[TheRealVille]

Do u think any of this will change if it gets legalized? Other than the government making money off of it?

Absolutely, yes. Kids won't be able to get it as easy, most dealers will be run out of business, and I personally think that a lot of the other drugs that get out of your system quicker, that are a lot stronger, will lose a lot of peoples' interest. You can smoke weed and the effect will last a couple of hours, yet the evidence, as the body metabolizes it, will be in your urine and hair for a month, or more. You can do cocaine, and it will leave no evidence in about 72-96 hours. If a worker that wants to indulge over a long weekend, which do you think they will pick? Right, the drug that leaves no evidence after a short time, yet is far more dangerous than weed. Plus, the main peddlers of the harder drugs, will mostly not have a business anymore. I know when buying weed off of a dealer, they say "hey, if you like weed, you'll love cocaine". It's much stronger, and can kill. That shuts down that aspect of their business. As for dealers, look at how bootleggers fair after alcohol goes legal. During prohibition, crime and bootlegging soared. It is even given credit for starting the great crime spree and gangs of the 20-30's. If their is no need for dealers, they will eventually, mostly, die out, just like the bootleggers did. It is a known fact that prohibition didn't work, and prohibition of weed is no different. 50 million people prove that. Why not legalize it, regulate it, tax it, and the biggest thing, make it harder for under 21's to get it. It's like anything else, a few people will slip under the door, in all categories above, but it will be a lot better than it is now. I'm telling you, if you really want to know the truth about weed, and dispel a lot of the rumors, watch the movie I posted, it will tell you tons about weed, and how the government did a lot of covering up, and wrangling when they were making it illegal. It's posted in this thread. If anybody wants the real truth about weed, it's a must see.

[crazytaxidriver]

I can see where that could work and if I works out that way I hope it does. My only problem with what u just said is that people just use the other drugs cause it leaves the system faster.

Some people might. I don't know everyone so can only speak for a few. But because it leaves the body faster has never been the reason I did cocaine or something of that nature. I don't know your experience with hard drugs, but because of my own I can tell you that the high is totally different, which I'm sure u are aware, and for me it was better. Opiates were my problem. I loved them. And I would have given 100 pounds of weed for a half gram of black tar.

The only advantage that I can think of would be that weed would be easier to get so it may deter some kids from trying the harder stuff. If it works out that way if be all for it. But I think it will ultimately enable kids to pursue harder stuff. Not all but some. However, if that number drops from what it is now then go ahead. I'm not so naieve to think kids are perfect as things are, so I'm all about making this place better. But ultimately I think it will basically be the same thing as hosting underage drinkers.

Just an FYI: I'm clean for a year now.

[TheRealVille]

I can see where that could work and if I works out that way I hope it does. My only problem with what u just said is that people just use the other drugs cause it leaves the system faster.

Some people might. I don't know everyone so can only speak for a few. But because it leaves the body faster has never been the reason I did cocaine or something of that nature. I don't know your experience with hard drugs, but because of my own I can tell you that the high is totally different, which I'm sure u are aware, and for me it was better. Opiates were my problem. I loved them. And I would have given 100 pounds of weed for a half gram of black tar.

The only advantage that I can think of would be that weed would be easier to get so it may deter some kids from trying the harder stuff. If it works out that way if be all for it. But I think it will ultimately enable kids to pursue harder stuff. Not all but some. However, if that number drops from what it is now then go ahead. I'm not so naieve to think kids are perfect as things are, so I'm all about making this place better. But ultimately I think it will basically be the same thing as hosting underage drinkers.

Just an FYI: I'm clean for a year now.

I have never done anything but pot. I never wanted anything else. Like I said, you will always have the ones that will try harder stuff anyway, but they would have to find a dealer for the harder stuff. Just like now, if someone wants hard drugs they will find them, but with weed legal, you take that dealer pushing the harder stuff on the weed people out of the equation, simply by being able to buy pot legally, you won't be around a drug dealer.

[TheRealVille]

^BTW, glad you got your life straightened out. You were on some dangerous stuff.

[judgementday]

With it now being legal in Washington and Colorado I guess we will see...

