LEGALIZE IT

[pvn]

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I think more research needs to be done - so that people can receive the benefits of a drug without the other effects.

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Like "enjoying themselves"?

[Kaj]

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A lethal injection would absolutely cease the ability of a cancer to spread.

I think more research needs to be done - so that people can receive the benefits of a drug without the other effects.

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Very little research can be done so long as it is outlawed. What research that does exist quite clearly shows that candy bars and alcohol are far worse for you. And I don't smoke pot, but pretending it's so lethal, addictive, or harmful is ignoring reality.

[spino1i]

I think marijuana is a very harmful drug -- I have seen firsthand what it can do to people's personalities. It just sort of turns everyone lazy and they never do anything with their lives. I do not think it should ever be legalized, I think that would harm the world a lot.

[Benjamin]

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I think marijuana is a very harmful drug -- I have seen firsthand what it can do to people's personalities. It just sort of turns everyone lazy and they never do anything with their lives. I do not think it should ever be legalized, I think that would harm the world a lot.

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Lots of personal choices in this world are harmful. Why do you single out cannabis to prohibit? Why not prohibit other harmful behaviors? Surely you advocate for prohibition of tobacco, which is a proven mass killer, if you advocate prohibition of cannabis? Do you advocate prohibition of over sized unhealthy fast-food meals? Those will kill you too, likely faster than cannabis will. Perhaps we should prohibit lazy behavior in general, since it seems to offend you so.

[Benjamin]

The first large study done to investigate the effects of decriminalization in the Netherlands on cannabis use found the same level of use there as in San Francisco. Story

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“In the United States, marijuana policy is based on the assertion that strict penalties are the best way to inhibit use,” said Reinarman.

The study’s findings cast doubt on that scenario, he said. Despite widespread lawful availability of cannabis in Amsterdam, there were no differences between the two cities in age at onset of use, age at first regular use, or age at the start of maximum use.

The study found no evidence that lawfully regulated cannabis provides a “gateway” to other illicit drug use. In fact, marijuana users in San Francisco were far more likely to have used other illicit drugs--cocaine, crack, amphetamines, ecstasy, and opiates--than users in Amsterdam, said Reinarman.

“The results of this study shift the burden of proof now to those who would arrest hundreds of thousands of Americans each year on the grounds that it deters use,” said Reinarman.

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We have been spending tens of billions of dollars every year since the 1980s on the Drug War. It has had no effect on the availability of drugs. Availability and quality of cannabis in particular is better than in the 1980s, by far, despite the massive amount of money spent waging war on the millions of citizens in the US who partake.

What exactly is the point of this war? It continues because the jobs of the bureaucrats, law officers, prison keepers and builders, and elected officials depend on it.

It is a destructive waste of money that fuels the black market and criminalizes a large portion of our population. It needs to be stopped.

[Benjamin]

Another study on the Dutch decriminalization policy found no problems compared to other European countries which have a prohibition policy like the UK.

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From international comparison, it is concluded that trends in cannabis use in the Netherlands are rather similar to those in other European countries, and Dutch figures on cannabis use are not out of line with those from countries that did not decriminalise cannabis. Consequently, it appears unlikely that decriminalisation of cannabis will cause an increase in cannabis use.

The vast majority of cannabis users has never tried hard drugs. Moreover, with regard to the problematic use of opiates and drug related health problems, the Netherlands ranks relatively low within the European Union.

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[pvn]

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I think marijuana is a very harmful drug -- I have seen firsthand what it can do to people's personalities. It just sort of turns everyone lazy and they never do anything with their lives. I do not think it should ever be legalized, I think that would harm the world a lot.

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Because you're entitled to a species comprised of hard workers for your benefit, right?

[Kaj]

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It just sort of turns everyone lazy and they never do anything with their lives.

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Error of correlation versus causation.

[chezlaw]

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It just sort of turns everyone lazy and they never do anything with their lives.

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Error of correlation versus causation.

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also a judgemental error. Being lazy and never doing anything with you life sounds pretty good to me. What am I supposed to do with it? and why is some sort of frenetic activity a good thing?

chez

[CORed]

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I think marijuana is a very harmful drug -- I have seen firsthand what it can do to people's personalities. It just sort of turns everyone lazy and they never do anything with their lives. I do not think it should ever be legalized, I think that would harm the world a lot.

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Some people do respond to marijuana this way. Others only use the drug during leisure time and lead normal, productive lives.

Some people who use alcohol beat their wives, drive drunk all the time and can't hold a job (or don't even try).

In spite of what you may have been told, some people use cocaine responsibly. Not everybody who uses cocaine becomes an addict, although cocaine is a pretty addictive drug.

Some people devote their entire lives to surfing or skiing, to the point that they never hold a steady job, or hold only menial jobs way below what their abilities would allow. Does this mean surfing and skiing should be banned?

Drug laws are the result of the fallacious belief that, if we think the world would be better off if a particular substance didn't exist, we can legislate it out of existence.

What actually happens is that a black market develops, usually with a considerably higher price than the commodity would have if it were legal, and it becomes a cash cow for the criminal element. Because a drug dealer who gets ripped off can't call the police, the only way for the dealer to deal with getting ripped off is violence, so generally the drug trade ends up in the hands of the most ruthlessly violent dealers.