President Obama believes that marijuana is not as dangerous as alcohol --- probably because it's true.
On Monday, January 20, 2014 3:46:55 PM UTC-6, Travis wrote: > > > > > > > > > > > [image: MailOnline - news, sport, celebrity, science and health > stories]<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/> > > *Monday, Jan 20 2014* 3PM *44°F* 6PM *44°F* 5-Day Forecast > <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/weather/index.html> > > *President Obama says marijuana is 'less dangerous' than alcohol - but the > drug is still off limits for Sasha and Malia* > > - *In an interview with the New Yorker, Mr Obama said that the federal > ban unfairly targets minorities and the poor* > - *However he says legalization in Colorado and Washington will be a > 'challenge' * > - *If legalized on the national level, he says it could lead to a > slippery slope with harder drugs* > > By Ashley > Collman<http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/search.html?s=&authornamef=Ashley+Collman> > > > *PUBLISHED:* 18:31 EST, 19 January 2014 | *UPDATED:* 09:17 EST, 20 > January 2014 > > President Obama believes that marijuana is not as dangerous as alcohol and > that the ban in most states unfairly targets the poor and minorities. > > In an interview with the *New > Yorker*<http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2014/01/27/140127fa_fact_remnick?currentPage=all>, > > the president stated that marijuana use is not something that he would > suggest for his daughters or anyone else, but prohibition has become a > problem for the U.S. > > 'As has been well documented, I smoked pot as a kid, and I view it as a > bad habit and a vice, not very different from the cigarettes that I smoked > as a young person up through a big chunk of my adult life. I don’t think it > is more dangerous,' Mr Obama said. > > [image: Liberal view: In an interview with the New Yorker, President Obama > stated that he believes marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol] > > Liberal view: In an interview with the New Yorker, President Obama stated > that he believes marijuana is no more dangerous than alcohol > > Marijuana has been a taboo topic for politicians, and even caused former > President Bill Clinton some troubles while running for office in 1992 when > it was revealed he smoked pot while studying in England, and he responded > that he 'didn't inhale' and 'didn't try it again'. > > President Obama on the other hand, has been far more candid, admitting to > smoking pot and even taking cocaine in his 1995 memoir Dreams of My Father. > > 'I think that, at this stage, my life is an open book, literally and > figuratively,' he said while running for Senate in Illinois. 'Voters can > make a judgment as to whether dumb things that I did when I was a teenager > are relevant to the work that I've done since that time.' > > By 2008, voter sentiment across the U.S. had relaxed on the issue of > marijuana enough that it didn't seem to factor much in his campaign. > > In the New Yorker interview, Mr Obama clarified that he believes pot is > less dangerous than alcohol 'in terms of its impact on the individual > consumer. It's not something I encourage, and I've told my daughters I > think it's a bad idea, a waste of time, not very healthy.' > > But the most troubling aspect of the federal ban on marijuana is it's > impact on specific segments of the population - especially > African-Americans like himself. > > [image: The future: American opinion seems to be falling in line with Mr > Obama following the recent legalization of recreational marijuana in > Colorado and Washington State. Above, a legal Denver dispensary] > > The future: American opinion seems to be falling in line with Mr Obama > following the recent legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado and > Washington State. Above, a legal Denver dispensary > > 'Middle-class kids don’t get locked up for smoking pot, and poor kids do,' > he said. 'And African-American kids and Latino kids are more likely to be > poor and less likely to have the resources and the support to avoid unduly > harsh penalties.' > > 'We should not be locking up kids or individual users for long stretches > of jail time when some of the folks who are writing those laws have > probably done the same thing,' Mr Obama added. > > Following the recent legalization of recreational marijuana in Colorado > and Washington State, the tide seems to be turning towards a more liberal > view of pot usage. > > The president said it's important for legalization to happen in Colorado > and Washington because 'it’s important for society not to have a situation > in which a large portion of people have at one time or another broken the > law and only a select few get punished.' > > At the same time, Mr Obama believes legalizing marijuana is going to be a > challenge for the two states, and that legalizing the substance nationwide > lead society in the wrong direction. > > 'I also think that, when it comes to harder drugs, the harm done to the > user is profound and the social costs are profound. And you do start > getting into some difficult line-drawing issues,' Mr Obama said. > > 'If marijuana is fully legalized and at some point folks say, well, we can > come up with a negotiated dose of cocaine that we can show is not any more > harmful than vodka, are we open to that? If somebody says, We’ve got a > finely calibrated dose of meth, it isn’t going to kill you or rot your > teeth, are we O.K. with that?' > > > > Read more: > http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2542343/President-Obama-says-marijuana-dangerous-alcohol.html#ixzz2qws5yh8e > > > > __._,_.___ > > > > > > __,_._,___ > > > -- -- Thanks for being part of "PoliticalForum" at Google Groups. For options & help see http://groups.google.com/group/PoliticalForum * Visit our other community at http://www.PoliticalForum.com/ * It's active and moderated. Register and vote in our polls. * Read the latest breaking news, and more. --- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "PoliticalForum" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
