There's a bill going on (mine) to legalise marijuana. Read it. Approve it. Hate it. Your choice. What do ya'll (I'm a texan. get over it.) think about it?
I think the biggest problem about it is that it is illegal. If it were made legal, people were educated on it, and it was banned from all public places there would be no problem. In many countries it is tying up the courts and true criminals are the ones who are getting away. One serious problem with the drug is that it is sold illegally in underground rings. These rings may be lacing the drug to make it more dangerous. If it sold out in the open these black market rings would lose funding and they would shut down. No don't get me wrong here, I’m not a drug user, I’m just saying there is more important issues the government should be handling. In my country Marijuana is legal but only in the privacy of there own homes. People who do it will do it unless you run a cruel dictatorship and can honestly shut it down all together.
I think that too. look at prophibition and all the crime alchohol caused due to it's illegalisation.
I'm going to be out of character here for a bit... Its much easier to explain how we can get this proposal to work.
I think the most important thing would be to check out both the Saddamized States and the Republic of Cannaganja's proposals in the UN forum under the thread Proposal: Marijuana Legalization. I'd like to be the first to say that although I would be all for the complete legalization of marijuana, this is just absolutely not going to pass. What I instead propose is an international resolution to decriminalize.
Basically, in nations without drug laws, this proposal would have no effect, other than reaffirming what is already in their constitutions. What it will effect however, are nations that currently prohibit cannabis consumption, growth, and sale.
Heres a few things i think need to be clear:
1- the proposal will not legalize marijuana in any nation. every nation has a right to decide what will and will not be legal. rather, the proposal will take away penalties for offenses of minor possession and cultivation for ill patients. In order to do this, I'm suggesting that we look into a plan for medicinal marijuana similar to the one Canada currently uses. The general idea is that an ill patient is issued a prescription from their physician which is filed with the government. They can either (a) apply for a permit to cultivate their own marijuana for personal use, or (b) employ a grower licensed by the government to grow it for them.
2- What will change is that government cannot charge, prosecute, or sentence (criminally) users in possession of a determined amount of marijuana. That means that anyone (prescribed/non-prescribed) can possess up to a certain amount (in Canada it is less than or equal to, one half ounce) without fear of criminal prosecution. This means that there would exist no criminal record for these types of offenses) Medicinal users can possess up to that much, and nothing happens. However, if one were to be caught, and was not medicinally prescribed, their marijuana can be confiscated, and they can be ticketed/fined within reason. They would not receive a criminal record for it, though. provided
the amount that they are in possession of is less than the maximum allowed amount (theres that half ounce again). Anything over that half ounce is a different story.
3- Anything above the half ounce is subject to narcotics laws of individual nations.
4- the law must protect doctors/physicians who prescribe medicinal marijuana from prosecution for conspiracy, etc. It must also authorize them to prescribe.
5- their needs to be a national registry of approved medicinal users, so that should one choose to employ a grower or apply for a growth permit, they grower or government can verify that the patient has received a prescription for medicinal marijuana.
6 - there needs to a government agency created to quality-control/supervise licensed and permitted grow operations. this means that everything is accounted for and accurate and meticulate records are kept. from number of plants growing, to number of joints rolled, etc. for licensed growers, there is no limit to the amount of plants they can grow-they are monitored by the government thus there is no reason to fear malpractice. if a patient chooses not to hire a licensed grower, they must apply for their own growth permit. failure to have a permit means that even if they are prescribed medicinal marijuana, they can be charged, prosecuted, and sentenced under cultivation laws. once their growth permit is approved, their private grow operation is not subject to the quality control laws as licensed grow businesses. however, individual growers would be allowed to have a maximum of say 50 plants in separate growth cycles. if they abuse their privledge--i.e. grow more than the allowed amount, they are subject to penalties for cultivation. they would also be subject to laws of possession if they possessed more than the half ounce of useable marijuana(more on this in a minute) if this were to happen, their permit to grow would be immediately revoked, however their prescription will remain on file. they would then be required to employ a licensed grower. in addition they would be subject to any other drug laws. By useable (i mean anything that off-the-plant is ready to be used in any form. The downside of personal grow operations is supply exceeding demand. one person can use only so much, but possession laws allow for a maximum of 1/2 oz at one time. anything above that is discarded as waste. but hey, what the government doesnt see...)
7 - heres a rough idea of a penalty outine (fines are mandatory, however considering criminal sentences they are maximum sentences and just as in real life) note: monetary values are just for reference, i know currency differs... and as in real life everything is subject to the same corruption/deal-making that really happens. I'm talking about ACD's, probation, re-hab, blah blah...
for those not prescribed medicinal marijuana:
0- 1/2 ounce not separated (minor possession)punnishable by only
confiscation, fine
anything over 1/2 oz. subject to narcotics laws for possession/ dealing, etc.
cultivation - 0-50 plants minor cultivation (confiscation, fine)
50+ plants subject to narcotics laws
for those prescribed medicinal marijuana:
0-1/2 oz any form no penalty or confiscation
1/2 oz -??? subject to same penalties as non-prescribed users
cultivation - prescribed users WITH permit to cultivate:
0-50 plants no confiscation or fine
50+ plants - subject to narcotics laws, loss of permit
prescribed users WITHOUT permit to cultivate are subject to same cultivation penalties as non-prescribed users), and will lose right to apply for a grow permit
*For nations with no drug laws, there would obviously be no fines, penalties, etc.