Roseanne returns as a Trump supporter

[chancellor]

So why is it that so many people on the right can't grasp this obvious fact? Is it lack of empathy? I really am not trying to be insulting but I don't see how you look at the drastic discrepancies across race in our country and still pretend that it's not a problem. Just because 'you' are not overtly racist and haven't experienced racism either directed toward or by 'you', how can 'you' possibly think it's no longer a huge barrier to minorities in our country? I said 'overtly' because pretending it is no longer a major issue perpetuates the problem.

Seriously, you think those on the right do not recognize there's a problem? The issue isn't problem recognition, the issue is we've watched nigh onto 40 years of the left's solutions and recognized that every single one of them is a failure. To use Sour Masher's analogy, sure you can point to some programs that have had benefits here and benefits there, but the overall context and situation hasn't changed for most minorities in 40 years. Moreover, we who lean right who dare point this inherent truth out are labeled racist and worse.

I actually agree with Sour Masher's point about families, and I've always been an advocate that drug laws and punishments for the most part are overwhelmingly stupid. I eagerly await a left-leaning politician that brings forth some sort of solution that addresses the former in a coherent way.

[DMT]

Seriously, you think those on the right do not recognize there's a problem? The issue isn't problem recognition, the issue is we've watched nigh onto 40 years of the left's solutions and recognized that every single one of them is a failure. To use Sour Masher's analogy, sure you can point to some programs that have had benefits here and benefits there, but the overall context and situation hasn't changed for most minorities in 40 years. Moreover, we who lean right who dare point this inherent truth out are labeled racist and worse.

I actually agree with Sour Masher's point about families, and I've always been an advocate that drug laws and punishments for the most part are overwhelmingly stupid. I eagerly await a left-leaning politician that brings forth some sort of solution that addresses the former in a coherent way.

Repealing our insane war on drugs should be a bi-partisan issue and there are Republicans who support a more sensible approach. Unfortunately, most Republicans do not, and Jeff Sessions is about as bad as it gets on the issue.

[Hornsby]

Seriously, you think those on the right do not recognize there's a problem? The issue isn't problem recognition, the issue is we've watched nigh onto 40 years of the left's solutions and recognized that every single one of them is a failure. To use Sour Masher's analogy, sure you can point to some programs that have had benefits here and benefits there, but the overall context and situation hasn't changed for most minorities in 40 years. Moreover, we who lean right who dare point this inherent truth out are labeled racist and worse.

I actually agree with Sour Masher's point about families, and I've always been an advocate that drug laws and punishments for the most part are overwhelmingly stupid. I eagerly await a left-leaning politician that brings forth some sort of solution that addresses the former in a coherent way.

Let's be fair with this...it isn't a problem that the left owns for the last 40 years. The GOP had control of the Presidency for 12 years with reagan and Bush I...and again for 8 more years with Bush II. the GOP controlled Congress for a large period of that 40 years. Liberal Bill Clinton was behind welfare reform, so there's plenty of blame to go around among the pols.

But again, what's the solution? Is there a single one? I doubt it...I don't think that we see it solved in our lifetimes, or our children's lifetimes.

[Sour Masher]

Let's be fair with this...it isn't a problem that the left owns for the last 40 years. The GOP had control of the Presidency for 12 years with reagan and Bush I...and again for 8 more years with Bush II. the GOP controlled Congress for a large period of that 40 years. Liberal Bill Clinton was behind welfare reform, so there's plenty of blame to go around among the pols.

But again, what's the solution? Is there a single one? I doubt it...I don't think that we see it solved in our lifetimes, or our children's lifetimes.

