Legal Pot in California in 2010?

[IDBillzFan]

Yes, the country is in terrific financial shape and needs no additional money to operate. The military runs on flowers and there is no sight of more trouble brewing. Law enforcement should be done for free, by nice citizens. Schools are for morons, no need to fund them..

 

...ad nauseam...

You make it sound like the country is in poor fiscal shape because it just doesn't have the money to provide the most basic of services.

 

Personally, I don't have a problem with legalizing dope, but to legalize it strictly because "we need the money" is irresponsible and reckless if all you're doing is continuing to feed a power-hungry beast that overspends with little accountability. This state isn't in debt because of police or teacher salaries. Oh sure, it sounds nice when you're blowing your liberal horn out your ass. But the state of California taxes the living bejeesus out of everything that walks or farts as long as it's a legal resident or business, and it STILL can't pay for all the embarrassingly mind-numbing entitlement programs they give to the lazy (illegal or otherwise). Taxing dope won't fix the problem because they won't use that money to pay down the debt but consider it new money to be spent on new entitlements.

 

So while it's easy to stand on your VW microbus and yell "Legalize pot, dude," you're pissing in the wind if you're using that money to do ANYTHING other than pay down the BILLIONS that this state is annually in debt just to give handouts to the clueless people who feel no need to contribute as long as the state is willing to give them free room, board and health care regardless of whether they're a legal resident.

[SuperKillerRobots]

An excellent concern.

 

Currently medical marijuana sold legally is of generally excellent quality. But I'm guessing that won't be the norm for mass market stuff. OTOH, I'm guessing there will be a minimum THC level, so you know you aren't going to get burnt for a bag of some lawn shavings, or something.

 

In order for legalization to be effective the weed will have to be of decent quality, one would think. But like you, I would steer clear of garbage weed, legal or not.

 

I've been to Amsterdam and they do not have a quality problem - everything is top notch.

[The Dean]

Personally, I don't have a problem with legalizing dope, but to legalize it strictly because "we need the money" is irresponsible and reckless if all you're doing is continuing to feed a power-hungry beast that overspends with little accountability. This state isn't in debt because of police or teacher salaries. Oh sure, it sounds nice when you're blowing your liberal horn out your ass. But the state of California taxes the living bejeesus out of everything that walks or farts as long as it's a legal resident or business, and it STILL can't pay for all the embarrassingly mind-numbing entitlement programs they give to the lazy (illegal or otherwise). Taxing dope won't fix the problem because they won't use that money to pay down the debt but consider it new money to be spent on new entitlements.

 

So while it's easy to stand on your VW microbus and yell "Legalize pot, dude," you're pissing in the wind if you're using that money to do ANYTHING other than pay down the BILLIONS that this state is annually in debt just to give handouts to the clueless people who feel no need to contribute as long as the state is willing to give them free room, board and health care regardless of whether they're a legal resident.

 

The country is in financial difficulty for MANY reasons, not the least of which is a military with spends with impunity and the last administration's insistence on fighting and expensive, and stupid, war in Iraq. But as you note, it isn't the only reason.

 

I find your characterization of those in need as "lazy" too stupid to address. And I won't dignify your moronic attempt to paint me as a "hippy" or some knee-jerk unthinking liberal. You are a real embarrassment to intelligent conservatives in this country.

 

But I agree, legalizing pot simply for the sake of adding money to the govt coffers is nonsensical. I happen to think there are many reasons to legalize pot, ONE of which is the tax revenue it will raise. I realize that might be a little complex for you.

[Marv's Neighbor]

This issue will make no difference to the California economy!

 

No matter how you feel about the basic Legal Pot or/not issue, unless they get; public pensions, free legal/education/medical for illegals, reduce business tax rates etc. FIXED first, thers's no hope for California.

 

Of course they'll all be too high to give a sh*t, so who cares?

 

They could make Nancy Pelosi "Queen" but no, wait, they already have too many of those and they're still in trouble!

[Pete]

Legalize pot already. So much for "the land of the free". The US has so many silly laws

[IDBillzFan]

The country is in financial difficulty for MANY reasons, not the least of which is a military with spends with impunity and the last administration's insistence on fighting and expensive, and stupid, war in Iraq. But as you note, it isn't the only reason.

 

I find your characterization of those in need as "lazy" too stupid to address. And I won't dignify your moronic attempt to paint me as a "hippy" or some knee-jerk unthinking liberal. You are a real embarrassment to intelligent conservatives in this country.

 

But I agree, legalizing pot simply for the sake of adding money to the govt coffers is nonsensical. I happen to think there are many reasons to legalize pot, ONE of which is the tax revenue it will raise. I realize that might be a little complex for you.

Wow, sounds like someone desperately misses Humbolt County.

