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Subscribe to RSSAt a press conference, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel discusses his support of a new ordinance allowing cops to ticket people for possession of marijuana rather than making an arrest.
Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel explained publicly for the first time Tuesday why he is throwing his support behind a controversial proposal that would give police officers the option to ticket, rather than arrest, people for having small amounts of marijuana.
"It’s not decriminalization. It's dealing with it in a different way and a different penalty," Emanuel said Tuesday at an unrelated press conference.
The mayor last week issued a statement announcing his backing for the proposal introduced last fall by Alderman Danny Solis.
He said he changed his stance on the matter after his administration analyzed the amount of police time used to chase and prosecute suspected users, especially given that many of the cases are thrown out in court.
"I got comfortable with this because I think this is the right thing to do for a number of reasons. It does not undermine what we're trying to do on fighting crime," Emanuel said, according to the Chicago Tribune.
For more visit NBCChicago.com.
People currently found to possess small amounts of marijuana face a misdemeanor charge punishable by up to six months in jail and a $1,500 fine. The proposal stipulates police officers would have the option to write tickets with fines ranging from $100 to $500 for people carrying 15 grams or less of marijuana, according to the Chicago Tribune.
Emanual also announced he had amended the proposal so that a portion of any revenue collected would be earmarked for an anti-drug campaign aimed at kids.
"I want to make sure our children get a clear and unambiguous message as it relates to drug use: it is wrong and it is dangerous," the mayor said.
A majority of Chicago aldermen signed on to the proposed ordinance, the Chicago Tribune reported.
Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle has long endorsed a change to the area's pot policies. Police Supt. Garry McCarthy's support of the idea has been tepid.
Some aldermen worry about how police officers will apply the discretion they would be granted, the Chicago Tribune reported. Alderman Ed Burke said Monday he needs more information before deciding whether he'll support the proposal.
The mayor said the move would free up police resources and save the city about $1 million.
The plan will be considered Thursday by the Committee on Public Safety, the Chicago Tribune reported, before it goes before the full council on June 27.
NBCChicago.com contributed to this report.
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Leave a Comment:
you might as well not bother..you are telling them its ok as long as its just a little pot? WTH?? if they can afford to buy the pot the can afford the ticket cost..this is just giving them a reason NOT to carry larger amounts cause they know you will let them get away with it..DONT you think the drug dealers will catch on with this and figure out a way to get away with their crimes as well??
What they've been doing hasn't been working...why not try something new? It turns minor uses into normal people (which is who they are) and brings in revenue for the state/local municipalities while freeing up cops to go after the guys that push harsher stuff.
There are dollar signs in his eyes.
In a related story, people who are caught adding catnip to the pot they sell will be ticketed for "stepping on the grass."
lol your funny hey lady if we legalize it they wont have a leg to stand on i mean how many blackmarket booze shops are there? gee i wonder? and as for you little thing on the drugs...WAKE UP!!!! you yourself do drugs!!!! coffee, soda, smokes, beer...its all there.
so the next time you go to open your mouth REMEMBER...
DRUG FREE AMERICA..WOULD YOU LIKE ANOTHER TYLENOL?
or if you prefer
LIVE ABOVE THE INFLUENCE...DO WHAT WE SAY INSTEAD!
kimmy, any drug dealer carrying 15 grams isn't a drug dealer or is out of supply. that's barely over half an ounce and it's usually sold by the ounce.
Finally someone makes sense. I have never agreed with much of anything coming out of Chicago but starting with the tickets makes sense. It is just a matter of time before it is legalized. If we can provide amnesty to illegals and have gay marriages at least let me fire up a Spliff to make the world see nicer. An important question will be which prisons will close and will the local governments pass the savings back to people paying taxes?
Pot is no more or less a drug that someone getting hammered at happy hour. I would also rather spend an evening with a person who is high that drunk and angry...........
It's a start...hopefully we will eventually realize the hopelessness of the "war on drugs" and legalize and regulate them instead. That will mean more tax revenue and less crime - both of which sound good to me. Not to mention, then law enforcement will be free to do more to protect people from "real" crimes.
Kim, this idea of "tickets instead of jail" is aimed for the users not the dealers.
I'm curious, do you associate all pot users with drug dealers? If so, please stop. They are not the same people at all and you're merely falling into the "brainwash" trap of thinking pot is evil in and of itself - it's not!. I mean if you're a Catholic does that also mean you're a pedophile? Get my point?
Legalize it and help the economy.
Legalize the stuff already! I know several people who have used it for pain relief, and THEY should be jailed or fined for this? I think not! My little mother a nice little Catholic 75 year old used it for pain relief from constant agina attacks.........REALLY, SHE SHOULD GO TO JAIL OR BE FINED? Not. She said it helped her pain ALOT. Legalize the stuff already, and go after the BAD stuff like Heroin, Crack, Meth...........
This is so ridiculous. Ole Rahm, "this is not legalization", Rahm just legalize it and quit with the word games, always the damn politician. We do the same thing where I live. And another thing, nobody walks around with "pot" very much, unless your going to the park or something, or a concert. 99.9% of pot users do it at home, it's not a thing that happens outside the confines of someones home. How about this "LEAVE PEOPLE ALONE". Let adults make their own decisions about what they want to use or not use.
As the dept in this country continues to grow Why NOT GET SMART and legalize Marijuana amd reap in the tax benefits. Yes, this country could put a huge dent in our revenue if MJ was legalized and sold as alcohol once was in State stores.
Such would not only help combat our depts, but would also get it out of the hands of little kids sell on street corners usually for their parents. sadly some buyers wan a taste before purchasing---so the little elementary school child has to light it and pass it on. Usually it shared between prospective buyer and child!
Jail in Chicago is resevered for people who wish to legally posses firearms.
How archaic is Chicago, possession of under an ounce has been a $28-$100 fine for like ever. AT least since 1973 or 74 here in the backwoods of Oregon. Isn't it about time Chicago came into the STONE AGE?
More people have died from aspirin than pot. It's a no brainer!!!! What the h*** is the hold up. We are the wimpiest politically correct nation on earth I swear. It's embarassing.
Marijuana is no cocaine. The use of marijuana does not cause you to be a violent or impulsive person, nor is it detrimental to your health. And it's not like pot dealers are Pablo Escobars or Al Capones. So let's just start off with the assumption that marijuana is not as harmful as the word "drug" suggests it is. Now, why do you want to deter and penalize its use, then? Why not fine or jail people who are drinking beer or smoking a cig? Those habits cost far more to society (in the form of lives and healthcare costs, for example) than marijuana ever would.
Let's not get carried away, however. There are many things worse than pot, but aspirin is not one of them. Aspirin has saved countless lives by preventing or delaying heart attacks AND, as it turns out, cancer. Weed's good, but not that good.
Hey, if your belief system says it's OK to penalize someone else's belief system, then maybe his jewishness should consider tacking a $100 fine on all you oh-so-perfect-and-wonderful CHURCHGOERS! Perhaps a $20 surcharge on all the makeup you use to paint yourselves into clown college washouts! You are arrogant, pea brained, and brainwashed! The fact that your mode of thought dominates in the culture almost guarantees that your thought processes are WRONG!
