Talk:Decriminalization of non-medical cannabis in the United States/Archive 2

Talk page before 2009 archived
see the archive above for previous archived discussions to see if they answer your questions. -Tracer9999 (talk) 16:32, 2 December 2012 (UTC)

How to update map
Anyway, here is the VERY simple way to modify this image. It is a vector image, which means it is defined in text. Download it, then open it in notepad or emacs or whatever. Find this bit of text:



Replace that with

style="fill:#008000" />

Then save the file and upload it. That will make Massachusetts green. 199.107.45.222 (talk) 16:33, 18 December 2008 (UTC)

what's up with the map?
the map seems to have nothing to do with the content of the article. the article says Colorado and Alaska didn't pass decrim laws, and yet it's highlighted, Maine isn't even mentioned in the article. The map or the article needs to be fixed

The Talking Sock talk contribs 04:54, 23 February 2009 (UTC)

Also Massachusetts needs to be added to the the map as they decriminalized marijuana possession. someone want to take a stab at it. I have no idea how to do maps so its all on you. Im gonna check the accuracy and if its not accurate Im going to remove it from the article so someone fix's it. -13:32, 17 April 2010 (UTC)


 * Map has been updated to reflect the change in MA cannabis law. --DraconianDebate (talk) 05:50, 26 May 2010 (UTC)

Thank You! -Tracer9999 (talk) 23:08, 26 May 2010 (UTC)

Mass just legalized medicinal marijuana. The map needs to be updated please, I don't know how. Nor how to tag this post. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.168.106.41 (talk) 01:25, 10 November 2012 (UTC)

currently it is now updated correctly. thanks -Tracer9999 (talk) 16:31, 2 December 2012 (UTC)

Half a Thought
The introduction says: >... Opponents argue that cannabis on the street today has a much higher percent of THC with a stronger drug effect... "Higher" and "stronger" are relative terms. Higher and stronger than what? 72.25.17.64 (talk) 08:08, 17 September 2013 (UTC)

Increased Crime section
Whether or not you support decriminalization isn't the issue. This section, however, gives undue weight to the claim decriminalization doesn't increase crime when we have some evidence that it may. Here are a few examples:

The National Bureau of Economic Research found "There is a positive association between self-reported use at the time of the offense and non-drug related violent, property and income-producing crime even after accounting for other substance use in the ADAM data. Reduced form equations using both data sets only provide evidence supporting a causal mechanism for property and income-producing crime. In the case of violent crime, we find a statistically significant association with arrests but not reported crime, suggesting that marijuana use may just influence the likelihood of getting caught committing these crimes."

The Violent Behavior as Related to Use of Marijuana and Other Drugs reported "Greater frequency of use of marijuana was found unexpectedly to be associated with greater likelihood to commit weapons offenses; and this association was not found for any of the other drugs, except for alcohol. Marijuana use was also found associated with commission of Attempted Homicide/Reckless Endangerment offenses."

White House director of national drug-control policy Gil Kerlikowske also claims "a study by his office showed a strong link between drug use and crime." — Preceding unsigned comment added by 172.218.33.77 (talk) 06:20, 8 January 2014 (UTC)


 * At a glance, none of these sources appear to support the statement that decriminalization increases crime. They seem to indicate that there is a "halo effect" between contact with criminal drug distribution and other crime. This is unsurprising and not particularly relevant. VQuakr (talk) 20:58, 15 January 2014 (UTC)

Merge discussion
I propose that Cannabis and lobbying efforts be merged into this article, which would enhance content in it. NorthAmerica1000 15:34, 5 May 2014 (UTC)
 * Agree I agree with NorthAmerica's proposal. The retention of both articles creates an unnecessary content fork.  WikiDan61 ChatMe!ReadMe!! 15:47, 5 May 2014 (UTC)


 * Comment - Cannabis and lobbying efforts has been nominated for deletion. See Articles for deletion/Cannabis and lobbying efforts. NorthAmerica1000 19:45, 5 May 2014 (UTC)
 * Oppose merge per my AfD !vote to delete and WP:NPOV. VQuakr (talk) 05:10, 7 May 2014 (UTC)

Update
This doesn't seem to have gone anywhere yet, so I'll go to Cannabis and lobbying efforts and salvage what I can for this merge-in. But there's lots of cn and POV stuff that won't make it over. Goonsquad LCpl Mulvaney (talk) 17:46, 14 July 2014 (UTC)

Opinion piece used as RS
The article from The Nation is questionable, as as stated by the publisher it is a "Weekly journal of opinion, featuring analysis on politics and culture." Therefore, the article can be used to verify the opinion of the author, but not of the validity of the content. A non-opinion source should be found.

