The Prince of Pot Extradited

[peter12]

Originally Posted by Pinner

He was motivated to do this to change the law.

Then do it in Canada. As a Canadian citizen, his actions have NO impact on the American law.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

Well... who wants to talk about what the law is? That would be a short conversation. For the purpose of discussion on a message board, I'm far more interested in why people think a law is valid. I hear the 'well, the law is the law' argument all the time... I just don't really respect it.

If everyone just bought in to 'the law is the law and that's the end of it', laws would never change. We also wouldn't need many trials.

But if we're talking about the here and now, then the moralness of the law really dosen't come into play here. Especially given the fact that Emery knew how stringent the U.S. laws are.

This became high profile probably becaue of the volume of business that he was doing down there.

He kept poking the DEA in the a$$ with a stick, and thats one organization that you don't really want to mess with.

[Coys1882]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

Well... who wants to talk about what the law is? That would be a short conversation. For the purpose of discussion on a message board, I'm far more interested in why people think a law is valid. I hear the 'well, the law is the law' argument all the time... I just don't really respect it.

If everyone just bought in to 'the law is the law and that's the end of it', laws would never change. We also wouldn't need many trials.

I knew some guys in high school that were heavy into dope and it became a lifelong several time a day habit. Talking to them now they are complete burn outs - incapable of holding down a job - permanently fried. If the law is there to try and protect guys like these from smoking it that first time then I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with being tarred with the same brush.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

Well... who wants to talk about what the law is? That would be a short conversation. For the purpose of discussion on a message board, I'm far more interested in why people think a law is valid. I hear the 'well, the law is the law' argument all the time... I just don't really respect it.

If everyone just bought in to 'the law is the law and that's the end of it', laws would never change. We also wouldn't need many trials.

It doesn't even matter what we as Canadians think. He broke US laws, and even our government has no control over that.

He was deported because its in our best interest to have a good working relationship with the US in the law enforcement area.

For the record I think pot should be legal.

Legal and taxed.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

But if we're talking about the here and now, then the moralness of the law really dosen't come into play here. Especially given the fact that Emery knew how stringent the U.S. laws are.

This became high profile probably becaue of the volume of business that he was doing down there.

He kept poking the DEA in the a$$ with a stick, and thats one organization that you don't really want to mess with.

Yeah. Not only are they the biggest waste of money in US history, they're also the biggest asses in the law enforcement community.

[Agamemnon]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

But if we're talking about the here and now, then the moralness of the law really dosen't come into play here. Especially given the fact that Emery knew how stringent the U.S. laws are.

Sure it does. We know the law, and we know the consequence of the law. The law (imo) is an interpretation of society's overall morality. In this particular instance, I think the law is misguided, and does not necessarily reflect society's overall morality (obviously a very tough thing to determine).

I guess my point was, there are people who say 'good riddance' to this guy because he 'broke the law', and for no other reason. Morally, he didn't do anything wrong, he put seeds in an envelope and attached a postage stamp. Legally, he's going to jail. There's a disconnect there that I'm not comfortable with... and I know, I know, my comfort level is inconsequential 'because the law is the law', end of debate. It's just too bad that that's the case...

[Traditional_Ale]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

I knew some guys in high school that were heavy into dope and it became a lifelong several time a day habit. Talking to them now they are complete burn outs - incapable of holding down a job - permanently fried. If the law is there to try and protect guys like these from smoking it that first time then I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with being tarred with the same brush.

Are you insinuating a failure in the legal system is directly responsible for your high school friends smoking dope and becoming addict/burnouts?

They chose to smoke.

[Coys1882]

Originally Posted by Azure

Legal and taxed.

What a killing we'd make - we'd be driving on roads made of solid gold.

A guy I knew who used to work for a large tobacco company told me that they owned the rights to the words: joints, doobies, Mary Jane's and all that jazz if pot ever became legal to sell.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

I knew some guys in high school that were heavy into dope and it became a lifelong several time a day habit. Talking to them now they are complete burn outs - incapable of holding down a job - permanently fried. If the law is there to try and protect guys like these from smoking it that first time then I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with being tarred with the same brush.

And chances are they'll become a burden on society later on.

That being said, I do think the money the government could get from taxing pot could really help us.

[CaptainCrunch]

Originally Posted by Azure

Yeah. Not only are they the biggest waste of money in US history, they're also the biggest asses in the law enforcement community.

But they did enough to prove that extradition was neccessary.

[Frank MetaMusil]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

But if we're talking about the here and now, then the moralness of the law really dosen't come into play here. Especially given the fact that Emery knew how stringent the U.S. laws are.

This became high profile probably becaue of the volume of business that he was doing down there.

He kept poking the DEA in the a$$ with a stick, and thats one organization that you don't really want to mess with.

