Quote Originally Posted by dragonrider
This is partly true, but not totally right.

It's true people mostly buy alcohol, but you can make your own beer and wine, and some people do make thier own. I used to make my own beer, and it was cheap and really good --- just took a little time, effort and upfront expense for the equipment. I think you may even be allowed to make a certain amount of distilled spirits for your own consumption, but I'm not actually sure on that, and almost no one does make their own for safety and quality reasons.

On the subject of things grown in the ground, people mostly buy all their fruit and produce from stores, even though they could grow some of it themselves. Some people grow their own, but not many. For most people, the reason is probably convenience. You could grow your own tobacco in some parts of the country, but almost no one does. The main reason is probably convenience and quality.

So I think that if marijuana were legal and taxed, the government would mostly gain more control. They might not get control over people who just wanted to grow their own and some people who wanted to avoid paying the tax. But most people would probably want to buy it in stores for convenience, quality and legality, and the government would be able to gain control over that portion of the market.

When something is illegal and people want it bad enough, a black market will always emerge to provide it. And then it operates outside of the law, and the government has no control over it. Making it legal allows some kind of control, and people will generally prefer dealing with a safe, legal, and regulated industry rather than a black market one.

I'm almost surprised that some kind of large established industry, like the tobacco or liquor industry, hasn't recognized the potential profit in legal weed and pushed to make it legal.
the bit about alcohol production, not sure if this is exactly right, but I believe if you're an adult aged 18 or older, you can produce something like 5-10 gallons of your own booze every year...Problem with that is the knowledge, time and upkeep...Similar to that of growing pot...Sure people will do it, but I'll guarantee you the utmost majority is going to go to the corner store to pick up an 1/8th rather than waiting four months for that eighth...