 

So to recap:

 

Dante: I don't have a problem legalizing pot, but to take the strain off the legal system, not so the government can get their grubby hands on more cash.

 

Dean: The government is poor. The military doesn't run on flowers, and the worst is yet to come. Blah, blah, condescending, blah, blah, sarcasm. I agree with you.

 

Me: I don't have a problem with legalizing pot, but I want the government to use the money to pay down debt, not create new entitlements.

 

Dean: You're stupid, you're embarrassing, you're an idiot, it's too complex, blah, blah, condescending, blah, blah, sarcasm. I agree with you.

 

Yikes. The only thing you're missing is a big, green, fiery face yelling "Oz. Has. Spoken."

[CountDorkula]

There goes the nieghborhood...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I've just always wanted to say that, i finally got my chance!!!!!!

 

Life is complete!

[HopsGuy]

Bill Foster: Pardon me, but that's BS. You see, I don't think anything's wrong with the street! I think you're just trying to justify your inflated budgets! I know how it works! If you don't spend the projected amount this year, you don't get the same amount next year! Now, I want you to admit, THERE'S NOTHING WRONG WITH THE STREET!

 

 

Giving government more money will only ensure that said government will only do with it what they do best: Wasting money. NBC has been running their features on "The Fleecing of America" for more than a decade. They'll never run out of material.

 

 

IMHO - legalizing pot, while a good idea for many, many reasons, will not have a dramatic effect of increasing tax revenues. There will probably be a subtle shift from the tax receipts from alcohol. Big Pharma will probably suffer a bit too, because I'm confident a few tokes will ease suffering from Restless Leg Syndrome and other similar maladies (Ants in Your Pants, Case of the Mondays, etc). The true heshers will step around the tax and grow their own. However, you will see an increase in sales tax revenue from the sale of Cool Ranch Doritos.

 

[Bufcomments]

OK it looks like I will have to move to Oakland now, Ill miss the snow here lol

 

Seriously, if the Feds don't legalize it does it matter what the states do??

Still in Cali they are raiding farms, taking plants but not arresting anybody...which is B.S. to me.

 

The only way to make this really work is to convince the Fed Government that more money can be made by making it legal than it is to keep it illegal.

 

you think local police station across the country will go for that when they make millions from these drug busts, and

I'm talking about the major cities, you know the ones that pocket some of that money.

 

The only way to make it legal is to give some of the tax money to the police departments. JMO

[The Dean]

Wow, sounds like someone desperately misses Humbolt County.

 

It's ignorant crap like this that makes the rest of your babbling nonsense not even worth reading. You really need to mature intellectually.

 

 

There goes the nieghborhood...

 

 

[IDBillzFan]

It's ignorant crap like this that makes the rest of your babbling nonsense not even worth reading. You really need to mature intellectually.

And once again the world would be a perfect place if we all were as intellectually mature as The Dean. Now that's something to shoot for.

[Magox]

The idea of legalizing marijuana makes alot of sense for a few reasons, the obvious one being the added tax revenues that state and federal budgets could use and secondly the added benefit of the de-escalation of the war on drugs with our southern neighbors.

 

Having said that, as someone here had incorrectly suggested, the real problem we have here in the U.S with our budget is spending, not taxing. There is no doubt that the added tax revenues will be seen by many politicians as an added revenue source earmarked to be spent. Unfortunately thats just the way it works.

 

Perfect example is the TARP, the TARP bailout is getting a much better return back on it's banking portion of the bailouts than most people expected. This should be used to pay down the National debt. However, the savingsfrom TARP now are being seized upon from the W.H as an opportunity to spend it on other initiatives, such as Cash for Clunkers or the Housing Remodification efforts. In other words, if you feed the beast, the beast will eat what is given to him.

 

Moving forward, the areas that will contribute to adding to our already overburdened National Debt are Medicare, S.S, Defense spending and the cost of Servicing our debt.

 

In a time where we should really be looking to reform S.S and Medicare, which is wildly unpopular because nobody likes to have their benefits cut, we are going to add yet another entitlement program that will certainly add to the national debt. Bill Gross, the King of Bonds recently stated:

 

The trend promises to get worse, not better. The imminent passage of health care reform represents a continuing litany of entitlement legislation that will add, not subtract, to future deficits and unfunded liabilities. No investment vigilante worth their salt or outrageous annual bonus would dare argue that current legislation is a deficit reducer as asserted by Democrats and in fact the Congressional Budget Office. Common sense alone would suggest that extending health care benefits to 30 million people will cost a lot of money and that it is being “paid for” in the current bill with standard smoke, and all too familiar mirrors that have characterized such entitlement legislation for decades.

 

Keep in mind that Bill Gross didn't come out with this statement until after the bill had passed, and even more importantly he SELLS BONDS. So this is in direct contradiction to what he does for a living. In my view there aren't many people that understand economics better than Bill Gross.

