Marijuana; should it be legal?

Maethirion · 09-21-2009, 06:32 PM

What do you guys think of the marijuana debate? Should it be legal. At one time marijuana was listed as a drug in America, so it hasn't always been viewed as a dangerous substance. I am not condoning the use of drugs, I want to bring that to you attention first and foremost. However, I find the focus on various substances to be quite appalling. There are many things that are produced today that have been linked to serious health problems, like plastics, caffeine, nicotine, etc. There are so many things that can cause health problems, that I'm surprised that a majority of things aren't outlawed. On a different note, did you all know that the FDA is now classifying Caffeine as a drug? We have so many drugs that are sold legally in the US that in most cases have worse effects overall then marijuana. Is there really a good scientific reason behind this or is it more of an economic problem. Have you ever thought that the government is only keeping Marijuana illegal because it will be almost impossible for them to reap economic benefits from it. Weed is after all a weed that can be grown in your backyard. Unlike with cigarettes, it is relatively easy to grow and distribute marijuana.
I would also like to bring up some facts about the pros and cons of smoking weed. Yes there are pros. It has been studied and proven that weed can help ease pain and increase appetite as well as reduce tumor growth and helped lower blood pressure. It is a good stress reliever, helps with insomnia, opens airways, dilates blood vessels for better blood flow, and in some way stimulates mental processing. Most people don't become addicted to marijuana though there is a possibility of adjusting to it as a daily practice, like brushing your teeth or eating 3 meals a day. It is also impossible to overdose on weed. The cons are that it increases heart rate and the likelihood of developing heart conditions, it increases phlegm build-up in the lungs, destroys short term memory, causes anxiety in some, causes problems with your internal clock and understanding of time, and decreases inhibitions.
I'd like everyone to recall the prohibition in the 30's and 40's and how people reacted when alcohol was outlawed. Think of all the problems it caused with drug trafficking, an overall increase in crime activity, and consequently more people being punished for something that was originally legal. Like alcohol, marijuana has been used for centuries, and was at one time legal. You may or may not agree with drug and alcohol use, but is it the government's right to tell us what we can drink or smoke? What happened to the government of our forefathers? They would never outlaw substances, because that wasn't part of the ideal government. The government existed to protect the rights of the individuals, not to obstruct them. Also, is the government truly protecting our health or protecting their wallets? If it were a matter of health wouldn't the government have banned practices like smoking and drinking? Before you decide your stance on an issue like this, do some research and hear both sides of the argument.

What do you all think about this? Should marijuana be legal? I apologize for my erratic post, but hopefully I got my point across. I know all of you may have pretty strong beliefs about this, but what if your friend or your sibling was smoking weed? How would you decide who was right and who was wrong?

Please feel free to share your thoughts on this.

asbreathingflows · 09-21-2009, 06:43 PM

Prohibition has created an unregulated criminal market which has continued to flourish. The war on drugs has failed.

Simple answer - yes.

**snail** · 09-21-2009, 06:48 PM

There are already at least two other threads on this topic. Yes, I feel it should be legal because it is a valuable medicine.
Posted via Mobile Device

FiNiTe · 09-21-2009, 07:20 PM

Yes, it should be legal. It's no worse than most other drugs, including caffeine, which can also cause anxiety, cardiac disorder, psychosis, etc. Kids drink caffeinated beverages all the time, and it's not a big deal. Marijuana wouldn't have the novelty of being cool because it's illegal anymore if we legalized it. And besides, plenty of great minds have been made even greater with the use of drugs.

Scruffy · 09-21-2009, 07:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by snail

There are already at least two other threads on this topic. Yes, I feel it should be legal because it is a valuable medicine.
Posted via Mobile Device

Yeah, it cures Anorexia.

I say it should be legal, and regulated like alcohol. I'd say age for it would either be 20 or 21, and of course you can't drive while high.

SUPERJERKASS · 09-21-2009, 07:50 PM

this says it all.

YouTube - Family Guy - Bag of Weed (Leak)

Munchies · 09-21-2009, 08:00 PM

if you make it legal then the entire teen audience to alcohol, which is everybody, will be smoking it all the time since it has no downer effects and then the entire society will become a bunch of boring,burnt out, non-ambitious people.

