Damn,,,, Steve Family Man,, Christian,,, Travel Educator,,,, weed smoker,,,awesome,,,, I don't smoke weed anymore,,, but to each his own,,, I would prefer weed to beer,,,,, but will always love the Sinatra Barcardi and Coke
Been smoking for 30 years. I’m a solid contributor to society, have never been arrested, never been in an accident, never been fired from a job, and I’m every bit as lucid today as I was when I was 18. I have a master’s degree and graduated 2nd in my class...and was stoned nearly every night during grad school.
What HAS changed for me is that I don’t drink alcohol anymore. Can’t take the hangovers! :-)
im with rick steve on this one.. I love his show rick steves europe.... anyway... if u pay your bills and get up everyday and go to work (like I do) then their shouldnt be an issue of the average working man to kick back and fire up a bong and play Goldeneye Source 1138 clan ftw
I agree. I don't smoke or do anything like that but shouldn't it be our right to decide what we put in our bodies if it doesn't affect the other people. The issue is when people get high and are like their drunk (kinda) but if people want to smoke majuanja that's their right. Mabye if it wasn't illegal then their wouldn't be so many irresponsible users b/c they may only smoke for the badness or ilawfull credit
Here's an interesting thought...in the modern day and age where everyone seeks education and doesn't want to work in "blue collar" lines of work there is an immense competition for jobs and immense outsourcing of cheap labor...That said I believe if marijuana was legalized in the states then these problems would lessen. (I don't smoke any more but I'm all for legalization!)
@nardmanman ugh.. im going to have to stop smoking it soon due to drug tests I have to take.. Im getting a job at CSIS which is basically canadas FBI and they are hard on that stuff unfortunately.. which is stupid, but its not like i can do anything about it.
if you ever watch any of Rick Steves programs, in country's that look at drugs has a health problem rather than a law problem he spotlights that some how in every program...I look at has a note to say, hay you Americans dont freak out if you see someone using here, its not like America.
Isn't ironic that the U.S. is so adamant to keep maraijuana illegal yet, they control the heroin trade and let most of the hard drugs in here in the first place?
At 3:59 Rick says : "Am I drinking while empaired. uh, throw the book at 'em" Ha, ha, ha Should have said, "Am I DRIVING while empaired..." Must have smoked a joing before the filming lol.
I've never smoked weed in my life and probably never will, but even I agree with him. I see no harm in it. It's similar to, if not better, than drinking, and I think that an adult should have the civil right to decide whether it's okay or not.
POT HEADS! put down ur munchies and ur bongs for a sec. listen fooocuuuss ooonn tthhhiisss. get a job, cut ur hair, and move out of ur mothers basement.
@arivas713 some of us POT HEAD can afford a hair cut hold can hold a well paid job and have managed to move out of our mothers basement. smoking pot beats sitting in a pub distroying my liver and my mind. YES its a choice and its mine NOT the goverments cannabis should be legal and some day it will be
@arivas713 some of us POT HEADS can afford a hair cut hold can hold a well paid job and have managed to move out of our mothers basement. smoking pot beats sitting in a pub distroying my liver and my mind. YES its a choice and its mine NOT the goverments cannabis should be legal and some day it will be
@YummyspaceMonkey - canibus will neeeveer be legal. here in cali (what, the most liberal state in the union) its around fifty percent approval but, will it pass? maybe and but heres the caveat FEDERAL TRUMPS STATE! no matter what happens in the left coast, the feds will win. lawsuit? ahhh supreme court? probaly, yes but the outcome will be against legalization for the sheer fact that as mentioned above federal law trumps state.
@CLEE1395 wtf? i was trying to save space! you can only get a certain amount of words and letters (500 to be exact) mellow, dude mellow, go smoke somemore, maybe that will calm ur ass down.
@CLEE1395 i was wasnt i? that was a just a joke clee, not very funny i know but it was the best i could come up with here. before it may have seemed like i was being an ass, and i guess i was but i was being honest. it will be practically impossible to get any pro-ganja legislation through congress, mind you that you will have to amend the controlled substance act act of 1970. state legislation or no state legislation, fed trumps state and if it will go to the supreme court, the feds will win.
@YummyspaceMonkey okay no luck with the judicial branch, now try the legislative one. nope either. even among the democrats (which are the liberal among the two) dont think you have 100% approval, and lets face it, the republicans will go against it. see pipe dreams. besides im so sure that ur local representative will like to be the pot head of the group.
Yea Rick Steves! He has spent his lifetime helping to make people make connections throughout the world trough travel. And putting himself out on the line to ending Cannabis Prohibition in the good 'ol U.S.A.
I don't partake but I cannot stand that some of my tax $ goes to keeping people in jail for inhaling smoke. this is just sick. I knew a guy who spent a few years in prison for smoking. he could have gone to college, but instead he spent those years learning to be afraid and demoralized. he ended up having a kid when he got out and could not shake his demons. wife divorced him and now he tells his kid stories of jail and government when he sees him on the weekends. is that justice?
I don't have cable television and sometimes watch this guy on his show rick steve's europe. I never had any idea he was a cannabis activist! Good stuff
lets not fool ourselves...cannabis has been used by humans since the dawn of humankind. some of the greatest ppl in history have used it. carl sagan to name one. you would be surprised at how many so called "straight-laced" ppl use it. every leader of every country has used it. next time you see ppl like katie couric or those ppl on fox news...realize that they probably use it also.
i saw an info-mercial thing from a couple yrs ago about marijuana laws with rick as the host. it was in favor of legalization but rick said "i do not use it myself".
the tax revenue plus the energy benefits alone would make it worth while to legalize it....not to mention the savings by not putting non-violent ppl in prison for yrs. this country needs to grow up and learn from other countries.
Rick Steves: I have adored your show for years, but I did not know of your stance on legalizing cannabis, 'til now...I must say I will watch you on ALL of your wonderful travel shows----you give an old grandmother hope, that one day I might just see it legalized! Thank you, and many blessings to you!
I love Rick Steve's travel show, but to this issue I'll say what I always say: This country can't handle the two legal drugs it has now. I don't see how anyone can say that we need another one.
@jfidajoiiejrjj It doesn't matter if cannabis is legal or not, it is still used by millions of Americans. At least if it was legal the government could benefit from it in tax revenue, not to mention the American people would finally be free to exercise their right to freedom without fearing criminal charges. But of course, the "justice system" is a lucrative business. Why would the government want to give people what is due to them when they can lock them up for it and make millions of dollars?
legalizing it would put so many criminal justice professionals out of a job, as well as destroy the healthy profit drug dealers earn. This is just wrong. Putting these honest hard working Americans in the poor house. Keep Cannabis profitable, keep it illegal !!!
@RashtraVishnu indeed, those boys and girls with guns and significant social power simply don't want to trade their guns for nursing smocks when this becomes less of a criminal issue and more of a health and social issue.
He makes a good point. If every single person in america who would test positive for pot today, were thrown in prison tomorrow, the nation would grind to a halt. It a ridiculous outdated law that was originally enacted for nefarious reasons. Our culture needs to evolve and focus more on civil rights.
@SuperSexyBoiGod- you're right; you have seen through me. I am a sham- my life is the worst. I will go kill myself now. Thanks for showing me the light.
@SubconsciousGatherer , yes, I believe it's responsible except to get drunk or altered in consciousness. I've never been drunk my entire life, yet I drink a glass of wine virtually every day. It also has health benefits. The whole idea about pot would be to get out of reality.
