Legalized Medical Marijuana and Shrubs DEA

[Double A]

quote:Originally posted by patric

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

Feh. I've never smoked pot, but I'm not going to get on my high horse and advocate keeping the stuff illegal.

Just treat marijuana like booze. Only licensed stores can sell it, tax the hell out of it, keep it out of the workplace, and bust people who are driving under the influence of it. End of story.

+1

Drug interdiction is a muli-billion dollar industry, and has resulted in the type of corruption not seen since Prohibition.  We could put our resources to better use.

Ending the war on weed and the war in Iraq could free up plenty of resources. As Rwarn suggested, Regulated legalization would produce a new, potentially substantial, revenue stream. New revenues that could be devoted to the technological advancement and affordability of green technologies in transportation, energy, and construction for example.

[cannon_fodder]

quote:Originally posted by rwarn17588

Feh. I've never smoked pot, but I'm not going to get on my high horse and advocate keeping the stuff illegal.

Just treat marijuana like booze. Only licensed stores can sell it, tax the hell out of it, keep it out of the workplace, and bust people who are driving under the influence of it. End of story.

+1

The addictive drugs are more of a problem for me.  Personally, if someone wants to do heroine, crack, or cocaine at home I don't care.  BUT, those often problems that have a broader reach (addiction can often leads to irrational behavior and crime) that takes them out of the home and into society.  BUT, the same can be said for alcohol (alcoholics certainly have a detrimental societal impact) - but we find ways to control it and deal with it.

Hallucinogens are mostly harmless if used responsibly, and were up until the 1970's.  Maybe set up "hotels" authorized to sell where the user and the host can't leave for 12 hours after taking the drug...

hell, I don't know.  But it's clear the current system hasn't worked for any level of drug for 20+ years -  it probably isn't going to just start working tomorrow.  It'd probably be wise to figure out a new system and tweak it as needed than insist all other methods are horrible.

[Conan71]

quote:Originally posted by Double A

New revenues that could be devoted to the technological advancement and affordability of green technologies in transportation, energy, and construction for example.

Smoke for a cleaner environment.  I like the irony in that.

IMHO, pot is less deleterious than alcohol to society in terms of health issues, absenteeism, family issues, crime, etc.  That's why I've never understood why it is illegal, yet alcohol is.

The biggest crime which involves pot appears to be the possession or sale of it.  Incarcerating people on pot charges only clogs up cells which could be used to warehouse much more serious threats to society.  Most of the people I know who use or have used it would use it in their homes and would be too lazy when under the influence to leave the house.

Pot doesn't give most users a hang-over, there's no more a threat of it winding up in the workplace than alcohol, and the old theory of it being a "gateway drug" is way over-rated by the anti-drug-at-all-cost crowd.

Effects of alcohol impairment can last for most of the next day, whereas the pot user might be a little groggier than usual the next morning.

I tend to disagree on hallucinegens, opiates, and stimulants like cocaine or meth.  They do have medicinal purposes under proper supervision, but left to individuals, crime, death, destruction of the family, and mental illness result.

[FOTD]

Peace and harmony on one thread for once.....

Puff.

[FOTD]

 Now, let's get Obama to fire that Bush-appointee Mary Beth Buchanan, whose high-profile prosecution of Tommy Chong for selling glass pipes on the internet is just a single example of the stupidity of the War Against Just One Herb.


http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/article/ALeqM5i9mnrkJu2S7Mly9xuWs4p9_TRkdwD9BE7TDO1

