# Can you really buy marijuana online? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [February 2, 2004, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143 "2004-02-02T04:14:25Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![chefIL11](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e36b37/32.png) [@chefIL11](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/chefIL11)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/1 "2004-02-02T04:14:25Z")
There has been much debate about whether or not purchasing marijuana online is legal or illegal. What is the truth? There was a classroom debate at my university the other day about whether or not this is true or myth. These sites claim to have “offshore” bank accounts and it is completely confidential. Something doesn’t sound right here. There must be laws forbidding this. How do they stay in business? I figure that if regular internet users stumble across these sites, the government must be cracking down. Hopefully you can clear this up and support my claim that these sites are illegal and hoaxes so I can maintain my integrity in class. Thanks! ---
**Author:** ![Jojo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ecd19e/32.png) [@Jojo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jojo)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 6:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/2 "2004-02-02T06:34:53Z")
I read an article about this the other day in the Guardian. [Here it is](http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk_news/story/0,3604,1135879,00.html). ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 8:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/3 "2004-02-02T08:10:10Z")
Just a note: Please do not link to any site that sells the stuff online, or this thread will be closed. Thanks. - **xash** General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![iamthewalrus\_3](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/258eb7/32.png) [@iamthewalrus\_3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iamthewalrus_3)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/4 "2004-02-02T08:17:37Z")
My guess is that there’s lots of stuff you could buy online that’s illegal in your neck of the woods, wherever that may be. If there’s anywhere that pot is legal to sell, they could always host it there and let whoever buys the stuff worry about the legality, no? ---
**Author:** ![Indefatigable](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/9d8465/32.png) [@Indefatigable](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Indefatigable)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 1:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/5 "2004-02-02T13:31:16Z")
I’ve seen websites, and I can’t remember what they were selling, but they had a disclaimer that said if you weren’t legally allowed to purchase the material, you shouldn’t be doing it. I think they were basically absolving themselves of any responsibility if someone bought it when the law said they shouldn’t. (It might have been porn, in which case it would have said ‘if you are under the age of 21’). ---
**Author:** ![herman\_and\_bill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/f1d935/32.png) [@herman\_and\_bill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/herman_and_bill)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/6 "2004-02-02T13:51:11Z")
Would you trust your credit card number with a company selling illegal products? ---
**Author:** ![Amp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Amp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amp)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/7 "2004-02-02T14:04:21Z")
> [@herman\_and\_bill](#): > > Would you trust your credit card number with a company selling illegal products? Its not illegal in every single part of the world. ---
**Author:** ![PookahMacPhellimey](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pookahmacphellimey/32/3175_2.png) [@PookahMacPhellimey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PookahMacPhellimey)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/8 "2004-02-02T14:36:51Z")
To order please press the “hash” key. Sorry. couldn’t resist. ---
**Author:** ![Ike\_Witt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ike_witt/32/283_2.png) [@Ike\_Witt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ike_Witt)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/9 "2004-02-02T15:00:35Z")
I’ve never seen actual marijuana for sale; that is no mail order dealers. However, there are tons of places that sell the seeds for all varieties of pot. In some places like the UK and maybe Canada it is legal to sell them and legal to possess them, but growing them is illegal. AFAIK, it is illegal to even possess them in the US. ---
**Author:** ![Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spectre_of_pithecanthropus/32/12343_2.png) [@Spectre\_of\_Pithecanthropus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spectre_of_Pithecanthropus)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/10 "2004-02-02T22:56:55Z")
I imagine that if you order from such a website and pay with your credit card, as you would presumably have to do, you would be the legal owner of the MJ as soon as the transaction went through. But in the act of receiving the shipment you’d be importing it, which is surely illegal. As a comparison, the legal disclaimers for an online wine and spirits store says that you own the liquor as soon as your credit card transaction is authorized, but the laws regarding shipment are controlled by your state, or other jurisdiction in which you live. So with the MJ, I wouldn’t be surprised if you can, actually, legally buy it and take “possession” of it, but you just can’t get it home. ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [February 2, 2004, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/11 "2004-02-02T23:51:37Z")
> [@](#): > > Please do not link to any site that sells the stuff online, **or this thread will be closed.** As long as the link still works! 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Grumple\_Grommit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/9fc348/32.png) [@Grumple\_Grommit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grumple_Grommit)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/12 "2004-02-03T01:13:49Z")
* * * there seem to be quite a few sites offering to sell marijuana. I’d imagine quite a few of them are bogus, but I doubt all of them are. ---
**Author:** ![ltfire](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ea924/32.png) [@ltfire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ltfire)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/13 "2004-02-03T01:19:50Z")
You can buy ANYTHING on line. If you haven’t found it, then you haven’t dug deep enough. ---
**Author:** ![CheekyMonkey613](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e480ec/32.png) [@CheekyMonkey613](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CheekyMonkey613)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/14 "2004-02-03T01:41:22Z")
> [@herman\_and\_bill](#): > > Would you trust your credit card number with a company selling illegal products? More than I would trust the government with my Social Insurance number. ---
**Author:** ![Ostrya](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/35a633/32.png) [@Ostrya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ostrya)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2004, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/15 "2004-02-03T05:26:20Z")
Thank you for posting the link but I was only joking and the truth is, I’m too paranoid even to click on it. Now there’ll be a padlock and it’ll be all my fault! And a quality, family topic it was, too! ---
**Author:** ![xash](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/c6cbf5/32.png) [@xash](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/xash)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2004, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-you-really-buy-marijuana-online/227143/16 "2004-02-04T21:00:58Z")
**Grumple Grommit** , if you attempt to circumvent the rules of GQ again, especially when they are stated explicitly within the thread itself, you will be banned without hesitation. You have been warned. This thread is closed. - **xash** General Questions Moderator