Forum Post: Trade Marijuana on Wall Street Like a Commodity
Posted 12 years ago on Oct. 10, 2011, 9:32 a.m. EST by traderone
(13)
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Legalize Marijuana. Marijuana should be a commodity that is traded like all other worldwide commodities, like sugar, wheat, coffee, etc. Force the US to sign a treaty with all countries to legalize marijuana and make it a traded commodity. This is a global economy, and marijuana growing in the US could be a multi-billion dollar business. This is a commodity that the US could export worldwide, and generate millions of jobs in this country in the process. Polls have shown that at least 90% of the US population has either tried or still uses marijuana. So, make it legal. The world will be better for it.
You know what, some of the growers in Cali are against legalization. Prices are articially high because it is an illegal substance. If it becomes legal, people could just grow their own, it is REALLY easy to grow.
I guess it could be legalized like alcohol, ie liquor companies control the market, in many places it is illegal to make your beer or wine.
Filthy hippie protectionist capitalists.
This is irrelevant to what is wrong with our country. There will never be any consensus on this issue. Focus on the real problem: breaking the incestuous relationship between "our" government and corporations.
Many people are afraid of marijuana as a hallucinogenic substance. You should be just as afraid of alcohol inside a person who may be driving a car on the highways. But the majority of people use common sense, and don't drink and drive. I have more faith in people to use common sense when using marijuana. Especially people who are in pain and use marijuana for medicinal purposes. They don't use it for the hallucinations, they use it because it makes them feel better than without it. The main reason that people are afraid of marijuana is because our government and main-stream politicians have been brain washing the American people with this lie for decades. It is simply not true. Many people smoked marijuana in the 1960s, and the majority of those people are alive today. Many of them have gone on to create successful businesses, and raised happy families. That was 50 years ago, and what have been the consequences? The point is that people have been using mind altering substances for 1000s of years. But the majority of people use common sense, to not use those products because they like being sane, and they like their lives without those products. But everyone has that choice. If we make marijuana legal, then people will still have that choice. Eliminate the fear surrounding this organic substance, make it legal, and make it a commodity that the US taxpayer can trade legally on the world market.
Create a union of Marijuana growers, just like there is a union of wheat growers, and a union of soy bean growers, and a union of corn growers, and a union of tobacco growers. The farmers in this country are not all big corporations. There a thousands of small farmers who grow commodities, and are able to keep alive and raise their families on their profits. You don't understand that the Fed. govt. protects all of these farmers to sell their products at good prices, because of trade tariffs imposed on countries outside the US that sell their products inside the US. You may think that growing food is big business, because you are accustomed to buying it at the local Wall mart. But just walk down the streets of Manhattan, and you'll find many small food markets where business owners sell fresh organic produce that was grown by local NY farmers. Nothing, no one, not any govt. can stop you from growing food. So I disagree that it is ALL big business. The same can happen if we legalize marijuana, because then everyone can grow it. And if all the growers want to sell it, then they join the union of other legal growers who support self-regulated policies to make it safe. The same thing happens to farmers who distill alcohol. The only difference is that they do it legally. Marijuana should be a worldwide commodity just like any other legal commodity.
No there is a good reason it's illegal - it keeps up the price so the Mexican drug cartels can bank a good profit and bribe US officials to bust California
There is no reason for marijuana to be illegal, except that the banks and the moralists are afraid of the consequences. There are many more toxic substances that are sold legally right now in our society - eg: Tobacco, Pain Medicine, Alcohol, Sugar-based soda pop. I can make a long list that of products that are supported by big business on Wall Street. So, why can't the American people have Marijuana? Why is it so wrong, when we allow big business to sell us products that are wrong or bad for us? If fight for our right to grow our own Marijuana, and other countries (like Portugal) have it legal already, then we can regulate it just like all other commodities, and make it safe to use. But you have to start by making marijuana legal to grow.
This country was founded by farmers who grew food, because they had no where to go to buy it. So they had to grow their own. They grew marijuana for hemp and made lots of other things from it. Even George Washington, and Thomas Jefferson grew marijuana for hemp. It is part of the roots of American agriculture. You should be able to grow marijuana on your land just as easily as you can grow your own food without the govt. telling you that you can't. And if the hemp growers unionize, then they can self regulate and provide their own protection against low quality, and dangerous products. If the Federal govt. can prohibit other countries from importing sugar into the US, then the Federal govt. can be forced to prohibit other countries from importing polluted or toxic marijuana from other countries. The farmers in this country have lobbies in Washington to support their needs. Marijuana and hemp growers could unionize and have equal protection. But you have to start by making marijuana legal to grow.
It already is a multi-billion dollar business. If it was legal worldwide it would not be an exported crop - it really is a "weed" that grows easily every place in the world.
But I agree 100% to legalize it, along with all other drugs, gambling and prostitution under the banner of "we simply can't legislate morality". Legalize, regulate, and tax, and have help available for those who have problems and addictions.
It would be legal on this platform: http://www.JeffBlock2012.com
Obama just ramped up raids on medical marijuana distributors in California. http://bit.ly/rdrfZH
Remember when he said this? 'Obama indicated during the presidential campaign that he supported the controlled use of marijuana for medical purposes, saying he saw no difference between medical marijuana and other pain-control drugs. “My attitude is if the science and the doctors suggest that the best palliative care and the way to relieve pain and suffering is medical marijuana, then that’s something I’m open to,” Obama said in November 2007 at a campaign stop in Audubon, Iowa. “There’s no difference between that and morphine when it comes to just giving people relief from pain.”' http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29433708/ns/health-health_care/t/dea-halt-medical-marijuana-raids/
I heard on The Young Turks (but can't find resources myself on it yet) that the reason Obama is doing this now is to make the way for a patented, synthetic prescription cannabinoid.
