Amendment 64 Passes: Colorado Legalizes Marijuana For Recreational Use

[kirksnosehair]

Medical Marijuana passed here in MA too 

[Cool Chris]

Passed here in WA. Or at least is headed that way, might still be too close to call at this point.

Don't smoke, and this won't make me start. It's a flawed initiative as EB mentioned, but glad the states are doing something about this nonsense war on drugs.

[black_biff_stadler]

THC stays in your system WAY longer than other drugs.  Even weeks depending on usage levels.

Being in your system doesn't equal impairment though. Weed may stay in your system for a good 30 days but normal usage will result in you being straight as an arrow in as little as a couple hours and absolutely no more than 5 or 6 hours even if you're a first timer and went nuts.

[Scorpion]

Does this now make marijuana exempt from Forum Rule 11?

[Chino]

Passed here in WA. Or at least is headed that way, might still be too close to call at this point.

Don't smoke, and this won't make me start. It's a flawed initiative as EB mentioned, but glad the states are doing something about this nonsense war on drugs.

Just curious. Is it  the smoking that turns you off, or the drug? Would you ingest it?

[Cool Chris]

Passed here in WA. Or at least is headed that way, might still be too close to call at this point.

Don't smoke, and this won't make me start. It's a flawed initiative as EB mentioned, but glad the states are doing something about this nonsense war on drugs.

Just curious. Is it  the smoking that turns you off, or the drug? Would you ingest it?

My college roommate and his buddies smoked ALL THE TIME (his room was like when Spicoli and his buds get out of their van in Fast Times…) and the smoke just annoyed me. And they just sat around all the time when I wanted to go out to the clubs and drink and meet chicks. So pot became a lame drug in my mind. I’m not against it, I just never liked smoking anything and always preferred alcohol.

[Ben_Jamin]

Passed here in WA. Or at least is headed that way, might still be too close to call at this point.

Don't smoke, and this won't make me start. It's a flawed initiative as EB mentioned, but glad the states are doing something about this nonsense war on drugs.

Just curious. Is it  the smoking that turns you off, or the drug? Would you ingest it?

My college roommate and his buddies smoked ALL THE TIME (his room was like when Spicoli and his buds get out of their van in Fast Times…) and the smoke just annoyed me. And they just sat around all the time when I wanted to go out to the clubs and drink and meet chicks. So pot became a lame drug in my mind. I’m not against it, I just never liked smoking anything and always preferred alcohol.

What if they feel the same about alcohol and clubbing? Im just saying, I understand the smoke being a bother though. Shit, I'd respect it if my roommate didn't indulge and would've made oils, butter, vaporized, that is if you didn't mind the smell.

[MetalMike06]

Yeah I don't smoke, but if people keep do it responsibly without harming others, I see no reason to throw them in cages. This is all a great start. I'm interested to see whether the DEA cracks down on it or not.

[Cool Chris]

Passed here in WA. Or at least is headed that way, might still be too close to call at this point.

Don't smoke, and this won't make me start. It's a flawed initiative as EB mentioned, but glad the states are doing something about this nonsense war on drugs.

Just curious. Is it  the smoking that turns you off, or the drug? Would you ingest it?

My college roommate and his buddies smoked ALL THE TIME (his room was like when Spicoli and his buds get out of their van in Fast Times…) and the smoke just annoyed me. And they just sat around all the time when I wanted to go out to the clubs and drink and meet chicks. So pot became a lame drug in my mind. I’m not against it, I just never liked smoking anything and always preferred alcohol.

What if they feel the same about alcohol and clubbing? Im just saying, I understand the smoke being a bother though. Shit, I'd respect it if my roommate didn't indulge and would've made oils, butter, vaporized, that is if you didn't mind the smell.

I was a dumb 20 year old kid. I was just commenting on how I felt that the time. I am 36 now, older (though maybe not much wiser).

[Ħ]

While I don't really care about marijuana being legal, I do wonder if this is the gateway drug for the legality of much more dangerous substances.

