I think ……….. crap forgot what the article was about !!!

If this goes through, you won’t have to find a school child when you want to buy some pot.

The 40% against decriminalization are people currently employed in the trade, people currently employed in the war on drugs, people that are truly clueless and most of them that use the DRUG “alcohol” but think pot is bad for you.

Just like those that don’t use the swap shed want it closed, those with no vested interest don’t want to see decriminalization.

“If I don’t use it (swap shed or pot), then no one else should have the choice.”

cheese

Missing out on revenue

Supporting organized crime

Alchohol is THE gateway drug

Use amongst teens in countries that decriminalize/legalize is approx half of that of Can/US kids

Had we been quicker to legalize, we could have saved the Twinkie

Seems to me that the legalization of pot by the Government would be for the purpose of collecting more tax money to piss away on stupid projects. If they are so concerned about the well being of citizens, then why dont they legalize it without taxing it.????

For those in favour of legalizing pot. I suspect they support the idea because they can get a cheaper price, and not have to hide behind closed doors when they smoke the s..t. Once its legalized it will be like cigarettes, with people standing outside of doorways, puffing away.

Dana Larson is in for one hell of a surprise, if he thinks he, and his pot smoking buddies can get 10 per cent of the voters in every riding in BC to sign a petition legalizing pot. Keep in mind that these people have to be registered voters. I predict a dismal failure.

There is no point in the Government having a referendum on this issue, because if the pot smokers lost, they would disregard the law (as they do to-day) and continue to smoke the illegal product.

For the pot smokers the only solution is legalization or the continuation of the illegal smoking, and to hell with the rest of the Province. Hmmmmmmm.

I don’t really have a dog in this fight, both sides make good points.

I do think the potential tax revenues are way overstated. The government would have made it legal a long time ago if they figured there was a profit to be made. And gangs won’t go away once it’s been legalized, they’ll just have a bigger market. And like Palopu says, you’ll be walking through clouds of blue smoke as you enter the mall or Walmart or whatever.

Pal: “Dana Larson is in for one hell of a surprise, if he thinks he, and his pot smoking buddies can get 10 per cent of the voters in every riding in BC to sign a petition legalizing pot.”

No kidding. Pot smokers are about the laziest, most unmotivated group of people out there. The only thing that motivates them is getting more of the stuff.

Alcohol is NOT the “gateway drug”. Almost everyone I went to school with smoked weed WAY before they started drinking. Demonizing booze in order to advocate the legalization of pot is idiotic & makes you just another prohibitionist. There is nothing wrong with either ‘drug’. Legalize pot, tax it & lower the ridiculous tax rate on booze.

Im not a pot head, few of my friends are. They want to get stoned, go ahead. its not a performance enhancing drug, they just sit around take a few tokes, and eat cheezies. They are not harming anyone but themselves.

Is Pot a gateway drug. I dont think all pot heads are users of heavier drugs. Not heavy drug users are all pot heads either.

I think, it should be legalized. Where a person can go into a outlet, buy their pot from a controled environment.

How much does it really cost to grow a once of good BC Bud. I’m sure once it is legalized, and it is grown openly in liscenced greenhouses, the actual production is reduced too under $10/once. Government taxes it 400% and sells it for $50/ounce. So what would that do, will the pot heads smoke more of it because its cheap, some might, most won’t. Will they stock pile it, likely not, because it just gets too dry. I will tell you what it will do. The gangs will loose out on their biggest source of income. Meaning, its just not feasible to compete against the government. Would some one buy it illegally for $40.00 or $50.00 legally. I would say most potheads will buy it legally and pay the extra ten bucks.

Not “demonizing” booze, nor asking for prohibition. Booze is prolific and accepted in society. I would argue that booze causes more grief for society than all other drugs combined. The social costs are huge. Drunk driving, domestic violence, etc.

By legalizing and regulating, we could take away organized crimes golden goose. One could argue that the gangs would move to other hard drugs. They already have those markets and if there are no extra customers, there will be no extra revenue, production etc.

I’ve seen many drunk people do things they wouldn’t ever consider when sober. Fighting, arguing, endangering their lives, and experimenting with drugs. The potheads just get slow, paranoid, peaceful, and hungry.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good Whisky. I just believe if booze, and all its inherent risks, are legal; why not weed?

I just wonder if there has ever been a study on students’ use of marijuana and grades or IQ?
He spoke: just like shoppers, people would take the lower price.

All these things USED to be available at the local drugstore. They were discontinued for a good reason.

It’s ridiculous that any government can actually make anything that grows illegal.

Probably 90% of the people I know smoke pot, but I only know a handful that do cocaine recreationally, and none who are addicted to anything other than booze. So how is it a gateway drug?

