If the only way to make money of a resource is to tax it or make it illegal then it should be left to the free market to regulate it. Sure pharma companies can't make billions of dollars off of it for medicine because its easy to grow your own, how you want to, the strain you want and the effects you want to achieve.
No tax on cannabis! Think about how long it took to get taxes on alcohol and tobacco. Why is it that the second we legalize weed we need to tax the shit out of it! We don't tax prescription meds! And if someone sells cannabis is a store charge gst and pst. That's enough tax! We already pay 30% taxes on our income plus 12-15% on our goods and services. When are stupid Canadians gonna stand up and say enough already? This country is a joke! Sure we may be free to live where we want and work where we want even without a diploma(but that's supposed to change) but we are all slaves to taxes! And taxing cannabis is another example of our government forcing us to do something we don't want! Like pay ridiculous amounts to self medicate. In the US a 66oz of captain Morgan's spiced rum is $22 and in Canada is $50+ and a 24 of Budweiser is $19.99 and that's for tallboys (473 ml cans) we are getting ripped off and it all falls under the guise of "free Medicare" since when is 50% taxes on everything "free"!
I just have one thing to say to any government that wants to think about taxing cannabis, "keep ur slimy grubby paws off my stash you no good pieces of sh*it" Harper quit selling MY OIL to the Chinese! You do realize they are only buying it to hoard from the rest of the world and they also murder their own citizens! Ya Harper you are helping murder innocent Chinese people and baby girls!
dglenn - 12 years ago
Once legal, adults should be allowed to grow their own.
dglenn - 12 years ago
I think there should have been one more choice in this survey. LEGALIZE it, TAX it and REGULATE it.
http://youtu.be/6jO_ncXj7RE
Deaths Per Year From Drugs In America (2010)
ALL LEGAL DRUGS 1,705,000 DEATHS
ALL ILLEGAL DRUGS 6,000 DEATHS
PRESCRIPTION DRUGS 800,000 DEATHS
TOBACCO 400,000 DEATHS
ALCOHOL 100,000 DEATHS
CAFFEINE 5,000 DEATHS
HEROIN 2,000 DEATHS
COCAINE 2,000 DEATHS
ASPIRIN 500 DEATHS
MARIJUANA 0 DEATHS
Marisha Devoin - 12 years ago
No question. From a public health, public safety, judicial and economic perspective it makes total sense.
1) Utilize this HERB to its fullest potential for all of its proven healthful dietary, topical and medical uses. Not to mention it's durable uses in structures and textiles.
2) Make communities safer by removing the criminality of cannabis production, thus a) lowering the stakes of already-existing drug rings by reducing the need for law enforcement, lowering the risks involved in the production and selling, therefore b) simultaneously lowering the costs and profit margin - deflating the economic, or "street" value as a result. Voila: turf wars & gang warfare be gone.
3) Reduce the (criminally) unnecessary backlog and burden in the judicial system, and (Sorry Stephen Harper) in our jails. Voila: more time and legal resources devoted to charging CRIMINALS.
4) Hello! Tax revenue!
P.S. - It's Cannabis, NOT Marijuana
Blair - 12 years ago
@Josh Prsotitution has been legal in Canada for decades. The recent decision by the Ontario Court of Appeal only struck down a law that said it was illegal to run a brothel, and the government has until next year to write a new law before brothels would be legal.
Andre - 12 years ago
Marijuana is a natural plant. It grows anywhere and is part of the ecosystem so there is a reason for its existance. Either be the commercial use of hemp or the health benefits of this plant, the planet needs it. People are put in jail for its recreational use. Why haven't Bill Clinton been arrested yet?.. At the same time, why don't we put half of the population in jail? Come on! It's time we realise that making things illegal generates criminality and where there is a war, there is abondance of money spent on it. The war on drugs is no different. Let's start by looking at what's going on in other countries. Alchool wasn't always legal remember ? Alchool was controlled by criminals. It offers dependancies, health problems and more bad stuff. Alchool is poison and the reaction our body has to it is due it. I truly believe that cannabis is less addictive then alchool or tobacco. Let's be smart and study this matter.
