Posted on 05/05/2009 2:27:27 PM PDT by calcowgirl
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Tuesday it's time for California to study whether to legalize and tax marijuana for recreational use, though he's not yet advocating for such a change.
The governor was asked about a recent Field Poll showing that 56 percent of registered voters support legalizing and taxing marijuana to raise revenues for cash-strapped California. Assemblyman Tom Ammiano, D-San Francisco, has proposed legislation that would legalize the drug for recreational use, rather than just medical purposes.
"Well, I think it's not time for that, but I think it's time for a debate," Schwarzenegger said. "I think all of those ideas of creating extra revenues, I'm always for an open debate on it. And I think we ought to study very carefully what other countries are doing that have legalized marijuana and other drugs, what effect did it have on those countries?"
He said his native Austria is revisiting some of its marijuana laws, for instance. The Austrian Parliament last year authorized medical marijuana.
"It could very well be that everyone is happy with that decision and then we could move to that," Schwarzenegger said of other nations' legalization policies. "If not, we shouldn't do it. But just because of raising revenues ... we have to be careful not to make mistakes at the same time.
(Excerpt) Read more at sacbee.com ...
Yeah, they are bankrupt and the only reason they want to legalize marijuana is for the monetary gain to the government.
The cost of banning this mostly innocuous weed has been very great. both to our liberties, and to our pocketbooks.
Is there anyone here who would take up pot smoking if it were legal?
(Arnold also knows that it would be a very profitable cash crop to be grown in California).
2. Ban drug addicts from collecting welfare programs and institute random drug testing of recipients.
If you don’t do these two things, tax payers will be on the hook for addicts irresponsible behavior.
Do they do this for alcohol drinkers? Tobacco smokers? People having random sex? Taxpayers are already on the hook for irresponsible behavior. Random drug testing would probably be more expensive than it's worth.
It is not going to increase taxes, it will just be a new tax, paid by those that partake.
I wonder if they will allow the bars and restaurants to let MJ smokers enjoy their toke. I don’t care if they legalize pot in California or not; just seems a little hypocritical that they rant and rave about cigarette smokers and would probably forbid people to smoke in their own homes but smoking marijuana is OK.
It’s pretty much the same crowd that is pro-MJ, anti-tobacco.
It’s funny how this is one area where libs want less govt.
why would you call someone against unwarranted governmental authority over personal choice a liberal? Its so called conservatives that want to force their beliefs on everyone else that keeps a lot of potential votes on the democrat side.
If it were legalized, I imagine most users would grow their own. It grows like a Weed.
As well, you can be hired to work if you smoke or if you drink (as long as your BAL is at legal limits) but you can't if you are smoking pot. So if you don't bar drug users from receiving aid they basically are exempt from work requirements. No one will hire them no matter how many applications they put in. Why should they get special treatment?
Treat it like booze, just dont tax the people for the potheads' healthcare (which we all know they will anyway).
Ever tried to study when everybody's drunk? Pretty difficult too. Hard to sleep too when everybody's been drinking. Drunks are pretty obnoxious.
I'm just saying...
If VOTERS were given a choice between LEGALIZING POT or VOTING for SAME SEX marriage... GEE, I wonder which would win in a landslide?
At this point it’s all hypothetical and I think we both agree there should probably be more restrictions on people receiving welfare. I guess at this point though, I’d say that pot smokers collecting welfare is a lesser of many problems regarding the welfare issue. Worrying over people on welfare though is hardly justification for criminalizing otherwise legal and responsible citizens over pot smoking.
thetruth(tm)
LOL
USA -- April 20 is "National Pot Smoking Day."Darn! I missed it! (j/k)
Clarification: I didn't question the $14 billion being the current market. I just think that, if legalized, there would be other market forces that could change that number wildly.
And the geniuses in Sacramento will create the Drug Use Compliance Patrol and tout it as a jobs-creation program.
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