So the cops can choose who to put in jail and who to let go? I'm paying on a 1k$ fine did 130 days in jail for .36ths of a Gram in Wisconsin where Decrim' and Medicinal use is on the books but the Nazi pig swine make up their own fascist sow pig sig heil wasted sperm of humanity interpretations of the law and the Supreme Soviet State of Wisconsin court Snorts KOCH. Rahm Emanuel should be deported to Israel where he belongs. He can take lap dogs Obama and Bush and their kippahs with him. See "No Religious Test" on youtube. Marijuana prohibition is a religious test.
See? Now that the MAYOR'S KID uses pot, it's okay!
I actually don't care. But basically only people with wealth and or position care to change the laws when it effects them. Don't try to pretend it is about something else.
Why not just start teaching how to smoke the crap in 4th grade? Your basically telling those kids its OK to use it now.
I suffer from mild to severe pain depending on the day. I take Oxycontin to help yet I would prefer not taking it, if the option came down to one or the other I would choose pot. I don't even care how it makes me feel, I'm one of those people who don't enjoy a marijuana high but given the options I believe the pot would be the better choice for me and society. This is one topic that just chaps my ass. And one last thing, if you've never tried it, you should not be allowed an opinion on the subject.
Marijuana should obviously be legalized. What I cant figure is how the Grinch is standing beside the mayor of Chicago..
If the world would be a better place if NO ONE SMOKED POT, then every arguement for smoking it is wrong.
And House (TV series) was hooked on Vicodin, but he admitted he was an addict.
And if you never tried suicide, you shouldn't prevent people from killing themselves????????
Ron White: "I was arrested 4 having 7/8 of a gram of weed. (Pause) I don't know about U but when I have only 7/8 of a gram of weed, I am OUT of weed."
F-it just legalize it and take power away from cartels...
@AppeasersFate said:
"And if you never tried suicide, you shouldn't prevent people from killing themselves????????"
Trying to help someone prevent something bad happening to them is one thing, especially if it's done compassionately.
Sending people to jail for something is quite another thing. See the difference?
What is the harm in pot. I don't get it. "Why is he so mellow and relaxed and nice?" It's because he is a pot head.
Finally! Someone getting it right, and of all people Rahm....??? Holy Moly!.... War on Drugs has been a humongous waste and a drain on the economy, incarceration of folks doing nothing more than those who have a few beers!!! Legalize and tax it! Just like Booze. If you can see the need to criminalize pot, then you are hypocritical if you believe that booze is legal.
I know this is off topic but I gotta throw it out there.
In my area, taxes on cigarettes have been raised 4 times in the last year. 4 TIMES! While taxes on alcohol hasn't been raised ONCE. The powers that B claim (I said CLAIM) that this is done 2 offset all of the health problems caused by smoking but they will not acknowledge all of the health problems associated with alcohol. Which leads me 2 think that the higher taxes on cigarettes is really juss a revenue generator, much like the Chicago tickets on pot.
It seems 2 me that if cigarettes were as dangerous as they claim, would it not make more sense 2 simply stop producing tobacco? One doesn't get the same "high" from cigarettes as from pot so any black market business (4 cigarettes) wouldn't last very long. At least it wouldn't last 80 years-like the pot market..........
Wouldn't that makes us healthier?
Weyant, while I will concede that caffeine is a drug I don't know of any case where someone robbed a bank, or broke in someones house to support their caffeine fix.
Comparing caffeine to drug/alcohol use is truly stupid. It's apples and oranges.
I have also never heard of a case of "Second hand Caffeine", if there is such a thing, so comparing caffeine to cigarette smoking is also stupid.
I am truly a fence sitter when it comes to legalizing pot. I don't use it. I don't care. I am totally against legalizing other illegal substances. I hear all this garbage about all the violence and abuse that would be stopped by legalizing stuff like crack and heroin.
Yeah right. Legalizing Alcohol certainly stopped all the violence and abuse associated with that didn't it?
It stopped most of the violence associated with the underground manufacturing and distribution of alcohol.
@Janine,
Unfortunately, there was even more violence when alcohol was NOT legal. Remember Al Capone & the Valentine's Day Massacre?
To everyone that supports legalizing it, I say thank you! To everyone that supports regulating and taxing it for revenue, I say... hasn't your life and everything you do been regulated and taxed enough? Why cant we just grow, harvest, and eat/smoke a stupid plant that mother nature has provided to us and leave it at that? Why should it be legal if it's only made into a gov'mint business deal? You all complain about big gov'mint intruding in our lives (including sex lives) and taxes, yet you applaud and beg for more? It is NOT the gov'mints job to save people from themselves, I'm sick of big brother ruling MY life, how about you? Just remember you only get one life and then its a permanent dirt nap, as it stand today 500'something people in DC continue to destroy millions upon millions of our lives with the economical and social policies they put in place even when the majority of the people are against them! How long are we going to keep taking this crap and let them continue?
Let's see. I actually know a pot smoker who admitted that she hasn't gone a single day in 10 years without having to smoke pot to get through the day. She's addicted to it and she said anyone who tells you it ain't addictive is a G..D...liar.
@AppeasersFate - You seemed to have drifted off point. My point was simple... prevention is not the same as throwing someone in jail. Prevention is about helping people, throwing someone in jail is about punishing people.
Back to your other issue... with all due respect, your pot smoking friend's opinion is not an absolute truth no matter how many curse words you throw in. And it clearly doesn't justify putting people in jail who use it.
Yes, but Al Capone was around during a time when people didn't have cars that went over 40-50MPH. I doubt that the St. Valentines Day Massacre would equal a typical Friday/Saturday night after the bars close.
All I can say is wow. U have more than 7 people dying in yer city, on any typical Friday/Saturday night?
Can I know what city U live in (serious question)? I would like 2 avoid it.
Janine-1645002
my family is addicted to coffee they drink about 16 pots a day (that's for my mom and granny alone)...they are rage/drama aholics...my aunt is completely crazy because of how much she drinks it....they will not leave the house because the coffee pot is not portable (going on yr 30for them).....and to top it off...they smoke 4 packs of cigarettes a day (grandma alone smokes 2) ....and they are all on SS and food stamps...it is so gross!!! I have lived a life of shame because of coffee and cigarettes...the kids at school made fun of me and said i smoked...this lady fanned me at the grocery store because i wreaked of smoke from their house......I am not alone on this...its easy to spot these families if they have blinds in the windows...they turn yellow (check it out for yourself)
now medicare is giving my mom oxyen to sleep at night....guess who foots the bill....YOU and I (pisses me off, im out of work and cannot get a tooth fixed that is killin me)-but thats for another articles rant lol
AppeasersFate-
I know a woman who smoked pot everyday pretty much all day for over 20 years, and only stopped for her two pregnancies. She is in no way, shape, or form addicted to it. She runs out sometimes (and is out right now), and it doesn't bother her. She wishes she had some weed when she's out, but suffers NO withdraws...she likes to smoke because it makes the world seem better to her, it makes her happier.
Sounds to me like your friend "needs" it emotionally to get through the day, because it makes her happier. And just because she hasn't gone a day without it doesn't mean she's necessarily addicted...I can go ten years eating an apple everyday, and begin to think I need it to get through my day. Are apples addictive?
