"On Monday, November 23, the Senate Judiciary Committee will consider Senate Bill 1866, which would give judges the discretion to waive mandatory minimum sentences for some nonviolent drug offenses," write pot advocates Roseanne Scotti and Tony Newman of the Drug Policy Institute in a public appeal. Senate President Richard J. Codey, D-Essex, is backing the bill. A House version already passed.
The pot lobby says laws imprisoning users and neighborhood dealers "have been a spectacular failure. They have done nothing to decrease drug activity and have filled
That's an appealing financial argument for tax-averse New Jerseyans. But the free-the-dealers crowd is less successful when it tries to grab the moral high ground: "Lives often spiral downward after prison," they add in their statement. As opposed to what happens after you smoke a lot of dope?
From a logical and intellectually consistent point of view, if marijuana is to remain illegal, then we should outlaw alcohol and cigarettes. Both are substantially more injurious and costly to society than marijuana. This prohibition has no basis in science or moral value. I suggest we push for alcohol and tobacco to be reclassified as DEA Schedule I drugs.— MainLineExRepublican- I thought a big difference was, ethanol is water-soluble and goes away after a day, but THC is fat-soluble and stays (and accumulates) in the body. Long-term effects. No argument re tobacco.— distefj
Comment removed.- gphilly - Nixon was the one who kick-started the "war on drugs".— Swyve
Yeah, ya gotta legalize pot because man, the prisons got these dudes in em, next to these other dudes that kill people, and it costs a lot of cash to have them stay in...these places...with...bars...what was I taklking about?— jmc- To distefj - I believe you are correct. However, the damage caused by the alcohol in that brief period that it remains in the body is extreme. We all know more than one individual who has died from cirrhosis of the liver, various cancers caused or contributed to by alcohol, drunk driving deaths, etc. Alcohol is a really dangerous drug across a broad spectrum of effects. The same thing cannot be said of THC. It's relatively benign and, while detectable over a longer period of time, doesn't cause much if any damage during that period. That said, people under 21 are at risk because we don't really know the long term effects on the developing brain. There are smarter ways to enjoy it than smoking and, as it moves towards full legalization, I think we'll be seeing a broad array of products which are sold in the equivalent of liquor stores and which don't require it to be smoked. There are a large number of professionals over 50 who appreciate enjoying an occasional smoke now and then, just as they enjoy a glass of fine wine or a single malt, and so I see a relatively easy path to dropping the prohibition within the next 5 years.— MainLineExRepublican
- Decriminalizing marijuana was a resounding success in every state and country that has. It should appeal to both ends of the political spectrum as a personal freedom and sound economic decision. The only people who are against it are lobbyists, pols who take lobbyist money, and wingnuts who let neocons think for them. They should make gun ownership illegal while they are at it.— HandNik
- Christie is already making excuses for why he won't be able to solve the State's problems. Maybe he should think outside the box...— Politburo
- Comment removed.
- Bloomberg News
- New York Times Dealbook
- Washington Post Economy Watch
- U.S. propaganda
- Dealbreaker
- Edgar SEC Filings
- Emma Bond Filings
- ACG Philadelphia Deals and Dealmakers
- Seeking Alpha CEO call transcripts
- FCC Documents on Comcast-NBC Universal merger
- Jones Philadelphia Skyline Report
- Grubb Business Real Estate
- Studley Business Real Estate
- Plan Philly
- Penn Praxis
- Technically Philly
- Llenrock real estate blog
- Pennsylvania state budget
- New Jersey state budget
- Philadelphia city budgets
- Delaware 2010 budget
- U.S. budget
- Pennsylvania State Employees Retirement System
- February
- January
- December 2011
- November 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2008
- August 2008
- July 2008
- June 2008
- May 2008
- April 2008
- March 2008
- February 2008
- News | Sports | Business | What's Happening | Restaurants & Food | Entertainment | Living | Marketplace | Jobs
