am all for letting stupidity cull the gene pool. If people want to kill their brain cells and their lives, let them. Stop with all these free programs and ads trying to prevent people from doing it. Stop putting them in jail. Just as long as they stick to themselves and are made to stay out of the way of those of us who respect our minds and bodies, and not performing acts that are against the law or harm others, hey smoke, sniff, stick, etc. away. RIP.

 

 

DNR

[Keridan]

Finaly the US is a democracy and it would be relativly easy and quick to legalize it if thats what the majority of people wanted, and in fact it has been legalized in some area's.

 

Umm ... the US is a republic. That gets lost in all the talk of democracy, but this is not a situation that literally translates into "people rule" which is the direct translation of the word democracy. In a republic we elect the "leaders" who make the decision for us. Similar to most European countries but with a few small differences.

 

In recent polls, it has been found that nearly 60% of the American populace woul prefer to have pot legal or at least would vote that way rather than see us waste tons of money in the "war on drugs" that is a matter of constant embarassment.

 

We know how pot was made illegal in America. Most people who care have researched it. There are many reasons it stays illegal and none are for the benefit of the public at large.

 

First, the government would have to outright admit it was wrong. We know how rarely that happens anywhere.

 

Second, they have spent too much money building up the image of the "gateway drug". The irony is that it only functions as a gateway drug because those who try it find that the government lied about that one. It has no major negatives and is fun, so they wonder what else they were lied to about. The government spends nearly as much fighting the use of pot as they do with cocaine. So if pot is good, logic follows that it's worth trying cocaine. Not true, but often users don't find that out till too late.

 

Third, the wrong people want it legal. It's the normal, hard working, lower tax bracket folks that see the logic in legalizing it. Also many economists think its idiocy to keep it illegal rather than taxing it and using the money to offer rehabilitation to people with a real drug problem.

 

Fourth, it's not a hot-button issue. While the majority of the public feel that legalizing it might be to the greater benefit, they don't feel strongly enough to let it affect who they will get their vote. This means it's not worth going against points 1-3 in order to get the few votes that will come from taking a strong stand.

 

How's that for a long answer?

[I Luv the Chariot OH]

I'd like to see it legalized at least because it's the fastest and most effective way to kill menstural pain (sorry guys, it's true). And coming from someone who was often in the hospital in her youth for that reason, marijuana has truly been a lifesaver. Thankfully, where I came from (Ontario, Canada) it's decriminalized, but I've still had friends go to court for being caught with larger amounts on them.

 

DNR: hey, it looks like the anti-drug propaganda paid off after all! Seriously though, you should have the knowledge/research before you say stuff like that--marijuana doesn't kill brain cells. There was one, single, poorly performed and supervised study on primates in the 1970s that roughly indicated that (you can read a bit about it here: http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=796538), but all further modern human (and primate!) experimentation shows no indication of cellular damage from smoking marijuana whatsoever.

[Fun2BMe]

- Around 5.4 million deaths a year are caused by tobacco.

- Over 438,000 Americans (18.1 percent of all deaths) die because of smoking each year. Secondhand smoke kills about 50,000 of them.

- Tobacco use will kill 1 billion people in the 21st century if current smoking trends continue.

From http://www.inforesearchlab.com/smokingdeaths.chtml

 

 

 

Annual Causes of Death in the United States

 

Tobacco 435,000 1

Poor Diet and Physical Inactivity 365,000 1

Alcohol 85,000 1

Microbial Agents 75,000 1

Toxic Agents 55,000 1

Motor Vehicle Crashes 26,347 1

Adverse Reactions to Prescription Drugs 32,000 2

Suicide 30,622 3

Incidents Involving Firearms 29,000 1

Homicide 20,308 4

Sexual Behaviors 20,000 1

All Illicit Drug Use, Direct and Indirect 17,000 1, 5

Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Such As Aspirin 7,600 6

Marijuana 0 7

 

http://www.drugwarfacts.org/causes.htm

[Haloandhorns85]

Fun: Interesting post!

 

I agree with most posters. It's just stupid to spend so much money and man power on the least harmful drug out there. There have been no proof that marijuana is detrimental to the body, other than breathing in the smoke which lungs don't like. I have had several pregnant friends who doctors told them to smoke it to reduce the morning sickness so they could eat! The doc said there has never been any study that concluded pot was bad for the growing fetus. So if it's not bad for a growing fetus, its not bad for grown adults. It is a natural substance that occurs naturally in the environment. Most other drugs have to be processed or compounded.

