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Argentina court ruling may legalize personal use of marijuana
On Tuesday, the Argentina Supreme Court ruled that punishing an adult for personal use of marijuana, so long as that use doesn't harm anyone else, is unconstitutional. It's a major step towards decriminalizing the possession and use of pot in the country, and comes on the heels of Mexico's passage of a similar law that made it legal for adults to carry small amounts of pot, cocaine, heroin, LSD, and methamphetamine. Earlier this year, a Brazilian appeals court also ruled that possession of small amounts of pot was not illegal in that country.
It's a new approach to the war on drugs - one that focuses more on reducing harm to drug users and society than on prosecuting recreational users - and one that seems to be forming a trend in Latin and South America. Only time will tell if that trend extends to the United States, but many members of the Latin American Commission on Drugs and Democracy hope so. Back in May, Mexico's former President Vicente Fox was quoted by CNN as saying, "I believe it's time to open the debate over legalizing drugs. It must be done in conjunction with the United States, but it is time to open the debate."
I stick to the booze, but I won't begrudge someone the right of recreational use of a naturally-growing plant. And while I won't jump on the bandwagon for legalizing all drugs, I would support the passage of a law that allows adults to possess small amounts of pot. I just don't believe it'll happen in the United States any time soon. Until then, tokers can use this guide to get their smoke on in several other countries around the world where pot is legal or more publicly tolerated.
Filed under: South America, Argentina, News
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
ED Aug 26th 2009 2:39PM
Good, now all the stoners can move there! This drug should be illegal to anyone but people who need it for medicinal purposes. It has done more to destroy the moral fabric of our country than anything else in the last 50 years.
Samantha Aug 26th 2009 2:30PM
I have seen the effects on people of marijuana use. Smoking dope is
bad. It's wrong and I'll will believe that until I die. Will not associate
with pot heads and do not want them anywhere near me.
Vaya a Argentina.
SLM in SC Aug 26th 2009 5:32PM
Specific examples please.
Nanci Aug 26th 2009 2:46PM
spoken like a couple of RIGHT WING BIBLE THUMPERS LIGHTEN UP PEOPLE JEEEZZZZ
Nanci Aug 26th 2009 2:48PM
MORAL FABRIC MY BUTT..... it would empty the jails for real criminals like Dick Cheney & GWB
julie Aug 26th 2009 11:31PM
well i think it should be legal alcohol is way worse. everyday you hear about someone who was drunk who killed people driving you never here that with pot. also you can not die from pot but you can from alcohol.you do the math . to top it off it is a great medicine for cancer,ms,arthritis come on now.
Nanci Aug 26th 2009 2:51PM
Go away cheap-O pay for your advertising what a loser.
mischella Aug 26th 2009 3:02PM
lol it's a plant! for heavens sake! It's here for a reason. wake up america you're way behind..put the drug people out of business and tax the stuff. do you realize how much money they make in a month that is not taxed? None of them are selling their houses > control is the word, control it tax it ... they are going to smoke pot whether it is legal or not. why make a grandmother a criminal if she smokes to relax...it's simply none of anyones business unless there is a crime involved and there is so many crimes involved with alcohol it's not funny! so lets make liquor illegal too.
ww Aug 26th 2009 4:11PM
Heroin comes from a plant. Cocaine comes from a plant. Its natural basis is not the reason marijuana should be decriminalized. It is because it beneficial and not harmful when used responsibly.
watdafuk Aug 26th 2009 5:35PM
Cocaine and heroin have to be processed or manufactured. Grass grows naturally and can be used that way. Light that shit,toke that shit,pass that shit.
4life Aug 26th 2009 3:11PM
I love pot as much as i love Jesus and i smoke it everynight while reading the bible to my children...it should be legal and loved.
Shawn Aug 26th 2009 3:19PM
What has been detrimental to the moral fabric of this country is the counter productive "war on drugs". Any drug, alcohol, caffiene, LSD, aspirin... in and of itself can not harm society. The use of drugs as a political and economic tool to secure power has had the effect of splitting the country, and creating gulfs between generations, social strata, races, and other divergent aspects of our society. People think "drugs" are bad because the government has outlawed them, and few are willing to accept the responsibility that goes with self governance (of the poeple, by the people, for the people) and actually study the issues involved. To make a blanket statement that "Smoking dope is bad." shows a lack of depth in considering this issue.
halli620 Aug 26th 2009 3:21PM
Finally. Samantha and Ed, you're both pathetic. There are people who abuse marijuana just as there are people who abuse alcohol, sex, gambling, speeding in sports cars, and anything else, but the majority of users are casual users who are able to lead full, productive lives, often even enhanced by marijuana, just as our lives are often enhanced by alcohol, sex, and other past times in responsible amounts. You cannot die from an overdose of marijuana, like you can with cocaine, heroin, etc.; and you cannot become physically addicted, as you can with "hard" drugs, and with nicotine and alcohol. These should be the main two issues to look at when deciding whether to criminalize a drug.
