Nanny State Hypocrisy: Smoking Pot Is Ok, But Smoking Tobacco Is Still Banned

• September 9, 2008

In Santa Cruz city officials passed a ban on outside smoking in public places three years ago. But now those same city officials are thinking of a temporary lift of the ban to allow citizens to smoke marijuana in the park during an event celebrating medicinal marijuana.

The smoking ban in city parks could be lifted for the second time since it passed three years ago, as city leaders are considering allowing medical marijuana patients to light up during a festival at San Lorenzo Park at the end of the month.
“It’s not like a recreational marijuana event,” said Councilman Mike Rotkin, who supports the temporary lifting of the city’s 3-year-old ordinance that bans smoking in parks.
“It’s not a smoke-in, it’s not like the 4/20 thing up on campus,” Rotkin said.

Not a recreational event? Maybe someone should tell the attendees.

A closed tent will be available at the festival for those who need to administer their prescription drugs, and no pot will be for sale or distributed, Rotkin said.
However, Sentinel reports from last year’s festival showed that many participants did get stoned on the lawn, and some drove in from out of town for what they considered a recreational event by the river.

Now let me be clear: I don’t really have a problem with medicinal marijuana. I don’t have a problem with legalizing marijuana in general including for recreational use. But I do have to marvel at the absolute hypocrisy of the nanny staters who won’t let tobacco smokers light a cigarette outside in public park (what if the children saw it!) but will lift the smoking ban temporarily for an all-out weed smoke-in.

Tags: Asshats, Cultural Marxism, Nanny State, Politics

http://Array Reazon

108, so drugs are stupid and destructive. OK.

So then you would never take medication whether its prescribed or over the counter even if your life depended on it? And you don’t drink coffee, energy drinks, or anything with caffeine in it, and never ever drink any alcohol?

I agree drugs CAN be stupid and destructive. But would you say someone who has a glass of wine now and then is being stupid and destructive? If not then why would someone who has a joint just as often be stupid and destructive?

As for legality whether a drug is bad or good laws against drugs have never impacted their use, not even, in fact especially among children who drug warriors claim to be protecting. About a century ago when cocaine and heroin were still legal the median age of use was in the 30s. After it was banned the median age feel to the late teens so it seems that prohibition actually encourages minors to use drugs. Furthermore, it costs billions and billions of dollars a year. Why should non-users have to foot the bill to fund an effort to save people from choosing to hurt themselves especially when that effort isn’t working? The war on drugs is a waste of money that could be spent better elsewhere.
di butler

As the only admitted recovered drug addict here, some of these posts are pretty harsh! I didn’t have a street drug addiction, but all drug addictions are hell. I actually think marijuana should be legalized, and taxed to high heaven. Sparkie, you were wrong that MJ doesn’t cause harmful effects, they are finding more and more daily. I think that it is bs that cigs or mj should be outlawed, and that people could do one and not the other. Stupid. Like I said before, personal responsibility. If you don’t want to be there sitting in a group of people doing it, get up. Free will.
http://anthonynunez.blogspot.com/ nunez

You have used what little I have told you for vicious personal attack, so you’re cut off.

I have not contributed in any ‘vicious personal attack,’ if you read above I defended you and your previous drug use and you slapped my hand away.
fishdweeb

Is that Palin Bogartin’ that blunt?
robert108

Here’s another hypothetical for you, Sparkie. If legalizing another destructive drug tells teenagers it’s OK to use it, how can parents then tell them not to use it? What effects would you be willing to have children be subjected to in pursuit of your personal license? How much more do you want to destroy the authority of parents in this country?
Do you really think agendized statistics from a European country actually apply to the US?
Where’s that pro-drug use argument?
robert108

And you’d have us ban more activities?

No, moron! Since you have a real comprehension problem, I’ll ‘splain it to you once again: No reason to add any to the list.
Got it?
http://www.willisms.com/ Zsa Zsa

Of course!
robert108

You’ll have to try another angle.

