Hexagram said:
I have an opinion that you do not agree with. Brushing me off and calling me an idiot is incredibly ignorant given the fact this began as a rant and then moved on to reasons why Marijuana should be legalized.
Wait, what? I'm saying it's illegal. As far as I know, the criminal justice system doesn't take your opinion on what is legal and not legal into account. It's not a matter of opinion, and it's really funny that you're getting mad at us when we don't treat it as such. Just because you want to treat a certain law as being a matter of opinion, doesn't mean anyone else is. So stop doing that in this discussion.
Hexagram said:
And you think smoking a joint the size of a toothpick with no other quantities of weed on us justifies calling the police and having us arrested? Seriously... do you seriously believe I should be thankful I was not thrown into a jail cell with real criminals? ...... :roll: Where do you live? Because if that's the norm in your country/state/province/whatever then I'll be sure to stay away.
Being in possession of any amount of a banned substance means the full extent of the law is applied to you. In the US, we have what are called mandatory minimums. If you are caught in possession of a banned substance, there is a minimum fine/jail sentence you are required to serve, no matter the quantity or seriousness of the crime. That's it. Yes, it's stupid, but it certainly isn't a joke here.
In California, the state has chosen not to enforce certain aspects of the federal ban. In my state, they do. It's that simple.
Again, you seem to be taking the term criminal, which means somebody who has broken the law, and conveniently ignored the fact that you fit the description simply because you think the law is bullshit. That's not how real life works. I'm sorry to say so.
Hexagram said:
It's only black and white for people who choose to view it as such. Others believe these issues are far more complex and decide to protest and fight for what they believe is right and wrong. Perhaps if you find yourself in an unfair position regarding the law you'd understand.
I'm sorry, but the law IS black and white. It's that simple. You are going to suffer some penalty for violating the law, whether or not you believe it to be right or wrong. You seem to think that I don't understand what it is to be oppressed by the system or something. That's fucking bullshit, and don't even try to tell yourself that. I'm just making the point that the law states how it is, and even if you don't agree and feel like protesting, the law isn't going to cut you a break. I don't understand why it's so hard for you to wrap your head around the idea?
Look at the civil rights movement in America. When Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to move to the back of the bus, she went to jail. The law said that this would happen. Was the law right? No. But it was the law. She didn't expect any other consequence than to be arrested.
I'm not saying protesting such a terrible law is wrong, but as you've made abundantly clear, that was not your intent. Your intent was to get high for personal enjoyment, in violation of the law. Don't act as though you're standing up to some massive injustice.
Hexagram said:
And I pose the same question to you as I pose to Rain: have to ever been to a concert? If so, you've never smelled the scent of Marijuana in the air? Smoking weed and going to concerts go hand in hand. Considering I don't know where you live, it could be possible nobody smokes marijuana at concerts you've been to because people are too scared of getting arrested, but not here. Canada was at one time very tolerant of Marijuana so the fact I was thrown out is incredibly rare. There's no reason to get one's panties in a knot. Security is there to keep people safe, this security member in particular was merely on a power trip. Your misconception is that I am not allowed to be upset over something you don't understand.
Dude, don't talk about concerts like you know everything there is to know about concerts. Yes, I've been to concerts. Sure, people have been high. You're attempting to argue that the accepted culture at a specific type of event should be the law of the land. It's a bad argument. Lynch mobs and murder go hand in hand too, but that doesn't make murder an ok thing at lynch mobs. Yes, that's an extreme example, but in the eyes of the law, your argument is moot. It doesn't matter.
Perhaps in Canada, the law is rarely enforced. Perhaps the doorman was on a power trip. The fact remains that the law is clear as to what is allowed and not allowed. Until the law is changed, security still has that right to remove you. Hell, as a private event, in a privately owned venue, security has the right to remove you if they want to even if marijuana is legalized, as long as your ticket guaranteed that you acknowledged you would be removed for smoking pot. And, i'm guessing, using the ticket at the entrance was an acknowledgment of the fact that you wouldn't break the law, enforced or unenforced. Well, it got enforced for once. Don't come crying to me.
Hexagram said:
If I'm going to pay $70 to see Portishead live you better believe I'm going to enjoy myself at the show. And by enjoying myself I mean getting high. It is no different than someone who wants to enjoy themselves by having a few drinks. Was it against the law? Yes. Did the punishment fit the crime? No.
And what legal risk are you talking about? By the time the joint was over we had no marijuana on us at all. Many people I know of and have talked to on this subject have been caught with marijuana at concerts. Were they kicked out? No. Because the security they encountered were not Nazis. You're not in Germany are you? LOL, J/K dude. But seriously, you have made your point that you're very against the usage of Marijuana. And I guess all I have left to ask is why?
And yet, you fail to see the point. Smoking pot is illegal. The owner has every right to force you out for smoking pot. I'm sorry if it's not normal for that to happen because the law isn't typically enforced, but if the law exists, then the club has the right to enforce it. They chose to. Don't act as though it's some travesty that they decided to do so. Frankly, you should thank the venue every time you get away with it, because they could remove you, and chose not to. Remember, you are not entitled to break the law because you spent money to go to an event. It's really that simple.
And I'm sorry if you don't feel like the punishment fit the crime. At this point in history, much of society does seem to think it does, otherwise the law would be different or not exist. It's really simple.
Hexagram said:
Ah yes, the good old "STFU, you're wrong" approach. Nice one. Like Longo, you too missed the point of my rant. What is a rant? It's when you are upset about an issue, such as being treated unfairly and choose to preach about it. I hope you took all the misconceptions I pointed out in your post to heart. I'd really hate to have to repeat myself again.
Look, I don't have a problem with you ranting about the fact, or feeling as though you were treated unfairly. The problem I had was when you started to try and make it some legal issue, and tried to make it seem like you had done nothing wrong in the eyes of the law. I think it's pretty clear that the law says you did do something wrong. If you want to tell us that the law should be changed, that's great, I don't disagree with that position.
But trying to claim that we're wrong in anyway by pointing out that you broke the law is just plain stupid, because you did.
But what makes you look the most stupid:
Hexagram said:
But seriously, you have made your point that you're very against the usage of Marijuana. And I guess all I have left to ask is why?
All that says to me is you're not really reading what I'm saying. I specifically said at the beginning of my first post:
As much as I think marijuana should be legalized, it isn't.
I have nothing against marijuana in any way. I think it should be legalized. I've even *gasp* used marijuana a few times. I'm not trying to argue that it should be illegal. I'm just pointing out that it is, and for you to complain that you got treated unfairly, when the law states that you could have been treated a lot worse, is just stupid. Especially when you KNOW that certain consequences could possibly happen. You KNOW what the law says, chose to violate it, and still act as though you did nothing wrong IN THE EYES OF THE LAW. I'm not saying smoking a joint is wrong, I'm saying the law says it's wrong, and for you to act as though it doesn't, which you have, is stupid.
Again, I AGREE MARIJUANA SHOULD BE LEGALIZED. Just don't come bitching to me when you get caught using it and are then punished. Don't put yourself in that position, especially, as you admit, when you're not trying to make a statement. That's common sense.
Anyways, since I know you're just going to ignore what I'm saying anyways, I'm not going to post again. I've taken enough stabs at trying to show how childish you're being about the whole thing, as have longo and ITTR, but I guess you can't get past that. Whatever.
