Legalize It? California to Vote on Marijuana
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The state of California is already known for lax medical marijuana laws that in many ways have decriminalized the drug and made it easy for just about anyone to buy with a prescription. Well, soon the prescription may no longer be needed. California Secretary of State Debra Bowen confirmed late today that the people in the budget-poor Golden State will vote on legalizing, regulating and taxing the sale of marijuana when they go to the polls in November. The marijuana initiative, which proponents say would generate revenue at a time when the state is drowning in red ink, far surpassed the 433,971 valid petitions signatures needed to get on the ballot. Here is the official title and a portion of the initiative language from the Attorney General: CHANGES CALIFORNIA LAW TO LEGALIZE MARIJUANA AND ALLOW IT TO BE REGULATED AND TAXED. INITIATIVE STATUTE. Allows people 21 years old or older to possess, cultivate, or transport marijuana for personal use. Permits local governments to regulate and tax commercial production and sale of marijuana to people 21 years old or older. Prohibits people from possessing marijuana on school grounds, using it in public, smoking it while minors are present, or providing it to anyone under 21 years old. Maintains current prohibitions against driving while impaired. So, is it a half-baked proposal? Or a heady way to cut the deficit? Embedded below is the profile "One-Stop 'Pot' Shopping," featuring what is described as "Home Depot meets IKEA" for the at-home California horticulturalist.
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Can’t wait to get high legally. Whoooopiii. Life is good.
Posted by: Sally | March 24, 2010, 10:01 pm 10:01 pm
Good !
it’s already all over the place so get the taxes from it.
Posted by: Susan anders | March 24, 2010, 10:02 pm 10:02 pm
Love the fact that the “Sponsored Link” below the article says:
“How to Stop Joint Pain?” Shocking discovery by Cambridge Researcher’s for amazing joint relief…”
Yes…joint relief.
Posted by: Nick | March 24, 2010, 10:05 pm 10:05 pm
As long as smoking is legal they should tax Marijuana.
Saving also the money spent fighting it.
This is an incredible amount of money.
Posted by: Brian Switzer | March 24, 2010, 10:21 pm 10:21 pm
I quit smoking pot because it made me paranoid. After California’s vote to ban gay marriage, I think they are way over the edge of paranoia. I don’t think pot will help them.
Posted by: vissionquest | March 24, 2010, 10:26 pm 10:26 pm
It is sad it took a budget crunch for the politicians to do the right thing. It is equal to alcohol and less violent. It would be a good move and maybe break the hypocrite attitude of our country finally.
Posted by: john doe | March 24, 2010, 10:30 pm 10:30 pm
Don’t forget: the money saved on enforcement and incarceration alone will be worth it. The taxes are a nice bonus
Posted by: frantik | March 24, 2010, 10:40 pm 10:40 pm
The first American flag was made from Hemp.
Posted by: onthotherhand | March 24, 2010, 10:45 pm 10:45 pm
Everyone in California who wants to smoke it already does. Thus, this legislation will either A) Allow CA to make money B) Not allow CA to make money. Additional benefits include forcing illegal and dangerous growing operations out of business and force the Mexican drug cartel out of the state.
It’s not as if normal people are suddenly going to start smoking it if they don’t already. This bogus assertion is one that is used by christians, uptight people, and politicians (who lost most of their brain cells from snorting too much coke) who think it’s going to make us all start drinking devil juice and start having sex with each other.
Why is this even a “debate”? Are we scared of what the uptight back east are going to think of us or something? THOSE DAMN CALIFORNIANS AND THEIR DEVIL JUICE AND THEIR ORGIES AND THEIR GAYS AND LIBERALS! HEATHENS! YA’LL GONNA PAY WHEN IT COMES TIME FOR THE LORD TO JUDGE YOU AT THEM PEARLY GATES!
Just pass it. It will make life better for all of us.