Seattle PD has already stated that they are not going to arrest anyone over 21 for possession of marijuana.

I will say this, I live in a dry county but yet there are drunk teens all over the place every weekend. Prohibition does not work when the public opinion accepts the use of it.

[judgementday]

I can see where that could work and if I works out that way I hope it does. My only problem with what u just said is that people just use the other drugs cause it leaves the system faster.

Some people might. I don't know everyone so can only speak for a few. But because it leaves the body faster has never been the reason I did cocaine or something of that nature. I don't know your experience with hard drugs, but because of my own I can tell you that the high is totally different, which I'm sure u are aware, and for me it was better. Opiates were my problem. I loved them. And I would have given 100 pounds of weed for a half gram of black tar.

The only advantage that I can think of would be that weed would be easier to get so it may deter some kids from trying the harder stuff. If it works out that way if be all for it. But I think it will ultimately enable kids to pursue harder stuff. Not all but some. However, if that number drops from what it is now then go ahead. I'm not so naieve to think kids are perfect as things are, so I'm all about making this place better. But ultimately I think it will basically be the same thing as hosting underage drinkers.

Just an FYI: I'm clean for a year now.

Congrats!

My brother wasn't so lucky.

[crazytaxidriver]

^im very sorry to hear that.

[Ballers]

Wow CTD I never knew..
I'm glad to hear that btw, I have family that aren't so lucky as well.

[TheRealThing]

With all due respect to those who have suffering family members with lives ravenged by drug use. There are far more stories of tragedy and loss than the sanguine antics of innocence, devoid of any real harmful effects, as depicted by some on here. No less dangerous than putting a slug in a revolver, spinning the chamber and clicking once with the barrel to one's head. It's playing Russian Roulette with your life, and the ramifications are devastating for most who dare to play the game. Not to mention, those who love them must endure the loss of promise and hope for those ensnared.

[TheRealVille]

With all due respect to those who have suffering family members with lives ravenged by drug use. There are far more stories of tragedy and loss than the sanguine antics of innocence, devoid of any real harmful effects, as depicted by some on here. No less dangerous than putting a slug in a revolver, spinning the chamber and clicking once with the barrel to one's head. It's playing Russian Roulette with your life, and the ramifications are devastating for most who dare to play the game. Not to mention, those who love them must endure the loss of promise and hope for those ensnared.

Other drugs, not marijuana. I'll agree with you on every drug, but pot.

[TheRealThing]

Other drugs, not marijuana. I'll agree with you on every drug, but pot.

Our experiences with pot differ greatly. I saw a lot of friends graduate from pot to hard drugs. Some of them died within months, some wound up in jail for crimes associated with drug use and some descended into a world where all that mattered was getting high. My opinion is based on what I saw with my own eyes. Not saying it was pot 100, users 0. But, it was high enough a statistic to scare me straight.

[TheRealVille]

Our experiences with pot differ greatly. I saw a lot of friends graduate from pot to hard drugs. Some of them died within months, some wound up in jail for crimes associated with drug use and some descended into a world where all that mattered was getting high. My opinion is based on what I saw with my own eyes. Not saying it was pot 100, users 0. But, it was high enough a statistic to scare me straight.

I have many friends that only smoke pot, and have never touched anything else.

[Hoot Gibson]

I have many friends that only smoke pot, and have never touched anything else.

Unless you know nobody who has smoked pot and then graduated to more dangerous drugs, then you are not disagreeing with TRT. But what gives you or anybody else the right to determine what is a "good" recreational drug and what is a "bad" recreational drug for all Americans? There are people who use cocaine and other "hard" drugs, who manage to hold jobs and pay taxes. The same arguments that apply to making marijuana use legal applies to any other illegal drug.

Marijuana is a gateway drug. Not everybody walks through the gate and uses more dangerous drugs, but a person who breaks the law to use marijuana is more likely to break the law to use other drugs than somebody who never steps through the gate. If marijuana use is legalized, then some other illegal drug will become the new gateway drug of choice.