I’m just telling the truth, which isn’t an “angle”. You are the guy pushing an angle, Sparkie.

More inconvenient truth for you:

http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/entry/reuters_cannabis_linked_to_earlier_psychosis_onset
robert108

drug prices are econ, albeit deviant econ.

Nope. Again you show your ignorance. It’s a rigged market, from the econ perspective. The far more important aspect is that it’s illegal; a majority of Americans don’t want it in our society.
My “experience”? Tried it, saw through it. It’s a waste of time, money and human resources.
robert108

Don’t lecture me.

Someone should, foulmouthed moron, because you always get it wrong. In the same way that you lying lefties try to separate Nature from God, you think you can separate economics from moral principles. You are simply wrong. Criminality is separate from economics, even though criminals exploit the ignorance of such as you to profit from their crimes.
robert108

Sparkie: Educate yourself.

http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/entry/reuters_cannabis_linked_to_earlier_psychosis_onset
Hannitized

Oh boy Rob, you neglected to make the distinction between a cigarette and Marijuana. If I am not mistaken, cigarettes are laced with carcinogens. Are they not?

Cigarettes can actually cause your body lots of harm, including lung cancer. Marijuana does not.

The idea of celebrating smoking pot is sort of dumb, but it is in no way comparable to the health risk that is tobacco smoking. You idiot.
Hannitized

Santa Cruz is a center of leftie looniness in my State. This is pure leftie hypocrisy.

Your state my arse. What generation Californian are you? Hell, I bet you can’t even pronounce half the cities in the state properly.
RebTex

Very nice!
THat poor sick thing!
.
.
.That aside, I catch the drift & agree that alcohol is also a drug.
So is caffiene.
http://anthonynunez.blogspot.com/ nunez

Tell us what happened in 1969.
Gill

This is not hypocrisy, this is nonsense, what are we supposed to think about that?? That smoking legally not OK and OK in the same time?
Drug Treatment Center
Pilgrim

So…what’s the problem?

And the joint in that picture looks like one we created out of the rolling paper from the Cheech and Chong album Big Bambu 35 years ago.

Nothing new here folks. Drift along.
http://anthonynunez.blogspot.com/ nunez

I don’t agree with robert108 on pretty much every issue. I think that he provokes people on this blog for no reason other than attempting to degrade them. Often is hypocritical, act as I say not as a I do, and incessantly name-calling other posters that he doesn’t agree with. I think robert believes that everybody that disagree with his opinions or beliefs somehow have an evil intent instead of realizing that the ‘lefties’(name-calling) actually love this country, they just have different ideas on how to make this a country an even better place. He continually confuses ‘lies’ (said by robert 8 times in just this post) which an opinion that isn’t similar to his own. Lies presuppose an intent to deceive, that the person KNOWS the truth yet decides instead to lie.

Now, I think attacking him on his drugs use shouldn’t be used as an attack and neither should he use it against others. It’s unfortunate that there is so much vindictiveness which is reflected on the comments on many of the posts here. Although, let me say, robert has brought much of this on himself in this context by placing himself as a moral authority.
robert108

You now advocate not allowing people to choose their own actions and learn from them. You advocate a nanny state where the people who think they know what is best make decisions for others.

Two more lies from you. Unlike you, I don’t “advocate” anything; I simply tell the truth about drug use as I know it. I see that the citizens of this country want those drugs and the use of those drugs, to be illegal, and I still have not been presented any good reason not to continue with that. You still fail to make any argument for drug use; you just continue to attack the messenger by lying about what I do. If you care, I’ll tell you what I actually do:
I shun drug users; I won’t hire them, I won’t do business with them, and I won’t invest with them. This is my personal choice, which you claim to support, but you really only support your own agenda. You are a liar about that, as well. All I have ever done on this blog with this subject is to say that drug use is destructive and stupid. For this, you and others have viciously attacked my character, as if that somehow proves your case. It doesn’t, but it proves that you have no good reason for your advocacy for increased drug use; you seem to be simply caught up in teenage rebellion, confusing freedom with license. Freedom requires responsibility, and that requires examining the consequences of your actions, and doing the right thing, even if it conflicts with any of your selfish desires.

