Colorado and Marijuana--??

[JohnnyL]

http://thefreethoughtproject.com/2-year ... s-plummet/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Two Years Later...

"There is another interesting statistic coming out of Colorado’s legalization of recreational cannabis. According to the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), all drug-related charges have dropped by 23% on a judicial district level. It seems that ending pot prohibition can have positive effects in other areas of the war on drugs.

On the issue of tax revenue, Colorado has beaten expectations with a projected $125 million collected in 2015. This is almost three times what the state collected in 2014. Analysts attribute this to a variety of factors, including more dispensaries open, more tourists visiting those pot shops, and more people deciding to try cannabis.

The Free Thought Project has documented several other good things about Colorado’s cannabis legalization. Cannabis businesses have donated large sums of money to clean up highways, teen cannabis use has declined, prescription drug use is down, and deaths from opiate painkillers have declined dramatically. Highway car accident deaths are at their lowest ever, and even violent crime has significantly decreased. It is more difficult to attribute these last two to legalization, but the trends are nonetheless there."

Read more at http://thefreethoughtproject.com/2-year ... gs-plummet" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Well? I just wonder "what else" is happening... It does say more people trying cannabis. I wonder if more adults smoke, more often--and how that's affecting their society.

[Jason]

http://thefreethoughtproject.com/2-year ... s-plummet/

Two Years Later...

"There is another interesting statistic coming out of Colorado’s legalization of recreational cannabis. According to the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), all drug-related charges have dropped by 23% on a judicial district level. It seems that ending pot prohibition can have positive effects in other areas of the war on drugs.

On the issue of tax revenue, Colorado has beaten expectations with a projected $125 million collected in 2015. This is almost three times what the state collected in 2014. Analysts attribute this to a variety of factors, including more dispensaries open, more tourists visiting those pot shops, and more people deciding to try cannabis.

The Free Thought Project has documented several other good things about Colorado’s cannabis legalization. Cannabis businesses have donated large sums of money to clean up highways, teen cannabis use has declined, prescription drug use is down, and deaths from opiate painkillers have declined dramatically. Highway car accident deaths are at their lowest ever, and even violent crime has significantly decreased. It is more difficult to attribute these last two to legalization, but the trends are nonetheless there."

Read more at http://thefreethoughtproject.com/2-year ... gs-plummet" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Well? I just wonder "what else" is happening... It does say more people trying cannabis. I wonder if more adults smoke, more often--and how that's affecting their society.

Of course drug related charges are dropping...MJ is legal.

And selling lots of it generates tax revenue....at the cost of increased legal charges in neighboring states.

Have you studied the effects of the legalization of marijuana? Colorado is prime testing ground right now....

By the time Elder Heber J. Grant became Church President in 1918, America was in a reform crusade called Prohibition. One year earlier, in December 1917, the U.S. Congress had approved an amendment to the Constitution making the production and sale of alcohol illegal; the states ratified the amendment in January 1919. President Grant, a Word of Wisdom advocate, called Prohibition “the greatest financial and moral blessing that has ever come to humanity.” 10 But Prohibition failed to end the alcohol trade, driving it underground instead.

http://www.lds.org/ensign/1999/09/the-c ... h?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I have never felt so humiliated in my life over anything as that the State of Utah voted for the repeal of Prohibition.

- President Heber J. Grant, Conference, Oct. 1934

In 1933, while the Church was in the process of assisting its needy, a constitutional amendment ending Prohibition was proposed. Ignoring President Grant’s objections, Utah cast the deciding vote to repeal Prohibition. An unhappy President Grant remarked that some members who sang “We Thank Thee, O God, for a Prophet” seemed to add the words, “provided he keeps his mouth shut politically.” 18

http://www.lds.org/ensign/1999/09/the-c ... h?lang=eng" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Church President Heber J. Grant was vocal in his disapproval of the policies of the thirty-second President, especially after the death of his pro-Roosevelt first counselor, Anthony B. Ivins, in September 1934. He would often become upset when discussing FDR, and in one heated discussions slammed his cane on the desk of Franklin J. Murdock, shattering the glass desktop in his anti-Roosevelt fury. It comes as no surprise, then, that in the election of 1936, President Grant openly endorsed the Republican candidate for President, Alf Landon. However, he pointed out that he was speaking for himself and not for the Church…As the 1936 election drew near, an unsigned, front-page editorial in the Church-owned Deseret News accused FDR of knowingly promoting unconstitutional laws and advocating Communism…Former First Presidency member Marion G. Romney, a staunch Democrat committed to vote for Roosevelt, was deeply torn…After fasting and three hours of prayer Marion concluded that the editorial was inspired and given through the Lord’s prophet. He then reversed his political loyalties and labored to dissuade his friends from voting for Roosevelt.”

