Posted on 12/06/2008 8:04:58 AM PST by Zakeet
Pot is not legal in Holland, at least on the production side. That’s the side gangs tend to make their money off of. It’s hard to call something legal when the means to produce it is illegal.
If, say, motorcycles were made illegal in the US to produce but were still legal to drive and possess and were legal to sell in certain stores (sounds like a bizarre concept to me, but I digress), some gang here would oversee the motorcycle production. That logic would hold true with any product that is illegal to produce, be it a drug or anything else.
-PJ
I think you really gotta' be wary when your government tells you that you can have crime free prostitution and dope.
That was you?
Sorry, it was late and I was a little tipsy. :)
Looks like the panacea of legalization hasn’t worked so well.
Now way would I advise anybody to "partake" in Amsterdam's red light district.
I was a young man in my early 20's when I visited A'dam and it was an exciting and intriguing place, with an element of danger, something that attracts young guys. There were some areas where it felt as if one were stepping back into time to 60's Haight Ashbury. In other areas, namely the red light district, it reminded me of what I had read of New Orleans and its old red light district, Storyville.
LOL! : )
I don't know about prostitution, but the marijuana industry is not legal in Holland. Possession and sales are illegal, but give these coffeeshops permits and allow them to sell up to five grams per persons, and allow people to possess some for personal use. The coffeeshops buy from the black market though, so of course their suppliers end up being organized crime. The coffeeshops are allowed to possess only up to 500 grams at a time. Many do so much business that they have to resupply several times a day, making illegal purchases through the back door.
Most of the mayors in the Netherlands got together recently and voted to push the federal government to allow for commercial production permits. At least one city is apparently going to start a city program where the city grows it for the coffeeshops. Most of the leadership in the Netherlands, and the people for that matter, do not wish to do away with their whole system. The majority want to allow for commercial production. The problem is international treaties and their agreements with the EU. If not for these factors they would have set up a legal and regulated marijuana production industry a long time ago. That would have taken a lot of money from organized crime.
I don't know about the prostitution but pot isn't legal in the Netherlands. They do tolerate possession and retail sales of up to five grams per person at these coffeeshops. They even give these coffeeshops permits to sell pot, even though it isn't legal. They do not tolerate wholesale sales though. The coffeeshops have to buy their supply from organized crime, in purchases of 500 grams or less because 500 grams is all they can have on the premises at any given time. It's a screwy system bound to encourage organized crime.
Which is why I referred to pot as being decriminalized as opposed to legalized.
I've seen that suggested by many posters claiming to be libertarians on FR. While I don't frequent threads about marijuana as a rule, I could always ping you the next time I see someone make such a suggestion if you'd like.
If people suggest that decriminalization would end the influence of organized crime, they are most likely confusing “decriminalization” with “legalization.” A lot of people use the two words interchangeably, which is wrong, but you see it a lot. Next time you see someone writing about how decriminalization will take organized crime out of the equation ask them what they mean by “decriminalization” and I bet they will describe legalization.
Oh not to worry. I’m sure they will relocate to San Francisco.
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