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Marijuana Legalized in Washington and Colorado

We'll have to see how the feds handle this. They're likely to be more tolerant under Obama than a Romney administration would have been.
 
The crazy thing about this issue is that we are 50 seperate states one being kinda its own country making there own laws but the feds still have the final say so this is going to be interesting once the bill goes into effect only reason I say the feds won't mess with these states is because it can generate up to 60 mill a year from taxes which could be good for the economy
 
It will be very interesting to see how the feds address this. I am guessing this will end up tied up in courts for years before going into effect if it ever does.
 
This is the beginning of the end of prohibition, we're on our way to ending the drug war. I was upset about Obama winning, but this is exactly what this country needs.
 
SirSpace said:
The crazy thing about this issue is that we are 50 seperate states one being kinda its own country making there own laws but the feds still have the final say so this is going to be interesting once the bill goes into effect only reason I say the feds won't mess with these states is because it can generate up to 60 mill a year from taxes which could be good for the economy
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Not only will taxes be collected from the pot itself, but also from all the pizza that will be sold :smokingsomb:
 
SirSpace said:
The crazy thing about this issue is that we are 50 seperate states one being kinda its own country making there own laws but the feds still have the final say so this is going to be interesting once the bill goes into effect only reason I say the feds won't mess with these states is because it can generate up to 60 mill a year from taxes which could be good for the economy
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Well US states do have powers to legislate on a lot more stuff than is the norm in federal-states. Like they can just ban the export or something. In the Netherlands they have really tightened things up, like restricting sales to Dutch nationals and stuff.
 
It's only a matter of time for everyone else now, here in MA we got medical now, but of you think about it now that there are states that legalized recreational use it will be a ripple effect of legalization across the country just like when they originally legalized medical use out west.
 
I think it was a long time coming. Let people use it legally, pay taxes on it's sales, provide hopefully, a safer product but also enforce it like alcohol. No driving or operating heavy equipment. I think it can work.
 
ElasticNinja said:
Well US states do have powers to legislate on a lot more stuff than is the norm in federal-states. Like they can just ban the export or something. In the Netherlands they have really tightened things up, like restricting sales to Dutch nationals and stuff.
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I'm from the Netherlands. There are some issues over here since in some border areas there were problems with foreigners crossing the border simply for buying weed. In order to put an end to that the government decided that the stuff could only be bought by Dutch citizens who have to get a "weed pass" and will be registrated to get it. Officially sales are not restricted for them, but the idea of getting registrated doesn't appeal to a lot of them.
In some cities this caused the next problem, because the sales transferred to the streets and became illegal that way. The final word has not been said about all of this.
For example: the mayor of Amsterdam (of course) doesn't feel the need for this pass at all. Think of all the tourists who come to Amsterdam only for the so called "coffee shops" (for those who don't know: this has nothing to do with coffee).
And by the way: it appears that in Washington and Colorado the amount of stuff that can be bought per person is higher than in the Netherlands!
 
I'm Jeff Spicoli & I approve this message. :smokin::D:eating:

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I'm Jeff Spicoli & I approve this message. Haha that's funny
And also when the bill does go into effect how does the government have the right to say its illegal when they didn't even vote on the law. I mean yes the government says its illegal but if your in those 2 states your fine so where does the government draw the line and let the state do what it voted on. Honestly I think if this does go to the court its going to be a long argument cause if you think about it the 50 united states make up our government so really how do they even have a right to say its illegal when its each individual state that I think should have the final say on what goes on in there state
 
SirSpace said:
I'm Jeff Spicoli & I approve this message. Haha that's funny
And also when the bill does go into effect how does the government have the right to say its illegal when they didn't even vote on the law. I mean yes the government says its illegal but if your in those 2 states your fine so where does the government draw the line and let the state do what it voted on. Honestly I think if this does go to the court its going to be a long argument cause if you think about it the 50 united states make up our government so really how do they even have a right to say its illegal when its each individual state that I think should have the final say on what goes on in there state
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Because federal law trumps state law, and according to federal law marijuana is still illegal. But the feds have some leeway on how they choose to react to this. They could choose to ignore it, or they could send federal agents into Washington to stomp on every hippie they see smoking a joint in the park. My guess is this will effectively be more of a decriminalization than a real legalization, meaning they probably won't bother with people minding their own business, growing a few plants, maybe even selling a little to their friends. If somebody tries to open up a weed store in downtown Denver, the feds are going to shut that down. This is just a first step. We are still a long way from it really being sold openly with taxes collected on it. BUT, it is an important first step. Especially if more states pass laws like this, the feds won't fight it forever. Plus I'm sure the government would love to get their hands on all that tax money. I'm not sure how many more little old ladies they can get hooked on slot machines to boost revenue.
 
