Pot and stuff

You know, some threads really go to pot.  This one went FROM pot......LOL

scottydl said:

That lack of oversight and control does not benefit anyone who wants marijuana to be recognized as a medical tool.

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Yep, the lack of oversight only made it so that 22 other states (and several foreign countries like Canada) would also vote to legalize medical marijuana.

Google "Denver marijuana homeless" and you will see links to at least a dozen stories (from the last few weeks) from various news sources about what I described.

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I did Google "Denver marijuana homeless" to see why I missed that story. Well I don't bother with reading the "news" at a Fox faux news sight. All they are is Rupert Murdoch extreme right propaganda machine BS. Here is the headline from Fox "Officials cite marijuana as reason for rise in Denver homeless". But then when you read the story a different picture is seen. Here is a quote from the article "At the St. Francis Center, a daytime homeless shelter, pot is the second most frequently volunteered reason for being in Colorado, after looking for work." So why doesn't the headline read "Bad economy causes rise in Denver homeless."? If you read the articles you discover that the real reason homeless are flocking to Denver is that they are looking for work.

I lived in Denver for a while and the weather there is miserable most of the year. In fall, winter and spring it is a rotten place for a homeless person to try and live. So being as it is summertime one would expect the number of homeless to rise as it always does in summer. So are the number of homeless in Denver higher than last year? The article doesn't bother to say.

How are all these homeless people getting to Denver? Homeless people generally don't own vehicles and can't afford plane, bus, train or taxi fare, so the homeless must be hiking there. :

And they are not giving away pot in Denver so how are the homeless being able to afford pot? It is cheaper in Colorado, however, tourists are limited to buying a 1/4 oz and at Denver prices that would save the average homeless person $20.

And why would anyone move to Colorado for pot? Medically it is legal in 23 states and it is easy to buy in every state in the union.

So the headline really should be "Several really stupid homeless people hike to Colorado to save $20"

We went through this in California in 1996. One of the medical marijuana's opponent actually said on TV that if Proposition 215 passes then every hippy in the country is going to get into their VW micro-bus and move to California. That is hysterically funny to think about hippies moving to the most expensive state in the union to live in because of pot.

But that idea has been exploited by the various "wonder drug that cures all ails" (unrealistic) and "free weed for all" crowds, which has muddied the waters for those who desire legalization for legitimate medical purposes.  The fact that many of the pro-marijuana groups often compare it to our legal ability to drink alcohol, smoke cigarettes, gamble, etc. only point more toward the party/addiction defense (instead of the medical use justifications) which many folks will resist.

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I have never read about a "wonder drug that cures all ails" or "free weed for all" crowds. Could you please give me a link to these outfits?

SeilerBird said:

Yep, the lack of oversight only made it so that 22 other states (and several foreign countries like Canada) would also vote to legalize medical marijuana.I did Google "Denver marijuana homeless" to see why I missed that story. Well I don't bother with reading the "news" at a Fox faux news sight. All they are is Rupert Murdoch extreme right propaganda machine BS. Here is the headline from Fox "Officials cite marijuana as reason for rise in Denver homeless". But then when you read the story a different picture is seen. Here is a quote from the article "At the St. Francis Center, a daytime homeless shelter, pot is the second most frequently volunteered reason for being in Colorado, after looking for work." So why doesn't the headline read "Bad economy causes rise in Denver homeless."? If you read the articles you discover that the real reason homeless are flocking to Denver is that they are looking for work.


So the headline really should be "Several really stupid homeless people hike to Colorado to save $20"

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You make good points, SeilerBird, especially when it comes to the Faux News propaganda machine. But there's quite a few right wing nuts out there who give Rupert a run for his money. Stomping on false "facts" from the right is tough work, but someone has to do it...  LOL

We went through this in California in 1996. One of the medical marijuana's opponent actually said on TV that if Proposition 215 passes then every hippy in the country is going to get into their VW micro-bus and move to California. That is hysterically funny to think about hippies moving to the most expensive state in the union to live in because of pot.I have never read about a "wonder drug that cures all ails" or "free weed for all" crowds. Could you please give me a link to these outfits?