Yeah, there is no one solution, but if we can come at this the right way, instead of letting some Republicans make this a black vs blue issue, i'd hope the cold hard facts of how biased our justice system is, and Chance is right that a huge part of that is how dumb our drug laws are, and how that disproportionately affects AA and Latin males, and how that in turn affects the next generation, we could take a step in the right direction. Our drug policies don't work. Our justice system is not blind. Death penalty rates, stop and frisk, every example you can find shows us this. But DMT is right. This current admin may be the worst possible one to face and properly deal with this reality. Trump wants to be like the crazy guy running Philippines and get crazy tough on drugs. Its one issue he is on the same page with Sessions, who seems to be the only guy left in the planet to think Reefer Madness was a documentary.

This country does have an opiod problems but instead of dealing with underlying causes and treatment, including over prescription from big pharma, this admin is going to get even tougher on punishment, which won't help get people help and will make racial inequality in the justice system that much worse.

[Hornsby]

Yeah, there is no one solution, but if we can come at this the right way, instead of letting some Republicans make this a black vs blue issue, i'd hope the cold hard facts of how biased our justice system is, and Chance is right that a huge part of that is how dumb our drug laws are, and how that disproportionately this affects AA and Latin males, and how that in turn affects the next generation, we could take a step in the right direction. Our drug policies don't work. Our justice system is not blind. Death penalty rates, stop and frisk, every example you can find shows us this. But DMT is right. This current admin may be the worst possible mine to face this reality. Trump wants to be like the crazy guy running Philippines and get crazy tough on drugs. Its one issue he is on the same page with Sessions, who seems to be the only guy left in the planet to think Reefer Madness was a documentary.

Fortunately, unless something changes, the marijuana issue is a state issue, and as it sits now, Medical Marijuana is legal in 29 states, recreational use is legal in 9 states, and many more have it pretty well decriminalized. So despite Crazy Jeff and his weed ranting, I really think that this is an issue that will be in our past in 20 years. And THAT will put a great dent in the criminal population...because most people even MY age have smoked, and enjoyed pot, and think that it's harmless. We just need to get a majority of state legislators to realize this, and it'll be a donde deal before long. Not to mention the financial boon that it'll be to all states.

[baldgriff]

Fortunately, unless something changes, the marijuana issue is a state issue, and as it sits now, Medical Marijuana is legal in 29 states, recreational use is legal in 9 states, and many more have it pretty well decriminalized. So despite Crazy Jeff and his weed ranting, I really think that this is an issue that will be in our past in 20 years. And THAT will put a great dent in the criminal population...because most people even MY age have smoked, and enjoyed pot, and think that it's harmless. We just need to get a majority of state legislators to realize this, and it'll be a donde deal before long. Not to mention the financial boon that it'll be to all states.

Holy smokes - Hornsby and I agree on something (see what I did there Holy smokes.....)

Honestly, Im glad marijuana is being legalized in many states. One of the reasons it is not legalized federally is the amount of funding that is spent by various large donors. Nothing will happen federally until they remove it from the schedule one list and unfortunately I just dont see that happening any time soon. This is about big money and pharma companies trying to keep their medicines as the primary legal option (and lining the pockets of both parties).

There are some issues that seem to break more partisan than others. This one should be a bi-partisan endeavor to stop the opioid epidemic. Drug overdoses kill more people annually than do guns.

[In the Corn]

Holy smokes - Hornsby and I agree on something (see what I did there Holy smokes.....)

Honestly, Im glad marijuana is being legalized in many states. One of the reasons it is not legalized federally is the amount of funding that is spent by various large donors. Nothing will happen federally until they remove it from the schedule one list and unfortunately I just dont see that happening any time soon. This is about big money and pharma companies trying to keep their medicines as the primary legal option (and lining the pockets of both parties).

There are some issues that seem to break more partisan than others. This one should be a bi-partisan endeavor to stop the opioid epidemic. Drug overdoses kill more people annually than do guns.

I think at some point when the majority of states have recreational (and maybe a large minority) the Feds will scour the state tax data and realize they can make way more in taxing the citizenry than lobbying dollars can bring in.

[baldgriff]

I think at some point when the majority of states have recreational (and maybe a large minority) the Feds will scour the state tax data and realize they can make way more in taxing the citizenry than lobbying dollars can bring in.