I believe the government would control the potency of the product and the black market will just thrive selling a better product. The serious potheads i know want the “good stuff” haha The government won’t take the market like they think they will

Very few grow their own tobacco, but they could. The same goes for liquor. Very few drinkers brew or make moonshine. California has a large medicinal pot industry. The “dispensary” is a common sight in Cali. I’m pretty sure they’re paying some tax. We’ll see what transpires in Washington State over the next year.

Before everyone gets too excited about additional police resources when they stop charging for simple possession………how many do they charge now? I bet there aren’t 20 charges in a year of simple possession of cannabis in the City of Prince George. The Charter has made it almost impossible to get a charge. I imagine all the gang bangers are going to work at McDonalds once pot becomes decriminalized. They are criminals and will continue with crime. There has never been a war on drugs in this country but rather a legal system made by the lawyers for the lawyers! Maybe robbery, assault and shoplifting should be decriminalized too…..we can’t seem to eradicate those offences either !

“And like Palopu says, you’ll be walking through clouds of blue smoke as you enter the mall or Walmart or whatever.”

LMAO! I”m sure there would be laws in place just like there are for the legal drug alcohol as to where people can consume it. Have a beer in front of the main doors at Pine Center Mall or anywhere that isn’t licenced or private property and see how far you get.

Good one dragon master…lets have a pull on some B.C. Bud and lobby for the new NDP goverment to build another set of fast cats..lol

why do people think legalizing pot in BC will stop or decrease crime. Ive read many reports that suggest most of the pot grow in BC is sent elsewhere in Cananda and the US. It may decrease smaller grow operations but I doubt it will stop the larger reported organized crime operations as many try to claim. Pot is a addictive and harmful drug. Read up on research about the effects that smoking marijuana has on the pruning effects in adolescent brain development.  

This is a provincial health care issue and not a financial or fiscal issue.

Weed is here to stay and no matter how large we build the police state to spy on citizens and limit the public’s human rights it will not go away.

It benefits everyone if the weed being sold is not cut with other drugs, covered in pesticides, or pumped full of chemicals so some organized crime minion can inflate his profits. Having regulations governing the safe production of organic marijuana should be a public health issue and not about potential revenue.

If a guy has a choice between paying $140 for an ounce off the street or $200 for a certified organic ounce at the store… I honestly don’t think people are going to try and save a few dollars for all the potential trouble and risk one would entail supporting organized crime profits.

Of course marijuana has effects on the adolescent brain. So does alcohol, prescription drugs, caffeine, you name it.

The biggest drug threat to adolescents or even younger children is the Tylenol 3 they get from their parents” medicine cabinets. The Codeine in Tylenol 3 comes from the same poppy as heroin.

Wow…you can still get an ounce off the street for $140? If you can, the legal stuff could just be priced at $100 an ounce to run them out of business.

And another point….there would be far fewer homes being ruined by gang operated grow ops.

“And like Palopu says, you’ll be walking through clouds of blue smoke as you enter the mall or Walmart or whatever.”

Dragon: “LMAO! I”m sure there would be laws in place just like there are for the legal drug alcohol as to where people can consume it.”

Uh… Ever seen smokers sitting in front of the hospital smoking right in front of the “No Smoking” sign? That’s just one example.

Decrimalizing personal use is not legalizing pot. The only time you will see tax revenue from pot is when you can buy this stuff at your local store with a nice picture of mouth cancer on it. So relax folks the drug dealers aren’t going anywhere soon!

I understand there are still bootleggers who provide enhanced alcohol distribution after hours and to underaged clients I presume as well as to “dry” communities …..

So why should drug dealers be going away …..

We should, however, consider using consistent wording and call them bootleggers no matter what they dispense, alcohol, Mary Jane, etc. ….

How much are we spending on fighting the MaryJane part of the “drug war”?? And we are not winning, nor will we ever …..

BTW, the government should be smart enough by now to do this on their own. It is nothing that requires the approval of the people. The people did not criminalize it. The governments, in their infinite wisdom did.

So why is government considering the will of the people in this case? That is the question I have.
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An interesting thing is that in Washington State the distance one has to be away from a building entrance for people to smoke is 25 feet instead of the 10 feet in BC.

Also, alcohol is considerably cheaper and almost universally accessible compared to Canada, yet Canada drinks 9.77 litres per capita per year while the USA drinks 9.44 …..

Price and almost universal availability in retail stores does not seem to be a factor.

my2bits read about the effect that marijuana has on the development of the adolescent brain. Pruning effects and psychosis. Ive worked in metal health for years and adolescents are not coming to he hospital for psychosis and schizophrenia because of Codine. Marijuana abuse is much more common than opiate abuse in adolescents.