Obama: No! I Do Not Think Legalizing Marijuana Would Help The Economy

[ecstatic]

Run time: 01:08 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aFBsOL5S18U   Posted on YouTube: March 26, 2009 By YouTube Member: Views on YouTube: 0   Posted on DU: March 26, 2009 By DU Member: ecstatic Views on DU: 3413

 
ETA: I think people the people in the audience were laughing because it's so off the radar of what many struggling Americans are concerned about right now. They are trying to feed their families and stay in their homes and can't afford to buy marijuana in the first place.

[ZombieHorde]

1. How could it not help our economy?

[jedr]

26. because possession of small quantities of marijuana and ;

Underage drinking are the cash cow of lawyers and local economies. Cost 2k a clip....ask anyone with kids in college. They ain't going to bust the meth' heads on the corner because they don't have any money and you have to put them in jail. They go after middle class kids with parents that can pay....A lot of people making money on drugs....just in different ways! :mad:

[SkyDaddy7]

2. BOOOOOOOO!!!

and BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!

It would help and it would pull the carpet out from under the Mexican drug cartels...But that makes sense, so, nevermind.

[sharp_stick]

5. Mexican drug cartels

would simply increase the proportion of crack, coke and methamphetamine to make up for the pot. Simply legalizing pot would do very little IMO to slow down those psychotic assholes.

[SkyDaddy7]

10. I think I read 60% of drug trade is Mary Jane!!!

It would hurt the cartels no question about it!!!!!

[defendandprotect]

28. We have people sentenced to 25 years in jail for smoking pot . . . LEGALIZE IT--!!!

IMO, we also have to have ages for joining military coincide with ages for

drinking alcohol and being able to vote --

while we develop some kind of a system which keeps anyone from driving their car

when drunk. Being picked up after they're on the roads is too late.

AND, too profitable for law enforcement which should also be stopped.


Further, I would be happy to see legislation which bars anyone under 21 years of age --

I'd make it 25 -- from joining military in any capacity.

[Dramarama]

34. But we would need a rise in users as well.

They dont force people to use the.

[parasim]

36. They can increase the proportion, but that doesn't mean there will be a market for it.

They don't force people to do drugs, they just provide the means to do drugs. What, are they going to step up their advertisements to sell more coke and meth?

Nah, IMO, their profits would go down.

[quidam56]

24. Amen

It's the no. 1 cash crop in Kentucky, I'd rather see our mountains put to use for a renewable product instead of what the clean hybrid green coal industry is doing to us. http://www.wisecountyissues.com/?p=138

Put the Mexican's out of business !

[sharp_stick]

3. C'mon man

Dorito's sales would go through the roof. Cliche statement I know, but someone had to be the first to say it.

[SkyDaddy7]

11. RIGHT!!

With all the munchies and smoke shops it would help then the marijuana industry would become to big to fail!!!!!

[EFerrari]

4. He would have been further ahead to just not do this question.

This was a mistake. Not important enough for people who don't care and too important for people who do.

[Ishoutandscream2]

15. Totally agree. He did not have to address this

I have no idea why he did this in the first place. It was almost as if he were looking for a laugh. President Obama is too good for this.

[EFerrari]

19. Bad writers and yes, he is. It happens. n/t

[rd_kent]

48. It was THE number one question in ALL categories

How could he not address it? What angers me is how he laughed it off.

[madrchsod]

6. i do`t think legalizing marijuana would help ....my reelection

it`s always about the votes

[rd_kent]

47. Yeah, but more than 50% of the country is FOR legalization.

Doesnt that equate to more votes?

[Cha]

7. Thanks for this..I wanted to see

what the big laughing deal was.

[LiberalLovinLug]

17. It's always a joke

That question is never taken seriously, no matter how it is framed. (Thanks Cheech and Chong :hippie: )

But seriously it says a lot about the online audience in that they are intelligent Mr. President.
If you are going to answer the question at least give a REASON why it would NOT make economical sense to legalize marijuana, because there are many reasons why it WOULD make economical sense.

Of course I understand why politicians always steer clear of even a whif of pot legalization. They would get lambasted by the alcoholic MSM talking heads and conservative politicians and the Oxy laden radio jocks. And at this time the President needs to stay riding the populist tide in order to get other important things done. The overblown controversy any openness to even decriminalization would create would give the Repukes ammunition to attack him on every other issue. So I can live with him not going down this road at present. But it begs the question: If a Democratic President will not take this on because of being labeled 'soft on drugs' and a Repuke President never even thinking about it, and probably adding years to pot possession sentences instead, when will this senseless war on pot ever end?

