I think it's time for a real national discussion on the legalization of weed

If we want law enforcement reforms that would show a tangible, real effect in America, this would be a really good place to start, and wouldn’t even be terribly controversial-2/3 of Americans think it should be legalized (including a majority of Republicans).

The young, Democratic mayor of Kansas City, MO is having that conversation in his city right now. He believes it would go a long way in dealing with racial injustice, but I think it would have even bigger implications than that.

Mayor Quinton Lucas, a Democrat, has announced a plan to completely remove all offenses related to marijuana possession from the city code, which he says are often pretexts for stopping people and lead to over-policing of Black and brown communities and negative police interactions.

When Illinois legalized, they expunged the records of roughly 3/4 of a MILLION people, and released 10k+ low-level pot offenders from prison (violent offenders were not eligible for expungement or parole). This meant that a lot of people who had that stigma following them via background checks are going to have a lot less of a problem “picking themselves up by the bootstraps” than they did before. It means the Land of Lincoln is going to waste a lot less money processing and incarcerating people for low-level offenses.

Well over half the country has legalized it in some form or fashion, and has shown that the US is committing a pretty major injustice against those it has arrested and criminalized for low-level, non-violent pot offenses.

In many places in America, a person can lose their freedom for possessing a ziplock bag, not even full, of a natural plant. Take TN, for example. Possessing ANY amount is punishable by up to a year and prison and a $2,500 fine. That mark follows a person, limiting what type of job they will be able to get and in general, just screws with peoples’ lives in ways it shouldn’t.

Not only that, but a few years back, a survey of law enforcement agencies showed that harder stuff was creating a much bigger problem for them than was weed, which was literally at the bottom of the list of all drugs.

The DEA asked a nationally representative sample of over 1,000 law enforcement agencies what they saw as their biggest drug threats. Marijuana came in at the bottom of the list, named by only 6 percent of survey respondents. The share of law enforcement agencies naming pot has been declining steadily since the mid-2000s, even as states have moved to legalize medical and recreational marijuana during that time period.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonk/wp/2015/11/05/marijuana-is-literally-the-least-of-the-nations-drug-worries-the-police-have-announced/

Whoever decides to follow through and do this is going to score a giant political win.

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I’ll smoke to that. :sunglasses:

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I honestly don’t really understand how anyone can make the argument that tobacco and/or alcohol can be legalized for adults, but marijuana can’t? Like on a textual and definition level. There is nothing that it does negatively that isn’t applicable to one or both of those.

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dope

:face_with_hand_over_mouth:

Just legalize it already. Theres bigger issues in America these days.

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That is of course stupid.

There is no discussion needed. It never should have been illegal in the first place. But it has nothing to do with “racial injustice”.

There should be no laws whatsoever regarding the use, possession, production or sell of marijuana with one exception - minors.

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That is an opinion.

I am going to state that I don’t have the experience of growing up in the circumstances he did in Kansas City, nor do I have the breadth of perspective given the things he experienced, studied, and saw during his time in South Africa. His resume is pretty impressive, especially given that he’s younger than most of us.

I don’t disagree. Regulate it like alcohol and cigarettes, for whatever good it will do. Keep doing DARE, but just be realistic about it.

But, I think that also means that we need to be realistic with minors about what it is and what it does. I have to stop myself from rolling my eyes every time I hear a police officer talk to kids about weed.

No, it is not.

Neither of which should be “regulated”, so yeah, get out of all of it.

No problem with that either.

I see the populace getting more stupid distracted every day.

Pot use is a part of it.

That said…leave it up to the states and pull the federal prohibition.

The “war on drugs” absolutely had a racial component.

https://www.drugpolicy.org/press-release/2016/03/top-adviser-richard-nixon-admitted-war-drugs-was-policy-tool-go-after-anti

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check

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You literally called for a regulation here:

check2

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weed has been legal here for awhile what have we seen?

increase good paying jobs, increased tax income, crime has not been effected still declining.

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I was working on my ego and being considerate when I did you that favor.

You can have the point.

“With one exception”. What do you want from me? What are you looking for?

Agreed.

moon

Our bodies are designed/evolved/whatever-you-want-to-call-it for cannabinoids, specifically our immune systems. Let’s start with our immune systems.

Cannabis kills tumor cells
Cannabidiol inhibits human glioma cell migration through a cannabinoid receptor-independent mechanism - PMC
The expression level of CB1 and CB2 receptors determines their efficacy at inducing apoptosis in astrocytomas - PubMed
In vivo effects of cannabinoids on macromolecular biosynthesis in Lewis lung carcinomas - PubMed
Cannabinoid receptor systems: therapeutic targets for tumour intervention - PubMed
Predominant CB2 receptor expression in endothelial cells of glioblastoma in humans - PubMed
Hypothesis: cannabinoid therapy for the treatment of gliomas? - PubMed
Involvement of cannabinoids in cellular proliferation - PubMed
Cannabinoids induce apoptosis of pancreatic tumor cells via endoplasmic reticulum stress-related genes - PubMed
Cannabinoids and gliomas - PubMed
Opposite changes in cannabinoid CB1 and CB2 receptor expression in human gliomas - PubMed
The stress-regulated protein p8 mediates cannabinoid-induced apoptosis of tumor cells - PubMed
The CB2 cannabinoid receptor signals apoptosis via ceramide-dependent activation of the mitochondrial intrinsic pathway - PubMed
Anti-tumoral action of cannabinoids: involvement of sustained ceramide accumulation and extracellular signal-regulated kinase activation - PubMed
Down-regulation of tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinases-1 in gliomas: a new marker of cannabinoid antitumoral activity? - PubMed
Antitumor effects of cannabidiol, a nonpsychoactive cannabinoid, on human glioma cell lines - PubMed
Endocannabinoids as emerging suppressors of angiogenesis and tumor invasion (review) - PubMed
Cannabinoid receptors in human astroglial tumors - PubMed
Cannabinoids induce cancer cell proliferation via tumor necrosis factor alpha-converting enzyme (TACE/ADAM17)-mediated transactivation of the epidermal growth factor receptor - PubMed

