Quote:
Originally Posted by Gordon Booth
Eric, as a regular smoker and drinker I accept I may be biased.As a 'regular toker' perhaps you are? You can't suggest you shouldn't criminalize peoples 'so called vices' because it doesn't work! How about child porn?It's not a vice to the people who do it!We will probably never stop it but does your argument apply?If not why not? We cant stop burglary, mugging etc. but if we want to maintain a civilised society we have to have certain things which are not acceptable and are againt the law.
As setayas says, cannabis is 5 times stronger than it was 10 years ago! I wouldn't know but wow, that sounds like good stuff.And in another 10 years, especially if legal,what will they be able to grow? Do you really think a 'toke' of legal stuff will stop people buying some 10 times stronger illegally? It wont stop the 'illegal vice' because the dealers will always offer something stronger(And more addictive? That's good business)
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There is a line between what is a "vice", and what is a "crime" ... admitedly the line is a fine one, finer for some folks than it is for others. The reason that there is a debate about criminal penalties for drugs, and that there is no debate about strict laws against child porn, burglary, murder etc., should cause us to admit that there is a difference. Homosexuality was once a crime ... I remember the time that it was decriminalized in Canada. And a knowlege of British History would remind you that it was once a capital crime to impersonate a Chelsea Pensioner
And the "strength" argument: smoke
and mirrors. I presume that alcoholic bevs come in different strengths over there. I can buy beer at 3% .... I can buy beer at 11% ... if I buy the strong stuff, I drink less ... don't have much choice really. And the only reason that there are "dealers" is because access is illegal. (In the Province of Ontario the biggest, legally the only booze dealer is the Government of Ontario.)
I am not arguing for wide open, uncontroled access. My point is that what is in place now is not working. Anyone who believes it is working has his head in the sand ... or stuck far up his ass. So, rather than hide behind empty rhetoric and prejudice, it might be time to debate alternatives that might work. What's the harm in trying.