I know a guy who went into combat and didn't get hit by any bullets. Hyperbole as a comparisson, but the point is the same...so what? Here, look, I am for the legalization of marijuana. I think it is not really any more dangerous than alcohol, and that's legal. But nobody needs to fabricate stuff just to make the point. There's a difference between logical approval of something, and creating a myth about it.
MNSlim your words are the very ones that proves to the "ignorant" that this drug is making you act like that..
why not try to come off half intelligent and respectful so that you and the rest of us will be heard correctly instead of the example they are going to use on the nightly news to persuade the "perfect" to vote against this.....
Derek-
Not sure who you're talking to, but I'm going to go ahead and assume it's me.
The apple thing was a way to prove a point that just because someone goes ten years doing the same thing doesn't mean they're addicted.
AppeasersFate
Im with you on the show HOUSE...i think its bs that they allow that show to run with all that "its ok im a dr" drug use...i support legalization...but why are only some things bad and not others....
I see reality continues to elude the pols.
One hundred dollar fine compared to a five hundred dollar purchase of MF for instance. The government does not want to break home budgets; it wants to break the habit of those who consume MJ. One hundred dollars does not seem to be enough. In CA a moving violation in a construction zone results in a double fine. If someone is caught with MJ near a school, then double their fine for posession of MJ while leading an entourage of children.
How about a "Spin Your Sentence" wheel? It ranges from a "slap on the wrist" (literally) to 40 years in Siberia.
Since we have an absurd budgetary crisis going on today, a crisis which will surely bankrupt all of us sooner or later, and since the use of pot by 15% of our population is one of our lesser current issues, why not just legalize small pot growers and tax them through a small-grower's license, and allow small sales and small amounts of pot possession too, a policy if made retroactive would free tens of thousands of our fellow citizens from jail and save ourselves $50K per year for every one of them in the process, plus their potential lost productivity and tax revenue too???
I am 55 years old and haven't smoked grass in over 20 years, and my own feeling is that our current legal policies toward the use and small sales of pot are just plain stupid and terribly non cost-effective. If we allowed small legal growers within the US to serve our own demand it would create a legal industry thereby increasing personal income and tax collections, as well as eliminate the problem of pot user's money being diverted overseas to criminal elements too, and part of the cost of the small grower's licenses could be put into an interest-bearing pool to deal with the health effects of marijuana use later on too.
So while I consider Mayor Emanuel's proposal as a kinder and gentler intermediate step in the right direction, I also strongly feel that we could all do a whole lot better if we were to just legalize and tax pot use instead.
I think we should license Avon ladies to sell MJ. Or maybe add it to the multilevel marketing firms like Amway. Give everybody a chance to make some money off the deal. It wouldn't be fair to let the big alcohol and tobacco companies make all the dough. It would be fun to have the tupperware folks host parties where they could introduce the newest and the latest. They could have a kids size, "does your child suffer from ADHD?" Give them a wiff of this and they're as calm as kittens on catnip. I swear there are a lot of possibilities here. Could put a lot of people back to work and shut down the evil booze producers.
Hey proudamericanveteran, you gotta have the community service. Otherwise who is going to clean the streets and parks. We've tried the hard core guys, like rapists, murderers, and bank robbers but they won't even get off the bus most times.
Yankee Boy,
Clearly you don't even understand the reality of the situation...
The Federal Bureau of Narcotics was formed so that W R Hearst & Dupont didn't have to compete with hemp. Hearst had money in paper and Dupont had just come out with nylon fabric. Both were threatened by hemp!
This campaign to villainize MJ included statements like "it's worse than heroin" and attributed the drug to the Latino and African races, warning the white folks to protect their daughters from the evil minorities waiting to snare & rape them with their wacky-tobaccy. If you actually bothered to do research on the series of events surrounding the criminalization of MJ, you would be appalled by the blatant BS that Harry Anslinger was spouting in order for people to buy into it.
The truth is, this is just another example of the long tradition of Corporations dictating legislation in Washington. The next time your Congressman or Senator proposes a law that results in benefits for corporate execs, think twice before you drink the friggin' kool aid!!!!
Throw in some Community Service and you have a deal. Put these people out picking up trash and you will thin the ranks of the recreational users. Of course you are stuck with the hard core users but then they only smoke pot when they can't get the the other stuff.
How about some community service when you eat too many Twinkies. I mean seriously, why punish someone who wants to smoke pot? I know "hardcore" users who smoke multiple times a day because they enjoy it. These same people don't touch other drugs at all. Nada.
I agree with proud...Veteran, a ticket and community service! The jails are overcrowded anyway, and I can't really consider possession of a little pot deserves jail time.
Community service for what reason? A ticket is bad enough but I understand that baby steps are needed to eventually legalize marijuana. What good does community service do? It's not going to dissuade anyone from smoking pot. Nor will a ticket. But, that generates revenue. Again, what good does community service provide? Free labor? Puhlease.
There should be no ramifications for carrying a pound of marijuana on you. Hell, haul around an entire bale of it on your back for all I care. There are worse crimes in the world and much MUCH worse substances in the world. Just look at alcohol. We all know the facts and numbers.
But what I'm always curious about is: why do they always put a restriction on the weight you can have on you? What if someone just strolled over to their dealer and bought 2oz FOR PERSONAL USE?! But then Johnny Dumbfuk the 16 y/o local high school hookup went and got 1/4oz to dole out in dimebags to the unsuspecting masses? Just because someone happens to be galavanting around with a sizeable amount of pot on them doesn't mean that they have ANY intentions whatsoever to sell it. This is where proof of "intent to sell" needs to be found.
Pot is effing benign. WHEN WILL THEY LEARN?!?!!!??!!!
I think Proud veteran is living in the 1930's, and in the 70's I regularly would see 1/4 lbs for personal use.
oh by the way that lasts 2 weeks just enough to get to next payday from work, yes work!
More people shot in Chi. than Afghanistan and this guy is worried about pot? His comrade Obama told him to get the focus somewhere else. Ha Ha
Proud, You certainly have a unique outlook on what type of people pot smokers are. Despite your adherence to the protestations of the temperence movement, Marijuana is not an evil drug, nor are most of it's users. I do not take any drug whatsoever, except for marijuana. No aspirin, no pain killers, NO ALCOHOL. Despite my abhorance of alcohol, i do not go around passing judgement on people who enjoy a drink to relax. I would just like the same respect shown for a drug that, scientifically speaking, is less harmful than most prescription drugs doled out and certainly cheaper and more effective at accomplishing the desired effect. Anti marijuana advocates need to stop believing the hype from 50 years ago and really, if marijuana actually did what "Reefer Madness" portrayed it to do, I'd want to smoke it even more. Sadly, it just seems to be a mild stress reliever, you know, like a scotch and soda or a cold beer to a drinker. There really is no difference. And for the folks bringing children into this by saying you are okaying it in their eyes. Ummm....alcohol is legal and we certainly don't want our kids drinking while under age. Marijuan would be no different. It isn't marketed to children so how can you even use that argument.
Prouldamericanvet ........ i have smoked pot since the late 60's ....... i dont drink or any other drug ... i dont know where you get your information , but it stinks ... people of all ages, all professions , smoke marijuana ...... your not one of those guys that drinks, but, puts down anyone who smokes weed are you .. if you do drink or anyone else who drinks, your just as much of a druggie as that person you slam for smoking pot ........ oh, btw....... im a veteran too ..... USN 63 to 67 ...... have a nice day.
