Listen here:
Attendees at the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) conference, smoke marijuana in San Francisco. (AP Photo/Russel A. Daniels, File)
In November 2010, Californians went to the polls and narrowly defeated a bill to legalize marijuana. Much of the debate centered on tax revenue and potential job creation. In this show, we examine how the failed war on marijuana has put hundreds of thousands in jail and given them crippling criminal records. On this edition, we look at the transforming culture that put Prop 19 on the ballot.
Featuring:
Froggy, Los Angeles resident; Jill Harris, Drug Policy Alliance managing director; Charlie Rangel, New York City Congressman; John Russo, Oakland City Attorney; Jeff Jones, Oaksterdam University Los Angeles campus chancellor; Richard Lee, Oaksterdam founder and Prop 19 bankroller; Tamar Todd, Drug Policy Alliance attorney; Marisa Garcia, former college student who lost financial aid due to marijuana conviction; Bishop Ron Allen, No on 19 spokesperson, Casey Given, Jessica Wong, Jeff Yunis, University of California at Berkeley students; Dan Rush, UFCW Local 5 special operations director; Andrew Dupree, Humboldt Patient Resource Center grow room employee.
For More Information:
California Legislative Analyst Office’s Report on Prop 19
Weed Wars-Sacramento Bee Blog on Prop 19 and Marij
Students for a Sensible Drug Policy
NORML-The National Association for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
Incarceration Nation — Marijuana Arrests For Year 2009 Near Record High – Alternet
Educating Voters on California’s Prop 19: the Highs, the Lows, and the Crazies
Stoners Against the Prop. 19Tax Cannabis Initiative
Is Pot Legalization the Gay Marriage of 2012?
https://wwws.whitehouse.gov/
Music:
Devin the Dude — What we be On
Keak Da Sneak — That Go
The Pack — Vans
Tags: activism, economy, labor, marijuana, police, pot, prisons, race, war on drugs
[...] [...]
I really liked this show because I felt it was very well rounded, covering diverse arguments both for and against the passing of Proposition 19. I especially felt that the coverage of marijuana convictions and their disproportionate effect on colored communities is a point often overlooked but essential in combating discrimination within society, particularly our judicial and prison systems. I think everyone should listen to this show before they go out and vote!
i think marijuana should be legalized because it relaxies people and it would help the government make more money
[...] program originally aired on Making Contact in October 2010. A slightly edited version aired on KALW’s Crosscurrents. Andrew Stelzer | [...]
i personaly dont smoke it but am around people who do and i always believed that it should be legal the so called drug could make not millions but billions dollors of money just off of taxing it and would save the goverenment millions by take off the programs that demote the use of this substance…
Pot should be legal in all states. Even in all states just medical, Its atleast medical in what 13 or so other states? So how come the other states have it for medical and others just have it illeagal? The last time I checked this was the united states of america what makes those people different from us? NOTHING if it were to be legal this country would not be in hard times. Pot would bring in 20 to 50billion dollars a year. wow do the math we would be out of national debt in 5-6 years.
pot should be legal half of are fucking presedents smoked it. i under stand not doing it in public but fuck there nealing us in are homes are fucking paid homes the reasin i bought the house is so it was mine and thay say well i dont give 2 shits. but its something for farmers to grow it can be used for like 250 difrent things sell it and tex it like ciggs
Its goooooooooooood….
i tink dat marijana is gud for us cuz wen i let my grandma smoke sum it made her laff alot and she luvd it. so it shud be legil cuz my grandma luv it nd so does i. so i tink dat my grandma luv it nd so do erry1 else so it shud b legil. it dnt hurt nobudy!
I used to deliver OZ’s to an ex assistant D.A of the state of California
I used to sell bud to an ex assistant D.A.of the state of California back the late 70′s.How many other politicians smoke pot but won’t admit it.Shows how honest they really are when they preach against it and smoke it to.
I believe Marijuana should not be legalized because legalization would increase the chances of the drug falling into the hands of kids.