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Similarly, I was traveling through one of the few remaining backwaters of America where alcohol is prohibited. After the topic came up with the clerk at a gas/grocery store, she said that if alcohol was ever permitted there, "all there'll be is a bunch of drunks standing around here in the store." It made me wonder where such a twisted notion came form, but I have a hunch.

Dan23 said:

You make good points, SeilerBird, especially when it comes to the Faux News propaganda machine. But there's quite a few right wing nuts out there who give Rupert a run for his money. Stomping on false "facts" from the right is tough work, but someone has to do it...  LOL

Similarly, I was traveling through one of the few remaining backwaters of America where alcohol is prohibited. After the topic came up with the clerk at a gas/grocery store, she said that if alcohol was ever permitted there, "all there'll be is a bunch of drunks standing around here in the store." It made me wonder where such a twisted notion came form, but I have a hunch.

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They made alcohol illegal in 1919 and that was a massive disaster. It only took ten years for the economy to collapse once the revenue from alcohol sales was removed from the federal budget. And the exact same thing is happening with marijuana prohibition. Why do you think the economy is in the crapper? Sending billions of dollars every year to the Mexican Drug Cartels instead of taxing it and having the money stay in the US. And the cost of arresting, trying and jailing millions of people for using a plant is just obscene.

The people who should be the most upset over marijuana being illegal are the non-smokers who have been funding a very misguided 40 year war on drugs. The government has wasted about a trillion dollars of your tax money and they have failed miserably. Drug use has not dropped one bit in the last 40 years. 

Here is the headline from Fox "Officials cite marijuana as reason for rise in Denver homeless". But then when you read the story a different picture is seen. Here is a quote from the article "At the St. Francis Center, a daytime homeless shelter, pot is the second most frequently volunteered reason for being in Colorado, after looking for work." So why doesn't the headline read "Bad economy causes rise in Denver homeless."? If you read the articles you discover that the real reason homeless are flocking to Denver is that they are looking for work.

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Sadly typical of headline news these days - long on sensationalism and short on balance or facts. Not just at Fox, either. All the news media looks for a factoid that supports a story that will generate a lot of controversy, then publishes it with a big scary headline.  An aspiring reporter probably interviewed a half dozen people at the Center and 5 said they were hoping to find a job while 1 said he came for the pot. Ergo, pot is the "second most frequent" reason. Psheesh!

Gary RV Roamer said:

Sadly typical of headline news these days - long on sensationalism and short on balance or facts. Not just at Fox, either. All the news media looks for a factoid that supports a story that will generate a lot of controversy, then publishes it with a big scary headline.  An aspiring reporter probably interviewed a half dozen people at the Center and 5 said they were hoping to find a job while 1 said he came for the pot. Ergo, pot is the "second most frequent" reason. Psheesh!

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Gary, thanks for your sane comments. I have been battling this battle for a long time and it is really hard to fight until recently when it became common place for people to be able to make remarks after a news story. It is almost comical reading the things that are said about Fox "news" stories. It is to the point where Fox "news" won't even put a comments section at the end of it's stories anymore because the backlash is killing them. Facts are meaningless to them.

So, what news outlet do you recommend? 

Don't forget,  Just because Fox reports it does not mean it did not happen, and just because CNN reports it doesn't mean it did happen.

I guess we watch history unfold in CO and other states that legalize pot.  See what happens down the road.  I would say look at CA, but they were already there.

I had a tendency to be obsessive and I had problems with dang near everything I've ever done in my life,

it didn't matter if it's good pot, good beer, good lobster or good cars, or anything that was fun.

my epiphany was when I realized obsession was my problem, .....

so, for me now......

pot is ok, beer is ok, almost is everything is ok...... in moderation..

SeilerBird said:

Why do you think the economy is in the crapper?

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Well, I don't think the War on Drugs is the sole reason, but it surely is counter-productive.

TonyDtorch said:

at some point the government will be deciding every part of your life for your own good..

an example is in South Central Los Angeles ( a low income area ) they outlawed the building any new fast food restaurants....

apparently the people there lack the ability to choose healthy meals, ......so our government is going to help them .

