29 US States consider changing marijuana laws. :U
Quote"The more people talk about marijuana laws the more people come to the conclusion that they've completely failed, so we're definitely optimistic here," said Aaron Smith, California policy director for the Marijuana Policy Project.
http://www.stateline.org/live/details/story?contentId=474500
Never imagined seeing this in my life time.
About time, even though I myself don't indulge, I can see no reason to keep it against the law. I seldom drink also, and have no reason to want everybody to have to follow my example. Live and let live is my motto.
Read this piece from November 21, 2007.
Quote
Previous data released last year by the Bureau of Justice Statistics indicates that 12.7 percent of state inmates and 12.4 percent of federal inmates incarcerated for drug violations are serving time for marijuana offenses.
The report speculates that decriminalizing illicit drugs, along with enacting modest reforms in sentencing and parole, would save taxpayers an estimated $20 billion per year and reduce the prison population from 1.5 million to below 700,000.
http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7434
Can you imagine the outcry when the government reaps more from marijuana tax than tobacco tax :bg
When they realise how many people use it?
The downside is that they would make more money from a tax than they are with fines, because the price would be much higher.
The price here hasn't changed since 1983.
>Never imagined seeing this in my life time.
Hang in there, old timer :bdg
(I reserve the right to edit this post so as to un-incriminate myself.)
There would be (almost) no organised crime if drugs were not illegal but rather heavily taxed, like alcohol and tobacco. Finding the right rate of taxation is not so easy, though:
- If taxes are too low, people consume too many drugs (alcohol, pot, coca, whatever...), with consequent health problems.
- If taxes are too high, the mafia will open the illegal market, and organised crime will thrive again.
Prohibition, i.e. no taxes, is definitely the best recipe for getting full jails and rich bosses. So it's good news that some have learned late lessons stemming from the times of Al Capone...
Pot is called biggest cash crop grown in the US.
QuoteThe $35-billion market value of U.S.-grown cannabis tops that of such heartland staples as corn and hay, a marijuana activist says.
Not sure how much to believe in the "marijuana activist says" part. Depends on how high he was at the time. :bg
http://articles.latimes.com/2006/dec/18/local/me-pot18
it's kind of too late
local governments here in the US have already spent vast sums of money arming themselves to fight "the war on drugs"
hell - our sheriff (joe arpaio) has a 50 caliber machine gun mounted on an armored personel carrier
not even allowed to use that weapon for anti-personel, according to the Geneva Convention
but, our sheriff has one, ready to go - a million bucks down the tube
that is only one small example
local police are oufitted better than the troops we send to Iraq
edit
i see there is another sheriff in SC that has the same thing
http://reason.com/blog/2008/09/01/sheriff-lotts-new-toy
(http://reason.com/assets/mc/_ATTIC/Image/rbalko/serveandprotect.jpg)
as i said, these guys have the best gear in the world
Quote from: jj2007 on April 06, 2010, 12:24:36 PM
There would be (almost) no organised crime if drugs were not illegal but rather heavily taxed, like alcohol and tobacco.
It would stop a good bit of the crazy killing that goes on down there along the US and Mexican border I'd bet you.
>these guys have the best gear in the world
:lol
Based on some research conducted by our government, there is no fatal case about marijuana overdoses and there is no report if marijuana is addivtive, unlike alcohol. Alcohol is highly addictive and make the user very aggresive. On some science paper marijuana extract can cure tumor (dont know what it is called on your country). But some research also mentioned that sucking marijuana can cause cancer, just like tobbacco, but tobacco is more dangerous.
But still, people here dont want to legalize it, so it still illegal here.
The research on indonesian language
www.himatansi.org%2Fpdf-news116-26-juni%2C-hari-anti-narkoba-sedunia.html&h=cfbe4fe375b827b3e99df60910ab9345
Quote from: dedndave on April 06, 2010, 12:35:15 PM
it's kind of too late
local governments here in the US have already spent vast sums of money arming themselves to fight "the war on drugs"
hell - our sheriff (joe arpaio) has a 50 caliber machine gun mounted on an armored personel carrier
not even allowed to use that weapon for anti-personel, according to the Geneva Convention
but, our sheriff has one, ready to go - a million bucks down the tube
that is only one small example
local police are oufitted better than the troops we send to Iraq
edit
i see there is another sheriff in SC that has the same thing
http://reason.com/blog/2008/09/01/sheriff-lotts-new-toy
(http://reason.com/assets/mc/_ATTIC/Image/rbalko/serveandprotect.jpg)
as i said, these guys have the best gear in the world
Oh, craps. They armed.
