Weed Might be Legalized in California

So in November us californians will be voting on wether weed will be legalized in california for recreational use. Was just wondering what you guys thought about this? I've had my medical card for a couple years now, and in all honestly medical marijuana is a joke and 90% of the people with cards are just stoner kids. Can't imagine what would happen if it was legal for everyone. Thoughts?

I always thought is drugs where legalised like amsterdam then the goverment could control it...

You would have pure drugs rather than things that are cut into rat poison etc

And in amsterdam if you get caught doing anything that you're not meant to i.e. selling more than you are allowed you get fined.... a huge amount....

is there any proof in this?

I could care less if the stoners smoke it, the only thing that really worries me is the danger to others. Second hand smoke can be harmful to others. For that reason, I believe that it should stay banned.

ps. I feel the same way about tobacco smoking, I believe that should be illegal as well.

Originally Posted by Village Genius I could care less if the stoners smoke it

Way to emphasize the stereotypical image of people who smoke weed there. I expect everyone who calls 'them' stoners to be completely anti-cannabis. I understand you're worried about second hand smoke though, but have you ever thought about people getting drunk and driving others to death? How many of these incidents do you hear about compared to cannabis-related incidents?? I think if cannabis is illegal, alcohol should sure as hell be illegal.

There might be more alcohol-related cases than cannabis-related cases because more people drink than smoke, as you stated. But I think the fact that there are more drinkers than smokers is an even better reason to ban alcohol instead of cannabis.

Apart from the second-hand smoke issue, it's harmless for the health of people who just don't smoke it. Alcohol on the other hand causes a lot of agressive, drunk people and/or traffic accidents and such which is a waaay bigger problem than some 'stoners' getting stoned and enjoying themselves, in my opinion.

Originally Posted by Stylized Way to emphasize the stereotypical image of people who smoke weed there. I expect everyone who calls 'them' stoners to be completely anti-cannabis.

Perhaps I have a bad image of those who use drugs, I've been yet to see an exception to it though (but then again, I haven't been with people who do drugs for more than ten years).

Originally Posted by Stylized I understand you're worried about second hand smoke though, but have you ever thought about people getting drunk and driving others to death? How many of these incidents do you hear about compared to cannabis-related incidents?? I think if cannabis is illegal, alcohol should sure as hell be illegal.

If there were a way to ban alcohol in excess (at least for those who have shown they should not be trusted to be impared), I would agree with you, but that is impossible. Here is the difference though, a low or even moderate amount of alcohol really isn’t unhealthy. While driving is a bad idea when you are drunk at all, that is the decision of the individual. If all weed did was that, I would have no issue with it. It is the effects on others with the other health effects it brings that bother me. Another issue is that it is hard to tell if a driver is impaired due to marijuana it stays in your blood for a very long time. While it is obvious if they are impaired, a legal system needs a concrete system (like blood-alcohol content) to work.

Originally Posted by Stylized There might be more alcohol-related cases than cannabis-related cases because more people drink than smoke, as you stated. But I think the fact that there are more drinkers than smokers is an even better reason to ban alcohol instead of cannabis.

The only reason there are more drinkers is because anyone who is over 21 (in the US) can buy as much as they want. The same does not go for marijuana.

Originally Posted by Stylized Apart from the second-hand smoke issue, it's harmless for the health of people who just don't smoke it. Alcohol on the other hand causes a lot of agressive, drunk people and/or traffic accidents and such which is a waaay bigger problem than some 'stoners' getting stoned and enjoying themselves, in my opinion.

The second hand smoke should be enough to ban it, why should a child have to be put at a greater risk of cancer because their family smokes? The same goes for cigarettes, but that is another story. Furthermore, your statement that marijuana use is otherwise harmless is false. When smoking marijuana you have an increased heart rate which can act as a trigger for a heart attack (by 4.8 times according to the government). Smokers also get some of the harm that cigarette smoking gives as well. This coupled with the increased risk of cancer make them dangerous.

My souce: http://www.drugabuse.gov/infofacts/marijuana.html

Originally Posted by Village Genius While driving is a bad idea when you are drunk at all, that is the decision of the individual. If all weed did was that, I would have no issue with it. It is the effects on others with the other health effects it brings that bother me.

I don't really get where you're trying to get with that first sentence, maybe you could rephrase it? And regarding the health effect on others, that's (mainly) tobacco. I think weed should be legal to smoke, but not that close to children/people that don't want to be affected by it. Same goes for tobacco. But then we come to cars - they are messing up the air we breathe too (asthma) - I should stop talking however, because I'll be going off topic.

Originally Posted by Sam Granger I don't really get where you're trying to get with that first sentence, maybe you could rephrase it? And regarding the health effect on others, that's (mainly) tobacco. I think weed should be legal to smoke, but not that close to children/people that don't want to be affected by it. Same goes for tobacco. But then we come to cars - they are messing up the air we breathe too (asthma) - I should stop talking however, because I'll be going off topic.

I was saying that if weed only impaired the smoker like liquor, I would have no issue with it. But it hurts your health in other ways and it hurts those around you.

Originally Posted by KewL Just wanted to comment on your gateway drug thing. I think its totally a gateway drug. Every drug user i know started out with weed, before moving on to uppers, downers, other psychedelics or whatever there into. Maybe thats just because its illegal i don't know. All the people who go out and drink every weekend tend to stick to that.

This would suggest that weed can be a starter drug. The tendency of every "bad" drug user to have started with that is different than the tendency of every weed user to move on to the "bad" stuff.

The driving doesn't seem like it would be that big of an issue. Smoking doesn't really **** with your vision too much, like alcohol does.Too me you can walk talk and act normal you just think different.

You need to be of a certain mental capacity to drive, marijuana impairs your thought process. I know from alcohol use that drunk people are often terrible judges of whether they have the capacity to drive. I would imagine it would be the same for people who are high.

I was thinking recently that alcohol is more dangerous at times, I see more examples of ruining people's lives because of alcohol, not the weed.

The usage is far different, a lot more people drink than smoke weed so you will have a lot more cases.

I don't fully agree with VG on banning tobacco all together, but it should be illegal to smoke around children - especially parents that smoke in the car etc... (Yes. Surprise, here's Sam's post)

On legalizing marijuana, I think it's a good step. The percentage of people that use it over here in The Netherlands is actually lower than that of the US which I find rather amusing. People tend to do illegal things because they think it's "cool" and makes them feel "bad".

Legalizing, mention anything bad about doing so? Less violence/crime due to government control, have coffeeshops like we have over here to ensure a better quality. More jobs - someone has to grow it and work in shops to sell it! Tax made from marijuana could do so many great things, right now, all that dough is going to Mexico. Funding drug wars, you name it. I find it sickening that people get sent away to prison for smoking a joint or 2 for I don't know how many years. It's not that big of an offense, and seriously, weed isn't the worst drug out there (alcohol, heroine etc...). People don't physically become weed dependent and feel the urge to rob houses & mug people to afford their next high. Just create a safe environment for people to use it without getting mixed up with other drugs. For those that think this is a gateway drug, I don't agree, it's just the crowd you get mixed in when it's made all "underground" and illegal.