I do not see how anybody can advocate legalizing marijuana use on a personal liberty basis and oppose legalizing any other drug. It reminds me of the argument in favor of gay marriage that says marriage has always been between two adults, so gay marriage is okay but polygamy is wrong. Saying that marijuana use should be legal but harder drugs should not be legal is like saying that it is okay if a single girl gets a little bit pregnant. If it should be legal for a person to alter their state of consciousness by smoking, injecting, or ingesting a foreign substance into their body, then it should be nobody else's business what that foreign substance is, provided that they alone suffer the consequences of their own stupidity.

I am in favor of the legalization of drug use because I support the law of natural selection. Let us identify the willingly weak links of our species and remove them from civilized society. If somebody claims that they can be a productive and responsible citizen and smoke weed, then let us give them an opportunity to prove it...or not. I am tired of paying for the revolving door prison system that sometimes frees violent criminals to make room for perpetrators of victimless crimes like drug users and prostitutes.

(I know that one can make arguments that such crimes are not victimless because they impact spouses, children, etc., but I am speaking in terms relative to violent offenses here.)

[TheRealVille]

Unless you know nobody who has smoked pot and then graduated to more dangerous drugs, then you are not disagreeing with TRT. But what gives you or anybody else the right to determine what is a "good" recreational drug and what is a "bad" recreational drug for all Americans? There are people who use cocaine and other "hard" drugs, who manage to hold jobs and pay taxes. The same arguments that apply to making marijuana use legal applies to any other illegal drug.

Marijuana is a gateway drug. Not everybody walks through the gate and uses more dangerous drugs, but a person who breaks the law to use marijuana is more likely to break the law to use other drugs than somebody who never steps through the gate. If marijuana use is legalized, then some other illegal drug will become the new gateway drug of choice.

I do not see how anybody can advocate legalizing marijuana use on a personal liberty basis and oppose legalizing any other drug. It reminds me of the argument in favor of gay marriage that says marriage has always been between two adults, so gay marriage is okay but polygamy is wrong. Saying that marijuana use should be legal but harder drugs should not be legal is like saying that it is okay if a single girl gets a little bit pregnant. If it should be legal for a person to alter their state of consciousness by smoking, injecting, or ingesting a foreign substance into their body, then it should be nobody else's business what that foreign substance is, provided that they alone suffer the consequences of their own stupidity.

I am in favor of the legalization of drug use because I support the law of natural selection. Let us identify the willingly weak links of our species and remove them from civilized society. If somebody claims that they can be a productive and responsible citizen and smoke weed, then let us give them an opportunity to prove it...or not. I am tired of paying for the revolving door prison system that sometimes frees violent criminals to make room for perpetrators of victimless crimes like drug users and prostitutes.

(I know that one can make arguments that such crimes are not victimless because they impact spouses, children, etc., but I am speaking in terms relative to violent offenses here.)

The only thing that makes marijuana a gateway drug is the fact that the same dealers that peddle pot, peddle the other drugs. If it is made legal, and available, without dealers pushing the harder stuff, the gateway goes away. There is nothing with pot, in and of it's self, that makes it a gateway drug, other than the "dealer" part. What makes a drug a gateway drug is if continued use weakens it's effect on people, and they look for something to get that "high" back. After years of smoking pot, you still get the same high, therefore, it isn't a gateway drug in it's self.

[TheRealVille]

There is also no addictive quality with pot, no withdrawal symptoms, unlike the other harder drugs.

[Hoot Gibson]

The only thing that makes marijuana a gateway drug is the fact that the same dealers that peddle pot, peddle the other drugs. If it is made legal, and available, without dealers pushing the harder stuff, the gateway goes away. There is nothing with pot, in and of it's self, that makes it a gateway drug, other than the "dealer" part. What makes a drug a gateway drug is if continued use weakens it's effect on people, and they look for something to get that "high" back. After years of smoking pot, you still get the same high, therefore, it isn't a gateway drug in it's self.

What makes marijuana a gateway drug is that smoking it is against the law. Once one decides that it is okay to break the law to get high on one illegal drug, it is easier to justify breaking the law to get high on another. When marijuana use becomes legal, then the part of the thrill that some get in breaking the law will be gone, except for those who are under age and buyin it illegally. Like I said, the fact that not everybody chooses to step through the marijuana gate to use harder drugs does not mean that it is not a gateway drug.

