How i no why I always liked Tom's Hikes

not cool. ive always liked his stuff. hope the chronicle keeps him on. dang.

Now, Now, Pete there's nothing wrong with a tasty bud once in a Y'ill

squishy wrote:...Weed in CA is basically legal now, ...

I don't know where you live but that broad statement is simply not true.

squishy wrote:We are heading toward wide spread recreational use, get use to it, it's already happening....

That will never happen...get used to that.

Pete, you are an interesting dude, but if I were your docter (and don't laugh, I do have an animal science degree!), I would prescribe it mandatory that you hit the bong once every morning when you wake up and once every night to wind down....

Go go go you crazy stoners! Get high- in more ways than one!

I always figured Stienstra was a bit of a stoner from some of his writeups in his California Hiking guide (which is among my most well-thumbed books). Doesn't seem to have affected his appreciation of natural beauty much - his guidance on which hikes are especially scenic is usually pretty spot on.

sheriff's deputies served a search warrant at his home in Weed and found a "sophisticated cultivation operation" in his barn

What a disgusting waste of tax money. I guess there is no robbery, rape, theft, or domestic abuse in Siskiyou County. How about intoxicated drivers? You know, all those people who sit for hours at a bar and drink, and then have to get home somehow? Right; like they're all using designated drivers or taxis. Yeah, don't bother with all of that difficult stuff; just be a pussy cop and do the risk-free bust of the safe, harmless guy with some plants.

What is this I read about legalization leading to increased usage and bla bla bla? Who the fuck takes the stupid pot law into account when they decide whether or not to smoke pot? Seriously. Anyone?

I don't smoke anything, and I'm not going to start just because it's legal. There are plenty of legal cans of spray paint at the nearby Home Depot, and I'm not racing up there to sniff some of that shit either. Anyone who wants to smoke is already smoking, and anyone who doesn't want to smoke already does not.

Legalizing pot just means innocent people don't wind up in the legal system. Driving while intoxicated will still be illegal. In fact, they can take some of the tax money currently wasted on busting people with plants, and they can use it to increase enforcement of intoxicated driving. So there; everyone's happy.

I don't smoke, but must take issue with 1000 peaks.

Number one, smoking weed is a perfect example of a victimless crime. If he wants to legislate morality, he'd better not have any vices, because then they are all fair game. I love to drink beer but am much more scared of a drunk driver than a stoned one.

Number two, the reason he feels in danger hiking in Northern California is because the stuff is illegal. It has nothng at all to do with the drug. Prohibition creates a huge profit motive where something you could grow for pennies goes for hundreds of dollars an ounce. The danger comes because the profit motive combines with an illegal and thus totally unregulated market, one where violence, not the law, rules. If the drug were legal you would buy it in a store, a few pieces of regular farmland would supply it, and your national forests would be safe.

Just my two grams, er, two cents

Not to mention that taxing the sale of pot would pull CA out of it's budget problems in one and a half years according to experts.

I don't smoke pot But i do like to listen to Jimi Hendrix (Valleys of Nepture)

Well here's my "two grams" worth on the subject, coming from a non smoker. I personally know people who do smoke and it doesn't bother me in the least, that's their business. So I'm not an extremist pot hater. But I do question if it should be legal or not. For adults If it were made legal, it would have zero affect on the amount that is consumed but I do think that thge useage among teens may increase. I do remember growing up and for most teens to go out and have afew beers was something we all did and really without much fear of our actions. But Pot was different, we all worried about getting caught and the ramifications for it were far worse than having some beers. So legalizing it I feel would have a negative affect in dealing with teens.

As far as taxing it and having the government involved, well our government can't run much of anything without screwing it up. More government in our lives- NO! And for those who are growing it and making big bucks off of it, do you really think they are going to file a tax return that shows they made say........$500K of income off the sale of it? Come on, that will never happen.

I'm not sure what the answer is. Some of the laws are too harsh (like bad pot) but then if a grower is caught with 100,000 plants on his 50 acres, well the penalty should be severe. If your caught with 5 plants in your garage there should probably be just a slap on the wrist. And then again, if you are caught several times with growing just five plants, then a hefty fine but no jail time. I'm not sure what the penalties are but for smaller amounts, fines as opposed to jail, no matter how many times your busted.

In a nutshell, at this point I think it should stay illegal. And as far as comparing it to alcohol, the fines and penalties have become very, very severe in most states, even for first time drunk driving offenses. Very different from pot.

1000Pks wrote:Up here in Northern CA, pot growers are a big threat to hikers, by the USFS and all. In Denny, it is said to be the most lawless place in the USA. Gunfire, and it is not safe for hikers. You might stumble upon a farm, to then be silenced permanently (death). Similar for around here in the Sierra Foothills. Booby traps, IEDs even, are what they warn about.

I hope that wasn't supposed to be an argument against legalization. You do realize that nobody gets shot for accidentally stumbling upon a legal crop.