The multitude of sections for the reasons for the supporters of this subject as compared to the three sections for the reasons for the opposition of this subject calls into question whether this article is neutral. This article should not serve to advocate the subject or be a vehicle for it.--RightCowLeftCoast (talk) 19:54, 8 September 2014 (UTC)

Additions
Looks like Delaware just decriminalized: http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2015/jun/19/delaware-recreational-marijuana-decriminalised I'm not comfortable editing a page, but thought it was worth noting here. Sorry to bother if not. — Preceding unsigned comment added by 98.158.206.112 (talk) 22:17, 19 June 2015 (UTC)

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My $0.02s on this article (outdated information, under representation of opposition, etc)
First and foremost, I think the overall structure of this article is very organized and concise. The way it is set up allows it to be an educational handbook for anyone in the dark about the legality of possession, sale, and consumption of marijuana (in terms of quantity) in their respective state. With that being said, here are some areas of this article that I think can be improved on:

Updates Policies of marijuana decriminalization in California On the 8th of November 2016, California passed [| Prop. 64 or Adult Use of Marijuana Act] in which legalized recreational marijuana use and regulated businesses in the state.

Possibly also add a section for New York? I know there are many other states that aren't covered but New York has a large population and is a major hub in the East Coast. New York also had an update in its marijuana policy in[| 2014].

[| Advocacy] When we are listing politicians that have shown support for the decriminalization of marijuana, we cannot forget about 2016 Presidential Candidate [| Bernie Sanders], who has been very clear to the public on his feelings toward the legalization of marijuana.

Close-Paraphrasing & none/false citation [| Alaska] “On November 4, 2014, voters in Alaska approved Measure 2 by 52-48 percent. As a result of its passage, the measure will allow people age 21 and older to possess up to one ounce of marijuana and up to six plants. It will also make the manufacture, sale and possession of marijuana paraphernalia legal. These changes will be implemented at the state level; however, these acts will still remain illegal under federal law.” This statement, although possibly true, lacks sourcing. I also found this identical paragraph on other websites such as [| this ballotpedia page]

″“Prior to November 6, 2012, the cities of Breckenridge and Denver had passed measures to make possession of up to one ounce of cannabis legal, although possession was still a crime under state and federal law.[32]”″

Vincent Gray is the mayor of D.C, the bill he signs does not pertain to the laws and regulations of Colorado? Correct me if I'm wrong, not sure how they relate to each other.

[| Arguments in Opposition] I think the general attitude of this article is slightly imbalanced in favor of the proponents. There are still some good arguments in opposition of legalizing marijuana. One such argument was made by [| Robert J. Chapman], retired Associate Clinical Professor of Behavioral Health Counseling at Drexel University, Philadelphia, PA, in which he makes note of how the drugs that are most costly to society are the ones that are legal; such as alcohol and tobacco. He fears that treating marijuana as such a drug can lead to indirect adverse effects. Codygnaw (talk) 08:21, 5 November 2017 (UTC)

Critique of Entry
Overall, I would say that this article does a decent job at covering the important information necessary to discuss the decriminalization and viewpoints of both sides of the argument. The structure of the article does a good job at providing an overarching idea of the history of decriminalization, and the subsections provide information at a more specific level in a concise manner. However, there are things that can be changed to further improve this article in order to give readers the best opportunity to read it through and take information from it.

The first change/addition I recommend making is linking to the actual legislative bills referenced, whether they be state or federal, in order to provide readers the opportunity to first hand see the language and make inferences and opinions themselves. Similarly, I believe this would be good policy in regards to other documents that can be publicly viewed, i.e. Supreme Court rulings, briefs, and concurring/dissenting opinions. References to these are nice in learning through the history of decriminalization, but inclusion of the actual language will prove useful to readers in properly gaining an understanding of different arguments and legislation.

The article, while filled with factual information is lagging behind on keeping up to date with the changes we are seeing nationally and state by the state in regards to cannabis laws. Specifically, California passed Proposition 60 in 2016, legalizing recreational use of cannabis for those 21 years old and above, and passed provisions for the implementation of legalized sales of cannabis in the state beginning in 2018. Other states similarly have passed new laws in regards to cannabis, so some time should be taken to make sure all are up to date.

The article seems to be in favor of the decriminalization of cannabis. While arguments from both sides are shown with similar relevance and respect, some language in the article does seem loaded. In the first section the phrase "actual dangerous illicit drugs" shows the contributor to be of the opinion that cannabis is not an "actual dangerous illicit drug". The goal of the article is just to inform, and therefore editing of language like this should be done in order to take out any sort of unintended bias the article may be showing.

In the past few years, given better data on marijuana usage seen from increased usage and legalization of cannabis in some states, more studies have been conducted in the way cannabis can effect its users. The section on Increased Cannabis Usage fails to cite a source since 2004, which seems odd given the multitude of available studies. Inclusion of multiple studies should be included. They should represent a variety of views both in favor and opposition of decriminalization and be presented in a manner that states just their findings, and possible flaws in the findings.Krnagin (talk) 19:56, 9 November 2017 (UTC) Krnagin (talk) 19:55, 9 November 2017 (UTC)

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