[defendandprotect]

29. Obama can start with HEMP, educating the public as to its benefits --

[Tutankhamun]

8. How would legalizing and taxing our nation's number one cash crop help the economy?

:sarcasm:

[DUlover2909]

9. I hated to hear it when he said it, but I understand it.

I voted up the question on the website. I don't smoke weed, but I guarantee if we legalized it fewer people would get arrested, which costs everyone in taxes, and costs the individual for fees and lawyers. The pot arrests screw up people's lives and puts a criminal record on someone for having a damn plant. A person sitting in prison is nothing less than the most expensive welfare system there is. They don't earn money, so they pay no taxes and contribute nothing to society. Meanwhile we pay for prisons, courts, prosecutors, police, food, guards, etc. just to keep people locked up.

[frylock]

12. gotta keep the prison industry in business somehow

[martymar64]

13. With respect to the President, on this topic he doesn't know what the fuck he's talking about

He's just as wedded to the failed Drug Warrior mentality as every President since Nixon. He needs to further educate himself on the issue and then get out of the way of the States' in their drives for legalization.

[Dawgs]

16. Watch this video. He doesn't support legalization, but it shows he's thought about this issue.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x289302

I'm not sure what's changed.

[Dawgs]

14. Here's a link to how he answered this question in 2004.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=385x289302

[defendandprotect]

30. Obama prefaced his answer the way it should always be done: FAILED DRUG WAR . . .

and there is only one way that could be . . . corrupt government officials and

corrupt police enforcement.

While I think the controls on this issue by those who benefit from the Drug War

are probably very strong --- crime, those getting payoffs, liquor industry, etc.

-- and corporate-media which controls the gates for them . . . I also think that

the public probably well understands the harm this is doing to our nation and to

citizens. I don't think it would take but one or two public debates to see this

issue fall in the right direction. That's why they have to work so hard to keep

marijuana a taboo subject!!!

[rock]

18. I wonder if legalizing alcohol would help the economy

(sarcasm)

[Grinchie]

20. It would harm the Black Market initially

It would also harm the huge number of people employed in interdiction and enforcement, and potentially put hundreds of thousands of cops out of business. Trace them back to their Uniforms and other equipment, the vehicles they ride in which must be maintained by someone, as well as the for profit corporations that depend on a never ending stream of mandatory drug sentances to keep them full. Don't forget the people that operate the prisons as well.

In other words, it would castrate an entire Industry developed by proclaiming a unique plant with many properties a "Controlled Substance", and escalating it's importance and control to that of Heroin.

Never mind that 85% of Americans admit to have used Cannabis at one point or another, or that it was widely prescribed and condoned by the AMA until is was renamed Marijuana and associated with the Negro and Mexican immigrant as the new "Date Rape" drug in the 30's by Randolph Hearst and DuPont so they could get rid of Hemp's role in paper manufacturing instead of Wood based pulp, of which both parties controlled millions of acres of forest.

Nah, legalizing Marijuana would not help the "Current" economy, because it has been made into such an important pillar of the War on Drugs, legalizing it would cut the legs out from under the DEA and the huge industry supporting it.

Until people demand it by refusing to wook for a society that resricts our basic rights, things will not change. Passive resistance in large numbers is key to success.

[paulsby]

44. many cops i know support decrim/legalization

myself included, and i don't think ANYBODY would lose their jobs at least around where i work if it was decrim'd.

it's an extremely low priority where i work. and despite NORML's propaganda (both sides use propaganda), people are not routinely given jail sentences for SMOKING MJ. generally speaking, people who get incarcerated for MJ have tons of priors and/or were caught dealing and plead it down etc.

i know several DEA agents who also think MJ enforcement is a joke.

every street cops knows that potheads are generally nonthreatening, as opposed to say methhead tweakers.

obama is wrong, wrong, wrong. but he;s playing politics, what do you expect?

[Seldona]

46. That is presuming legalization has no revenue stream itself.

Granted it does have to be a rather sizable stream to make up for the losses amoung the aforementioned special interest groups wanting it kept illegal. Still I think it could be viable.

Between taxing a previously untaxed revenue stream, and the money to be made from industrial and fuel applications, the argument could be made the gains would outweigh the losses imo.

The numbers are astronomical though, admittedly. I also admit I don't have hard numbers either way, so I could be wrong. But in my opinion legalization is certainly more humane, with strict controls like society has placed on alcohol.