Ahhhh, but that money goes to the govt coffers not the parties coffers..... The longer they drag this out the more money the parties will take in.

[gcstomp]

Part of the reluctance to legalize is the for profit prison system. So many beds have been built, which need to be filled. Such a large percent of young black men have a prison record for minor drug offenses which would be probation offenses if they were light skinned. Unequal application of law to minorities is a real thing, and has added benefit of felony disenfranchisement laws which make it difficult to impossible for many to vote even after release from prison and serving probation.

[baldgriff]

GC -
I was going to include the prison systems as one of the other reasons that the feds seems slow/reluctant to work on legalization of marijuana. You are correct that they have a large number of beds to keep filled. We shouldnt be creating more laws to keep putting more people in jail so that some privatized prison can make more profits. Prisons should be one of the things that should be government run.

[DMT]

GC -
I was going to include the prison systems as one of the other reasons that the feds seems slow/reluctant to work on legalization of marijuana. You are correct that they have a large number of beds to keep filled. We shouldnt be creating more laws to keep putting more people in jail so that some privatized prison can make more profits. Prisons should be one of the things that should be government run.

See, we can agree!

[baldgriff]

See, we can agree!

I know we can... My ideas on the prison system and its privatization come from my libertarian ideals. Government should be enforcing the laws - not making it a for business endeavor.


Edit to add: I do plan on voting for legalization when its on the ballot this year.

[gcstomp]

I guess we are off target, but we have 2 issues with drugs. One, the horror of the widespread opioid crisis, esp cheap fentanyl which evidently is many times stronger than heroin and leaves people hopelessly addicted or overdosed in a span of just an extra couple grains of the stuff. I cannot even fathom how powerful that is, but reading up on it I wont even try it once. The 2nd is lawmakers who conflate pot use as legally the same as heroin, resulting in vast swaths of population with records.

The result of people having felony convictions, which on a young person almost insures they cannot get a good quality of life type career is absurd.

Other countries treat opioid drug users as having a problem and address how to break the cycle of addiction. In U.S. we treat drug users as criminals and break their souls, taking away a chance to work hard and get ahead.

How bad is opioid abuse growing? Per drugabuse.gov website, this is a stat that jumped out at me. "The Midwestern region saw opioid overdoses increase 70 percent from July 2016 through September 2017."

[B-Fly]

I guess we are off target, but we have 2 issues with drugs. One, the horror of the widespread opioid crisis, esp cheap fentanyl which evidently is many times stronger than heroin and leaves people hopelessly addicted or overdosed in a span of just an extra couple grains of the stuff. I cannot even fathom how powerful that is, but reading up on it I wont even try it once. The 2nd is lawmakers who conflate pot use as legally the same as heroin, resulting in vast swaths of population with records.

The result of people having felony convictions, which on a young person almost insures they cannot get a good quality of life type career is absurd.

Other countries treat opioid drug users as having a problem and address how to break the cycle of addiction. In U.S. we treat drug users as criminals and break their souls, taking away a chance to work hard and get ahead.

How bad is opioid abuse growing? Per drugabuse.gov website, this is a stat that jumped out at me. "The Midwestern region saw opioid overdoses increase 70 percent from July 2016 through September 2017."

I think there is an opportunity for bi-partisan efforts to reframe controlled substances and addiction as public health issues rather than criminal and moral ones, which would then clearly justify distinctions between marijuana and far more harmful substances, as well as focusing far more on education, prevention and treatment and far less on prosecution, punishment and condemnation. Trump himself is probably capable of supporting such a reframing but Sessions is so deeply entrenched in his view of drug addiction as a criminal and moral problem that the necessary reframing is incredibly unlikely to occur while he remains at the helm of the Justice Department.

[onejayhawk]

This is one area that hopefully can be put finally to rest in the foreseeable future. Unless I miss my read, President Trump will be amenable. There will always be proscribed subtances, but this one is ridiculous.

J