[Jaffa]

While I don't really care about marijuana being legal, I do wonder if this is the gateway drug for the legality of much more dangerous substances.

It isn't.

[Ħ]

Well, we'll see, I guess.

[Jaffa]

There will absolutely be someone at a town hall meeting somewhere advocating the legalization of cocaine (there probably already is), but I'm willing to bet fingers that that never finds its way onto a ballot.

[Adami]

While I don't really care about marijuana being legal, I do wonder if this is the gateway drug for the legality of much more dangerous substances.

I sure hope so.



Plus, dangerous drugs are already legal. Just not all of them.

[theseoafs]

No.  People are pushing for marijuana legalization precisely because it's not dangerous (much less dangerous than alcohol, anyway, and that hasn't opened the doors to cocaine/meth legalization).

[Ħ]

Plus, dangerous drugs are already legal. Just not all of them.

Which are you talking about? Tobacco?

[Adami]

Plus, dangerous drugs are already legal. Just not all of them.

Which are you talking about? Tobacco?

Well that, plus alcohol, plus the medicines which are easily obtained.

[El Barto]

Yeah I don't smoke, but if people keep do it responsibly without harming others, I see no reason to throw them in cages. This is all a great start. I'm interested to see whether the DEA cracks down on it or not.

They'll crack down because it's in their own interest to do so.  Like most bureaucracies, their interest is in fighting the war, not winning or losing.  This is easy money to them.  They'll run interdiction all hell over Colorado so they can seize vehicles and houses.  Same with the neighboring states, who are the real winners in this whole deal.  If you're the sheriff of Colfax County New Mexico, the first thing you did this morning was to order up 6 brand new cop cars and hire an architectural firm to design your new HQ.  They'll bust 2 cars a day, which means they get to keep the car, and if they're heading Northbound, the cash too. 

[Ħ]

Do you think that legality of drugs that are better than cocaine but worse than alcohol/tobacco is on the table? Like MDMA?

[KevShmev]

Plus, dangerous drugs are already legal. Just not all of them.

Which are you talking about? Tobacco?

Well that, plus alcohol, plus the medicines which are easily obtained.

Yep, like paxil and some other anti-depressants, which can have devastating effects. 

[El Barto]

Do you think that legality of drugs that are better than cocaine but worse than alcohol/tobacco is on the table? Like MDMA?

X has valid medicinal uses, so it wouldn't surprise me to see it rescheduled.  Outright legalization would never happen, though.  The Man's spent too many years scaring the hell out of people concerning such drugs.  All you really need to look at is his stance on some of the new designer drugs that are coming out.  They only really care that it'll get you high, and that's what will prompt prohibition; not any perceived harmful effects.  Those are suggested afterward as a rationale.  Tons of scare tactics, and no real science other than "they'll make you eat people!!!" 

[Scheavo]

While I don't really care about marijuana being legal, I do wonder if this is the gateway drug for the legality of much more dangerous substances.

I hope it at least gets the discussion going against decriminalization of those drugs. Absolutely no one benefits from making cocaine illegal, or for arresting and putting in jail people who are sniffing some cocaine. Most of the more commonly thought of "more dangerous" substances, are in fact not much more dangerous. Alcohol is probably worse than cocaine.

[El Barto]

I don't see coke being legalized for the simple reason that it's so addictive.  The cost keeps it in check for most people, but then there's rock, and we've seen what that'll do to a community.  To be clear, I don't think prohibition helps anybody and legalization probably would, but realistically I don't see it happening.

In terms of other drugs being legalized, I'd say that acid and shrooms are probably the most likely.  Non-addictive.  Benign.  Self limiting.  It'd really just be a matter of getting past all the fear-mongering from the 60's.  Still, we're a very long way from that being possible. 

[Scheavo]

To be clear, I wasn't advocating the legalization of cocaine, just the decriminalization of it. Get caught with it? Pay a fine. If it's involved in another crime, than require you to go to a treatment center.