In 1940, the General Authorities once again drafted a joint anti-Roosevelt statement. Yet despite all of the anti-Roosevelt sentiment against FDR, he carried Utah all four times he ran, increasing his total each election, a result that left President Grant “dumbfounded.” President Grant regarded the support for FDR as “one of the most serious conditions that has confronted me since I became President of the Church.”

http://www.millennialstar.org/heber-j-grant-and-fdr/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

From this very stand he pleaded with us not to repeal the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution of the United States. He didn't speak as Heber J. Grant, the man, he spoke as the President of the Church and the representative of our Heavenly Father.

- George Albert Smith, Conference, Oct 1943

One of the saddest days in all of Utah's history was when the people, including the Latter-day Saints (for it could not have been done without them), rejected the counsel and urging of the Lord's prophet, Heber J. Grant, and repealed Prohibition long years ago--yet many of those voters had sung numerous times, "We Thank Thee, O God, For A Prophet."

- The Teachings of Spencer. W. Kimball

I go back to the words of Jehoshaphat: “Believe in the Lord your God, so shall ye be established; believe his prophets, so shall ye prosper.” (2 Chr. 20:20.)

There are many little things that test our willingness to accept the word of the prophets. Jesus said, “How often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not!” (Matt. 23:37.)

So it has been through the history of mankind, and so it is today. In our own communities, even here in Utah, we have experienced some of this. President Grant carried to his grave a deep sense of sorrow that, contrary to his counsel, the people of Utah cast the final vote, in 1934, that repealed the Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution.

I am grateful to say that we had a different experience some years ago when we joined with other citizens in a campaign to control the distribution of liquor. There is no question in my mind that great benefits have come as a result of the overwhelming response to direction from our prophet.

- President Gordan B. Hinckley, "Believe His Prophets", General Conference April 1992

...also if you want to see a glaring difference between libertarian theology and LDS church theology...look at the positions on marijuana.

Then if you want to see results...examine what's happened in Colorado less than 20 months after the law went into effect on Jan. 1, 2014 (Coloradans voted to legalize marijuana in November 2012, possession became legal early the next year, and legal marijuana sales began in January 2014).

The Impact:
http://www.in.gov/ipac/files/August_201 ... 281%29.pdf" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

In 2014 and 2015, nearly $6 million in pot revenues have been distributed to local governments. But the cost of increased law enforcement, drugged-driving incidents, fatal crashes, loss of productivity and a huge spike in gang-related crime bring into question the cost-benefit of those dollars.
http://www.newsweek.com/unexpected-side ... eed-339931" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Sheriffs from the neighboring states of Nebraska and Kansas said their local law enforcement budgets were "burdened" by marijuana that has shown up in their counties. In December, Nebraska and Oklahoma filed a lawsuit arguing that federal law prohibits the production and sale of marijuana, and should take precedence over the will of Colorado voters.

"We are forced away from what we're usually doing to deal with Colorado-sourced marijuana," said Sheriff Mark Overman of Scotts Bluff County, Nebraska, citing increased expenditures for incarcerating those arrested. "Legalization has completely changed the landscape involving the marijuana that we encounter ... the potency is off the charts, it is the best marijuana in the world."

Overman added that he thought increased emergency room visits in Colorado and traffic fatalities in which marijuana may have been a factor weren't being noticed outside the region.

"The media has focused on the feel-good stories and they are ignoring what's happening on the ground out there," he said. "We think that what Colorado has done is illegal and it's unconstitutional. I believe that this case is going to have national ramifications, and if we win then we can reverse what is looking like a surrender to the pro-marijuana crowd."

