Go, Willie!

[heftysmokes]

I debated whether to even put this in the news section, because really, is it even news that Willie Nelson has drugs on his tour bus?
FROM CNN.COM

LAFAYETTE, Louisiana (AP) -- Willie Nelson and four others were issued misdemeanor citations for possession of narcotic mushrooms and marijuana after a traffic stop Monday morning on a Louisiana highway, state police said.

The citations were issued after a commercial vehicle inspection of the country music star's tour bus, state police said in a news release.

"When the door was opened and the trooper began to speak to the driver, he smelled the strong odor of marijuana," the news release said.

A search of the bus produced 11/2 pounds of marijuana and 0.2 pounds of narcotic mushrooms, according to state police.

A call to Nelson's publicist wasn't immediately returned.

Also cited were Tony Sizemore, 59, of St. Cloud, Florida; Bobbie Nelson, 75, of Briarcliff, Texas; Gates Moore, 54, of Austin, Texas; and David Anderson, 50, of Dallas, Texas.

Each was released after being issued a citation.

Nelson, 73, has recorded songs including "On the Road Again" and "City of New Orleans."

[hex1848]

Apparently he got lucky it was in Louisiana:

http://www.la-legal.com/marijuana.htm

Unlike most states, the amount of marijuana in possession, as long as it is less than sixty pounds, does not matter

Here in Florida, that’s a felony with intent to distribute charge.

The amount of money and resources spent on keeping marijuana illegal is ridiculous. Someone needs to sack up and get these laws changed. And I don’t buy the gateway drug bullshit. You could say the same about caffeine, nicotine, or alcohol.

[cigar no baka]

I'm with you, Hex. Weed is so prevalent by now that it is as ridiculous as the prohibition of alchohol in the 1920's. You simply can't tell your people not to do something they really want to do unless you want to put them all in jail.

[Empire23]

Here in California, more than an once and they can get you for being a drug dealer, even though your not selling it.

[hex1848]

This link popped up in a thread over at Metafilter about this:

http://talkleft.com/new_archives/015767.html

Enforcing marijuana prohibition costs taxpayers between $10 billion and $12 billion annually and has led to the arrest of nearly 18 million Americans. Nevertheless, some 94 million Americans acknowledge having used marijuana during their lives. It makes no sense to continue to treat nearly half of all Americans as criminals for their use of a substance that poses no greater - and arguably far fewer - health risks than alcohol or tobacco.

Its hard to disagree.

I know this issue is off topic for this site, but it's something that has been on my mind for quite some time. I'm not sure what can be done to change these laws, but imprisoning non violent drug users does nothing to help society (unless you count the $$ going to lawyers and law enforcement).

I know I would much rather have my tax money going to preventing things like 9/11 then keeping the next door neighbors 19 year old son in jail for 6 months for having a couple onces of weed on him at a traffic stop.

[WOXOF]

Forget about the weed(damn random drug tests) I'll take the shrooms.

[Shelby07]

...they found a pound and a half of marijuana on willie's tour bus... Willie's cutting back.


...they found mushrooms on the bus. Willie's really worried about this. He's afraid he's going to have to spend the rest of 1969 in jail.

[cls515]

I wrote Willie a letter one time. Cool thing about was he wrote me back.

[SuperChuck]

I know this issue is off topic for this site, but it's something that has been on my mind for quite some time. I'm not sure what can be done to change these laws, but imprisoning non violent drug users does nothing to help society (unless you count the $$ going to lawyers and law enforcement).

In a similar vein, I've become annoyed with every state creeping its legal blood alcohol level lower and lower and lower. I'm much less concerned about the guy that had 2 drinks on his way home from work... I'm concerned about the guy driving down the wrong side of the sidewalk.

It seems we're so obsessed with "getting tough on ____" that we fail to apply logic...

[WhiteWidow]

He should have told them it was just for the Bio-Diesel on his bus.

[basil]

In a similar vein, I've become annoyed with every state creeping its legal blood alcohol level lower and lower and lower. I'm much less concerned about the guy that had 2 drinks on his way home from work... I'm concerned about the guy driving down the wrong side of the sidewalk.

It seems we're so obsessed with "getting tough on ____" that we fail to apply logic...

Dude, logic holds that the difference between 2 drinks (the universal answer to any policeman's inquiry) and driving down either side of the sidewalk DOES NOT EXIST WITHOUT THOSE FIRST TWO DRINKS HAVING BEEN CONSUMED FIRST. Hopefully, they'll creep the BAC all the way down to Zero Tolerance. Right now, people drinking and driving are wiping out more lives than all the other drivers under the influence of all the other drugs combined. Rarely, if ever, is anyone stopped and cited for DUI/DWI after 2 drinks (unless s/he is a minor, for whom zero tolerance laws do exist. In Texas, anything detectable [even the smell] may warrant a DUI, which is a class C misdemeanor. At the officer's discretion, they may demand sobriety tests, and cite for DWI, the more serious offense). It just does not happen. Those who say it has happened to them are lying/in denial.

He should have told them it was just for the Bio-Diesel on his bus.

Good one.

[cls515]

Right now, people drinking and driving are wiping out more lives than all the other drivers under the influence of all the other drugs combined.

This is a problem. However, accessibility must be considered. Sure other things are readily available, but many won't take the chance because of legal issues....yet they'll drive intoxicated. Go figure.

[drew_goring]

While we are on (kinda) this subject... why is it more illegal to smoke an ISOM than a jo!nt? I mean, is someone has a pipe big enough to hold an island.... they should be allowed to smoke it.

Ok. That was just stupid. Forgive me...

Because by smoking an ISOM you are supporting the "enemy" (lol)
You are only supporting drug dealers, growers, gangs, meth cookers, etc by smoking pot.