Although i would understand why the average person would not think it is so bad because they are selfish thinking about themselves, when the greater good should be taken in consideration...

tha end

SUPERJERKASS · 09-21-2009, 08:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Munchies

if you make it legal then the entire teen audience to alcohol, which is everybody, will be smoking it all the time since it has no downer effects and then the entire society will become a bunch of boring,burnt out, non-ambitious people.

Although i would understand why the average person would not think it is so bad because they are selfish thinking about themselves, when the greater good should be taken in consideration...

tha end

some of the best ideas i have ever had were baked out meh mind there is much to benefit from high young folks a reason to think out the box new ideas a fresh outlook from youngsters may be the future cause this shit we are doing now is not working depression...again. these new baked young folks may find the answer or let the answers that were from the past actually take lift off.

Maethirion · 09-21-2009, 08:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Munchies

if you make it legal then the entire teen audience to alcohol, which is everybody, will be smoking it all the time since it has no downer effects and then the entire society will become a bunch of boring,burnt out, non-ambitious people.

Although i would understand why the average person would not think it is so bad because they are selfish thinking about themselves, when the greater good should be taken in consideration...

tha end

Well, if you think the "greater good" is the government's federal allowance then so be it. Obviously you didn't read what I posted. Are people suffering from illness not part of the greater good. Would you rather have a terminally ill person suffer because you think some pre-teen is going to get high on weed? Do some research man. If it is legalized then there will be regulations on it just like any other drug or controlled substance. They aren't going to market it to children. Furthermore, it would be a whole lot easier to control if it was a legal substance because introducing it to the market would make it harder for drug trafficking to exist. Instead of people being punished for the possession of drugs, it would be for selling to minors. Most people would be satisfied with having the product that they wouldn't go out and sell it to minors. It's a general deterrence issue. Maybe if you thought before you posted, you would realize this. Oh, and you spelled "the" wrong.

Decon · 09-21-2009, 09:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Maethirion

I would also like to bring up some facts about the pros and cons of smoking weed. Yes there are pros. It has been studied and proven that weed can help ease pain and increase appetite as well as reduce tumor growth and helped lower blood pressure. It is a good stress reliever, helps with insomnia, opens airways, dilates blood vessels for better blood flow, and in some way stimulates mental processing. Most people don't become addicted to marijuana though there is a possibility of adjusting to it as a daily practice, like brushing your teeth or eating 3 meals a day. It is also impossible to overdose on weed.

The cons are that it increases heart rate and the likelihood of developing heart conditions, it increases phlegm build-up in the lungs, destroys short term memory, causes anxiety in some, causes problems with your internal clock and understanding of time, and decreases inhibitions.

You may or may not agree with drug and alcohol use, but is it the government's right to tell us what we can drink or smoke?

What happened to the government of our forefathers? They would never outlaw substances, because that wasn't part of the ideal government. The government existed to protect the rights of the individuals, not to obstruct them.

Also, is the government truly protecting our health or protecting their wallets? If it were a matter of health wouldn't the government have banned practices like smoking and drinking?

What do you all think about this?

Should marijuana be legal? But what if your friend or your sibling was smoking weed? How would you decide who was right and who was wrong?

As a Techno-progressive, no. I think that it should be up to the person as long as it is an informed descion.

As for the Gov't of our forefathers, times call for us to make desicions and go beyond that gov't. I would surmise that if we still had a gov't of our forefathers, people would be worse off than now. If we only listened to the constituion and the bill of rights, then Black people and women wouldn't be able to vote.

What I thik about all this is that I think at 18, you should be able to hold pot and whatever. It makes no sense to me that one can buy a weapon and sign up for the army and vote, but yet we villify drugs and make people wait until they're 21 to buy booze. If it was up to me, I'd make so that way you have to be 21 to sign up for the army and buy a gun. And 18 to buy booze and drugs.

Should it be legal, to me, yes. Most of my friends smoke pot, as does my sister.

Also, here's a contridiction to think about as well. If pot is schedule one drug, why are we issuing medical cards in a few states? For those of you who don't know, Schedule one basically means that it has no medical value and is highly addictive.