Discussion regarding Colorado legalizing recreational use of marijuana Jan 1

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You guys are joking right?

An EBT card cannot be abused like that?

Right?

 
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EBT: Electronic Benefits Transfer

It is a living subsidy of the United States for those who are below the poverty threshhold. Think of it as a pre paid debit card to purchase food and gas. It is for helping those who are employed to purchase goods and services deemed necessary to survive.

There seems to be a debate as to whether the EBT is easily abused at the expense of the tax payer. While there is abuse with any system, it should be noted that any misuse of the EBT for goods and services that are not deemed necessary is a federal offense.
 
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22 days into the legalization updates.

Marijuana sales in Colorado are amazing starting out not even a month yet, the state is going to tremendously profit from the sales, but will the added state revenue turn the heads of those keeping this thing under control?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/08/marijuana-sales-colorado_n_4552371.html

Can't keep up with the demand of the edibles.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/new...ales-shattering-sales-projections-in-colorado

The edibles seem to me to be too easy to be using in a work environment and such as that, it would seem they would be frowned upon or else from the ease of use, the entire Colorado population will soon be stoned!

The edibles like the chocolates and such could easily be slipped to someone that doesn't even want to participate in the use of it, and IMO that's not good, but that's just my opinion.

Someone will always find a way to abuse it!

http://www.nrtoday.com/news/9793102-113/pot-marijuana-cartels-colorado

State relocators?

http://www.norwalkreflector.com/article/4048696

Below is kinda questionably weird but still news, and did not see the Mirror listed as a disallowed website?

http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/obama-approves-legal-cannabis-visit-3042015#.Ut-DV7ROmHs

He makes a comment about armed with his credit card?

He did not say he actually purchased the marijuana with it, as I thought it was cash sales only?



 
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Waxing poetic, so pardon me...

I'm loving how they are referring to the Colorado legalization as a "great experiment", like it's never been done before elsewhere and there aren't enough studies, countries, and expert opinions to determine the ultimate outcome. You would have be an absolute fool to think that there would not be an increase in pot smokers to start. What was once illegal is now legal and those people with respect for the law will try it simply because and go back to living their previous non-pot-smoking lives. My guess would also be that most of the people lining up to legally purchase were buying it illegally to begin with!

My guess would be that the same hype and propaganda was being said when Nevada was contemplating making prostitution legal or during the debate to repeal prohibition. I can hear it in my head, inane comments about moral degradation, the impact on children, the increase in infidelity, increase in crime, etc, etc...seems all too familiar.

Sure, it's all in the news now but where will it be in a year, two years, five years from now?

Those who want to smoke will, and those that don't, wont't. And Obama making his comments about it not being any more harmful that alcohol has unofficially given the green light to Colorado, Washington, and other States considering the same. Which is twofold, on one hand it is another example of Obama picking and choosing which laws to enforce or not and real ironic since at the beginning of his administration he sent the storm troopers into California to shut down the dispensaries there. On the other hand, he is giving the perception of understanding state level republicanism; but let's be realistic here, we know Obama does not believe in state level republicanism and is really doing nothing more than displaying his true progressive nature.

Personally, I believe that any all drugs should be legal; I take a very libertarian view when it comes to drugs. The hypocrisy is absolutely palpable when the government can say pain killers for medicinal purposes are good but then smoking weed to ease pain is bad. I view it as legislating morality, legislating behavior, and an egregious overstep of Constitutional power. The DEA should be put out of business, the entire "war on drugs" has been as about as much of a success as the "war on poverty", both of them are nothing but wealth redistribution scams!
 
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IMO finger pointing at all the supposed, and assumed wrongs, our government may be connected with cannot be 100% proved, so lets stay on the fact of what's actually happening in Colorado.

Opinion wise of alcohol vs marijuana is that marijuana stays in the body much longer than alcohol does, with alcohol you can wake with a hangover with zero pleasing after effects, with marijuana you can wake still buzzing, and it still shows up in blood tests for quite some time so it's effects do linger.

