[FredMitchell]

Most of the comments, including the OP, seem to violate the "politics" prohibition of this site.

Individuals reporting cannabis use are at higher risk of psychotic disorders (ie, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder) than the general population, as well as having earlier onset, worse symptoms, and longer hospitalisations.

Users are prohibited by federal law to own guns and to pilot aircraft - including drones.

One could replace "marijuana" with amphetamines, fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, sex trade, gambling, etc. in all of the arguments for legalization.

[BlkBlt6]

Agree!

Originally Posted by JGibson

It's on the ballot this November.

It's estimated the tax revenue in the first year would be over $500 million and much more in the following years.

21 years of age would be the age limit and no cultivating on your own.

Medical marijuana is already legal in Florida and seems to obtain approval is a low threshold and really just about the money for doctor fees.

For those who say it's a gateway drug well alcohol or any mind altering medication can also be a gateway drug.

Yea or Nay on Amendment 3 for marijuana legalization?

The dumbing down of America. Sure, why not "huuuuuh, phewwww, go for it dude."

Medical is ok; however, abused.

Nothing like smelling cow dung pot at red lights knowing another driver is getting high and driving. Smell it everywhere now. Just wonderful.

Since pot would be ok why not add legailized Molly and coke to counter the excess weight gain and lathargic, mellowed out, overly "chilled" out effects that the pot causes.

Pot slows the brain down so we need a legalized pick me up something stronger than caffeine too. The pick me up means no sleep so now a good stronger than unisom sleep drug is needed so how about some good legalized fentanyl so one can sleep again... like forever.

Sure, all the drugs are here anyway so might as well open the prison gates for those in jail because of them. Shame some people killed themselves over drug convictions that are now legal.

That sucks "dude".

My nephew died in vain. He took his own life after serving his sentence in the brig for smoking pot. The military denied him his meds for depression while he was incarcerated.

Dude, he broke honorable code and valor so he outed himself. His death was a damn shame, worth more than a blunt. I digress...

[jimbomaybe]

Originally Posted by MrChip72

I've spent time in Denver before and after legalization. I don't believe that marijuana is the root cause of their problems. Many articles cite gang and gun violence as well as meth and opiodes have overtaken Denver. No mention of marijuana. I honestly have never seen a ring of pot smokers doing burglaries, robberies and gang-style shootings.

Most places that legalized weed have experienced lower crime (feel free to look up recent non-partisan studies) and also save money on people getting incarcerated for smoking a joint which is absurd when it's legal in many places and easy to access almost anywhere.

They legalized it in our area up north and the street dealers went out of business overnight and many just got legitimate jobs at dispensaries. Same thing happened when prohibition ended 100 years ago with alcohol.

I'm shocked that anyone is against all of the tax revenue that it produces. It's not like people start smoking weed when it becomes legal. That never happens.

Regarding street dealers, legalization in no way put them out of business, the high taxes made their product much cheaper,made selling it a license violation, what would the point be of writing them a ticket, I have been also told that the potency of the street dealer is generally higher, not necessarily safer

[MandoMan]

Originally Posted by tophcfa

Nay, unless it accompanies very strict guidelines to protect medical patients and allows cultivation. Why, our other home is in Massachusetts and I have seen this play out. The dispensaries that now cater to medical only, with a variety of CBD dominant products for things like joint pain and inflammation, will dump the focus on medical products like a hot potato if recreational becomes legal. The profit is on recreational products that simply have the highest THC content to get the user blasted. Medical patients in Massachusetts can no longer find products anywhere that were easy to source before recreational became legal. Growing high CBD products is more difficult, has lower harvest yields, and is therefore less profitable. Making recreational legal has been a bad thing for medical patients. Regarding cultivation, it’s all about supply and demand relative to the black market. Without cultivation, the only sources of supply are dispensaries and the black market, keeping prices for the consumer very high. The dispensaries set prices at or just below the black market. Allowing cultivation is a game changer for product pricing, especially in Florida where the tropical climate is very conducive to growing. Allowing cultivation both crowds out the black market and forces overall prices significantly lower. No doubt, they want to curtail cultivation to force consumers to purchase from taxable government regulated entities.