PendragonRise - 12 years ago
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP Google it) has the best authoritative reasoning for legalizing Marijuana available. This group is made up of front-line police officers, undercover operatives, judges, prosecutors, police chiefs and prison workers who are all promoting legalization because they have seen first hand that the war on drugs is a complete failure. Legalization is the only sensible way to deal with this problem.
Jake - 12 years ago
Sounds like a good plan and all but it would be impossible to tax marijuana. There is already a massive industry built around the sale of the drug and there would be no way to intervene and tax it.
Jean Q Publique - 12 years ago
So far that is about +/- 5300 votes and essentially 95% think it should not be not illegal. If as many people who voted for these options voted for ANY government in a democracy we'd call it a monumental landslide majority. Lets stop the debate. Stop passing this phony hot potato around and get it finished. The people have spoken. Stop the criminalization of marijuana. Legalize marijuana.
Mulcair & the NDP, STOP this NDP's typical soft pedal "let's have another inquiry". Begin to LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE! LEAD
Rae & Liberals, STOP the flip flop and LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE!
Harper & the NEW Conservative Party stop the OMNIBUS crime bill and LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE! NOT the big money donors.
May & Greens, see above and should my points not be clear enough LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE!
I think the last thing we need is the likes of the cigarette companies and the pharma companies getting their hands on it and adulterating it. Let people get it where they want. Let them grow their own. Legalize it and tax it but allow citizens to grow their own outside of the system. Let the lazy and the rich buy it, but let me grow it and consume it like I can my own beer and wine. The government doesn't need to know care or benefit from an adult's choice to consume.
I'm sure there is a good case to be made about not taxing it as it is certainly helping float many communities with just the ripple of the dollars as they leave the black market.
I guess a good conservative, would say let them have it, don't tax it and let the profits and benefits ripple through the economy with out the governments hands in it.
I wonder what would happen if 95% of the Canadians wrote directly to the PMO and said increase my taxes by 15%. They'd call that an overwhelming show of support and pass it the next day. Now, consider if the same were true but the same people wrote Legalize Marijuana... I wonder how they'd try to spin that.
Bruce Pretty - 12 years ago
It never ceases to amaze me how these supposed " surveys" are set up to skew the results.
Yes marijuana should be more legal...but who is this doctor?
Louis - 12 years ago
I really hope this pulls through, there are a lot of sufferers in Canada that could greatly benefit from cannabis, from minor pain to clinical depression, insomnia or maybe even for recreational and spiritual uses. It seems iffy knowing that the government WILL put large taxes on the herb. But at the same time knowing that it is off the streets and taken out of the 'drug culture' will comfort a lot of people.
I think in order for doctors to prescribe medical cannabis to Canadians, the doctors should know the facts about how it has other uses than just pain relief. And know that they may not have to be 'sick' to take a stimulant such as cannabis.
It also would be refreshing to see cannabis taken out of it's usual stereotype and in the possession of the people who need it.
For those who appose and agree with its illegality, just look back at the prohibition of alcohol and how much crime it produced. The same can be said about a plant that grows in the ground.
Josh - 12 years ago
So let me get this straight. We LEGALIZE prostitution ( only in brothels ) and marijuana laws are increased. Does anyone else see a problem with this? In ten years I would like to see a study done on how many people have been harmed from these brothels ( broken homes, marriages, STD's, HIV and AIDS ) and compare it to the lack there of deaths caused by marijuana use. I am willing to bet the numbers would surprise you. Stephen Harper should be ashamed of himself for increasing the mandatory sentences for minor drug offenses. All this is going to cause more unemployment, more crime and more jails being filled up with innocent people. But I guess that is what Stephen Harper wants, the conservatives pockets increasing and the rest are breaking. One last note, after all the jail closures over the last couple years, how come none of them have been torn down or renovated into something else, oh wait, the government is keeping them open to arrest you and detain you when they want to eliminate any threat to their power, case in point marijuana legalization. The more people want it legalized, the harsher the laws will become. I am saddened to be Canadian with a man like Harper in charge.
