LEGALIZE MARIJUANA AND PROSTITUTION

[macbeth25]

The United States tried prohibition in the '20's, I think, and then people got in their right minds and alcohol was legalized whenever.  I don't drink alcohol because I don’t like the taste.   I also don’t care if someone else drinks -- or even gets drunk â€" so long as they don’t bother me or my family. 
I’d also prefer they hurt no one else but if they break the law, I hope they’re arrested and put in jail and kept away from me and mine.  Far too many lethal accidents are caused by people who drink and drive. 
I go to the Nassau County Sheriff’s office every week and write up the police arrest reports.  I’ve even seen one where a man got a DUI on a lawnmower and someone else got one  while driving a boat on a creek. 
People liked to drink alcohol and its being illegal made it even better; in some ways, a thrill.  It made sense to make it legal (you can be more sure of its quality and not being made through a method or with ingredients which might harm someone) and then tax the sales.  I also do not use drugs, other than those prescribed by a physician or things like aspirin, not because I think it's sinful or will damn me to Hell, but simply because I don't like the idea. 
My point is rather simple.  People want to smoke marijuana or cannabis -- they're the same thing, aren't they? -- So why not make it legal and then tax them the same way you do cigarettes or any other form of tobacco.  Cigarettes, pipe tobacco, cigars and smokeless tobacco have all proved harmful and it's generally accepted that they can kill. 
If you legalize cigarettes, etc., and the government makes money from taxing them, why not do the same with marijuana?  You’d probably reduce the number of people getting arrested and put in prison and the money you save and the even more money you earn might pay for some of the many things I think are stupid in which our government is engaged. 
Marijuana, in some cases, may even be beneficial.  I think some have proven that marijuana may more harmful to the body than tobacco but I don’t believe it’s been proven that everyone who smokes marijuana automatically and inevitably uses harder drugs.  After all, some of those who drink beer and wine become alcoholics so what’s the difference? 
Tobacco can cause cancer.  OK. Alcohol can wreck your liver and your brain â€" among other things.  That fact certainly doesn’t keep people from drinking.
Another thing â€" prostitution is illegal in most states but Nevada seems to do quite well with it.  That’s another case of legalizing something and then policing and taxing it.  I’ve been married to the same woman for 46 years and have no interest in being with anyone else, much less paying for the privilege. 
I’m lucky.  I feel far more comfortable with my wife than I would with anyone else.  I’ve been with her more than twice as long as I was old when I met her.  Even after all our years of marriage and a couple of years of knowing her before that, we’re still in love.
As I mention in my profile: we have six children, 10 grandchildren and 5 great grandchildren â€" so far â€" at least one more is on the way and all will be very welcome and loved.
But think about this.  STD’s such as HIV or AIDS are dangerous and can kill.  If you use an unlicensed prostitute who doesn’t get regular medical checkups or treatment if she/he needs them, you’re far more likely to get an STD than you would be, say, at Nevada’s Bunny Ranch.
You’re also more likely to open yourself up for blackmail, etc., because prostitution, both being one and using one is illegal â€" except in Nevada. 
I must confess my ideas are based only upon what I’ve read and heard and I don’t have the kind of material which has been thus far expressed in the thread regarding police.  I also don’t intend to get into a sniping session with anyone or waste anyone’s time by droning on and on about this subject.  All I want here is to bring up a couple of topics. 
One more thing:  Some people believe that homosexuality is wrong.  I won’t get into that discussion but think about this.  It is far more likely that a promiscuous heterosexual will get an STD than a homosexual who is faithful to his/her partner. 
Have at it. Let’s see what someone else thinks.

[TPC]

I was having a conversation about this same subject this morning with my carpool friend.

I think we should legalize marijuana and tax it.
I was out in LA visiting some friends and one had what he called his “weed card”, he could go into little shops and buy marijuana with no problems. I don’t smoke or have a problem with people who do. I just don’t see it as dangerous as the media makes it out to be. To me someone using alcohol, cigarettes, or prescription drugs is more of a danger to themselves and others then some kid getting high in his room. Another thing about marijuana is you never hear of people overdosing on it.

If the government decided to legalize marijuana it could create jobs in the US and probably alleviate the Mexican drug cartels violence in the US. In addition to the harvesting of marijuana the hemp could be used as recourse as well.
If prostitution was legalized I feel it would need to me contained in a specific area, something like the red-light district.

[Deuce]

I think some have proven that marijuana may more harmful to the body than tobacco but I don’t believe it’s been proven that everyone who smokes marijuana automatically and inevitably uses harder drugs.

Actually, there was a WHO report a few years back which said something to the effect that marijuana was less harmful than either alcohol or tobacco, over long term use. I think it came out during the Clinton administration and was suppressed as much as possible. Any wonder that I couldn't find it quickly in Google. The most harmful part of smoking marijuana is the smoke.

I too support the legalization of marijuana. If you've read any of the news reports lately (great article in the Washington Post this weekend), California is getting closer than ever to legalizing it outright. If they do, you can bet other states will follow suit.

I also support the legalization of prostitution.