Posted by: JTomlinson | March 24, 2010, 10:50 pm 10:50 pm
I’m glad this if finally going to happen, I hope the rest of the states follow suit
Posted by: Gunny | March 24, 2010, 10:57 pm 10:57 pm
It figures that money is the driving force behind this push to legalize it. It was, after all, the driving force behind making it illegal in the first place.
It is amazing how dollar signs can change the minds of politicians so quickly. What happened to how harmful and immoral this stuff was? blah blah blah blah.
Just get this on the ballet and hope a snowstorm keeps the backwoods conservative types from driving to the polls that day.
Posted by: FrankTheTank | March 24, 2010, 11:07 pm 11:07 pm
Hoooray! Finally a step in the right direction. There is no logical reason for marijuana to be illegal while alcohol is legal. Alcohol directly causes hundreds of thousands of deaths of year, marijuana has directly caused ZERO. Nobody comes home from a long night of blunts and beats their kids, but thousands of kids are abused by their alcoholic parents every day. Alcohol causes sorosis, liver cancer, anemia, brain damage, blackouts, vomiting and so many other things. Weed makes you smile, eat and fall asleep and is being proven to help reduce your risk of lung cancer. Alcohol has NO medical value while marijuana helps people fighting cancer, parkinson’s, chronic pain, glaucoma, diabetes and seizure disorders. We don’t have a dangerous foreign black market for alcohol, but we have deadly cartels fighting for turf and murdering each other to get their product out there. Alcohol provides no useful multi-purpose textile. Hemp on the other hand is an incredibly strong natural fiber and can be used to make paper, clothing,car bodies, fuel, soap, lotion and hundreds of other things. With a hemp industry we could make a major dent in deforestation and take steps toward saving our climate. We could also prohibit thousands of innocent people from being incarcerated and fined every day if marijuana were legalized. A popular stigma is that marijuana makes you stupid. Though I know this isn’t the case for all users My friends and I smoke multiple times daily, sometimes even before a class and we are all maintaining gpa’s above 3.7 and are accepted to colleges like MIT, Nyu, Boulder, and even an acceptance to Harvard medical. I have no doubt in my mind that logic and intelligence will finally prevail in California and all of this nonsense will come to an end. I personally see marijuana being legalized in all of liberal states in the next 20 years. Happy tokin’ California!
Posted by: :] | March 24, 2010, 11:10 pm 11:10 pm
Woohoo! Best news I’ve heard in a long time. OK Oregon, we can’t be first now, but we can be NEXT!!
Posted by: Cmon Oregon | March 24, 2010, 11:15 pm 11:15 pm
If marijuana gets legalized, do people incarcerated for marijuana offenses get set free?
Posted by: Brent King | March 24, 2010, 11:22 pm 11:22 pm
We don’t have a dangerous black market for alcohol? Tell that to the ATF.
Posted by: BClear | March 24, 2010, 11:23 pm 11:23 pm
I work in a job where I am random drug tested. Marijuana is the only drug I wish I could do but unfortunately, It stays in your system for six weeks. I can’t wait until I can smoke it on my days off, like all the people on welfare (paid for by my tax money) get to do.
Posted by: 3waymirror | March 24, 2010, 11:24 pm 11:24 pm
BClear.. are you against legalization?
We don’t have one that even comes close to the black market for weed because booze doesn’t have to be smuggled across the border to be available in the quantity that it’s demanded.
Posted by: 420 | March 24, 2010, 11:29 pm 11:29 pm
This is a great idea, the amount of money made is gonna be astounding, it will cut down on crime, increase jobs ,if they do it like alcohol in some states, with package stores… and it will be a good case study on a national referendum…questions like will it lower the productivity, will it lead to greater health problems will get answers or at least more data… the difference between marijuana and alcohol is only public perception in reality
Posted by: wersplat | March 24, 2010, 11:34 pm 11:34 pm
I’m booking a flight to LA in Decenber!
Posted by: coodude | March 24, 2010, 11:39 pm 11:39 pm
folks are going to smoke, anyway !
tax and control !
that’s the smart way !
