The thing is, if it was taxed and controlled properly, the tax money could be used to fund certain social programs...You see, I am a bit of a liberal this way...But it must be done correctly.
In my state in the US, the state government controls the retail sale of alcohol: we have 'State Stores' kind of like a communist deal...In the neighboring states, the liquor stores are private....But either way, it's legal, and these stores either put revenue directly into the budget, or pay taxes.
I don't like taxes, of course, but a reasonable taxation can make sense...Poland legalizes marijuana like the Netherlands, and you have a new industry...Of course, It's not hot in Poland like Mexico, or SE Asia, so the growing would probably be fairly modest....Or just de-criminalize it.
This story just caught my eye, so I put it up.
It's from Polish Radio, happened in Poland, so the moderators will leave it up.
The thing is, if it was taxed and controlled properly
I totally agree with your position.
Still, the cynic in me asks "why collect only tax revenue instead of the whole lot?"
This, of course, would be the question asked by those who traffic in the goods ;)
Good post - especially given the fact that some in question are illegal Vietnamese.
When you do it right, growing with active coal filters and no light leaks, selling only to few persons you completly trust you seldom can get catched. I'm out of business for years, but back than, it was a good way to earn some surplus for a student with low income ...
All drugs should be legal.
You can buy six litres of vodka and six packets of nuerofen
No, they should prohibit alcohol too, so I can make a cut on moonshine too =)
OK...Drugs, a tricky situation...'Controlled substances'...Now there are different reasons for the 'control'...Some of it have to do with big black market money that even governments are profiting from, but some of it has to do with this: 'Do you want a population under the influence of various drugs, and if you don't think this is good, well, you have to control it.
Marijuana?...Definitely de-criminalize, or possibly legalize.
Blow/Cocaine?...I think this is a very bad drug, you don't want a big part of population hooked on this...Only relatively safe form is if you chew leaves like the Bolivian farmers or workers do...When you make it into the white powder, or even worse, 'base' or crack, very bad news.
Opiates?...Now, this a very interesting question...Opiates do no really harm the body, and certainly do not cause violent or anti-social behavior UNLESS a person becomes addicted and cannot obtain a supply.
Methamphetamine?...Not too good.
See, it depends on the type of society...In today's stressful consumer world, stimulants like meth or coke just make things worse.
Right now, I am going through a 'situation'...2 months ago, I bust up my back, rupture a disc...The pain was terrible, I couldn't stand up straight, terrible pain in the legs, couldn't sleep flat on my back for 8 weeks.
I went 4 days with just ibuprofen and whiskey, before I could convince my doctor to give me painkillers...He thought I bullsh*t him...Because of red tape in the medical system, and because we had record snowfall in the city, it took me over 3 weeks to get an MRI...Sure enough, when results come back, my disc busted open, look like a ripe peach that somebody stepped on...Orthopedic doctor says: 'You have 2 choices: surgery or cortisone injections in the back.'...I say 'No surgery, let's try the shots and physical therapy'.
OK but I have to wait another 4 weeks before the insurance will approve the injections, get the right referrals, etc...So I have to beg these doctors for pain killers during this time, because I have to go to work and earn money...Finally, after 8 1/2 weeks I get the cortisone shot, which is a fairly painful process if it is near the spine...It works some, I can sleep on my back finally, but still bad pain...They say it takes 2 or 3 shots to get the full effect...But now I have to wait again for insurance to approve it...In meantime, I'm almost out of pain medication, so tomorrow I go the doctor and beg again...
See, the pain meds are opiates, but they are the only thing that work...Doctors know this...I am very conservative using them, but doctors still don't like to proscribe them (unless it was the doctor himself who was hurt then no problem!).
