Efforts To Legalize Marijuana For Recreational Use
http://thedianerehmshow.org/shows/2012-10-16/efforts-legalize-marijuana-recreational-use
On November 6th, voters in Colorado, Washington, and Oregon will weigh in on whether marijuana should be legalized. 17 states currently allow marijuana for medical purposes, but initiatives in these three states make recreational use legal as well. The proposed laws directly contradict federal law which classifies marijuana as a controlled substance along with heroin and LSD. A recent Rasmussen poll suggests that more than 50% of Americans favor legalizing and regulating marijuana in a manner similar to alcohol and tobacco. Please join us to discuss the debate debate over legalizing marijuana.
Guests
Allen St. Pierre
executive director, NORML.
Mark de Bernardo
executive director, Institute for a Drug-Free Workplace.
Jonathan Martin
reporter, The Seattle Times.
John Ingold
reporter, The Denver Post.
Comments
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I used marijuana for years and never had one side effect other then my desire to eat more food. So I stopped.
It is my contention that the reason everyone doesn't want to legalize it is that the liquor lobby stand to loose an enormous amount of money, which is much more dangerous and leads to various diseases, not to mention to be a dangerous threat.
Everyone is complaining about the economy. I think most people would gladly pay an additional tax for legalized Marijuana. The government wastes more money chasing after the illegal growers, those who are selling, etc. It's not going to stop.
If it's legal in various countries in Europe with little problem. Come on people!
I'm surprised the Netherlands' legalization of marijuana wasn't mentioned at all during this program. Seems to me like there's already an architype to examine the effects of legalized marijuana right there. Just because it's legalized doesn't mean the whole country is going to go to hell in a hand basket. It's all a matter of people making educated personal decisions.
Your guest from the partnership for a drug-free workplace's comments were both appalling and frightening.
I'm wondering if your guest who believes there is no purpose for marijuana believes there is any purpose for alcohol and if alcohol should remain legal, especially considering alcohol issues such as alcoholism, drunk driving, aggressive behavior, and underage drinking?
Excellent points, Chris. It's always nice to see people who don't think and see in black and white. Indeed, it's always nice to see people who actually THINK. :-)
Lots of good comments. I'll add my two cents, regarding a couple of points made by Mark de Bernardo from the Institute for a Drug-Free Workplace.
Mark said, "The idea that people are rotting away in jail cells because of marijuana use simply is not the case." That is a straw man argument. A better question to address is how many people are fined, charged and arrested for marijuana possession and use?
Mark said that "only" two percent of people in jail are there for marijuana use. There are about 2 million people in American prisons, so two percent means that there are about 20,000 people in prison for marijuana use.
Mark said, "Those who engage in illicit drug use are one-third less productive in the workplace." I'd like to see the studies that support this claim. First, "illicit drugs" seems to include ALL drugs, not just marijuana. And I'm not sure any distinctions are being made between occasional, recreational use of marijuana and people who might use it all the time, even when working at their jobs. After all, someone who goes to work drunk from alcohol will be less productive, too. On the other hand, someone who enjoys an occasional glass of wine or beer when not working will NOT be less productive on the job.
Mark said, "The costs of drug rehabilitation and treatment is nine times what the tax revenue would be under optimum circumstances." Again I'd like to see the studies that support this claim. I could be wrong, but I think that most of the people who use marijuana do so in about the same manner as most of the people who drink alcohol. In other words, they use it occasionally and responsibly and do not require rehabilitation or treatment. They are not "addicts," just as most people who drink wine and beer are not addicts. Are there people who need treatment for alcohol and drug problems? Yes, of course. But that is the case whether the drug is legal or illegal. I wonder if Mark has heard of Prohibition?
It sounds like you made these examples up. Regarding the first example...if it's true...it has little to do with cannabis. All kinds of people smoke cannabis, good parents and bad parents. If she forgot her daughter's birthday, it would have happened with or without the cannabis. And as for the second example, I'm sorry, but there is no way that is a true story. You're thinking of crack, not cannabis.
Graham Hancock on LondonRealTV says @5:17 mins.
"Do we as adults have the right to make decisions about what we put in our own bodies, and what we experience with our own consciousness, without reference to the powers of the State, or must we seek permission from the State in order to explore our own consciousness?"
.....
and continues @5:53 mins. "Such a thing is considered abhorrent and wrong and we must not be allowed to think about doing that, this is the way that our minds are controlled....and it is so subtle and so clever and so deeply ingrained that we actually think these thoughts are coming from us, that they haven't been programmed into us."
Mark, legalization of marijuana is not draconian nor is it a dangerous drug. Why do people like you insist on imposing your draconian beliefs that marijuana use is somehow a serious criminal act. People anywhere should have a legal right to use marijuana if they choose without the threat of criminal charges. Alcohol is a much more powerful intoxicant than marijuana and the facts are clear regarding the enormous negative consequences of alcohol abuse. You sound like someone who attended Bob Jones University. The notion that because the US government or FDA says marijuana is dangerous or has no medicinal value is laughable. The FDA decided that Vioxx was safe even though they now acknowledge that it was the cause of over 27,000 deaths. I think you need to find a better use of your time and energy. There are certainly many more important issues that you could channel your attention towards.
Our government should control THC, production, & sales. It is purely satanic to leave marijuana laws the way they are now. Medicinal & recreational marijuana should be made legal in all states yesterday. I live in sucky Mississippi, either I am allergic or immune to all pain medicines & am forced to suffer disability pains because doctors & government is ignorant & prejudice toward a clearly benificial plant. How can so many Christians want people to suffer in prison for wanting to unwind & relax by using a harmless plant.