If you have a pro-drug use argument, bring it.

You have made no economic or ethical arguments to support your pro-drug position, so you just told two more lies.
robert108

…your self-righteous, parenting morality…

You lie, as usual; I don’t “parent” anyone. I share my life experience with others, that drug use is stupid and destructive, and certainly don’t support weakening present laws. I have never advocated for any additional restriction, so you are just lying. I think it’s stupid to give anyone a “go” signal to use drugs, and won’t support anything that does that. Despite your lies, I respect society’s present laws, that’s all. In your zeal to make your wrong behavior OK, you have repeatedly attacked me for expressing my opinion on drugs. That should reveal what you really are, Sparkie.

…you would rather remove individual decision-making and learning processes with regulation.

Another lie from you. You might try getting off drugs, and then seeing what the real world is like. You spew lies like a crazy man.
Your view of econ is as twisted as your views on drug use.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/realitybasedbob/ realitybasedbob

I share my life experience with others, that drug use is stupid and destructive,

This is interesting, tell us about your stupid and destructive drug use you’ve experienced during your life that you now share with others.
RebTex

Only sick people need drugs.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/realitybasedbob/ realitybasedbob

Your drug addiction certainly helps us understand your constant ramblings about being under attack.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/realitybasedbob/ realitybasedbob

With 23034 comments, 108 does show an addictive behavior pattern…well better filling out hate filled comments here than robbing women on the streets for drug money.
robert108

Were you shooting heroin or just smoking it?

Is that what you do, stalker?
robert108

You are unreceptive to evidence or counterarguments.

You have presented no evidence or counterarguments. When I asked you for one, you changed the subject.

The truth is, I already know that drugs are destructive and stupid, and that drug use is slavery, not freedom.
In any event, I’m still interested in your pro-drug use argument, if you have one.
My experimentation with drugs was over forty years ago, btw.
I was smart enough to stop before anything got bad. I have no ill aftereffects, just practical knowledge from my own experience and from what happened to my friends and acquaintances. You and your buddy can bullshit all you want, but facts are facts.
Another inconvenient truth for you, Sparkie.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/realitybasedbob/ realitybasedbob

So 108 is a drug addict…very interesting.
robert108

You’ve said you weren’t at Woodstock for the music…

Another lie from you; I already said I was in the music business. This smear has already been tried and refuted.
I’m not going to give you any more personal information, stalker.
robert108

None of your desperate attacks do anything to change the fact that drug use is destructive and stupid. I realize that all you guys can do is to attack the messenger who brings the inconvenient truth. You might have some credibility if you could present any facts or evidence that recreational drug use isn’t destructive and stupid. If you have any, that is.
It’s not about agreement or disagreement; it’s about what’s true and what isn’t.
robert108

Lies presuppose an intent to deceive, that the person KNOWS the truth yet decides instead to lie.

Good point; every statement that I have identified as a lie on this thread was an untrue statement about me. Those lies were told specifically to win by smear, and I correctly identified each one, and refuted it. They were told with the intent to try to change the argument from whether or not drugs are destructive and stupid to some attempts at assassinating my character, as if that would change the facts of the matter.
You got one right, nutbag.
robert108

Santa Cruz is a center of leftie looniness in my State. This is pure leftie hypocrisy.
robert108

Lots of people abuse alcohol, food….

