The Top Ten Reasons Marijuana should be Legal and the Top Ten Reasons it won’t be anytime soon
My Australian doppelganger, Darren Rowse (we have the same birthday and we’re both bald bloggers), is doing a group writing project/contest over on his site Problogger where he’s asking bloggers to write some list posts.
Since I’m a stoner (did someone say burnout?!?), my first idea was naturally this. So without further ado, I present to you:
The Top Ten Reasons Marijuana Should be Legal
- 10. It is statistically less addictive that tobacco or alcohol.
- 9. It is statistically less harmful than tobacco or alcohol.
- 8. “Christ” means “anointed one” and Christ very well may have been anointed with cannabis oil.
- 7.A government commission under the Nixon administration recommended decriminalization. In the same year that The Netherlands’ government actually decriminalized pot.
- 6. The human brain is hardwired with cannabinoid receptors.
- 5. The human body produces certain cannabinoids.
- 4. We are just beginning to see the medical potential of cannabinoids, not just THC, mind you, some are even cannabinoids that haven’t even been isolated yet (so I don’t want to hear that Marinol crap).
- 3. The waste products of marijuana cultivation could very easily be turned into other viable commodities, from cloth to paper to methanol to biodeisel to furniture.
- 2. The wonderful biodiversity and myriad flavors available could someday lead to cannabis being appreciated in the same way that fine wines or a fine cigar is appreciated, and such gastronomic pleasure should not be denied to people.
- 1. The criminalization of a substance which has little to no cost on society, little harm on the user, and possibly even medical benefit is nothing more than an attack on personal liberty.
The Top Ten Reasons Why it won’t be Anytime Soon
- 10. A product that grows like a weed that could possibly replace the drugs that pharmaceutical companies have spent years and millions of dollars researching is a threat to a multibillion dollar industry.
- 9. Another multibillion dollar industry, the drug screening industry, has plenty to lose if the social stigma of marijuana is lifted.
- 8. Eighty years of sketchy propaganda is hard to shake off.
- 7. Black people, Mexicans, and Liberals enjoy pot.
- 6. Direct competition to the synthetic fabric giants **coughDUPONTcough**
- 5. Law enforcement officials and professional informers make beaucoup bucks off of the profits from property seizures due to marijuana offenses.
- 4. The anti-smoking zealots are just as afraid of marijuana as they are of cigarettes.
- 3. Politicians simply refuse to admit that they’ve been wrong about marijuana all along.
- 2. Politicians are even more afraid of looking soft on pot in the eyes of a malinformed American public.
- 1. No one with enough money has realized how much money there is to be made from a legitimate marijuana trade.
I can back up any of these claims, but I’d like to generate some discussion on this issue. So feel free to call “BS” if you want. I’d like to discuss it.
Explore posts in the same categories: Marijuana, Rants
August 16th, 2006 at 10:20 pm
“black people, mexicans and liberals enjoy pot”
Isn’t that kind of stereotypical.
And to clarify, is your point that it would not be legalized because these groups are the minority, and do not have the ear of Washington? Or is your point that it would not be legal because the government wants these people to enjoy the drug, because they see it as a means of keeping these groups loopy and submissive?
August 17th, 2006 at 8:49 am
Well my point was that those groups are the minorty and don\’t have the ear of Washington. Yes it was stereotypical, but it was meant to be ironic. However, if you look into the history of prohibition, you\’ll find that most of the mass hysteria created against pot in the 1930s was racially incensed. The \”devil weed\” was supposedly responsible for black men being able to seduce white women, people were told that marijuana was controlled by rogue Mexican gangs, intent on the destruction of America and Americans.
August 17th, 2006 at 9:15 am
[...] I submitted a post earlier to Darren Rowse’s List Writing Project. He has recieved between two and three hundred submissions so far. I’ve been looking through them and I wanted to share a few of my favorites with you. [...]
August 17th, 2006 at 11:18 am
I’ve been saying for years, legalize the stuff and put police to work on real crimes…. and I’ve never even tried marijuana ;). Our list is up if you’d like to look… have a great day!
August 17th, 2006 at 2:04 pm
very interesting read
I can see all those reasons being correct on why not to legalize it. Mainly, I don’t think politicians have the balls to be able to admit that thye’ve been wrong for so long and that they’ve wasted so much money fighting it.
The potential for a legal marijuana market is huge. Even with excessive taxes and regulation like alcohol and tobacco, it’d still be a hit in society.
August 18th, 2006 at 6:47 am
How can smoking pot less harmful than tobacco or alcohol? Have you ever try playing mahjong (similar to poker) while intoxicated with grass? Everything seems to move on a super slow speed. You can’t think straight at all even with little amount.
Tobacco and Marijuana do kills a little of your brain cell each time you puff your lungs away. It’s so microscopic that noone really notices it until it’s too late. Smoking just slow down your thinking process.
I’m not against people who do, but understand how it damages your health just a little at a time.
Cheers =P
August 18th, 2006 at 8:33 am
Yes, pot does affect your health.
No it’s not as bad as tobacco or alcohol.
Pot has actually been proven to help regenerate brain cells, which is why it works for people with Alzhemier’s. The killing brain cells thing is at best, a myth, and at worst, a fabrication.
Pot also affects different people differently. You may not be able to play MahJong while smoking, but you’d probably find me quite capable even after a few bowls.
August 26th, 2006 at 10:41 am
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