This is the key. If he didn't sell to the U.S. he likely wouldn't be dealing with any of this backlash. This was his biggest mistake, and I agree it should cost him. It makes me wonder if he's ever seen an episode of COPS - law enforcement in the States will set up sting operations for a single dimebag, sometimes even going as far to taser the "trafficker"

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

Sure it does. We know the law, and we know the consequence of the law. The law (imo) is an interpretation of society's overall morality. In this particular instance, I think the law is misguided, and does not necessarily reflect society's overall morality (obviously a very tough thing to determine).

I guess my point was, there are people who say 'good riddance' to this guy because he 'broke the law', and for no other reason. Morally, he didn't do anything wrong, he put seeds in an envelope and attached a postage stamp. Legally, he's going to jail. There's a disconnect there that I'm not comfortable with... and I know, I know, my comfort level is inconsequential 'because the law is the law', end of debate. It's just too bad that that's the case...

Again, we're not talking about a Canadian law, but an American one.

Whole different can of beans here.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

What a killing we'd make - we'd be driving on roads made of solid gold.

A guy I knew who used to work for a large tobacco company told me that they owned the rights to the words: joints, doobies, Mary Jane's and all that jazz if pot ever became legal to sell.

Yep.

Companies who legally sold the stuff would make a killing too. Just like tobacco companies are making a killing now.

Still, we should still legalize it. Pot is less harmful that alcohol and tobacco, and it could make us a lot of money.

[Agamemnon]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

I knew some guys in high school that were heavy into dope and it became a lifelong several time a day habit. Talking to them now they are complete burn outs - incapable of holding down a job - permanently fried. If the law is there to try and protect guys like these from smoking it that first time then I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with being tarred with the same brush.

Fair enough, isn't the same true with alcohol? People abuse it young, and it ruins their lives? By this logic, alcohol needs to go too. So does sugar, unhealthy food, and anything else the government can 'protect you from', not to mention dangerous activities like skiing, driving motorcycles, etc, etc.

I'm one of the people you mentioned above, and I hold down a sweet job, work my ass off, and am respected in my industry. As far as I'm concerned I'm proof that your point is invalid. Those people were going to be losers regardless of whether they smoked weed or not.

[Coys1882]

Originally Posted by Traditional_Ale

Are you insinuating a failure in the legal system is directly responsible for your high school friends smoking dope and becoming addict/burnouts?

They chose to smoke.

Yes - they did choose. I think the laws are there to try and dissuade people who often choose poorly. Society and law makers like to protect people who can't protect themselves.. from themselves.

[Pinner]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

Talking to them now they are complete burn outs - incapable of holding down a job - permanently fried.

You might be surprised to find out who smokes weed.

[Azure]

Originally Posted by CaptainCrunch

But they did enough to prove that extradition was neccessary.

True.

In essence, the DEA is simply a reflection of a screwed up US justice system when it comes to drugs.

According to their laws, a necessary organization, but when you really think about it the whole 'war on drugs' is a bit stupid. Especially when your war on drugs is wasting time with potheads.

[Agamemnon]

Originally Posted by Azure

Again, we're not talking about a Canadian law, but an American one.

Whole different can of beans here.

I don't care which country is being discussed. American law, Candian law, fair enough. Sure... they're different. Doesn't invalidate anything I've said here... I haven't cited any laws in particular from either country.

[Coys1882]

Originally Posted by Agamemnon

Fair enough, isn't the same true with alcohol? People abuse it young, and it ruins their lives? By this logic, alcohol needs to go too. So does sugar, unhealthy food, and anything else the government can 'protect you from', not to mention dangerous activities like skiing, driving motorcycles, etc, etc.

I'm one of the people you mentioned above, and I hold down a sweet job, work my ass off, and am respected in my industry. As far as I'm concerned I'm proof that your point is invalid. Those people were going to be losers regardless of whether they smoked weed or not.

I don't think you're wrong on any of those accounts - all those risky lifestyle choices get passed onto the taxpayers eventually when their health fails.

I guess the problem is - too large of a population likes to drink - much larger than the population that like to get high. Too hard to pass those laws.

[Temporary_User]

Originally Posted by Coys1882

I knew some guys in high school that were heavy into dope and it became a lifelong several time a day habit. Talking to them now they are complete burn outs - incapable of holding down a job - permanently fried. If the law is there to try and protect guys like these from smoking it that first time then I'm afraid you're going to have to deal with being tarred with the same brush.

And then we have all the great people who have used it (doctors, lawyers, architects, musicians, presidents, etc).
What if the law was enough to scare president Obama away from trying it, maybe he would never have become the great person that he is today.

You might reply saying that it probably wasn't marijuana that caused Obama to become the person he is today, well then you must take the same logic with your HS friends.