@Karla… it’s easier for kids to get weed than beer. It’s the most used drug in our HIGH schools. Dont you think we’d have more success keeping it from kids if we controlled it like we do cigarettes and alcohol? I’ve never understood that argument.
i think weed should be legalized. ciggs are yet you hear about more people that have died from smoking them. As well as kids geting them, yet ciggs are legal.. that makes no sence to me what so ever… i mean really? when have you ever heard of someone dieing from pot? pot would help this country out so much too. just by all the money alone.
i love weed
Marijuana is so harmful to the brain. If that’s what you need to get a cheap high, keep doing it illegally. You’ll get busted and you deserve it. It’s not goood for any medical reasons and it’s not good for the pollution that’s already going on. Look at how you idiots write. You can’t spell or even put your sentences together to make sense. Start doing some research and THEN see if you’re still for it.
“I was lazy a lot. I didn’t want to do things… I was depressed. I felt like I was always in a rut. I was always feeling bad about myself, where I was standing in life.”
— from Alby’s story, on his experiences with being a daily marijuana smoker.
“I used to smoke pot until I had an anxiety attack and thought I couldn’t breathe… I was wheezing, and I got really paranoid.”
“There are a million things to do that are more fun than smoking some unknown grass. Go to the beach, go to the movies, go to the gym—you are not missing anything.”
— Comments submitted to NIDA’s Sara Bellum Blog
Weed isawsome.!.
Rudy: So you support the government being able to tell you what to do? Lets ban alcohol and tobacco, then fast food! Then, lets force everyone to eat healthy and exercise. Lets also ban unproductive means of having fun, like video games.
If they want to damage their bodies it is our right to force them not to. We need to put cameras in everybody’s homes just to make sure they aren’t doing anything illegal.
(All of that was sarcasm by the way)
People like Rudy are just ignorant. I smoked weed every day for almost a year during my Junior year in high school. That was the first year in high school that I made straight A’s, mainly because I knew that if I didn’t people would blame it on the weed. The main reason I quit was because I got an anxiety attack when I was high, I thought I was going to get arrested and sent to prison and ruin my goal of becoming a dentist, so I quit. It’s not addictive so I had no problems quitting after heavy use for almost a year. When it becomes legalized I will enjoy lighting up at the end of a day to relax a bit.
People like Rudy only oppose weed because they think it’s immoral. They don’t care about the users, they would rather punish them for not doing what they think is right. They think that everybody should live drug free, and if you like drugs you are obviously just missing out on life.
I enjoy weed because it lets me relax and have fun just thinking about things. I am a very intuitive person, having an intelligent debate is more fun to me than snow skiing or rock climbing. We all enjoy different things, only the narrow minded expect everybody to enjoy what they like.
The only harmful thing about weed is the smoke you inhale. Use a vaporizer or eat it and it’s completely safe!
I think it should marijuana should be legiazed , but only to people in there 20′s and older to enjoy after a hard days work it would take a lot of the drugs out of the hands to kids. Because usally people who grow marijuana are in there 20 or older and if they could get how much they need they would grow it and sell it because anyone who could get it will not wanna buy it from someone esle. So that could take it out of the hands from most of the kids and they could have a choice if they want to smoke it on their on time not in school or work. and since they will be older and being able to smoke it and there would be no problem.
I believe that Marijuana should be legalized because it is more healthy than ciggarets for you and it makes people laugh and have a great time
and alot less people would be in jail right now, the government would be practically rich off of it. and the government could control high people just as easy (if not easier) then drunk people.
I think Marijuana should and shouldn’t be legalized.
Legalized: I think Marijuana should be legalized because when your stressed out it helps you. Marijuana makes you have fun, and when your high i think people are more like them selves, and not scared to talk, play around, eat, or whatever. But Marijuana is better than smoking cigarettes.
Not to be Legalized: Because thats all peoples money would go on, We already have drunk drivers, so we dont need stoned drivers. Weed causes you to do stupid stuff.
Ive tried weed and i like the feeling it gives me, and i like the way i act on it.. im more myself around people and i talk way more than i normally do. But i never once got sick from it or anything.. but this is my opinion on legalizing Marijuana!!
