Marijuana legalization

Jerry Wood21 said:James Turner80 claims THC marijuana isn't addictive. That just doesn't hold water.

🙂 I’ve heard that exact same line applied to almost every other drug out there. If you want a reality check, go visit a psychiatric hospital and ask a doctor to show you the people who "aren't addicted"—the ones who smoke every single day simply because they enjoy it, claiming they can quit whenever they want, yet they choose not to. At a certain point, the distinction becomes meaningless.

Joseph Kern11, hold up—let me read my own post first before you weigh in. Don't just start swinging blindly—who even said this happens every single day?

James Turner80 said:And then they have the nerve to tell me I'm just peddling demagoguery?

It’s pretty straightforward. You argued that we should look at whether something *can* have negative consequences, and those consequences are basically the formal excuse for prohibition. But if you use "is it harmful" as the benchmark for banning stuff instead of "how much harm does it actually cause," then prohibition becomes even more ridiculous... I mean, let's be real, THC marijuana is harmful. It definitely has some beneficial sides to using it, but yeah, it's harmful. That doesn't mean it needs to be illegal, though, because:

1. what an individual chooses to do is their business, not the government's
2. sure, it's harmful, but that damage is barely noticeable unless you're smoking it every single day like a habit
3. tons of way more dangerous things are perfectly legal, and if you follow the logic of just asking "is it harmful" rather than "to what degree," half the world would need to be criminalized
4. prohibiting anything is a bad move that just creates way more problems than it ever successfully solves, which is exactly what I was getting at in my first post here...

Kyle Ross56 :respect:

Al Capone
The same issue calls for the same solution.
Pablo Escobar

Mary is primarily and exclusively illegal here in the States because the alcohol and tobacco lobbies would lose mountains of cash if things changed.

Over in Europe, the vibe is way more relaxed.
Take a place like Austria, just across the border... they have grow shops where you can legally pick up seeds and all your gear without looking over your shoulder.
It’s a similar story in Switzerland, Spain, or even certain states in Germany—just remember that politician who was handing out hash on a main town square...

The bottom line is this: Most of the European Union has decriminalized for personal use. They actually encourage people to grow their own at home, which cuts down on the smuggling of low-quality junk and hits organized crime right where it hurts most... in their wallets.

So, since we’ll be joining them soon enough, things are bound to head in that direction, whether the local skeptics like it or not.🙂

Charles Young said:Take Austria, for instance—a neighboring country... they actually have grow shops there where you can legally pick up seeds and gear.

Yeah, right—I'll just go study the loopholes and pray for the best. Because once the cops catch you with a joint over there, good luck convincing them not to start a permanent file on you.

And what, he’s going to open a file on them?
The story says it just fell out of his joint.

Nothing happens.
This isn't some lawless third-world country where private employers can just dig through your personal records whenever they feel like it. 🙂
Even if they could, that kind of scrutiny only matters for specific roles—like police work, childcare, or anything involving public trust.

Regarding the seeds...
Seeds are perfectly legal because they don't contain THC or any other psychoactive substances.
The law doesn't assume you're actually going to plant them, since there are plenty of other ways to use them. That's the loophole right there.

Exactly. It’s just like how you can carry spores from hallucinogenic mushrooms without any issue, since they don't actually contain Psilocin or Psilocybin, which are basically the same deal as THC marijuana...

When you inhale marijuana smoke, you're actually taking in about 60% more carcinogens than you would from cigarette smoke. Because of that, I really think the packaging should feature a skull and crossbones icon along with a formal health warning, just like they do with tobacco products.

Charles Young said:So, what, they're gonna open a criminal file?
Claiming he just dropped it while smoking.

Nothing happens.
It's not like we're living in some lawless wasteland where private employers can just dig up your entire history on a whim.🙂
Even if they could, it only matters for specific roles—law enforcement, schools, stuff like that.

Regarding the seeds.
Seeds are perfectly legal since they don't contain THC or any psychoactive substances.
The law doesn't assume you're actually going to plant them—there are plenty of other ways to use them. That’s the loophole.

I thought you meant a court record being opened because of that possession conviction—not an employer looking it up. Most jobs ask if you have a record, not just for government positions. As for how much of a hurdle that actually is for getting hired... who knows. And thanks for the heads-up on the seed loophole. 😁 I already found a website for a local shop nearby that carries some great seeds. Really high quality. 😁

If I’m remembering right, you can't just go bringing seeds across the border like that...

redhound2, sure it’s in there, but you aren't exactly smoking twenty joints a day, are you?

redhound2 said:Inhaling marijuana smoke carries 60% more carcinogens than tobacco. Consequently, products should feature skull-and-crossbones imagery and health warnings similar to those used for cigarettes.

This specific source (Donald Tashkin from the University of California) claims that marijuana does not cause cancer.
http://legalizacija.org/?p=34

Furthermore, edibles are much tastier, healthier, and more effective than smoking.

Here is an example regarding the legal medical application of marijuana.
http://legalizacija.org/?p=28

redhound2 said:Smoking marijuana actually delivers 60% more carcinogens than tobacco does. So, they should put a skull and crossbones on the packaging along with a warning label just like cigarettes...

They aren't going to sell it like ice cream... who cares...

I find myself firmly in favor of legalization. My reasoning is quite simple: it would ensure that we are actually consuming high-quality products rather than relying on street dealers, leaving us to wonder what kind of dangerous additives or chemicals they might have laced the stuff with in the first place.

Keith Fisher65 said:They aren't gonna sell him off like cheap ice cream... who even believes that crap?