Feds to issue new medical marijuana policy
By DEVLIN BARRETT (AP) – 5 hours ago
WASHINGTON — Pot-smoking patients or their sanctioned suppliers should not be targeted for federal prosecution in states that allow medical marijuana, prosecutors were told Monday in a new policy memo issued by the Justice Department.
Under the policy spelled out in a three-page legal memo, federal prosecutors are being told it is not a good use of their time to arrest people who use or provide medical marijuana in strict compliance with state law.
The guidelines issued by the department do, however, make it clear that federal agents will go after people whose marijuana distribution goes beyond what is permitted under state law or use medical marijuana as a cover for other crimes.
The memo advises prosecutors they "should not focus federal resources in your states on individuals whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana."
The new policy is a significant departure from the Bush administration, which insisted it would continue to enforce federal anti-pot laws regardless of state codes.
"It will not be a priority to use federal resources to prosecute patients with serious illnesses or their caregivers who are complying with state laws on medical marijuana, but we will not tolerate drug traffickers who hide behind claims of compliance with state law to mask activities that are clearly illegal," Attorney General Eric Holder said in a statement.
By the government's count, 14 states allow some use of marijuana for medical purposes: Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington.
California stands out among those for the widespread presence of dispensaries — businesses that sell marijuana and even advertise their services. Colorado also has several dispensaries, and Rhode Island and New Mexico are in the process of licensing providers, according to the Marijuana Policy Project, a group that promotes the decriminalization of marijuana use.
Advocates say marijuana is effective in treating chronic pain and nausea, among other ailments.
Holder said in March that he wanted federal law enforcement officials to pursue those who violate both federal and state law, but it has not been clear how that goal would be put into practice.
The memo spelling out the policy was sent Monday to federal prosecutors in the 14 states, and also to top officials at the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration.
The memo written by Deputy Attorney General David Ogden emphasizes that prosecutors have wide discretion in choosing which cases to pursue, and says it is not a good use of federal manpower to prosecute those who are without a doubt in compliance with state law.
"This is a major step forward," said Bruce Mirken, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project. "This change in policy moves the federal government dramatically toward respecting scientific and practical reality."
At the same time, officials said, the government will still prosecute those who use medical marijuana as a cover for other illegal activity.
In particular, the memo urges prosecutors to pursue marijuana cases which involve violence, the illegal use of firearms, selling pot to minors, money laundering or involvement in other crimes.
And while the policy memo describes a change in priorities away from prosecuting medical marijuana cases, it does not rule out the possibility that the federal government could still prosecute someone whose activities are allowed under state law.
The memo, officials said, is designed to give a sense of prosecutorial priorities to U.S. attorneys in the states that allow medical marijuana. It notes that pot sales in the United States are the largest source of money for violent Mexican drug cartels, but adds that federal law enforcement agencies have limited resources.
Medical marijuana advocates have been anxious to see exactly how the administration would implement candidate Barack Obama's repeated promises to change the policy in situations in which state laws allow the use of medical marijuana.
Soon after Obama took office, DEA agents raided four dispensaries in Los Angeles, prompting confusion about the government's plans.
On the Net:
Justice Department memo on medical marijuana: http://blogs.usdoj.gov/blog/archives/192
Drug Enforcement Administration: http://www.usdoj.gov/dea/
Marijuana Policy Project: http://www.mpp.org/ "


Anti-hippie authoritarians are threatened and PISSED by this...

[FOTD]

AMA Calls for Review of Medical Marijuana's Legal Status-New Policy Marks Historic Shift

HOUSTON - November 10 - In a move considered historic by supporters of medical marijuana, the American Medical Association's House of Delegates today adopted a new policy position calling for the review of marijuana's status as a Schedule I drug in the federal Controlled Substances Act. The old language in Policy H-95.952 had previously recommended that "marijuana be retained in Schedule I," which groups marijuana with drugs such as heroin, LSD and PCP that are deemed to have no accepted medical uses and to be unsafe for use even under medical supervision.

The revised policy, adopted today, states, "Our AMA urges that marijuana's status as a federal Schedule I controlled substance be reviewed with the goal of facilitating the conduct of clinical research and development of cannabinoid-based medicines, and alternate delivery methods." It goes on to explain that this position should not be construed as an endorsement of state medical marijuana programs.

"This shift, coming from what has historically been America's most cautious and conservative major medical organization, is historic," said Aaron Houston, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project, who attended the AMA meeting. "Marijuana's Schedule I status is not just scientifically untenable, given the wealth of recent data showing it to be both safe and effective for chronic pain and other conditions, but it's been a major obstacle to needed research."

Drugs listed in Schedule II, for which medical use is permitted with strict controls, include cocaine, morphine and methamphetamine. A pill containing THC, the component responsible for marijuana's "high," is classed in Schedule III, whose looser requirements allow phoned-in prescriptions.


Read more: http://www.commondreams.org/newswire/2009/11/10-1

[waterboy]

Where exactly would they classify Alice B. Toklas brownies? General Mills would like to know.

[guido911]

Men: Using medical marijuana on an airplane can get your a$$ kicked by a woman and the same a$$ thrown in jail.

http://www.nbcsandiego.com/news/local-beat/He-Messed-With-the-Wrong-Flight-Attendant--83757722.html