True there will be those enticed to try it just because it is now legal where they live, some won't like it's effects and some will, those that like it will become users of it.

Will half of our society become dazed and confused like their minds are full of cotton, which does happen with long term use of marijuana, walking around like buzzed zombies driving up sales at Mickey D's?

It takes a long time to have those after effects completely wear off until your mind is crystal clear, anyone that's used marijuana for a long time knows that statement is true.

So what's the society effects going to be long term, that's my real concern, because for some marijuana is not going to be enough and they will progress to harder seriously addictive drugs, which is gasoline on the criminal element as they become addicted to the harder drugs.

Whether it is classed as an experiment or not is irrelevant, it is more like can society live with the after effects, and is it's legalization creating a monster?

Once the monster is out of the box, getting it back in, usually comes at an extreme cost!



 
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Again, just waxing poetic, not directed or personal, so pardon me...good discussion tho!

I dunno, I think society has been dealing with the long term after effects of people smoking weed since Man discovered the effects of weed. States legalizing it has only brought it more into the realm of public opinion.

I don't buy into the notion that weed leads to harder drugs for the majority of people. How many functional alcoholics do you know, they don't smoke weed or turn to heroin because of alcohol. For that matter, how many functional pot-heads do you know? Having known and knowing quite a few, weed is where they are at and there is no desire to jump to cocaine or harder substances. The one caveat being those people with addictive personalities who need to reach for a higher high, but I would venture a guess that legalizing weed would just enable them to do what they would have done illegally anyway and having addictive personalities, legalizing weed would not have any significant impact on their behavior.

I would argue, weed has been around longer than alcohol. Heck, it took Man moving from hunter-gatherers to create agrarian societies to grow the ingredients needed to make alcohol. Whereas as weed was just growing around them while they were humping the forest tracking game. I'd venture a guess that hunter gatherers picked weed as a matter of fact along with other nuts, berries, and greens. The long term effects of weed compared to alcohol on the body can be a debated. Smoking anything is just bad for the lungs, period. Weed is also processed through the liver, but is less taxing on the liver than alcohol. But one thing about the long terms effects of weed compared to alcohol, is that studies have shown there are naturally occurring cannabis neural receptors in the brain but there are no specific alcohol receptors in the brain; which eludes to the notion that Man has been smoking weed long enough to evolve the brain to readily accept the effects of weed. This too can be debated, but one thing is sure, the cannabis receptor is naturally occurring in the brain and does not change the genetic make up of the neuron whereas alcohol actually does alter the genetic make up of neurons, and I would a argue, because an alcohol receptor is not naturally occurring in the brain. So, if you accept that there are naturally occurring cannabis receptors but no naturally occurring alcohol receptors, then the long term effects of weed compared to alcohol points to that we have more to worry about from the long term bodily and neurological effects of alcohol.

Is it creating a monster? From the illegal drug trade and cartel standpoint, I believe it is creating a monster. Once you take away the cartels income from legalizing weed, they will find other (potentially more violent) ways to make money. Whether that ends up fronting legitimate businesses, or making deals with government, or pushing harder substances remains to be seen. Criminals by their nature will find other ways to circumvent legalization. I am more concerned about how drug dealers and cartels will respond or what government will do with the dealers and cartels as a result of legalization and less worried about the effects of legalization of the average person.
 
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The drug cartels will do what organized crime did back when the end of prohibition came about, find new avenues to pursue. If there is a way for corruption to take place then that is where they will be.

As to the fact of living in a drug haze for weeks even after not smoking pot and saying hard drinking does not have it's long term effects too is biased. Both have equally detrimental effects from abuse.
 
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Alcohol and it's effects can last until a day later, trust me, been there done that...and taken days to recover. As for pot it depends on how much you smoke. Smoking a hog leg or two equates to drinking a twelve packs or two a day. Not good!

