Legalized Marijuana

[Idaho]

It's on the BBC iplayer. But I don't know if you foreigners can get that.

[Fragony]

Sadly not, odd as BBC does broadcast here

[Strike For The South]

1. I would have sex with that woman
2. The only time I smoked the synthetic stuff, I ended up putting a whole bunch of apples in a baking dish and screaming "COBBLER COBBLER COBBLER" at my then G/F

College bro

[Lemur]

Hope something comes of this:

An effort is building in Congress to change U.S. marijuana laws, including moves to legalize the industrial production of hemp and establish a hefty federal pot tax.

While passage this year could be a longshot, lawmakers from both parties have been quietly working on several bills, the first of which Democratic Reps. Earl Blumenauer of Oregon and Jared Polis of Colorado plan to introduce Tuesday, Blumenauer told The Associated Press.

Polis’ measure would regulate marijuana the way the federal government handles alcohol: In states that legalize pot, growers would have to obtain a federal permit. Oversight of marijuana would be removed from the Drug Enforcement Administration and given to the newly renamed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana and Firearms, and it would remain illegal to bring marijuana from a state where it’s legal to one where it isn’t.

The bill is based on a legalization measure previously pushed by former Reps. Barney Frank of Massachusetts and Ron Paul of Texas.

[Fisherking]

They should just get out of the issue and leave it to the states. It was never something that required Federal involvement in the first place.

I see it as just another tax and a money grab.


You can not smoke industrial hemp. It needs no regulation, other than checking to see if it is a THC producing verity of the plant.

[Tellos Athenaios]

the newly renamed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana and Firearms

So there's hope after all, then. One day, we'll have an impossible to pronounce acronym containing pretty much all letters of the alphabet which expands to something something "-inator". And it'll be introduced with a lovable jingle.

[Idaho]

Why do you Americans insist on calling it marijuana? It's Mexican slang. Call it cannabis.

[drone]

the newly renamed Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Marijuana and Firearms

So there's hope after all, then. One day, we'll have an impossible to pronounce acronym containing pretty much all letters of the alphabet which expands to something something "-inator". And it'll be introduced with a lovable jingle.

So, basically, the Bureau of Fun. I assume Explosives is still in the name as well?

Adding pot to the ATF's realm of responsibility would be a cruel joke, they can barely cope with what they have on their plate now. They are already despised by most, adding "harshing people's buzzes" to their purview might get them to 100%.

[HopAlongBunny]

So, basically, the Bureau of Fun. I assume Explosives is still in the name as well?.

Will that include "stress positions" and...and pictures!?

[Lemur]

The ATF gets a bad rap.

THey have also been messed-with by Congress to such a degree that it's almost impossible for them to fulfill their job description. Whether it's not allowing them to have a chief for years and years, or passing laws that forbid them to do their job, there's really no way in which Congress hasn't given a great big "up yours" to the ATF. Free example:

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel says the case of a Wisconsin gun shop that continues to operate despite having its licence revoked illustrates how Congress has hobbled the ATF's enforcement of gun laws. Shawano Gun and Loan, which opened in 1998, had its license revoked in 2007 after repeated ATF warnings about missing records and other violations. Yet three years later, the case is tied up in federal court, where an appeal could go on for years. And the store continues to sell guns - thousands of them each year - with the ATF's blessing.

The case shows how laws enacted by Congress hobble the ATF and protect dealers who repeatedly break the law. The ATF doesn't crack down on dealers because there are so many loopholes in the law protecting them, agency veterans say. The case involving the Shawano store is notable because of what experts call blatant evidence of "straw buying," where people with clean records purchase guns for felons and others who are forbidden from buying and owning them. Straw buying is a crime, both for the buyer and for the clerk who knowingly makes the sale. It is a federal felony but remains a misdemeanor in Wisconsin after the Legislature failed to pass a law making it a felony this year.

[drone]

In my mind, the ATF is the wrong place for this, and really needs to be renamed anyway. When they got moved from Treasury to Justice, they lost most of their responsibilities for booze and tobacco to the TTB. I think all they do now is hunt moonshiners, which should have been moved over to the TTB as well. Put pot under the TTB, and make the "ATF" responsible for firearms and explosives only. And confirm a director for a change!

[Fisherking]

They brought a great deal upon themselves. Their conduct during the 1980 resulted in congressional hearing and they were pretty much damned. Add to that their role in Ruby Ridge and the Waco Siege resulted in a big lack of trust of the agency. They have not done too well in the 21st century either.

They have seemingly lost dozens of firearms and hundreds of computers. There was the gun walking scandal , fast and furious, and what comes next. If they put these guys in charge of pot the whole years crop may go missing.

[Lemur]

Well then, the logical response is to either abolish the agency, or rebuild it. The current Republican policy of crippling it bit-by-bit, denying it a director for years, and underfunding it massively, doesn't appear to address any problem anywhere. I don't see how a zombie agency is better than either no agency or a fixed agency.

[Fisherking]

And how is it a Republican policy?

It is part of DOJ. The executive branch names a prospective head, does it not?

Then it is up to the Senate to give its advice and consent in naming the head, right?

I thought that the Democrats controlled the upper house of Congress…

You know some things actually cross party lines.

