Should marijuana be legal?

[Sheriff Roland]

wanted to add ...

There are quite a few Jamaican born folks in my neigbourhood. It's not unusual to catch a whiff of smoke while walking along the main steet near my place.

Also, the proposed changes in Canada (4 years ago) reflect those currently happening in Mass. except the fine would have been only 25$.

Interesting to note that the social/cultural wrongs of criminalization of 'grass' (or if I'm allowed to go off topic a moment, the social wrongs of state sanctioned death penalty) take a back seat (for many Americans) to the financial disadvantage of keeping the weed criminalized. 

One shouldn't have to talk of 'costs' when saying something is just plain WRONG.

[oilgun]

  I, uh, forgot what I was going to say.......

Just get some munchies and come back when you think of it. 

[Kelda]

So far 7 to 1 on the legalising issue.

I am one of the 7 that think it should be made legal.

Like everyhting there are side effects, but  there are some very good medical properties to it, not least the new study by Louise.

Ithink its current illegal status leads some users on to harder drugs... they'e aving to go  dealers to get the drugs and may be empted by others.

One side effect is apparently paranoia and some long running users have had phycological problems as a result. However an intersting factoid, is my sister is a trained phchy nurse. And he like most of her colleagues, also belive it should be legalised - despite them experiencing first hand some of those that have the side effects. Because she belives the good outweighs the bad.

[serious crayons]

Not to put anyone on the spot, but I'm interested to hear from the person or persons who think it should be illegal.

[David In Indy]

I also think that, currently, probably the most dangerous thing about pot is the very fact that it is illegal.  By this I mean, it creates a huge subculture of dangerous dealers and related crime.  If marijuana was removed as one element of the illegal drug trade.... just think of the amount of time and resources the police, courts, etc. could spend on more significant problems and issues.  Also, just think of the amount of money that could be saved in the prison system if people convicted solely of marijuana-related issues weren't there.

That's an excellent point Amanda.

One side effect is apparently paranoia and some long running users have had phycological problems as a result. However an intersting factoid, is my sister is a trained phchy nurse. And he like most of her colleagues, also belive it should be legalised - despite them experiencing first hand some of those that have the side effects. Because she belives the good outweighs the bad.

I've heard people use this as an argument against legalization of marijuana. And it doesn't wash with me. Anything can have negative effects when not used in moderation. Alcohol can cause cirrhosis of the liver for example. I still maintain that since alcohol is a legal drug, marijuana should be legal too. And (in my opinion) marijuana is far less destructive than alcohol, both physically and socially.

[louisev]

you should have included a "decriminalized" option.

[serious crayons]

you should have included a "decriminalized" option.

I thought about it, but there were already so many choices. Plus, I do tend to see this particular issue in sort of black-and-white terms. I mean, if you think it's bad, why not keep it illegal? And if you think it's OK, why not make it legal? To me, decriminalization is a halfway measure; it would eliminate most of the cops, courts and prison costs Amanda mentioned, but would not turn it into a revenue source or reflect the fact that 42 percent of Americans have, at least at some point in their lives, deemed it acceptable to use.

But obviously there are probably people who believe that's the best option, so I will add it to the poll.

I also checked the box allowing people to change their votes.

[delalluvia]

Have never smoked it, have no interest in smoking it, but IMO it definitely should be made legal.  People have yet to die from marijuana smoking as opposed to anything else you might think of.

However it should be handled like alcohol.  No under the influence important activities.

[Kerry]

IMO it should be legalised and put in the same category as alcohol and tobacco.

There should be restrictions re its use I believe, as with tobacco; i.e., no smoking in public places, bars, restaurants, cars with children, etc. No advertising. Similar to the present tobacco restrictions.

Marijuana acts as an excellent analgesic when administered medicinally as part of a palliative care regimen for the terminally ill. With terminally ill AIDS patients, marijuana encourages them to eat.

I was unsure what to tick so chose the second option, which implies that I used to be a regular user. This is not the case. The only times I've ever used marijuana was when I was dating guys who liked to use it prior to love-making. I'm a life-long non-smoker (of tobacco), so it was all very foreign (and repugnant) to me. I never suffered from paranoia. I'd always dissolve into fits of the giggles and ended up being too busy laughing (at any and everything) to have sex. That, and eating. I would eat everything in sight and still be hungry.

[Katie77]

I agree with the de-crimilization of it. At least that would take the control of it, out of the hands of the unsrupulous and back alley dealing of it.

I also think it should be legal to grow a couple of plants, for one's own use. At least then, the user can have some control over what they are smoking without any unknown additves that may be put it in. They say the safest marijuana to smoke is the stuff you grown yourself.

I dont smoke it myself, (tried it twice only), but I do smoke cigarettes and I would be very hypercritical if I was against someone somoking marijuana. When my sons smoked it, my defence to them to not continue, was the criminal link to it, as well as the cost of it.

I think the same rules and penalties should apply to people driving under the influence of marijuana as there is to people under the influence of alcohol.

The only thing that worries me about legalising it, is that it takes the act of "doing something that they shouldn't" away from the younger generation, and may take a bit of the appeal away from them, and cause them to go onto something harder that is illegal.