Weed likely to be legalized in Mi in16. Leaders kicking and screaming about it.

[old guy]

I’m opposed to marijuana because of the devastating effect it is having on the planet and the direct and indirect negative impact it is having on human life.

The massive amount of energy needed to grow marijuana indoors comes from coal fired power plants which pollute the air. The materials needed to equip the greenhouses are manufactured using petroleum and other toxic substances. The chemicals, trees, and raw mineral products needed to make rolling papers, matches, and other paraphernalia used to smoke pot damage the planet and hurt the environment. The run-off from fertilizers used to grow marijuana outside pollutes rivers and streams. Trucks and cars that transport the pot give off exhaust fumes which foul the air we breathe. So how many lives are lost world wide due to the bad air, bad water, toxic soil, and a polluted environment because of all the poisons we create to get high? Normally, liberal publications attack industries that do this much damage to the planet but the pot business strangely gets a pass.

You are being sarcastic, aren't you?

[Gannon]

I must yet again re-state the best premise of all, which I learned through Ed Rosenthal of High Times magazine.

Treat it like the tomato marketplace. Grow and tax and control whatever you want of commercially-provided cannabis, but keep your damn eyes, hands, and expectations off my f'in' garden. What I might grow does not significantly affect the general marketplace enough, nor warrant any form of additional taxation. The government should be PAYING those who grow cannabis and hemp...at least subsidizing 'em to the same extent that farms get for certain 'favorable' crops.

[Jimaz]

The world would be a much better place if only we could criminalize being an asshole in the same way that assholes have criminalized pot.

Just imagine how many other problems that would solve! Bonus!

[Wheels]

I’m opposed to marijuana because of the devastating effect it is having on the planet and the direct and indirect negative impact it is having on human life.

The massive amount of energy needed to grow marijuana indoors comes from coal fired power plants which pollute the air. The materials needed to equip the greenhouses are manufactured using petroleum and other toxic substances. The chemicals, trees, and raw mineral products needed to make rolling papers, matches, and other paraphernalia used to smoke pot damage the planet and hurt the environment. The run-off from fertilizers used to grow marijuana outside pollutes rivers and streams. Trucks and cars that transport the pot give off exhaust fumes which foul the air we breathe. So how many lives are lost world wide due to the bad air, bad water, toxic soil, and a polluted environment because of all the poisons we create to get high? Normally, liberal publications attack industries that do this much damage to the planet but the pot business strangely gets a pass.

WOW! You go way beyond hugging a tree!

[SDCC]

Even in states where marijuana is "legal" [[it's legal nowhere; it's still unlawful to possess under federal law), no state law prohibits private action based on marijuana consumption. Your landlord can still ban it [[even medical marijuana), your boss can still fire you for smoking it, your use of it can be used against you in a probate court [[child custody, etc.) hearing. I recall reading a story about the person who camped out in line to be the first to buy "legally" under Washington law. He, a security guard, was fired the next day.

Colorado politicians estimated $100 million in annual tax revenue. The actual take in the first year was $53 million. Now, $53 million is nothing to sneeze at, but it's not going to "fix the roads," as I've heard some claim. It would be as impactful to the state's overall budget as cutting the film subsidy.

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100% Correct; in San Diego it’s as easy as pie to get a certificate [[$40.00) and go into any dispensary and buy marijuana. Only problem is there have several instances where the Feds have come in to these very dispensaries and confiscated everything – marijuana, cash, computers et al. They put the business out of business. Additionally the Feds have raided several growing greenhouses in north San Diego County and emptied out the facility, not even leaving a bud.
There has been a move to abandon the storefront approach any only make deliveries; there are still some stores that open discreetly and try to remain under the radar. The raids seem to come in waves and lately the waves have been quiet. The Feds care nothing about state or local laws and have the ultimate trump card – a gold badge and uniform that says Federal Agent.
Operate at your own peril and financial risk.

http://fox5sandiego.com/2013/04/23/f...na-facilities/

http://www.tokeofthetown.com/2014/10...wears_f_th.php

[G-DDT]

WOW! You go way beyond hugging a tree!

Yeah, he's molesting it!

[T.Low]

Decriminalize and regulate weed. Decriminalize and regulate prostitution.

I'll never do either, but the beauty is that I can choose not to do those things that I personally find unappealing.

But you have no choice regarding the unintended consequences. These kids near my town did not choose to get plowed down by a dope head.
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news...e23820043.html

The whole mentality towards smoking weed has changed now that it has been legalized. Everybody at the beach during mid day was smoking pot , it looked like a concert. High school and college kids have no idea how to handle this new responsibility of freedom and are smoking everywhere.
and of course they're not the only ones.

[emu steve]

Yeah, he's molesting it!

