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Marijuana and alcohol double standard : 7/30/2010

$721,000,000 ????? Are you kidding me? Why in the heck don't we as citizens change the law to legalize this substance and then tax it at a very high rate? I recognize that this figure is highly inflated due to its current illicit status, but I cannot understand why it is legal for someone to go to Vons and purchase a liter of vodka and consume it but it is illegal to smoke a joint. What's the difference?? I do not smoke pot (don't like the high) but I do consume alcohol on a recreational and responsible basis. It just seems like such a waste of resources and possible revenue for something that is not so pernicious.

SV

Local Production for Local Distribution : 7/30/2010

"One of the main reasons LeGault cited for the proliferation of the pot fields is a security crackdown at the Mexico/US border since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks." NO, I DON'T THINK SO. The reason we have more pot fields locally is because of the ability of criminals to supply local pot stores..oh, i mean local medicine shops. Get real people. Make it easy for criminals to sell large amounts of pot and they'll locate their production here as well. duh... If the city really wanted to help those who actually need medical pot, then they should take some of the seized pot and give it FREE to those who need it.

Mr. M

poor mother nature : 7/30/2010

who knows these plants could have just sprouted up on their own, winds, birds dropping seeds? well its atleast sounds good. BURN IT!!

Thanks SBCo Sheriff's : 7/30/2010

Thanks for cleaning up this mess... I know there are many here in Santa Barbara who are tired of the local "marajuana coalition" and their agenda.

: 7/30/2010

No local pot stores are buying hundreds of pounds of crappy mexican dirt-weed grown in the canyons. However, your children that aren't old enough to visit the aforementioned pot stores are buying that crappy mexican dirt-weed from their local gang-banger dealer because of the current idiotic prohibition we have going on here.

: 7/30/2010

I feel safer already.

legalize : 7/30/2010

You people can't see the pot field through the pot plants! There's money to be made here! This is America! We can kill ourselves with booze and cigarettes and bleed oil out of poorer nations and sell worthless buffalo fifty dollar coins on TV but we can't sell pot? It's un-American!

Andy

If the city wanted to help... : 7/30/2010

"If the city really wanted to help those who actually need medical pot, then they should take some of the seized pot and give it FREE to those who need it."
No medical patient is going smoke terrible cartel weed. You can't just throw thousands of seeds in a canyon hire a couple migrants to watch over it with AK-47s and produce anything with a medicinal value. That would be like saying when the Sheriffs bust a meth lab we should just give it to all the kids who are prescribed Ritalin.

Drug use the problem : 7/30/2010

The users are the root cause of the problem. A society dedicated to consuming mind-altering substances is not going to compete with the likes of China and India in the future. Legalization as Prop 19 tries to do it only increases cartel grows. Prop 19 legalizes possession and sale of 1 oz without doing anything to regulate supply. If it's legal to grow weed in CA, cartels will step up production and use the state as the grow center for the rest of the country. There will be plenty of market for them to compete alongside taxed marijuana, because lots of people won't want to pay whatever a city assesses as a tax, so a nice, healthy blackmarket will continue to thrive. Cartels control Mexico, and with it, the illegal immigrant smuggling routes, sand their violence drives their very people to immigrate here in droves. That will only increase as well. It's a huge mess, caused by our drug-using factions. If only they would wake up and see the terrible damage they cause....

not for MM : 7/30/2010

The crops in the fields are for the streets not the pot shops, you can't grow high grade pot to be sold in a dispensary up in the hills, the dispensaries are indoor as it is easier and better.

mr sb

: 7/30/2010

^^ [citation needed]

Taxes : 7/30/2010

Those who think that legalization will result in higher taxes are forgetting that the number one effort all capitalist ventures is to avoid paying taxes. Case in point, John Kerry and his 76ft yacht. It's commom practice to buy new boats and keep them out of state for 90 days, he just got caught. Or better yet BP, who will be able to deduct the Gulf cleanup costs from their US taxes. So, do you really think that Pot Growers that deal in a cash business are going to pay a huge tax burden.