Hi sara im lucas. I love weed. ok. it does not cause anxiety attacks……..Rudy….or heart problems or seizers or anything…ok ive been smokin the shit for 23 years and im still perfectly fine. Went and got myself a physical 2 days ago and doctor said i was perfectly healthy exept for the fact that im a smoker….he just dont know what im smokin is all. and believe me when i say this…ciggs do 3 times more damage to your lungs than weed does. ik this beacase my grandfather of emphesima and lung failer because of ciggaretes. he only smoked them for 6 years and he died. and ive been smokin weed for 23 years and im still kickin and with a good buzz. Mabie some people are just pussy ass bitches and cant take it. You know what they say….cant take the heat stay out of the kitchen. So sara change ur mind alittle and Rudy cut the shit and take a big breath of life and live. Its as simple as that.
and for gods sake get some more people on here…..im lonley on this website…..jk jk.
i believe that marijuana should be legal because it helps you relax and it can help the government make a lot more money and they can use that money into good things.
I agree with lillian.
weed is good for you
everybody should smoke weed
no jk so why do you think pot should be legal im doing a project on it why do you think pot should be legal
I believe pot should be legal, it would take alot of taxes away just for the simple fact that less people would be in jail and then maybe the cops could focus on more important things instead of some pothead getting stoned. As for the comment on “stoned driving” i drive fine when im stoned. If anything alcohol should be illegal if you’re going to make that comment, but again let me remind you you are in america and in america it is supposed to be the land of the free. Really the government shouldn’t have any involvement in marijuana its healthier than cigarettes and you don’t get as wasted as if you were drunk. Not only that but pot was legal back before the 1900′s in fact so was cocaine. You know the real reason it became illicit in the first place was that the tobacco company and the cotton company ( king crops during that era and today) felt threatened by it. You can make paper and clothing out of hemp a product of marijuana not to mention you can smoke it and get a lot more enjoyment out of it than a cigarette. If pot was legal the government would have more money, our economy would be out of the shitter, people would have less health problems since i for one (not the only one) would quit cigarettes in a heartbeat, our pollution rates would go down RUDY since we could stop cutting down so many trees and make our paper out of hemp. And really RUDY if you think its so harmful why do you think our government already makes thc pills for the people with glaucoma and cancer. RUDY your kind of people are really whats wrong with america today, you can’t accept change and most likely you can’t accept being wrong about something that you yourself have probably never even tried. Face it you’re in the crowd of people that have been fooled for over 100 years into thinking pot is bad for you by the corporations that are really doing the harm to the environment that you care so much for, and honestly the fact that you are even on this site proves it. There is no hard data that pot does anything bad to you since the government hasn’t really tested it since its illegal anyway. The only reason it is such a bad thing is that its illegal and you go to jail for having it. Its my belief that everyone should have the right to choose what they want to consume to get their enjoyment and that the government and all the people up on their high horses should have no say in it. Hell in other countries weed goes along with peoples religion and isn’t that what this country was founded on? If it is harmful its only going to hurt the people that want to do it so why should anyone else have any kind of say in what i want to do in my life?
thank you Parker, you basicaly proved my point on a research paper.
i think weed should be legal in every where in the world. if it something you want to do you should be able to. it has many positive attributes. its not toxic to the human body.
…there was, excuse me, i mean IS A REASON that THE CREATOR created marijuana…it is “Systematic-Thoelogy” that is imposing it’s “Systematic-Will” on ‘those’ who are dependent on “The Grid” and it’s “Systematic-Slavery”…the N.W.O. is really applying pressure now; believe this way and not that way…System way = good / Individuality way = bad…and if you go against the system, then you are considered; TERRORISTIC…c’mon, to deny the truth and mainstage the lie, you might as well create an illusion and tell everyone they’re free…lol…LEGALIZE MARIJUANA!!!…Who knowz, it could help ‘spark up’ the next great idea that could Revolutionize The World or save someone’s life who is suffering from an incurable disease…LET’S GET BACK TO LIVING !!!