Colorado, Washington, Oregon, Alaska and the District of Columbia have legalized recreational marijuana, and more jurisdictions could follow, as a majority of Americans now support legalization. Though such laws remain illegal under the federal Controlled Substances Act, the Department of Justice said in 2013 that prosecutors should avoid targeting marijuana operations that are legal in the states in which they reside.

a report released last year from the Brookings Institution concluded that the implementation of the new laws has been largely successful. The state's marijuana industry is valued around $700 million per year.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/0 ... 08358.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

The attorneys general of Nebraska and Oklahoma sued Colorado in the U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday, arguing state-legalized marijuana from Colorado is improperly spilling across state lines.

The suit invokes the federal government's right to regulate both drugs and interstate commerce, and says Colorado's decision to legalize marijuana has been "particularly burdensome" to police agencies on the other side of the state line.

In June, USA TODAY highlighted the flow of marijuana from Colorado into small towns across Nebraska: felony drug arrests in Chappell, Neb., just 7 miles north of the Colorado border have skyrocketed 400% in three years.

He said while marijuana was always available in his area, it was never so widespread.

He said harder drugs, like heroin and meth, have followed the increase in marijuana availability.

"Coloradans overwhelmingly voted in favor of legalizing marijuana. In so doing, we've chosen the licensed and regulated marijuana businesses over violent criminal organizations. Colorado has created a comprehensive and robust regulatory program for the sale of marijuana in Colorado," Mike Elliot of Colorado's Marijuana Industry Group said in a statement. "And the data is overwhelmingly showing that Colorado has enhanced public safety, the economy, and the freedom of its citizens. If Nebraska and Oklahoma succeed, they will put the violent criminal organizations back in charge."

Mason Tvert of the national Marijuana Policy Project was more blunt: "These guys are on the wrong side of history."

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nati ... /20599831/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

And increasingly, these drivers are being found guilty of driving under the influence of drugs, which Sheriff Hayward says is worrisome trend.

“They’re using it while they’re driving,” Sheriff Hayward said. “It’s a risk to themselves to drive that way, but it also puts the rest of the motoring public at risk if they’re on the roadway at the same time.”

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/ill ... do-border/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Smith considers herself a pot tourist, a term used for those who casually buy in newly legal jurisdictions like Colorado. Like others, she transports what she buys back to states like Texas, where possessing marijuana remains a prosecutable offense.

The risks that even small-time pot traffickers take to transport weed across Colorado state lines are increasing as law enforcement in neighboring states set up more border checkpoints, increase inspections of storage facilities and shipping containers and even take Colorado to court. In December the attorneys general for Nebraska and Oklahoma sued Colorado in a Supreme Court case to roll back the state’s voter-approved laws legalizing marijuana, claiming cops in their states can’t keep up with an influx of weed that they argue is originating from Colorado.

But Smith has no plans to halt her trips. Despite the heightened crackdown, she and others interviewed for this story concede that their race and income make them less likely to get caught. The white, suburban mom said she eats or inhales marijuana twice a month, preferring a vaporizer and her couch to drinks at a bar. She earns a six-figure salary as the customer service manager for a prominent energy company.

Traffickers like Smith are rankling Nebraska and Oklahoma, which claimed in their Supreme Court suit that Colorado's legalization measure is undermining their own “marijuana bans, draining their treasuries, and placing stress on their criminal justice systems.”

According to a recent report by a regional office of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, highway and state police made 360 marijuana interdiction seizures of outbound marijuana from Colorado in 2014 — an increase of 592 percent from the annual average from 2005 to 2008. The report relied on information volunteered by law enforcement agencies, so it may not reflect the actual landscape.

http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2 ... skier.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Wilkinson says marijuana-related offenses in Sidney have increased 50 percent in that time, jumping from 100 to 150 cases.

Deuel County is roughly the size of Los Angeles, but has a population of just 2,000. Hayward has only a handful of deputies. In 2011 there were only four felony marijuana convictions in the county, but in 2014, there were 32, costing the county $150,000 — money that didn't go toward fixing roads or schools, Hayward says.

"Every bit of marijuana we have in here came from Colorado," Hayward says. "We need to stand up and say, 'No, we don't want this stuff here.' It's dangerous. It's bad for people's health. You don't want your kids getting involved in this."