Dealers only offer products that are in demand and the demand for more potent drugs will not go away when marijuana becomes legal. As long as people want to numb their senses and impair their judgment with drugs, there will be dealers to meet the demand, legal or not.

[TheRealVille]

What makes marijuana a gateway drug is that smoking it is against the law. Once one decides that it is okay to break the law to get high on one illegal drug, it is easier to justify breaking the law to get high on another. When marijuana use becomes legal, then the part of the thrill that some get in breaking the law will be gone, except for those who are under age and buyin it illegally. Like I said, the fact that not everybody chooses to step through the marijuana gate to use harder drugs does not mean that it is not a gateway drug.

Dealers only offer products that are in demand and the demand for more potent drugs will not go away when marijuana becomes legal. As long as people want to numb their senses and impair their judgment with drugs, there will be dealers to meet the demand, legal or not.

Do you drink alcohol?

[Hoot Gibson]

Do you drink alcohol?

Rarely. Mostly to toast promotions, etc. related to work. Never to "take the edge off" or get a buzz. I enjoy my life sober. If people want to drink and stay off the road, then it's none of my business, but I pretty much stopped drinking when I graduated from college.

[TheRealThing]

The only thing that makes marijuana a gateway drug is the fact that the same dealers that peddle pot, peddle the other drugs. If it is made legal, and available, without dealers pushing the harder stuff, the gateway goes away. There is nothing with pot, in and of it's self, that makes it a gateway drug, other than the "dealer" part. What makes a drug a gateway drug is if continued use weakens it's effect on people, and they look for something to get that "high" back. After years of smoking pot, you still get the same high, therefore, it isn't a gateway drug in it's self.

You know, you might be able to get away with blowing all this smoke (pun intended) if you weren't talking to people who are in every way your equal. But, you are. Not only is marijuanna a gateway drug, it is THE gateway drug. I can tell you first hand that pot smokers have waaay fewer inhibitions than do their peers as a general rule. People who smoke pot are more reckless on a personal level and more willing to cross social and legal lines to entertain themselves. Citizens of the drug culture sort of share a certain commonality or understanding among them. LET'S PARTY! Anywhere, anytime, and with anybody.

To a large degree it is the American taxpayer who yet again finds himself being stuck with the bill for all these revelries. Pot smokers like to party, they stay up late and let the dogs howl every darn night, (and day). Consequently, they don't like to work and, because our government has decided to buy all of our citizen's problems through ill-advised liberal give away programs resultant of federal policy making such as "Great Society" measures, they don't have to. They just party and eat and make babies. And, those left among us who live responsibly are forced to subsidize their depraved lifestyles with our 'extorted' tax dollars. Such federally protected and therefore legislated folly represents a major contributing factor to our national debt, and helps to explain what ever happened to the personal integrity that once compelled all Americans to get out of bed in the morning and go to work to support their families.

Pot smoking is far from harmless.

[TheRealVille]

^Tell us about all of the pot you've smoked in your lifetime. I'm a "pot smoker", and I can tell you for a fact you don't have a clue. You might have a small sampling of how some are, but not the majority.

[TheRealThing]

^Tell us about all of the pot you've smoked in your lifetime. I'm a "pot smoker", and I can tell you for a fact you don't have a clue. You might have a small sampling of how some are, but not the majority.

No, I think I'll refrain from divulging that information. I will say this, I saw the adverse effects of pot smoking on two continents. In at least 6 European countries and across the US. Who are you trying to impress here? If it's me you might as well sheath your pen knife, cause it ain't workin. Unlike you, I have nothing to gain from coming on here and bragging on myself, because I have never told anyone who I am, therfore, your faulty logic has let you down once again. But, that is nothing new for you. BTW, until you gain a perspective that is truly yours, and not some party line rationale, there is precious little you can "tell me for a fact."

