cannabisnews.com: Do Not Legalize Pot










  Do Not Legalize Pot

Posted by CN Staff on August 03, 2008 at 10:16:49 PT
By Tim Wiederaenders, Managing Editor 
Source: Daily Courier 

Arizona -- Responses to this past week’s Courier editorial highlighting a new “legalize marijuana” bill have troubled me. Some stated, essentially, what’s the big deal? Legalize it, people should be able to do what they want. It’s their choice.The bill calls for an end to federal penalties for Americans carrying less than a quarter-pound of marijuana. Rep. Barney Frank, D-Mass., who introduced the proposal, used law enforcement as one of his reasons. Apparently, he said, current laws targeting marijuana users place undue burdens on law enforcement resources.
"I cannot think there are many people who are in favor of using limited federal resources in law enforcement to arrest people because those people decide to smoke marijuana," Frank said.Folks, if the problem is not enough money for law enforcement or the way police are using the money, that’s one thing. The answer is not to legalize the offense, but managing the problem – focusing on the money or law enforcement.Besides, Frank shows his lack of understanding in his quote above. It appears that he sees it as “no big deal” to smoke a little pot.A definite line exists between right and wrong. And, marijuana blurs judgment and, thus, the line.People claim, “I should be allowed to make my own decisions. Government can’t tell me what to do. I’m not hurting anyone.”Just because you think you’re not hurting anyone, doesn’t mean it’s true. It sounds like an alcoholic who demands his/her keys; “I can drive myself home, I’m not drunk.”How would you know? You’re the one who’s drunk. Their judgment is not what it’s supposed to be, and they would not know that they’re hurting someone else … until it’s too late.As for alcohol being legal, that’s a topic for another time; however, you don’t legalize everything because something similar already is. That’s like the parental argument of “if your friends jump off a cliff, are you going to” follow them?Think about it.Source: Daily Courier (Prescott, AZ)Author: Tim Wiederaenders, Managing EditorPublished: Sunday, August 03, 2008Copyright: 2008 Prescott Newspapers, Inc.Contact: editorial prescottaz.comWebsite: http://www.dcourier.com/Related Article:Should Marijuana Be Legal?http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread24089.shtml

