Marijuana Should Not Be Legalized

Decriminalized, YES.
Legalized, NO.
The government would just tax the shit out of it!
It would be ridiculous how much money they'd make off of it.
And the incentive to have actual GOOD weed would slowly go away.
Small time dealers who actually have something good to offer would be wiped out by the dealers selling bulk crap.

Maybe I'm totally wrong though, thoughts?

 

You are totally wrong.

 

I think that the weed would get better and better, I am guessing not everyone would be allowed to grow, so the gov would get it down to a t. But I really am just guessing.

 

Yeah exactly, I guess I can't really know.
I guess it would have it's pros and cons too like everything.
But I think we'd have to pay so much more.
Like with cigarettes, we have to pay 10 bucks for 25.
That's brutal.
And liquors pretty expensive too. I mean, we DO pay it, but it marijuana was legalized, the government would make sure they could get the most profit out of it.

 

As a Canadian who already enjoys liberal laws on MJ, I guess the benefit of legalization might be outweighed by the taxation and government controll aspect.

However, as an American, legalizaton would generate much tax revenue(which is good and bad), cut the insane cost of the war on MJ, reinstate the personal liberties that America was founded on, and free 1000's of innocent people.

Personally, I have no problem with a tax on MJ, even a high one, if it is earmarked for positive things such as healtyh and education. Cigarette taxes, for example, go largely to funding anti-smoking education and offsetting the cost of smokers on the health system.

Also, since there is already a large infrastructure of illicit dealers, the worse that taxes could do is keep MJ prices at current levels. If the governmentally taxed product was more exspensive than that of dealers, people would continue getting there weed through illicit avenues.

Lastly, I don't think that MJ quality would fall. What would happen is that you would have an entire range of qualities available. Think about beer. You can buy cheap ass crap or really amazing beer. Sure, there would be a proliferation of lesser quality weed at a lesser price, but there would also be a proliferation of "gourmet" quality weed due to easier cultivation and more growers due to lesser penalties. It is just like any consumer product; there will be an offering for every budget.

ANyway, that's just my take on the issue.

 

Lol.
Honestly, I am Canadian so I guess I don't know the pros and cons for the Americans quite as well.
You do have good arguments though, but if the government price started to rise, which I still think it would considering theres a health risk involved with that as well, I think dealers would realize that people will still buy if the cost is higher, and raise their prices as well. Everyone wants extra money.
I think in Canada it should be decriminalized.

 

no. it should be legalized.
you know how unjust this war on drugs is? how full the prisons are from marijuana related crimes? it's ridiculous. it's not like they killed anyone.
and i wouldn't buy the gov's bud, i'd be growing my own

 

i say legalize it.
if they tax the shit out of it, who gives a fuck? the taxes would go back into the treasury and hopefully help end this shit sooner. i really don't see whats so wrong with the government having money. aaaand, i think, if you can't afford the weed tax, then honestly, you don't need to be smoking weed at all.

 

I didn't say I cared if the government got the money.
I care about spending it.

And I understand the people who in prison. That actually really sucks.
Cops should be going after people who have a real crime to pay for.
It's so unfair and I feel so bad for the people who got screwed over.
But if it was decriminalized it would fix that too, would it not?

 

the problem with decriminalizing is that you can buy sell, posses, but you can't grow. so people would still be getting busted for growing, which is complete crap.

 

but if it was just decriminalized, it would still leave those already in prison fucked by the system. i think.

 

If you think about it, weed you buy from dealers is taxed anyway because when shit is produced illegally it's harder to make a profit, and they will account for the risk factor. Right? But I suppose it is more expensive. But I guess that's fair enough. It'll probably stop some people complaining about their money.

 

I agree, in Canada I think the government would tax the shit out of it. I already pay $9.75 for 20 smokes. Decriminalized marijuana works for me.

 

Decriminalizing it is not as easy as it may seem. Even in the Netherlands there's always difficulties in maintaining this state of keeping it half legal. As long as it's not completely legalized there will be a criminal industry of growers and suppliers. It's not all as romantic as it seems with laid back hippies growing a plant or 10. Lots of people are unfortunately righteously in prison because they do anything to keep their illegal business running.

 

Decriminalization is stupid...it's legal to have small amounts of weed, but someone is still growing the weed and profiting off it. Gangs and criminal organizations still profit, while the government could be the one making this income off of tax. I bet it will be a ripoff here if it's ever legal, but I will likely be growing for myself by then.

 

^^ agreeed

 

The last I checked pot is still crazy expensive. Legalization is worlds better than legalization. Even if government weed was $200/ounce (that's about 30-40 times as much as tobacco), it'd be cheaper than buying an ounce of dro or BSters.

 

Even if taxed, legalized it'd probably work out to so much cheaper then it is now, plus if I'm gonna buy weed at least some of the money is going into the government(yes people they're not that evil, you all unfortunately use a bunch of public things that cost money to run) then some idiot's. Or even worse here a lot of weed comes from Canada, so that money could be going into Canada at the end. Fuck Canada

 

More expensive? Maybe, but I'd rather be able to smoke a joint on my porch without the neighbors calling the 5-0 on my ass. Plus, growing would be a much easier process without the "Sketch" factor. You may pay 10 dollars for 20 ciggs, but i mean if you really wanted to you could grow the tobacco yourself, but then you'd miss out on all that arsenic that makes them taste o-so-good.

 

I'm assuming your high, because did growing your own ever cross your mind. First off, decriminalization isn't that great, its decriminalized where I live. It just means you won't go to jail for personal amounts, but it will be taken away, and you will get a fine. Also if it were decriminalized, there would still be jail time for growing. If it were legal you could grow at least 5 plants (since it would probably be limited) and never have to buy pot again.