Contributors

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Blow Away, Dudes

Check out this article from the New York Times regarding the Department of Justice's decision to cease pursuing medical marijuana stores in various states where it is legal across the country. Honestly, I never thought I would see it happen but it's finally up to the states now.

I have no doubt that my state will be the LAST one in the US to ease any sort of marijuana restrictions (see: 90 foot pole up ass on any sort of happy, fun time) but I am still quite pleased. It's insane that this drug is not legal. The illegality of it has caused our already over filled jails to be filled more and has fueled the Mexican drug cartels violence. States can now pursue sensible restrictions and penalties that don't send someone to jail for a minimum of 25 years.

And an extra stream of tax revenue will mean help for states like California who are having severe budget problems.

But the best part? Certain people have to now admit that the words "less federal government" and "the Obama administration" must be used in tandem. Hee Hee....

9 comments:

blk said...

I don't smoke, drink or do drugs. I think taking drugs is foolish, potentially self-destructive, and often addictive or causes psychological dependence. It is sad that so many people need a crutch to distract themselves from their problems.

But the drug laws don't work and are bankrupting this country by forcing us to spend hundreds of billions of dollars locking up people for doing things that are really no different than drinking beer.

Nearly all recreational drugs are available in a form that has a legitimate medical use. Those people with the right connections can abuse legal drugs and get away with a slap on the wrist (yeah, I'm talking about Rush Limbaugh for oxycodone and Viagra). People who self-medicate with street drugs are treated like criminals.

Many drugs are seriously bad for you. Heroin, meth, LSD and others can really mess you up. Distributing the bad drugs should remain illegal. Victims addicted to these drugs should be treated like alcoholics, not locked up in prison.

Alcohol is one of the most destructive drugs out there, yet we tolerate it. We have to because we already tried prohibiting it, and that just doesn't work. Drugs that are on a par with alcohol should be treated like alcohol. The marijuana and cocaine prohibitions are failing just like alcohol prohibition.

You can't solve the drug and alcohol problem with laws. It's a social, psychological and medical problem, not a legal problem.

The real problem is that people think getting stoned is cool. But being unable to control yourself isn't cool. Smashing a car into a tree isn't cool. Pissing yourself because you're so drunk you can't find your way to the toilet isn't cool. Or funny. It's pathetic.

Yet everyone who drinks seems to have a story about driving home drunk, or falling down stairs, or puking their guts out the day after. Yeah. That sounds so glamorous and so much fun.

And then there are the car accidents and spouse abuse that inevitably cluster around bouts of drinking and drug use.

We can't legislate this kind of stupidity away. We have to call it what it is and stop giving idiots a pass when they pull this sort of crap.

the cretin said...

Prohibition never works. The drug problem in this country has been made worse by them being illegal. All drugs should be legalized immediately which would take power away from the various Mexican gangs that murder people ever day.

How much this has fucked up our culture is shown quite well in the tv series The Wire.

Anonymous said...

Yes, because the individual lift on an individual drug - either through outright now enforcing policy or through changing its schedule level - is "less federal government."

The government still reserves the "right" to handle any of the scheduled drugs how it pleases. Tell me how relaxing on any of them is indicative of lessened government...

Kevin said...

I would like it better if it were actual law, rather than prosecutorial discretion based on this particular administration, as the hammer could easily drop when the next set comes in. Drugs should be legal. People should be able to make their own choices about what they put into their bodies without threat from the government. Course, you can kiss any of that goodbye if public healthcare passes...

Kevin said...

I would like it better if it were actual law, rather than prosecutorial discretion based on this particular administration, as the hammer could easily drop when the next set comes in. Drugs should be legal. People should be able to make their own choices about what they put into their bodies without threat from the government. Course, you can kiss any of that goodbye if public healthcare passes...

Mark Ward said...

Agreed, Kevin. It may just end up being a formality to legalize pot as I think many states will relax their laws so much that it won't matter.

Anon, leaving it up to the states IS the credo of the right. That's how it's less government.

Anonymous said...

"Anon, leaving it up to the states IS the credo of the right. That's how it's less government."

Hm. Strange. Must've missed my memo on "things the right believes."

Oh, wait, nevermind. Here it is - right next to my slave-beating manual.

You moron.

the iowa kid said...

I hate to be the one to tell you this, anon, but being a life long member of the Republican Party, as I am, does mean that states should have more power and the federal government should have less. This is why I support the over turning of Roe V Wade. It was never a federal decision and should be up to each state to decide about the legality of abortion.

While this pot thing is a small example of the curtailing of federal power, it is nothing compared to the far over reach of the federal government in other areas of our life now. It's like saying we won't touch your glass of water but we are going to take over the dam by your house.

juris imprudent said...

M, you are making a lot more of this than it is (about like you trumpeting the Obama admin as being "pro-RKBA"). It is a good first step, and a definite improvement on the Bush admin - although that would normally be called damning with faint praise. It is not a complete hands-off, it leaves a lot in limbo. I imagine this is what the liberal mind calls a nuanced approach. The upshot is that even in a state like CA where MM is legal (under state law), no one is certain that they have the Feds off their back.