OMG :lol it's like one of those Robocop adverts, I thought it was a joke
(http://www.q4nobody.co.uk/images/jpegif/plod.jpg)
Quote from: dedndave on April 06, 2010, 12:35:15 PM
our sheriff (joe arpaio) has a 50 caliber machine gun mounted on an armored personel carrier
not even allowed to use that weapon for anti-personel, according to the Geneva Convention
but, our sheriff has one, ready to go - a million bucks down the tube
that is only one small example
local police are oufitted better than the troops we send to Iraq
That is a terrible waste of money for civilian law-enforcement!!!! OOOOH scare people and not being able to shoot em. That IS a great weapon though, I was a 0331 (Machine Gunner) in the Marines and that was one of my weapons.... Reach out an destroy you more than a mile away. The armor piercing incendiary rounds were fun :bg Go clear through a building and start a fire..... As for the Geneva Convention (Piece of crap that enemies don't follow and allow the good guys to die) saying you can't shoot a person with the 50 (ya gotta see what this round does to a body), you don't shoot the "person" you shoot at his gear :toothy
lol Rob
they were much more fun at night with every forth round a tracer
smoke a little weed and make your own light show :bg
The problem with that weapon is when there are people around that you don't want to shoot and all they have to hide behind are vehicles, buildings, brick walls, steel plates, etc.
ricochet's hardly ever come straight back at you - lol
the 50 cal was a fun toy
one thing i remember was, we had 2 barrels for it - and asbestos "oven mitts" to swap them out when one got hot
that thing was pretty heavy-duty, too - but it was possible to get it hot enough to soften the barrel enough to bend into a sag
How did the subject of pot turn into guns ?? (http://www.quickersoft.com/pictures/thinking.gif)
Peace brothers !! :thumbu
Here in PA (unless you're living in a big city perhaps) you usually get slapped on the hand and your weed confiscated (that is if you're not a repeat offender). I see Pennsylvania as not being many years away from legalizing it. Most small towns spend little or nothing on marijuana enforcement. Police are busy enough with drunks, speeders and domestic violence. I know a few that partake themselves. PA is chalk full of aging baby boomers who smoke or in the past did smoke. Yep, for sure, pot would be a very profitable tax to the state if they ever do legalize it.
Pennsylvania Marijuana Laws;
Less than 30 grams
Misdemeanor
30 days in jail and/or $500
More than 30 grams, 1st offense
Misdemeanor
1 year in jail and/or $5,000
More than 30 grams, 2nd or subsequent offense
misdemeanor
3 years in prison and/or $25,000
here in AZ, they more or less use marijuana as an excuse to harrass you for some other reason
kind of like pulling you over for having a tail-light out so they can ticket you for not wearing a seat-belt
(they can't pull you over for not wearing a seat-belt here, but they get a lot of revenue from the fines for it)
Checked out our laws here (http://www.dassa.sa.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=129)
QuotePossession of cannabis
less than 25 g - $150
25 g or more but less than 100 g - $300
Possession of cannabis resin
less than 5 g - $150
5 g or more but less than 20 g - $300
Smoking or consumption of cannabis or cannabis resin in a private place - $150
Possession of equipment for smoking or consumption of cannabis or cannabis resin
if sole offence - $150
if accompanied by another possession, smoking or consumption offence - $30
Cultivation of cannabis plants (not being artificially enhanced cultivation*)
One plant (provided the cannabis is for the grower's own use and not for sale or supply) - $300
The * is hydroponics
All on-the-spot fines, too. But we can be busted smoking in our own home or for owning a pipe/bong.
But one outdoor plant is only $300 (we used to have a limit of 7) and 100g is 3 ounces. They know us well :bdg
This is personal use, if you are caught with hydro or pounds you are a dealer and go to the supreme court.
We have a citizen's initiative in the works here in Washington State to legalize marijuana. It wouldn't surprise me if it passed. We just passed a Senate Bill extending our medical marijuana laws.
Citizen initiative would legalize pot in Washington state (http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/archives/190759.asp)