CManSB

Burn thoses tax dollars!!! : 7/30/2010

Mexican drug cartels have been growing more pot in the U.S. since Mexico decriminalized possession of small amounts. Medical marijuana patients are an extremely small percentage of marijuana users in the U.S. The only action that has reduced marijuana use is decriminalization. Law enforcement has no effect on marijuana production, does nothing but burn tax dollars we need for services to the community - education, health care, home services for the elderly and disabled, etc., and wastes law enforcement dollars that should be spent making our community safer. Santa Barbara law enforcement has been helping Mexican drug cartels by confiscating legally grown medical marijuana from medical marijuana dispensaries.

OVERENFORCED : 7/30/2010

Stop wasting so much time and resources on a PLANT. You people are incredibly STUPID. Maybe if we legalized it, we wouldn't have to pay so many DAMN PENSION COLLECTORS 6 figure annual salaries!

FED UP WITH IT

PROTECT AND SERVE : 7/30/2010

Way to be AMERICAN HEROES.....PIGS.

TAXPAYER IN PURGATORY

not for MM : 7/30/2010

My source? i have gone to the dispensaries and I know what indoor weed looks like, most, if not all of the stuff they have there is indoor...legalize it

Mr sb

Potheads : 7/30/2010

It's so entertaining to read the comments by all the potheads on the Daily Sound...

$721 million???? : 7/30/2010

$721 million -- Well instead of burning it - maybe the county should sell it and balance the budget and pay for the new jail, etc. etc. etc.

enough already

GO SBSO : 7/30/2010

PROTECT AND SERVE : 7/30/2010
Way to be AMERICAN HEROES.....PIGS.
TAXPAYER IN PURGATORY
What a post. People like you who make the rest of us Santa Barbarians look bad. Thank you SBSO for working so hard to keep our wonderful back country and trail heads clear of these criminals. Dont listen to these other people!!

JW

"A society dedicated to consuming mind-altering substances is not going to compete with the likes of China and India in the future." : 7/30/2010

They dont have Opium in China or India do they
They got that Higher (heroin) Knowledge and not everyone in those countries are educated. Google the untouchables in India and research how many kids get to go to school in Asia. Hinduism in Nepal, Worshipers rub ash onto their bodies, pray to Lord Shiva and carry out ceremonies throughout the night. Fasting, meditating and even the smoking of marijuana are all part of the festival.- http://www.nepal.com/blog/maha-shivaratri-honoring-lord-shiva

Research Opium use in china and india

Grade of "C" in journalism : 7/30/2010

Why is this huge article quoting just one official? What happened to investigate reporting. Never mind, we'll all just take "LeGault's" word for it.

You must not be keeping up on global competitiveness : 7/30/2010

Because if you did, you'd know China has long surpassed America in manufacturing capacity, is the biggest holder of US debt, and everything you buy these days is made there. India has long surpassed us in graduating IT workers with skills above ours. They've got 2 billion people to our 300+million. China is industrializing at a pace that makes us look like we were on Prozac. They are angling be the world's foremost consumer of oil, and they're making cars that can be sold at Costco for $3k, while GM got a $60 billion taxpayer bailout to keep its doors open. Listen to Americans whine about wanting their pot, and you do the math. The sun is quickly setting on our empire.

The heroin argument is so 1920's

Escape and denial is not healthy for anyone : 7/31/2010

Legalizing pot and have MJ stores is THE SAME as having liquor stores and Rx commercials on TV. One drug isn't better or worse than the other. All drugs have unique effects on the human mind and body, so arguing the merits or side affects of one drug of choice over another while entertaining to some, it's meaningless to this discussion. Look at the main problem. The message that all of us are getting is that regular self-medication is good. We need to begin a dialogue about why we do this. We need to bring this discussion to our dinner tables everyday. Coping with life's challenges by using any drug keeps people from maturing and being able to cope with life in healthy ways. If every time we feel stressed or insecure we reach for a drink, a hit, or a pill, how will we learn how to solve problems rationally and grow emotionally? Think it forward and ponder the long term effect of this avoidance on yourself, your family and friends, and ultimately the country. Calling pot medicine and legalizing drugs is not good for us. Consider how escapist messaging has affected all of us...all our lives, and how that messaging is affecting your opinions as you read this. Denial is the first defense.