So, the abuse of legal items is bad enough; why add to the list? You’re going in the wrong direction, Sparkie.
robert108

You just don’t get it, Sparkie: You were right about the medical uses, and were wrong about everything else.
In your economic ignorance, you characterize all illegal transactions, including crack and heroin, as “econ”. As a typical moral relativist leftie, you are incapable of distinguishing right from wrong.
The “rigging” isn’t just the illegality, moron; it’s the dependency that drugs produce. You just don’t get it.
Your hypocrisy is illustrated by your condemnation of “fat people” who are dependent on overeating, while you wink at drug dependency, which serves no nutritional or survival purpose, and is far more destructive and stupid than overeating.
Shame on you!
robert108

I defended you and your previous drug use and you slapped my hand away.

Poor baby! I don’t defend any drug use, including my own. It is the basis for what I say about drug use, and is why I stopped over forty years ago. I’m sorry you don’t know this. I have repeated it numerous times. As far as your “defending” me, I’m not buyin’ it.
robert108

Tell us what happened in 1969.

I don’t share personal information with stalkers.
You have used what little I have told you for vicious personal attack, so you’re cut off.
Consequences of your actions.
robert108

Adults should be able to choose whether or not to consume marijuana and they should be able to make that choice without legal upshots, as long as it is used responsibly, like booze.

The law disagrees with you. If you really want to change the law, petition the legislature; attacking me with lies won’t get you where you say you want to go.

Compare the two.

That’s your problem right there; there is no valid comparison. Again, arguing with me won’t get you where you say you want to go. Drug use is destructive and stupid, and gun ownership is a Constitutional right.
I’m sorry you can’t tell the difference.

Lying about me is apparently all you have, since you consistently fail to make a pro-drug use argument. I realize you can’t, because there isn’t one. You want license to relieve you of the responsibility for the consequences of your actions. Legal or illegal, drug use is still destructive and stupid. Legalization is simply lipstick on a pig.
robert108

rbb: Your continued use of lying smear and Goebbels’ tenth principle of propaganda shows you to be the sicko here.
Nice try at projection, though.
robert108

…your desired societal end…

Another lie from you. I support the laws the American people want. You’re the one who wants to achieve your own societal end, in order to pretend that there should be no consequences to your drug use. You will have the consequences anyway, no matter what bullshit you spew, or how many lies you tell about me.
http://www.willisms.com/ Zsa Zsa

Is second hand smoke less bad for you if it is marijuana? That is a huge joint! Where would one find that size of papers?
http://anthonynunez.blogspot.com/ nunez

What an amazing picture!
robert108

Drug use is destructive and stupid. Period.
robert108

Your drug addiction certainly helps us understand your constant ramblings about being under attack.

I’m sorry to hear that you are addicted to drugs, rbb. Get help. It might improve the quality of your comments, which is pretty low right now.
robert108

R108: I’m still waiting for your pro-alcohol use
argument.

You’re the drug guy, Sparkie, let’s hear yours.
johndavid

Smoking is not good for health, aswell drugs. Banning of smoking is a nice step by the leaders.Smoking pot also little bit dangeorus,it must also be banned in public places.

======================================================

john

California Dui
HG

Its gotta be a $200 joint, at least. Unless its mexican shwag.

Are you sure about that Sparkie?
robert108

Is that Palin Bogartin’ that blunt?

Typical lying leftie hypocritical smear.
robert108

…tell us about your stupid and destructive drug use you’ve experienced during your life that you now share with others.

I shared the results, which is all you get, stalker.

Sparkie: I’m still waiting for your pro-drug use argument; all you can seem to do is lie about what I stand for and attack anyone who doesn’t agree with you.
Why should we use drugs, Sparkie? Inquiring minds want to know.
http://forums.kikizo.com/ Eddie_the_Hated

So… they legalize the smoking for a day… and yet it’s still illegal to buy or sell?

I mean, it’s a start, but it’s little loopholes like that that support my theory that the whole system needs to be scrapped.
http://www.willisms.com/ Zsa Zsa

Maybe it is catnip?
robert108

Good post on the medical uses, Sparkie. Do you really think anyone in that photo is using it for any legitimate medical purpose? Unfortunately, the abusers are ruining it for those who need it for legitimate reasons.
Another inconvenient truth for the pro-drug crowd.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/realitybasedbob/ realitybasedbob

You’ve said you weren’t at Woodstock for the music, were you a dealer? Were you there selling drugs?
robert108

So 108 is a drug addict…very interesting.

