mar1juana? With today's ever growing partisan politics, in which winning elections is more important than enacting legislature that could help the country, why doesn't one party or the other stand firm on legalization of mar1juana? Surely it would bring out the largest youth vote in the history of America, and the opposition to it is a fairly small group of culturally conditioned old white folks who believe its the devils work due to yellow journalism and false propaganda fueled by pharmaceuticals, alcohol, and tobacco companies that would stand to lose if it were made legal. I remember a Vice episode earlier this year that exposed the boom in economic activity in Colorado since state legalization, and the substantial decreases in Mexican Cartel profits in the region alone. So I ask you Clutchfans: Why doesn't one party or the other take up this issue which is seemingly less controversial than say gay marriage or abortion? Are our duly elected officials truly that deep in the pockets of these ultra lobbying groups?
I don't think the numbers are there just yet to where it would make any difference in elections, however, it could help mobilize the young vote which the Democrats desperately need so they might try to make it an issue in a few key states. I think their best ploy would be a minimum wage hike, young people are almost always foolish enough to think that a minimum wage hike would benefit them. Maybe both issues will be on the ballot.
There are multiple powerful lobbies against legalizing pot... I know an election is a good place to lie about what you are going to do for our country but you need money for a stage to lie from. We have a lot of enlightened atheist folks on this forum but most of the older Christians in this country will not vote for a candidate that is pushing pot. Neither will voters that are Muslim or pretty much any other religion. Rasta Mon It is sad that we are still fighting the imaginary demon that our government put up after prohibition ended but we are. Governments need demons to explain changes in taxes and to validate the existence of government. The US holds 25% of the worlds incarcerated population much of that is pot related.
Because most people don't care about mar1juana. Its one of those topics that is slowly taking care of itself, as it should be. Sweeping legislation is always a bad idea. There is always going to be criminal activity. Legalizing weed is not going to significantly reduce cartel crimes over the long run. They will only find a new medium.
We already have 2 test states that have legalized it and not had any apocalyptic events. People will realize that it the prohibition is not only a failure but completely silly. I just don't imagine any respectable politicians getting up and screaming for this. My hope for legalization is some of the "small" government champions of the right team up with the members of the left who support legalization and start pushing this through. Its a futile hope given our current political climate. As Space Ghost said this is an issue that will take care of itself and is accelerating towards legality. I just don't see this being taken seriously by those in power. We do need it to be immediately reclassified though, its schedule I status is completely ridiculous.
Which is why the aim of the decriminalization movement shouldn't just be to decriminalize mar1juana, but to decriminalize all drugs. The state doesn't have any right to criminalize consumption of particular substances. And the people who decide to consume those substances don't have the right to harm others. Some will argue that's what the result would be, but decriminalization doesn't mean that we'd be decriminalizing the harmful actions of people under the influence of drugs. The goal would be to make addiction a medical issue rather than a political issue. Prohibition, not just of mar1juana, is what empowers cartels and finances the civil strife in Mexico.
you are kiding yourself if you think BIG TOBACCO loses They will simply become BIG WEED and trust. . what you get out of the stores will be just as hazardous as cigarettes I suspect untreated tobacco is not as bad as post-treated tobacco Rocket River
I would hope that, as a country, the legalization of mar1juana would not be a tipping point (either way) for the election of the President of the USA. Space Ghost's point seems valid to me. I don't care one way or the other if it is legal and I would not vote for or against a candidate based on their view.
All good points, however, most voters aren't as educated about their candidates as most posters in this sub forum. We live in a headline driven news age where people are too lazy to pact check what their candidates say or even stand for. The simple notion that a president is for weed would entice so many young uninformed voters to think he is logical and forward thinking since the prohibition of mar1juana, and subsequent 80% of incarcerated inmates in there for drug charges, is simply ass backward thinking. Bottom line, I'm not really for pushing legislation on the federal level for legalization. As all of you have pointed out, the process is taking care of itself, but I just feel like pot legalization is an easy ground for one party or the other to stand on and pretty much sweep an election. Is the vote from fundamental religious folks and old white Americans really that much stronger than what could be the largest youth turnout in American voter history?
Who gives a **** about mar1juana when the economy is in the toilet? Your assumption that legalizing mar1juana would bring out the youth vote is misguided. Young voters care more about jobs and the deficit than smoking pot.
Well the biggest problem is that the young vote is so unreliable. Often they'll make a lot of noise leading up to an election, then not show up to vote.
Before dropping swear words maybe you should do some research first. Plenty of jobs (jobs for us young people) would be created from new dispensaries and farms. The green rush is real. Look it up. Don't forget about the extra tax revenue for schools made from legalization. The jobs lost will be those belonging to police officers, DEA agents, and prison guards. Their lobbyist groups are fighting very hard to keep it illegal. A good chunk of their budget comes from pot busts and holding offenders in prison. I would get out and vote for legalization.
False Continue discussion Hah, I think its humorous that you would make such a statement given the state of media as it is now. It is true that those are indeed the big central issues we should be focusing on, but instead, people care more about a "deserter" that makes demonizing Obama easier, gay marriage, and abortion. These non issues are what bring out uneducated, uninformed voters, and normally are the issues that win or lose elections. 100% agree with you, and I'd be the first person to get in line to vote on such legislation if a candidate would back it. As a student however I can tell you this: unfortunately more students and youth are aware of the green movement as opposed to the Student Loan Debt crisis that plagues most of post-grad students.