Posted by: half_tilted | March 25, 2010, 12:07 am 12:07 am
The question is and has always been one of fear. Fear of the other, really, in the case of marijuana. It represented the “den of iniquity”, of the black culture to most white suburbanites in the 1950s and we still carry a vague vestige of that today. It represents the loss of control that alcohol did at one time, but let’s face it-the Catholic Church had alcohol as part of its ritual and in urban America that prohibition was not going to stand forever.
No, marijuana prohibition is one of the last vestiges of white, suburban,1950s America, overwhelmed in the 60s, flailing around still trying to survive, 50 years later, totally irrelevant, completely at the end of the its world, looking for one last gasp of retention, attempting desperately to remake America in the image of “Reefer Madness”.
Posted by: Bob | March 25, 2010, 12:17 am 12:17 am
We IMPORT hemp. Pay for it from other countries. Now we can grow it. Hemp has very little THC. You would have to smoke a telephone pole sized joint to get a buzz if your lucky.Let the smokers smoke. They are doing it already anyway. We lock up thousands of non-violent people every year for pot, why? Drug cartels will continue to exist. The big money is in Cocaine (Coco leaf) and Heroin (poppy flowers). The only losers will be the Correctional system and the war on drugs agencies.No more (billions)tax money to lock up non-violent pot smokers but they will still get money to fight coke and heroine. (I’m for decriminalizing all drugs). And the Banks that launder billions/trillions in drug money. They’ll still launder cocaine and heroine money so not a big loss for them. People estimate the world drug business in the billions but I believe it is in the Trillions because its cash/underground money without any regulation so we don’t know for sure. If they are saying Billions its probably Trillions. Legalize now, legalize tomorrow, legalize forever. May rationalization and common sense prevail.
Posted by: JohnnyBlaze | March 25, 2010, 12:24 am 12:24 am
finally some common sense…
Posted by: mstrknightstarr | March 25, 2010, 12:29 am 12:29 am
This will be great if corporate america does not take our beloved pot or maryjane and cut it up and put poisons in it the same way they did with tabocco. Yes tabacco its not the best for you but did you know that it did not start out poisoness, it’s the way tabacco is processed for sale that make so much more dangerous stay organic people.
Posted by: lady429 | March 25, 2010, 12:32 am 12:32 am
Big Government/Nanny-Staters love marijuana prohibition.
Posted by: PJF | March 25, 2010, 12:57 am 12:57 am
finally people understand hopefully other states follow the example, if not i am moving to Cali.
Posted by: Ike | March 25, 2010, 1:02 am 1:02 am
I’ll be taking a vacation to Cali if it passes!
Posted by: CML | March 25, 2010, 1:08 am 1:08 am
It’s prohibition pure and simple. Time to end prohibition.
Posted by: sensible99 | March 25, 2010, 1:09 am 1:09 am
I can’t see a huge windfall from legalization with the exception from possible lower incarceration of producers and end users, and the associated costs. Incarceration rates for break-in’s, burglary, and theft may increase however once it is on the open market. California producers may opt into legal production but the legalization will surely create more costs for the producers. Cartels will simply undercut the legal price and continue to smuggle it in and the fight goes on. The only way it won’t is to get the cartel’s to join in the legal licensing and production and I don’t foresee that happening any time soon. They would also probably be subject to some sort of import duties as well.
Posted by: Houstonblazerdad | March 25, 2010, 1:29 am 1:29 am
Personal use of grass in California has been a very minor offense for a long time. The only people in jail for grass now days are parole violators and such.
Currently, anyone with the desire can get a medical marijuana card. As the video showed, there’s a “Doctor” on the premises. All you have to do is pay a small amount of money and say you have headaches or such. The Dr. Winks and gives you a prescription. The cost for getting “legal” is about $200 the first year and only $100 each year after. The legal grass is massively stronger than any mex weed and a little bit usually goes a long ways. Legal cost is on par with illegal cost.
In short, it’s basically legal now.
This State law will not change the federal laws and it will still be against federal law to grow or possess. I’m certain if CA passes this law the feds will be all up in arms and you’ll see mom and pop growers getting busted by the feds in massively publicized arrests.