[gmpalmer]

The most harmful part of smoking marijuana is (to quote South Park) that it makes you okay with not doing anything.  To say that it's harmless is dishonest.  Not that tobacco or xanax or alcohol or hydrocodone or ritalin are harmless, either.  But it's called dope and its adherents stoners for a reason.

[Ernest Street]

There is no interest in Pot anymore. ANYONE can say the right thing to their Doctor and get all Xanaxed up.
("I need something for my anxiety")....yea,Anxiety is called "Life".
I am appalled when I find out what some of my Friends and aquaintences are prescribed.
And they pass drug tests with these powerful Sedatives and Opiates?  Everyone on SOMA, how easy to control.

[Omarvelous09]

Marijuana in my opinion is more offensive than alcohol & cigarette smoke..mainly due to the smell of the smoke. Though both alcohol and marijuana are intoxicants, the "high" from smoking pot seems more severe and long lasting. Maybe its just me...but I'd rather deal with a drunk than a pot head.

[Deuce]

No one has said that pot is harmless, only that it is less harmful than other substances which are legal and readily available.

Love the SOMA ref, Brave New World is one of my favorite novels of all time.

I don't how someone could find the smell noxious. When I was a stoner (yes I'm a former stoner), I couldn't imagine anything more wonderful then the smell of pot. As for dealing with pot heads, at least they're not belligerent like drunks.

[macbeth25]

I think smells, like beauty, depend on whose eyes, ears, taste, nose, etc., are being used.  I'm not even sure if I've even smelled pot but I've heard it's something like burnt hemp or rope.  That's one thing I'm not going to worry about.  If I don't like the smell, sound, etc., I can always go elsewhere.
Perhaps readers might get a laugh out of this.  Many years ago I was in the Air Force and stationed in Europe.  There was a briefing for general officers where they were showing photos (slides) of various beautification projects of bases in Germany where they had bunkers -- getting ready for the Russians to come through the Fulda Gap, I guess.  That part's not really part of the story.
Suddenly, as they were looking at slides from a particular base where a really exceptional job had been done of beautifying the bunkers, the muffled sound of laughter was heard in the audience.  They stopped the show, turned on the lights and the commander was very annoyed at the young lieutenant who couldn't stop laughing.
They asked him "Why are you laughing?  Do you think this briefing's funny?" 
"No, Sir," the lieutenant said. "Those are some of the best marijuana plants I've ever seen."
The story’s true but I won’t tell you what base it was.  Needless to say, there was a very quick “removal” program.  Of course, you can’t burn marijuana plants as anyone downwind will get high.  I’m not sure how they disposed of it. 
What happened to the lieutenant?  He got a very good rating in his Officer Evaluation Report.

[JaxNative68]

legalize it. tax it. profit from it. help the national economy.

If it is legalized, I'm sure the First Baptist Church will buy all of the licenses in an attempt to keep it out of Jacksonville.

[JaxNole]

Decriminalization of marijuana is occurring generally in liberal states, blue states, Obama states--whatever you want to call them.  I like to refer to them as progressive.

When around people who are high, I don't fear they'll try to prove their masculinity and punch someone in the face like someone who's drunk off liquor may.  Ever been to a peace rally?  When there's been substances, have they tended to be alcohol or marijuana?

I think alcohol poses a much greater public threat.  If pot smokers aren't harming anyone, I say leave them alone.  The government should seriously consider marijuana a cash crop.

[JaxNative68]

 . . . give peace a chance . . .

[macbeth25]

Your mentioning "Blue" states reminded me of a book which metrojacksonville readers might like.  It's called Empire and it was written by Orson Scott Card.  The book's premise is that another civil war is coming -- not one between the races as has once been thought but between the "Blue" and the "Red" states.  I apologize in advance for how this may sound, but one of the convenient things in the Pacific during World War II was that if the opponent's skin was yellow, it was fairly likely that he was the enemy.  On the other hand, the Nisei regiment, the 442nd Infantry, formerly the 442nd Regimental Combat Team of the United States Army, was an Asian American unit composed of mostly Japanese Americans who fought in Europe during the Second World War.  At the time, they were the most decorated unit in US Army history and they may still be -- they earned 21 Medals of Honor.

[A-Finnius]

I am all for the legalization of Marijuana.  The war on drugs is expensive and ineffective.  It should taxed and regulated.  I do think the use of marijuana in public should be restricted to "coffee houses", "smoke shops" whatever you want to call them.  I'm not really for the idea of people walking down the street while smoking a fatty spliff. 

Legalizing pot may also help keep it out of the hands of kids.  I remember before I was 21 and still in college it was a lot easier to score a bag of weed than it was a 12 pack of beer.     

[Keith-N-Jax]

I would like to see you same people talking about the legalization of marijuana lay on a hospital bed getting ready for a procedure and half the staff is high on pot, oh, but wait maybe we can banned it from hospital emoployees and people operating unsafe equipment. Restrict some and allow others, legalize because the war on drugs is expensive and ineffective. Wow you guys have just solved all the worlds probelms. What a great country we live in.

[A-Finnius]

To tell you the truth I would rather the doctor be high than drunk...