Sure, there are people who become emotionally dependent on marijuana, just as people do on other "vices" or pleasurable past times; but: (1) these people have problems beforehand and/or addictive personalities that lead them to become dependent on normally benign acts or substances, and would latch onto something else if not marijuana; (2) this is obviously true while it is NOT legal, and anyone who wanted to find marijuana badly right know would have an easy time doing so, yet on the black-market it is unregulated and could be contaminated with other drugs or dangerous substances; (3) legalizing marijuana will remove the criminal element and the contact that people have with unsavory black-market dealers, who are often responsible for pushing other illicit substances on their "customers" (which means that it is the dealers, not the marijuana, that act as a "gateway" to other drugs); and (4) just because some people act irresponsibly is not a reason to criminalize casual users, who are now going through life with permanent black marks on their record. If you want to go back to a prohibitionist era (which is exactly what this is), I suggest you move to a country that destroys citizens' rights without the health or welfare of its people in mind, which is the case with marijuana in our country. -Lauryn S., Esq.
TK Aug 26th 2009 4:53PM
I totally agree with everything you said!!!! You are dead on with your post!!
katlady Aug 26th 2009 6:48PM
You are soooo correct. Just go to your local police department and ask for the death statistics involving alcohol, then compare them will the death statistics involving pot. Also compare how many shootings involved alcohol versus how many involved just marijuana. Also compare the domestic violence statistics involving alcohol versus marijuana. People who oppose legalization of marijuana think it is okay to take mood elevators, diet drugs (speed), drink alcohol, take antiangiolytics, but oppose the smoking of a plant that helps people relax. Legalize it and use the taxes to pay for improved health care for the impoverished!
rich Aug 26th 2009 7:44PM
Absolutely, 100% agree.
Reason for marijuana being illegal from WIKI.ANSWERS.COM
"The first marijuana law found so far was a 1905 El Paso, Texas law. It, and most of the other laws in the southwest that followed, was motivated by racial prejudice against Mexican immigrants. These laws had nothing to do with the actual effects of the marijuana. In fact, cannabis in the form of hemp was a common crop in many of these states, and tinctures of cannabis were included in hundreds of common medicines. The purpose of the laws was to discriminate against Mexicans and other racial minorities. This same purpose is also found in the history of the laws against opiates and cocaine. "
Racially motivated laws in the US, surprised? It really kept out the Mexicans too, huh?
This country needs to grow up and join the 21st century.
BTW, Canada already has personal use laws, Mass has decriminalized small amounts for personal use, and Rhode Island has stores you can purchase pot in IF you have a medical reason with a prescription.
Lauryn Aug 27th 2009 10:11AM
I've actually also read that the original bans were lobbied for by cotton farmers, because hemp is a strong, useful fiber that grows without pesticides or artificial fertilizers and was used for many things, like ropes on ships, paper, and clothing, and the cotton farmers felt rightly threatened by it. Even though a different species is used for hemp and for marijuana, both were lumped together at the time, and continue to be now, even though the hemp plant does not contain enough THC to produce any sort of high, and hemp used in this country today has to be imported, which is a shame, especially considering the versatility of hemp fiber and the ease with which it grows naturally. I don't have a link about the cotton farmers' lobbying right now, but I find it highly plausible.
Eddie Aug 26th 2009 5:17PM
If all drugs should be illegal what about all the OTC drugs???
john Aug 26th 2009 3:34PM
just think could it help our money problems out > get drug deallers of the streeet a little bit Its grows wild why not try >drinking ithink is far worse> I i
Dro Aug 26th 2009 3:40PM
marijuana is a plant and is illegal? makes absolutely no sense! it also makes no dollars! we WASTE more money yearly just to arrest people smoking a joint or a blunt that has no criminal record and poses no threat to their community or anyone for that matter....i being one of those people. i have never had a criminal record in my whole life... it wasnt till i was 22 i finally had something on my "record" smoking a joint...i got a year ACD (adjourned conditional dismissal) wich is like propbation. 3 great jobs i've lost out on just because i now have an "open case" which forbids you to get any city state or any job mostly. and they want people to be productive??? its time to legalize it and tax it to make profit...we all have a job to do in this country and arresting people for that slows down productivity in all sectors of jobs and it wastes money...if we tax it we'd be putting money into this economy rather than wasting it.... There are real criminals and thats what deserves attention ...not someone sitting in their car reading enjoyin a plant our creator put here. (btw thas how i got arrested...just sittin in my car, windows up ..reading....thas rite READING!) so i hope someone important reads this cuz this is not only my plight its a national problem and it shuld be legal. THIS IS ONLY FOR MARIJUANA.... COCAINE HEROINE AND ALL THA OTHER $h!t..I DONT GET DOWN WITH THAT AND DONT LIKE IT! thank u....
ps. im writing this as i smoke!