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NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

theguardian.com

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Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#91

Post by jlgreco »

zevyoura wrote: post #86
jlgreco wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am not familiar with the Colorado system, but that sounds similar to the Washington system. In order to grow or sell you need to buy a license (available in November I believe). This system is not going to restrict strains or products in any meaningful way. No more so than government issued licenses for medical grow ops have restricted strains... As most here are probably aware, the existence of government licensed…

There's an excellent overview of Colorado's system in this Fresh Air interview: http://www.npr.org/2012/11/13/164981433/legalizing-and-regul... Colorado has the most strictly regulated system anywhere, including the ability to trace all retail sales back to the plant they were grown on, 24 hour video surveillance of all legal growers, and background checks that should eliminate most of the criminal element in the tra…

Gotcha. And correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe that the pot scene is diverse and thriving despite this. Certainly not a "government growers only selling shitty government cheese^W^W ditch weed" situation.

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#92

Post by jlgreco »

moocowduckquack wrote: post #84
jlgreco wrote: post #76

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I am not familiar with the Colorado system, but that sounds similar to the Washington system. In order to grow or sell you need to buy a license (available in November I believe). This system is not going to restrict strains or products in any meaningful way. No more so than government issued licenses for medical grow ops have restricted strains... As most here are probably aware, the existence of government licensed…

As far as I am aware, Colorado has not changed the law on anything commercial, so there is no commercial growers license yet. I think they are intending to though from what I have read. edit - on the other hand, after reading zevyoura's post, evidently I may be talking rubbish.

I'm not sure if legal commercial selling is up and running there yet or not. It kind of thought it was. Legal non -medical weed won't be available until next March or so in Washington (end of November until non-medical growing can start, plus a few months for those non-medical plants to mature.)

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#93

Post by jlgreco »

ck2 wrote: post #83

Most neighborhoods I've lived in my life, people drink too much. Every six months or so, there is a DUI arrest where a cop has actually followed the idiot all the way home at (and I've seen people get into/out of the car so drunk they go to the bathroom on the side of their car). I don't care if people smoke pot in their apartments. But once it's legal, it's not going to stop there and I am not sure what can be done…

Read Washington State's laws concerning pot. Then read their laws concerning booze.

Then rest easy.

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#94

Post by stakecounter »

speeq wrote: post #25
pravda wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Ummm...also because they like to get toasted. I think this plan is discriminatory. "under my proposal, only adults age 21 and over would be allowed to possess up to one ounce of marijuana" Why shouldn't 18-20 year olds have the right to blaze up? Those are the prime toking years.

Because it might be unsafe. See, the human brain undergoes important development until the age of 25 and research has shown that cannabis significantly affects the brain of children and adolescents. Structural changes have been found in the brains of young cannabis users, especially in the prefrontal cortex, the last brain region to undergo maturation during adolescence. I'm for legalizing medical as well as recreati…

Are you suggesting that "might be unsafe" is all the reason needed to legally withhold the right of a person to do something to his/her own body?

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#95

Post by jlgreco »

saraid216 wrote: post #79
jlgreco wrote: post #75

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Certainly we should try that, but keeping pot illegal so that poor people can continue to sell it isn't a solution by any means.

> I'm certainly not going to agree that that's a reason not to do what we have

Aye. I think we don't disagree.

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#96

Post by jlgreco »

fatjokes wrote: post #68
shoo wrote: post #3

"David Simon, creator of The Wire, says new US drug laws help only 'white, middle-class kids'" http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/may/25/the-wire-creato...

White, middle-class kids might not be targeted as minority kids are, but I don't see how they're helped.

He thinks that white middle-class kids are targeted, and that the purpose of legalization is to stop that.

In reality, it is overwhelming minorities that are targetted. Legalization would stop that.

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#97

Post by Kliment »

oleganza wrote: post #88
ck2 wrote: post #83

Most neighborhoods I've lived in my life, people drink too much. Every six months or so, there is a DUI arrest where a cop has actually followed the idiot all the way home at (and I've seen people get into/out of the car so drunk they go to the bathroom on the side of their car). I don't care if people smoke pot in their apartments. But once it's legal, it's not going to stop there and I am not sure what can be done…

Insurance. If you buy a house in a district, you may or may not buy an insurance against neighbour's misbehaviour. But the first condition of the insurance is that you respect your neighbours yourself according some existing arrangements (specified in your insurance). Now if anyone is too loud when not appropriate, or drunk as hell, or peeing on your lawn, the insurance company will: 1. Pay you a compensation. 2. Mak…

You're proposing giving insurance companies the power to switch off my power, water and internet when they feel like it? Sounds like an excellent opportunity to abuse power.

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#98

Post by oleganza »

Kliment wrote: post #97
oleganza wrote: post #88

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Insurance. If you buy a house in a district, you may or may not buy an insurance against neighbour's misbehaviour. But the first condition of the insurance is that you respect your neighbours yourself according some existing arrangements (specified in your insurance). Now if anyone is too loud when not appropriate, or drunk as hell, or peeing on your lawn, the insurance company will: 1. Pay you a compensation. 2. Mak…

You're proposing giving insurance companies the power to switch off my power, water and internet when they feel like it? Sounds like an excellent opportunity to abuse power.

First, laws, guns and police are much more excellent opportunities to abuse power and already attract all sorts of sadists and psychopaths.

Second, there is no "giving power" anywhere in the voluntary agreements. Your water will be turned off only if your water supplier thinks it's more profitable to please some insured customers than not piss you off. If they turn your water off unreasonably, they risk losing clients.

Policemen and congressmen do not have to please any customers and never suffer economical consequences if they don't. This attracts psychos of all sorts in the realm of brutal state power.

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#99

Post by speeq »

stakecounter wrote: post #94
speeq wrote: post #25

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Because it might be unsafe. See, the human brain undergoes important development until the age of 25 and research has shown that cannabis significantly affects the brain of children and adolescents. Structural changes have been found in the brains of young cannabis users, especially in the prefrontal cortex, the last brain region to undergo maturation during adolescence. I'm for legalizing medical as well as recreati…

Are you suggesting that "might be unsafe" is all the reason needed to legally withhold the right of a person to do something to his/her own body?

I'm suggesting that cannabis should be sold strictly to adults only. Cannabis, just like alcohol, impairs the growth and integrity of certain brain structures of adolescents. Would you want 14-year-old kids to be able to legally buy and consume cannabis and alcohol? Of course it won't stop all of them who want from getting it somehow, it didn't stop me either at that age but do we really want to make it easily accessible and risk having a generation with potential damaged brains?

Re: NY Comptroller: Legalise marijuana, tax it and end wrongheaded war on pot

#100

Post by northwest »

The thing is, the owners of the private prisons want to get richer and invest serious money so their cells are kept as full as possible:

http://www.republicreport.org/2012/marijuana-lobby-illegal/

See "2.) Private Prisons Corporations"

Lobbying is legalized corruption, in most cases.

It's obvious that we need to get rid of it if we want to fix the country.

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