cannabisnews.com: What If... Marijuana was Legal?





What If... Marijuana was Legal?
Posted by FoM on March 15, 2000 at 09:52:46 PT
By Anne Wills
Source: Liberzine
What would our world be like? Would we all be drugged-out pot smokers on the road to hard drugs and death? No, but if you really believe that, maybe you should read on. (And if you don't, you're welcome to continue also). A world where marijuana is legal is not the dark and dreary world of crime and rampant drug use that many imagine it to be. Actually, that world is the America we live in now, and the War on Drugs is doing nothing to abate it. 
In a world where marijuana is legal adults would have the right to smoke marijuana, just like they drink alcohol or smoke cigarettes. The civil liberties of pot smokers and non-smokers alike would be a tad less oppressed, they would lose less money out of each paycheck for taxes, and there would be less of a possibility of being the victim of a violent crime. Doesn't sound so terrible to me.So let's just take a look at what that futuristic world might be like. An important point to make first is that marijuana would not be legal everywhere. When the 21st Amendment was passed, it didn't make alcohol legal again, it simply gave the power to outlaw alcohol back to the states, which just happens to be the Constitutionally correct way of doing things. So, pot would most likely be legal in some states and not in others; states could even let individual counties or towns make the decision for themselves. One benefit of this is that it's a lot easier to make reform happen at a local level than at a national one, so if you can convince your town of the benefits of legalized marijuana, you are more likely to get a response than if you tried to persuade Congress. Also, if you really wanted to be able to smoke pot legally, you could simply move. This is a lot easier and safer than taking the risk of doing something illegal and facing years in prison. Either you'd be happy in your new location, or maybe there will be such a large migration into areas that allow pot, your old home will be forced to make marijuana legal just to get people to live in their area! Getting what you want from government? How revolutionary! I also have to explain how marijuana would be sold. No one wants kids doing drugs (except for kids), so it would only be legal for adults to buy marijuana, at sanctioned stores, with an ID, just like liquor. It would actually be harder for kids to get pot than it is now. It would still be illegal to drive while high --DUI and DWI laws will apply the same to alcohol and pot. Just like with drinking, you won't be able to go to work or school high; just try to show up to work after a few shots of tequila -- it ain't gonna cut it with the boss. What's more employers would still be able to conduct drug tests and reject applicants if they test positive. Also, you probably won't be able to smoke in public places, just like you can't walk down the street with a beer. Crime would go down. Right now most drug related crime is committed by either users to support their habit, or by dealers in disputes that can't be rsolved in courts and end up killing or injuring each other or innocent bystanders. Criminals aren't committing crimes because of they are high, they do so because the drug is illegal. Despite this however, being a drug dealer is really a great job if you think about it. Thanks to many well-trained police dogs, their product is artificially scarce and so the prices they can charge are astronomical. Any businessman would like to make the profits they do. In our hypothetical future world, however, marijuana would be sold in stores with little barriers to entry. Dealers would go out of business, and the price of pot would drop because the supply is not limited, and because there would be competition between vendors.Marijuana would also be safer for the consumer. Right now, pot smokers don't know what's really in the substance they're inhaling. If it were legal, marijuana would be tested and labeled letting the user know just what they're getting themselves into. And, (the list just keeps going), jobs would be created. True, they would probably take the place of jobs lost by Drug War workers and drug dealers, but they will be productive rather than destructive jobs. There would be numerous jobs in agriculture, shipping, production, every level of management, and retail. The mainstream economy would benefit rather than hurt. Taxes would go down. Right now we have nothing to show for the enormous sums heaped at the failed War on Drugs; that money is basically wasted. Lower taxes mean Americans would have more control over their own money and lives. It would also lead to more spending and yet another boost to the economy. Politicians will probably also cook up a tax on marijuana, which could be used for any number of state programs and would only be paid by the users. In a marijuana-decriminalized world a civil liberty will be returned to the American people. Smoking marijuana harms no one other than the user, and this person should have the right to do whatever he or she wants to do with her body. Who is the government to say what individuals can do to themselves? Another benefit is that the police would have more time to combat violent crimes, the courts would be more free to prosecute them, and expensive and overpopulated prisons would open up.Last but certainly not least, marijuana would be used for the medicinal purposes. This will benefit many ill persons who now have to break the law to stave off pain.Would be an increase in drug use after marijuana became legal? Well, there might be a small blip, but it most likely wouldn't last, and probably wouldn't cause any permanent effects. Plus, with the crime gone, who's to say using drugs is necessarily such a bad thing. In reality, most people that would want to use marijuana are probably doing it right now. So, all in all, when you ask, What if marijuana were legal? I would simply say that our world would be a more prosperous, safer and freer place to live. Anne Wills is an undergraduate majoring in rhetoric at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigne.Web Posted: March 13, 2000Liberzine Forum:http://www.liberzine.com/forum.htmAbout Liberzine.com:Liberzine.com was created by Jerry Brito to bring together writers from around the country to one forum on liberty, current events, and other random thoughts.Liberzine has been called a " libertarian http://www.salon.com/ or http://suck.com/ " It publishes a daily article in its front page with all its previously published articles archived. 
