Quote:
Originally posted by Cowboy+Aug 30 2004, 12:10 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td>QUOTE (Cowboy @ Aug 30 2004, 12:10 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'> <!--QuoteBegin-Thunderball@Aug 29 2004, 11:56 PM
I can say I know a couple people who will definitely not reach their intellectual potential because of pot... a little here and there probably won't hurt you, but every day for years will more than likely damage your brain permanently.
Comparing it to Alcohol and Tobacco is a laughably weak excuse, good point DFF. I laugh every time I hear that one. Drinking a glass of wine a day (which IS alcohol) will actually keep you healthy and prolong your life. Marijuana dulls the senses and has a growing effect over time... thats why it takes less to get high the more you smoke it.
But hey, part of living in a free society is letting people make stupid decisions and face the consequences on taxpayer coin. We all try it, we all experiment, and those who rely on it get what's coming, and sadly, with public medicare, we all pay.
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Nothing p*sses me off more than a Holier than thou attitude...I garuntee you that you do things that cost the taxpayers money. So don't pretend that you are paying for all the poor saps in the world that have made bad decisions when you haven't. It is not laughable to compare it to Alcohol, or Tobacco. Tobacco cost the taxpayers more dollars. We are not talking about the one glass of wine a day, we are talking about the people who get p*ssed on Friday, Saturday, and maybe a few times during the week. Eating healthy is good for the heart to, why don't you just do that instead of drinking the wine!!!. [/b][/quote]
Who says people don't eat healthy AND drink the wine...
Frankly, we all do things that cost taxpayer's money, but something are must more clearly foolish than others, and that costs the SYSTEM, and EVERYONE involved in it. I never once tried to say that I pay for everyone's stupidity or even a good percentage and excuse me for trying to look at things with a fiscally responsible point of view, cause heaven forbid we be responsible, right??
As for tobacco... like alcohol it is TAXED... which means wine-os and smokers are essentialy paying for the services they will eventually need. Who do chronic pot smokers pay? no one but their dealer. So I think it should either be cracked down on, or legalized, mass-produced, and heavily taxed, like the other two vices that are drawn into question.
Like I said, part of living in a free society is letting people make stupid decisions, and yeah, Joe Citizen pays for it. Thats a fact, not a "Holier than Thou" attitude, so don't even challenge that one. Chronic drinkers and smokers are problems too, no question, but at least their vices are taxed heavily and that is curbing further abuse, at least with cigarettes. If its not deterring, its at least putting forward capital to pay for treatment, so it doesn't solely rely on the community pot.
As for why I didn't use a Tobacco argument, MMF, I'd have to say I was lazy and trying to get by on one example. But one could say a cigar every so often, say bi-weekly is far less harmful than spending an evening in a smoke-filled bar.
Abuse of anything, even food (very true), is harmful, and unless everyone gets a "Minder", we're gonna be prone to acts of gluttony in Alcohol, Tobacco, Pot, Food...you name it.
Welcome to the Dark Side of Freedom. Making things illegal is not going to help anything, but letting things like pot spiral out of control while looking the other way is a poor decision.