Cannabis hearings draw crowds in Rochester, Willmar

[h2ofwlr]

making it available widespread isn't going to result in any measurable increase in usage....

Are you sure about that?

You may want to look at this past year in CO of what's happening there.

As for Calif, it's a farce on the issuance of medical cards, "hey Doc, I am a bit stressed out" = med card. Really? Wow...

And personally I do think that there are those that can indeed benefit (less symptoms) from a medical Pot card here in MN. But would hate to see it like Calif DR do it.

That being said, how the US has regulated all drugs is a farce. (EG the war on drugs). Instead of treating people as criminals, we should be treating them as addicts and get them medical help. Just shift the $ resources from enforcement to medical health for initial treatment.

Our jails and prisons are full of addicts and alcoholics. 80% of the inmates in prison either were on something or trying to obtain $ to get on something. So what does it cost to have a person in prison for say 5 years? $200K? $300K? Then why not take even 25% of that $ and use it to treat them medically for their addiction/s? I bet the repeat offenders would go down from current levels and thus less inmates long term, so less costs to taxpayers. As for the addicts and alcoholics the plus would be a higher self worth, being a productive in society, a better home life, , etc. which equals a lot less chance of heading back to jail/prison.

The bottom line we as a society are treating the "symptom" by incarcerating addicts. We should be treating the "virus" by getting them medical help as it is win for the addicts/alcoholics and win for society as a whole.

[Fish Felon]

$200K-300K for 5 years? No way, It's a fraction of that. If I remember right the average cost to incarcerate someone for a year is like $15K to $18K. About what'd they get as an individual on welfare.

That's why it's way cheaper to give someone life than the death penalty---but some people are worth every extra penny.

Pointing out the negative effects of legalization is null and void as long as alcohol is legal.

[HnkrCrash]

What about Colorado? They've made millions upon millions of dollars in marijuana taxes and highway fatalities are at historic lows.

Again, anyone with half a brain who wants to smoke weed now can easily do so. It's no different than cigarettes and alcohol. Simply because they are legal, certainly not everyone is partaking in their use. My family, parents, brother, and in-laws won't suddenly be turning into pot heads cause the govt says we can...just like none of us smoke nor drink alcohol often now, even though it's 100% legal to do so.

My friends and extended family who smoke weed will still smoke weed.

[Nershi]

Use did not go up in CO. The only difference is people are smoking legally instead of illegally, at least according to state law.

Marijuana is a viable medicine for stress. If you were a doctor would you rather prescribe an anti-anxiety prescription pill that has a laundry list of side effects or marijuana that has very few side effects and is not bad for your health? Same for pain, marijuana or addictive opiates? Seems like an easy decision for the doctors. Whether or not the patient is actually having these issues is another question.

I think that we will see more states looking at legalization. There is just too much money the state can make off of it. CO has more money than they know what to do with. That is going to start getting attention from other state governments, especially when you look at how well it has gone thus far from a crime standpoint.

Hopefully the feds don't step in. Prescription drug companies do not want marijuana legal as medicine because it will replace over half of their lab produced medicine. Private prisons don't want the war on drugs to stop because prison populations will plummet when they lose all of their non-violent drug offenders. Both of these have strong lobbying efforts and have a lot of money to line politicians pockets in DC.

As mentioned, alcohol is a much worse drug on people and society.

[h2ofwlr]

$31,286 per inmate national average
The Vera Institute of Justice released a study in 2012 that found the aggregate cost of prisons in 2010 in the 40 states that participated was $39 billion. The annual average taxpayer cost in these states was $31,286 per inmate.

And remember we live in MN, so the costs naturally will be higher.

IN FISCAL YEAR 2010,
CENTER ON SENTENCING AND CORRECTIONS
$365.5 million MNDOC prison budget
$395.3 million Total state cost of prisons
$41,364 Average annual cost per inmate in MN

So FF, where do you come up with 'it's a fraction of that cost" when it costs $206K for 5 years? Ooops that was 5 years ago, so lets add in for inflation, and for future 2.5 years let say 23%, so another $47k for $253K. Hmmm seems to me that my estimate of $200-300k was right smack in the middle of actual costs VS your 17.5K x 5 = $86k which was low by 65%

I think I can answer that for you of why you we so far off -- You pulled the answer out of your azz along with the other chit you spew.

[Fish Felon]

I remembered wrong. Maybe I remembered right but that memory is 15 years old and the figure is outdated. Either way I was wrong. Thanks for fact checking your figures.

[Nershi]

I think I can answer that for you of why you we so far off -- You pulled the answer out of your azz along with the other chit you spew.

Says the guy who does this on a consistent basis.