How old is the tree in human years?

[Gistok]

But you have no choice regarding the unintended consequences. These kids near my town did not choose to get plowed down by a dope head.
http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news...e23820043.html

The whole mentality towards smoking weed has changed now that it has been legalized. Everybody at the beach during mid day was smoking pot , it looked like a concert. High school and college kids have no idea how to handle this new responsibility of freedom and are smoking everywhere.
and of course they're not the only ones.

Maybe you better read that article again..... the TEST RESULTS are not back.... So I take it you're being presumptuous because he's admitted to smoking in the past, and being tired that day..... this is about the weakest analogy I've seen in a long time for making an argument against something....

[T.Low]

Maybe you better read that article again..... the TEST RESULTS are not back.... So I take it you're being presumptuous because he's admitted to smoking in the past, and being tired that day..... this is about the weakest analogy I've seen in a long time for making an argument against something....

"Smokes marijuana every day". And you think he was just tired? C'mon, man.

[Vic01]

I'm missing Django's comments on this thread.

Might be fun to do some searching and bring quotes from his past posts back to life in this discussion...

[Jimaz]

From a week ago in the Free Press:

Why Michigan Republicans are pushing for legalizing pot

... After idling for decades, the campaign to decriminalize marijuana is suddenly approaching warp speed across the United States — and Michiganders who scoffed at the notion just a few election cycles ago are scrambling to get aboard the bandwagon before it blows past.

Michigan voters will likely get to pick next year from at least two rival legalization proposals. Interestingly, both of the ballot committees organized to date are backed by campaign strategists with deep roots in the state's Republican mainstream — another indication of how quickly the cause of legal cannabis has morphed from counter-culture pipe dream to free-market poster child....

Both the Cannabis Coalition and Welday's group are betting that the moral disapproval with which many older Michiganders view marijuana is giving way to pragmatic consensus that the drug is widely available, increasingly legal, and practically begging to lavish its latent tax revenues on Michigan before other states vacuum them up....

But [Matt Marsden, a spokesman for the Michigan Cannabis Coalition,] insists that any benefits Michigan derives from the status quo will vanish as other states join the legalization bandwagon. Already, he notes, states whose neighbors have decriminalized marijuana are finding it increasingly expensive and impractical to hold the line....

[Bong-Man]

The biggest change that needs to occur at this point is the removal of weed as a schedule 1 drug at the federal level. Two joints in New Mexico gets you a $50 dollar fine. The same two joints can be a felony charge in Arizona. Until that changes, I'll be staying underground.

[FormerEastsider]

Bong-Man...That would depend on the weight of the weed in the two joints.

[gnome]

I will vote for it. I will work to get it on the ballot. I would want anyone serving prison time for a pot conviction to be released from State custody.

It is time. The Great Pot War is lost.

[T.Low]

http://www.bellinghamherald.com/news...e24537493.html

[Danny]

YAY! We are now a stoner nation!

[Ray1936]

I will vote for it. I will work to get it on the ballot. I would want anyone serving prison time for a pot conviction to be released from State custody.

It is time. The Great Pot War is lost.

Could be. But don't come around me smoking that crap.

[G-DDT]

"Smokes marijuana every day". And you think he was just tired? C'mon, man.

You're forgetting the old riddle: "How does one tell the difference between a pot-smoker and a drunk behind the wheel?"

A: "The drunk plows through everyone doing 35 over and refers to the law enforcement presence on the scene as 'Occifer.' The weed smoker gets pulled over going 35 under, asking 'Was I going too fast?"

[detroitbob]

The Lansing boys who herald from the west side of the state will try their best to circumvent the wishesof the people by trying to block a ballot initiative by all means possible. Bet you.

[gnome]

You can get involved at:
http://milegalize.com

A kick-off rally will be held on the steps of the State Capitol on June 25.

i will be the bald white guy without the tattoos, most of my own teeth and non-stoned.

[stromberg2]

Gnome ^^^^ Hahaha!!

[Honky Tonk]

Could be. But don't come around me smoking that crap.

Waddya, a cop?

[Zacha341]

The cigarette cops are already out there, why so strange for those who don't want smell weed?

[Gannon]

Could be. But don't come around me smoking that crap.

Ray, the quality has gone WAY up since the old days. We can hardly even find brown Mexican dirtweed now in the city. There is no crap to smoke any longer.

Yours was the first generation to fall for the propaganda of the whole Reefer Madness sort...all of which has been proven to be lies. Don't get all panty-bunched, even if you don't want to cheerlead the revolution.

The world is a-changin'. Mother Nature's Most Amusing Analgesic will finally be freely available again...I can hardly believe this is happening in my lifetime.


Cheers!