Rudy…I used to smoke marijuana for some time, I am now a mother of 5, and no longer smoke because breaking ANY law is not worth risking my kids’ future on. However, when you said that it is not good for ANY medical reason, you are dead wrong! It must be nice to be able to think that way. I’m glad that you don’t have to suffer the way that some people who use medical marijuana suffer, however, I do wish that you could live for just a couple days in the shoes of someone who smokes marijuana for medical relief. I bet you would change your mind! In fact, come live in my shoes…I have such severe arthritis (at only 25 years old) that it is fusing my bones together. I have FIVE discs in my back that are DOUBLE HERNIATED!! I was also in a car accident that damaged nerves in my shoulder and neck, and broke bones in my face. I also have a slight, although very painful, deformity in my knees that caused me to wear braces on my legs for most of my childhood. I live EVERY SINGLE DAY in misery! Morphine doesn’t even slightly control the pain that I am in! ( I know b/c I wear a morphine patch 24 hrs/day!) I have been on drugs that are basically just purified medical versions of heroin that do not control the pain. I can hardly walk, and can’t even pick up my children without having to sit down first. Getting out of bed requires about 20 minutes, and tears. I have dealt with many of these problems for most of my life, however, during the time when I was smoking marijuana…I lived a normal life! Granted for about 1/2 an hour after I smoked it I was a little ‘out of it’, but no where near some of the meds I’m on now. But that slight time of being out of it was worth it when it meant that I could play with my children. or work. or do my own grocery shopping. or even just be able to fall asleep at night without crying myself to sleep due to pain. So before you make the uneducated judgement of it not having a place in the medical field…talk to some of the REAL people that use or have used it. You just heard from one now…a mother of FIVE…COLLEGE EDUCATED…LAW ABIDING CITIZEN…with no police record. Please don’t make your judgement based on some pot head you met on the street.
The only negative drawback I’ve had/have with the association of marijuana in my life is the Illegal aspect. LET ME TELL YOU the reprocussion and consequences of being prosecuted for marijuana is far more devastating and perilous to an individuals life than the health risks are. I started smoking at the age of nine. yes that’s a bit young but it’s true. I never knew if I would have the opportunity to try it again in my life so I took the advantage. If I was assured I’d have the chance to try it in my adult years I would have most certainly waited. Kids mostly live for today becuase the future seems so far away from now to them. We adults know it goes rather fast. Some of us might like to have done some things different. I would have liked to have played in more sports I would like to have become a proud and accepted member of the community but instead I was always fearful of rejection by those who call my habit un-fit, Illegal, unacceptable, and punishable. So i rejected any further involvement with the community and became some what of an introvert during my adolescent years. I became extremely paranoid around people so I would do my best not to get cuaght. Marijuana has tuaght me discipline and respect and gives me insight and wisdom on the world around me. While the other kids were flinging mash potatoes and putting pubic hairs in each others pizza I was thinking on deeper levels…. There was a time when I smoked that I achieved a state of Nirvana with myself. I was costantly happy for years straight no matter what tests and tribulations I under went. Becuase marijuana is illegal made me an easy target. I do not have the LAW on my side therefore robbery is a high risk factor to anyone in possession of marijuana. I was robbed my first year fresh out of high school. I was working hard one early morning. I was a meat cutter at the time at the local butcher shop. A person i knew growing up decided to rob me that morning. He and his buddy took more than drugs that day… more than possions… I felt raped, betrayed, and all together negative. i couldn’t tell the police and report this . I’ve had three prior attempts from groups of thieves who scheme on people like me and every time I reported it to police their first assumption or question was ” Were drugs a possible motive” wether I had any or not. I had to beat the intruders off myself and when they fled the cops would do nothing about it. Thier excuse was if nothing was identifiably taken, no course of action could be enacted. It almost felt as if the the police were behind all this. I know alot more about them from the under ground world than they think, BUT there’s not a thing I can do except make enemies. Since no justice was being served to me i took matters into my own hands. I looked for ways to retaliate back. I felt like a helpless victim and just wanted to leave this world or be exiled to a better country. I became careless and that’s when one day I was picked up on the street. The only thing I did wrong was I didn’t becon my turn signal on when I was making a left bend. i see christmas lights in my rearview an pull over fidgeting with my seat belt, not remembering about the little green bud in plain sight on the console. When he shined the light into the car it was all over and my future went down hill far worse than ever before. Now I tormented by the fact i don’t know which is worse being robbed or arrested. He took me to the precent and told me he suspects i have more at my house. He threatens me with spending time in a cell if i don’t give consent and he’ll get a warrant regardless, it’ll just take more time. I said ok becuase I was thinking of work and the people who need me there. when we got home I forked over a half pound of marijuana and a half pound psylocibin mushrooms both considered felonies in the state of PA. I bought