@protochris - What's wrong with altering your reality? You may not be getting drunk, but drinking wine every day, even just for health benefits, is a form of changing your reality. Have you ever exercised and felt a high from the rush of oxygen and adrenaline? Have you ever watched a scary movie and freaked yourself out? I can't seen any moral reason for NOT having the freedom to change your reality if you choose to do so, whether it's with substances or not.
@SubconsciousGatherer, I dont see drinking wine as mentally altering my reality. The exercise and the scary movie are a heightened senses of awareness, and it's not a result of ingesting anything. I've not experienced pot, but from what I've seen it do to my friends and family it appears to dull the senses. You might have the ability to be a responsible pot smoker, but do you really know a lot of people like yourself. I believe you'd have to be the exception.
@protochris - What I meant about wine altering your reality is that your reality would be a certain way WITHOUT it (i.e. "less healthy"), so you drink it in order to alter your reality ("make you more healthy"). Whether you're intoxicated or not is another issue; I was just making the point that what you're doing with wine is in fact a version of altering your reality, and that altering your reality is not a bad thing.
this guy is too stiff to be a pothead. well maybe, because he cant say anything unless he's reading a prompter. is he really from seattle? the same seattle
that jimi and kurt reared from. no way! PLEASE NO. hahahahahaha
Rick said "you can't legislate" morality, yet he is for Socialized healthcare because it is moral to do so. Also, laws against murder and theft are moral. Playing the "can't legislate morality" card is often a ruse to get what you want to get.
He's talking about things like personal drug use, gambling, and prostitution which have never been stopped by laws and have only become more dangerous because of their illegality.
I'll make a deal with you. When the government quits taxing me to pay for their social programs and welfare handouts then I'll let you destroy your lungs anyway you please. I don't like paying for the cost of policing people either, but I'm going to piss you off as much as I can as long as I have to pay taxes.
@Entropy56 Why don't you look up the 2006 Tashkin study and tell me how much people are destroying their lungs. You haven't researched this and you didn't even address my point about what Steve's was talking about. And when did I say I was for any social program? You're an angry guy and it sounds like you really don't care about freedom as much as you think.
@Entropy56 Sorry, I guess you did address the policing costs, but consider the cost in dollars of both arresting 800,000 people on marijuana charges alone a year and the fact that we're funding the mexican cartels at the same time as the dea by keeping it illegal. That's where your tax dollars are going. It should be taxed and regulated and it would actually produce revenue. People are already using mj and prohibition has been a terrible failure. Why do you want to keep paying for it?
I say we adopt the strict drug laws of Thailand and Singapore and put some real fear into lawbreakers. None of this namby pamby stuff. Eventually it will be reduced to a trickle. There is no serious war on drugs. It is a joke.
Then do you think we should do that to people that use alcohol and cigarettes too? Those are both far more dangerous than cannabis. Do you really think that kind of extreme enforcement is really going to happen in the US? Surely you don't, so what's the point of continuing this war on drugs? It's costing a fortune. I think you're failing to see that this is not left vs right argument. It benefits all tax payers and the end of prohibition is supported by people of all political stripes.
Drugs create a health issue. Taxpayers have to pay for it. 75,000 people are killed by alcohol each year, including innocent people, which makes the Iraq war look like a Sunday stroll. There is no such thing as "private use" of mind-altering drugs.
Find me one death from cannabis. It's nothing like alcohol. This is one drug that has very few problems, and if there are any they are already here and have not been slowed down by prohibition. We're already paying for health costs associated with drugs in general, but we're also paying a fortune to support prohibition. Why pay for both?
Refuted? Really? Actually I think beer drinking went down but hard liquor went up and you know darn well that alcohol prohibition led to the handing over of taxable revenue to murderous gangs. People also died and or went blind from tainted alcohol because there was no regulation. Nobody looks back and says "what a success that was" And even if actual usage went down (like to see the hard evidence on that) the demand certainly wasn't reduced. That's the point, there's no stopping the demand.
Also, I just want say that I know where you're coming from on the health issue but Dr. Tashkin, who has been researching this drug for over thirty years (funded by NIDA in order to find health dangers) has come out for support of legalization due to lack of significant health problems associated with it. Even if there were though, prohibition didn't work for alcohol either which is why we pay the health costs--to avoid the problems that prohibition brought. Food for thought.
You seem to know a lot about this topic. Can you tell me what countries have legalized pot but have not outlawed personal firearms or instituted socialized medicine? I would like to know.
The point is that pot smoking along with other illicit drugs were made popular by the 1960 radicals who were the worst thing to happen to the US. The decline of the US and its world appeal happened at this time along with the decline of America in academics. Now these radicals are the Democrats who are Socialist and want more control of everything. Throwing the bone of drug use is just a ruse to pretend to offer more freedom while taking it away.
Rick Steves is a Europeanized Socialist so it is not surprising to hear him support free drug use. In the other video I mentioned before, Rick says that poverty promotes violence. I left my comments proving him an ignorant Socialist fool who gets his ideas from hanging out too much with European Socialists.
Old people today lived through the Great Depression and the 2nd World War where things were scarce. They sacrificed a lot. Then in the 1950s, they finally had their chance to make some money and get on with life - only to have their children reject them in the 60s.
These selfish brats wanted to change the world and get as much pleasure as they could without effort.
Underlying pot is a whole self-serving hedonistic philosophy that is worse than the drug itself. Rick puts on a nice face.
Hey Entropy56, You're blaming the drug instead of the people that you so hate. You're making the drug the scapegoat just like Nixon did. He was responsible for giving the Schafer commission the duty of drawing up a report on cannabis and it came back & recommended that it be decriminalized and rescheduled. What did he do? He ramped up the drug war like never before. It just doesn't make sense. Forget the sixties and look at now. It's not a conservative vs liberal issue. It's common sense.
You seem to want to blame the decline of this country on "60's radicals" and pot smokers.
What about the wholesale offshoring of our manufacturing jobs by big corporations? The liberals you loathe had NOTHING to do with that- that was the market you most likely worship.
This country is being destroyed by plutocrats- not liberals; and it saddens me to see someone like you unwittingly fighting on behalf of the powerful, and at your own expense.
R. Reagan who exported U.S. jobs --NOT pot smokers. It was Tricky Dick Nixon who sold us out to China; today, as a result China is at the top of the CIAs World Fact Book with the world's largest POSITIVE Current Acct Balance; the U.S. is on bottom with the largest NEGATIVE Current Acct Balance, formerly called Balance of Trade Deficit. What do we produce? We are where we are because GOP sellouts EXPORTED our jobs. Has NOTHING to do with pot smoking. In fact, POT ought to be legalized.
@tristramshandy3 I found it surprising that despite our exporting jobs overseas, our unemployment rate over the last 25 years has basically maintained the same level (excluding the current crisis, of course).
@hawaiidispenser you shouldn't be surprised by that. it isn't so much about quantity as it is about quality. we have been losing good paying manufacturing jobs, and replacing them with service sector jobs. People used to make good money making things- now they make shitty money servicing loans and doing collections for the financial industry.
@tristramshandy3 But it looks like consumers are spending more money on services now, rather than manufactured goods, which matches the shift. I never thought manufacturing jobs were considered better than service jobs, but maybe I'm wrong. Do you know the average income of each type?
chtezilagel said, "You're blaming the drug instead of the people that you so hate." Huh?
I said, "Underlying pot is a self-serving hedonistic philosophy..."
I'm against the drug and the philosophy behind it which revealed itself in the 60s counter-culture. This is just another assault on America. Next will be legitimizing gays in the military, universal health care, higher taxes, and the weakening of America. The same applies to legalizing prostitution.