[brothermartin]

IMO, there are many many reason as to why mj will not be legalized. But I'll tell you this, if it were to be legalized with no restrictions and no regulations, I still wouldn't smoke it. But I'd sell so much of it it would make your bong spin!

[Keridan]

IMO, there are many many reason as to why mj will not be legalized. But I'll tell you this, if it were to be legalized with no restrictions and no regulations, I still wouldn't smoke it. But I'd sell so much of it it would make your bong spin!

Pot prolly won't get legal. It has a slight chance of seeing decriminalization over time, but that won't be soon.

 

As for the restrictions and regulations, they would likely do it similar to alcohol. Age limit and driving restrictions.

 

Oh how I long for those days and I don't even smoke anymore

[brothermartin]

Pot prolly won't get legal. It has a slight chance of seeing decriminalization over time, but that won't be soon.

 

As for the restrictions and regulations, they would likely do it similar to alcohol. Age limit and driving restrictions.

 

Oh how I long for those days and I don't even smoke anymore

Yeah, you're probably right. But one can dream of such a day.

And if that day should come, I shall reap the spoils of it! HARRRR!!

[Pyro]

They should legalize it just to get them to stop whining about it. No offense to the OP or any other MJ supporters. I am just sick of people whining because alcohol is legal and MJ is not. Alcohol is far more socially acceptable and IMO MJ is not.

 

MJ can have just as much of a negative effect on someone as alcohol or any other drug. Of course its effects vary per person but when I use to smoke it, it took away my motivation and it screwed up my judgement.

[I Luv the Chariot OH]

They should legalize it just to get them to stop whining about it. No offense to the OP or any other MJ supporters. I am just sick of people whining because alcohol is legal and MJ is not. Alcohol is far more socially acceptable and IMO MJ is not.

 

MJ can have just as much of a negative effect on someone as alcohol or any other drug. Of course its effects vary per person but when I use to smoke it, it took away my motivation and it screwed up my judgement.

Does it occur to you that the only reason marijuana isn't as "socially acceptable" as alcohol is because it's illegal, and it's only illegal because of (basically) lies perpetuated by the government?

 

It really depends on what you mean by "negative effects", but I think most people with experience using marijuana/alcohol/harder drugs would agree that marijuana does NOT have the negative effects of other drugs--especially not alcohol. The fact that nobody has ever died from using marijuana is a pretty good indicator that it's not very harmful.

 

This is becoming a good discussion though--I'm surprised at the tolerance displayed by (what I thought was) a relatively conservative community!

[Woggle]

God knows. It is no worse than Alchohol and it is time for it to be legalized. Drugs in general should be legal because should be allowed to put what they want into their own bodys.

[Haloandhorns85]

I don't believe all drugs should be legalized because there is proof that most drugs are detrimental to the body, not to mention society. MJ users are not like the hard drug users. When your out of pot, you don't go stealing or killing to get the drug. Your just out...damn. There has been no proof it does anything negative to your mind or body (except lungs just for breathing in the smoke, but hell cigs and some cities' smoggy air are far worse on the lungs).

 

However, I do believe that if MJ was legalized the government would tax the hell out of it with the "sin tax" and make it more expensive. I could see them making it illegal to grow and sell your own too.

[Keridan]

I don't believe all drugs should be legalized because there is proof that most drugs are detrimental to the body, not to mention society. MJ users are not like the hard drug users. When your out of pot, you don't go stealing or killing to get the drug. Your just out...damn. There has been no proof it does anything negative to your mind or body (except lungs just for breathing in the smoke, but hell cigs and some cities' smoggy air are far worse on the lungs).

 

However, I do believe that if MJ was legalized the government would tax the hell out of it with the "sin tax" and make it more expensive. I could see them making it illegal to grow and sell your own too.

Actually, Halo, I usually agree with you, but not on this one. The reason for making the drugs legal isn't because they cause no harm to your body. There is a very valid point that we are spending billions trying to keep people off drugs and we will never succeed at that. It's just unreasonable to try.

 

If you legalize the drugs and tax them, you create a monetary gain instead of a deep black hole. Granted, they would have to give us back our privacy if they didn't have the excuse of "we're looking for drugs" to tap our phones, search our properties and persons, and all around skip the need for warrants. The war on drugs is a joke.

 

If we were to legalize the controlled substances, we could use a portion of the taxes to offer rehabilitation and treatment. Right now, you have to admit you are breaking several laws and be criminalized if you want to seek help beyond NA. Making it something that we treat could make a much bigger dent in common usage than saying "Do it and be punished". Addiction denies the rational processing of possible consequences.