that much for MYSELF becuase the more you buy the cheaper it gets and the less you have to worry about getting arrested to go pick up but they slapped me with intent to deliver or manufactur without any evidence. When I was in front of the judge he would not give me permission to speak until he made me agree to the binding terms. After quiting marijuana I had to quit my job becuase i developed such severe back pain that the marijuana always soothed. I couldn’t properly perform any longer. I was lifting 80 to 200 lb boxes every 15 min or less for 8 hrs a day all day. I needed a physical break. A vacacation only came once a year, and consisted of just five days. Now with my prior conviction I have been unemployed for about two years. No one seems willing to hire me. I was working while attending college but everything in my future has been disrupted by This rubbish law on marijuana. One day marijuana will be legal and it’s just a shame a person has to be put through this. I honestly wish there is a hell were people who destroy others lives could be placed for a short term just to let them get a taste of what they dished. I’m In a very very VERY severly bad position right now and I did not place myself in this position. I know someone will say I put myself here by choosing to use marijuana but honestly that’s like saying Jesus nailed himself on to the cross. I was only following my beliefs, must I inevitably be punished for it. Sometimes I think suffering Is the only thing life is about the only thing life has to offer to me. I try to voice my opinion to hopefully make it better for our kids one day if at least I’m not granted a productive life by the terms. I’m just blowin smoke if the people against marijuana remain that way. I’m not even sure if the people against marijuana will even care to take a look at what I’ve just stated. I have so much more to go on about I could write a book. Only I have No money to even supply ink. I’m just a day closer to death like everyone else of course, but seriously alot of people in my shoes would have killed themselves by now I imagine. It’s like hellish anguish every day. Like being wrapped in a caccoon. having an invisible ball and chain on every appendage of your body, neck included. and such a strangle hold on life it is. choking the living spirit and willpower out of me. making me insane. A tremendous fine and an impending doom lingers in my head everyday reminding me I’m still on a planet with people who can’t accept me. I agree marijuana should be legalized to put an end to this madness. and get the lazy dirt bag crooked police officers cracking down on the REAL criminals. The good cops wouldn’t meddle with such a thing as mirijuana usage. If they feel threatened by weed they must not really be the fearless heroes media trys to instill upon them. weed is so scary and threatening it’s illegal. they say to our kids it’ll take your life and dreams away, what a brainwashing lie that is. I’ve never had a relationship with a girls becuase I fear I’d kill someone trying to tell my kids how to live when I’d hope they’d be getting an education.
what I meant was there’s no point in having a child, to be brought ito a world such as this. Where they can be taken away from you in an instant.
kratom…
[...]California’s Prop 19: The End of the War on Marijuana? | National Radio Project[...]…
weed is not bad. weed helps alot of people out with lots of problems like anger and depression. tons of peoples smoke it and if it was legal the us could sell it and it would help us get out of the depression that bush put us into. when people smoke it they dont hurt people it really just helps there mood and helps them keep there lives together. alot of people use it for mediacal perposes and they dont have there pains
im young and i see so many kids smoking weed that helps them get through there days. im one of the kids who got kicked out due to “selling”a weed pipe to a kid. there are kids who will say you did things with weed to get you in trouble and that will try to get you caught. if we legalize it there will be more money going to the us and will give more jobs to people. many people use it for madiacal purposes and if you need to talk to a smart person talk to a person who needs it to live through there pain not people who have never tried it. so if you try weed you will like it and if you havnt tried it you can shut you mouth or go try it and stop talkin crap about somethin you have never tried. i feel when i smoke weed i am more focused. it helps me do the work i have to for parrr and when i dont i feel i dont work as hard as when i am so pass the law that weed is legal in ALL states for people who need it thank you for reading
I believe marijuana should be legal, it has so many less toxins than cigarettes, and is even so much healthier than Legal marijuana (Ex. Gucci, Bc’s finest) Atleast 3 people in my little town alone has died in less than a year from smoking legal weed, and millions of people die from alcohol and tobacco use, marijuana is one drug that is actually a much healthier, safer, and a better stress reliever than any other drug. It would bring the US millions in profit, because about over half of Americans smoke marijuana, Our greatest presidents smoked marijuana and some of our idols in holly wood smoke it as well. So tell me why is it not legal? because i have never in my life heard of someone over dosing on weed, or smoking to much, or blowing themselves up trying to grow it or someone even getting into a car accident over smoking just marijuana. Usually in most of the cases of people dying or getting hurt marijuana might be in there system but they are also intoxicated by another type of drug, So United States Government you bunch of idiots realize that legalization of marijuana would have so many more benefits, in stead of being procrastinators, our country is broke as hell and going down the drain, the extra money our country would make off of marijuana legalization would make a difference.
