Skeptic Project

But now, I'm not so sure. I'm noticing a distinct correlation between drugs and:

1) Unethical behavior
2) Stupidity
3) General trashiness

I'm not sure I buy into the idea that drugs are illegal because the government tries to legislate morality. I think drugs are illegal because they're just fucking bad shit.

What if the "deeper problem" is as simple as some people don't want to follow the law.

And if that's the deeper problem, should such behavior even be taken into consideration?

I would also posit this question: If drugs were legalized, what guarantee does anyone have that DTOs would actually allow regulated, legal organizations to take over their profit shares and influence? I don't think legalizing drugs or the drug trade would help stem illegal activity because these DTOs are unlikely just to fold under the market pressures of a well regulated trade.

We already have legal drugs ;) alcohol and tobacco.

Just because two harmful substances are legal does not mean you make all other harmful substances legal to make it "fair."

Just because two harmful substances are legal does not mean you make all other harmful substances legal to make it "fair."

That's true, but I just think its funny when people use the words drug as if alcohol isn't a drug. Also if you notice the people that have a problem with, say cannabis, they always give examples of stoners and people who smoke all day everyday. I am quite justified, in that case, in using the examples of alcoholics that destroy their livers, drink drive and beat their wives.

I might also mention that The Netherlands have stopped making cannabis available to tourists because they realized it too was causing crimes and attracting shady people to their country.

I always thought that cannabis wasn't as detrimental to health as some of the more hardcore shit....

What makes you say that?

Define harmful.

I actually agree with Matt here. People think cannabis is a benign drug when in fact it's quite the opposite.

:/

Okay, do the pros of legalization of cannabis outweigh the cons?

Discuss

The cons are overwhelmingly greater than the pros.

People say you can't get addicted to it - I call bullshit.

@Omni

The pros are not even well defined. A common argument has been that legalizing drugs will help stem the violence and power of drug cartels and other DTOs. But, as I asked earlier, what makes anyone so sure that DTOs will want to simply fold under the legal trade and stop making the huge sums of money that they are currently making. A further claim has been that legalizing cannabis in particular can lead to tremendous tax benefits for those states that decide to make the step. However, such a move (say California legalizes before anyone else) is likely to produce the same kind of effect that legalized gambling has had on state economies (http://www.npr.org/2010/12/16/132105939/states-gamble-on-casinos-to-generate-revenue). You see, the economics of taxation for many vices are not cut and dry, and indeed any kind of steady tax revenue from things like cannibis are immediately questionable because they rely upon detrimental and unhealthy behaviors in individuals. Just look at cigarette taxes and how that revenue is brought in from a form of deliberately unhealthy habits. Such a move comes with a huge cost. But will high taxes then lower drug use? Unlikely. Smokers still smoke despite high taxes on cigarettes, and that's a drug that does not create the same sensation as marijuana or any other host of drugs. And indeed, high taxes may only empower drug cartels further who would produce drugs tax free and ready to buy. The pros just simply aren't as cut-and-dry as supporters would have you believe.

I don't know about heroin or crack but I do know that cannabis makes no sense to me to be illegal while alcohol is. Can anyone offer any argument that alcohol should be legal while cannabis should not? Arguments can be both scientific or from a sociological perspective.

People say you can't get addicted to it - I call bullshit.

Are you talking about cannabis? I agree with you, you can. You can also get hooked on alcohol and fatty foods. Have you ever smoked cannabis? I have many times, not a heavy user by any means. Just occasionally with friends, much less so now so maybe once every few months or something, so I am talking from experience.

I can't help but feel that my dad would have turned out 180 degrees differently had he not smoked every single day.

Now replace the word "smoked pot" with "alcohol", does that mean alcohol should be illegal? Or does it mean you shouldn't abuse any drugs you choose to take? What do you say to people who have fathers who weren't pot heads but were alcoholics and wanted to ban alcohol? What's the difference?

What are the pros? Little Johnny Suburb gets to smoke his pot without going to jail? Big Johnny Suburb never has to grow up and quit?

If you're smoking to the extent that its affected your cognitive abilities, you're abusing it. The same with alcohol.

But, as I asked earlier, what makes anyone so sure that DTOs will want to simply fold under the legal trade and stop making the huge sums of money that they are currently making.

I watched a mostly good documentary I cant remember the name of right now about cannabis legalisation, they talked to growers and I remember they didn't want it legalised because that would take away their business.