I know that MA loves anything that they can tax the crap out of. But in all honest if I remember right, this is how it started with the end of alcohol prohibition, state by state until it finally went federal.
 
well as someone with no stake in it either way...... I'll make an observation that could be good for either side of the argument

as the old saying goes........ crap or get off the pot (no pun intended here)

how many times are we going to see a state pass a law in direct conflict with federal law...... and the federal govt turn a blind eye?

this is no different than DADT, sanctuary cities, deviant marriage, etc

if the fed is going to sit by and ignore the laws by allowing states to do as they please then they should get rid of the laws

so one of two things should happen here by the fed.......... they should either completely decriminalize marijuana use OR they should enforce the law the same way they enforce things like the legal drinking age....... withhold all funds to any state who violates federal law
 
But here is what I don't get, why does the government let the law get passed in the first place if in the end the government is just going to over turn it anyway. Do they do it to prove a point b saying hey pass whatever you want but we have the final say. They need to stop looking at it like a drug and seeing the medicinal purposes behind it. I mean come on they let alcohol be legal and IMO alcohol is worse how many stories you hear of someone causing an accident and so on cause of weed you can't od on it. What's the sorste that can happen if you smoke to much you fall asleep or eat everything in your refigerator lol
 
kenzies_dad said:
I know that MA loves anything that they can tax the crap out of. But in all honest if I remember right, this is how it started with the end of alcohol prohibition, state by state until it finally went federal.
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Prohibition was a bit different. First of all, you had the Constitution that banned alcohol and you had a handful of states that were saying they were no longer going to go abide by the Constitution. Second of all, there were many, many people dieing from drinking wood alcohol and many more who were going blind and facing other serious health issues because of it. Third of all, you had all the crime and infighting among the bootleggers that was placing the public at risk. I'm not sure alcohol is an appropriate analogy here.
 
SirSpace said:
............... They need to stop looking at it like a drug and seeing the medicinal purposes behind it. I mean come on they let alcohol be legal and IMO alcohol is worse how many stories you hear of someone causing an accident and so on cause of weed you can't od on it. What's the sorste that can happen if you smoke to much you fall asleep or eat everything in your refigerator lol
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What do you mean by "stop looking at it like a drug". It is a drug! I don't mind if it's legal (I've never used it, by the way), but there are risks involved.
Over here (Netherlands), apart from alcohol tests used for possibly drunk drivers, also drug tests are being developed. It appears that driving under the influence of drugs can be dangerous: concentration and reaction speed drop dramatically. The better the quality (meaning more effect on the mind), the higher the risk, specially when combined with alcohol.
As far as I'm concerned: don't drink alcohol or use drugs when you have to drive or do anything that requires concentration and attention, and watch the frequency of use. Although not formally addictive, you can get used to the pleasant effects and use more and more.
 
Yes it is a drug and I do see both sides of the argument but back in the 20s they would sometime use ecstasy for blood clotting believe it or not and yes I know that's along time ago but I do smoke once in a while and do drink once in a while and IMO weeds has far more medicinal view behind it then just getting you "high" alcohol and the other hand does far worse things to you I'm just saying.
 
There is a difference between legalizing weed for medicinal purposes and for recreational purposes. Just saying. There are quite a few arguments against medicinal use to begin with and even more against recreational use IMO.
 
I was citing the fact that thats kind of how it is, a few states are doing that now. And you don't generally hear of people getting sick, dying or going blind from smoking home grown. But no matter how you look at it people are gonna do it, legal or not. Just as they always have. It makes sense to tax it and make money instead of spending obscene amounts to try and stop a harmless plant.
 
I don't necessarily disagree with any of that except how harmless it is. Studies on the long term effects of marijuana seem to vary. Anecdotally speaking I'm sure many of us have met long term users who seem to have fried their brain cells. Even then though, cigarettes and alcohol can have long term affects as well and those affects are well-known and well understood, but both are still legal.
 
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