You might find it strange, but I am not against people smoking pot under the radar nor against gays in the military or paying money for sex, (which I have done several times.)
I am against the public legitimizing of certain behaviors. To blame drug laws for the violence in Mexico is like Rick Steves blaming poverty on crime. Pot is not the end of it. They will want more.
Likewise, if Americans want "free" healthcare then they should first lose their goddamn fat and be responsible.
If you're not against people doing it "under the radar", then why should bother fund a drug war that doesn't work? BTW, paying for sex is a hell of lot more dangerous than smoking pot and to me it is amoral, yet I wouldn't say you can't do it. Just that I wouldn't do it. What right do you have to say I should be arrested for smoking a plant in my own living room? Drug laws and US demand for cannabis is responsible for violence in Mexico which is why they decriminalized it there.
There is no "philosophy" behind the drug which is why I say you are blaming the drug instead of the people. You're saying they're self serving brats and so forth and that the drug has something to do with it. The drug is an inanimate object. You seem to still not understand that this is actually a conservative issue. Are libertarians just a bunch of pot smoking hippies?
"Contrary to popular belief, marijuana has been found to play a significant role in car accidents across the United States with as much as 33 percent of drivers arrested at the scene of the accident being positive for marijuana and another 12 percent testing positive for both marijuana and cocaine (Brookoff, Cook and Mann, 1994; Sonderstrom, Dischinger, Kerns and Trillis, 1995)."
Oh come on. MJ stays in your system for two weeks and the high only lasts for a couple of hours. They have no idea if people were high or not. Look at how many of those had alcohol in their system at the time of the crash. Most. The NHTSA has done two real studies on the effects and found nothing very scary about ti at all. They've also looked at crash data and found that the vast majority had alcohol in their system. Anyway, what does that have to do with allowing people to be responsible?
I'm not a Libertarian; I'm Republican. I am Athiest. I have worked with gays, lesbians, Liberals, and with people smoking pot in my workspace that I had to breath. I've seen it all. My grandfather was in WW1; my father in WW2, uncle in Korean War, 3 of my older brothers in Vietnam War. Took care of my disabled father for years. Yes, we have paid our dues to shape this country.
@tristramshandy3 I'm sorry man but not everyone lives their lives based on politics and what party and religion they follow. If you stepped away from the whole political part of it and just looked at the issue maybe you wouldnt be so curious. If you let politics run your life and what you do you have issues my friend! Thank you rick for lying down the truth you speak for 100,000 + people in this country.
never mind- I just read some more of your posts and I think I see where you are coming from. I couldn't disagree with you more; but I see where you are coming from (I think).
The NHTSA summarized all of it's studies and said there was "no indication that marijuana by itself was a cause of fatal accidents," and that alcohol was by far the "dominant problem" in drug related accidents. You can find all kinds of antidrug propaganda out there because the NIDA funds it all! The DEA wants to keep their jobs and keep you paying for it.
i'm curious to know if you would find it offensive for businesses to restrict workers from smoking pot during or before work? What restrictions? Driving?
I have a feeling that most pot smokers would abuse any freedom they got and begin to encourage other people to try it too.
In 2009 a co-worker tried to persuade me to try some. He was from Italy (now gone back) and and said the West has some of the best in the world. Of course, he was for Socialized healthcare as most Europeans are.
It should be just like alcohol. Don't assume what most pot smokers would do or how they think. They're not one type of person, they're different people just as we all are. Why are you so obsessed with the idea that the use of cannabis is married to socialism? That's just crazy. See what Milton Friedman, William F. Buckley, and Ron Paul have said about it. Bob Bar supports legalization now. It's not about political affiliations at all, it's about ending a bad policy.
It is a ruse, as I said before. A side issue. The main agenda of most pot advocates is Marxism. The government will eventually control all drugs, healthcare, pot, and every aspect of our lives. You better be happy to at least have a black market now in order to keep the government out of it. Until I see a serious movement among the *majority* of pot advocates to limit all government then I will not support it because just like abortion - my taxes will eventually subsidise it.
I'll be happy to pay taxes to fight these drug criminals until they give up and decide to vote for limited government. I'd rather pay for pissing off Socialists then paying for their Marixist agendas which will cost way more and ruin the US economy.
Will you at least look into some of what I've told you here? Legalizing cannabis is not a "Marxist" conspiracy for crying out loud, or why would the very conservative people I mentioned support it? You're tax dollars are being pissed away on a war that doesn't work. The government is not "out of it" at all. They're raking in your tax dollars to pay their mortgages by fighting a "war" that was doomed from the start. It's not a side issue either. We're spending money we don't have on this.
I wouldn't have gone to war. I would have just bombed the hell out of Sadam's palace. Then let Sadam consider going after the terriorists himself to save his skin. If Muslims attacked us again then I would bomb the Dome of the Rock or one mosque at a time in Iraq or somewhere.
It is obvious that most pot advocates are Liberals because Libertarians are a tiny minority. You can advocate for legalized pot all you want but it will not be on Libertarian terms.
I think republicans need to realize that it's not consistent with a conservative philosophy to advocate the federal government barging into people's homes and arresting them for this. The feds think it's ok to supersede state law and arrest ms patients in wheelchairs at med. marijuana clinics. That's not conservative at all. I don't know what you call that kind of BS. I don't know how anyone can support that and call themselves conservatives.
Interesting you brought up MS. I mentioned that I took care of my father in a previous post. He had MS. I've had MS now for 14 years and can't walk more than a few yards. If pot really did work as some people claim it does, then drug companies would figure out a way to safely market it.
But by all means get some from the black market if it works for you. I've personally bought non illicit drugs that way because I couldn't get a prescription or it was cheaper. Just keep it private.
It's perfectly safe to use even in it's smoked form, but using a vaporizer is much better because it doesn't produce smoke and still has an immediate effect. Many. many people with with MS have found great relief from this. Drug companies are all over this like stink on a monkey actually! They're filing for patent after patent. Our own government has a patent on cannabinoids. Look it up. Don't think for a minute though that what pharm. comes out with is any safer than the actual thing. (cont.)
It should be allowed to be used as medicine by you, without government intervention, I just thinks that's wrong. Good luck, I'm sorry you're dealing with that. Do look into what it does for MS patients, There are some videos here on the subject I think. Forget what the gov. says and do what's right for you. Take care of yourself.
I already had a chance to try pot from my Italian friend I mentioned before. I said no thanks. I eventually found that Balcofen does what he claimed pot would do for me, namely, to relax my spasms. There are some other fringe drugs some people claim works, such as, Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN), Aminopyridine, Prokarin.
I saw a video of a guy promoting pot once. His MS was extreme but the pot didn't do enough to remove his misery. Me? I'd just blow my brains out. Anyway, I got to go.
what are you talking about dude? this thing is about libertarian values, the libertarian values are based egalitarianism, and he's saying that pot doesn't harm people and therefore should be legalized. you know, libertarians and liberals aren't neccesarily enemies, we do have one basic tenent that is the same, civil liberties
Yes, it is about libertarian philosophy. However, libertarians are tainted when they talk about the cost of law enforcement and medical therapies. Your message should be purely about the free right to do what you want. As soon as you appeal to economics and medicine, you fail. Therefore, I don't trust libertarians. Ayn Rand would have nothing to do with today's libertarians.
The fact that marijuana may be dangerous is a reason to legalize and regulate- the same way we do with other dangerous substances- alcohol, tobacco, etc.
did you know that corporate welfare exceeds all social welfare programs in the USA today?
Ask yourself, if you are capable of independent thought, why it is that you are so worked up about govt waste and fraud- but only express outrage over social spending, which, again, is NOT as large as corporate welfare programs- from direct subsidies to grants for R&D.