For cops in these small towns along the Colorado border, this fight is about people's health.That's why Nebraska and Oklahoma aren't asking the Supreme Court to force Colorado to pay court costs — they're asking for Colorado's entire experiment with legal, recreational marijuana to be shut down, full stop.

http://www.npr.org/2015/02/03/382646498 ... the-border" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Say hello to my little friend....$$$$

Lost in the buzz is the documented impact of legal marijuana on Colorado children.

The reality about today’s marijuana, an addictive substance whose average potency has dramatically increased from 3 percent THC in the 1990s to almost 15 percent, should change everything that people think they know about the drug.

It affects the brain – especially in adolescents –impairing intelligence, reasoning, judgment and clarity of thought. Legalization means greater access and a lower perception of the drug’s risks by teens, leading more kids to use and hijacking their potential success in school and in life.

By 2010, past 30-day use for this age group was 12.2 percent, compared to 6.6 percent for the country. One in six kids who start using marijuana becomes addicted.

On Dec. 19, Dr. Christian Thurstone, Colorado Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Society president and youth addiction researcher at the University of Colorado-Denver, observed that his clinic has been “inundated with young people reporting for marijuana-addiction treatment. ... Every day, we see the acute effects of the policy of legalization. And our kids are paying a great price.”

In Colorado’s schools, drug-related expulsions spiked 45 percent between 2008 and 2012. In a single academic year, a 10-year low in drug-related suspensions and expulsions flipped to a 10-year high. While the Colorado Department of Education includes all drugs in its data, officials report that most drug-related suspensions since the 2008-09 academic year are related to marijuana.

http://archive.azcentral.com/opinions/a ... -polk.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

According to our data, middle schools are where most people begin to experiment," said John Simmons, the Denver Public Schools' executive director of student services. "It's much easier to stop someone from using in the first place than it is to stop it once it's started.

School officials acknowledge marijuana has long been a problem, legal or not, but say the greater availability and societal acceptance appears to be prompting more kids to try it.

"We have seen parents come in and say, 'Oh that's mine, they just took it out of my room,' and that sort of thing," said school resource officer Judy Lutkin of the Aurora Police Department. "Parents have it in their houses more often, and the kids just can take it from home."

Last April, several elementary school students in northern Colorado made national headlines after they were suspended for bringing marijuana and marijuana candy to school. Authorities said they stole it from their grandparents, who had purchased it legally.

"I would say that at any given time, any day of the week, there are probably about 10% of kids in the high school that are under the influence of something," said school resource officer Susan Condreay of the Aurora Police Department.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nati ... /23620235/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Colorado reached over $50 million dollars in recreational cannabis sales in June, breaking the state’s previous record, according to Ricardo Baca, a staff writer for Denver Post’s The Cannabist. In addition, medical sales reached $25 million.

Based on the state’s various taxes on marijuana sales, Baca reports that the state has earned over $60 million dollars in marijuana tax revenue so far this year.

Along with legalization, Colorado voters approved a 15 percent excise tax on wholesale marijuana sales that is only to be used for school construction. According to another recent report from Baca, Colorado schools have earned $13.6 million in just the first five months of 2015, a sharp increase over 2014, when the tax generated a total of $13.3 million for the whole year. Putting that figure in perspective, Baca quoted a local Colorado school superintendent, who said that $40 million would fund the construction of “two well-equipped elementary schools, or one well-equipped middle school with an athletic field.”

http://www.mintpressnews.com/new-school ... on/208751/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Isn't that how they pitched legalized gambling? Oh the money is going to go for education....

[Ezra]

I will bet that the church will announce that mj used for (medical) use is not breaking the wow. Or cbd oil.

[Jason]

I will bet that the church will announce that mj used for (medical) use is not breaking the wow. Or cbd oil.

Have they announced its ok to drink alcohol for medical use since prohibition was taken away? Or official announcements on any essential oils?

[Ezra]

I will bet that the church will announce that mj used for (medical) use is not breaking the wow. Or cbd oil.

Have they announced its ok to drink alcohol for medical use since prohibition was taken away? Or official announcements on any essential oils?

Alcohol as medicine?? care to expand on that?

[Jason]

I will bet that the church will announce that mj used for (medical) use is not breaking the wow. Or cbd oil.