I hope this mayor does well...something has got to shift in this country....and its our job as citizens to show that we can handle this new "free will" and be responsible so that other states can follow suit
WE NEED to make sure we are reading between the lines here....are they doing this in a fail state so that they can claim that this plant is really dangerous....I wonder....
We cannot put this past the politicians that they have already got their dirty lil hands on this ready to throw it back in our hopeful faces.....ppl beware....
Chicago- i plead to you: show them we can do this! Please...keep your kids off of it..it will be the first thing that is used against us (increased adolescent use). Tell you kids it is not for them...its for those who medically need it and those can be responsible. Do not do it like a cigarette smoker! OMG it will fail....you have to be even more respectful than that...we might have the chance to set a standard here...i urge you to be safe, responsible, and respectful. TY and good luck i wish the best...it is time for all those lives who were put in a cage to be avenged!
its clear the American public is ignored and brushed off as stupid by those in authority and in media....why doesn't anyone listen to the people? Our country needs to create a way to publicly vote on these issues as a whole...but as it currently stands..one man goes on tv and tells the entire world that his decisions are what everyone wants...
As for this plant that was here before these selfish "free will haters"...........tell me how it has harmed you in anyway shape or form.....and i want real stories...not crap your first grade teacher told you with the scary dare office. There are stories...but are they what has been forced down our throats?...and how can we trust the very people who use scare tactics for generations upon generations to make laws
The initial criminalization in the 1930's followed a 30-year study that had concluded that marijuana had multiple medical uses as well as many technological uses-
Big money pharmacological, textile and oil had the most to gain from that legislation, which had been stacked in on the same bill that criminalized the possession of MACHINE GUNS ..
For those stupid enough to smoke pot, if they only have a little then fine them but report that list of those fined to any government agency that hands out tax dollars. Use pot or any other drug, no food stamps, no welfare, no subsidized housing or any other freebie paid for with other people's money.
All drugs should be decriminalized and made legal.
Do you get to keep the pot? They don't take your car when they write you a ticket for a traffic violation.
Were you the guy who rammed his destroyer into the Love Boat?
Now I'm a feller with a heart of
gold
And the ways of a gentleman I've been told
The kind of guy that
wouldn't even harm a flea
But if me and a certain character met
The guy that
invented the cigarette
I'd murder that son-of-a-gun in the first
degree
It ain't cuz I don't smoke myself
And I don't
reckon that it'll harm your health
Smoked all my life and I ain't dead
yet
But nicotine slaves are all the same
At a pettin'
party or a poker game
Everything gotta stop while they have a cigarette
Smoke, smoke, smoke that cigarette
Puff, puff,
puff and if you smoke yourself to death
Tell St. Peter at the Golden
Gate
That you hate to make him wait
But you just gotta have another
cigarette
Now in a game of chance the other night
Old Dame
Fortune was a-doin' me right
The kings and the queens just kept on comin'
round
And I got a full and I bet 'em high
But my bluff
didn't work on a certain guy
He just kept on raisin' and layin' that money
down
Now he'd raise me and I'd raise him
I sweated
blood, gotta sink or swim
He finally called and didn't even raise the
bet
So I said "aces full Pops how 'bout you?"
He said
"I'll tell you in a minute or two
But right now, I gotta have me a
cigarette"
Smoke, smoke, smoke that cigarette
Puff, puff,
puff and if you smoke yourself to death
Tell St. Peter at the Golden
Gate
That you hates to make him wait
But you just gotta have another
cigarette
(Ah, smoke it! Hah! Yes! Yes! Yes!)
The other night I had a date
With the cutest
little girl in the United States
A high-bred, uptown, fancy little
dame
She loved me and it seemed to me
That things were
'bout like they oughta be
So hand in hand we strolled down lover's
lane
She was oh so far from a cake of ice
And our
smoochin' party was goin' nice
So help me cats I believe I'd be there
yet
But I give her a kiss and a little squeeze
And she
said, "ah, Marty, excuse me please
I just gotta have me another,
cigarette"
And she said, smoke, smoke, smoke that
cigarette
Puff, puff, puff and if you smoke yourself to death
Tell St.
Peter at the Golden Gate
That you hate to make him wait
But you just gotta
have another cigarette
The Federal Bureau of Narcotics was formed so that W R Hearst & Dupont didn't have to compete with hemp. Hearst had money in paper and Dupont had just come out with nylon fabric. Both were threatened by hemp!
This campaign to villainize MJ included statements like "it's worse than heroine" and attributed the drug to the Latino and African races, warning the white folks to protect their daughters from the evil minorities waiting to snare them with their wacky-tobaccy. If you actually bothered to do research on the series of events surrounding the criminalization of MJ, you would be appalled by the blatant BS that Harry Anslinger was spouting in order for people to buy into it.
The truth is, this is just another example of the long tradition of Corporations dictating legislation in Washington. The next time your Congressman or Senator proposes a law that results in benefits for corporate execs, think twice before you drink the friggin' kool aid!!!!
AppeasersFate
Smoke Smoke Smoke That Cigarette by Tex Williams 1947.
Thanks for the memories!
Lolly
Thanks for the history lesson. It confirms what zeno said above (3.10).
It doesn't surprise me in the least.
Funny how government and big corporations can brainwash people.
Normally, I prefer Jack Daniels for breakfast and heroin for lunch but if I cant get any booze I will settle for pot. The real hard drug users are the alcohol drinkers and the addicts that get their dope from doctors.
What they hey...? They usually only put out these things on election years.... but it's only the most corrupt and cynically hypocritical politicians who will do it anymore.
Oh wait...this IS an election year and this is Emmanuel...And if you know why he left Washington DC for Chicago, you'd best keep it to yourself.
Say... you don't think this guy would pull an Obama on us and just give election year lip service to ending the War on Pot, do you?
I know people who have smoked pot for 30 years and they're some of the most responsible people I know. Good parents to their children, good employees at their work. They volunteer for charity. They pay their taxes. I'm having trouble understanding why it's illegal, except that I realize many people in our society have been brainwashed to believe pot is evil.
The people who are so anti-pot remind me of people who think all black people steal bikes and are on welfare. Then they realize they work with a black person who doesn't steal bikes and isn't on welfare... and it's an eye opener to the real truth about things.
Wake up America, you've been duped. Pot should be legal.
Nah, they just think, "Well he just hasn't been caught yet."
You mean republicans.
@EPH521: It's driven entirely by greed. Privatized prisons, pharmaceutical companies, synthetic fiber, the paper industry, fuel oil, and cotton markets all stand to lose billions if Marijuana is legalized. Think about it, you could count the amount of pot related deaths yearly, on one hand. Meanwhile, Alcohol and Tobacco kill tens of thousands if not more per year.
The whole prohibition was setup by DoW chemicals (Synthetic Fiber), Harry J Anslinger, and William Randolph Hearst (Wood pulp for paper), it was not out of fear of any human lives, it was out of fear of their profit margins.
@BMurphy - I completely agree with you. Back in my college days I remember a class where we studied the origins of why alcohol is legal and pot is not, etc. Pot is illegal for the reasons you listed - it was more of an economic and political decision than anything else... and ever since our Govt and vested third parties have been on a propaganda campaign to make pot evil. It's sad really, because so many Americans have been fooled into believing lies and end up hating on their fellow Americans who enjoy pot.