The right seems to have this problem with alarming consistency- must be all the hate filled corporate propaganda y'all listen to.
Do the research. He doesn't smoke, and he doesn't support smoking. He supports DECRIMINALIZATION. Geniuses like Lipstick cannot comprehend the difference, hence the defensive flare-up below. Ignore her. She means no harm, she just doesn't get it.
Criminalisation of mariujana leads nowhere (and this point being said from living in Czech Republic, where it is legal to both plant and use, not to sell), but it always should be said loudly that it has influence on development of schizophrenia, which shouldn't be underestimated.
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I don't care what you have to say any way! I see the pot head liberal swarm came in to down rave my comments. lol Cowards! All I said was it was disappointing to know that Rick Steves thinks this way. It doesn't take away from the fact that I like his show. But you all downrave like the herd of Cowards you are...
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I love his show, but I'm very disappointed after watching this video. I kind of had Rick Steves as being better than that in my own mind. His shows will seem a bit different to me now. Which is really disappointing to me. I really do wish singers, actors and entertainers would keep some things to themselves and just do what we loved them for in the first place.
What disappoints you, the fact that he is a proponent of a substance that is far safer than alcohol? Nobody has ever overdosed on cannabis, it's not addicting, and it's prohibition is killing innocent people and giving billions to the drug cartels.
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I've already explained why knowing this disappoints me. If you think pot is not addicting you're wrong. No, it is NOT like other drugs BUT it's still a drug, and it is somewhat addicting, and it's still illegal.
@LipstickRepublican1 What irks me is how the same people who constantly harp on about America being a "shining light" of freedom for the rest of the world can countenance its prohibition of a plant. Republicans don't really care about freedom; what they care about is the creation of a country with a lot of boring, carbon-copy pea brains just like themselves.
excuse me? he is filled with hate and anger? are you drunk? YOU need to go smoke a joint and enjoy the safeness of marijuana, stop being so oppressive towards everyone and stop shutting down everyone's opinion. educate yourself, there is a lot more behind why marijuana is illegal and all the crap they make people believe that it's "not safe." the basic reason it's still outlawed is because it's considered immoral by narrow minded and weak minded individuals like yourself. YOU smoke a joint and
RICK STEVES IS A GOOD MAN, LONG LIVE SWITZERLAND, IM FROM VENEZUELA AND I LOVE ALPS FROM SWITZERLAND, MY DREAM IS LIVE THERE.
FelipeBest7 2 weeks ago
rick steves is the coolest guy ever
MrRick4191 1 month ago
I already loved Rick... had no idea he was involved with NORML. He is even more awesome in my eyes now!
deadohiosky77 2 months ago 4
@deadohiosky77 Rick is the best
TheWheels777 1 month ago
YOUR choice
YOUR freedom
YOUR rights
if the government catches you .......
YOU can go to PRISON
YOU can have your property CONFISCATED
YOU can have a permanent RECORD
YOU can be banned from VOTING
YOU can have your rights REVOKED
STOP THE WAR on people.
WeAskThePeople 2 months ago 4
I have so much more respect for Rick now after watching this.
bauersnarky 2 months ago
Drugs r cool
MegaJunebug420 2 months ago
hahah rick steves is such a faggot. i'm actually pro legalization, but rick is going about it in all the wrong ways.
0redhotchilipeppers0 4 months ago
Damn,,,, Steve Family Man,, Christian,,, Travel Educator,,,, weed smoker,,,awesome,,,, I don't smoke weed anymore,,, but to each his own,,, I would prefer weed to beer,,,,, but will always love the Sinatra Barcardi and Coke
diamondmoney007 5 months ago
Always liked this guy. Like him even more now.
kittycatcarley 6 months ago
Been smoking for 30 years. I’m a solid contributor to society, have never been arrested, never been in an accident, never been fired from a job, and I’m every bit as lucid today as I was when I was 18. I have a master’s degree and graduated 2nd in my class...and was stoned nearly every night during grad school.
What HAS changed for me is that I don’t drink alcohol anymore. Can’t take the hangovers! :-)
Thanks for posting this video...very good.
demmmmm1 6 months ago 3
im with rick steve on this one.. I love his show rick steves europe.... anyway... if u pay your bills and get up everyday and go to work (like I do) then their shouldnt be an issue of the average working man to kick back and fire up a bong and play Goldeneye Source 1138 clan ftw
Gohan1138 6 months ago
I agree. I don't smoke or do anything like that but shouldn't it be our right to decide what we put in our bodies if it doesn't affect the other people. The issue is when people get high and are like their drunk (kinda) but if people want to smoke majuanja that's their right. Mabye if it wasn't illegal then their wouldn't be so many irresponsible users b/c they may only smoke for the badness or ilawfull credit
skaterica1 6 months ago
Damn fuckin straight!
AustriaRollerblading 7 months ago
Here's an interesting thought...in the modern day and age where everyone seeks education and doesn't want to work in "blue collar" lines of work there is an immense competition for jobs and immense outsourcing of cheap labor...That said I believe if marijuana was legalized in the states then these problems would lessen. (I don't smoke any more but I'm all for legalization!)
nardmanman 9 months ago
@nardmanman ugh.. im going to have to stop smoking it soon due to drug tests I have to take.. Im getting a job at CSIS which is basically canadas FBI and they are hard on that stuff unfortunately.. which is stupid, but its not like i can do anything about it.
theking1175 7 months ago
@theking1175 Nice congrats. Eh I wouldn't worry about it...not feeling stoned is a small price to pay for happiness and success
nardmanman 7 months ago
I've been a big fan of Rick Steves Europe for awhile ... now he's my hero.
thysfunctional 9 months ago
if you ever watch any of Rick Steves programs, in country's that look at drugs has a health problem rather than a law problem he spotlights that some how in every program...I look at has a note to say, hay you Americans dont freak out if you see someone using here, its not like America.
ybunnygurl 11 months ago
Rick Steves is my new hero...
sweetpeavanbc 11 months ago
Bravo Mr. Rick Steves. The truth has a resonance that cannot be denied.
HempLogic 1 year ago 2
Very honest of Rick to stand up and state his views.
Well done Rick
paddy9i99 1 year ago
Isn't ironic that the U.S. is so adamant to keep maraijuana illegal yet, they control the heroin trade and let most of the hard drugs in here in the first place?
JolieDansNoir82 1 year ago 7
At 3:59 Rick says : "Am I drinking while empaired. uh, throw the book at 'em" Ha, ha, ha Should have said, "Am I DRIVING while empaired..." Must have smoked a joing before the filming lol.
Catoni52 1 year ago
@Catoni52
must have smoked a "joing" before writing that comment!
fudge1monkey 1 year ago
Rick rocks....
lanaclanac 1 year ago 2
Right on Rick!
scurvyswine 1 year ago 3
Thank you Rick
bluegreen1138 1 year ago 3
haha
philliesruleurschool 1 year ago
I've never smoked weed in my life and probably never will, but even I agree with him. I see no harm in it. It's similar to, if not better, than drinking, and I think that an adult should have the civil right to decide whether it's okay or not.
Wuhhhht 1 year ago
rick and rudy are my favorite all time travel hosts along with dennis gore's music.
YOU2UUB 1 year ago
YES ON 19
bmxludwig 1 year ago
Nice interview. Rick makes very good, thoughtful points. Thanks for talking to him.
timeofwonder2009 1 year ago 5
I see this guy on PBS for traveling info. Bonus points for this. He's cooler than I though.