I think this is a huge step in the right direction, but it’s the feds who need to get their act straight. California is already doing it right.
Posted by: Brian | March 25, 2010, 1:37 am 1:37 am
So when does CA secede from the USA? Because unless Federal laws are erased from the books, it’s still illegal regardless of what states want to do. That’s the ongoing insanity. People in jail due to an individual pot bust aren’t suddenly going to receive get out of jail free cards. Unless Federal laws are repealed it’s still a law enforcement charade.
Posted by: TwistedNJ | March 25, 2010, 1:39 am 1:39 am
The penalty in Calif. for less than 1 oz. of pot is $100. Many people, young and old, have been puffing it illegally since the 60′s. So why not regulate it and stop paying so much for useless drug enforcement? Drug dealers are making millions now that the state of California could no doubt use.
Posted by: B3matic | March 25, 2010, 2:08 am 2:08 am
Well its about time the government realizes a way to make money. Legalize pot and stop the spending. Wasting money fighting loosing battle. Remember Prohibition.
Well at least the people in California will be happy. Hooray for California! I hope it pass.
Now how about the other 49 states.
WAKE-UP AMERICA AND GET WITH IT!
Posted by: Uncle Sam | March 25, 2010, 3:36 am 3:36 am
About 40 years overdue. California – you now have the chance to take a huge bite out of the drug cartels….don’t blow it! Imagine the lives that will be saved by taking the money out of the hands of the cartels and putting into the control of business and state legislation. Do the right thing….
Posted by: Mike | March 25, 2010, 3:39 am 3:39 am
Bud sucks!!!. It is not a good alternative to booze, booze and bud suck and no amount of tax money will repay the damage that a bunch of blitzed stoner’s on a munchie run, too high to drive, kill someone and don’t even know it cause it was just a trip man, part of the buzz…hey man it happened because i got high, because I got high. Don’t let the stoner’s make laws.. they are to high to even think straight i should know been there done that, glad I quit. Getting high on marijuana is for idiots..thats my stand and I’m sticking to it.
Posted by: R | March 25, 2010, 6:12 am 6:12 am
This will get voted down. It will not even be close. But even if it passed, it would violate federal law and be declared unconstitutional or preempted. I would think a prospective MIT student would know that, but maybe not if they were laid back on weed. This vote is another waste of resources.
Posted by: Ken W. Good | March 25, 2010, 6:21 am 6:21 am
C’mon, world, follow this example, and you will be a safer and happier place. The hemp industry truly can save the (cheerleader, and hence,) the world. Plastics, fuel, clothing are just a few of the items that can be manufactured from hemp. Hemp is so much more easy to grow, so much more economically and environmentally friendly to harvest. So much employment can be created from the hemp industry, and just think of all those contented, stoned workers contributing to the state coffers through taxes on munches at lunch. It’s a total win-win sitcom.
Posted by: The Cynical Optimist | March 25, 2010, 6:26 am 6:26 am
Wow! Now maybe the cartels will leave since there won’t be any more profit in California…Maybe there are some sane people left that realize prohibition has never worked. Regulate and tax so that illegal operations don’t abuse our children…they don’t ID in the alley.
Posted by: Price | March 25, 2010, 7:24 am 7:24 am
Oh yeah…legalize it. Finish turning California into a third world country and driving any decent industry out of state.
Posted by: cheech | March 25, 2010, 9:19 am 9:19 am
hey BClear,
It’s not that everyone smoking herb is on welfare.
We were just bright enough to find a job that doesn’t require random drug testing.
& btw, 6 weeks in your system is an old wives tale.
if your active, it takes no more than 7 days.