The teacher I had in that class suggested tobacco is legal because the growers were more united (think giant Co-op) back then and had more political clout, whereas the pot growers were not as united (think smaller independent growers) and didn't have any political clout to make pot legal. I wonder how many people are even aware of this. Not many obviously...
eph521: I know people who have smoked pot for 30 years and they're some of the most responsible people I know."
I completely agree with you. Some of them are doctors, attorneys, police and the sweet little old lady next door.
It should be decriminalized. There wouldn't be any Mexican Cartels and people getting killed. Tax it and get revenue for it seems more logical.
Sam Adams
You must be a Bill Maher toadie.
It should be taxed and we could balance the budget; put an age limit on it like liquor; you would see much less crime and deaths from the Mexican drug Lords...we are the drug lord customers;BUT OUR LEGISLATORS DON'T HAVE THE GUTS TO DO IT.. And, I don't even smoke it...but see how stupid it is to be illegal...we spend too much money on stopping drugs and don't stop anything..
Mr. Mayor, what a disgrace. That Alderman who propose this law is Mexican. Have we investigated his true identity. He may have connections to the Mexican drug cartel. Have you done that Mr. Mayor. Close the gap between these tactics to gain a foothold in our American rule of law. You're a Jew, Mr. Mayor. We govern by the rule of Law. Not lessen our laws, so that a few can profit, like your Mexican Alderman. Or is the money going to funnel back to the Democratic machine to help your friend, the President. We American Jews, are appalled by your actions to support an organize crime activity disguise to lessen Police paper work and overtime. Teach and educate this Mexican Alderman the rule of law, Mr. Mayor and say NO to his proposal.
Walk away! That is what they tell the children. Well government = Just walk away. Let marijuana alone.
People need to be responsible. This does not need to be up for discussion of - is it legal or ill-legal. God planted that plant on this earth, along with all the vegetables, fruits, trees, bushes and even the weeds we do not like in our gardens. All - All natural plants are on this earth for a reason and a purpose. People need to get back to that and stop trying to make money off the darn stuff, government included. Marijuana does tend to make people lazy, but that is why most of them do it at home, after work. I do not smoke but will defend your right to do so. If everyone could grow their own then no one would need to go looking for it, and no one would be fighting over it, no more money would be spent. The government needs to be focusing on the real crimes!
I feel the same way about guns. Every family/household should have one and know how to use it. There would be a lot less crime. Marijuana does nothing unless the - person does it and the same with guns. People need to be responsible for themselves, and the people around them. Where is the family unit? Oh - I forgot it's been broken. Isn't it time we fix it! Be a family, Be responsible, Be a friend. Put God first and all else will follow.
Peace!
@Jayson: Um...Rahm Emanuel's parents are both Jewish. Methinks you need to lay down the crack pipe.
Tim, the Only way you will eliminate the violence created by drugs and the cartels is when the idiots who use stuff like cocaine and heroin and the like stop using. THEY are the reason there's so much violence and gang wars and the like on the streets today.
Even if every state in the union decriminalized pot tomorrow, that fact will not change one bit. Pot is just a part of the cartel.
All you supporters of legalizing pot keep telling everyone that it's not dangerous, not addictive, yadda yadda yadda. But the other stuff the cartels and gangbangers fight over IS addictive. It IS dangerous. People will and HAVE killed over the stuff. Not just the dealers, but the users as well.
@Janine,
U claim 2 B a fence-sitter on this 1 but U sound like U R against legalizing pot. "yadda, yadda, yadda"? Way 2 B open-minded & "on the fence".
Walk away from the computer; U R overdue 4 your Prozac dose.
So the smart thing to do Janine would be to legalize the drugs; let Pfizer, Merck, J&J, & Phillips Morris sell the product instead of the cartels and gangbangers; and require that half of the revenue generated goes to subsidize treatment centers. But I understand that this might be to much common sense for most people (capitalism and small government principles).
@Janine: Yes, people kill over the illegal drugs trade, which is why we should remove it from the equation and make it legal. Home grown operations have already started cutting into the Mexican Cartel's profits, which reduces the demand for their product...since the stuff grown in the US is simply much higher in quality. Mexican brick weed is quite often seedy, compressed garbage.
But, the bigger point I'd like to make is that, regardless of whether it's Pot, or Heroine, or Cocaine, these cartels will always have power, as long as American's thirst for recreational drugs. And putting people in jail (where drugs are often easier to find than outside), does nothing. The only logical choice is to stop wasting billions of dollars yearly (and that's just on Marijuana prohibition alone), legalize and tax it. Give it an age restriction like we do with alcohol and tobacco. During the prohibition (of alcohol), people were getting killed for that too. You'd think we would've learned something by now.
Janine-1645002
let me get this straight...there is no way to separate pot from heroin.....? did i get your message right?
*if they made pot legal and heroin is still illegal...
ima tell you right now..if i smoked it and it became legal....id be so proud to walk into a shop and pay the asking price....id never meet someone in a parking lot again.....!!! So now that that *pot is sold at a shop....how is it tied to the cartel? and if the cartel is opening a shop with the correct licencing and such....how are they committing a crime....and how many other industries are run by cartels? do you know what those business are? .......perhaps we should make all business of buying or selling anything at all illegal since it might be used for evil.......come on here..i hope i can change how you feel or at least provide you with a scenario you might actually think about...that's all
@janine
...If you're logic is correct about these "cartels" then maybe you can explain to me why all those illegal alcohol establishments went the way of the dodo after it was legalized years ago?...no? THe cartels fight and kill to get their share of an illegal trade. If it's suddenly legalized and can be grown HERE it will be. Those guys will be out of business THAT DAY. Why can people not understand this? I don't use any drugs and I don't drink or smoke. Drinking and smoking, by the way, are perfectly legal and kill thousands of people in the U.S. every year.
....I think you should maybe wake the f**k up and focus on all those illegal alcohol cartels you insist must be about.
It is about time Chicago wises up. The State of Ohio put forth a law years ago permitting a 100 gram possession with just a $100 maximum fine and confiscation of the substance. This has freed up jail space for real criminals and streamlined the process. In reality the $100 ticket is less than a traffic violation with a notation of marijuana ticket. I would suspect it has reduced the amount of money spent on pursuing pot smokers saving the State millions of dollars while creating revenue for the judicial system.
The only reason MJ is not legal is because the government (state, local and federal) doesn't know how to tax it. Anyone can grow it. So let's say the government wants to tax 10 plants. Who is honestly going to tell the government they have 10 plants? Ninety eight percent of people will say they only have 1 or 2 therefore they shouldn't be taxed. Look what happened with Alcohol. Government fought tooth and nail to stop the sales, then had a eureka moment. What if we get in the liquor business? We can sell it and tax it and get all the profits, effectively putting the "small" moonshiner out of business, cause they didn't have the capacity or resources to supply the demand.
Can't do that with MJ, it can be grown anywhere. So it makes perfect sense to just give a casual user a ticket. That should apply to ALL what is considered illegal drugs. Let the DMV enforce the ticket. If a user doesn't pay his/her ticket they can't register their car or suspend their driving privileges. This is real simple and effective. Of course you will have those that will not pay the fine or drive with a suspended license etc, and end up in further trouble with the law, but that will be a small percentage and those people would probably be in trouble anyway because of their lifestyle.
