Weed Whackers The anti-marijuana forces, and why they're wrong

National Review ^ | 8/20/2001 | Rich Lowry

[steve50]

Get the whole Python series at halfbay or one of the spots, set you back $135 or so but it's well worth it. Makes the Saturday Nite Live crowd look like Mr. Rodgers. You might like the other series Cleese did, Falwty Towers.

[Malcolm]

Yeah, you guys got all the answers. So why aren't you in power? Right, because you have all the WRONG answers. Legalized drugs! AS IF.....

[tacticalogic]

Yeah, you guys got all the answers. So why aren't you in power? Right, because you have all the WRONG answers.

So why don't you tell us all about how Harry Anslinger and FDR had all the RIGHT answers. The Congressional transcripts are available on the web, maybe we can go find them as see the evidence of their wisdom.

[Dakmar]

Yeah, you guys got all the answers. So why aren't you in power?

We tend to scare the hell out of the sheeple, who want nice little pink houses with white picket fences and a government sheepdog to watch over them at all times and keep them warm and safe.

Momma's gonna check out all your girlfriends for you.
Momma won't let anyone dirty get through.
Momma's gonna wait up until you get in.
Momma will always find out where you've been.
Momma's gonna keep Baby healthy and clean...

[jodorowsky]

Ridiculous.

[Crispy]

Marijuana could not possible be easier to get. I guarantee almost any kid in school could have a steady supply of MJ if they wanted.

I know when I was in High School, I could have a gram or an eigth of pot by 3rd period if I wanted. No way I could get alchohol that fast. By the way, this was in a small town of about 20k people.

[KDD]

I have five children. Three are grown. Two are in their last years in High School. One junior, one senior.

I asked them about pot use in their school and they told me there was some use by some kids. What was interesting to me was that they said that nearly half the kids parents were pot smokers. In fact, they told me that more parents then students smoked the stuff.

[Malcolm]

That's the LP cultist's problem, and has been since the 60s, drug use. Recreational drug use is wrong, something they can’t accept. Legalization of their list of drugs would only make things worse, could never improve the situation. They just cannot accept that reality. All their huffing and puffing doesn't change one person's mind about it. Most of us know better, which for some reason, they can't grasp. They'll never succeed in getting anything changed, not even medical marijuana. They can't even sell this by hiding behind the Constitution. They just don't get it. Maybe I ought to feel sorry for LP types. Maybe they're just incapable of knowing better.....

[KDD]

It has long been preached that ignorance of the law is no excuse. As early as 1927 it was estimated that "no fewer than 10,000,000 laws and ordinances are theoretically operative in the United States today." Indeed: "Even the most conscientious observer can hardly fail during the course of a single day to violate unwittingly some of them. The law has become so complex and extensive that no living man can hope to learn its provisions or observe it in full."
William P. Helm, Jr., "The Plague of Laws

As for the Law...we all break some law or another all the time.

[WyldKard]

Sorry I didn't see this post or I would have said something earlier. There is a big flaw in your statistics. Alcohol is perfectly legal and you can see beer commercials on TV every couple of minutes. Weed is not legal anywhere and is totally underground. You can't compare any statistics you gather because you can't know what today would be like if weed had been legal along with alcohol.

Okay, I will grant you, there may be some things that are difficult to measure due to your argument, like DUI rates. But there are some known facts that aren't changed by illegality. Things like the toxcicity of alcohol vs. THC. Many people die from alcohol poisoning every year, but Pro-Drug Warriors torture themselves silly trying to prove an honest to goodness case of death by THC OD. Then there is long term organ damage, etc etc. Certainly, one can say without any hesitation that pot is NO WORSE than alcohol, if they didn't want to push the point that it's probably not as bad as alcohol.

But there is also data that we can extrapolate from, such as that people who are drunk have a propensity towards violence, which is usually not the case with people who are stoned. Also, there is more and more evidence emerging showing that while you shouldn't drive while impaired, people who are stoned are not QUITE as dangerous as people who are drunk, when behind the wheel. (Note to Pro-WoDdies..this is in no way an endorsement of such behavior.)

Yes, you are 100 percent correct. So how in the world do we profile the whole country and know if legal weed will add to the problem? It probably will add to the problem. If it were legal I may not mind a hit here and there but I still wouldn't do it with my kids knowledge though I sit there in front of them with an Icehouse and my bible all the time. Well not allllllllll the time ;-D

There may very well be some additional problems that occur due to legal weed. The thing is though, is that the cure so far (the WoD) costs far more, and does far more damage than legalization does or would. We would save such ridiculous gobs of money, and make even more money through legalized sales that we would have more than enough money to handle the new situation.

In the end, it's up to the parents. If weed becomes legal, this does not mean that parents suddenly have to give up responsibility for raising their kids. If you don't want your kids doing drugs, legal or otherwise, tell them! Sooner or later they will make their own decisions, but at least they will have your guidance on the matter. There is a reason I never had a drink of booze until I was 25...my parents raised me not to try such things until I was prepared to handle them...

[robertpaulsen]

I wasn't making a false argument, I was responding to one. Just looking at the four points raised as justification, one can argue for the legalization of other crimes. Of course my analogy is ridiculous -- but so are the lame arguments (we'll save money, too).

Again, I'm looking for reasons why to legalize pot, and quite frankly, I haven't heard one good one yet. Yours included.

[jodorowsky]

All their huffing and puffing doesn't change one person's mind about it. Most of us know better, which for some reason, they can't grasp... Maybe I ought to feel sorry for... Maybe they're just incapable of knowing better.....

Tragic.

[WindMinstrel]

Look, Malcolm, I realize you're just a liberal arts major from a public school, but even you should be able to tell that National Review (and Rich Lowry, the author of the essay I posted) are not Libertarian mouthpieces. In fact, I'd be hard pressed to find any *less* libertarian spokesperson than Lowry. Why don't you give your small-town Georgia mind a rest and quit trying to reason with your intellectual betters if you're unwilling to debate on the issues. Might work with your fellow big-government socialists, but it won't fly here.

[WindMinstrel]

(here's a repost with better formatting) Look, Malcolm, I realize you're just a liberal arts major from a public school, but even you should be able to tell that National Review (and Rich Lowry, the author of the essay I posted) are not Libertarian mouthpieces. In fact, I'd be hard pressed to find any *less* libertarian spokesperson than Lowry.

Why don't you give your small-town Georgia mind a rest and quit trying to reason with your intellectual betters if you're unwilling to debate on the issues. Might work with your fellow big-government socialists, but it won't fly here.

[Dakmar]

Its actually a lame question, the burden of proof should be on the government. Give me three reasons why hot-dogs should be legal.

[tacticalogic]

Again, I'm looking for reasons why to legalize pot, and quite frankly, I haven't heard one good one yet. Yours included.

Are you prepared to defend Anslinger's reasons for making it illegal in the first place? Your argument attempts to turn the role of government upside down, and assume that everything should be prohibited except that which is specifically allowed, and justification must be given before it will be allowed.

[jodorowsky]

Just looking at the four points raised as justification, one can argue for the legalization of other crimes.

He specifically said that more enforcement resources could go towards solving real crimes and removing real criminals from circulation. Armed robbery is a real crime.

Again, I'm looking for reasons why to legalize pot, and quite frankly, I haven't heard one good one yet.

What makes you think that it should be illegal?