Miguel - 12 years ago
Either legalize marijuana or ban tobacco... I don't care which... just treat them the same.
If the only way to make money of a resource is to tax it or make it illegal then it should be left to the free market to regulate it. Sure pharma companies can't make billions of dollars off of it for medicine because its easy to grow your own, how you want to, the strain you want and the effects you want to achieve.
No tax on cannabis! Think about how long it took to get taxes on alcohol and tobacco. Why is it that the second we legalize weed we need to tax the shit out of it! We don't tax prescription meds! And if someone sells cannabis is a store charge gst and pst. That's enough tax! We already pay 30% taxes on our income plus 12-15% on our goods and services. When are stupid Canadians gonna stand up and say enough already? This country is a joke! Sure we may be free to live where we want and work where we want even without a diploma(but that's supposed to change) but we are all slaves to taxes! And taxing cannabis is another example of our government forcing us to do something we don't want! Like pay ridiculous amounts to self medicate. In the US a 66oz of captain Morgan's spiced rum is $22 and in Canada is $50+ and a 24 of Budweiser is $19.99 and that's for tallboys (473 ml cans) we are getting ripped off and it all falls under the guise of "free Medicare" since when is 50% taxes on everything "free"!
I just have one thing to say to any government that wants to think about taxing cannabis, "keep ur slimy grubby paws off my stash you no good pieces of sh*it" Harper quit selling MY OIL to the Chinese! You do realize they are only buying it to hoard from the rest of the world and they also murder their own citizens! Ya Harper you are helping murder innocent Chinese people and baby girls!
Once legal, adults should be allowed to grow their own.
I think there should have been one more choice in this survey. LEGALIZE it, TAX it and REGULATE it.
Who ever said no is fucking dumb as fuck
http://youtu.be/6jO_ncXj7RE
Deaths Per Year From Drugs In America (2010)
ALL LEGAL DRUGS 1,705,000 DEATHS
ALL ILLEGAL DRUGS 6,000 DEATHS
PRESCRIPTION DRUGS 800,000 DEATHS
TOBACCO 400,000 DEATHS
ALCOHOL 100,000 DEATHS
CAFFEINE 5,000 DEATHS
HEROIN 2,000 DEATHS
COCAINE 2,000 DEATHS
ASPIRIN 500 DEATHS
MARIJUANA 0 DEATHS
No question. From a public health, public safety, judicial and economic perspective it makes total sense.
1) Utilize this HERB to its fullest potential for all of its proven healthful dietary, topical and medical uses. Not to mention it's durable uses in structures and textiles.
2) Make communities safer by removing the criminality of cannabis production, thus a) lowering the stakes of already-existing drug rings by reducing the need for law enforcement, lowering the risks involved in the production and selling, therefore b) simultaneously lowering the costs and profit margin - deflating the economic, or "street" value as a result. Voila: turf wars & gang warfare be gone.
3) Reduce the (criminally) unnecessary backlog and burden in the judicial system, and (Sorry Stephen Harper) in our jails. Voila: more time and legal resources devoted to charging CRIMINALS.
4) Hello! Tax revenue!
P.S. - It's Cannabis, NOT Marijuana
@Josh Prsotitution has been legal in Canada for decades. The recent decision by the Ontario Court of Appeal only struck down a law that said it was illegal to run a brothel, and the government has until next year to write a new law before brothels would be legal.
Marijuana is a natural plant. It grows anywhere and is part of the ecosystem so there is a reason for its existance. Either be the commercial use of hemp or the health benefits of this plant, the planet needs it. People are put in jail for its recreational use. Why haven't Bill Clinton been arrested yet?.. At the same time, why don't we put half of the population in jail? Come on! It's time we realise that making things illegal generates criminality and where there is a war, there is abondance of money spent on it. The war on drugs is no different. Let's start by looking at what's going on in other countries. Alchool wasn't always legal remember ? Alchool was controlled by criminals. It offers dependancies, health problems and more bad stuff. Alchool is poison and the reaction our body has to it is due it. I truly believe that cannabis is less addictive then alchool or tobacco. Let's be smart and study this matter.