I’m never going to use marijuana, and I’m uncomfortable with legalizing it. That said, not allowing people to grow a few plants for personal use proves that Florida is only interested in the money. It’s easy to grow, and it isn’t necessary to use only the strongest parts. If you have your own plants, you can get a great high with one dried leaf, or part of one, and those plants have a lot of leaves. It would cost nothing.

It’s all about the money. I despise that attitude.

[Remembergoldenrule]

The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) advocates for careful consideration of potential immediate and downstream effects of marijuana policy changes on children and adolescents. Marijuana legalization, even if restricted to adults, may be associated with (a) decreased adolescent perception of marijuana’s harmful effects, (b) increased marijuana use among parents and caretakers, and (c) increased adolescent access to marijuana, all of which reliably predict increased rates of adolescent marijuana use and associated problems.1-3 Marijuana use during pregnancy, occurring at increasing rates, raises additional concerns regarding future infant, child, and adolescent development.4-6

Marijuana Legalization
Long-term use of marijuana can lead to:

Cannabis Use Disorder
The same breathing problems as smoking cigarettes (coughing, wheezing, trouble with physical activity, and lung cancer)
Decreased motivation or interest which can lead to decline in academic or occupational performance
Lower intelligence
Mental health problems, such as schizophrenia, depression, anxiety, anger, irritability, moodiness, and risk of suicide

Marijuana and Teens.

Highlights
Cannabis legalization leads to increased cannabis use among adults
Legalization may have negative implications for minors via effects on parents
Critical lack of causally informative studies with parents and young children

Causal Effects of Cannabis Legalization on Parents, Parenting, and Children: A Systematic Review - PMC

[mikemalloy]

Originally Posted by MrChip72

I've spent time in Denver before and after legalization. I don't believe that marijuana is the root cause of their problems. Many articles cite gang and gun violence as well as meth and opiodes have overtaken Denver. No mention of marijuana. I honestly have never seen a ring of pot smokers doing burglaries, robberies and gang-style shootings.

Most places that legalized weed have experienced lower crime (feel free to look up recent non-partisan studies) and also save money on people getting incarcerated for smoking a joint which is absurd when it's legal in many places and easy to access almost anywhere.

They legalized it in our area up north and the street dealers went out of business overnight and many just got legitimate jobs at dispensaries. Same thing happened when prohibition ended 100 years ago with alcohol.

I'm shocked that anyone is against all of the tax revenue that it produces. It's not like people start smoking weed when it becomes legal. That never happens.

The estimated tax boon is always pie in the sky. The major advocates also happen to be those ready to start selling the minute the law is passed. Studies in states where pot was legalized show that alcohol sales are reduced because people are using pot instead. As the market matures the price for pot drops and the taxes are reduced. It was also found that pot sold by drug pushers was stronger and tax free further reducing the tax revenues. Here's an article discussing some of the issues.
Marijuana tax revenues fall short of projections in many states, including Colorado

[ThirdOfFive]

Originally Posted by Kelevision

You realize marijuana isn’t a controlled substance, right? But those are actually legal and any doctor can prescribe them. It’s why people die from overdosing. Never once has anyone died from overdosing on pot.

"While many states have decriminalized and legalized cannabis, Florida law still classifies marijuana as a Schedule I controlled substance. Depending on how much is found on your person or your property, you could face significant penalties if you aren’t following the legal guidelines of medical marijuana."

(flaherty defense firm dot com)

[nn0wheremann]

Originally Posted by JGibson

It's on the ballot this November.

It's estimated the tax revenue in the first year would be over $500 million and much more in the following years.