Concerned for the future

Republicans are dividing this country!!! : 7/31/2010

Vote Democrat

pot "bust" : 7/31/2010

If marijuana were legalized many prison guards, and others in law enforcement would lose their jobs. The main beneficiaries of keeping pot illegal are the drug cartels and employees of the criminal justice system. Oh, yeah the lawyers. How it helps the rest of us is pretty hard to see. Also if it were legalized we would see far less illegal growing in the national forests with all the harm and risk that it brings to our environment. One does need to like pot or condone pot smoking to support legalization any more than with alcohol or dangerous sports, however the current system is costing us a fortune and is not working. Is there really anyone who cannot get some pot if they want it these days?

pot tato head

ITs only Marijuana : 7/31/2010

Once again-concentrate on the meth labs and the alcoholism problems that result in violent crimes in this city...who cares about Marijuana. Marijuana smokers dont hurt anyone!!!
Thanks for wasting tax payers money SB Sherrifs Department. Why dont you start working to protect tax paying citizens here in town instead of wasting your time hiking in the mountains. Idiots!

I have seen it all : 7/31/2010

I know the backcountry really well and have come across several planting areas. I steer clear, but I am a deer and hog hunter, so I don't want any interactions( I have stumbled upon some people that didn't see me and I was 15 feet away). The areas you are talking about aren't really "back country", cuyama excluded. Its just another part of huge government having something to do..all the police have jobs because ? you tell me. The article is correct most plots are in water productive canyons, which are green all year anyways. Pot growers are like bankers, really greedy. The fools growing and busting should be carefull. The cops should pay me to tell em where the crap is hidden, but I would rather find a wild hog bring it home and smoke it w/ apple and oak. Most of the feds can'y hike into the real backcountry anyway...way too tough. It isn't a gym work-out. have a nice weekend.

old fit dude

Grow it at home : 8/1/2010

Keep pot out of the hills !People like to hike and feel free in wilderness areas,and not get their ass blown away by some paronoid grower who doe's not want to get ripped off or busted.Don't be sooo gready grow it leagal for pot pharmacies do it right.I believe in general pot should really be a low priority as far as law enforcement goe's ,but I don't want the organized crime outfits growing in the hills it's too dangerous!!!!!

yer ma

MARIJUANA WASTE : 8/1/2010

They should be ashamed of the waste they are causing. All that money could have gone to a much better place. I can't believe what the city is wasting its money on. Children are getting school and heath cuts. Get with it and stop bragging about what idiots you are for wasting our time and money. You are going to feel really stupid after it is legal and you wasted all that tax money.

Nise

Wasted..... : 8/1/2010

WASTED.........Time and money......

Jackson

Corporate Welfare : 8/2/2010

I write this post as someone who is severely allergic to the effects of marijuana. I go to great extent to avoid inhalation of the fumes, or accidently consuming a brownie, unawares....
******
The real reason marijuana (and other 'recreational" drugs) are kept illegal is to maintain a healthy bottom line for the prison/security sector, most of which is privately run. Back in 1995, all the financial publications were trumping the stocks of Corrections Corporation of America, Wackenhut and others as "must buy". Some >400,000 people are in prison at any one time in the US as a result of infringement of marijuana laws.. and at an average cost of incarceration of some $40,000 per inmate per annum, this represents some $16 billion of throughput for the prison industry each year. Although peanuts compared to the "defense" (!!!!) sector, it still represents a huge sum... equivalent to NASA's entire annual budget. Enough said.... as in all aspects of our society, just *follow the money*.
As an afterthought, the laws against marijuana in the US were instigated in the 1930s without the expert opinion of a single, solitary qualified scientist or medical professional... and all for factors which have *NOTHING* to do with the public health, but rather the profitability of the cotton farming and chemical industries. The laws were then sold to the public using the fear factor, lies and bogus, garbage, "justification" (reefer madness etc)... very reminiscent of the method used to sell the reaction to the 9/11 attacks in recent years.
In Portugal, all drugs have been decriminalized. As a result, addiction, other drug-related health problems and drug related crime statistics have PLUMMETED. The only losers there are the organized crime gangs, private security corporations and corrupt elements within law enforcement. Portuguese society is winning. In other words, will America do the sensible thing? Um... not while corrupt and criminal elements in government make the majot decisions tat affect our society, elements controlled to a greater extent by the Mafia, other organized crime gangs, big business, the greed-motivation, and the need to be seen by the latgely deceived, media-manipulated public as being "tough on crime".

