Alcohol vs marijuana

[deanocraft]

I am enjoying this discussion. TBN is a great board. My take on this is that pot should be legal. I don't think it is any big deal, and I surely don't believe anyone should go to jail for it. It seems that making it illegal has only created a business opportunity for organized crime like the cartels. I think the threat of prison time for dealing might be providing an incentive to do violence in certain cases.

It also seems a bit strange that I can legally head down to the liquor store and buy enough booze to kill myself in a single sitting, but may face prison time if a plant happens to spring up in the far corners of my property... Strange indeed...

 

[Looking4new]

This is a real hot topic, 14 pages of posts in two days.

 

[citytransplant]

It seems that making it illegal has only created a business opportunity for organized crime like the cartels.

Other "business opportunities" are associated with marijuana sale and use. Let's not leave out law enforcement, criminal attorneys, corrections associations, etc. Roughly half of the money raised to oppose a ballot measure to legalize recreational marijuana in California came from police and prison guard groups, in the face of the loss of revenue streams to which they have become so deeply addicted.
I agree with everything you have written and can point to countless cases of extreme violence directly connected to the marijuana trade.

 

[motownbrowne]

Not really. Surely you don't believe that the level of marijuana consumption is anywhere close to the level of alcohol consumption in the US? This reminds me of how cigarette smokers tried to make us believe that a huge segment of the population was being discriminated against when indoor smoking bans started taking hold around the country. Turns out, about 15% of the population smokes ... which leaves 85% who do not.

I just found one article that states 13% of Americans smoked pot regularly in 2016, according to a Gallup poll.
Another 2015 article by the NIH states that over 70% of Americans drank alcohol in the last year, and 56% in the last month.

Again, not the same at all.

Oh, i certainly don't think that marijuana is used at the same level as alcohol, just that I would say that both are used widely. A primarily illegal activity that 13% of Americans admit to doing REGULARLY is pretty widespread in my opinion. Also, comparing the stats for regular consumption to stats for having done it at all in the last year or month is exactly the apples to kiwi comparison you're talking about. If 13% of Americans do it regularly (again, admit to it), the number who've used it in the last year must be greater to at least some degree.

So again, I'm sure more people use and abuse alcohol, for better or worse, but I just think that the usage of both is great enough to consider them widely used.

 

[jerrybob]

Pot must make you a better singer and song writer...........heck.....look at Willie, Waylon, Johnny, Kris and the boys........:thumbsup:

 

[Doofy]

Pot must make you a better singer and song writer...........heck.....look at Willie, Waylon, Johnny, Kris and the boys........:thumbsup:

HaHahaha. I've always been in awe that they can remember the music and lyrics.

 

[outinthetalgrass]

HaHahaha. I've always been in awe that they can remember the music and lyrics.

ill never smoke weed with willie again. - YouTube

 

[PJSprog]

HaHahaha. I've always been in awe that they can remember the music and lyrics.

Many of them can't anymore, and use teleprompters on stage.

 

[houstonscott]

Pot must make you a better singer and song writer...........heck.....look at Willie, Waylon, Johnny, Kris and the boys........:thumbsup:

Or better criminals.

 

[tungularafishcamp]

Speaking of criminals, now that marijuana is totally legal in 5 states I think and probably will soon be many more, already medicinally legal in many more, what about all the folks locked up for marijuana crimes???

I know many of them were heavily sentenced for marijuana because they couldn't be convicted of other crimes, and others were prosecuted for marijuana along with other crimes, but then there are those in jail strictly for marijuana offenses, what do we do with them?