I'm not saying it's the most brilliant idea, Sam, but it's what would happen. It'd be better if it just stayed illegal, or at least highly controlled, at least Schedule II on the DEA charts. For those of you without the interest in looking it up, Schedule II means it can only be legally acquired by prescription, and even then supplies are closely monitored by the DEA.
I would say Legalize it, and put a reasonable tax rate on it. Maybe a bit higher than cigarettes and alcohol, but not too much higher.
Jae, that's what the taxes would be FOR. Same as the taxes on cigarettes and booze - unless you want to try and ban those as well.
Legalize it? No. I really don't think the U.S. is prepared for legalization...
...but to continue the same lies fed to the public since Marijuana prohibition began in 1937 IS pretty ridiculous. A simple Google search will qualify that lol. I notice above that some people seem to be forming an opinion without first checking real facts when it comes to "Marijuana" or specifically Cannabis Sativa or more properly, Cannabis Indica (which is the primary strain used in Medicinal Cannabis). Do you believe everything the government tells you?
Jae, that's what the taxes would be FOR. Same as the taxes on cigarettes and booze - unless you want to try and ban those as well.
That's what I was trying to say as well, but I wasn't real clear. That's what I get for posting that late at night. :D
I think a 'sin tax' is perfectly justified for tobacco and alcohol and if it ever gets legalized, pot, too. The people who are engaging in riskier behaviors should pay their share of taxes to contribute to paying for their future extra medical care. Basically, they should 'pay to play'.
Believe it or not, I haven't ever used pot (because I have the worst luck in the world getting caught at doing even the most minor naughty things like little white lies and speeding), and probably wouldn't use it if it was legalized due to my prescription medications and asthma (I suppose I could always bake some brownies, though....).
Why do so many people think it should be taxed so highly? Is there no love for the free market here? No love for capitalism? And why would the U.S. not be ready for legalization? We're just as ready as ever. Our prisons are overcrowded with non-violent drug offenders, our police are too tied up with the War on Drugs to go after real criminals, and too many kids my age are getting off to bad starts in life as they're arrested, fined, have their license suspended, and given a long-lasting distrust of police. I find it hard to believe that this is even a debate. Common sense leads us to believe that legalization is the only sane thing to do.
Why do so many people think it should be taxed so highly? Is there no love for the free market here? No love for capitalism? And why would the U.S. not be ready for legalization? We're just as ready as ever. Our prisons are overcrowded with non-violent drug offenders, our police are too tied up with the War on Drugs to go after real criminals, and too many kids my age are getting off to bad starts in life as they're arrested, fined, have their license suspended, and given a long-lasting distrust of police. I find it hard to believe that this is even a debate. Common sense leads us to believe that legalization is the only sane thing to do.
Why do you think it should be an exception? It would get hit with "sin taxes" just like cigarettes. What do you envision as a fair price for a pack of blunts anyway? Matter of fact, the whole paraphenalia market could be bled as well as the legalized dope. Afterall, the government would ONLY allow it to be legalized b/c they'd be taxing it in the first place.
Why do you think it should be an exception? It would get hit with "sin taxes" just like cigarettes. What do you envision as a fair price for a pack of blunts anyway? Matter of fact, the whole paraphenalia market could be bled as well as the legalized dope. Afterall, the government would ONLY allow it to be legalized b/c they'd be taxing it in the first place.
I'm a capitalist, and I don't think that there should be any kind of heavy taxes on any product. These taxes just create more criminal activity, and that means the government has to spend more money to have the police clean up to mess.
What is a fair price for a pack of blunts? What the market will bear. It's all about supply and demand. And if the government bureaucrats would only allow something to be legalized because they would make money off of it, then they're some greedy bastards who need to go find other jobs where they're not in the position to rob people of their money. There's something called freedom in this country, and perhaps they need to realize this concept.
I think that the entire war on drugs is unconstitutional. People should, in the end, be able to choose what they put into their bodies. The drugs that are now illegal were far, far less a problem in the late 19th century when they were legal and regulated(somewhat) in terms of purity. If drug production and consumption in general was legalized and conducted domestically it would be beneficial to the user(extensive quality regulations), to the government(fewer deaths due to overdose because of purity standards, tax revenue instead of wasted expenditures), and the world in general(elimination of illicit smuggling).
I think ending the prohibition of drugs would have much the same effect that ending prohibition of alcohol did-- reductions in overdoses(analogous to the effects of "bathtub gin"), and a rapid decrease in the criminal elements associated with the use of previously banned substances.