Posted by: valverdini | March 25, 2010, 9:52 am 9:52 am
Hopefully all of the parents and grandparents in California will ask themselves, “If your young adult child or grandchild got caught with a little marijuana, would you want him or her to go to jail, lose their job, lose their
Posted by: Concerned Parent | March 25, 2010, 11:21 am 11:21 am
Absolutely outrageous. The failed government of California is now so greedy for new ways to fleece the taxpayers that they have condescended to making narcotics legal so they can tax them. It is time to clean house of all the turkeys in Sacramento who call themselves a government and replace them with competent people.
Posted by: Proud Native American and Angry Independent Voter | March 25, 2010, 11:39 am 11:39 am
Everybody who isn`t registered to vote needs to do so and go make it happen!
Posted by: drunk baby | March 31, 2010, 11:08 am 11:08 am
Sure, marijuana should be legal but what makes people think that smokers won’t just grow their own, what makes people think growers will pay all their taxes, what makes people think california won’t continue to supply illegal pot out of state. After all the fees and taxes, smokers would be paying more for an ounce of pot than they do now. So,they would probably continue to buy better weed from untaxed illegal suppliers because it’s easy to get, better quality and cheaper.
Posted by: landowner | March 31, 2010, 5:41 pm 5:41 pm
I think it would be a good thing. They would Make more money from the tax on weed than they would on putting people in jail for it. And it would cause a small surge in the CA population if its the first start to pass weed as legial. So People get what they want and dont need to be affraid of being caught with it anymore. Police forces would have one less drug to worry about cleaning up. And it would save Tax payer money and infact make it. I Can’t see what could come bad or worste from this than it already is.
Posted by: Russ | April 6, 2010, 3:09 pm 3:09 pm
I LOVE MARIJUANA I SMOKE IT ALL THE TIME AND I ENJOY DOING IT IF THEY MADE IT LEGAL IN ALL THE STATES IT WOULD CUT THE UNITED STATES DEBT DOWN AND EVERYBODY WOULD BE HAPPY AND HIGH
Posted by: GAETANO CIREO | April 16, 2010, 10:02 am 10:02 am
Yes it should be legal!!! I don’t smoke that often but I have friends that of to jail,get put on probation and pay fines and lose jobs over it. So why not? It is better than getting drunk to me. It relaxes you, not getting you mad and wanting to beat someone.
Posted by: Nancy | April 21, 2010, 12:15 am 12:15 am
I bet Amsterdam will be losing a lot tourism CA has a way better climate, I’d defo vacation there hell Vegas just a few miles away from the border :) smart move cali.
Posted by: PeZ | April 26, 2010, 1:51 am 1:51 am
so so happy its going to be legalized cant wait to smoke some medical weed california is the best state ever
Posted by: adrian | May 16, 2010, 8:40 pm 8:40 pm
This could possibly be a boon to the California tourism industry, if they continue to be the only state to legalize pot. I would think some folks would travel to the Golden State just to have a few legal tokes.
Posted by: Stud | May 19, 2010, 1:54 am 1:54 am
OMG I can’t believe there are so many people who don’t know the facts regarding marijuana!
>TO CONCERNED PARENT: MARIJUANA IS NOT A NARCOTIC! GET YOUR FACTS STRAIGHT BEFORE YOU POST SOMETHING.
The ignorance is so ewwww.
I have never heard of or read anything where a person killed someone while driving after smoking a joint, or bowl, or bong or what have you. Almost everyone I know smokes pot. The violent ones are the drinkers or the coke snorters, other drugs being used.
Posted by: Brenda Pohl | May 19, 2010, 8:31 pm 8:31 pm
Legalize it.
Posted by: Mike | May 19, 2010, 10:26 pm 10:26 pm
well if you think about it if weed is legalize the crime wave is gonna go down
Posted by: Huy | June 15, 2010, 2:56 pm 2:56 pm
LEGALIZE IT
Posted by: Doctor | July 8, 2010, 7:07 pm 7:07 pm
We live in Alberta Canada and we think that all of calli should vote for it because we will just follow and it will chang us all for the better. i bet we will all live longer because of the health improvments.