Dr. Timothy Leary put it best too many people abuse it an not enough people use it.

The idea is not to abuse anything. I'm drug and alcohol free by choice, my choice, my right, my freedom.

If they legalize it everywhere BFD, at least the revenue will stay here in the US and not go outside the country and provide monies for what is already taxing on our system. Now we are getting screwed twice. The cartels keep the cash and the gov't cleans up the mess. BS I tell ya!!!
 
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Long term marijuana users can handle a field test stoned out of their gourds it's the short term or new users that cannot control the effects openly in front of an officer for a field test.

Let me be clear my comments are not alcohol vs marijuana, they are from the tested facts of how long marijuana can be detected after use, the links below clarify it very well.

http://alcoholism.about.com/od/pot/a/marijuana_test.htm

http://www.truthonpot.com/2013/03/28/how-long-does-marijuana-stay-in-your-system/

My original point was that it could be detected as being present in the body, but what I should have said is, even though it is detectable, it as yet is not detectable to the degree of impairment to the individual as alcohol is, so new tests or ways of testing will have to be explored, to determine the degree of impairment.

People will drive after using marijuana but in most cases they are too cautious like stopping 20' back from an intersection, as marijuana obviously somehow has a depth perception effect as well, which can impair a driver.

We used to joke about the quality of a potential marijuana users driving by how far back from the light they were stopped, "That must be some quality stuff they're smoking, they'd better pull up before a cop sees them!". :lol:

My most concern, is for the younger generation that will get their hands on the marijuana and start using it, and it is going to happen!

Younger minds in their formative stage can be seriously degraded over time with early marijuana use and the younger they start using it the worse it will be.

http://www.nbcnews.com/health/teen-pot-use-could-hurt-brain-memory-new-research-suggests-2D11741988

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/08/130827091401.htm

http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/yourlife/health/medical/pediatrics/2010-11-20-teendrugs22_ST_N.htm

http://www.theguardian.com/science/2012/aug/27/cannabis-damaging-under-18s-study

Even though Colorado sets the use age at 21, the younger generation will find a way to acquire it and begin using it, and then what happens to them later in life?

 
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When it comes to alcohol long term regular alcohol users can handle it better and seemingly function normally, as the body builds a tolerance for it, the same happens with marijuana.

In my early drinking days after getting out of the Navy, I could put many boasters under the table and end up getting them home, but I have not consumed any alcohol since 1986, so one beer would put me under the table myself.

My tolerance build has long been gone for alcohol consumption so what I consumed regularly back then and took for granted, would probably kill me today!

I also gave up any drug use back in 1986, but I still remember those days and the effects from the uses or alcohol and marijuana.

In 2 months I'll be drug and alcohol free for 28 years, and I don't miss it!

So some of my comments will come from actual past experience, but let me be perfectly clear, I am not condoning or bashing anything!

My opinions are mine, as yours are yours, whatever happens will happen, and my concerns for the younger generation are real!

The older generation take responsibility for themselves, but when does the legalization seem to the younger generation it is OK as well.

Now is the time for parents to educate themselves on educating their children, before their children become statistics!
 
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Not condoning or bashing anything......."before their children become statistics! "

We are all statistics and we as adults should have learned by now that we can tell people about our experiences but still, experience is the best teacher.
 
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(Revised)
The EBT card can only be used on food. No soda, no gas.
Street prices in Colorado for Marijuana are: 10-15 gram, ~30 1/8oz, 220-280 per ounce. Most medical dispensaries go by this pricing model, although the recreational dispensaries charge 2x the street price + an additional 20% tax. Medicinal users do not pay the tax, and most recreational vendors have lost all of their medicinal patrons because of the added prices.

As for the societal impact? I know more than one college town in Colorado which is filling up because of these stoner undergrads who want to live where it's legal. We'll have to see if there is any kind of immigration into the state as a result of the new laws, and cheaper prices than in the rest of the US. Will post back later when I have a definitive observation.
 
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