Should marijuana be legal?

[ahs]

Well, prostitution is intrinsically morally illicit, because of what it is. It is a distortion of what is supposed to be the marital act…it completely flies in the face of the marital embrace as God created it to be and directly harms those who engage in such an act (prostitution).

Drugs are not inherently or intrisically evil, even if they have properties that can be dangerous or mind-altering. Even alcohol can be mind altering. Drugs are only evil in so much as a person abuses them…over-uses them or uses them for a means of escaping reality. So, it’s not the drug that is ilicit, but the excessive use of them. Used in just moderation, or for their intended purpose (whatever it may be), drugs are not inherently bad, and sometimes are seen as a good (acetaminophin or naproxen sodium, for example…even hydrocodone).

In other words, what I’m getting at is this: if marjuana should be illegal, it should be illegal based on its danger to society.

In and of itself, it’s not really a danger. It can be abused by people, just like anything else, but it’s properties are not really a danger to society unless you account for the drug-lords and pushers…whose existence is directly tied to the fact that it’s illegal.

If you use the gateway drug argument, you should be able to show where it is marijuana that causes a person to then choose other drugs. The problem there is that it can’t be shown. All the examples are of people who learned, at an early age, that drug use was okay, normal, acceptable, etc…and marijuana was simply one of many drugs they experimented with. It could be that it’s simply more available, less monitored by authorities, it’s cheaper, whatever. But you can’t prove that it is the cause of subsequent or peripheral drug use.

Conversely, if you were to push for legalization under the terms of taxation and age-limits, etc…just as for alcohol or tobacco, you should be able to show where society would have some benefit without any added danger.

Well, making it legal takes pushers and drug-lords out of the equation. Use is left to individual choice, just like everyting else in society. Revenue might come via taxation, maybe not…depending on gov involvement. I suspect you’d see alot of independant “growers” pop up all over the place, who, now no longer breaking any laws, can earn revenue themselves. Would this stop them from committing other crimes (if they were prior inclined to a crimial lifestyle)? Eh…beats me…

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

Well, prostitution is intrinsically morally illicit, because of what it is. It is a distortion of what is supposed to be the marital act…it completely flies in the face of the marital embrace as God created it to be and directly harms those who engage in such an act (prostitution).

By that criteria, we should make homosexual acts against the law. We should make fornication against the law. In many places, adultery is against the law, but that stipulation has been removed in roughly 50% of states. Its not something that will get you jail time anywhere, it just matters in a divorce proceeding.

 

[Charlemagne_II]

Scott
**
I even put up material that suggests that in environments where there were no rules whatsoever, people collectivize and create norms of behavior that are considered “positive”, in other words, people “behaved” even when there were no rules compelling them to do so.**

Yeah, right. So we should get rid of the Ten Commandments and everybody will be good?

 

[Charlemagne_II]

ahs

If you use the gateway drug argument, you should be able to show where it is marijuana that causes a person to then choose other drugs. The problem there is that it can’t be shown.

Not at all true. You are whistling Dixie in the dark.There are abundant cases of marijuana users who, testing their own courage (or foolishness) went on to harder drugs.

What you certainly cannot show is that this does not happen.

 

[ahs]

By that criteria, we should make homosexual acts against the law. We should make fornication against the law. In many places, adultery is against the law, but that stipulation has been removed in roughly 50% of states. Its not something that will get you jail time anywhere, it just matters in a divorce proceeding.

I was saying that one can’t compare prostitution to drug use to defend its legality or illegality because they are not on par with each other. If one wants to push one way or the other for marijuana, it should be based on the nature and properties of marijuana and compared to other similar drugs/substances…not compared to prostitution. See my clarification in Post 181.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

Scott
**
I even put up material that suggests that in environments where there were no rules whatsoever, people collectivize and create norms of behavior that are considered “positive”, in other words, people “behaved” even when there were no rules compelling them to do so.**

Yeah, right. So we should get rid of the Ten Commandments and everybody will be good?

Romans 2:15: They demonstrate that God’s law is written in their hearts, for their own conscience and thoughts either accuse them or tell them they are doing right.

You going to argue against the Word of God now?

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

ahs

If you use the gateway drug argument, you should be able to show where it is marijuana that causes a person to then choose other drugs. The problem there is that it can’t be shown.

Not at all true. You are whistling Dixie in the dark.There are abundant cases of marijuana users who, testing their own courage (or foolishness) went on to harder drugs.

What you certainly cannot show is that this does not happen.

Most drug users began smoking cigarettes. Is that in your crosshairs now? Are we going to legislate the evil out of people?

 

[ahs]

What you certainly cannot show is that this does not happen.

I’ll concede to this much. No, I cannot show beyond doubt that it does not lead to other drug use.