[Cabaiguan Juan]

Because by smoking an ISOM you are supporting the "enemy" (lol)
You are only supporting drug dealers, growers, gangs, meth cookers, etc by smoking pot.

Yep, ISOM comes from communists. I believe General Jack D. Ripper put it best: Mandrake, have you ever seen a Commie drink a glass of water? Case and point, Commies don’t drink water, hence they don’t know squat about the Essence of life and purity. Actually you can find a whole litany of reasons why commies are bad by consulting Dr. Strangelove. Now while ISOM's come from commies, drugs come from terrorizing, manipulative drug lords, unless its weed or shrooms, then it comes from hippies, college kids or entrepreneurs(god bless free economy). But getting back to where all this started, I don’t like driving around people who have been drinking, but I really don’t like driving around generally bad drivers. With all the focus on stopping drunk drivers, people have forgotten about the other hazard on the road, bad drivers. I wish there was something as aggressive for them as for the drunks. Now I'm not saying I'm a perfect driver, but I strive to be. It seams, and I'm reminded of this on a daily basis, that not everyone strives to be a better, considerate and safe driver. Taxi drivers, diplomats, old people, fast people, 'king of the road people', young people, etc...

[cinda]

I always loved Willie.... As for the drug problem in the USA, my vote is legalized all of it and tax it. Put the control back in to our hands with a well educated sociality that differed from before the 1914 Harrison ACT. Make some rules like you can not buy it until your 21 and have past a drug and alcohol pharmaceutical coarse of some kind that can be given in the last year of high school. Yes maybe more will become addicted to things they may normally would not have been addicted to, but we can build more hospitals and treatment programs with the money we make on taxes and the money we save jails police etc. Treat us all like adults, let us make our own decisions on what we place in our bodies. I know a lot of people would disagree with this and it is only my opinion. I see that the guide lines around the sale of it would have to be as strict as the sale of alcohol and the use of it may be limited to only in your private home. I just do not think it can get any worse and those who will abuse it are those who would have abused it anyhow. I rarely drink I do not smoke and the only drugs I take are given to me by a Doctor but my mind is open to another way of resolving this problem. If it doesn't make someone a lot of money there are not going to reproduce it in large quantities. Some how it needs to be devalued monetarily. OK I know I am going to get yelled at.......

[SmokinDVM]

I always loved Willie.... As for the drug problem in the USA, my vote is legalized all of it and tax it. Put the control back in to our hands with a well educated sociality that differed from before the 1914 Harrison ACT. Make some rules like you can not buy it until your 21 and have past a drug and alcohol pharmaceutical coarse of some kind that can be given in the last year of high school. Yes maybe more will become addicted to things they may normally would not have been addicted to, but we can build more hospitals and treatment programs with the money we make on taxes and the money we save jails police etc. Treat us all like adults, let us make our own decisions on what we place in our bodies. I know a lot of people would disagree with this and it is only my opinion. I see that the guide lines around the sale of it would have to be as strict as the sale of alcohol and the use of it may be limited to only in your private home. I just do not think it can get any worse and those who will abuse it are those who would have abused it anyhow. I rarely drink I do not smoke and the only drugs I take are given to me by a Doctor but my mind is open to another way of resolving this problem. If it doesn't make someone a lot of money there are not going to reproduce it in large quantities. Some how it needs to be devalued monetarily. OK I know I am going to get yelled at.......

[Cabaiguan Juan]

I always loved Willie.... As for the drug problem in the USA, my vote is legalized all of it and tax it. Put the control back in to our hands with a well educated sociality that differed from before the 1914 Harrison ACT. Make some rules like you can not buy it until your 21 and have past a drug and alcohol pharmaceutical coarse of some kind that can be given in the last year of high school. Yes maybe more will become addicted to things they may normally would not have been addicted to, but we can build more hospitals and treatment programs with the money we make on taxes and the money we save jails police etc. Treat us all like adults, let us make our own decisions on what we place in our bodies. I know a lot of people would disagree with this and it is only my opinion. I see that the guide lines around the sale of it would have to be as strict as the sale of alcohol and the use of it may be limited to only in your private home. I just do not think it can get any worse and those who will abuse it are those who would have abused it anyhow. I rarely drink I do not smoke and the only drugs I take are given to me by a Doctor but my mind is open to another way of resolving this problem. If it doesn't make someone a lot of money there are not going to reproduce it in large quantities. Some how it needs to be devalued monetarily. OK I know I am going to get yelled at.......

Sounds like a good plan, now if we can get Cinda to run for office...

[basil]

I'm with ya girl.

[cinda]

Sounds like a good plan, now if we can get Cinda to run for office...

I really have some power !

[cls515]

I don't think legalizing drugs will stop any problems except you won't have jail punishment for drugs. I think there will still be corruption, still be addiction...demand would probably increase. Crime would increase overseas to meet the demand if narcotic production is illegal. I was thinking it is similar to guns. Guns don't kill people, it is the people who kill. Same with drugs. It is the people who choose to use. So the problem is with people, and solutions should start at the problem.
Edit - I think that one of the problems is that America is too lenient. We claim we want to have a war on drugs, yet all the punishment is is a slap on the hand, jail time, prison time...when the person using gets out they can go right back to what they were doing and hope not to "go back" to jail. If we want to stop drug usage, and I mean stop, then punishment must be more severe. First determine what is illegal. Since it is defined, if someone gets caught the first time, cut off their arm. If they get caught again, cut off their other arm. For a third time, kill them. I guarantee you will see a drop in drug usage in America. I know that this punishment is extreme and would never fly, but think about what my message is. If you still don't want to see that, check out this scenaro. Say children in school are getting sent to the principal's office because they are cussing. To stop the problem, do you make it ok for them to cuss so they won't get sent to the principal's office?