Uterine, testicular, and pancreatic cancers
http://www.cancer.gov/cancertopics/pdq/cam/cannabis/healthprofessional/page4
Cannabis-derived substances in cancer therapy--an emerging anti-inflammatory role for the cannabinoids - PubMed

Brain cancer
Inhibition of glioma growth in vivo by selective activation of the CB(2) cannabinoid receptor - PubMed

Mouth and throat cancer
Cannabinoids inhibit cellular respiration of human oral cancer cells - PubMed

Breast cancer
JunD is involved in the antiproliferative effect of Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on human breast cancer cells - PubMed
Antitumor activity of plant cannabinoids with emphasis on the effect of cannabidiol on human breast carcinoma - PubMed
The endogenous cannabinoid anandamide inhibits human breast cancer cell proliferation - PubMed

Lung cancer
Cannabinoids increase lung cancer cell lysis by lymphokine-activated killer cells via upregulation of ICAM-1 - PubMed
Cannabidiol inhibits lung cancer cell invasion and metastasis via intercellular adhesion molecule-1 - PubMed
Cannabinoid receptors, CB1 and CB2, as novel targets for inhibition of non-small cell lung cancer growth and metastasis - PubMed

Prostate cancer
Anti-proliferative and apoptotic effects of anandamide in human prostatic cancer cell lines: implication of epidermal growth factor receptor down-regulation and ceramide production - PubMed
The role of cannabinoids in prostate cancer: Basic science perspective and potential clinical applications - PMC
Non-THC cannabinoids inhibit prostate carcinoma growth in vitro and in vivo: pro-apoptotic effects and underlying mechanisms - PubMed
Cannabinoid receptor as a novel target for the treatment of prostate cancer - PubMed
Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol induces apoptosis in human prostate PC-3 cells via a receptor-independent mechanism - PubMed
Inhibition of human tumour prostate PC-3 cell growth by cannabinoids R(+)-Methanandamide and JWH-015: involvement of CB2 - PubMed

Blood cancer
Targeting CB2 cannabinoid receptors as a novel therapy to treat malignant lymphoblastic disease - PubMed
Delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol-induced apoptosis in Jurkat leukemia T cells is regulated by translocation of Bad to mitochondria - PubMed

Skin cancer
Inhibition of skin tumor growth and angiogenesis in vivo by activation of cannabinoid receptors - PubMed
The endocannabinoid system of the skin in health and disease: novel perspectives and therapeutic opportunities - PubMed

Liver cancer
Anti-tumoral action of cannabinoids on hepatocellular carcinoma: role of AMPK-dependent activation of autophagy - PubMed

Cannabis cancer cures (general)
Inhibition of tumor angiogenesis by cannabinoids - PubMed
Cannabinoids inhibit the vascular endothelial growth factor pathway in gliomas - PubMed
Cannabidiol enhances the inhibitory effects of delta9-tetrahydrocannabinol on human glioblastoma cell proliferation and survival - PubMed
Cannabinoids for cancer treatment: progress and promise - PubMed
Cannabinoid receptor ligands as potential anticancer agents--high hopes for new therapies? - PubMed
Cannabinoids and cell fate - PubMed
Cannabinoids in the treatment of cancer - PubMed
[The endocannabinoid system as a target for the development of new drugs for cancer therapy] - PubMed
Cannabinoids and cancer - PubMed
HU-331, a novel cannabinoid-based anticancer topoisomerase II inhibitor - PubMed

Cancers of the head and neck
http://ww.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2277494

Cholangiocarcinoma cancer
http://ww.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19916793
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21115947

Leukemia
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15454482
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16139274
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/14692532

Cannabis partially/fully induced cancer cell death
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12130702
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19457575
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18615640
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17931597
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18438336
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19916793
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18387516
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15453094
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19229996
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/9771884
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18339876
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12133838
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16596790
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11269508
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15958274
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19425170
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17202146
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11903061
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15451022
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20336665
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19394652
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/11106791
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19189659
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16500647
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19539619
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19059457
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16909207
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18088200
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/10913156
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18354058
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19189054
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17934890
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16571653
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19889794
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/15361550

Translocation-positive rhabdomyosarcoma
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19509271

Lymphoma
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18546271
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16936228
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16337199
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19609004

Cannabis kills cancer cells
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16818634
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12648025
Cannabinoids and gliomas - PubMed
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16835997

Melanoma
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17065222

Thyroid carcinoma
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18197164

Colon cancer
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18938775
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19047095

Intestinal inflammation and cancer
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19442536

Cannabinoids in health and disease
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18286801

Cannabis inhibits cancer cell invasion
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/19914218

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What other “regulations like alcohol and tobacco” are even controversial? Don’t drive while inebriated, don’t sell to kids.

What do you want from me? What are you looking for?

Don’t drive impaired is regulating driving, not weed or alcohol.

Minors - if their parents want to supervise them while they drink or smoke weed, ok. Regulating minors, not weed or alcohol.

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You’ve been waiting a while to post that. Saved on your desktop? :joy:

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