MtnHigh Posted June 17, 2010 Posted June 17, 2010 KATU Story Oregon Board of Pharmacy News Release Quote
olyclimber Posted June 18, 2010 Posted June 18, 2010 YOUR AVATAR IS MTN HIGH. YOU ARE JOHN DENVER! [video:youtube]aWU8XWksg_0 wait John, what? Quote
tvashtarkatena Posted June 20, 2010 Posted June 20, 2010 (edited) Not at all accurate, but its all in good fun. Nixon started the war on drugs, not Reagan, although the latter escalated it massively. Marijuana was not banned in 1937. The Marijuana Tax Act required distributors to purchase a (taxed) stamp from the government. The government wouldn't issue any of these stamps, however; hence, the popular misconception that marijuana was banned (criminalized) that year. I give talks on drug policy reform. The criminal justice system is, by far, the leading lobby opposing such reform, despite that fact that forty years of Warring on Drugs has resulted in increasing the usage, death rates, potency, and availability of illicit drugs across the board. This stance should come as no surprise; a large number of jobs in the criminal justice system depend on keeping drugs criminalized. The argument put forth by individuals in law enforcement is always the same: drugs destroy lives. That is certainly true, which is why we should ban alcohol and tobacco as soon as possible. American death rate stats provide some interesting perspective: Tobacco: 440,000 Alcohol related: 75,000 Traffic fatalities: 35,000 Drug overdoses (majority of which involve prescription meds): 16,000 Murders (all types): 16,000 Marijuana: 0 American prison population: 2.3 million Sooo...what problem are we trying to solve here? Drug abuse (not use) should be a public health issue, not a criminal one. Edited June 20, 2010 by tvashtarkatena Quote
Nitrox Posted June 20, 2010 Posted June 20, 2010 Marijuana was banned in practice under the Marijuana Tax Act until Leary v. US (1969) at which time it was ruled that the Tax Act violated the 5th Amendment. Marijuana possession has been illegal since 1937. Quote
Stonehead Posted June 20, 2010 Posted June 20, 2010 Not at all accurate, but its all in good fun. Nixon started the war on drugs, not Reagan, although the latter escalated it massively. Marijuana was not banned in 1937. The Marijuana Tax Act required distributors to purchase a (taxed) stamp from the government. The government wouldn't issue any of these stamps, however; hence, the popular misconception that marijuana was banned (criminalized) that year. I give talks on drug policy reform. The criminal justice system is, by far, the leading lobby opposing such reform, despite that fact that forty years of Warring on Drugs has resulted in increasing the usage, death rates, potency, and availability of illicit drugs across the board. This stance should come as no surprise; a large number of jobs in the criminal justice system depend on keeping drugs criminalized. The argument put forth by individuals in law enforcement is always the same: drugs destroy lives. That is certainly true, which is why we should ban alcohol and tobacco as soon as possible. American death rate stats provide some interesting perspective: Tobacco: 440,000 Alcohol related: 75,000 Traffic fatalities: 35,000 Drug overdoses (majority of which involve prescription meds): 16,000 Murders (all types): 16,000 Marijuana: 0 American prison population: 2.3 million Sooo...what problem are we trying to solve here? Drug abuse (not use) should be a public health issue, not a criminal one. You talk as if there actually is a prison-industrial complex. [video:youtube]v=AIX_0nMlIBU Quote
tvashtarkatena Posted June 21, 2010 Posted June 21, 2010 (edited) Several states had banned marijuana prior to the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, but the Act itself neither criminalized nor banned marijuana. Not terribly relevant regarding instituting policy reform today, but its important to get your facts straight if you seek to persuade others who may not yet agree with your POV. Establishing credibility apparently isn't much of a concern for Talk Radio groupies, however. Edited June 21, 2010 by tvashtarkatena Quote
tvashtarkatena Posted June 21, 2010 Posted June 21, 2010 (edited) In 2001, Portugal decriminalized personal use and possession of all drugs. In 2009, the Cato Institute issued an extensive report on what happened. Surprise, surprise: drug use, drug crime, and drug related deaths all went down. Edited June 21, 2010 by tvashtarkatena Quote
denalidave Posted June 21, 2010 Posted June 21, 2010 In 2001, Portugal decriminalized personal use and possession of all drugs. In 2009, the Cato Institute issued an extensive report on what happened. Surprise, surprise: drug use, drug crime, and drug related deaths all went down. But what about all those poor police & prison workers with nothing to do now? How can their economy possibly survive without the war on drugs? Quote
Nitrox Posted June 21, 2010 Posted June 21, 2010 Several states had banned marijuana prior to the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, but the Act itself neither criminalized nor banned marijuana. Not terribly relevant regarding instituting policy reform today, but its important to get your facts straight if you seek to persuade others who may not yet agree with your POV. Establishing credibility apparently isn't much of a concern for Talk Radio groupies, however. The tax act required the possessor to make a tax payment for a stamp, however the government required the marijuana to be in hand to get the stamp...but possession without the stamp was illegal. The Marijuana Tax Act made possession without registration tax evasion, just like the National Firearms Act of 1934 (which the MTA was modeled after). Again, possession was illegal from the inception of the MTA in 1937 to 1969 when Timothy Leary sued the federal government because the MTA violated the 5th amendment for self incrimination. Quote
tvashtarkatena Posted June 21, 2010 Posted June 21, 2010 KATU's story is a bit inaccurate in that OR is not the first state to classify pot as anything other than a Schedule 1 drug. Other states have classified pot below schedule I or not classified it at all, so there's a long history of states challenging federal preemption in this area. “In contrast, some variation does exist across states in the scheduling of other drugs, most notably marijuana and club drugs. Although 37 states follow the CSA by listing marijuana as a Schedule I substance, six states (Colorado, Georgia, Illinois, South Dakota, Virginia, and Wisconsin) do not schedule it at all. Three states (Arkansas, North Carolina, and Tennessee) schedule marijuana below a Schedule I but recognize the high potential for abuse and limited scientific evidence regarding the medicinal use of the substance. Two jurisdictions (Alaska and the District of Columbia) classify marijuana below a Schedule I with the intent of allowing it to be used for medicinal purposes.” http://www.rwjf.org/files/publications/other/DrugPoliciesReport.pdf Quote
LostCamKenny Posted June 22, 2010 Posted June 22, 2010 [video:youtube] "Grass" is a great documentary about the history of the stuff... narrarated by none other than woody harrelson! great stuff!!! Quote
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.