When I think back over the years and how I came realize I lean libertarian with my political views, it was when it dawned on me that I support the legalization of marijuana that I said "yea, I feel closer to the libertarian way of thinking." Am I a pothead? No, and in fact I have never smoked a joint or consumed any "special brownies." I get the munchies because I am a fat man trapped in a Titan's body, not due to any artificial reasons.Since I have never dabbled in smoking reefer, you must already be on the edge of your seat wondering why I would support such a thing. It's simple really, and can be summed up in two main reasons: (1) the possibility of a lot of tax revenue flowing into the state and federal piggybanks, and (2) why should we really care if people smoke it?
Our government was just shut down for over a week due to a budget fight, financing Obozocare, raising the debt ceiling and probably even Coke vs. Pepsi, (Coke should always win). By legalizing weed for medical or recreational purposes and taxing the hell out of it, it could help avoid future shutdowns. Just think, our veterans could get what's owed them, and families of deceased vets could still receive their benefits. All off the tax dollars of your neighborhood pot smoker(s).
There is a lot of talk, and written studies about pot being a "gateway" drug to other drugs. Well, I must defer to a VP Joe Biden saying with, "that's a bunch of malarkey." I don't think just because someone smokes pot they will try crack or heroine - there is a big difference between smoking a plant and sticking a needle in your arm. Just because people have used more than one drug, that does not mean one led to the other. If anything leads kids to experiment with different drugs, it's going to parties so all you parents out there better stop allowing that immediately. Lock your kids in their rooms and slide their food under the door. Or, better yet - be parents to them and if you don't want them smoking pot, tell them not to and your consequences for them if they do.
And what about alcohol? For the life of me, I cannot recall ever reading a news headline such as "Child Beaten to Death after Dad Smokes Weed," or "Husband Kills Wife for Not Enough Munchies in Pantry." I have however read several concerning people being beaten or murdered by drunk parents and spouses. Furthermore, I don't think the Dodger and Giants fans beat and kill each other after having a few joints - they do it after several drinks. What about driving or operating heavy machinery under the influence of ganja you ask? Well, people drive under the influence of alcohol all the time, and there are laws against that. Laws can be made to regulate the use of weed when it is hopefully legalized one day. Actually - with how much the federal government loves to regulate things, I am surprised it hasn't legalized it already, just so they could regulate it.
Then there are the people who worry about the brain cells of our youth. Seriously? Right now we as a society have the ability to basically look up any knowledge we seek at our fingertips via a phone or a computer. Instead, iPhones are used to play Candy Crush, (with some people spending 100s of dollars a month in order to reach higher levels, while computers are used to search for websites that start and end with "XXX." I don't think a little weed in our lives will make us any dumber than the vast amount of technology we use already does.
So, there you have it folks - reasons to legalize reefer/pot/weed/ganja, etc., etc. Perhaps one day I will dive deeper into the subject of drugs and my desire to legalize/decriminalize all drugs, but we will just stick with marijuana for now. Remember, all you non-believers out there - just because it's not for you it does not mean it shouldn't be for anyone else. There are 100s of great reasons to legalize pot, but only stupid ones not to.
No comments:
Post a Comment