Still, I can objectively reason that it is not responsible for such. There are other factors at play, such as how a person was raised, his environment, his dispositions, etc…that may very well have pushed him onward to a path of distruction, regardless of marijuana. It’s something that deserves a great deal of investigation.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

I was saying that one can’t compare prostitution to drug use to defend its legality or illegality because they are not on par with each other. If one wants to push one way or the other for marijuana, it should be based on the nature and properties of marijuana and compared to other similar drugs/substances…not compared to prostitution. See my clarification in Post 181.

I was simply making the case that prostitution being illegal because it frustrates and perverts the normal sexual relations of a a husband and wife should then be the criteria for making same sex activities illegal, fornication illegal, etc… becuase it does the same thing. Since gay sex and fornication are not against the law, why is prostitution? The only difference between fornication and prostitution is that there is money involved.

 

[ahs]

I was simply making the case that prostitution being illegal because it frustrates and perverts the normal sexual relations of a a husband and wife should then be the criteria for making same sex activities illegal, fornication illegal, etc… becuase it does the same thing. Since gay sex and fornication are not against the law, why is prostitution? The only difference between fornication and prostitution is that there is money involved.

So the sinful nature has nothing to do with the law, which now seems obvious. The trigger to get gov’t action is the money…interesting…I never thought of it like that.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

I’ll concede to this much. No, I cannot show beyond doubt that it does not lead to other drug use.

Still, I can objectively reason that it is not responsible for such. There are other factors at play, such as how a person was raised, his environment, his dispositions, etc…that may very well have pushed him onward to a path of distruction, regardless of marijuana. It’s something that deserves a great deal of investigation.

The relationship between marijuana and other harder drugs is correlative at best, it has never been proven to be causative.

 

[iloveangels]

Did it ever dawn on any of you that getting bombed out of your mind on pot is probably a mortal sin???

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

So the sinful nature has nothing to do with the law, which now seems obvious. The trigger to get gov’t action is the money…interesting…I never thought of it like that.

Just look at all the laws concerning “victimless” crimes. It all boils down to money. If the government can make a law to fine you because you broke said law, they will. Look at traffic cameras. They have nothing to do with public safety. Its all about revenue collection.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

Did it ever dawn on any of you that getting bombed out of your mind on pot is probably a mortal sin???

Did it ever occur to you that masturbating is a mortal sin. Are we considering making that illegal too?

 

[iloveangels]

Did it ever occur to you that masturbating is a mortal sin. Are we considering making that illegal too?

Oh now we’re talking about getting bombed out of our minds on pot and masturbating too. What a retrograde thread. Nasty. Smelly. This must be a male thread, huh? Disgusting.

 

[iloveangels]

Right on my friend.

Hemp is also good for food, clothes, fuel, and other common materials we use and build with. My mum has a hemp based lotion she uses for her skin and says it’s the best she’s ever bought.

You guys should crawl under a rock. This thread is disgusting.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

Oh now we’re talking about getting bombed out of our minds on pot and masturbating too. What a retrograde thread. Nasty. Smelly. This must be a male thread, huh? Disgusting.

Actually, it is problem with enforcing moral behavior by force of law. To me it is an indication that our clergy are failing miserably at their jobs. If people were behaving morally of their own accord, there would be no need for these laws.

 

[runwaymodel]

Did it ever occur to you that masturbating is a mortal sin. Are we considering making that illegal too?

What iloveangels, I believe, is trying to say is that we should avoid doind anything that is morally wrong. Masturbation is wrong so one should not do it. Drugs are obviously wrong, so if you are not a moral person than maybe logic should resignate with you. It appears to me that people who are trying to explain why marijuana should be legalized are trying to justify their actions. I mean, if you know its wrong and smoke pot what do you do when Sunday comes around–do you recieve communion?

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

You guys should crawl under a rock. This thread is disgusting.

You do know that hemp was the most widely grown crop in North America at the time of the American Revolution, right? Are you gong to accuse the founding fathers of being disgusting potheads? The commercial, nutritional, and industrial applications of hemp (a form of cannibis) are well documented.

 

[Scott_Lafrance]

What iloveangels, I believe, is trying to say is that we should avoid doind anything that is morally wrong. Masturbation is wrong so one should not do it. Drugs are obviously wrong, so if you are not a moral person than maybe logic should resignate with you. It appears to me that people who are trying to explain why marijuana should be legalized are trying to justify their actions. I mean, if you know its wrong and smoke pot what do you do when Sunday comes around–do you recieve communion?

I have never smoked pot a day in my life and I don’t ever intend to. If my kids brought weed into my house, they would be evicted with the quickness. What are you trying to imply?