21 years of age would be the age limit and no cultivating on your own.

Medical marijuana is already legal in Florida and seems to obtain approval is a low threshold and really just about the money for doctor fees.

For those who say it's a gateway drug well alcohol or any mind altering medication can also be a gateway drug.

Yea or Nay on Amendment 3 for marijuana legalization?

50 years overdue, but the devil is in the details. Who gets to grow? Big donors to public figures? Or open competition in a free market? Limits on THC concentration? Penalties for distribution to minors? How about driving or operating machinery under the influence? Let’s see the actual text, and the underlying regulations?

[ThirdOfFive]

Originally Posted by Topspinmo

Yes, and the lottery was going fix education….. pipe dreams..

No pun intended...?

[KsJayhawkers]

Originally Posted by Mass288

Ok way to go with the 1960 propaganda...nice touch now back to reality when was the last time you ever saw a news story about an entire family being wiped out in a car accident because he.....just smoked a joint.....Ah never ...now try it with booze ......genius. get real

I am for legalization but you should really educate yourself if you dont think marijuana use has not been a contributing factor in many traffic collision fatalities. I have personally worked 20+ fatalities where marijuana has been the sole drug being a contributing factor.

Car Crash Deaths Involving Cannabis on the Rise | SPH

[Marmaduke]

Originally Posted by Michael 61

I watched marijuana legalization destroy Denver Colorado.

Agreed.

[Battlebasset]

Originally Posted by Kelevision

They’re in the process of declassifying it as a controlled substance since it isn’t one by definition. Ironically both Alcohol and nicotine (which are exactly the definition of a controlled substance) are the top 2 most addictive drugs but hey, as long as the govt says it’s okay….. you should do a little research on deaths due to alcohol and nicotine vs pot. It’s scary that your only argument on the subject is from a Denver post. The 2 biggest celebrity pot heads that I know are Harrison Ford and of course Willie Nelson. You never see them in the headlines. I once was at Harrisons house and there were about 10 of us, he handed out baggies of weed with papers and a tray to each person. He loves his pot.

"Hey! I know someone who's successful and they smoke pot!" And a celebrity at that. Certainly a job most people are going to have.

Sort of like the argument that single mothers do just as well as two-parent families because that guy over there is successful and he was raised by a single mom.

I remember a PSA from years ago. A guy and his buddy are sitting smoking pot. One guy comments "I've smoked pot all my life. Nothing ever happened to me".

The camera pans back, and you see they are sitting in a bedroom and you hear a call from downstairs "Hey son! Did you look for a job today?" Both rush to open the window and wave the smoke out. Tag Line - When you smoke pot, nothing happens.

And there is going to be more of that than Willie Nelson's and Harrison Fords.

I'm not concerned about adults smoking pot in moderation, any more than I worry about adults drinking in moderation. But to legalize pot like alcohol and remove one more barrier to kids getting it? Not worth the tax revenue that they TELL us we are going to get. And based on other states and other vices (lottery) most likely won't.

I will be voting no. I've seen enough of this "grand experiment".

[Indydealmaker]

Originally Posted by retiredguy123

The way I see it, the new law will just eliminate the bogus medical screening system. Marijuana is already legal in Florida.

You need a better understanding of medical marijuana in this state. The patient has limited access to the product and all purchases are tracked and controlled through a state database.

[mdmurrell]

Originally Posted by JGibson

It's on the ballot this November.

It's estimated the tax revenue in the first year would be over $500 million and much more in the following years.

21 years of age would be the age limit and no cultivating on your own.

Medical marijuana is already legal in Florida and seems to obtain approval is a low threshold and really just about the money for doctor fees.

For those who say it's a gateway drug well alcohol or any mind altering medication can also be a gateway drug.

Yea or Nay on Amendment 3 for marijuana legalization?

Nah on recreational marijuana. It’s a major contributor to crime and demotivating th users. Why work? Just keep eating those gummies.