Nik Green

Decriminalization stops cartels : 8/2/2010

Our local news media has ignored the fact (Sacramento Bee, Washington Post, Wall Street Journal) that small-scale medical marijuana growers are hurting Mexican drug cartels. The Santa Barbara news media is heavily biased towards those who make money from marijuana possession arrests - non-profit operators who are paid unreasonable salaries - around $200,000/year for some, for providing court-ordered treatment for addiction to a drug that the NIDA in 1995 said is half as habit-forming and has half the withdrawal symptoms of caffeine, and towards law enforcement, whose staffing and income is dependent on marijuana arrests.These people are private-interest groups supported by our tax dollars. They people have no interest in legalizing and taxing marijuana for the benefit of the community, and seem to have no ethical constraints in manipulating public opinion with the goal of protecting their income. The Santa Barbara City Council, Goleta City Council and County Board of Supervisors are supporting these private interest groups rather than the will of the people or needs of the community. This isn't democracy or representative government, but it is disgusting and needs to change. The U.S. has 5% of the world's population and 25% of the world's incarcerated population.

: 8/2/2010

The City of Oakland, CA has just approved large scale industrial grows.
Like booze once CORPORATIONS take control NOTHING WILL STOP IT. IT'S ABOUT MAKING HUGE PROFITS. However, it will still be regulated, and like booze there are already laws on the books for being under the influence in public or driving a car under the influence.
Legalization is only a matter of time.

Non smoker

keep it small : 8/2/2010

If legalized the amount should be limited and only individual non-corporate growers should be licenced (at affordable licence & tax rates )so thje little guys get a break instead of your standard coporate monopolizing of a new area of financial opportunity.Make it legal,keep it small, and legislate corporate absence.

yer ma

Yeah!! Great Comments....Knuckleheads : 8/2/2010

Let's keep supporting drug cartels....... Idiots!

Nuf Said

missing the point : 8/5/2010

Did you all miss this? The plants were pulled from farms in our forests. Illegal aliens, bringing in chemicals and other items into our forests and growing marijuana. While this is going on, harmful and sometimes illegal chemicals are being used leaching into our water table and creeks, the grow is patrolled by illegal aliens with guns, and when they are done they leave their trash, and waste in the forest which includes, but not limited to propane tanks, aerosol cans, plastics, ropes, food, batteries, stoves, sleeping bags and various bio-hazardous waste. This is not marijuana grown for medicinal use, this is not marijuana that was grown by your friend. This marijuana has chemical on it that is probably banned in the United States for any sort of use. The people that are coming into the U.S. and planting THIS marijuana do not care about your tax money or anyone who needs it for pain. These people are planting this for THEIR profit. To sell into YOUR neighborhood. Possibly even out of a house right next to yours which will bring people EXACTLY like the ones who grew it toting guns to protect their investment. This isn't about the "pot smokers"....it's so much more than that. I am happy that SBSO cares about Santa Barbara and ensures that our beautiful mountains are maintained and that no one profits from destruction of any of our natural resources and / or potentially puts any one of our citizens at risk by being in the wrong place at the wrong time.