# Will We Be Able to Openly Discuss Marijuana Use... **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [March 17, 2013, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174 "2013-03-17T15:38:41Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![HeyHomie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/heyhomie/32/207_2.png) [@HeyHomie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HeyHomie)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/1 "2013-03-17T15:38:41Z")
…when medical marijuana becomes legal in Illinois? [Illinois is moving in that direction](http://www.sj-r.com/breaking/x1037520463/House-panel-votes-to-legalize-medical-marijuana-plan). ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/2 "2013-03-17T15:52:44Z")
We already can openly discuss it. Check this out: I smoked pot last night and then watched TV. True story. ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 4:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/3 "2013-03-17T16:19:32Z")
As long as you aren’t talking about how to obtain it illegally I don’t know if its ever been against the rules to talk about it. But just to warn you, to those of us that aren’t high pot talk is really really boring. ---
**Author:** ![Rachellelogram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rachellelogram/32/8689_2.png) [@Rachellelogram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rachellelogram)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/4 "2013-03-17T16:22:38Z")
How many Dopers are current cancer/AIDS patients living in Illinois? Is this even going to come up? The restrictiveness of the bill is extreme compared to existing mj legislation. ---
**Author:** ![Glazer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a88e57/32.png) [@Glazer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Glazer)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 4:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/5 "2013-03-17T16:40:42Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > We already can openly discuss it. > > Check this out: I smoked pot last night and then watched TV. True story. I don’t remember you being over at my house last night. ??? Wow, that was some good pot dude. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/6 "2013-03-17T16:41:37Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > We already can openly discuss it. > > Check this out: I smoked pot last night and then watched TV. True story. Me too. Netflix streaming. A very good movie, IIRC.🆒 ---
**Author:** ![GrandWino](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/grandwino/32/67_2.png) [@GrandWino](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrandWino)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/7 "2013-03-17T17:07:33Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > We already can openly discuss it. > > Check this out: I smoked pot last night and then watched TV. True story. > [@kayaker](#): > > Me too. Netflix streaming. A very good movie, IIRC.🆒 Me three, except it was the movie The Perks of Being a Wallflower. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/8 "2013-03-17T17:08:00Z")
I have to assume that if someone is smoking pot legally, medicinally or not, there’s nothing wrong with them posting about it(other than perhaps it being boring). ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 5:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/9 "2013-03-17T17:10:17Z")
The fact is that you really can’t smoke pot legally in the US. It might be legal in some states under certain circumstances but it’s still illegal at the federal level. Nevertheless, I did smoke marijuana last night and it was obtained illegally. True story. ---
**Author:** ![Darth\_Panda](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ee7513/32.png) [@Darth\_Panda](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darth_Panda)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/10 "2013-03-17T17:16:02Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > The fact is that you really can’t smoke pot legally in the US. It might be legal in some states under certain circumstances but it’s still illegal at the federal level. > > Nevertheless, I did smoke marijuana last night and it was obtained illegally. True story. There are other countries out there :). It’s legal to grow up to 4 plants for personal use in some parts of Switzerland, for example. Uruguay also has an allowance for personal use. Eta: eh, I take that back, apparently the law that allowed personal use in some cantons of Switzerland was overturned last October. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 5:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/11 "2013-03-17T17:16:41Z")
> [@Bob Ducca](#): > > Me three, except it was the movie The Perks of Being a Wallflower. Heard good things about it. /hijack ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/12 "2013-03-17T17:41:30Z")
We ask posters to use a bit of common sense in talking about illegal activity, but you’re allowed to talk about it. What you can’t do is promote illegal activity or talk about how to break the law, i.e. how to get illegal drugs. And I can double check if people are curious, but I’m 99% sure we have said that federal law overrides state law on this issue. Not that it makes much difference- we discourage “You guys I’m so drunk right now” threads and we’d do the same with threads about people getting stoned whether it’s legal or not. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 6:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/13 "2013-03-17T18:28:42Z")
Hey, you guys, I’m so stone cold sober right now. The clarity is amazing! ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 6:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/14 "2013-03-17T18:37:52Z")
> [@moriah](#): > > Hey, you guys, I’m so stone cold sober right now. The clarity is amazing! Been there & done that. Highly overrated.🆒 ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/15 "2013-03-17T19:26:14Z")
So this is where we can post that we _aren’t_ smoking marijuana? Why am I here? ---
**Author:** ![eschereal](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eschereal/32/18939_2.png) [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 7:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/16 "2013-03-17T19:29:04Z")
> [@kayaker](#): > > Been there & done that. Highly overrated.🆒 Reality is for people who cannot handle escapism. ---
**Author:** ![UltraVires](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ecccb3/32.png) [@UltraVires](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UltraVires)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/17 "2013-03-17T21:17:14Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > The fact is that you really can’t smoke pot legally in the US. It might be legal in some states under certain circumstances but it’s still illegal at the federal level. That’s a good point. For example, a person who has been convicted of a misdemeanor domestic violence offense is prohibited from owning guns at a federal level, but it is legal in many states. Can a poster say, “I have a prior DV conviction but I was enjoying target shooting yesterday when…”? if that poster lives in a state that doesn’t forbid prior DV convictions from being a disqualifying factor? ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/18 "2013-03-17T21:38:49Z")
> [@jtgain](#): > > Can a poster say, “I have a prior DV conviction but I was enjoying target shooting yesterday when…”? if that poster lives in a state that doesn’t forbid prior DV convictions from being a disqualifying factor? > [@Marley23](#): > > We ask posters to use a bit of common sense in talking about illegal activity, but you’re allowed to talk about it. _What you can’t do is promote illegal activity or talk about how to break the law,_ i.e. how to get illegal drugs. Emphasis added. ---
**Author:** ![Ethilrist](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ethilrist/32/4604_2.png) [@Ethilrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ethilrist)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 10:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/19 "2013-03-17T22:11:56Z")
> [@Marley23](#): > > We ask posters to use a bit of common sense in talking about illegal activity, but you’re allowed to talk about it. What you can’t do is promote illegal activity or talk about how to break the law, i.e. **how to get illegal drugs.** And I can double check if people are curious, but I’m 99% sure we have said that federal law overrides state law on this issue. So, we can’t talk about how to get marijuana, or grow it, regardless of the state-level laws? ---
**Author:** ![Marconi\_N.Cheese](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/57b2e6/32.png) [@Marconi\_N.Cheese](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marconi_N.Cheese)\ **Post date:** [March 17, 2013, 10:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174/20 "2013-03-17T22:32:27Z")
So; ok to discuss, with the exception of topics relating to growing it, selling it, buying it, and using it? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/will-we-be-able-to-openly-discuss-marijuana-use/653174.md?page=2)