Have they announced its ok to drink alcohol for medical use since prohibition was taken away? Or official announcements on any essential oils?

Alcohol as medicine?? care to expand on that?

Never heard about the health benefits of a glass or two of red wine every day?

[gclayjr]

Jason,

Prohibition was a good law. The problem was that America had morally descended to the point where they were willing in mass to break laws and embrace violent criminals to get what they wanted.The law was no longer enforceable. A little known fact is that alcoholism went DOWN during prohibition and went up dramatically after it was repealed.

America is better of with Marijuana being illegal. However, I think we have probably crossed the same line with marijuana as we did with alcohol. As a society, we no longer condemn either marijuana usage, or the criminals that provide it. A large part of the society will go to criminals to get what they want.

It may be time to repeal marijuana, (and who knows maybe other drug laws), but that is more of a statement as to how far down the rat hole we have gone as a society, than how right or wrong those laws are.

Regards,

George Clay

[JohnnyL]

Not just marijuana:
"According to the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), all drug-related charges have dropped by 23% on a judicial district level. It seems that ending pot prohibition can have positive effects in other areas of the war on drugs."

And selling lots of it generates tax revenue....at the cost of increased legal charges in neighboring states.

Legal charges, which those states no doubt love because of all the money they make from all those extra criminals. Maybe those states should consider...

teen cannabis use has declined, prescription drug use is down, and deaths from opiate painkillers have declined dramatically

Highway car accident deaths are at their lowest ever, and even violent crime has significantly decreased

It seems statistics are all over the place, depending on who you ask.

I wonder what the future holds, though. My first guess is that Big Pharma and CIA won't like this--it cuts too much into their profits.

[JohnnyL]

I will bet that the church will announce that mj used for (medical) use is not breaking the wow. Or cbd oil.

Have they announced its ok to drink alcohol for medical use since prohibition was taken away? Or official announcements on any essential oils?

Alcohol as medicine?? care to expand on that?

Never heard about the health benefits of a glass or two of red wine every day?

Actually, yes, but not for alcohol--it was coffee, for my relative with a heart condition, as prescribed by a doctor. I guess if a doctor says, it's ok, yeah? #:-s :-s

[Ezra]

Have they announced its ok to drink alcohol for medical use since prohibition was taken away? Or official announcements on any essential oils?

Alcohol as medicine?? care to expand on that?

Never heard about the health benefits of a glass or two of red wine every day?

Actually, yes, but not for alcohol--it was coffee, for my relative with a heart condition, as prescribed by a doctor. I guess if a doctor says, it's ok, yeah? #:-s :-s

Yes I have accually but you get the same benefits from grape juice. So you don't need the alcohol.

Besides that I have an inside source on the mj announcement. But won't expound on it. Just wait and see just wait and see.

[Ezra]

Jason,

Prohibition was a good law. The problem was that America had morally descended to the point where they were willing in mass to break laws and embrace violent criminals to get what they wanted.The law was no longer enforceable. A little known fact is that alcoholism went DOWN during prohibition and went up dramatically after it was repealed.

America is better of with Marijuana being illegal. However, I think we have probably crossed the same line with marijuana as we did with alcohol. As a society, we no longer condemn either marijuana usage, or the criminals that provide it. A large part of the society will go to criminals to get what they want.

It may be time to repeal marijuana, (and who knows maybe other drug laws), but that is more of a statement as to how far down the rat hole we have gone as a society, than how right or wrong those laws are.

Regards,

George Clay

From what I have read on probation it was a currupt law pushed into place by the Rockefellers to gain control of the fuel market by restricting the production of alcohol to be used as fuel. Once the auto industry started tooling the vehicles to run on gasoline only not alcohol the law was repealed.

Which would make sence since the Rockefellers are the ones who really benifited most from having a monopoly on the supply of none alcohol fuel.

I for one would choose to have all drugs be legal not to promote using drugs but to allow those who want to use them the freedom too.

I would want there to be laws in place that would protect protect others from harm caused by abusers of drugs. But only after the abuse was done.

I don't stand by any law that punishes people for a crime they have yet to commit.