FoodCubes 1 year ago 2
POT HEADS! put down ur munchies and ur bongs for a sec. listen fooocuuuss ooonn tthhhiisss. get a job, cut ur hair, and move out of ur mothers basement.
arivas713 1 year ago
@arivas713 some of us POT HEAD can afford a hair cut hold can hold a well paid job and have managed to move out of our mothers basement. smoking pot beats sitting in a pub distroying my liver and my mind. YES its a choice and its mine NOT the goverments cannabis should be legal and some day it will be
YummyspaceMonkey 1 year ago
@arivas713 some of us POT HEADS can afford a hair cut hold can hold a well paid job and have managed to move out of our mothers basement. smoking pot beats sitting in a pub distroying my liver and my mind. YES its a choice and its mine NOT the goverments cannabis should be legal and some day it will be
YummyspaceMonkey 1 year ago
@YummyspaceMonkey - canibus will neeeveer be legal. here in cali (what, the most liberal state in the union) its around fifty percent approval but, will it pass? maybe and but heres the caveat FEDERAL TRUMPS STATE! no matter what happens in the left coast, the feds will win. lawsuit? ahhh supreme court? probaly, yes but the outcome will be against legalization for the sheer fact that as mentioned above federal law trumps state.
arivas713 1 year ago
@arivas713 canibus? It's cannabis, you fuck.
CLEE1395 1 year ago
@CLEE1395 wtf? i was trying to save space! you can only get a certain amount of words and letters (500 to be exact) mellow, dude mellow, go smoke somemore, maybe that will calm ur ass down.
arivas713 1 year ago
@arivas713 Uh, weren't you the one making fun of "stoners"? So why are you telling me to smoke...
CLEE1395 1 year ago
@CLEE1395 i was wasnt i? that was a just a joke clee, not very funny i know but it was the best i could come up with here. before it may have seemed like i was being an ass, and i guess i was but i was being honest. it will be practically impossible to get any pro-ganja legislation through congress, mind you that you will have to amend the controlled substance act act of 1970. state legislation or no state legislation, fed trumps state and if it will go to the supreme court, the feds will win.
arivas713 1 year ago
@YummyspaceMonkey okay no luck with the judicial branch, now try the legislative one. nope either. even among the democrats (which are the liberal among the two) dont think you have 100% approval, and lets face it, the republicans will go against it. see pipe dreams. besides im so sure that ur local representative will like to be the pot head of the group.
arivas713 1 year ago
@arivas713 Wow, dude. your just jealous of all the fun us Cannabis Indulgers are havin' man. Ha, your an idiot.
CLEE1395 1 year ago
@CLEE1395 hahahaha lol
arivas713 1 year ago
California please legalize in November...blood soaked Mexico awaits your lead.
Please support L.E.A.P folks......
dullsvillain 1 year ago
Yea Rick Steves! He has spent his lifetime helping to make people make connections throughout the world trough travel. And putting himself out on the line to ending Cannabis Prohibition in the good 'ol U.S.A.
Wish we had more good Patriots like him. :-)
theknowbody 1 year ago
I think I'll light up a doob, while I watch this vid~
buddydog1956 1 year ago
I don't partake but I cannot stand that some of my tax $ goes to keeping people in jail for inhaling smoke. this is just sick. I knew a guy who spent a few years in prison for smoking. he could have gone to college, but instead he spent those years learning to be afraid and demoralized. he ended up having a kid when he got out and could not shake his demons. wife divorced him and now he tells his kid stories of jail and government when he sees him on the weekends. is that justice?
leloodallasmultipass 1 year ago
I don't have cable television and sometimes watch this guy on his show rick steve's europe. I never had any idea he was a cannabis activist! Good stuff
EveningTrip 1 year ago
he just said "am i drinking while impaired?".....he's high!!!
sothis48 1 year ago
lets not fool ourselves...cannabis has been used by humans since the dawn of humankind. some of the greatest ppl in history have used it. carl sagan to name one. you would be surprised at how many so called "straight-laced" ppl use it. every leader of every country has used it. next time you see ppl like katie couric or those ppl on fox news...realize that they probably use it also.
sothis48 1 year ago
we love that he smokes and we r wild about the song !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! put them bushes right in the grouuuuuuuuuuuuuunnd!
kembakat 1 year ago
i saw an info-mercial thing from a couple yrs ago about marijuana laws with rick as the host. it was in favor of legalization but rick said "i do not use it myself".
sothis48 1 year ago
the tax revenue plus the energy benefits alone would make it worth while to legalize it....not to mention the savings by not putting non-violent ppl in prison for yrs. this country needs to grow up and learn from other countries.
sothis48 1 year ago
Rick Steves: I have adored your show for years, but I did not know of your stance on legalizing cannabis, 'til now...I must say I will watch you on ALL of your wonderful travel shows----you give an old grandmother hope, that one day I might just see it legalized! Thank you, and many blessings to you!
RockyMissouri 1 year ago
I love Rick Steve's travel show, but to this issue I'll say what I always say: This country can't handle the two legal drugs it has now. I don't see how anyone can say that we need another one.
jfidajoiiejrjj 1 year ago
@jfidajoiiejrjj It doesn't matter if cannabis is legal or not, it is still used by millions of Americans. At least if it was legal the government could benefit from it in tax revenue, not to mention the American people would finally be free to exercise their right to freedom without fearing criminal charges. But of course, the "justice system" is a lucrative business. Why would the government want to give people what is due to them when they can lock them up for it and make millions of dollars?
EveningTrip 1 year ago
FANTASTIC THANKS!!
MrRadiantSynergy 1 year ago
I knew I liked this man... did for years. His stock just went up many points for speaking his mind openly!
coolblueswim 1 year ago
legalizing it would put so many criminal justice professionals out of a job, as well as destroy the healthy profit drug dealers earn. This is just wrong. Putting these honest hard working Americans in the poor house. Keep Cannabis profitable, keep it illegal !!!
RashtraVishnu 1 year ago
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Rammstein651 1 year ago
@RashtraVishnu indeed, those boys and girls with guns and significant social power simply don't want to trade their guns for nursing smocks when this becomes less of a criminal issue and more of a health and social issue.
mycelian 1 year ago
He makes a good point. If every single person in america who would test positive for pot today, were thrown in prison tomorrow, the nation would grind to a halt. It a ridiculous outdated law that was originally enacted for nefarious reasons. Our culture needs to evolve and focus more on civil rights.
rmcdaniel423 1 year ago
@protochris Says you, but show me some facts to back up your argument
IchibanCrane 1 year ago
Way to go Rick Steves!
IchibanCrane 1 year ago
@SuperSexyBoiGod- you're right; you have seen through me. I am a sham- my life is the worst. I will go kill myself now. Thanks for showing me the light.
Viva Shakespeare!
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
@SuperSexyBoiGod No, frankly, I can't keep up with your nonsense.
I've really enjoyed talking with you- I'm going to resume living my awesome life now.
Take care.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
@SuperSexyBoiGod What free ride? What are you talking about? I will keep talking- thank you for the encouragement.
I would reciprocate that request, but I find your babbling neither edifying or entertaining.
Viva Montaigne!
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
@SuperSexyBoiGod when have we ever engaged in fair fights? we rule the world by military force, not by intellectual prowess.
Have a great day.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
@SuperSexyBoiGod how do we maintain a healthy trade quotient when we don't manufacture things anymore?
Just look at US trade deficits- globalization has NOT been good for Americans.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
@SuperSexyBoiGod I respectfully disagree with you. Have a great day!
