Off The Reservation

legalize it(a biased pothead speaking), there is no reason it should still be illegal. especially when more harmful products like alcohol and tobacco are legal once you reach a certain age. it was made illegal for a few reasons, some big ones are william randolph hearst feeling threatened because he had huge timber holdings and hemp was a cheap substitue for paper pulp which was used in the newspaper industry. another was andrew mellon, secretary of the treasury and the wealthiest man in america was heavily invested in duponts new synthetic fiber, nylon, and they considered its success to depend on it replacing a traditional resource....hemp. its sad that marijuana has been around for thousands of years but has only been made illegal in the past 100 years because of some rich guys who wanted to get richer. the first fabric is believed to made from hemp around 8000-7000BC, in 2727BC the chinese documented the use of weed as a medication to treat a variety of health problems, they later grew it on a large scale for food(they ate the seeds) and fiber. around 1500 BC the scythians started using it for fabric and around 700 BC it was so elevated among the tribes the weed seeds were left as offerings in royal tombs. weed is called sacred grass in the hindu sacred text arthava-veda and named one of the five sacred plants of India. It was used as an offering to Shiva and also as a medication in India from 1200 - 800 BC. it is mentioned in the bible and the talmud. From 1000 to 1500 the french and british grew weed in the colonies of Port Royal, Virginia and Plymouth. In 1619 a law was passed in Jamestown, Virginia Colony, which required farmers to grow weed. weed also became a major trade item between central and south asia during this time. in 1797 george washington grew it as one of his 3 primary crops at mount vernon, thomas jefferson also grew it at monticello. i guess nobody had it right except a few rich people, its a shame

All drugs should be illegal unless prescribed by a Doctor. As a matter of fact smoking should be illegal (I don't smoke) and so should alcohol (I drink beer). Put it this way if cigarettes and liquor was invented tomorrow it would never make it pass the FDA, but it is here and is responsible for killing millions. Can you imagine what our health care would be like if not for tobacco. How many people would still be alive?

Legalize it and tax it

Nothing harder though IMO

All drugs should be legal. Peopls who use drugs use them everday anyway. The statr and fed could tax it and regulate it.

Illegal

I worked at a juvenile court this past summer, and its amazing how many of the kids smoked pot and most of them skipped school to do so. There was also a correlation between the ones who tested positive and the grades of the kids. It was amazing how many of the kids started picking their grades up when they stopped smoking pot. A lot of the kids there with serious crimes also almost always started out with a pot charge or tested positive when they were first arrested. Its not always a gateway drug, but a lot of kids with problems started out getting in trouble for pot.

Im also biased because my freshman roommate at college was a big time pothead and it was annoying as hell. It pretty much ruined his life (he spent his whole time smoking and I dont think he graduated).

The "Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol" movement is gaining steam in Colorado. This approach makes the most sense to me even though I feel marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol. Can't drive on it. Can't do it until you are 21. Can't smoke where you can't have open containers, etc.

I strongly believe marijuana will be legal in our lifetimes. It costs too much money to keep it illegal no matter how much the culture warriors sensationalize it.