[gclayjr]

ezra,

I thought I understood how much you guys have created stories of conspiracy against Rothschilds, Rockefellers, Illumiati, George W. Bush... etc

However, recently, you guys have amazed me! You blame even more stuff than I realized on those guys. I guess it is a comforting fantasy to blame the usual suspects for every evil that befalls us, because then you never have to either look into the mirror, or do anything about it. You can be comfortable in your basement (if you have one) just ranting about the evil these conspirators have perpetrated, and then feel some relief, at knowing who to blame.

Regards,

George CLay

[JohnnyL]

.

[JohnnyL]

ezra,

I thought I understood how much you guys have created stories of conspiracy against Rothschilds, Rockefellers, Illumiati, George W. Bush... etc

However, recently, you guys have amazed me! You blame even more stuff than I realized on those guys. I guess it is a comforting fantasy to blame the usual suspects for every evil that befalls us, because then you never have to either look into the mirror, or do anything about it. You can be comfortable in your basement (if you have one) just ranting about the evil these conspirators have perpetrated, and then feel some relief, at knowing who to blame.

Regards,

George CLay

Have you read the history of hemp? There's an easy conspiracy for you, there. ;)

[Jason]

Not just marijuana:
"According to the Drug Policy Alliance (DPA), all drug-related charges have dropped by 23% on a judicial district level. It seems that ending pot prohibition can have positive effects in other areas of the war on drugs."

And selling lots of it generates tax revenue....at the cost of increased legal charges in neighboring states.

Legal charges, which those states no doubt love because of all the money they make from all those extra criminals. Maybe those states should consider...

teen cannabis use has declined, prescription drug use is down, and deaths from opiate painkillers have declined dramatically

Highway car accident deaths are at their lowest ever, and even violent crime has significantly decreased

It seems statistics are all over the place, depending on who you ask.

I wonder what the future holds, though. My first guess is that Big Pharma and CIA won't like this--it cuts too much into their profits.

...a war is going on for influence on minds...no doubt...

going down like California's prison population...not for lack of crime...but because nobody cares to enforce the laws anymore???

[Ezra]

ezra,

I thought I understood how much you guys have created stories of conspiracy against Rothschilds, Rockefellers, Illumiati, George W. Bush... etc

However, recently, you guys have amazed me! You blame even more stuff than I realized on those guys. I guess it is a comforting fantasy to blame the usual suspects for every evil that befalls us, because then you never have to either look into the mirror, or do anything about it. You can be comfortable in your basement (if you have one) just ranting about the evil these conspirators have perpetrated, and then feel some relief, at knowing who to blame.

Regards,

George CLay

It's really easy to look up. You should try it and educate yourself instead of hiding in that basement of yours with your head covered in a pillow with your eyes closed and ears plugged.

Or you try to read a few book. Here are a few good ones.

Proofs of a conspiracy by John Robinson
Creature from jekyll island by g Edward Griffin
5000 year leap cleon Skousen
None dare call it conspiracy Gary Allen
An enemy hath done this Ezra Taft benson

[skmo]

Hemp has been thwarted in the US by Hearst who feared for his losses in lumber and the DuPonts for their losses in artificial fibers like nylon. Not much left hidden about that history.

[Separatist]

Jason,

Prohibition was a good law. The problem was that America had morally descended to the point where they were willing in mass to break laws and embrace violent criminals to get what they wanted.The law was no longer enforceable. A little known fact is that alcoholism went DOWN during prohibition and went up dramatically after it was repealed.

America is better of with Marijuana being illegal. However, I think we have probably crossed the same line with marijuana as we did with alcohol. As a society, we no longer condemn either marijuana usage, or the criminals that provide it. A large part of the society will go to criminals to get what they want.

It may be time to repeal marijuana, (and who knows maybe other drug laws), but that is more of a statement as to how far down the rat hole we have gone as a society, than how right or wrong those laws are.

Regards,

George Clay

It was a terrible law. "Vices are not Crimes" - Lysander Spooner

[Melissa]

I'm not suprised at most of those stats posted in the OP because as we get society all high, of course people will chill out. The ONLY problem I really have with pot being legal is that people will drive and operate in public high, and I disagree with that. If anyone has ever really been high, you know that driving is not safe at all.