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
and i thought i liked rick before, my man!
xkcman 1 year ago
If you're a responsible adult, why would you smoke marijuana.
protochris 1 year ago
@protochris - Is it possible (in your opinion) for a responsible adult to drink alcohol?
SubconsciousGatherer 1 year ago
@SubconsciousGatherer , yes, I believe it's responsible except to get drunk or altered in consciousness. I've never been drunk my entire life, yet I drink a glass of wine virtually every day. It also has health benefits. The whole idea about pot would be to get out of reality.
protochris 1 year ago
@protochris - What's wrong with altering your reality? You may not be getting drunk, but drinking wine every day, even just for health benefits, is a form of changing your reality. Have you ever exercised and felt a high from the rush of oxygen and adrenaline? Have you ever watched a scary movie and freaked yourself out? I can't seen any moral reason for NOT having the freedom to change your reality if you choose to do so, whether it's with substances or not.
SubconsciousGatherer 1 year ago
@SubconsciousGatherer, I dont see drinking wine as mentally altering my reality. The exercise and the scary movie are a heightened senses of awareness, and it's not a result of ingesting anything. I've not experienced pot, but from what I've seen it do to my friends and family it appears to dull the senses. You might have the ability to be a responsible pot smoker, but do you really know a lot of people like yourself. I believe you'd have to be the exception.
protochris 1 year ago
@protochris - What I meant about wine altering your reality is that your reality would be a certain way WITHOUT it (i.e. "less healthy"), so you drink it in order to alter your reality ("make you more healthy"). Whether you're intoxicated or not is another issue; I was just making the point that what you're doing with wine is in fact a version of altering your reality, and that altering your reality is not a bad thing.
To be continued...
SubconsciousGatherer 1 year ago
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Rammstein651 1 year ago
this guy is too stiff to be a pothead. well maybe, because he cant say anything unless he's reading a prompter. is he really from seattle? the same seattle
that jimi and kurt reared from. no way! PLEASE NO. hahahahahaha
MISSEDHERSIR 1 year ago
I love this dude....Ive seen every episode....amen rick...amen.
revbricenichols 1 year ago 2
omg omg omg i knew RICK has been 'tokin' all this time during his 'travels' lol lmao i looove the videos
fruffles 1 year ago
yeah, i used to think he drank, but he didn't seem pissed off or uncoordinated, also he likes to have a good time
kurt9876543210 1 year ago
and he is from the seattle area, it's literally the holland of america
kurt9876543210 1 year ago
bill gates with a personality
kurt9876543210 1 year ago
he is very high
greenredman123 1 year ago
Rick said "you can't legislate" morality, yet he is for Socialized healthcare because it is moral to do so. Also, laws against murder and theft are moral. Playing the "can't legislate morality" card is often a ruse to get what you want to get.
Entropy56 1 year ago
He's talking about things like personal drug use, gambling, and prostitution which have never been stopped by laws and have only become more dangerous because of their illegality.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
I'll make a deal with you. When the government quits taxing me to pay for their social programs and welfare handouts then I'll let you destroy your lungs anyway you please. I don't like paying for the cost of policing people either, but I'm going to piss you off as much as I can as long as I have to pay taxes.
Entropy56 1 year ago
@Entropy56 Why don't you look up the 2006 Tashkin study and tell me how much people are destroying their lungs. You haven't researched this and you didn't even address my point about what Steve's was talking about. And when did I say I was for any social program? You're an angry guy and it sounds like you really don't care about freedom as much as you think.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
@Entropy56 Sorry, I guess you did address the policing costs, but consider the cost in dollars of both arresting 800,000 people on marijuana charges alone a year and the fact that we're funding the mexican cartels at the same time as the dea by keeping it illegal. That's where your tax dollars are going. It should be taxed and regulated and it would actually produce revenue. People are already using mj and prohibition has been a terrible failure. Why do you want to keep paying for it?
chtezilagel 1 year ago
I say we adopt the strict drug laws of Thailand and Singapore and put some real fear into lawbreakers. None of this namby pamby stuff. Eventually it will be reduced to a trickle. There is no serious war on drugs. It is a joke.
Entropy56 1 year ago
If you want to see more Rick Steves lies that I refuted then look at my comments at "Rick Steves: Travel Opens Eyes to Rich-Poor Gap"
Entropy56 1 year ago
What is he lying about here though? I don't see a lie here at all and what did you refute here?
chtezilagel 1 year ago
The lie here is he said "you can't legislate morality." That was easy to refute.
Entropy56 1 year ago
Is smoking pot in your in home immoral? I don't think it is. That was his opinion and I agree with him. That's not a lie, it's a matter of opinion.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
*own home
chtezilagel 1 year ago
Then do you think we should do that to people that use alcohol and cigarettes too? Those are both far more dangerous than cannabis. Do you really think that kind of extreme enforcement is really going to happen in the US? Surely you don't, so what's the point of continuing this war on drugs? It's costing a fortune. I think you're failing to see that this is not left vs right argument. It benefits all tax payers and the end of prohibition is supported by people of all political stripes.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
Drugs create a health issue. Taxpayers have to pay for it. 75,000 people are killed by alcohol each year, including innocent people, which makes the Iraq war look like a Sunday stroll. There is no such thing as "private use" of mind-altering drugs.
Entropy56 1 year ago
Find me one death from cannabis. It's nothing like alcohol. This is one drug that has very few problems, and if there are any they are already here and have not been slowed down by prohibition. We're already paying for health costs associated with drugs in general, but we're also paying a fortune to support prohibition. Why pay for both?
chtezilagel 1 year ago
Actually, prohibition DID slow down alcohol use. So here is a comment by you that I just refuted.
Entropy56 1 year ago
Refuted? Really? Actually I think beer drinking went down but hard liquor went up and you know darn well that alcohol prohibition led to the handing over of taxable revenue to murderous gangs. People also died and or went blind from tainted alcohol because there was no regulation. Nobody looks back and says "what a success that was" And even if actual usage went down (like to see the hard evidence on that) the demand certainly wasn't reduced. That's the point, there's no stopping the demand.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
Also, I just want say that I know where you're coming from on the health issue but Dr. Tashkin, who has been researching this drug for over thirty years (funded by NIDA in order to find health dangers) has come out for support of legalization due to lack of significant health problems associated with it. Even if there were though, prohibition didn't work for alcohol either which is why we pay the health costs--to avoid the problems that prohibition brought. Food for thought.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
You seem to know a lot about this topic. Can you tell me what countries have legalized pot but have not outlawed personal firearms or instituted socialized medicine? I would like to know.
Entropy56 1 year ago
I don't know about that. What's your point? Maybe I can answer the question you're getting at.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
The point is that pot smoking along with other illicit drugs were made popular by the 1960 radicals who were the worst thing to happen to the US. The decline of the US and its world appeal happened at this time along with the decline of America in academics. Now these radicals are the Democrats who are Socialist and want more control of everything. Throwing the bone of drug use is just a ruse to pretend to offer more freedom while taking it away.
Entropy56 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
Rick Steves is a Europeanized Socialist so it is not surprising to hear him support free drug use. In the other video I mentioned before, Rick says that poverty promotes violence. I left my comments proving him an ignorant Socialist fool who gets his ideas from hanging out too much with European Socialists.
Entropy56 1 year ago
Old people today lived through the Great Depression and the 2nd World War where things were scarce. They sacrificed a lot. Then in the 1950s, they finally had their chance to make some money and get on with life - only to have their children reject them in the 60s.
These selfish brats wanted to change the world and get as much pleasure as they could without effort.
Underlying pot is a whole self-serving hedonistic philosophy that is worse than the drug itself. Rick puts on a nice face.