I'm a capitalist, and I don't think that there should be any kind of heavy taxes on any product. These taxes just create more criminal activity, and that means the government has to spend more money to have the police clean up to mess.
Yes, I concur with your position about low to minimal taxation. However, it's more likely that taxes have less to do with crime than the expense of the items in question or whether it's illegal in the first place. Using gas and cigarettes as examples, most people don't steal either due to the taxes on the products, but b/c there's a sudden increase in price or an inherent economic value that makes boosting them a good idea. For instance, when gas prices went up quickly this past year, people started filling their tanks and driving off w/o paying. Now you have to prepay at these places and get any change due AFTER filling your tank. Taxes have been high on the price of gas for awhile (govt making more/gallon than the gas stations selling it), w/o people resorting to a lot of stealing. With cigarettes, jack a rig with a load of cigs and you can make a very nice buck. But even that has less to do with the tax rate on cigs versus the demand for the product @ seemingly ANY price in the first place (especially something that easy to fence in the first place).
What is a fair price for a pack of blunts? What the market will bear. It's all about supply and demand. And if the government bureaucrats would only allow something to be legalized because they would make money off of it, then they're some greedy bastards who need to go find other jobs where they're not in the position to rob people of their money. There's something called freedom in this country, and perhaps they need to realize this concept.
What in your estimation do you think people would be willing to pay for a pack of joints if they were marketed? If you were smoking them, how much would YOU be willing to pay? My guess as to why it's not legalized is that a) there's more money involved in keeping it illegal than legalizing it (or at least for the individuals making that decision) and b) it helps keep law enforcement budgets higher than they might be otherwise.
(I'm not replying to the first part of your post because for the most part I agree with it, so don't think I'm just ignoring it. ;) )
What in your estimation do you think people would be willing to pay for a pack of joints if they were marketed? If you were smoking them, how much would YOU be willing to pay?
This is actually a very difficult question to answer. All I can say is that supply and demand would give you a price. Perhaps it would be somewhat similar to the price for a pack of cigs, with more expensive brands and cheaper brands, of course.
There are some European countries with legal weed, but they're more socialist, so it's hard to tell what a free market would set the price of a pack of blunts to be.
I am white. However, I don't have to be colored to realize that other whites have done severe damage to our society through their racism in the past (and to a lesser degree, in the present).
I agree. But what should it matter whether your white, black, brown, red, yellow, blue, male or female? We're all humans aren't we? We bleed don't we? It's foolish for everyone to think that they should label themselves based on their apperance...
Intolerance and greed has dealt one too many blows to this world. Same with religious intolerance too (can't we all just get along? Obviously, that concept is just too hard for some people to grasp). Then again, negative cultural steriotypes are too blame.
And as for the word "skinhead" let me enlighten everyone.
In Jamaica, the word "skinhead" was used to describe someone who was anti-rascist. (i.e. Skinhead Anti-Rascists). However, many Jamaicans imigrated to Britain during the middle and end of the 20th century. Unfortunately, British Neo-nazis took the word and started to use it to describe themselves, people who essentially propagate hate and bigotry.
Just thought I'd share that ;)
And as for cannibis... I think it should be legalized. First off, I know many people who toke up. MJ doesn't make you hostile, it calms you down! The people are relaxed and are more peaceful. Alcohol's effects are MUCH worse than pot's. Marijuana would have the same potential problem that any other legal drugs would have, or even less, im inclined to say. In fact, I think cigarettes are much worse than pot. I live in New Mexico, so medical marijuana is legal here... and i have to say that fatalities from unsuccessful medical treatments such as chemotheropy are generally lower, crime has dropped a bit, and SOME people seem to be much nicer. hahaha...
Actually exercise can become an addiction. There are people who lift weights too much and it becomes very unhealthy for their body. People can get addicted to gambling, running, video games, etc. This doesn't mean those things themselves are to blame, it just means that the person using it doesn't have the necessary willpower to give it up.
Cigarette addiction is an actual physical addiction, once a smoker stops getting their nicotine their body responds poorly to the loss of the chemical. This is not the case with marijuana, any 'addiction' is almost a purely willpower issue.
I agree hole-heartedly. I've seen many people who have gambling and exercise addictions and if they are in extreame desperation for those things... it's almost as bad as meth.
I have a slight music addiction :D
But essentially, dependency is something you chain yourself to.