I recently came across a great article written by Joel Stein and published in the Los Angeles Times. In that article, Mr. Stein tells us about his quest for medical marijuana.
Yes, marijuana, that demon weed that corrupts our children, makes them lazy and makes them hungry.
While most of the people in our jail are in for DUI’s or domestic violence charges, there are quite a few who have been arrested and are sitting out a possession of marijuana charge. I can’t really think of a more worthless charge, although loitering comes pretty close. I’d suppose that the two charges would kind of combine for some people who smoke a lot of pot, get tired, take a nap and wake up with a ticket in their shirt for loitering and handcuffs on their wrists for possessing rolling papers.
Believe me, there are enough shootings, assaults, murders and robberies to keep our justice system quite busy without searching out the people who have a preference for smoking the wrong kind of plant. Don’t believe me? Here are a few incidents that happened just this weekend in Omaha, which isn’t exactly Lebanon, you know?
So anyways, Mr. Stein tells a doctor that he suffers from insomnia and headaches, forks over his $80 and gets the equivalent of a medical permission slip - which allows him to hop over to one of 200 dispensaries in his area and purchase a variety of marijuana called “Sugar Kush.”
Yeah I don’t know what that is. Sounds very marjiuana-y though.
Joel Stein goes on to expound on the fact that since Los Angeles cops aren’t going to arrest you for possessing up to 8 ounces of marijuana as long as you have that medical dispensation form, dealers are hurting for business:
In fact, Benson buys all his pot from a dispensary now. Even with the sales tax, he pays the same price and, he said, gets more consistent quality than he did from a dealer. “I had a dealer who came by my house, but this is more convenient,” he said. When I asked him how that could be, he explained: “I used to have to sit there and listen to his stories. Because dealers like to hang out.”
Joel’s conclusion is quite satisfying for anyone who thinks that marijuana isn’t quite as big a deal as everyone wants to make it out to be:
I always wondered what would happen if marijuana were legalized for anyone over 18. It seems it already has been, and nothing happened.
i do not take marijuana, but have seen some ppl with truly bad medical cases (bipolar, ADD, anger-repression, anorexia) and when they start taking it, they seem to be less ‘edgy’ and calm down and not worry so much. I think that it should be used (in moderation) for medical purposes and not for the everyday ‘i have a headache and i cant sleep well’ problems (unless its extreme migraines or insomnia but it should be documented and proven they have this). we all know ppl misuse the system already, we know there will be some dope-head walking around trying to get his fix, but yes, i think there are some ppl in this world that could benefit from it greatly.
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Alcohol is legal
Cigarettes are legal
Weed however isn’t.
Doesnt make sense to me.
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Mulch reply on June 10, 2008:
Lets say you need open heart surgery. To wind down before surgery your doctor takes a few hits on a joint. Sound OK to you? Not to me
Now I am sure there are alc doctors out there also. No questions there. Does the fact that it’s legal make it right? No way.
On the other hand a comrad I served with in 91 suffers from Gulf War Syndrome and the only way he can eat, sleep or play with his kids is to toke on a joint. That is good.
Honestly I am torn on this and I haven’t made up my mind yet.
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The only bad thing about pot are the laws against it IMO. It’s better then cigarettes healthwise. I don’t understand how cigarettes are okay but pot isn’t.
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I’m all for making marijuana legal IF they make the sexes equal.
If men are allowed to be topless in public, so should women.
Fair is fair.
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I agree with the topless women thing Turtle.
However, weed is currently illegal. And as much as I disagree with it, will most likely be legal in the near future. But look how it’s happening. People are getting it legal by saying it’s the cure to everything. Got cancer? Smoke some pot. Got bad eyes? Smoke some pot. Got a hangnail? You guessed it! Smoke pot.
It’s snake oil. At least with regular smokes we’re honest about it now. It will give you cancer and drinking will cause you to be stupid at some time during the night.
Let’s be honest and get it out of the way. Weed is for fun and fun only. People say it helps with all their problems, but so does alcohol with my problems.
