Do you support Marijuana Legalization?

[Dr Strangelove]

Tort law provides a mechanism, albeit imperfect, to address the externalities in Doc's nuclear waste example. Compared to second-hand smoke, it would be easy to know which problems were attributable to which nuclear waste yard and address them through private legal action.

Yeah, because torts have practically eliminated ciogarette smoking haven't they?

[Dr Strangelove]

So tax it.

I suspect that if the American Tobacco Company began producing (legal) marijuana cigarettes the cost of production would be below a dollar a pack. You want to slap a 5000% tax on an item to keep its price about the same as it is today?

[giblets]

I suspect that if the American Tobacco Company began producing (legal) marijuana cigarettes the cost of production would be below a dollar a pack. You want to slap a 5000% tax on an item to keep its price about the same as it is today?

I don't see why it should have the price it does today. But since you think that lowering the price would create problems, I offered a way to keep the price up.

[C0ckney]

i think that something like that would have, at most, a very marginal impact.

there are three main factors in my view, price, availability and personal choice (i.e. the choice whether to smoke or not). my contention is that there is no problem of availability and marijuana is not prohibitively expensive. although you might think that the fact it's illegal would be a barrier to people's choice, the wide availability and relatively low price renders personal choice the most important factor. at the moment people who want to smoke marijuana do so, and those who don't want to, don't.

edit: one heck of an x-post, was responding to post 90.

and also, thanks gribbler for providing the obvious answer for how to control the price of a legal product.

[Solomwi]

Yeah, because torts have practically eliminated ciogarette smoking haven't they?

Exactly, which is why regulation might be necessary with regard to smoking, yet not be necessary with regard to nuclear waste.