DORBA DOBRA 😂

Senator, you used to be a pot Head -- Now you're Talking like a Narc by Norman Kent
By Norman Kent, AlterNet
AlterNet Printed on July 6
Editor's Note : The following is a letter addressed How about admitting that if The Rockefeller drug laws were applied to Norman Bruce Coleman on Long Island in 1968 , or to me... then we'd all be sitting in much different circumstances right now. It’s wild how the rules only seem to apply when it suits the people in power...

Editor's Note : The following is a letter addressed to Minnesota Republican Norm Coleman -- a guy who’s all about those brutal federal drug laws... just a little reminder that back in the day, he was actually a happy, chill, fun-loving pot smoker.

My buddy Norman,

Back in the day, in a whole different life, you weren't exactly campaigning against legalizing weed... Back when we were all just hanging out in those dorm rooms at Hofstra University, you, me, Billy, your future brother-in-law, Ivan, Jonathan, Peter, Janet, Nancy, and a massive crowd of other students were all smoking dope...

Yeah, we basically had to duct tape the doors shut, light up some incense, and keep every window wide open... Look, we all got high back in the day, and somehow we turned out just fine without needing a single bit of guidance from the Office of National Drug Control Policy...

Look at us now... all grown up and playing lawyer...And then there’s the rest of our crew, if you bother to scroll through the list... Doctors, academics, parents, political fixers, the whole professional elite... honestly, nobody’s ever walked away from a joint with a case of diabetes or lung cancer... We look back at those younger years with such nostalgia, man... times when we actually stood our ground, made some noise, and moved the needle, everything from Earth Day in 1970 to helping bring down a President and end a War in Southeast Asia just a few years after that. We were all high on pot when we stormed Weller Hall to fight back against the administration trashing student rights. You were out there smoking pot on the roof of the University senate, protesting how the faculty kept everything to themselves. And then, as The President of The student senat in 1969 , you condemned The RAID by Nassau County... when they went after our dorms and busted tons of us just for having a little weed...

Back then, you weren't even claiming weed was a danger. The real horror—both back in the day and right freaking now—is watching national leaders turn into absolute hypocrites, just mouthpieces for the status quo who’d rather protect their own seats than actually do something for the people... It’s pathetic, really. Welcome to the club of people who have officially become everything they used to hate. Welcome to The mindless myriad of legislators Who gather in cocktail lounges to manhandle their martinis while passing laws against drunk driving.

Last year, we saw way more people kicked the bucket from eating bad spinach than from using weed. We've spent generations watching addicts overdose on everything from heroin to meth... but you? As an attorney general, a mayor, and a U.S. Senator, you’ve always been right there at the front of the line, calling out the stuff that actually hurts people. You've been a class act and a truly honorable public servant... so how about not acting like such a total dope on dope?

How about finally owning up to the fact that if those Rockefeller drug laws had actually hit Norman Bruce Coleman on Long Island back in '68—or if they’d hit me, or any of our friends and classmates—you, me, and everyone else we cared about might still be rotting behind bars today? Seriously, can we just admit it... for way too long, far too many people have been slapped with wrongful arrests, rigged prosecutions, and thrown into prison for absolutely insane stretches of time...

Maybe it’s time to acknowledge that some of your own peers have been smoking weed for over 25 years and turned out just fine... we're talking successful record producers, big-time business owners, and decent parents...

Why don't you just stand up and finally admit you've heard—or even seen—all those endless stories from people using weed for medicine... like how I've had to rely on it just to survive the hell of chemo...

If you’ve actually been over to Africa and looked the AIDS crisis right in its eyes—seeing people literally wasting away from malnutrition and constant nausea because they can't get basic medicine—how could you possibly turn your back on medical marijuana for those folks...?

Can we please stop following the pathetic, outdated playbook from the Office of National Drug Control Policy? They actually had the nerve to suggest this week that people who smoke weed are somehow more prone to joining gangs than anyone else... what a joke.

Why not just step up and own it? Just say, "Look, I, Norm Coleman, was smoking weed back in '69." "I'm not some gang thug, a junkie, or a felon."

Just tell us the truth: "I grew up, moved past my old habits, and made it on my own damn merit."

Come on, man... stand up for the person you actually were, not just the image you've built...

What do you say, Norm?

Don't get me wrong, I still respect everything you've pulled off and all those big wins in your career. Your current success is pretty incredible to watch...

But how about looking in the rearview mirror and realizing: "Hey, what I did wasn't such a massive crime that entire generations of Americans should still be rotting in jail decades later—especially when we saw nearly a million possession arrests just last year."

Is it really too much for Norm Coleman to just come clean in 2007 and admit "These mass arrests are a mistake—there’s a better path forward, and we've got to find it."

You'd probably find a lot more actual honor in that than sticking to the pathetic, broken policies coming out of the Office of National Drug Control Policy.

You might even find yourself again...

Norman Kent

Norman Kent is a Fort Lauderdale, FL attorney focusing on criminal defense, appeals, media law, and First Amendment rights. He sits on the Board of Directors for NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.

One 'Joint' can be as damaging as five cigarettes

According to experts from the National Institutes of Health, smoking just one marijuana joint can be just as hard on your lungs as smoking five cigarettes in a row. Their findings were recently published in the journal Thorax.

The study monitored 339 participants, ranging from regular cigarette smokers and marijuana users to those who used both, as well as non-smokers.

While emphysema was specifically observed in the cigarette smokers, cannabis users also showed significant issues regarding lung function.

"The extent of lung damage was directly linked to how many joints were smoked... The impact of a single joint on the lungs was equivalent to smoking between 2.5 and 5 cigarettes all at once," noted one of the study's authors.

The researchers emphasized that people often underestimate the actual harm marijuana can cause to the respiratory system.

(Associated Press)