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP Google it) has the best authoritative reasoning for legalizing Marijuana available. This group is made up of front-line police officers, undercover operatives, judges, prosecutors, police chiefs and prison workers who are all promoting legalization because they have seen first hand that the war on drugs is a complete failure. Legalization is the only sensible way to deal with this problem.
Sounds like a good plan and all but it would be impossible to tax marijuana. There is already a massive industry built around the sale of the drug and there would be no way to intervene and tax it.
So far that is about +/- 5300 votes and essentially 95% think it should not be not illegal. If as many people who voted for these options voted for ANY government in a democracy we'd call it a monumental landslide majority. Lets stop the debate. Stop passing this phony hot potato around and get it finished. The people have spoken. Stop the criminalization of marijuana. Legalize marijuana.
Mulcair & the NDP, STOP this NDP's typical soft pedal "let's have another inquiry". Begin to LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE! LEAD
Rae & Liberals, STOP the flip flop and LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE!
Harper & the NEW Conservative Party stop the OMNIBUS crime bill and LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE! NOT the big money donors.
May & Greens, see above and should my points not be clear enough LISTEN TO THE PEOPLE!
I think the last thing we need is the likes of the cigarette companies and the pharma companies getting their hands on it and adulterating it. Let people get it where they want. Let them grow their own. Legalize it and tax it but allow citizens to grow their own outside of the system. Let the lazy and the rich buy it, but let me grow it and consume it like I can my own beer and wine. The government doesn't need to know care or benefit from an adult's choice to consume.
I'm sure there is a good case to be made about not taxing it as it is certainly helping float many communities with just the ripple of the dollars as they leave the black market.
I guess a good conservative, would say let them have it, don't tax it and let the profits and benefits ripple through the economy with out the governments hands in it.
I wonder what would happen if 95% of the Canadians wrote directly to the PMO and said increase my taxes by 15%. They'd call that an overwhelming show of support and pass it the next day. Now, consider if the same were true but the same people wrote Legalize Marijuana... I wonder how they'd try to spin that.
It never ceases to amaze me how these supposed " surveys" are set up to skew the results.
Yes marijuana should be more legal...but who is this doctor?
I really hope this pulls through, there are a lot of sufferers in Canada that could greatly benefit from cannabis, from minor pain to clinical depression, insomnia or maybe even for recreational and spiritual uses. It seems iffy knowing that the government WILL put large taxes on the herb. But at the same time knowing that it is off the streets and taken out of the 'drug culture' will comfort a lot of people.
I think in order for doctors to prescribe medical cannabis to Canadians, the doctors should know the facts about how it has other uses than just pain relief. And know that they may not have to be 'sick' to take a stimulant such as cannabis.
It also would be refreshing to see cannabis taken out of it's usual stereotype and in the possession of the people who need it.
For those who appose and agree with its illegality, just look back at the prohibition of alcohol and how much crime it produced. The same can be said about a plant that grows in the ground.
So let me get this straight. We LEGALIZE prostitution ( only in brothels ) and marijuana laws are increased. Does anyone else see a problem with this? In ten years I would like to see a study done on how many people have been harmed from these brothels ( broken homes, marriages, STD's, HIV and AIDS ) and compare it to the lack there of deaths caused by marijuana use. I am willing to bet the numbers would surprise you. Stephen Harper should be ashamed of himself for increasing the mandatory sentences for minor drug offenses. All this is going to cause more unemployment, more crime and more jails being filled up with innocent people. But I guess that is what Stephen Harper wants, the conservatives pockets increasing and the rest are breaking. One last note, after all the jail closures over the last couple years, how come none of them have been torn down or renovated into something else, oh wait, the government is keeping them open to arrest you and detain you when they want to eliminate any threat to their power, case in point marijuana legalization. The more people want it legalized, the harsher the laws will become. I am saddened to be Canadian with a man like Harper in charge.
Either legalize marijuana or ban tobacco... I don't care which... just treat them the same.