Legalize it, tax the shit out of it and then lower the property taxes. Let the pot smokers make up the difference in the tax burden.
This brings up an interesting point about “other” drugs. If they were available legally from reputable sources, quality control would be significantly better. Not that I’m advocating heroin use, but most of the OD’s come from poor dosing. There’s no way to know how strong the stuff is so you could do 10cc’s (I have no idea what’s normal) every other day for years, then do the same amount of some that’s been laced with fentanyl and be dead in a few minutes.
That is the very basis that changes it. Entire states can push back in a way an individual can't. If those states that have legalized it have indeed seen an improvement in their tax revenue from it's legal sale you can bet your ass they aren't backing away from the money. Things will get interesting.
It's been proven through prohibition and the W.O.D. that you aren't going to stop those that want to do it from doing it. Putting them at greater risk because you don't necessarily agree with their drug use doesn't help anyone. I think it would be a healthier approach to their destructive behavior.
You know...if people can describe our bikes as donor cycles, etc in all seriousness....then I can have a give a sh*t concern when a junkie OD's......I'm sure it affects many families in a very negative way but it's just a slow form of suicide in my opinion. Making heroin "safe" seems like an unwise decision unless we're willing to lock them up on Manhattan island and burn down the bridges.......... OK...just stirring the pot (that's a pun, son) after the heat I took over my MJ comments.
Read an article some senator said he was going to with trump after election push through cannabis reform make medical legal at federal then release recreational to the states. Basically decriminalizing it.
I always say in a free society you cannot make a law that will prevent someone from doing something you can only make a law that punishes them after they done it.
I know Vancouver started a program years ago that was aimed at getting junkies off the streets (bad for tourism). The deal was a clinic that provided clean needles and a place to shoot up. There was also a clinic and counselors upstairs to treat any overdoses or aid anyone seeking help getting clean. I recall hearing that it was a pretty big success in cleaning up the streets of used needles and treating overdoses.
http://thefederalist.com/2017/07/19/buying-druggies-needles-will-not-reduce-opioid-habit/ Covers the Vancouver needle exchange.
Users will use...that's not the point. Rather, what impact does their use have on the rest of society and how can we minimize both the cost and unsavoriness of drug addiction? I'm all for letting people suffer the consequences of their choices, but its a burden to me if you OD in front of my house where my kid can see it and police and an ambulance need to roll.
I probably shouldn't have used heroin as an example, but it's the most common OD due to how it affects the body. A more fitting example would be something like ecstasy. It actually has therapeutic use (for PTSD if I recall) in clinical settings. https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/01/us/ecstasy-molly-ptsd-mdma.html
Timing is everything... in a 180 degree turnaround, this was announced today.... https://globalnews.ca/news/4536509/u-s-wont-ban-canadian-pot-workers/