There has NEVER been a case of anyone overdosing on MJ. Just doesn't happen. Even in combination with some things you never hear it being the main cause of the OD. Alcohol and prescription drugs are a dangerous combination and it will Kill you, and it is legal, because the government can TAX it. Our government is willing to make dangerous things legal because they can make money. Look at all the side effects that are announced on some of the drug commercials. This will help your condition, but oh by the way it can cause cancer, bleeding, ulcers and all kinds of crazy things but it has been approved by the government. All about the Benjamins!!!
Legalize it already for god's sake.
The only reason it was made illegal in the first place was spelled out admirably by the posters above me and it is criminal to deny it to people who can benefit from its medicinal properties.
Too many people have obviously been brainwashed into thinking that "Reefer Madness" was a legitimate documentary.
In 2008, President to be Barak Obama promised that he would "call off" Federal Prosecutors in states that had legalized medical marijuana. He indicated, at the time, that there were far too many "more important" things to worry about than harassing states that passed laws partially legalizing marijuana.
As recently as a few days ago, Federal prosecutors are back in those states that have legalized medical marijuana with federal court filings attempting to seize the assets of medical marijuana dispensaries under the guidelines of the civil statute designed primarily to seize the assets of drug trafficking organizations.
Federal prosecutors, previously, had tried to continue raiding medical marijuana dispensaries in California, but there was so much public outcry over this, that they've now switched to this more subtle tactic aimed at the owners and landlords of buildings were medical marijuana dispensaries are now located.
How's that for Obama keeping his campaign promises?
As it turns out, big pharmaceutical companies (Johnson & Johnson, Phizer, Merck, etc...) and their lobbyists have more say and more clout with our elected officials than we do. Don't believe me? A recent gallup poll (2011) stated that 50% of Americans are in favor of outright legalization of marijuana while 46% are opposed (www<dot>gallup<dot>com/poll/150149/record-high-americans-favor-legalizing-marijuana.aspx).
I know marijuana is a lot less destructive socially and economically than alcohol, many types of prescription drugs, and even in many instances cigarettes. I know this. I think most people know this too. Who doesn't know this, and who want to keep this concept from becoming too public are the pharmaceutical companies who market drugs like Xanax, Ambien, Zoloft, Vicodin, Percocets, Oxycodin, and other anti-anxiety, pain killers, and sleeping pills. Legalized marijuana would definitely cut into their profits.
Good for the Mayor of Chicago for seeing the pursuit of marijuana users as a losing battle against the tide of public opinion. Now if only the rest of our politicians could see the same way.
Wake up dude. You must be retarded with your observation of Medical Marijuana. Who do you think grows and distribute the Marijuana coming into the U.S. The Mexican Drug Cartel. This law will give it a free reign to corrupt all City officials. Welcome to the modern version of Prohibition. This time, in the form of free protection by the Mayors Office.
What in the H$#L are you talking about?
By legalizing marijuana and allowing it to be grown on American soil, we take the power away from the Mexican Cartels. Prohibition promotes lawlessness, legalization promotes safety and regulation.
However... My major point was about the pharmaceutical companies influence on federal/state legislatures that continues to keep marijuana classified as a schedule 1 drug while other drugs (like Valium) are classified as less problematic. This, while most Americans are now of the opinion that Marijuana should be decriminalized across the board. (or at least controlled as much as alcohol and cigarettes are controlled).
Jayson, are you high? Most medical MJ centers grow and modify it themselves, as the crap from Mexico is, well, crap.
Jason, ur an idiot. Dispensaries from states that have established MMJ laws; grow, harvest and sell the herb in warehouses on their own property. jdp - You're right, nobody wants mexican crap anymore. Mexican herb=musty dirtweed.
Couldn't agree more with you Anjisan. I am 25 and suffer from rheumatoid arthritis, a condition highlighted by constant pain and fatigue. I am on all sorts of pain killers to have limited function, and the side affects are horrendous. I truly believe that the biggest deterrence for legalized pot comes from the companies that make BILLIONS off of the money spent on these prescription drugs. I would get off those meds in a heart beat and go back to smoking pot. (granted I am not sure how it would affect the fatigue as I didn't have the fatigue as a 16 year old pot smoker.)
Anyways the pharmaceutical companies have a terrifying amount of control in congress. Don't you ever wonder why our nation has one of, if not the highest cost for medical treatment? It's because these companies are greasing politicians pockets to not pass a statue to control the amount they can charge for medications!
My 7 year old daughter was diagnosed with type 1 diabetes at the age of 4. In the past three years we have spent THOUSANDS on her treatments to keep her alive. We pay about $1.50 each and every time she tests her blood sugars, she tests about 10 times a day. That doesn't include the 7,000 dollars spent on her insulin pump and just under 2,000 dollars for a 3 month supply (with insurance, if we had to pay out of pocket we would be at about 3,000 for a three month supply)! One vial of insulin is between 150-200 dollars depending on where you go (That is one month of insulin). You can get the same vial from another country for $50.
The slim balls in congress and in the pharmaceutical companies care about money. The fact that it nearly ruins our family financially is of little consequence to them. That is my biggest fear with bills to legalize pot being passed. The government will be losing money.
Sorry all went off in left field a little bit there. End of rant. (Oh and it's not meant for one person particularly just me going off like a crazy woman) :)
Kabbima
I hear you.
My son has been diabetic since the age of 9.
Thank God for insurance, is all I have to say.
He is 33 now and lives in Germany, and gets his insulin and supplies free.
(Well, nothing is free: they pay higher taxes. But that is a subject for another day).
Good luck to you and your daughter.
Thank you Bob in LG.
Today's worst epidemic is script pain meds which are totally legal. Why do you see drug stores on every corner? surely someone can figure it out. Of course big business and lawmakers are making $$$ from this. Everyone knows that the pill form is legal throughout the US; Why? $$$ for the government and those who control our Government.
I'm glad somebody has sense enough to see the real problem in America.
I say take it one step further and legalize pot. Have it grown, shredded, rolled and categorized by THC content. Sell it in packs like cigarettes and tax it. Then use the money to pay for the health care that our Dem's shoved up our arse. This would eliminate drug traffic across our border(prices would drop out the bottom), and pay off the 10 trillion worth of debt that the health care system is going to cause.
Then release the 20,000 inmates that are in jail/prison for marijuana offences. another cost savings.
Yes, I know the law would have to be no smoking and driving.
I agree with 99.9 percent of what you stated, my question would be, with health care, does this not enhance the bottom line of the health insurance companies and big Pharn. for cannabis to stay illegal, therefore making Obama, Pro Big Business and thus a conservative party actiavis?
What a spin ha?
Winkster, I agree with you.....mostly.
"Sell it in packs like cigarettes and tax it."
I don't think this is a good plan considering how big business would certainly seek to maximize profits off of something that anyone can grow in their garden for next to nothing. Maybe a small license or permit to plant and grow but no more taxation.
it is a cleaver spin...except its reality
(don't even try to label what side of the isle this is about...pointless..they all fell from the same rotted tree)
dems
conservatives
libs
reps
lobbyists
WH administrators
cezars
....you and i both know in the end....they are all going to do what suits them financially and not what is good for you.
someday our politicians will realize that we could have been assets, but instead they allow corporations to waged war on us and play us against each other..