I dunno, I just feel like we could do more without it and find other ways.
W
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The illegalization of marijuana, er I mean, marihuana, started as a racially based law to impower the U.S. Gov’t to deport the mexicans. It has since evolved into the political monster it is today. Never before in the history of time before 1937 was there a problem with marijuana and its use. It is a man made problem made by men who were prejudically motivated. The facts that our gov’t have been telling people about the use of marijuana have been proven false. Yet the DEA has the perogative on whether to accept any research results, facts are not the deciding factor, the political opinion of the day is. The truth is out as to marijuana’s extremely safe theraputic effects for many, many symptoms and the fact that are gov’t blindly denies scientific and medical fact is proof that we no longer are a government Of the People, By the People and For the People. The U.S.A. has become a gov’t Of the Rich, By the Rich and For the Rich. Everone use your vote to legalize marijuana at least medically but preferably total legalization cultivation, sale and taxation.
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I believe possession/use of all drugs should be legal — but that voluntary intoxication of same should not be a defense/excuse for any crimes committed.
The prisons get so full of drug offenders they have to release the rapists and the murderers. That’s not right.
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Sugar Kush certainly doesn’t ring any bells here and i’d say i’m pretty well informed when it comes to canabis, being a user for over 15 years. my local coffeeshop has the following list:
skunk.
shiva
funky skunky
big tops
northerlight special
purple power
special
My personal favorite being funky skunky, has a nice, rather sweet taste to it and it doesn’t get you so massively stoned that you have no idea what’s going on anymore.
now onto more serious things, people sometimes seem to forget there is most definatly also a downside to canabis. many people don’t realise it can be quite dangerous in some cases, people with a history of mental problems should’t smoke, as it will often agrevate their problems. even people who have no history of mental illness can suddenly develop problems after smoking pot.
Having said that, i’m a firm supporter of legalisation as well, tax it and let the government take care of quality control. not that the quality here is anything to worry about, but the strength does differ from one place to the next and inexperienced smokers can sometimes be taken by supprise by the strength, government control would make the quality more consistent, which is a good thing imho.
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I agree with getting rid of the laws making it illegal to posses and do drugs for a recreational purpose.
As long as the DUI laws still apply, then I have no problems with that.
Go after the dealers and leave the users alone.
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I have to say Dual…one of my fave’s has been sour diesel or supreme trainwreck.
You know they even have pot vending machines for the clinics that aren’t open late. You can get your weed all hours of the night. I think that if they made weed legal, as in legal to purchase it from a dispensery that there would be a slight drop in cirme rate because no one would…ah fuck it, legalize it but make it illegal in the sense that if you get pulled over you should have the same penalty as a DUI cause it would be a DUI.
That would fuck me, cause we all know I like my herb, and topless women, and usually am driving and smoking before I get home or get to a destination that way the smell doesn’t linger. Anyways…legalize it, cigs are worse for you and alcohol (in the right amount) can do more damage than a joint.
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DualDenz reply on May 14, 2008:
i don’t drink and drive, but getting in my car while stoned is not something i consider a problem. i’ve been driving under the influence of cannabis for ages and am yet to see any negative effects from it.
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Brittany reply on May 14, 2008:
See…that’s what I’m talking about. If anything I’m more paranoid and alert when I drive stoned…ha ha
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That’s what I’m talkinga bout damnit!:
http://www.mydesert.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080412/COLUMNS26/804120315
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In the 1970s, many places in the United States started to decriminalize marijuana. Most places that have decriminalized marijuana have one or more of civil fines, drug education, drug treatment in place of incarceration, criminal charges for possession of small amounts of marijuana, or have made various marijuana offenses the lowest priority for law enforcement. In the 1990s many places began to legalize medical marijuana, which conflicts with federal laws, as marijuana is a Schedule I drug according to the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, which classified marijuana as having high potential for abuse, no medical use, and not safe to use under medical supervision.( Ummmm, what about pain killers, muscle relaxers, anti- depressants - etc) Multiple efforts to reschedule marijuana have failed and the United States Supreme Court has ruled in United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyers’ Coop and Gonzales v. Raich that the federal government has a right to regulate and criminalize marijuana, even for medical purposes.