[Hoot Gibson]

^Tell us about all of the pot you've smoked in your lifetime. I'm a "pot smoker", and I can tell you for a fact you don't have a clue. You might have a small sampling of how some are, but not the majority.

Did you mean to say that you were a "pot smoker?" You seem to move between the present and past tenses when you talk about the experience that you believe qualifies you as an expert on this subject.

[TheRealVille]

Did you mean to say that you were a "pot smoker?" You seem to move between the present and past tenses when you talk about the experience that you believe qualifies you as an expert on this subject.

At present, I'm not smoking, but through the years, I have smoked a bunch. I wish I could quesstimate in pounds for you, but I don't have a clue.

[TheRealVille]

No, I think I'll refrain from divulging that information. I will say this, I saw the adverse effects of pot smoking on two continents. In at least 6 European countries and across the US. Who are you trying to impress here? If it's me you might as well sheath your pen knife, cause it ain't workin. Unlike you, I have nothing to gain from coming on here and bragging on myself, because I have never told anyone who I am, therfore, your faulty logic has let you down once again. But, that is nothing new for you. BTW, until you gain a perspective that is truly yours, and not some party line rationale, there is precious little you can "tell me for a fact."

In other words, you don't have much experience with "pot only" smoking. My pot smoking experience, and telling of it, has nothing to to with party, it is factual experience over a 30 year time period.

[TheRealVille]

^For the record, there is no bragging about smoking pot. If you don't like it, you shouldn't smoke. But, don't spread untruths about something with which you don't have a clue, or don't agree with.

[TheRealThing]

In other words, you don't have much experience with "pot only" smoking. My pot smoking experience, and telling of it, has nothing to to with party, it is factual experience over a 30 year time period.

At present, I'm not smoking, but through the years, I have smoked a bunch. I wish I could quesstimate in pounds for you, but I don't have a clue.

LOL, I love it when you testify RV. And in my experience, pot smoking leads to harder drugs regardless of your self proclaimed authority status. The gateway drug finding is a widely accepted opinion on the secular scene and many studies support the belief.

[TheRealThing]

^For the record, there is no bragging about smoking pot. If you don't like it, you shouldn't smoke. But, don't spread untruths about something with which you don't have a clue, or don't agree with.

Everything I posted about pot smoking is born of experience and is an honest report of what I have seen. I will defer to the readers to decide if your attempts to justify your own bad behavior and possibly lead others to make the same destructive mistakes others on here have talked about, is the stuff of lucid thought or not.

[TheRealVille]

Everything I posted about pot smoking is born of experience and is an honest report of what I have seen. I will defer to the readers to decide if your attempts to justify your own bad behavior and possibly lead others to make the same destructive mistakes others on here have talked about, is the stuff of lucid thought or not.

:thatsfunn Biased much? I have smoked on and off for 30 years, and can, and do hold down a job, and stay straight anytime I want. Who get's to decide if my behavior is bad, you?

[TheRealVille]

LOL, I love it when you testify RV. And in my experience, pot smoking leads to harder drugs regardless of your self proclaimed authority status. The gateway drug finding is a widely accepted opinion on the secular scene and many studies support the belief.

Meaning I don't have a clue how many pounds I've smoked in 30 years. I don't keep record. I can and do quit anytime I need to. Further proof that it's not addictive, and not a gateway drug. There is absolutely no withdrawals, unlike alcohol, coffee, and tobacco.

[Hoot Gibson]

Meaning I don't have a clue how many pounds I've smoked in 30 years. I don't keep record. I can and do quit anytime I need to. Further proof that it's not addictive, and not a gateway drug. There is absolutely no withdrawals, unlike alcohol, coffee, and tobacco.

I don't think that gateway drug means what you think that it means. The phrase is not synonymous with "addictive." Would you deny that users of most other non-prescription, illegal drugs used marijuana before they tried the harder stuff?

Whether marijuana is addictive or not is irrelevant to the question of whether it is a gateway to more dangerous drugs. Even if marijuana was highly addictive, it would not make people physically and mentally crave another addictive drug. People who break the law to use any kind of drug tend to be predisposed to break the law to use other drugs and it has nothing to do with addictions.