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Comment #8 posted by Tony on May 22, 2001 at 16:50:51 PT:
An important ????
Hi......I had just had one question. Iwant to know what all countries that marijuana is legal in. If you would please let me know.Thanx
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Comment #7 posted by Matt on April 25, 2001 at 18:56:38 PT:
"Legalize it, don't criticize it." - Sublime
I absolutely agree with this article. I have often found it interesting that Marijuana, which many studies suggest has a much less harmful long term effect then alcohol, is much more demonized and taboo. We live in a culture that doesn't want to admit that it has been wrong in the past and will avoid it at all costs. The "science", and I use the term loosely, that prompted the creation of Marijuana laws in the first place, has been proven to be false, and very prejudiced. It's time that the general public was made aware of the realities behind Cannabis Sativa, and all of the myths were erased... keep fighting the good fight for liberty, and that sweet herb we all love so much!~Matt~
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Comment #6 posted by Lacy Shea on January 20, 2001 at 17:08:09 PT
Pot
I love pot i smoke it every day all day Sometimes i even eat it. If i didnt have pot i would die!!! Im in love with mary jane. sometimes i masterbate with a big bud of ganja, or i stick my water bong up my twat. it gets me so high!!!!!! if i didnt have pot id most likely die! So keep it real. 
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Comment #5 posted by amber delong on May 02, 2000 at 15:20:41 PT:
hey sweetlips
maryjane is cool. you get an cool effect. it should be legal. i think that marijuauna should be legal i see nothing wrong with it as long as you use in a scensable way and be cool about it. but you should not do it all the time. all in all it makes you feel GOOD!!!!!
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Comment #4 posted by Joey on March 20, 2000 at 16:37:02 PT:
my thoughts exactly
I said the same thing in another article on this site and I will cut and paste it for all you who havn't read it yet.."If all the places that sell cigarettes (20 in a pack for 3 dollars) sell a pack of joints (20 for 5 dollars) all our problems will be solved. An interesting fact that I just learned.... 52% of American teens (15-18) admit to smoking weed on a weekly basis. 4% of Dutch teens (15-18) admit to smoking weed on a weekly basis. The gov't gets their cut and all the tobacco companies grow marijuana and packages it. The DEA can regulate the amount of THC in the joints and the 52% of teens will shrink to 4%. The tax money will go to the countries failing school systems and maybe help with the national debt. All the dealers will evaporate because nobody would pay those outrageous prices no more now that they have an alternative. One last question. This country's government is still democracy right? That's what I thought. Why don't we have a national vote if marijuana should be legalized as I have said above. If you like what I say, cut and copy this letter to your word processer. Print it and send it to your congressman or woman and tell them that a 15 year old kid from Ohio solved the most debated issue in this country. "Smoke weed everydayCause my people stress my mind"Joey Prawdzik "
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Comment #3 posted by cerebus on March 16, 2000 at 23:34:21 PT
but testing
only thing drug testing lets be real if someones gettin high in whatever manner u can tell if hes high on the job. a drug test doesnt tell u when he smoked or tooted or drank just he has within the detection threshold of the test. ahh but hey can go out binge on hard drugs most of which stay in body 2 or 3 days but if i smoke a good bit o green at a party one weekend i can fail a drug test weeks later. if someboys drinkin or smokin on the job people find out and u can tell if ur payin attention. and if u get hight at work u should get canned nomatter what the substance.
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Comment #2 posted by dddd on March 15, 2000 at 21:19:19 PT
outstanding
"Anne Wills is an undergraduate majoring in rhetoric at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaigne." Anne Wills has done an excellent thing here. I never knew you could major in "rhetoric".Hats off to Anne Wills!She said what I wish I could say,,and she says it in an eloquent and nice way...dddd
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Comment #1 posted by military officer guy on March 15, 2000 at 17:18:09 PT
wouldn't that be nice...
that's my outlook for two or less years...mark my words, we can win this war...
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