But of course you are right. They should fix it or get rid of it, but that is also an executive decision, isn’t it?

[Lemur]

And how is it a Republican policy?

Oh, I dunno, that's just a baseless assertion, I guess. Oh, wait, it isn't. There's a persistent pattern of crippling, blocking, and generally making the ATF into the toothless eunuch of the executive branch.

You also may want to familiarize yourself with the Tihart Amendment. Just, you know, for giggles.

It is part of DOJ. The executive branch names a prospective head, does it not?

ATF was separated from the DOJ eight years ago. Also, the President cannot name a single acting head without 60+ votes in the Senate, as you doubtless know.

I thought that the Democrats controlled the upper house of Congress…

Google "filibuster" and have your head explode.

[drone]

ATF was separated from the DOJ eight years ago. Also, the President cannot name a single acting head without 60+ votes in the Senate, as you doubtless know.

Actually, the ATF was separated from the Treasury Dept in 2002(?), and moved to DoJ. In 2006, confirmation for the director spot became a requirement. This was the real neutering, as the GOP and any NRA-bought Dems could and have stopped confirmation hearings for any potential appointees. And I think you mean permanent head, acting directors is all the ATF has had since the confirmation requirement was levied.

Adding more responsibility to the ATF at this point is foolish, pot enforcement would lead to epic comedic episodes (where comedy = tragedy + time). Send all remaining booze & baccy tasks (plus pot) to the TTB and rename the Bureau the BFE, which describes the political location of it's leaders quite well.

[Lemur]

Thanks for the corrections, drone, they are much appreciated.

[Fisherking]

The article also go a fact or two wrong. It was the President who moved the agency from Treasury to the DOJ after 9-11. Congress had nothing to do with it. The reason for Congress putting the director on the conformation list was because under the previous administration it had been used more as a political tool than as an enforcement agency.

I don’t know how you feel about that but I find it a good idea to limit the use of any agency to push the agenda of any political party.

[TinCow]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...it-poll-shows/

High points:

A majority of Americans now say marijuana should be made legal, with far fewer viewing it as a gateway to harder drugs or as morally wrong, according to a poll released Thursday by the Pew Research Center.

By 52 to 45 percent more say marijuana should be made legal than not, with support for legalization jumping seven points in two years and 20 points since the 2002 General Social Survey. Last November, a Washington Post-ABC News poll found the public split 48 to 50 percent on whether to legalize small amounts of marijuana for personal use. And 51 percent of registered voters supported legalization in a December Quinnipiac University poll.

The rapid change matches an increase in usage – in the new poll, nearly half of Americans report trying marijuana at some point in their lifetime (48 percent), up eight points since 2010 and also a record high.

The overall shift in support is driven by younger Americans who overwhelmingly support legalization, with nearly two-thirds of people born since 1980 (between ages 18 and 32) saying marijuana should be legal (65 percent). Baby Boomers and Generation Xers have become far more supportive than in the early 1990s, with at least half of each now supporting legalization.

Far fewer people see marijuana leading to harder drugs today (38 percent) than in the 1970s (60 percent), and only one in three say smoking marijuana is morally wrong (32 percent), down 18 points from 2006.

The day is coming. And on that day, I will smoke so much goddamn weed my head will explode.

[Major Robert Dump]

WEED A HAIKU

Gonna Smoke Some Weed
Weed, Weed, Weed, Weed, Weed, Weed, Yeah
Weed Weed Weed Sweet Weed

[drone]

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/...it-poll-shows/

High points:


The day is coming. And on that day, I will smoke so much goddamn weed my head will explode.

Am I the only one that noticed that this was post 420?

[Idaho]

It's already fully legal in my house. Well out the back door anyhow.

[Seamus Fermanagh]

[URL]High points: The day is coming. And on that day, I will smoke so much goddamn weed my head will explode.

"High" points....and post #420 no less...what a coincidence....

[Fragony]

Sleepers... http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ap-im...deep-inside-us

Sure, deprive them of 6 billion a state, they will go down without a fight for sure

[ajaxfetish]

Sleepers... http://bigstory.ap.org/article/ap-im...deep-inside-us

Sure, deprive them of 6 billion a state, they will go down without a fight for sure

Didn't see anything in the article about $6 billion. Assuming the figure is correct, how much of that is weed, compared to the cocaine and heroin also mentioned?

Ajax

[Fragony]

Didn't see anything in the article about $6 billion. Assuming the figure is correct, how much of that is weed, compared to the cocaine and heroin also mentioned?

Ajax

Isn't in the article, sorry. It is estimated that cartels will lose 6 billion per state on just cannabis

[Major Robert Dump]

I just wanted to point out to everyone who has to take urinalysis that in approximately 3 weeks I will not be subject to such and will henceforth do the pot

[Tellos Athenaios]

I just wanted to point out to everyone who has to take urinalysis that in approximately 3 weeks I will not be subject to such and will henceforth do the pot

Related: the USA is weird.

[LittleGrizzly]

Well that was some interesting googling/wiki'ing...

[Lemur]

The complete and utter failure of the drug war in a single graph. If the hundreds of billions we throw at this problem annually cannot keep the street price/purity down, then our position is unsupportable.