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That's the same reasoning which promotes mandatory seat belt laws, helmet laws, Mayor Bloomberg's attempt to outlaw 24 oz. sodas in NYC, and all the rest of the ridiculous "feel good" legislation which now protects us from ourselves!

I would rather see the huge amount of money spent of the"War Against Drugs" used to provide more positive things, e.g. health care, better schooling, even highway infrastructure. There is plenty to complain about those programs too, but at least they are constructive attempts. Putting more people in jail is not a worthy goal for a society.

It's good to have all these out of state, online experts here to tell us that the issues and problems with pot here don't really exist. Makes me feel much better now knowing that all I have to do is watch a different news channel and all the issues will just disappear. Unfortunately, that means I will have to give up on all local news programs and news papers, as well as avoid driving around in downtown Denver and/or Boulder. Denial does not make the problem disappear, it just makes it easier to sleep at night.

I think you can find plenty of problems driving around downtown in any our major cities. And even many smaller ones.  The more difficult question is whether these problems began with the legalization of pot in CO, or as a result of something else.

if our government is supposed to be protecting us from addictive substances.

with all the premature heart failure, diabetes and all the other epidemic obesity related health issues ,

then  why isn't our government regulating feeding times and portions ? 

I need to forward this to Dianne Feinstein !


in reality dopers are going to be dopers, and fat people are going to be fat.

they will either change or die. we all have choices in life, you remove the some choices and you remove some life.

BobX2 said:

It's good to have all these out of state, online experts here to tell us that the issues and problems with pot here don't really exist. Makes me feel much better now knowing that all I have to do is watch a different news channel and all the issues will just disappear. Unfortunately, that means I will have to give up on all local news programs and news papers, as well as avoid driving around in downtown Denver and/or Boulder. Denial does not make the problem disappear, it just makes it easier to sleep at night.

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Well I don't know anything about your particular news channel, but I can assure you, driving around in downtown Denver and/or Boulder is a whole lot safer than walking through the parking lot of any Walmart. 

BobX2 said:

It's good to have all these out of state, online experts here to tell us that the issues and problems with pot here don't really exist. Makes me feel much better now knowing that all I have to do is watch a different news channel and all the issues will just disappear. Unfortunately, that means I will have to give up on all local news programs and news papers, as well as avoid driving around in downtown Denver and/or Boulder. Denial does not make the problem disappear, it just makes it easier to sleep at night.

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Ok so we both live here. What have you personally noticed? Not the over hyped news stories but you personally. 

A little before the last presidential election my wife and I stopped watching any/all national news on TV, in the evenings. The idea came from a surprising  conversation I had with a respected friend who does something similar. TV news is arguably the most sensational of all media, it is primarily all about ratings and money.

The other thing is the habit of watching the news on TV is somewhat addicting and it can be a little difficult to break away from it. I think it is well worth the effort, at least it was in our case.

The evenings are far more pleasant. We talk more, see more sunsets, play with the dogs more, use the pool more, you get the idea. We watch much less TV than before, but we don't feel out of touch since we read the newspaper, enough to keep up.

TV news may very well be worse than pot!!

dave61 said:

The other thing is the habit of watching the news on TV is somewhat addicting and it can be a little difficult to break away from it. I think it is well worth the effort, at least it was in our case.


TV news may very well be worse than pot!!

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I agree.  With the advent of news 24/7 on multiple networks and cable outlets, news has become actually a stress factor to us and we try to limit it to one time per day but that is near impossible.  I have to admit that whenever this president appears, I click it off immediately for my own personal reasons.  Before I went on the news diet I tried to do some comparisons on which major news stories were covered by which networks.  It is amazing what is NOT covered by many of the networks until the event has reached a point where it can no longer be ignored. I just find the media - all media (written and broadcast) to be purveyors of one viewpoint of political events.  With one exception, they tend to ignore whatever they think will hurt their political viewpoint.

I get all my news from the internet.  If I read it there, it must be true  :

Gary RV Roamer said:

I would rather see the huge amount of money spent of the"War Against Drugs" used to provide more positive things, e.g. health care, better schooling, even highway infrastructure. There is plenty to complain about those programs too, but at least they are constructive attempts. Putting more people in jail is not a worthy goal for a society.

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Perzactly.