 

Back to the original point of the thread, I do agree that we should tax marijuana, but at the end of the day, there is no doubt in my mind that those taxes will be earmarked for future spending, so in reality it won't make one bit of difference.

[John Adams]

I find your characterization of those in need as "lazy" too stupid to address. And I won't dignify your moronic attempt to paint me as a "hippy" or some knee-jerk unthinking liberal. You are a real embarrassment to intelligent conservatives in this country.

 

I won't label you as a hippy but you're wrong. Most--the cast majority--of people who are living of the system's tit ARE lazy. I have met a lot of people working with children in North and West PHilly. When we (Department of Human Services and me) visit the families, the social worker doesn't ask "where" someone works but "if" they've ever worked. The answer is "no, not ever" almost always. And these people do not even look for work, except to jump through hoops necessary to receive more benefits.

 

Able bodied? Check. Can work? Check. WILL work. No check.

 

The entitlement problem runs very deep and is not easily solved. The families I meet have gernational (60-80) years or more of habit of living off government. That doesn't change easily. The people aren't proud of it--it's just a way of life. So I'm sympathetic...but have no illusions about it. Almost all of them don't work because they are lazy. With the exception of some elderly or mentally disabled (not ADHD BS), most people who are on long-term government tit are just plain unmotivated.

[Chef Jim]

The country is in financial difficulty for MANY reasons, not the least of which is a military with spends with impunity and the last administration's insistence on fighting and expensive, and stupid, war in Iraq. But as you note, it isn't the only reason.

 

I find your characterization of those in need as "lazy" too stupid to address. And I won't dignify your moronic attempt to paint me as a "hippy" or some knee-jerk unthinking liberal. You are a real embarrassment to intelligent conservatives in this country.

 

But I agree, legalizing pot simply for the sake of adding money to the govt coffers is nonsensical. I happen to think there are many reasons to legalize pot, ONE of which is the tax revenue it will raise. I realize that might be a little complex for you.

 

So let me get this straight. The state of California is broke because of the war in Iraq and the spending habits of the Bush administration. Did I get that right?

[erynthered]

So let me get this straight. The state of California is broke because of the war in Iraq and the spending habits of the Bush administration. Did I get that right?

 

 

Thats the way I read it too. He must be right, He's "The Dean".

[Magox]

Thats the way I read it too. He must be right, He's "The Dean".

Reminiscing the 2008 campaign trail talking points. Those were the good ol days.

[Wooderson]

[brian and Peter are pulled over by policeman, the body of Quagmire's cat in the backseat. Peter is drunk and covered in blood stains. Two policeman exit the car and situate themselves on either side of Peter's car]

Policeman #1: What do we got, partner?

Policeman #2: [bends over and inspects the inside of the car] Empty alcohol containers, the driver's inebriated and covered in blood, he's got scratches on his face and arms, there's a blood-soaked corpse in the backseat, got shovels in there, and a hand-drawn map titled This is where we'll hide the body.

Policeman #1: Well, that all seems fine. Sorry to bother you sir.

[A small bag of weed falls from Brian's collar onto his lap. Policeman #2 notices]

Policeman #2: Pot! [Withdrawing gun and aiming it at Brian] Small amount of pot!

[el Tigre]

So let me get this straight. The state of California is broke because of the war in Iraq and the spending habits of the Bush administration. Did I get that right?

In fairness to Dean,he said the country is broke for MANY reasons. I didn't take that as blaming it all on the Bush administration.

[rockpile]

Absolutely! I know it's a bit tougher to grow great weed up north, but it certainly can be done. As was noted, they grow some good stuff in Alaska.

 

Either way, I'm all for this movement. Like health care reform and expanded coverage, it might not start out perfect, but these are things that are LONG overdue in the USA.

 

NY climate is fine. About 20+ years back I grew three plants in my vegetable garden and they yielded 19 ounces!

 

I have not used any in about 4 years because:

 

1. I do not know what may have been added to the crap on the street.

2. I do not miss MJ enough to fail a drug test.

 

I am unemployed and expect I will need to take a test sooner or later.

I find caffeine/coffee more "addicting" than pot!

[Chef Jim]

In fairness to Dean,he said the country is broke for MANY reasons. I didn't take that as blaming it all on the Bush administration.

 

Well let's see now, what is this thread about? Hmm, it's about the state of CA legalizing pot. And of course everyone immediately chimes in with these discussions with: "Legalize it! Tax it!" And they say that this would be a great way to help with CA fiscal problems. Then Dean goes on about the Iraq war and the Bush administration. What the hell do either of those have to do with the fiscal situation in CA?

 

I however disagree with LA on our problems. It may be partly the illegals (I'm not going with the lazy argument )but it's mostly the union giveaways by our liberal government over the years. That is what has !@#$ed us out here.