Entropy56 1 year ago
Hey Entropy56, You're blaming the drug instead of the people that you so hate. You're making the drug the scapegoat just like Nixon did. He was responsible for giving the Schafer commission the duty of drawing up a report on cannabis and it came back & recommended that it be decriminalized and rescheduled. What did he do? He ramped up the drug war like never before. It just doesn't make sense. Forget the sixties and look at now. It's not a conservative vs liberal issue. It's common sense.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
Why did the kids reject them? What does that say about our society?
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
You seem to want to blame the decline of this country on "60's radicals" and pot smokers.
What about the wholesale offshoring of our manufacturing jobs by big corporations? The liberals you loathe had NOTHING to do with that- that was the market you most likely worship.
This country is being destroyed by plutocrats- not liberals; and it saddens me to see someone like you unwittingly fighting on behalf of the powerful, and at your own expense.
What a wonderful world!
tristramshandy3 1 year ago 47
@tristramshandy3 you're, in the words of rodney dangerfield, alright. seriously, you and i can be friends
kurt9876543210 1 year ago
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lennhart 11 months ago
R. Reagan who exported U.S. jobs --NOT pot smokers. It was Tricky Dick Nixon who sold us out to China; today, as a result China is at the top of the CIAs World Fact Book with the world's largest POSITIVE Current Acct Balance; the U.S. is on bottom with the largest NEGATIVE Current Acct Balance, formerly called Balance of Trade Deficit. What do we produce? We are where we are because GOP sellouts EXPORTED our jobs. Has NOTHING to do with pot smoking. In fact, POT ought to be legalized.
lennhart 11 months ago
@tristramshandy3 I found it surprising that despite our exporting jobs overseas, our unemployment rate over the last 25 years has basically maintained the same level (excluding the current crisis, of course).
hawaiidispenser 11 months ago
@hawaiidispenser you shouldn't be surprised by that. it isn't so much about quantity as it is about quality. we have been losing good paying manufacturing jobs, and replacing them with service sector jobs. People used to make good money making things- now they make shitty money servicing loans and doing collections for the financial industry.
have a great day.
viva montaigne!
tristramshandy3 11 months ago
@tristramshandy3 But it looks like consumers are spending more money on services now, rather than manufactured goods, which matches the shift. I never thought manufacturing jobs were considered better than service jobs, but maybe I'm wrong. Do you know the average income of each type?
hawaiidispenser 11 months ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
chtezilagel said, "You're blaming the drug instead of the people that you so hate." Huh?
I said, "Underlying pot is a self-serving hedonistic philosophy..."
I'm against the drug and the philosophy behind it which revealed itself in the 60s counter-culture. This is just another assault on America. Next will be legitimizing gays in the military, universal health care, higher taxes, and the weakening of America. The same applies to legalizing prostitution.
Entropy56 1 year ago
You might find it strange, but I am not against people smoking pot under the radar nor against gays in the military or paying money for sex, (which I have done several times.)
I am against the public legitimizing of certain behaviors. To blame drug laws for the violence in Mexico is like Rick Steves blaming poverty on crime. Pot is not the end of it. They will want more.
Likewise, if Americans want "free" healthcare then they should first lose their goddamn fat and be responsible.
Entropy56 1 year ago
If you're not against people doing it "under the radar", then why should bother fund a drug war that doesn't work? BTW, paying for sex is a hell of lot more dangerous than smoking pot and to me it is amoral, yet I wouldn't say you can't do it. Just that I wouldn't do it. What right do you have to say I should be arrested for smoking a plant in my own living room? Drug laws and US demand for cannabis is responsible for violence in Mexico which is why they decriminalized it there.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
There is no "philosophy" behind the drug which is why I say you are blaming the drug instead of the people. You're saying they're self serving brats and so forth and that the drug has something to do with it. The drug is an inanimate object. You seem to still not understand that this is actually a conservative issue. Are libertarians just a bunch of pot smoking hippies?
chtezilagel 1 year ago
I should say, that you're blaming both the people and the drug when you should only be blaming the people.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
"Contrary to popular belief, marijuana has been found to play a significant role in car accidents across the United States with as much as 33 percent of drivers arrested at the scene of the accident being positive for marijuana and another 12 percent testing positive for both marijuana and cocaine (Brookoff, Cook and Mann, 1994; Sonderstrom, Dischinger, Kerns and Trillis, 1995)."
Entropy56 1 year ago
Oh come on. MJ stays in your system for two weeks and the high only lasts for a couple of hours. They have no idea if people were high or not. Look at how many of those had alcohol in their system at the time of the crash. Most. The NHTSA has done two real studies on the effects and found nothing very scary about ti at all. They've also looked at crash data and found that the vast majority had alcohol in their system. Anyway, what does that have to do with allowing people to be responsible?
chtezilagel 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
I'm not a Libertarian; I'm Republican. I am Athiest. I have worked with gays, lesbians, Liberals, and with people smoking pot in my workspace that I had to breath. I've seen it all. My grandfather was in WW1; my father in WW2, uncle in Korean War, 3 of my older brothers in Vietnam War. Took care of my disabled father for years. Yes, we have paid our dues to shape this country.
Entropy56 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
How does an atheist republican reconcile himself with the fact that his party has been hijacked, to such a large extent, by religious fundamentalists?
It seems to me the religious aspect is the dominate aspect of today's republican politics. Sarah Palin personifies that perfectly.
Just curios.
Take care.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago 27
@tristramshandy3 I'm sorry man but not everyone lives their lives based on politics and what party and religion they follow. If you stepped away from the whole political part of it and just looked at the issue maybe you wouldnt be so curious. If you let politics run your life and what you do you have issues my friend! Thank you rick for lying down the truth you speak for 100,000 + people in this country.
99bmwM3 1 year ago 3
@99bmwM3 your post is ambiguous and lacks specificity. Try again if you want me to understand what the hell you're talking about :)
Have you read Montaigne yet?
What are you waiting for?
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
never mind- I just read some more of your posts and I think I see where you are coming from. I couldn't disagree with you more; but I see where you are coming from (I think).
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
The NHTSA summarized all of it's studies and said there was "no indication that marijuana by itself was a cause of fatal accidents," and that alcohol was by far the "dominant problem" in drug related accidents. You can find all kinds of antidrug propaganda out there because the NIDA funds it all! The DEA wants to keep their jobs and keep you paying for it.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
i'm curious to know if you would find it offensive for businesses to restrict workers from smoking pot during or before work? What restrictions? Driving?
I have a feeling that most pot smokers would abuse any freedom they got and begin to encourage other people to try it too.
In 2009 a co-worker tried to persuade me to try some. He was from Italy (now gone back) and and said the West has some of the best in the world. Of course, he was for Socialized healthcare as most Europeans are.
Entropy56 1 year ago
It should be just like alcohol. Don't assume what most pot smokers would do or how they think. They're not one type of person, they're different people just as we all are. Why are you so obsessed with the idea that the use of cannabis is married to socialism? That's just crazy. See what Milton Friedman, William F. Buckley, and Ron Paul have said about it. Bob Bar supports legalization now. It's not about political affiliations at all, it's about ending a bad policy.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
It is a ruse, as I said before. A side issue. The main agenda of most pot advocates is Marxism. The government will eventually control all drugs, healthcare, pot, and every aspect of our lives. You better be happy to at least have a black market now in order to keep the government out of it. Until I see a serious movement among the *majority* of pot advocates to limit all government then I will not support it because just like abortion - my taxes will eventually subsidise it.
