Legal v. Illegal

[Padawanbater2]

Why are some substances that are scientifically proven to cause more harm than currently illegal substances legal?

Tobacco is the main one that comes to mind. Why is tobacco legal?

Also, in your opinion, do you think tobacco (and similar products) should be legal? Why/why not?

 

[Ringsixty]

Yes..because I said so.

 

[Padawanbater2]

Why doesn't the argument for tobacco work for illegal substances?

Why isn't tobacco scheduled? What is congress/the DEA's argument for that?

 

[Jimmyjonestoo]

Stigma........

 

[Padawanbater2]

Note: I'm not arguing for criminalizing tobacco, just trying to put it all in context, why tobacco is legal/allowed while other, arguably less harmful and with medicinal benefits, substances aren't.

What's the best way to get someone to stop smoking? Impossible unless they want to themselves, right?

 

[Trolling]

Banning tobacco would cause a riot I think lol. I do agree they should ban it and legalize marijuana, better for everyone and no riots!

 

[Hepheastus420]

1) Because they got themselves bad rep. Do you know how many people were influenced by "reefer madness". Stupid ass movie but played a good sized role in making cannabis illegal. Also, the hippy stage of protests and annoying "peace and love" gave it a bad name. Straight edge people began thinking that cannabis made these people trip balls.

2) Tobacco never got a bad rep. Well it has one, but people put it aside because it's "legal". Honestly, IDK why it's legal.. That was just the best answer I could think of. Another answer would be that they bank of tobacco. Maybe soon enough, cannabis will be just as legal as tobacco.

3) I believe it should be legal. It's up to the user to smoke tobacco if they want. I don't believe it should be legal for young people or pregnant women though (it wouldn't work out with pregnant women since nobody would want to offend them). I wouldn't go as far as to say they should take it off the shelves since it is up to the user to buy them.. But if you think about it, taking tobacco off the shelves would get people wanting to grow their own safer tobacco.

The tobacco advertising should end though. It teaches little kids that smoking tobacco is ok. They don't try too hard to advertise the health risks though.

Same with alcohol. Little kids see the grown-ups cheering for beer which makes the kids want to partake.. Sure the commercials say "drink responsibly" but who the hell thinks of responsibilty when they're drunk?

 

[Hepheastus420]

Why doesn't the argument for tobacco work for illegal substances?

Why isn't tobacco scheduled? What is congress/the DEA's argument for that?

It didn't earn as much bad rep as pot did. Stupid, I know.

 

[Hepheastus420]

Banning tobacco would cause a riot I think lol. I do agree they should ban it and legalize marijuana, better for everyone and no riots!

Yup. Just like how alcohol had it's massive drug war. If they banned tobacco, people would go crazy.

 

[Trolling]

If alcohol is considered a controlled substance then why should it be the only one? It's stupid that people say weed is so so bad but immediately step out of an debate when it comes to showing the many differences between them. I think it will be legalized tho, I think their's 17 states now that have the medical? I give it another 10 years TOPS and I'm being generous lol.

 

[Hepheastus420]

If alcohol is considered a controlled substance then why should it be the only one? It's stupid that people say weed is so so bad but immediately step out of an debate when it comes to showing the many differences between them. I think it will be legalized tho, I think their's 17 states now that have the medical? I give it another 10 years TOPS and I'm being generous lol.

When this generation fully dies off (like not one person living in this generation), that's when it will become legal IMO. You'd be surprised to see how many dumbfucks with power say cannabis is bad.

 

[shrxhky420]

assuming you are talking about MJ... back in the 30's some asshole (Harry J. Anslinger ) lobbied to make MJ illegal because it threatend to take over the timber industry making said asshole lose millions of dollars... Not too long after Nixon began the "war on drugs" because most ppl that were against his policies were smoking MJ... before I finish my thoughts I pulled this from google. I'm super buzzed and ready to prebumb the hungover thread... so read below... keep in mind that rough drafts of our constitution were written on HEMP and that our founding Fathers grew HEMP/MJ... stay high


For the first 162 years of America's existence, marijuana was totally
legal and hemp was a common crop. But during the 1930s, the U.S. government
and the media began spreading outrageous lies about marijuana, which led to its
prohibition. Some headlines made about marijuana in the 1930s were:
"Marijuana: The assassin of youth." "Marijuana: The devil's weed with roots
in hell." "Marijuana makes fiends of boys in 30 days." "If the hideous monster
Frankenstein came face to face with the monster marijuana, he would drop dead of
fright." In 1936, the liquor industry funded the infamous movie titled
Reefer Madness. This movie depicts a man going insane from smoking
marijuana, and then killing his entire family with an ax. This campaign of lies,
as well as other evidence, have led many to believe there may have been a hidden
agenda behind Marijuana Prohibition.

