Legalization of Marijuana? how bout banning tobacco!

The states have strongly considered it. But until now they've realized it'd instantly create a huge, violent black market that would make tobacco more accessible to minors.

(Ethan rocks!)
http://technorati.com/videos/youtube.com/watch?v=NBSFiO87bC0
http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle-old/290/tobaccoprohibition.shtml


The problem is that prohibition itself is bad policy. It effectively removes the legal supply of a substance but does little to remove its demand. The outcome is that criminals set themselves up to get rich from filling this demand. That brings violence into our communities and makes the substance more accessible to minors as they don't need id to buy it anymore.

Prohibition can't be good policy for marijuana and tobacco but be bad policy for alcohol, that would be illogical. Prohibition is bad policy, period!

That's why John Walters, the director of the ONDCP (our "Drug Czar"), recently supported decriminalizing ALL drugs in Mexico. Even he could see that prohibition brings violence and danger into what were previously safe, peaceful neighborhoods.

http://blog.mpp.org/?p=195



This is what I think we need lol

 

Actually I think it could literally happen. Did you watch Ethan's video?

There's huge support for tobacco prohibition. If law enforcement really wanted to give it a try they would have a good chance of succeeding.

People listen when the D.A.'s and cops speak (just look at the marijuana prohibition!) and with substantial support already amongst the general public they could put enough pressure on the legislators to vote this thing into law.

Politicians do whatever their constituents want them to do. This thing has a real chance of becoming reality.

 

Yeah it can happen...I mean it seems every year the US put more restrictions on cigarettes. Can't smoke in restraints and in most buildings. Now you even have to stand 50 feet away from any entrance from any building. Frankly I'm surprised that bars will still let you smoke inside. They always raise the price of cigs...you see they really can't ban tobacco, but they sure are making it a pain to smoke it.

 

1. It'll never happen.
2. Creates an instant black market
3. It's supported by a multi-billion dollar industry
4. The criminalization of tobacco would never help the progression of reform of marijuana laws

 

I agree with #4 man, we need people to realize that prohibition is a bad policy period.

It's not a good policy for some substances but bad for others like alcohol.
It's flawed and should be abandoned for ever.

 

remember last time US tried to ban alcohol??????????????

besides banning other drugs that arent "extremely" harmful would probably be putting MJ back too...... hmm lets ban smoking tobacco. wait why not marijuana too????


= BAD

 

Doesn't look good...

 

If tobacco is banned, we would have no blunts to roll.

 

dude its all because not everybody can make cigarettes and alcohol by themselves. Because of this people have to buy these items, making the government billions in taxes.

Anybody can simply grow a marijuana plant and smoke it. There is no need to buy it and therefore the government could not make a profit by the legalization of marijuana.

 

Ban my tobacco and I'll start piling up the fucking bodies. I enjoy the full range of recreational substances, legal ones included alongside the illegal ones. Nearly every recreationally used substance has its place, and I appreciate that.

 

Dont ban anything.

 

Yeah, but that dose not mean they would make growing legal...they would still prosecute you for growing...not only that but there is a lot more people then you think that would still buy it just for the soul convenience that they don't have to grow it and wait. On top of that, if Marijuana was legalized, there are still non-smokers that would start smoking because it would then be legal.Some people just don't smoke because it's illegal or conflicts with there job. The same thing goes for music, movies and programs that you can easily download for free...witch is illegal. But people knowing this still buy movies, CDs and other programs.. So I still think the government would still make a very large profit.

 

.... or you could use rolling paper.

 

if they legalized it, think wht kind of market they COULD have.
they would be able to sell it in conveinience stores just like what the do with salvia in Canada. the only problem would be that it would turn into a cigarette type thing in which you'd get taxed for buying, it would most likely be an 18+ thing, and it would probably be really shitty. i mean think, your dealers can get lots of different varieties of bud, ranging good to bad. but, the pennypinching US would most likely sell just plain green bud and market it more expensive than how much it could be bought now (in my area, $10 a gram for green, and most mids.)

haha wall of text but i think i explained it well?

 

but in an open market anyone without criminal ties could get licensed to produce marijuana and make any quality they wanted. Just like in the wine and beer industries today.

There's no shortage of different wines and beers you can buy and a lot of them are really good. And if you're short of money there's plenty of cheap stuff too. A legalized marijuana market should look exactly the same.


And if you don't like what's available that just means there's an opportunity for you to set up filling an empty niche in the market.

We won't have to accept what other people are offering, we can produce and sell our own if we see an unfilled need in the market.

 

You CAN make alcohol and tobacco by yourself. I brew my own alcohol and I am allowed to by law. There is no law I've ever seen that says if you want to grow tobacco in your garden you can't. You can. I used to work on a farm and one of the neighbor farmers grew all his own tobacco. They sell blank cigarette tubes w. a filter and a very cheap machine to fill them if one were so inclined. For a while in college when I was broke I bought my own tobacco in a drum and rolled it myself. Cost me a fraction what it did to buy it in the stores and the tobacco was better quality. If they would ever legalize/decrim cannabis, then growing SOME would HAVE to be legal to do because by definition of cannabis in the US is the leaves, seeds, resin, etc; but not the stalk. Therefore, if it were decriminalized, and you were allowed to have up to say, 100 grams, then you could grow legally as the plant is marijuana in the eyes of all. As long as the wieght of the leaves, buds, and seeds, minus the stalk and root system is under that wieght, it would HAVE to be legal as even cultivation would still fall under pocession.

The issue isn't and never has been about that it could be grown by an individual because the same argument could go towards alcohol and tobacco too... People will buy pre-made cannabis for the same reason they don't brew alcohol or grow tobacco... its easier (people are lazy) and you get top quality (which you prolly wont get if you do it at home) and there's the expense of setting up to do it (investment).

 

But but but...What will happen to all the little blunts? We wont be able to have them! I love me some blunts!

 

No fuckin way that would happen. Its way to big of a money maker to just cut off especially during these shitty economy times. Im sure banning tobacco would do good but then there would be forums called bakkycity where anonymous people converse about growing there own secret closet tobacco plants. Haha probably not but that would be funny seeing a grow journal on a tobacco plant