Entropy56 1 year ago
I'll be happy to pay taxes to fight these drug criminals until they give up and decide to vote for limited government. I'd rather pay for pissing off Socialists then paying for their Marixist agendas which will cost way more and ruin the US economy.
Entropy56 1 year ago
You haven't admitted what you are yet. Are you a Liberal Democrat or pure Marxist. Which one are you?
Entropy56 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
Will you at least look into some of what I've told you here? Legalizing cannabis is not a "Marxist" conspiracy for crying out loud, or why would the very conservative people I mentioned support it? You're tax dollars are being pissed away on a war that doesn't work. The government is not "out of it" at all. They're raking in your tax dollars to pay their mortgages by fighting a "war" that was doomed from the start. It's not a side issue either. We're spending money we don't have on this.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
I wouldn't have gone to war. I would have just bombed the hell out of Sadam's palace. Then let Sadam consider going after the terriorists himself to save his skin. If Muslims attacked us again then I would bomb the Dome of the Rock or one mosque at a time in Iraq or somewhere.
It is obvious that most pot advocates are Liberals because Libertarians are a tiny minority. You can advocate for legalized pot all you want but it will not be on Libertarian terms.
Entropy56 1 year ago
I think republicans need to realize that it's not consistent with a conservative philosophy to advocate the federal government barging into people's homes and arresting them for this. The feds think it's ok to supersede state law and arrest ms patients in wheelchairs at med. marijuana clinics. That's not conservative at all. I don't know what you call that kind of BS. I don't know how anyone can support that and call themselves conservatives.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
Interesting you brought up MS. I mentioned that I took care of my father in a previous post. He had MS. I've had MS now for 14 years and can't walk more than a few yards. If pot really did work as some people claim it does, then drug companies would figure out a way to safely market it.
But by all means get some from the black market if it works for you. I've personally bought non illicit drugs that way because I couldn't get a prescription or it was cheaper. Just keep it private.
Entropy56 1 year ago
It's perfectly safe to use even in it's smoked form, but using a vaporizer is much better because it doesn't produce smoke and still has an immediate effect. Many. many people with with MS have found great relief from this. Drug companies are all over this like stink on a monkey actually! They're filing for patent after patent. Our own government has a patent on cannabinoids. Look it up. Don't think for a minute though that what pharm. comes out with is any safer than the actual thing. (cont.)
chtezilagel 1 year ago
It should be allowed to be used as medicine by you, without government intervention, I just thinks that's wrong. Good luck, I'm sorry you're dealing with that. Do look into what it does for MS patients, There are some videos here on the subject I think. Forget what the gov. says and do what's right for you. Take care of yourself.
chtezilagel 1 year ago
I already had a chance to try pot from my Italian friend I mentioned before. I said no thanks. I eventually found that Balcofen does what he claimed pot would do for me, namely, to relax my spasms. There are some other fringe drugs some people claim works, such as, Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN), Aminopyridine, Prokarin.
I saw a video of a guy promoting pot once. His MS was extreme but the pot didn't do enough to remove his misery. Me? I'd just blow my brains out. Anyway, I got to go.
Entropy56 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
you're looking for consistency from conservative philosophy?
Good luck.
These are the same people who scream and yell about govt spending- but never discuss the pentagon or corporate subsidies, etc.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
By the way, if you think I am hawlkish, then you should watch YouTube. "Ayn Rand on Israel and the Middle East"
Entropy56 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
what are you talking about dude? this thing is about libertarian values, the libertarian values are based egalitarianism, and he's saying that pot doesn't harm people and therefore should be legalized. you know, libertarians and liberals aren't neccesarily enemies, we do have one basic tenent that is the same, civil liberties
kurt9876543210 1 year ago 2
Yes, it is about libertarian philosophy. However, libertarians are tainted when they talk about the cost of law enforcement and medical therapies. Your message should be purely about the free right to do what you want. As soon as you appeal to economics and medicine, you fail. Therefore, I don't trust libertarians. Ayn Rand would have nothing to do with today's libertarians.
Entropy56 1 year ago
The fact that marijuana may be dangerous is a reason to legalize and regulate- the same way we do with other dangerous substances- alcohol, tobacco, etc.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
did you know that corporate welfare exceeds all social welfare programs in the USA today?
Ask yourself, if you are capable of independent thought, why it is that you are so worked up about govt waste and fraud- but only express outrage over social spending, which, again, is NOT as large as corporate welfare programs- from direct subsidies to grants for R&D.
The right seems to have this problem with alarming consistency- must be all the hate filled corporate propaganda y'all listen to.
tristramshandy3 1 year ago
I knew I liked this guy.
Sublue 1 year ago
Do the research. He doesn't smoke, and he doesn't support smoking. He supports DECRIMINALIZATION. Geniuses like Lipstick cannot comprehend the difference, hence the defensive flare-up below. Ignore her. She means no harm, she just doesn't get it.
FoundAvenue 2 years ago
AGAIN..... All I Said Was.....
" it was disappointing to know that Rick Steves thinks this way. It doesn't take away from the fact that I like his show. "
And YES... He DID say he enjoyed smoking pot.
LipstickRepublican1 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
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chtezilagel 1 year ago
Criminalisation of mariujana leads nowhere (and this point being said from living in Czech Republic, where it is legal to both plant and use, not to sell), but it always should be said loudly that it has influence on development of schizophrenia, which shouldn't be underestimated.
cimmerianpraetor 2 years ago
bull.
Sublue 1 year ago
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Youngroe1 2 years ago
@lipstickrepublican nevermind, you really aren't worth nthe comment
PaddleCo 2 years ago 10
This comment has received too many negative votes show
To: PaddleCo
Go smoke a joint dopey!
LipstickRepublican1 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I don't care what you have to say any way! I see the pot head liberal swarm came in to down rave my comments. lol Cowards! All I said was it was disappointing to know that Rick Steves thinks this way. It doesn't take away from the fact that I like his show. But you all downrave like the herd of Cowards you are...
LipstickRepublican1 2 years ago
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LipstickRepublican1 1 year ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I love his show, but I'm very disappointed after watching this video. I kind of had Rick Steves as being better than that in my own mind. His shows will seem a bit different to me now. Which is really disappointing to me. I really do wish singers, actors and entertainers would keep some things to themselves and just do what we loved them for in the first place.
LipstickRepublican1 2 years ago
What disappoints you, the fact that he is a proponent of a substance that is far safer than alcohol? Nobody has ever overdosed on cannabis, it's not addicting, and it's prohibition is killing innocent people and giving billions to the drug cartels.
juniperusashei 2 years ago 6
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I've already explained why knowing this disappoints me. If you think pot is not addicting you're wrong. No, it is NOT like other drugs BUT it's still a drug, and it is somewhat addicting, and it's still illegal.
LipstickRepublican1 2 years ago
@LipstickRepublican1 What irks me is how the same people who constantly harp on about America being a "shining light" of freedom for the rest of the world can countenance its prohibition of a plant. Republicans don't really care about freedom; what they care about is the creation of a country with a lot of boring, carbon-copy pea brains just like themselves.
mapmanic 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
And idiots like carbon copies of themselves as well. You sound like you are filled with hate and anger. Go smoke a joint.
LipstickRepublican1 2 years ago
excuse me? he is filled with hate and anger? are you drunk? YOU need to go smoke a joint and enjoy the safeness of marijuana, stop being so oppressive towards everyone and stop shutting down everyone's opinion. educate yourself, there is a lot more behind why marijuana is illegal and all the crap they make people believe that it's "not safe." the basic reason it's still outlawed is because it's considered immoral by narrow minded and weak minded individuals like yourself. YOU smoke a joint and
dmanboii 1 year ago