Shortly before marijuana was banned by The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, new
technologies were developed that made hemp a potential competitor with the
newly-founded synthetic fiber and plastics industries. Hemp's potential for
producing paper also posed a threat to the timber industry (see New Billion-Dollar Crop). Evidence suggests that
commercial interests having much to lose from hemp competition helped propagate
reefer madness hysteria, and used their influence to lobby for Marijuana
Prohibition. It is not known for certain if special interests conspired to
destroy the hemp industry via Marijuana Prohibition, but enough evidence exists
to raise the possibility.

After Alcohol Prohibition ended in 1933, funding for the Federal Bureau of
Narcotics (now the Drug Enforcement Administration) was reduced. The FBN's own
director, Harry J. Anslinger, then became a leading advocate of Marijuana
Prohibition. In 1937 Anslinger testified before Congress in favor of Marijuana
Prohibition by saying: "Marijuana is the most violence causing drug in the
history of mankind." "Most marijuana smokers are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos
and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing, result from marijuana
usage. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with
Negroes." Marijuana Prohibition is founded on lies and rooted in racism,
prejudice, and ignorance. Just as politicians believed Harry J. Anslinger to be
a marijuana expert in 1937, many people still believe law enforcement officials
are marijuana experts. In reality, law enforcement officials have no expert
knowledge of marijuana's medical or health effects, but they do represent an
industry that receives billions of tax dollars to enforce Marijuana
Prohibition.

Before the government began promoting reefer madness hysteria during
the 1930s, the word marijuana was a Mexican word that was totally absent from
the American vocabulary. In the 1930s, Americans knew that hemp was a common,
useful, and harmless crop. It is extremely unlikely anyone would have believed
hemp was dangerous, or would have believed stories of hemp madness. Thus,
the words marijuana and reefer were substituted for the word
hemp in order to frighten the public into supporting Hemp Prohibition.
Very few people realized that marijuana and hemp came from the same plant
species; thus, virtually nobody knew that Marijuana Prohibition would destroy
the hemp industry.

Bolstering the theory that marijuana was banned to destroy the hemp industry,
two articles were written on the eve of Marijuana Prohibition that claim hemp
was on the verge of becoming a super crop. These articles appeared in two
well-respected magazines that are still published today. The articles are:

Flax and Hemp (Mechanical Engineering, Feb. 1937)

New Billion-Dollar Crop (Popular Mechanics, Feb.
193
This was the first time that billion dollar was used to describe the
value of a crop. These articles praise the usefulness and potential of hemp by
stating "hemp can be used to produce more than 25,000 products" and "hemp will
prove, for both farmer and public, the most profitable and desirable crop that
can be grown." Marijuana Prohibition took effect within one year after both
these articles were written.

stay high

 

[dirtsurfr]

Well I always say that if I was in control of the country, I would want as many citizens smoking weed and staying mellow over the sad shape the world is in.
Let us go to work the day after partying with weed without worry of prosecution and our jobs. Then watch your creativity and loyalty grow within.
This is how you build a great nation.

 

[shrxhky420]

When this generation fully dies off (like not one person living in this generation), that's when it will become legal IMO. You'd be surprised to see how many dumbfucks with power say cannabis is bad.

remember whites and blacks were not allowed to marry at one point in time (in some of our lifetimes) (not mine, but beside the point) just like gays can't. the generation has not yet died off but it's now legal for whites and blacks to marry and women are now allowed to vote... soon (I hope) pot will be legal... it's happening in too many states for it not too be soon. stay high

 

[Trolling]

Good point, even tho it's taken this long to get to where it is now, it is starting to pick up speed.

 

[dirtsurfr]

But the answer is... No better way then what they have setup to make money off of MJ, Jail, Prison and ruined lives.
Make it legal to use and get over it.
I have 20 acres of corn, wonder what 20 acres of Hemp would be worth? Hemp NOT Marijuana.
Right now my corn is doing well.

 

[shrxhky420]

But the answer is... No better way then what they have setup to make money off of MJ, Jail, Prison and ruined lives.
Make it legal to use and get over it.
I have 20 acres of corn, wonder what 20 acres of Hemp would be worth? Hemp NOT Marijuana.
Right now my corn is doing well.

if i'm not mistaken Oregon is going to have the legalization of HEMP on there ballot this year... let's hope it passes, this would be a huge step for MJ... stay high

 

[Padawanbater2]

Damn, do you own a farm? 20 acres of corn seems like a lot!

So now the question becomes, since the government is supposed to represent the people, do you think the people are still under the guise of marijuana being dangerous and completely harmful with no medicinal benefits and all the rest of the propaganda or do you think our representatives aren't accurately representing the publics opinion?

 

[Trolling]

Is growing tobacco the same difficulty as growing marijuana?

 

[shrxhky420]

Damn, do you own a farm? 20 acres of corn seems like a lot!

So now the question becomes, since the government is supposed to represent the people, do you think the people are still under the guise of marijuana being dangerous and completely harmful with no medicinal benefits and all the rest of the propaganda or do you think our representatives aren't accurately representing the publics opinion?

up until recently YES... It's like racism still being alive and well... it's brainwashed into the youth... although some learn to live above the hype, there is still racism just like there is still feat that MJ is a class a drug on class one what ever they deam it... stay high