 

That's not even getting into "victimless" crimes and the costs we spend imprisoning people who did nothing but relax after a hard day at work. Pot is the worst in that regard. It harms no one in use, but chasing it harms thousands of innocent folks every day.

[Pyro]

Does it occur to you that the only reason marijuana isn't as "socially acceptable" as alcohol is because it's illegal, and it's only illegal because of (basically) lies perpetuated by the government?

 

It really depends on what you mean by "negative effects", but I think most people with experience using marijuana/alcohol/harder drugs would agree that marijuana does NOT have the negative effects of other drugs--especially not alcohol. The fact that nobody has ever died from using marijuana is a pretty good indicator that it's not very harmful.

 

This is becoming a good discussion though--I'm surprised at the tolerance displayed by (what I thought was) a relatively conservative community!

 

Its also illegal for anyone under the age of 21 to drink alcohol in the United States but you still see it happening all the time, whether it be real life or in movies.

 

At one point in history alcohol was illegal but the public became outraged and the black market boomed.

 

What lies do the government make about MJ?

 

MJ may not be physically harmful but it sure is harmful mentally.

[Keridan]

Gonna need research to prove how it's harmful mentally. It does cause a temporary cognitive reduction. There are many studies that prove that, but they all also admit that the effect is definately temporary. You will be hard pressed to prove that it does any true damage.

 

Lies the government have told are nearly too endless to list. I won't even get into that, but the post wasn't directed at me. I might address it when I'm not at work and can do proper links and quotes.

[Pyro]

Gonna need research to prove how it's harmful mentally. It does cause a temporary cognitive reduction. There are many studies that prove that, but they all also admit that the effect is definately temporary. You will be hard pressed to prove that it does any true damage.

 

Lies the government have told are nearly too endless to list. I won't even get into that, but the post wasn't directed at me. I might address it when I'm not at work and can do proper links and quotes.

 

I'm speaking from my own personal experience. It has harmed me on a mental level and that is one of the main reasons why I avoid using the stuff.

 

I am curious to read about what false statements that there are about MJ.

[Rooster_DAR]

I remember reading about marijuana some years ago and from what I gathered is used to be legal, but the free trade during the 1930's outlawed it for various reasons. It use to be exported/imported to make rope and other useful tools.

 

Personally, I agree with the other posters in that it's a political thing now. It also may have to do with the fact that marijuana dulls the senses, and what good is a US military if they're too lazy to get up and fight.

 

Other than that, I think it should be legal as well.

 

Cheers!

[Keridan]

Personal experience is always valid if you qualify it that way

 

I will post some of those false statements when I get home if they aren't already up by then.

[I Luv the Chariot OH]

I am curious to read about what false statements that there are about MJ.

Wow, really? I must say, that makes everything you've said far less credible! You should do some research. This stuff is elementary.

 

A two second google search brought up lots of informative links. A few of the best:

http://www.alaskahemp.com/history.html

http://www.sinsebility.com/history.htm

http://potsmokers.group.stumbleupon.com/forum/83788/

 

Like Keridan, I'd LOVE to see some actual facts about marijuana being mentally harmful, seeing as it has no known lasting psychological effects

[Pyro]

Wow, really? I must say, that makes everything you've said far less credible! You should do some research. This stuff is elementary.

 

A two second google search brought up lots of informative links. A few of the best:

http://www.alaskahemp.com/history.html

http://www.sinsebility.com/history.htm

http://potsmokers.group.stumbleupon.com/forum/83788/

 

Like Keridan, I'd LOVE to see some actual facts about marijuana being mentally harmful, seeing as it has no known lasting psychological effects

 

You call those links credible and informative? Whomever created those links are obviously biased towards MJ.

 

All that both you and I have to work with are our own opinions on the matter.

 

They should make it legal. Let the Government tax you some more.

[fral945]

I think older, religious people still have some hangups and lump it with other drugs like heroin, LSD, etc. They're scared it will open Pandora's box. The politician's aren't stupid, that's the group that votes the most, so they run the show.

 

I think most people know they can smoke it without too much hassle in the privacy of their own home. Same way with legalizing prostitution. Most people can get a hooker if they want to as long as they're discreet and not parading around in public.

 

If enough people care to have it legalized and vote at the polls I imagine it will eventually happen. No real logical reason to keep it illegal.

[Jake Barnes]

It is fun to get stoned every once in a while

 

I like to get stoned and cook Chinese food