Quote For The Day

"There is a reason you don't have Mexican beer cartels planting fields of hops in the California forests," - Bruce Merken, Marijuana Policy Project. (via Andrew Sullivan)

• [Vincentl]

  Would the world be a better place if the cartels that now make their money selling illegal drugs instead made their money selling legal drugs?

  I’d rather have them behind bars, they aren’t exactly nice people.

  • [Anonymous]

    If the drugs were legal, they wouldn’t be selling them. Corporations like Budweiser Beer, and Camel Tobacco, and Starbucks coffee sells their drugs. I’d prefer companies that have to abide by laws to be selling and profiting from the popular and mostly harmless drug Marijuana, instead of violent Gangs that don’t are not regulated by laws because they are outlaws.

  • [Itsumishi]

    Cartels would no longer be making any money from growing marijuana if it was legal.

    You honestly think that any cartel could compete with say British American Tobacco?

    Whilst cartels run around trying to buy land and build factories tobacco giants would be planting crops in land they already own, using machines they already use and mass producing joints at a fraction of the cost any cartel could get together using factories they already own. Hell there is plenty of evidence that these tobacco giants already have trademarks on names and branding just in case Marijuana does become legal.

• [AstRiske]

  I’m in 100% agreement with this sentiment. Using basic economics, the fight against drug cartels should be obvious. So, the real question, is it really about the drug cartels or about the money? It’s big govt business to continue the “war on drugs,” instead of simply addressing the question of supply and demand.

• [Salamalecs]

  Raging forest fires ?

• [AsteriskCGY]

  Yea, I’m going to go with forest fires here too.

  • [Itsumishi]

    Why then are there no Mexican Beer cartels growing hops anywhere else more suitable?

• [Mark Frauenfelder]

  Do you also enjoy the rampant gov’t corruption and secondary criminality that goes along with prohibition, Vincentl?

  • [Antinous / Moderator]

    I guess that depends on whether or not you’re getting a piece of the action, eh?

• [Anonymous]

  “Would the world be a better place if the cartels that now make their money selling illegal drugs instead made their money selling legal drugs?
  I’d rather have them behind bars, they aren’t exactly nice people.” -Vincentl

  That does not make much sense… First of all, we are talking about Marihuana here, if it were legal, I doubt anybody would buy it being so easy to grow it. You will get it for free! This is the reason why it is illegal, it is the only way to make money out of weed.

• [Anonymous]

  vincenti if prohibition was lifted it wouldnt be the cartels who controlled the drugs trade it would be legitimate businesses and corporations, farmers, retailers etc all being regulated, needing licenses, paying taxes etc
  the cartels wouldnt become legal they would merely have their business ripped out from under them by legitimate production, distribution and retail networks. and there would be very little they could do about it

• [MrTempleDene]

  I’m all for the idea of de-criminalising drugs, it means less harm is done. Regulated drugs will have less harmful additives like rat poison and brick dust et. al.

  I do worry though, what will all the criminals now involved in producing/selling/pushing these drugs actually do? as noted above they will very quickly be put out of business by “Big Tobacco” so what will they turn to next? I hardly think they’ll just give up and go work a McDonalds.

  Most low level dealers may well go legit and get jobs, but the big players? used to large amounts of cash coming in? where will they turn their attentions.

• [Cefeida]

  Regulated drugs ftw. After all we already have them- alcohol and cigarettes. The line that has been drawn is arbitrary.

  And sure, the criminals will have to find something else to do, but don’t they always? Taking a high-demand product such as drugs away from them would be a sore blow.