Legalizing Marijuana

[ChikoritaBayleef]

Okay I just want to put this out there...

WEED IS NOT ADDICTIVE.

I, and many other people can be LIVING PROOF that it's not addictive. yes, it can become a habit, but not an addictive habit, like ciggarettes.

I smoked weed every single day for about 8 months (only taking maybe a couple days break) and I quit cold turkey and I felt fine. The only problem I had was finding something else to do with my time, which I quickly did.

I really hate how people think that just because it is a drug, that it's addictive, because it's most certainly NOT addictive.

 

[hurristat]

While it is mind-altering, it's not dangerous in any way, shape or form, and as such, should become legalized.

Not only that, but the government is wasting money prosecuting and jailing weed users, sellers, and possessors, when they could actually turn a profit on them through taxes.

 

[Aurafire]

I've quite a bit of experience with the drug, and while I think people who smoke marijuana are biased in some way or another, I support its conditional legalization. That is, government regulation and taxation, age limit, and some sort of checks or limitations to keep it out of the hands of people who are going to abuse it. I realize this will be a costly undertaking, but taxes could more than make up for the additional services the government would need to provide.

The fact of the matter is marijuana is, for the most part, a completely harmless drug. Besides of course the fact that you have to smoke it, which is obviously unhealthy for you, but there are ways around this (vaporizing, oral consumption). I can tell you from first-hand experience that it's many times less destructive than alcohol or other drugs. I didn't touch it until my first semester last year, and even then I was hesitant because of all of the "drugs are bad" teachings that were drilled into my head in middle/high school. Eventually my friends convinced me, and since then I've been a fairly regular user. I understand where anti-drug advocates are coming from. There are people out there who can and will abuse marijuana. But that's true of any drug really. It's not so much about the drug as it is about the person who is using it. Some people are more naturally prone to addictive and destructive behavior. But just like there are millions of people who use alcohol responsibly every day, so are there people who smoke marijuana every day, within the privacy of their own home, without so much as harming a leaf on a tree.

This combined with the fact that marijuana is not habit-forming, is virtually impossible to overdose on, has multiple documented beneficial health effects, and the government stands to make a ton of money in tax revenue... I really don't see why it's illegal. I think it's just a matter of time before more states start legalizing it for medicinal use, and that's just another step towards total legalization.

 

[bubblewrap]

I think all drugs should be legal. Part of the allure of drugs is that you're doing wrong - I know this because I work in a liquor store where underage kids are always trying to buy it. If everything was legal, there would be less attracting people to them.

That said, I don't even drink. I think all drugs (and by those I mean alcohol, tobacco and all the currently-illegal drugs) are stupid and I would never go anywhere near any of them. But if people want to do it and mess up their lives, that's their business.

My one pet hate is people interfering with other people. People are too concerned with what everyone else is doing. Just focus on yourself and leave everyone else alone.

Basically what he said... if someone wants to mess up their life, just let them. Good riddance.