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Originally posted by priveye03 I think there is to big an assumption here that if in fact it is legalized, then everyone is going to walk around stoned. Switzerland and the Netherlands both enjoy lower rates of adolescent marijuana use than the U.S. Such a system would reduce many of the problems presently associated with the prohibition of marijuana, including the crime, corruption and violence associated with a "black market." It's my personal opinion that it should be treated exactly the same as alcohol, i.e. 21 and over, and that all of the alcohol laws should apply to pot, DWI minor in possetion heavy machinary etc. Sheit I'll continue this later, I'm late for psychology

Amsterdam is the land of the hedonists. No biggie if that's your thang.

From wikipedia -

The black market is the sector of economic activity involving illegal economic dealings, typically the buying and selling of merchandise illegally. The goods may be themselves illegal, such as the sale of prohibited weapons or the illegal drug trade; the merchandise may be stolen; or the merchandise may be otherwise legal goods sold illicitly to avoid tax payments or licensing requirements, such as cigarettes or unregistered firearms. It is so called because "black economy" or "black market" affairs are conducted outside the law, and so are necessarily conducted "in the dark", out of the sight of the law.

And if we look at history, when Prohibition ended, only half the breweries that had previously existed reopened. Many small breweries were out of business for good. And the lowered cost of producing alcohol legally increased competition, pushing the alcohol out of the organized crimes hand and lowering their profits to almost nothing, forcing them to move onto businesses such as the illegal drug trade.

So do I think it could be regulated? Yes, I honostly do. You could put restrictions on exactly how much marijuana could be bought. Also age limit restrictions by way of checking a persons drivers license.
And if you can prove to me that it would have an adverse effect on American society then it did on Switzerland and the Netherlands, then please do so. But those 2 cultures are the best examples that we have to go off of and I restate again, both countries have lower rates of adolescent marijuana use then the U.S.

And I think to often people associate the entire culture of the Netherlands with that of Amsterdam. Amsterdam is Amsterdam, not the entire country. And maybe it is my thang

Back to studying for finals.

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Originally posted by priveye03 So do I think it could be regulated? Yes, I honostly do. You could put restrictions on exactly how much marijuana could be bought. Also age limit restrictions by way of checking a persons drivers license. And if you can prove to me that it would have an adverse effect on American society then it did on Switzerland and the Netherlands, then please do so. But those 2 cultures are the best examples that we have to go off of and I restate again, both countries have lower rates of adolescent marijuana use then the U.S.

And let's not kid ourselves--it ain't exactly cheap! It's not like it suddenly gets legalized, everyone and their mother go out and buy a dime bag and start having an occasional puff. That shit costs money. Hell, my beer habit costs me enough already!

At least with some sort of government regulation, you theoretically get a much cheaper product that is generally much higher in quality. But even though the price of the stuff would go down, it sure as hell likely wouldn't be like a chewing gum habit. At the same time, it would no doubt take significant and substantial downside to the prospects of dealing in the black market. In a more lax world, if you really wanted to maintain premium pricing (from an independent dealer standpoint), you could label yourself as a "premium brand" grower and incorporate and get government approval of your product. Then just market yourself as such and sell for a higher price. The laws of supply and demand will tell you how good your product is. And if the government gets a bigger chunk in the form of tax revenue, they very well could be happy.

But lets not kid ourselves. It's still not cheap and it's not likely that the whole nation would become pot smokers overnight. One could even argue that the sudden ease of availability might cause some people to indulge less given that it is constantly available to them. And maybe not.

wait...you're using ...wykopedia as an exmaple of the underworld...ok then

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out of all of that you got

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wait...you're using ...wykopedia as an exmaple of the underworld...ok then

I like it

How about from the dictionary:
1. The illegal business of buying or selling goods or currency in violation of restrictions such as price controls or rationing.
2. A place where these illegal operations are carried on.

That and shakka, I should smoke you out sometime

Oh and just randomly did anyone besides me see this article? http://www.medpagetoday.com/Neurology/GeneralNeurology/tb/1934
Good read.

Last edited by priveye03 on Dec-08-2005 at 03:43

I consider myself a "man of science and medicine," (whatever that means), and my thought process is as follows.

If we find no problem with people drinking, smoking tobacco, taking over the counter medicines or presecription drugs for that matter, all in the hopes of either alleviating pain or temporarily altering reality, then why do we have a problem if someone uses a plant to do the same thing that is argueably safer than any of the substances mentioned before?

The key to all of this is moderation, but the people who are abusing marijuana now will do so if legal or not, and I don't see a huge population of potential abusers out there waiting for legalization. After all, who argueably are the worst abusers of alcohol in the United States? Underage drinkers, who alcohol is illegal for.

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Originally posted by priveye03 out of all of that you got I like it How about from the dictionary: 1. The illegal business of buying or selling goods or currency in violation of restrictions such as price controls or rationing. 2. A place where these illegal operations are carried on. That and shakka, I should smoke you out sometime Oh and just randomly did anyone besides me see this article? http://www.medpagetoday.com/Neurolo...urology/tb/1934 Good read.

hehe i never meant any offense, i just wanted to point out that the black market isn't that dependant on weed.

Another problem i heard with legalizing a popular drug such as weed is the fact that other drugs will become cheaper. what do you guys think about that?

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Originally posted by NeoPhono The key to all of this is moderation...

+1 One of the main pillars of my personal philosophy.

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Originally posted by Shakka +1 One of the main pillars of my personal philosophy.

I don't trust anyone that doesn't abuse alcohol.

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Originally posted by Lepanto yup. everyone walks around here drunk

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Originally posted by occrider I don't trust anyone that doesn't abuse alcohol.

Lol. I am a moderate abuser. I get hangovers just like the next moderate abuser! Some worse than others depending on my poison of choice the night before. Wine and champagne are killers. The only cure for a hangover of that magnitude is 2 Advil liquigels, 1 full strength Coke, a glass of water and possibly a nice fat bowl...natures pain medicine. A greasy spoon breakfast never hurts either, provided the stomach can take it.

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Originally posted by Shakka Lol. I am a moderate abuser. I get hangovers just like the next moderate abuser! Some worse than others depending on my poison of choice the night before. Wine and champagne are killers. The only cure for a hangover of that magnitude is 2 Advil liquigels, 1 full strength Coke, a glass of water and possibly a nice fat bowl...natures pain medicine. A greasy spoon breakfast never hurts either, provided the stomach can take it.

Proof that there is an intelligent designer:

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/HEALTH/...er.damage.reut/

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