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Comment #24 posted by OverwhelmSam on August 05, 2008 at 04:36:10 PT
Federal Prohibition on Bad Toupees
There should be a law against people who wear bad toupees, enforced by SWAT. ...we're going in... everybody down! ...flash, bang... what's this? two bad toupees? you're busted buddy... or something like that.
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Comment #23 posted by FoM on August 04, 2008 at 20:07:14 PT
Hope
I hope it will too. My husband as always gotten along with the mechanic. He does good work on my husband's truck. The person they rented from sold the home and they moved into their parents basement while they were looking for a new home. The rent has really gone up around here so they are happy that we are reasonable. The most important thing is that we get along out here. The guys are all into mechanics and help each other when they need help. Thinking along the same lines is nice. If it doesn't work out that will be ok too. 
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Comment #22 posted by Hope on August 04, 2008 at 19:47:56 PT
FoM
That does sound like a fine day.I hope it works out well for all of you.
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Comment #21 posted by FoM on August 04, 2008 at 19:08:40 PT
Hope
We have been busy and just got home. You know we have a house to rent. I haven't been worried about it and my husband's truck mechanic at work needed a place. They rented the house tonight. It's interesting how things happen. The house is perfect for them because they have 5 children. They can't believe they found a home this big for their family. It was a good day.
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Comment #20 posted by Hope on August 04, 2008 at 18:55:30 PT
*smile*
I'm glad it made your day, Ripit.I've been fretting about it today and thinking I shouldn't have said that and was going to apologize...but... since you liked it, I won't apologize. It is tacky and ad hominen and all that, though, and I really do hate to be that way... it seems wrong. Sometimes you just get a little miffed at repeating the truth, over and over, that people can't seem to see. The "Good guys" are killing people over marijuana. People are in prison because of marijuana. One is too many. And then, well, sometimes the ad hominems comes a callin and I acted on that one. I don't want to be like that. Hurtful, sort of. If I went against my conscience too many times, I'd probably strike myself bald. I don't want to be that way either!
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Comment #19 posted by RevRayGreen on August 04, 2008 at 14:34:40 PT
That is the most hideous
rug I've ever seen.
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Comment #18 posted by roza-velt parks on August 04, 2008 at 12:04:03 PT:
Tim W,editor of Prescott's newspaper exaggerates 
earth to Tim W.(managing editor of Prescott's newspaper):  you need to go back and brush up on your 5th-grade arithmetic skills, Timmy. Barney Frank's decrim bill talks about 100 grams of marijuana. Your column enhances 100 grams into a "quarter-pound". The last time i checked, a quarter-pound was the same thing as 4 ounces. Question:is 100 grams the same thing as 4 ounces? Answer:no. 100 grams is significantly less. 100 grams is nearly one-half ounce below your phony quarter-pound bullshit. when you convert 100 grams into ounces,you get 3.533 what we're talking about here is three and a half ounces, NOT 4ounces. Your exaggeration-factor is 14 percent. i realize that for a war-on-some-drugs-cheerleader like yourself, embellishing by 14 percent is standard operating procedure. Question: what else are you lying about, Timmy?  
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Comment #17 posted by ripit on August 04, 2008 at 08:20:26 PT:
thank you hope!
ya made my day with that last post! ;)
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Comment #16 posted by Hope on August 04, 2008 at 06:40:41 PT
Just wanted to say
that I'm impressed at everybody's character that posted here and at the article. No one (until I) has stooped to go ad hominem on his bad toupee, although it might be a blaring signal that something may be affecting Mr. Wiederaenders' own good judgment in some areas. (On the other hand, or on his lip, I should say, somebody did, quite unnecessarily, mention that he had an ugly mustache.)Could the same vanity that requires the bad toupee be the same vanity that leads him to believe that (other) people should be oppressed and persecuted by government and law, no less, over ingestion of an herb?If it's "wrong" for him to ingest the herb... then he shouldn't do it... ever. It's wrong for him. But he's going too far in suggesting that it's wrong for everyone."And, marijuana blurs judgment and, thus, the line." What exactly do you suppose blurred his own judgment in this matter and another, obviously, so remarkably? "A definite line exists between right and wrong." He definitely got on the wrong side of that line when he decided to purchase and wear in public, and even be photographed in the cheaper toupee he decided, in a burst of blurred judgment, to purchase.No, I won't post my wanderings and wonderings over there. It would be cruel, and most definitely, an ad hominem attack on Mr. Wiederaenders' own judgment, but it is embarrassingly mentionable here with my friends... in "Private". :0)I sincerely believe that he's on the wrong side of the Right and Wrong line, too, when he judges that people should be persecuted to the point, even of imprisonment and death, that they are being persecuted over cannabis use now.If "blurred judgment" should be against the law... Mr. Wiederaenders needs to start packing for prison. It's not the "blurred judgment" that should be against the law... but any actual harm or disaster that might come from that bad judgment. As long as his toupee isn't the cause of physical harm to someone... he should be allowed to wear it if it comforts or pleases him, and not have to be concerned about being arrested for wearing it. Now the creators, sellers, or the dealers of the bad toupee? I'll have to "Think about it".
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Comment #15 posted by Hope on August 04, 2008 at 05:30:09 PT
Lol! Good one, OverwhelmSam...
"The sky is not falling, because we are holding it up."
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Comment #14 posted by JohnO on August 03, 2008 at 23:19:50 PT:
Think about it. 
What exactly did this guy say? Any reader (regardless of their position on legalizing marijuana) can see the writer is clueless, and obviously brought his D game to a public debate. This can only help us.
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Comment #13 posted by ekim on August 03, 2008 at 20:32:52 PT
 LEAP on the Hill
Howard Wooldridge author Stories from the week of August 1, 2008--------------------------------------------------------------------------------WAR on DRUGS! Modern Prohibition!  How is that working for us in America? This liberal policy which uses the threat of government punishment, backed with govt police, prosecutors and prisons..... Is it reducing our crime?......is it reducing rates of death and disease?  Is it keeping drugs and drug dealers away from our kids  Is this modern prohibition consistent with the ideals of Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness?  NO!!  Our children live in a world awash in drugs and drug dealers. Is it time for a robust* discussion? I challenge you to state one sensible, cogent* reason to continue this policy. robust = kräftig 
cogent = überzeugend 
 