Thankx Good luck
Posted by: Capi | July 31, 2010, 10:37 pm 10:37 pm
Legalize it, but smoking of any kind (tobacco included) should be done ONLY in specifically designated areas with proper ventilation, so innocent bystanders won’t be subjected to unwanted and dangerous smoke.
Legalize smoking in bars too, so smokers (tobacco and marijuana) will have a place to go.
Taxation? For recreational use only. Those with prescriptions should be able to buy theirs tax free.
Posted by: Fred Lanam | August 3, 2010, 6:18 pm 6:18 pm
Cannabis is Go-’s gift to mankind.
I am a well studied Messianic Christian, and believe me the Word Of Go- says that all plants are given to man to consume. It is the pharmacy medicine that is condemned in the books of our ancient guides. Oatmeal for example: what if doctors put patients with high colesterol on a oatmeal regiment instead of a chemical regiment? Don’t you think that the oatmeal whould be a better medical decision than going right on to the drugs? Just look at all those commercials on tv, where so many have to sue after permanent damage.
To the one blogger that was paranoid; as soon as it becomes legal, your paranoia will subside.
“Heal with Herbs and pursue your happiness – obey Go- and be saved”
Posted by: Kirk | August 14, 2010, 7:46 am 7:46 am
Hey Concerned Parent, raising your child to do what is right is your responsibility. Do not think you have the right to take away my personal freedoms so you can feel all warm and fuzzy that your child is protected.
Posted by: Norcodone | September 4, 2010, 8:24 am 8:24 am
Hey Fred Lanam, you are correct. Add some credibility and cite the Scripture. Genesis 1:29, 9:3. Also the apostle Paul`s comments.
Posted by: Norcodone | September 4, 2010, 8:38 am 8:38 am
roll on November… may the world follow your lead!
Posted by: Mark H | September 6, 2010, 12:19 pm 12:19 pm
The driving part is what makes me nervous. they test and charge you for something you smoked a week ago, without a more accurate test they should just let it alone.
Posted by: yourmom | September 10, 2010, 10:50 pm 10:50 pm
I cant wait to see the things they will start selling imagine pot butter in the dairy isle, or betty crockers reefer cakes.
Posted by: Cameron | September 29, 2010, 1:44 pm 1:44 pm
this is not only going to increase California’s tax income but its going to save lots of money and maybe make other states realize just how much money they spend on the war against drugs
Posted by: Buddsupporta | October 7, 2010, 3:14 pm 3:14 pm
If this passes, it will be a start of something massive. Several states will follow, then moving to other countries as well. I really do hope it goes well.
Posted by: Corsair2102 | October 10, 2010, 3:06 am 3:06 am
I think that marijuana should be legalized in all states. People are going to smoke regardless if it is legal or not. The government should realize that by legalizing pot would greatly decrease our national deficiit, if not eliminate it. We, the “United States” are supposed to be a free country, what happened to that idea? The government is what happened,we have laws that govern what we do within our own bodies and outside them. A Free pass is the only free thing in America and that belongs to illegal immagrants that have crossed our borders. I think we should all vote to legalize marijuana..
Posted by: CALLIE | October 18, 2010, 8:11 am 8:11 am
Im excited! I believe Marijuana to help in many ways, I rather smoke herb than be a depending pill popper to help my insomnia.
No one has died off weed, but 10000′s have been died from Alcohol. So why not it be legal? “Frankthetank” I completely agree with you!
Posted by: Eileen | October 29, 2010, 1:05 pm 1:05 pm
This is BAD BAD BAD BAD and BAD the very fact that we don’t have to hide while a smoking a dubee is nuts….damn! I think I’m gonna quit smokin altogether….maybe start doing some other funky drugs!?!….DAMN!!! legalizing marijuana will only create a bottle neck in the economy and create another depression as a result….the short terms effects might be that of sheer elation, But in the end we all will see the devasting effect it will have on our economy….not to mention the health of many people….this smoke is awesome man, makes me type really fast….yea man legalize it! who gives a crap what I just rambled about….whooo whhooooo
Posted by: musssh doctor | November 1, 2010, 9:03 pm 9:03 pm