Don’t project your stuff on me, Goebbels. I used drugs enough to know that they are worthless, stupid and destructive, in spite of your lies.
http://www.willisms.com/ Zsa Zsa

BUT, I have heard it is one of the only things that actually help certain pain and MS patients.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/realitybasedbob/ realitybasedbob

Were you shooting heroin or just smoking it?
robert108

nutbag: “Leftie” isn’t an attack, unless you’re ashamed of being one, and then that’s a personal problem on your part.
“Nutbag” is, though….
robert108

Now Sparkie claims to be an expert on smoking dope; that one I can believe!
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

r108
BTW, this comment, where you explain why I’m wrong, is asinine. You agree with me, while saying I’m wrong… and throw in some social commentary.

Legalize it, and take down some of the rigging.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

I have heard it is one of the only things that actually help certain pain and MS patients.

It helps MS patients a lot. One of my cousins who was a professional dancer contracted MS in her late 20s. She finds weed helps out significantly. It helps glaucoma patients. It helps people undergoing chemotherapy curb nausea and increase appetite. It also helps in patients who have deep organ pain, for example, that is not locally treatable. If you can smoke a joint, its a lot better than taking synthetic opioids. Also, for people who do need to take synthetic opioids for extreme forms of pain, marijuana can also provide additional pain relief for flare ups, or reduce nausea related to the medication. Lastly, if someone is terminally ill, it can help with both their pain and their mental state.

They have also found that a small puff a day helps with depression and, if I am not mistaken, synthetic drugs that emulate that are under study for depression treatment. Too much, on the other hand, can cause depression.

It does increase one’s heart rate, and some forms of irregular heartbeats can be exaggerated by using it.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

r108
Your drug use provided you with a learning mechanism. People err and they learn. You now advocate not allowing people to choose their own actions and learn from them. You advocate a nanny state where the people who think they know what is best make decisions for others.

People learn not by being told something, they learn by doing, messing up, trying again, and refining their methods. The situation you ask us to set up effectively removes certain learning mechanisms and turns on people accepting things on faith. Once we justify our path down that slippery slope, we open the way to centrally issued edicts which the masses must accept on faith. I, unlike you, do not advocate removing learning certain learning mechanisms. The people should be free to fuck up, if they feel so inclined.

And I thought you were a Milt Friedman fan. When I called him a ‘pop’ theorist, you responded viciously, defending the man. Now you trample his basic economic and ethical arguments with you nanny state position. For shame.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

r108
I don’t have to make a positive argument for drug use in order for it to be legal, just like one need not make a positive argument for casinos, booze, or a host of other things.

Adults should be able to choose whether or not to consume marijuana and they should be able to make that choice without legal upshots, as long as it is used responsibly, like booze.

As I have pointed out in the past, the legal status of marijuana does not affect use rates, as one can see looking at someplace like Holland with significantly lower per capita use rates. Given that FACT, you arguments are similar to gun ban arguments.

Compare the two. They both call for bans for a certain social end. Reality shows us there is no correlation between that law desired and the social end desired. Nonetheless, those idiots continue to moan for these laws because of perceived or believed results WHICH ARE NOT BORN OUT IN REALITY.

Join the gun banning loonies. You employ their argument form, making you are just as illogical as them.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

you think you can separate economics from moral principles

no, you were trying to do that. i was talking about the prices of drugs. that’s part of econ. did you know that laws affect the prices of commodities? see the short list of illicit econ items i listed above. the FACT is that certain items cost certain amounts of money. your self-righteous, parenting morality is peripheral to that. sure, some things are illegal. that does not exclude them from econ. that means they have different values and are moved via different methods. econ takes note of that. if you don’t think that a significant chunk of your home state’s economy is based around marijuana, you are wrong (not morally, but factually wrong). if you don’t grasp the portion of the world economy that is illicit trade, broadly construed by various regional laws, you are wrong.

its my opinion that you are often morally wrong as well. for example, you would rather remove individual decision-making and learning processes with regulation. that’s makes you a nanny stater.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

If the law is proven not to achieve your desired societal end, why support the law?
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

RebelTexan

She’s ‘sick’. That’s why she has the stockings on.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Drug use is destructive and stupid. Period.