You can't fix problems by throwing more stuff at it. Pot seems to be helping but it's also because people are getting high. Not really fixing some of the base problems just using something else to cope. But, to each their own, I am no judge and fault no one for using pot to ease pain and suffering.

[eehl]

Ezra what info do you have about an MJ announcement? MMJ is legal in my ward and stake, and that came from the stake pres. I know worthy people attending meetings and temple high as a kite. They might not be able to do so otherwise, if it works for them great.

[gclayjr]

separatist,

Dictionary.com definition (1)

Crime:

an action or an instance of negligence that is deemed injurious to the public welfare or morals or to the interests of the state and that is legally prohibited.

I guess it depends upon what society has determined is injurious to public welfare. You and other hard core libertarians, have determined that those crimes that come under vice should not be a crime, but it is a crime unless you convince law makers to to change it. You should be happy, however. Generally you are winning and every day more despicable, destructive and immoral behavior becomes legal.

Regards,

George Clay

[Ezra]

I'm not suprised at most of those stats posted in the OP because as we get society all high, of course people will chill out. The ONLY problem I really have with pot being legal is that people will drive and operate in public high, and I disagree with that. If anyone has ever really been high, you know that driving is not safe at all.

You can't fix problems by throwing more stuff at it. Pot seems to be helping but it's also because people are getting high. Not really fixing some of the base problems just using something else to cope. But, to each their own, I am no judge and fault no one for using pot to ease pain and suffering.

Can't fix the problem of bad parenting by trying to parent for them Or upping the ante.

Wicked people will choose wickedness.

Mj can be used as medicine.
A smart person would not smoke it to get that medicanal effect as smoking has its own risks. But I can be used wisely for a medicanal purpose.

Should we then punish those who wish to use it correctly by making it illegal for everyone so that others have to break a law to abuse it?

It's only after a person commits a crime should they be punished.

And a person who wants to use mj for purely medical use should not be limited by law to access it.

As person that wants to abuse it should be free too. But if they harm others is when they should be punished not befor. If they choose to destroy or currupt themself they should be free too.

If mj should be illegal then so should fast food, tattoos, alcohol, headache medicine and everything eles that can be abused or that desecrates our body.

[Separatist]

Sorry George, but I think going after people who smoke a joint or drink a bud and destroying their lives and families is highly immoral. The modern conservative paternalistic state is antithetical to liberty.

[gclayjr]

Ezra,

Proofs of a conspiracy by John Robinson
Creature from jekyll island by g Edward Griffin
5000 year leap cleon Skousen
None dare call it conspiracy Gary Allen
An enemy hath done this Ezra Taft benson

I have read 2,3 & 4 and while I have read a lot of Ezra Taft Benson, I haven't read that book. The other 3; pretty good books. As I have stated many times before, I agree that there are a number of conspiracies out there, I just don't believe EVERYTHING is a conspiracy. I do believe that it becomes destructive when one immerses himself in conspiracy literature. I think that conspiracy nuts have woven many tales that are not true, even if the "feel" like they out to be. It certainly destroys their credibility for those things that are truly a result of conspiracy (for example the creation of the fed... Creature from Jekyll island), when you spin off on every outrageous assertion of any conspiracy guy out there.

Also, years ago, when I was first approached by conspiracy folks, I asked my self a simple question. "What if all of this is true, then what?". What I determined by answering this simple question was that the best response to virtually any conspiracy is to live and teach correct principles, and then the conspiracy doesn't really matter. I am reminded of the people of Whoville, when the Grinch stole Christmas....since they felt the true meaning of Christmas ... it just didn't matter.

Regards,

George Clay

[captainfearnot]

I will bet that the church will announce that mj used for (medical) use is not breaking the wow. Or cbd oil.

Have they announced its ok to drink alcohol for medical use since prohibition was taken away? Or official announcements on any essential oils?

Alcohol as medicine?? care to expand on that?

Nyquil has alcohol in it. I've never heard of Mormons who eschew it. (I mean, I'm sure they're out there, considering there are Mormons who avoid chocolate because of the caffeine, but I've never met any.)

I think anything is considered kosher as long as it's for a legit medical purpose. I've always understood the WoW as pertaining to recreational and nutritional use. So don't smoke a cigarette or drink coffee in your foxhole, but if you get your leg blown off, by all means help yourself to some morphine.