I like Winkster's idea.
Unfortunately, roadlesstraveled is right .
Not a fan of this mayor but I like what he is doing as far as ticketing folks smoking pot. Think about all the money it takes to arrest, house people in jail and waste the courts time over a little pot. Ticketing is great revenue.
The better source of revenue is taxation on weed. Why leave it to chance that 1 out of 20 (pick your own percentage if you wish) will be paying into the government coffers through ticketing. Wanna smoke it, pay up.
They couldn't put this on the shelf of our 'state stores' fast enough for me to start buying legal, taxed weed. I have zero problem contributing this way. I do, however, have a huge problem with personal use punishment under the guise of most states that currently enforce mandates that are expensive to the taxpayers.
Do state and local governments leave it to chance that only DUI issuances are the only form of revenue they receive?
It's time for brewer and distiller lobbyists to take a hike. Turn your hops and barley fields into mean green machines!
P.S. I wanna hang out with about 70% of the people who voted in this poll. Partying with people who possess commonsense sounds like my kind of crowd.
I on many occasions hear people say that the prohibition on alcohol did not work. Oh! But it did. Hospital admissions for alcohol problems diminished greatly and domestic violence also dropped drasticly. I also wonder how many people did not start drinking because of the difficulty of getting alcohol in many places. I feel that pot should probably be legalized. Let's still beware that we may open pandora's box.
Gerardi
...except for the fact that pot is not addictive.
Jim
Prohibition also caused a dramatic rise in gang violence.
Remember?
It sounds like Chicago is ready to capitalize on a bit of additional revenue; a smokers "tax" if you will.
This reminds me of a saying "If you can't beat em', tax em'" (in this case fines)
Alcohol is a drug. So are cigarettes. So is sex. What is the definition of drug anyway? From Google dictionary: "A substance that has a physiological effect when ingested or otherwise introduced into the body, in particular."
Legalize it and tax it. Any government would be rich if they put this completely logical, rational and fair policy into practice. But there needs to be a completely logical, rational and fair government in place first.
This is true, my girlfriends tell me that my semen is a hell of a drug. One of them fiends for a suck every hour. c:
Alcohol is a chemical......Booze is a beverage........Pot is the springboard to heavier drugs.
@AppeasersFate - You're just repeating what you've heard on TV or read in an article somewhere about pot being a gateway drug. How do you explain multi-year pot smokers who never touch any other drug? Are you honestly trying to say that if pot was eradicated from Earth that no one would do any drugs? Think about it, it's a bogus argument.
one could just as easily argue that tobacco and alcohol are "gateway" drugs...
Pot is not a "springboard to heavier drugs".
Any one who believes that is way too gullible.
And why do people say "chemical" as if it is a bad thing?
Everything on earth is a chemical.
Good idea - especially if the paper for the ticket form is smokable.
Jon Stewart said it best - "smokable beer".
Of course we will also be teaching kids that more people die because of alcohol than any other substance yes?
After watching my mother wither away becuase her cancer doctors got her addicted to a highly addictive narcotic in the form of Oxycontin (legal), I would recommened non-addictive pot as an alternative pain killer (illegal). Of course, the pharmaceuticals and the FDA wouldn't be making billions of the opiates.
I find this funny.....there is this pretty, little known flower called the Oriental Poppy. You can drive down to your local garden center and buy them. When these flowers mature, they grow a bulb. These bulbs produce pure opium, the cornerstone for herion, pain meds, etc. To my knowledge, these plants are legal in all 50 states.
So I can legally grow an opiate but I can't grow a pot plant. Don't tell me it's not about money.
So you are saying that you would have preferred your mother to die an excruciatingly painful death because she was at the end of her life? Grow up. You no doubt are one of those great family members who fights pain management tooth and nail for your family members because you think it is acceptable to die in pain, for THEM not you though. . Narcotic pain relievers have a place in palliative care and end of life care. But by all means if you should ever have a painful disease process please by pass the Narcotic pain relief and smoke a joint. And FYI you CAN NOT buy the poppy that produces Heroin legally in this Country nor can you order the seeds LEGALLY. So you better bone up on your " knowledge"
Hey Nana.....perhaps you should "bone" up on your knowledge. Why are you under the impression that pot cannot be used a pain killer? It's common knowledge. Also, you were not around to see my mother suffer and cry the last 3 years of her life because of the med's they had her on. SHE COULDN'T EVEN GO TO THE DAMN BATHROOM!!! Her own words...."I'd rather die than take this sh!t anymore." I'm sure that don't concern you as it doesn't complement your agenda, what ever that may be. People like you kill me. Mistaking your opinions for fact....a sure sign of a feeble mind.
And regarding the Poppy's??? I know people that's bought them and used them as a drug and they only had to drive down to the local nursery to buy them.
I bet you get tired of being wrong.
@Nana - maybe you should stop making wrong assumptions about people you don't know. And maybe read the post again... he's mocking the fact that Oxycontin is legal while Pot is illegal. Nothing more, nothing less. Amazing that you would reply the way you did, and to bring up the guy's Mom in your rant. Not cool Nana. Not cool.
Nana, you got personal, SHAME ON YOU! As a parent of 2 teens I have explained to them if given the choice smoke. I have smoked for 30 years and in that time I have never witnessed a fight involving anyone who had smoked (Can't say that about the booze) have never seen physical violence involving women and children (Can't say that about the booze) Haven't heard of auto fatalities under the influence of weed (Can't say that about the booze) Never heard of anyone calling in sick to work with a MJ hangover (Can't say that about the booze) Have never heard of any fatalities from anyone over indulging with weed (Can't say that about the booze) I can go on and on.
Those who say marijuana leads to the harder drugs is like saying taking cough syrup will lead to a quart of Jack a day. Lets get those in jail out for this petty @!$%# and open up cells for the real animals out there.
Okay; yes you CAN produce opium sap from just about ANY poppy. That is a true and given fact. But Papaver somniferum -- the "opium" poppy -- IS illegal and a prohibited plant in this country. Thompson and Morgan [British seeds company] made a big deal about discontinuing its sale at the requests of DOJ & DEA several years ago. Regular customer of theirs for years so I remember the whole fuss and feathers over it and the announcement flyer that came with my catalog one year about it.
Now, the only reason that mj is not already legal is money; you know it, I know it, and anybody that hasn't "drunk the Kool-aid" knows it. What other commonly available substance lets you pick somebody's pocket for at least a couple of grand? Add up court costs, attn. fees, fines, and possibility of jail time and you'll be out at least that. If it breaks the other way, and they find you with enough to pat themselves on the back over, you can bet you are going to jail or prison. Wonderful; where else can you pick up slave labor and wrap it up as rehabilitation. Besides more than a few people will tell you they went to prison with an associates in weed and came out with a doctorate in crime. I have even heard cops talk, at the restaurant I work at, about wanting to catch so and so up to "no good" again because they needed some electrical work done at the jail. Third, if like every smoker in the world, you have your common weed and your better weed separated then you could "catch a trafficking charge". Great way to lose you home, car, bank acct., anything of any value they want to "attach" and claim as "drug profits". Even more money in the pockets of the locals. And if big Pharma could get a cut of it, pot would not only be legal -- it would probably be one of the most widely prescribed drugs in use. I broke my back in 78 and have used mj as a pain medication all these years. I still have a healthy liver, kidneys, and heart; you can't say that about opiates users.