[peoli]

21. He is lying his ass off. He totally want to legalize it.

[Natural Wonder]

22. Support Tom Ammianos Bill to legalize in California or how you can help

Help California legalize Organic Marijuana for food, fuel, clothing medicine

The following San Fransican Assemblymen District 13 Tom Ammiano's drafting of legislation to legalize marijuana AND interview of the Communications Director of the Marijuana Policy Project on the Peter B Collins show Friday, February 27, 2009.

See the rest here including link to interview:

http://foodfascist.blogspot.com/

[Joey Liberal]

23. How can new tax revenues not help?

Legalize Marijuana and tax it.

[tama]

25. Fuck Obama and Clinton

Let us never forget that their upholding of these immoral and evil laws create HUGE organized crime. What they do is nothing but promoting, aiding and abetting organized crime - real terrorism that real people have to live and die with every day where they live, making themselves and their organizations (the other wing of corporate America party) nothing but organized crime.

Let us not be fooled, let us never stop speaking the truth. That the legislators against certain plants are those that create the organized crime and are fully responsible for their creation.

http://narconews.com/Issue56/article3455.html

[defendandprotect]

27. First, planting HEMP would help our economy and NATURE . . ..

Second . . . legalize Marijuana -- but it's a plant and I don't see it should be

anything but lightly taxed and sold in liquor stores. LIGHTLY . .. .

preferably, not at all. If you want to grow your own you should be able to.

With almost one third of Americans either in jail, or parole or probation . . .

I don't think this is a minor issue for the public -- if they have any clue about

what's going on.

Additionally it is corrupting our government and law enforcement!!!

[joshcryer]

31. Ding ding.

[OneBlueSky]

42. or . . . as a first step in the right direction . . .

make the distinction between industrial hemp and recreational marijuana and, at minimum, lift the ban on growing non-pot hemp . . . there are any number of new industries that could be created, not to mention the boon that growing hemp could provide for family farmers . . .

right now legalizing pot doesn't have the political support . . . most people figure there are too many other critical issues on the table to exert any time or energy on marijuana decriminalization . . . let it wait for a later time . . .

[cooolandrew]

32. You got to legalize it man. If anyone does anything bad after that arrest them then as with drink.>

Prohibition brings about gang culture that simple legalize it and end the illegal trade save billions in so many ways. I don't even approve of drugs but it makes the most logic, the war on drugs was lost so own the market, that's the solution.

[defendandprotect]

35. This phony/failed Drug War is also responsible for much violence . . .

what is it worth -- and to whom -- to keep this fake thing going when it is

disrupting societies thru violence?

[cooolandrew]

40. Well I just say failed war because in general terms most might take it as that on face value. >

Sometimes you have to approach things from unreality to bring people over to true reality. As in climate change deniers, so they deny climate change but what is so bad about reducing asthma and having cleaner water for their kids. Even if, just and if, we were wrong it's still worth addressing a cleaner environment. So, I work sometimes from an unreality to bring people over to a true reality. So some will stand firmly against what some dismissively call conspiracy theories, but, in the end they can't fight universal truths.

[defendandprotect]

45. Excellent point ---

Stick with "Global Warming," however -- it's the original description and climate change

seems to suggest something natural going on -- Global Warming makes clear . . .

THE HEAT IS ON!!

Unfortunately, as we saw again with the bailouts -- lots of people here still believe in

capitalism and that capitalism creates "jobs." Again, a lot of fear based stuff.

Other solutions don't occur to them, evidently, because they seem to think that ideas only

come out of the TV. And, given the range of "experts" presented to them every day, I tend

to think they don't do much free thinking about alternative solutions.

In other words -- many would still sacrifice their kids and clean water for jobs, IMO...!!!

[SHRED]

33. Hey Obama

Fuck you.

And to think people actually believe he is a liberal.

He must know better and WHY THE HELL aren't people asking him about legalizing industrial hemp use??

[Brucie Kibbutz]

37. He doesn't want all those prison guards to lose their jobs.

:patriot:

[Lilith Velkor]

38. What a bitch move.

[FrenchieCat]

39. The fact that this was a top priority in questions for the on-line community

is rather shocking.

Does anyone have stats in the number of incarcerations that are a direct result of folks smoking a little pot? I haven't seen the numbers. I know that in MASS, a law was passed where it is an infraction, and one gets a ticket for it.

[lfairban]

41. Not just possession

Virtually everyone who smokes sells small quantities from time to time. That is just how the underground market works.

[Dubiosus]

49. this may help

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7GJ6PDPcaU4

Hemp could set us free, see?

[specialed]

43. Obviously Obama hasn't been to my garden.