pointyfootball Posted November 13, 2014 Share Posted November 13, 2014 So a handful of states legalized recreational marijuana use and it's "Crippling Mexican cartels"? Doubtful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted November 13, 2014 Share Posted November 13, 2014 So a handful of states legalized recreational marijuana use and it's "Crippling Mexican cartels"? Doubtful. Yeah, I have trouble believing it, myself. Among other things, I wonder how much of their Gross Revenue comes from pot, in the first place. But, I do confess, I'm really ignorant on the subject. Just an uninformed opinion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexey Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 So a handful of states legalized recreational marijuana use and it's "Crippling Mexican cartels"? Doubtful. im thinking that legalized growing is the driver. Smuggling the stuff from growers in Mexico is probably much more expensive than smuggling it from growers in Colorado. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 im thinking that legalized growing is the driver. Smuggling the stuff from growers in Mexico is probably much more expensive than smuggling it from growers in Colorado. But how much of US pot gets smuggled across the border, anyway? I would have assumed that the bulk of it was getting grown in the US, long before legalization. (Maybe grown domestically by the cartels. But still domestically.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Destino Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 Mexican cartels are probably getting a good laugh at this headline. These guys make Al Qaeda look clumsy and poorly funded. I'd be surprised if thy haven't inserted themselves into the legal supply chain and are taken advantage of the raised prices. They aren't all about murders and gangs, they are very good at corruption too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alexey Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 But how much of US pot gets smuggled across the border, anyway? I would have assumed that the bulk of it was getting grown in the US, long before legalization. (Maybe grown domestically by the cartels. But still domestically.) Looks like the article mentions it:The Washington Post reported on Tuesday that pot farmers in the Sinaloa region have stopped planting due to a massive drop in wholesale prices, from $100 per kilo down to only $25. One farmer is quoted as saying: “It’s not worth it anymore. I wish the Americans would stop with this legalization.” VICE News talked to retired federal agent Terry Nelson, a former field level commander who worked to prevent drugs from crossing the southern border. Nelson said that before medical marijuana and state legalization in Washington and Colorado, about 10 million pounds of pot were grown in the US every year. But 40 million pounds came from Mexico. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Sisko Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 One of my close friends got arrested for smoking marijuana when we were in our early 20s. It was his first and only offense, he received three months probation. I highly doubt there are very many people bunking with serial killers in prison because they smoked some weed. My Brother-in-law got arrested for calling the cops when he discovered that his friend's place had been broken into. It turns out his friend had been selling weed and my Bro-in-law was a convenient fall guy for the breaking and entering. Unfortunately for him, the DA turned out to be a lying sack of ****. His pre-sentencing deal to stay clean for six months followed by an expunged record turned out to be stay clean for six months and the DA's office backing out on its end of the deal. Lesson learned? Don't be stupid enough to trust the cops or the DA. I shudder to think what would have happened to him if he'd had to take a public defense attorney and/or if his sister (my wife) wasn't an attorney. So, to fix the statement above "I highly doubt there are very many people bunking with serial killers in prison because they smoked some weed" ...if they live in the right neighborhood and have enough money to hire a good attorney. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
artmonkforHOF Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 Yeah, I have trouble believing it, myself. Among other things, I wonder how much of their Gross Revenue comes from pot, in the first place. But, I do confess, I'm really ignorant on the subject. Just an uninformed opinion. Well they state those numbers in the article, while also noting black market drug trafficers don't keep detailed invoices of shipments that can be audited. 30-40% revenue from pot & they estimate a 30% reduction in that revenue since legalization. They also quote a farmer who grows pot for the cartels who complain that wholesale prices have dropped fron around $100 a kilo to around $25. Regardless how much, there is bound to be some effect & not just in Seattle & Denver, surrounding states will see less illegal demand when anyone who wants to get high can do so legally close to home. I do not support full legalization of all drugs, I think the first step in drug reform is not to treat drug users-& that includes people found with small amounts narcotics- be treated as public health issues not criminal issues. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkinsFTW Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 LOL at the mexican farmers only getting 25 bucks a kilo for weed. Those cartels must be marking that **** up 30000% because the last time I heard of anybody buying weed they were paying like 200 an ounce. Thats 3200 a pound and a Kilo is 2.2 pounds so thats probably about 7000 a kilo made in the end off what the dude growing the stuff for months gets 25 bucks for. Maybe those farmers just need to get some sort of Amazon type thing running and sell the stuff direct lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larry Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 Maybe those farmers just need to get some sort of Amazon type thing running and sell the stuff direct lol. Yeah, but you're comparing the prices before and after Amazon adds in shipping and handling. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sticksboi05 Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 I'm okay with it of course for marijuana and a few other drugs. But I think drugs like heroin should remain illegal. I would like to see a shift away from possession and using and a real hard line on selling and importing I have mixed feelings about cocaine, not sure i know enough about it to be honest The article cited statistics on the drug war. I suspect the majority of that money has been used to fight hard drugs like coke and heroin. So, it was on the table. And I've been down that libertarian wormhole with the Wild West more times than I care to admit. Wasn't a label, more truth. I'd rather see heroin legalized than meth or PCP. Some dude passed out on his couch on heroin is not a threat to anyone. A dude raging on PCP is. Of course, they should all just be decriminalized and we should invest in expansive rehab rather than extra prison cells. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PeterMP Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 Half of our prison population are drug offenders. Half of that drug offender prison population are people jailed for marijuana. That's effectively 25% of our prison population. An overwhelming majority (87% as recent as 2012) of the marijuana offenders are taken in for possession and the rest are jailed for sale/manufacturing. The people most affected this by are minorities. Rates of usage amongst African Americans/whites for marijuana are about the same but arrest for possession is almost 4x for African American. Taking steps towards pot legalization has the potential to reduce our prison population by almost 25%. That's a fairly huge number I'd be curious to see a link with that number. This isn't something I have a ton of experience with, but I grew up in a pretty poor area where there was a lot of drug use and worked in restaurants for years where there was a lot of drug use, and have have a brother that is an addict. I know several people that have gone to jail for different offenses, including drugs. I know two people that have gone to jail for marijuana possession and one of those was a plea deal that involved dropping more serious charges and the other had bundles of marijuana (the person was a major distributor). I know some of the states out west have more serious laws and make fewer distinctions about different classes of drugs. But I'd honestly be shocked if the number was much more than 10%, and I'd be willing to bet the real number is lower where there was some sort of plea deal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riggo-toni Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 Out last 2 presidents used cocaine in their youth, and we're locking up people for pot. Nice. I have never tried it, nor do I ever intend to do so, but pot laws are stuck somewhere between ideological stupidity and blatant hypocrisy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RawBBQSauce Posted November 14, 2014 Share Posted November 14, 2014 "Crippling" is too strong of a word to use as the article title, methinks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.