What has this got to do with wildlife? Plenty!
Growing of marijuana in the woods on both public and private land keeps expanding and using more and more nasty chemicals and violence — a menace to wildlife, hikers, campers, and hunters. This election year might be the year to put an end to the enormously costly, politically corrupting, polluting, and ineffective “war” against this not very harmful drug.
‘Just Say Now’: Left-Right Coalition Launches Campaign To Legalize Pot. Huffington Post. By Ryan Grim.
I should add that for the huge number of people who are concerned about U.S./Mexico border problems, ending the war on drugs will do as much as any fence to stop the violence.
Comments
The “war on marijuana” has been a very, very expensive farce and a complete failure. In my life, alcohol has been the most destructive and negative influence possible. Yet, it is legal. Where is the justice in criminalizing people who grow or smoke pot? Its use does not lead to other drugs and it should be no one’s business if a person uses marijuana. It should be a civil rights issue and the medical community has come around to the importance of its use for chronic pain and dying patients. Use of and addiction to prescription drugs is much more deadly than marijuana use. There – I have said my piece and anyone can condemn me if they wish – but this issue is tiresome and has been for many, many years.
Alcohol and cigarettes are far more dangerous than pot. Cigarettes cause lung cancer and alcohol causes cerosis of the liver. You are right Virginia, prescription drugs given the fact that some abuse them are infact more dangerous than smoking pot.
Virgina – word has it, marijuna has been the #1 “cash” crop in CA for years and I agree,
The “war on marijuana” has been a very, very expensive farce and a complete failure.
Even though I am allergic to pot I think you are right Virginia and I think that the hemp industry is very important. . hemp rope, hemp cloth and products of hemp seeds could help change public health. The hemp industry suffers from regulations involving growing the plants. We get unpressed hemp seeds from Canada as a dietary supplement that have no THC in them but have lots of omega 3 and fiber. I would love to see them available here at a lower cost. (Yes you can get hemp seeds in health food stores now but the oil has been taken out)
The amount of acreage destroyed by growers is saddening. Sequoia and Kings Canyon NPs are prime examples also many NFs. Indoor farms require huge amounts of energy and chemicals. Time for small scale organics.
Prohibition doesn’t work. The prison industry has grown fat off the criminalization of drugs. The so called war on drugs is insane. This melts into border politics as well. Way too much money headed south to our drug CEOs. Think of all the wildlife habitat destroyed to grow coke, poppy and pot.
Our society is stoned on pharms, illegal drugs and alcohol. BILLIONS and BILLIONS of dollars every year that could go for something (anything) beneficial. What a waste.
Easy for the powers at be to control the masses when everyone is stoned. Money and power get funneled up.
You all have sound arguments. Increased chronic pot use however will have medical and societal costs that could rival chronic use of tobacco and alcohol. Two substances which are highly regulated as to content and relative safety from contamination. Just legalizing marijuana will not deal with the whole pesticide and other contaminates issues which even a legal but for profit grower will have the incentive to use. Once legal, the price will drop dramatically and the profit margins will be very thin and people will take shortcuts or do questionable things to increase yield. (Begins to sound like the cattle business, eh?) I love watching people who spend 3x as much for organic vegetables and then smoke pot with god knows what kinds of pesticides and adulterants thrown in the mix without nary a thought. One study of seized dope showed that 40% of all the samples were adulterated or contaminated with other substances.
I agree the current state of affairs is untenable, just be careful what you wish for…
no wonder I am allergic to it.
some of the more hard core hikers/field herpers I know have run into crops of stuff on national land; none of them enjoy that (it’s not comforting to think that a drug grower may view you as a threat to his crop). I really hate seeing what the war on drugs does to society; I have a very hard time thinking the negative results from legalization will outweigh the harm that having it illegal does.
I really don’t have an opinion on this issue, but it does remind me of my favorite “The Onion” headline:
http://store.theonion.com/product/drugs-win-drug-war-1998,189/
The UK will eventually follow down this inevitable path. The only questions are how many lives will we ruin and how much time and money will we waste before we finally get there?
http://peterreynolds.wordpress.com/2010/08/14/proposition-19-just-say-now/