As for hallucinogens, most of them have medical benefits. There's a long-term Ivy leage study about the effects of psilocybin (mushrooms), and it shows that in most cases, it's a life-changing event with long-term beneficial effects; they can help people get over OCD, phobias, and other serious mental illnesses.

[El Barto]

And somewhat ironically, treating alcoholism.  Huh, I wonder if there's a connection there. 

[Scheavo]

Oh of course not, there isn't an alcohol lobby that's intent on keeping control of the market, no way

[Rathma]

Yeah I don't smoke, but if people keep do it responsibly without harming others, I see no reason to throw them in cages. This is all a great start. I'm interested to see whether the DEA cracks down on it or not.

They'll crack down because it's in their own interest to do so.  Like most bureaucracies, their interest is in fighting the war, not winning or losing.  This is easy money to them.  They'll run interdiction all hell over Colorado so they can seize vehicles and houses.  Same with the neighboring states, who are the real winners in this whole deal.  If you're the sheriff of Colfax County New Mexico, the first thing you did this morning was to order up 6 brand new cop cars and hire an architectural firm to design your new HQ.  They'll bust 2 cars a day, which means they get to keep the car, and if they're heading Northbound, the cash too.

Haha, you make the police and DEA sound like they're some sort of gang!

[El Barto]

They are.

[Rathma]

Just found this

Furthermore, U.N. treaties oblige all signatories to prohibit the legalization of marijuana as well as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

https://world.time.com/2012/11/08/from-mexico-to-moscow-the-world-turns-on-to-u-s-marijuana-legalization/

Could this be an excuse the administration will use for their crackdowns?

[theliloutkast]

The biggest thing I've never been able to figure out is: How did our government decide what drugs should be legal and what should be illegal?


Obviously the best answer, in my opinion, is money. What can they control, and what can't they control to turn a profit. I'm just interested if anyone has a real report on how the government made said decisions.

[Orbert]

Just found this

Furthermore, U.N. treaties oblige all signatories to prohibit the legalization of marijuana as well as cocaine, heroin and methamphetamine.

https://world.time.com/2012/11/08/from-mexico-to-moscow-the-world-turns-on-to-u-s-marijuana-legalization/

Could this be an excuse the administration will use for their crackdowns?

Interesting.  The primary focus has been how in the heck we can make it work here in the U.S., and I'd never even considered what the rest of the world might think, or how it might affect them.  Apparently, they have "turned on" to this.  I'm sure that choice of words was not accidental.

[senecadawg2]

While flawed, this certainly is a step in the right direction for CO. 

As for other, 'more dangerous' drugs... While I don't think we will see cocaine legalized, hopefully we begin to more seriously move towards decriminalizing its use.

[Chino]

The biggest thing I've never been able to figure out is: How did our government decide what drugs should be legal and what should be illegal?

Race.

[Adami]

The biggest thing I've never been able to figure out is: How did our government decide what drugs should be legal and what should be illegal?

Race.

Mostly true. Drugs like acid and meth and so forth had nothing to do with race, but weed, coke, heroin etc mostly did.

[El Barto]

The US doesn't give a damn what the UN says or wants if it's not something already in our interests.  It needs no justification other than the one it's already been using, which is that it's a violation of federal law.

As for why it's prohibited by law, it seems much the same as alcohol prohibition in the twenties.  Basically, if it gets you high, it's bad.  Like I mentioned earlier, the reaction to synthetic pot points pretty clearly to that.  It was banned in most states rather quickly, well before anybody tried to establish if it was actually harmful or not.  The harm is from the intoxication. Same thing with Salvia and the new phenethylamines popping up.

Counter-cultural thinking is a deadly threat to the American way of life!

Race.

I'm not sure if that's really the case or not, although it was certainly a useful tactic in the 30's.  Again, it was the "getting high" part that troubled people.  Convincing America that all of our white women would get stoned and start banging negroes was just a scare tactic.

Crack, on the other hand, was entirely racially motivated.  Or probably more accurately, driven by the desire to fill our new for-profit prisons with less desirable citizens.  America wanted convicts, and affluent coke users are better citizens than poor crackheads.