Post Prohibition: Envision* an America where there are no teen drug dealers on sidewalks selling drugs, shooting each other and destroying neighborhoods. Imagine a world where all drugs are sold in a state-regulated store by a clerk making 12 dollars an hour. See a world where al Qaeda and other terrorists groups do not make billions guarding the drug trade and selling drugs. Think of an America where crime is reduced by half which allows the police to focus on the deadly DUI, the child predator* and other public safety threats. Envision the positive outcomes of redirecting the 70 billion tax dollars currently spent chasing non-violent drug users & their suppliers. See a world where, if one day you or a loved has a drug problem, you see a doctor not a judge. This world is possible when we find the courage to end the Modern Prohibition. envision = sich vorstellen 
predator = Hauptfeinde 
 As a police officer, I spent 18 years in the trenches* of the drug war in the 70s, 80s and 90s. I always believed that the policy was dysfunctional* and ultimately immoral. Drug policy should be centered on these 5 conservative principles: trenches =Schützgraben 
dysfunctional = Fehlfunktion 
 Individual Liberty: an adult should be free to be as stupid as they wish to be in the privacy of their own little castle. 
 Personal Responsibility: If an adult makes a bad choice, suck it up.* 
 * suck it up = die persönlicheverantwortlichkeit annehmen Limited Government: Sending government agents, AKA police officers into your home to arrest you for a consensual* act is NOT consistent with limited govt intrusion* into your life. 
 consensual = zustimmen 
intrusion = Eindringen 
 Effective Government:  After a trillion tax dollars spent, drugs are cheaper, stronger and readily available to our kids. This has been a Bridge To Nowhere* policy 
 * bridge to nowhere = eine berühmte Skandalgeschicte der Politk vor 2 Jahren. States Rights: Like alcohol & gambling, all drugs should be a matter for the states to decide. 
I ask you to join the spirits of William F. Buckley and Milton Friedman. Help LEAP end this disastrous modern prohibition.  
http://leap.cc
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on August 03, 2008 at 20:22:53 PT
John Tyler 
Right after it started we went to some friends for dinner so I only saw the beginning. 
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Comment #11 posted by John Tyler on August 03, 2008 at 19:58:20 PT
history channel
I checked out the History Channel web page. The design was cool, but it was choking my PC. I missed the TV show, but I was wondering… is this a repeat of the earlier hippie show from the spring, or is it reedited new version? 
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Comment #10 posted by John Tyler on August 03, 2008 at 19:34:56 PT
drunk on his own ego
I have been thinking about it, for a long time. Just because this writer thinks it is wrong doesn’t make it so. He doesn’t even give any reasons either. He just thinks it’s a good thing to run people through the American Gulag system so he can feel good about himself. I think he may have some type authoritarian control problem. Maybe he is drunk on his own ego, and someone should take his keys (keyboard) away until he sobers up. 
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Comment #9 posted by OverwhelmSam on August 03, 2008 at 16:31:11 PT
All We Need Is A Little Extra Added OMFPH!
To make these paranoid purveyors of fraudulent information irrelevant. Someone please tell this guy that millions of people in America smoke marijuana everyday, and it's okay. The sky is not falling, because we are holding it up.
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on August 03, 2008 at 14:14:26 PT
A Link from The History Channel
http://www.history.com/states.do?action=state&state=Hippies&parentId=1968
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on August 03, 2008 at 14:10:25 PT
Heads Up: History Channel: Hippies
We just found it and thought others might want to check it out. It's on from 5 to 7 ET.
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on August 03, 2008 at 13:53:59 PT

dongenero
I agree with you. Life is not just black or white but many shades of gray. 
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Comment #5 posted by dongenero on August 03, 2008 at 13:35:08 PT

this is a telling statement......
The author of the article states; "A definite line exists between right and wrong."This is a black and white thinker. This fellow obviously has some trouble with complex thought. He could start by looking up the word paradox and then, as he later states; "Think about it."
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Comment #4 posted by NikoKun on August 03, 2008 at 11:16:25 PT

Another Anti-Legalization article from that site:
Here's another article from that site, quite recent.
http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?SectionID=36&SubSectionID=73&ArticleID=57745&TM=42162.22How very sad... -_-
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Comment #3 posted by NikoKun on August 03, 2008 at 11:04:11 PT

He needs some information...
Here's a direct link to the article:
http://www.dcourier.com/main.asp?ArticleID=57821&SectionID=109&SubSectionID=172I think some of us here should go and make a few comments, with regards to his "points"...
Don't be mean, just educate this guy, as he obviously hasn't a clue of what he's talking about.We need to fill him in... I don't think a single point he made, was valid or held any ground.I can't believe this guy is an Editor... but then again...
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on August 03, 2008 at 11:01:54 PT

NikoKun
I don't understand narrow minded people. Where is a sense of reason? Making criminals out of people just because some people don't like this issue is hard to handle.
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Comment #1 posted by NikoKun on August 03, 2008 at 10:56:33 PT

Another ignorant writter, who knows nothing...
These are some of the most poor arguments I've ever seen... -_-
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