U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish • Hacker News Board

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#111

Post by tzahola » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:16 PM UTC

khuey wrote: post #105

mcny wrote: post #17

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Why just marijuana? Why not every drug? In fact, why is possession of anything a crime? We already have laws about improper storage of hazardous materials. Possession of anything should be legal. Now distribution and sale is a trickier subject but pretty easy as well. As long as you don't misrepresent what you're selling, it should be legal as well. If we are for a small government, we have to walk the walk.

Should possession of 100 lbs of weapons grade uranium be a crime?

Nuclear weapons can hurt other people. Me using drugs can only hurt me.

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#112

Post by rufugee » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:17 PM UTC

Is there an easy way to track donations from alcohol/big pharma lobbyists to the Republican party? I'm betting quite a bit of money, rather than concern for the prole's welfare, is behind this.

Sessions said this in March: "I reject the idea that America will be a better place if marijuana is sold in every corner store. And I am astonished to hear people suggest that we can solve our heroin crisis by legalizing marijuana – so people can trade one life-wrecking dependency for another that’s only slightly less awful,” he told law enforcement officials in March. Our nation needs to say clearly once again that using drugs will destroy your life."

As it happens, a person close to me who was a true alcoholic (physically dependent, would have seizures if they didn't drink, tried AA and failed through the 12 steps a number of times) successfully stopped drinking by choosing to safely vape pot instead. They vape about every two days. How exactly did pot destroy this person's life?

- edited to add big pharma

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#113

Post by zimpenfish » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:17 PM UTC

tzahola wrote: post #111

khuey wrote: post #105

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Should possession of 100 lbs of weapons grade uranium be a crime?

Nuclear weapons can hurt other people. Me using drugs can only hurt me.

> Me using drugs can only hurt me.

Only if you exist in isolation from the rest of the world, surely. Otherwise there's family, friends, anyone you might hurt whilst under the influence (verbally, physically, etc.), and that's ignoring the indirect effects of the drug trade.

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#114

Post by DanBC » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:17 PM UTC

shams93 wrote: post #109

If you look at the fine print he's still leaving the decision to crack down to each stares attorney general but sessions is doing exactly what you would want to do is you want to see the opiate crisis get much worse. These people in DC are so stupid they don't even have the brain power of an earthworm but they want to treat us lower than dogs like we were born to be Jeff Sessions slaves. I'm so sick of these bullies.

Cannabis use isn't the solution to opioid deaths.

Other countries have strict laws about cannabis, and those laws are enforced, and they don't have the problems of opioid deaths that the US has.

The real solution to opioid death is adequate treatment for pain; and treating addiction as a health problem not a criminal justice problem.

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#115

Post by [deleted] » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:18 PM UTC

SauciestGNU wrote: post #86

mieseratte wrote: post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

On the other hand one could frame this as the majority of states decided and those nine states are the tyrannical minority.

Empty land doesn't have a right to suffrage, people do.

[deleted]

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#116

Post by vkou » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:19 PM UTC

saas_co_de wrote: post #108

pfg wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As I understand it, the Supreme Court already ruled against states' right on this matter in Gonzales v. Raich. That case was about medical marijuana, but I don't think that matters. (IANAL.)

The composition of the court has changed quite a bit since then as has public opinion. Cannabis is now legal for medical use in 29 states. Many of these laws were passed through the referendum process. That is a lot of democracy to overrule from a bench in D.C.

We forget that America cares very little for democracy, being largely an oligarchy.

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#117

Post by louky » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:21 PM UTC

btbuildem wrote: post #39

bediger4000 wrote: post #30

Why? What harm can the Feds point to, with respect to legal marijuana? It's been mostly good in Colorado. Sales tax on marijuana has offset some budget problems citizens of Colorado inflicted on themselves (TABOR). Apparently, crime in Colorado isn't uniformly rising: most categories of crime are less common since legalization, a few have risen a bit. This is in line with a secular drop in crime in all of th USA, how…

It harms the pharmaceutical industry, the private prisons and police budgets, to name a few examples.

Police unions are also uniformly opposed to legalization, as it will reduce the need for police by definition if the hundreds of thousands of "crimes" per year vanish into smoke.

Fewer officers, less money and less power.

Of the 8.2 million marijuana arrests between 2001 and 2010, 88% were for simply having marijuana (ACLU).

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#118

Post by VLM » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:22 PM UTC

brightball wrote: post #20

danschumann wrote: post #8

I think weed should be legal. I also think Sessions should enforce every law, lest he pick and choose what is illegal and what is not, thus becoming the most powerful law-maker ( or unmaker ) in the land. Passing a law is the act of the legislative, and repealing a law is too. If he does not enforce all the laws, he basically is seizing the power of congress and repealing those laws, for his term. Imagine Sessions ch…

IMO that's the correct answer. The only reason it was flourishing was due to lack of enforcement of federal law. It needs to be addressed at the federal level or there needs to be a clear method for states to veto/nullify/ignore federal laws that they feel overreach. I can't remember the procedure, but isn't there some method for a state to nullify a federal law that it disagrees with?

You'll get an infinite number of snarky comments about the War of Northern Aggression back in the early 1860s but the more modern answer is yes states have taken cases to the Supreme Court with highly mixed results WRT nullification of laws. Its not really the kind of thing where historical batting averages have any influence on next weeks attempt, but historically I think individuals have scored slightly better with the Supreme Court than states have. Its also very fuzzy to categorize when the court case technically involves a private citizen who merely happens to be the states attorney general as his day job, is that a win for the state or just a win for some dude?

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#119

Post by knieveltech » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:22 PM UTC

koenigdavidmj wrote: post #56

knieveltech wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

uh uh. Quirks of population distribution should certainly not permit a minority of citizens from driving policy in directions the rest of the country doesn't want to go. One person, one vote.

California getting to decide the will of Kansas is a broken system. It feels a lot like, say, the king of England ruling the colonies without representation.

Kansas (assumably) has a working general assembly and is perfectly capable of passing legislation at the state level to express their will in whatever way they see fit. Meanwhile, at the federal level, the will of the majority of citizens is what should be represented.

Re: U.S. To End Policy That Let Legal Pot Flourish

#120

Post by DINKDINK » Thu, Jan 04, 2018, 4:23 PM UTC

danschumann wrote: post #8

I think weed should be legal. I also think Sessions should enforce every law, lest he pick and choose what is illegal and what is not, thus becoming the most powerful law-maker ( or unmaker ) in the land. Passing a law is the act of the legislative, and repealing a law is too. If he does not enforce all the laws, he basically is seizing the power of congress and repealing those laws, for his term. Imagine Sessions ch…

>I also think Sessions should enforce every law

Do you appreciate what that would entail? Laws exists on the books so that when the political class wants someone squashed, they can. They are swinging swords of Damocles above the throats of citizens that are snipped when convenient.