medical marijuna…
[...]California’s Prop 19: The End of the War on Marijuana? | National Radio Project[...]…
I do not get this goverment, granted im only 15 years old and i shouldnt get it but i dont understand how marijuana is illegal i smoke pot all the time since ive started i shit you not my grades in school have improved not by a great amount but they have improved. i dont get how cigarettes are legal and weed isnt. look on any sidewalk u will see cigarette filters almost everywhere. pot is not harmful to your body in any drastic way. if marijuana is not legalized anytime soon i really do not know what to look forward to in the government they honestly arent doing shit ombama is wayy ovver his head with all this shit.
The “Real” reason why the community is against Pot being legalized.
Pot is currently processed through Drug Houses that associate with Cocaine and other Dangerous Drugs. Also the involvement of those with firearms.
^
Some of these people would rather have it stay illegal. Since they get really rich. They know the risk and they won’t go down without a fight. Exactly why the community sees it as a Gateway drug, with it’s involvement with other Drugs.
-What needs done first-
1.We the People need to vote.
2.Reduce Time Served for having possession of/or selling.
a. Down to a Day. NO months/years. A Day
b. Reasonable Fine.
If there are repeated offenders, Same Punishment. No increases. Make so people can actually pay, so in the Long Run- Officials would actually be getting paid more than having them sit in Jail/Prison where they aren’t productive to pay again.
Save Jail/Prison spaces for Actual Crimes. Rape, Murder, Theft.
Let people do whatever they want to their bodies. But at least ask them to be Responsible and not drive while intoxicated. Like any other Drug that has an mental effect.
Pot is not the Gateway Drug. Being in the Crowd such as Relatives, Friends, who smoke Cigarettes or Drink Beer. Not all of them. But kids do want to be cool like older adults.
Don’t only tell your kids that some Drugs/Alcohol can kill you. Tell them the money cost, and how much they would have to pay weekly if they get addicted and how much money that they make only be getting paid for on their first Job for the next 5yrs. Tell them how nasty the Cigarette smell will stay in your furniture and clothes, making your teeth yellow and finger/toe nails as well.
The Parent is the Only Teacher that the kid will learn the most from.
This is Not common sense. This is Reality.
We are throwing people in Jail and Prison for Money. Yet they make nothing in Jail or Prison. So exactly how does the Government get money with people being in Jail or Prison all the time? Raise taxes? I bet their relatives would <3 that.
I dont think the gov wants to legalize maryjane couse they wont make money out of it couse they now people can just grow it at home if the do legaliza it,I know this 4 a fact THATS THE ONLY REASON WHY THEY DONT WANT TO LEGALIZE IT THEY DONT GET ANYTHING IN RETURN
i love pot. BUT only because it relieves me of the everyday stresses of my life. im 16 and have the blood pressure of a 35 year old because of the things that i get put on me thro out the day. i dont smoke because i think its “cool” or that it makes me look older. and i believe that it is good for medical use also because someone i know had sesures all the time and they gave him the THC out of the weed to help and he rarly EVER has them now. i dont get why people think that it is so bad but i gess everyone is intitled to their own apioion and this is mine.
the only reason its not legal is because government cant control the distribution of it,.. if the cartels would stop trying to gt it in the u.s then it would give government time to control it for themselves, theirfor legalization