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Medical marijuana is easy to procure in California?
I would have to agree with this, since I while I was cleaning out my garage last week after being forced to sell my house by my ex, I managed to ‘procure’ a sizeable amount of pot out of a golf bag of my ex’s. Which is strange, since he claims he’s never done drugs after our children were born.
My suggestion then, is- check any golf bags you might have in your garage.
As my ex does not have cancer or AIDS, I’m guessing his non-use of the non-drug that he hasn’t been using, that wasn’t in his golf bag in our garage means that he uses it for ‘fun’. Which is all well and good, except that it’s illegal. And he therefore should be refraining until our children are no longer minors.
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Waldo- “It will give you cancer and drinking will cause you to be stupid at some time during the night.” This is only half-true. Smoking tobacco does not cause cancer, it causes emphysema. Smoking tobacco laced with chemicals is what causes cancer. Small difference, but a difference all the same. Like regular smoking of pot will cause emphysema, and smoking pot laced with paraquat will give you cancer.
“Weed is for fun and fun only. People say it helps with all their problems, but so does alcohol with my problems. ”
I would say that 99% of the people that I know that use pot do so for fun. It certainly does NOT help with psychological or day-to-day problems, but it DOES actually help physical problems. I have suffered from chronic pain for almost 20 years now, and if it was legal, I would probably use it.
I had bad endemetriosis as a teen, and none of the RX pain relievers helped with the pain or cramping, but pot did. It has it’s uses. But like any other product, it’s going to have it’s abuses.
If you’re talking only about psychological problems, pot and alchohol don’t help. They just deaden things and allow a certain amount of escapism. Which does not solve problems.
While I think it should be legalized, and I’d be sad at how many people used it for non-medical reasons, I can’t agree with the taxation. I should not be taxed for growing tomatoes, peppers, pot, or any other plant that is used for my own consumption, and of which I have no intent to make a business of.
c
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they should make it legal to buy, just not legal to sell. They’re on a legalizing kick today here in Cali that’s for sure.
I can marry a chick now until at least November when the crazy radicals decide to put it on a ballot and try to do the admendment crap (which is ridiculous) however just legalize it…
If coke and lsd and everything else used to be legal why can’t weed….it’s the lesser of all evils…
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Well I myself am on probation for 10 years for “possession of marijuana”! So if anyone is pushing legalizing weed and having it it’s me! I do agree selling should probably be illegal since you never know what additives are in there but if it is mandated and regulated by the government then hell it’s something else they can slap a “high” (LOL) tax on and ban in public places such as an outdoor beach or park just like cigarettes! Since I had previously been convicted of possessing pot 8 years back when I was a wee lass of 18 and it was my 2nd time around my mandatory minimum was 10 years! YES 10 years! (Georgia 2nd felony 10 years) Isn’t that ABSURD! OH WAIT it gets better baby rapers get out in 5 but me possessing over an ounce gets a mandatory of 10! My mitigating circumstances allowed me to strike a deal with having probation for ALL 10 of it along with an $8,500.00 fine and if I violate can easily be placed in jail for the remainder of my suspended sentence which I currently have 8 years and 10 months left! The worst thing is I was out of state when this happened so if I accidentally don’t “cleanse” myself enough and piss dirty might have to go 3 states away! The government would make MORE money like a 100% PROFIT by taxing and “controlling” it then would would by housing and paying for inmates convicted of it! Just think I wonder how much in taxes I would pay if I smoke weed which is taxed for the next 10 years as opposed to how much it would cost to feed and house me for 10 years?
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Right or wong doesn’t really matter right now. If you really feel it should be legal then lobby your senator. Get him/her to draft a bill, get it on the floor for a vote.
Don’t sit around bitching and moaning. do something to change it.
I am sick and tired of hearing people whine and moan that it should be legal. Well damn it make it so! That is how the system works. but it will cost a lot of time and effort. But if you really feel it should be legal then get hot!
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