I was aressted for smoking a joint behind a bar. Laywer cost 1200 dollars court cost 165 dollars missed four days from work to go to court 560 dollars well I used sick days. The arresting officer was to busy to show up in court case dismissed.2000 dollars for a 5 dollar joint I'm just saying the money could have been better spent how bout I fix the pothole in front of my house and we call it even and I would call a pro to do it for 250 dollars, We need smarter government with less corruption not zero justalot less!
Has it ever crossed your mind that if you had decided to obey the law instead of breaking it, you could have saved yourself some money?
Has it ever crossed your mind that a free person in a so-called free society should have the freedom to do whatever they want as long as it doesn't subtract from the life, limb, health, and freedom of other members of this free society?
Do you, Poolman1, have a personal, vested interest in the type of vegetation that Antanella's Dad is smoking behind a bar? Perhaps we should just start stitching yellow, six-pointed stars on every pot smokers shirts and jackets so we can tell these deviants from the rest of society, eh?
Anjisan, In answer to your question, yes I do have a personal interest in what Antanella's Dad is smoking! You see I live in Arizona and my wife is a crime scene specialist! And unlike you, I see first hand the way that drug cartels murder innocent family members of their competition!Are you so naive as to think that legalizing pot will stop innocent people from being murdered by competitors in this business! You people are so blind as to what happens in your own backyards!
Would you like to crack, heroin, or lsd legalized?
Poolman, you're obviously the one on crack. If your wife is a crime scene analyst, then how do you see "first hand" what these cartels are doing? Even if you have access to pictures from crime scenes (which would be illegal mind you) you'd still be seeing it second hand. I mean, are you so ignorant that you don't even understand basic concepts in perspective? You're talking out your ass and parroting bull@!$%# propaganda that serves only to further your own narrow-minded agenda of oppression and ignorance.
Further, the claim that cartels are going to somehow keep killing people over pot is @!$%#ing absurd. They would be able to legally export it as a legitimate distributor. They wouldn't run around killing the competition because that would be entirely counterproductive and disallow them from operating as a distributor which would cost them money. What are they going to do? Raise an army, invade the US, and go about from city to city burning down dispensaries? You must be high on something if you believe that. What you SHOULD do is shut the @!$%# up and quit spouting your ignorance.
Obviously you've never actually considered the issue or weighed the evidence because if you had access to a research database you'd find that the vast majority (and I do mean vast, over 70%) of peer reviewed journal articles of the last 30 years regarding marijuana are positive, and even when they attempt to find some harm (such as from inhaling smoke) they can't find any evidence for it (turns out that even heavy use of pot simply cannot cause enough lung damage to induce cancer mutations in the lung cells, further, THC kills many types of lung cancers through a variety of mechanisms which are known and fairly well understood). So perhaps before you open your willfully ignorant, @!$%#-spewing mouth you may want to actually perform a modicum of research on the topic.
Do you think it's ok to lie to children? Because when you regurgitate this nonsense that's exactly what you're doing. You are actively imparting incorrect information to children on important topics. You're trying to spin the argument away from rational discussion and impart some kind of emotional justification for your irrational views. Congratulations, you're adding to the stupidity of the country by the very nature of your argument. I hope you and your wife are proud of how @!$%#ing stupid you are.
The only reason your anti-pot is because you're afraid of what might happen. Well guess what @!$%#, bad @!$%# is going to happen. Do you try to make it worse, or do you try to make it better. Obviously, you're on the side of making it worse because you can't be bothered to consider the situation outside of your own biased view.
Seriously numbnut, don't believe me, look up DOJ statistics, look up medical journals, BOTHER TO EDUCATE YOURSELF BEFORE YOU VOMIT YOUR IGNORANCE. There's only decades of longitudinal studies and statistics out there for you to inform yourself with.
Joe, I loved your post, it shows just how ignorant you are! When your wife is a crime scene specialist, you go on a lot of ride alongs, because otherwise you miss a lot of holidays together! Joey do you know that "ride alongs" are legal? Because you don't know what a ride along is, let me explain! A "ride along" is when you are allowed to actually ride in an authorized vehicle with a person of law enforcement! Do you understand that part? let me continue as you try to grasp that concept! You are given a thorough back ground check even if the person you are riding with is your spouse! Are you following? On these ride alongs you get to see "first hand" actual homicides! Joey, do you know where the state of Arizona is? Try this Joey! Name the country that is exactly south of the state of Arizona? I can't even go on! These are the facts people are murdered and or kidnapped almost daily here in Arizona! And guess what you Brain dead @!$%# nut, it's all about your drug of choice , POT! You are probably getting your sales ready as you read this! Hey Mr @!$%# nut, here is a question for you, who was the guy who was killed Tuesday night in the third biggest city in Arizona? What, you don't know? What your statistics didn't tell you? Shove your @!$%#ing self made statistics up your ass and go visit the coroners office in Phoenix sometime! Dumb ass!
Poolman1... Still... You are not making the case why the United States should not legalize Marijuana. I agree that homicides are committed when drugs and dollars are handled illegally by criminals. I won't make the distinction between Mexican Cartels and plain old American Drug Dealers. When the dollar amount gets high enough, and the transaction is an illegal one, then the risk of violence is there.
So, why not make Marijuana legal, to everyone, like alcohol or cigarettes, and remove the inherent risk that illegality poses? What Joe was suggesting is this: Marijuana, by itself, is not terribly addictive (a little habit forming, but so are Twinkies). Marijuana doesn't lead to a lot of overdoses (Accidental Overdoses by Prescription Medications have now surpassed Traffic Accidents in the number of deaths annually). Marijuana simply isn't that bad of a drug to ruin people's lives over (or to fire people over, or to incarcerate people over, etc...). Joe is also correct when he states that most people are starting to feel that the draconian laws against Marijuana simply don't work.
Make it legal. Make it regulated. Remove the damage that keeping it illegal causes.
This is the 1st step. Finally someone pulls their head out and made a sound decision. Good for him.
smoke um if you've got um
He's just protecting the godfather's business interests. The customers can't buy the s#!t if they are locked up. But wait - maybe they can. :D
This really amounts to an after-the-fact tax and not really a fine if you think about it
WOW. Chicago sounds like Washington. Washington sounds like Chicago. Chicago politics are brought to Washington. People say, no. But they both chose which laws to enforce and which one not to enforce. Hmmm Obama. Emmanuel. Cut from the same cloth. And don't get me wrong. I don't care if people smoke a little pot. If they want to legalize it. Go ahead. But if it is illegal, then enforce the damn law.
Scott: When you get ticketed for driving 56 in a 55, remind us all of your hardcore stance on crime, OK?
MNSlim your words are the very ones that proves to the "ignorant" that this drug is making you act like that..
why not try to come off half intelligent and respectful so that you and the rest of us will be heard correctly instead of the example they are going to use on the nightly news to persuade the "perfect" to vote against this.....