He is selling out mom and pop businesses, selling a substance as old as time itself, to further corporate profits. And weed will STILL be illegal! The poor will STILL go to jail for nonsensical puritanical laws! lol wtf obamz?
No. I don't want multinational marijuana companies lobbying for their own agendas in Washington. And I smoke MJ every day. You are missing the point of this movement.
No drug talk, not the time or the place.
You're wrong sfck23. The War on Drugs is a profoundly relevant perpetuator of social inequity. Have you seen the violence in Mexico? It's unbelievably grotesque, and it stems from the US's puritanical drug policy. Please open up the fact that 'drug talk' is absolutely a valid discussion to have for overcoming social inequities.
I couldn't agree with you more... marijuana is the CASH crop of the drug mafia in Mexico, and if was legalized it would dismantle their system dramatically... however, if you try to push this now, the conservative right will use this to under mean the guiding principles of this movement and nothing will be accomplished. Even if I agreed that it should be legalized, there are more pressing issues that need to be addressed, and then you can move forward with gay marriage rights in ALL states, or legalization and regulation of a new commodity. There are many injustices in this country, we have to begin somewhere and we can't do everything at once.
I think these are good points. I think if we come up with legislation that will drive money out of politics, then marijuana/gay marriage/etc. policy injustices should be resolved shortly there after. Lobbyist and corporate donors are responsible for perpetuating the War on Drugs even though most Americans believe the War on Drugs has been a failure.
Still...Occupy Wall Street is the perfect forum for people to begin discussing American drug policy. I don't think you need to discourage people from platforming for sane economic and criminal policy. As long as we tie it back to the corrupting influence of lobbyists and wealthy donors in our democracy, and endorse legislation to remove their unfair advantage, then we can elevate the discussion of the War on Drugs to transcend left/right distinctions.
Poll that claims 65% of Americans believe War on Drugs is a failed policy. http://www.angus-reid.com/polls/43145/americans-decry-war-on-drugs-blame-mexico-for-allowing-cartels-to-grow/
I agree, this very well could become the platform of a multiple movements... prioritize the goals, but before that I think we should seek to rectify the injustices that have gone unaccounted for, and then once we have victory and show that we are sane, logical, thinkers, we will have a base to hear these ideas and a base to support them. I agree with you and I am very excited for the direction we are going.
Yeah, I really like the direction we're headed too.
In case you're interested, Dylan Ratigan's campaign is to get money out of politics. I think he can emerge as a strong voice from this movement who has a clear recommendation of how US policy needs to change to have a healthier democracy.
http://www.getmoneyout.com/
I agree with that statement, " There are many injustices in this country, we have to begin somewhere and we can't do everything at once."
anything can be traded. the question is one of 'time & place'. Would this put the rest of us at risk for police dog attack?
Yeah the only issue I have is that (from what I hear) pot varies in quality so its not a commodity which would be where all pot is uniformly exchangeable.
In the whole I agree there should be pot futures like there are pork bellies.
Waitaminute, here we all are, fighting corporate influence in our government... and you want to give them access to selling hallucinogenic substances with the power of marketing behind it?!?
I guess I don't want what you're smoking.
So people shouldn't be free to decide what they put in their own bodies?
That wasn't the argument. Traderone was advocating turning it into a business commodity and that was what I was commenting against. Your new argument is a strawman argument. You're attempting to reframe the argument as a personal freedom, shame.
Still, I'll play along as Devil's Advocate. We know that when women drink while pregnant it causes fetal alcohol syndrome in the baby. Should people be free to decide what to put in their own bodies if it will cause irreparable harm to others?
Furthermore, as a government of the people, by the people and for the people... should we advocate the use of hallucinogenic substances for recreational purposes?
I've worked as a nurse in inner-city hospitals all over the nation. I've had knives pulled on me and been assaulted by people on drugs. If people can't handle their shit and pose a risk to themselves and others, should they be free to decide what they put in their own bodies?
Finally,did you hear that Amsterdam recently changed their pot laws and are banning certain strains of pot? I think you need to study WHY they did that. Legalization doesn't work. I do think we need to work on rehabilitation versus punitive with people being steered towards rehabilitation programs. I might be in favor of decriminilization.
(TBH I waffle on these issues)
Women are allowed to drink while pregnant I don't see why the social stigma that exists now wouldn't do a similar job.
I apologize for the strawman - you're entirely correct here.
The point is if it is traded freely there will be corporations who mass produce and package pot for consumption and since it is a plant there will be a futures market. I assumed that he was just presenting the logical case extension of a basic "legalize it" decision and assumed your attack against him was against that base position.
Well, I sincerely and whole-heartedly think that corporations selling and marketing recreational drugs is something we need to be VERY careful about. Cases in point: alcohol & tobacco.
I really don't care about people smoking it as long as they can handle their shit (I've met far too many people who can't). I'm much more worried about the corporate angle and also about governmental revenue garnered from it.
Hi imrational...Prohibition of intoxicating substances is a contentious issue, and with good reason. There are arguments from both sides that make all kinds of sense.
Since it is so contentious, and since a majority of Americans believe the War on Drugs is a failed government policy, then all the more reason why the choice to prohibit or legally sell drugs should be left up to an individual state to decide. If a state wants to make money from distributing and taxing marijuana instead of jailing incredible numbers of non-violent drug offenders, the state should have the right to do so.
What are your thoughts about allowing individual states decide their own drug policy?
I think we should be running 50 social/political/economic experiments. Each state should be trying to develop their own utopia. The methods that fail should be dropped, the ones that succeed should be adopted by the failed ones. Choose the selection criteria and use forces of evolution to create a better world for us.