As has been demonstrated… THERE IS NO CORRELATION BETWEEN LEGALITY AND USE RATE. PERIOD.

You’ll have to try another angle.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

You’re going in the wrong direction, Sparkie.

What? And you’d have us ban more activities? Take your self-righteousness and shove it up your ass. You are a nanny stater.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Now Sparkie claims to be an expert on smoking dope

i didn’t claim that. drug prices are econ, albeit deviant econ. what’s your expertise? nothing?
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Where would one find that size of papers?

Hypothetically, of course.

It looks to be ‘band-aided’, at least once (in the middle) or twice or n-tuple times. I’d say its some freaking huge papers which have been combined to make a super-freaking huge one.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Lots of people abuse alcohol, food, prescription meds, shopping, TV, over the counter drugs, diet pills, and countless other vices as well. BFD. Parenting is for parents, not government.

Not to excuse Santa Cruz. One cannot drink bourbon in the park.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Its gotta be a $200 joint, at least. Unless its mexican shwag.

Also, on the 2nd hand problem. Its my understanding that marijuana causes emphysema just as well as cigs, but cigs cause cancer quicker/better than marijuana.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

I support the laws the American people want.

I am an American. So is Rob, Lik, Pilgrim, DocDave, etc.

If the law is proven not to achieve the type of behavior-among-that-group-of-people-some-call-our-society that you would like to see, why support the law?

You don’t want Americans to use drugs correct?

I have no specific social end in mind. I am an advocate of Ockham’s razor when it comes to laws. If its not needed, get rid of it. A quick look at Holland and one can see that illegality is not correlated to use rates.

You just can’t stand the thought of people acting in a variety of ways, as they see fit for themselves. You’d rather ‘prevent them from hurting themselves’ like the Democrats argue.

Milt Friedman is disappointed with you. Check with him. He’ll tell you you’re wrong. Its a moral issue. You cannot remove learning mechanisms and expect people to learn.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Nice argument! Short, austere, and dogmatic! I would expect nothing less.
http://sayanythingblog.com robport

And yes, that policy is asinine. But localities should be allowed to be asinine. I am not moving to Santa Cruz. Problem solved. That said, the next town over should set up a DUI checkpoint.

Not arguing against localism, Sparkie. Just stupid, hypocritical policy.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

I shared the results, which is all you get, stalker.

Ha! R108 shares the destructive results of his drug use with us by commenting on SAB all the time. We do get plenty of those results.

Sparkie: I’m still waiting for your pro-drug use argument

R108: I’m still waiting for your pro-alcohol use argument.

We have been over this. You are unreceptive to evidence or counterarguments. I have no desire to waste more time wrangling with the results of your destructive drug use.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Psssh. Those Californians and their little joints. Lightweights. In Am*dam I…

nevermind.

And yes, that policy is asinine. But localities should be allowed to be asinine. I am not moving to Santa Cruz. Problem solved. That said, the next town over should set up a DUI checkpoint.
http://sayanythingblog.com/readers/author/sparkiearbuckle sayanything-81

Dearest r108

Look, you fucking tart.

I said “deviant econ.” And yes, heroin and crack are part of econ. So are counterfeit goods, organs, exotic animals, and smuggled cigarettes. So is ‘taxation’ and many other topics. My wife is a semi-expert at illicit global econ (she’s only done a couple talks and written one paper on it). Don’t lecture me. You are just making yourself look like an ass.

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