I think its insane that we need to vote people in to vote for us, who are statistically more likely to be psychopaths. The majority of Australians think weed should be legal, but it still isn't.

Giving people the power to vote on specific issues bypasses the bureaucratic bullshit.

"Oh no, it might open the door to more changes to the constitution" GOOD

[–] DavidDoesLemmy@aussie.zone 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

California has a proposition voting thing. It sounds like a good idea but it has caused them problems. A lot of it is in the wording of the proposition and omitting any negative consequences. For example, people might vote for less property taxes without realising that means less money to fund schools etc. Everything is a trade off and it's hard to convey that to the general population.

[–] TassieTosser@aussie.zone 2 points 1 year ago

They also voted down treating gig economy workers like employees through that proposition system. But the AEC runs the show with our referendum system. They're at least a referee to ensure that things are presented fairly.

[–] Zozano@lemmy.world 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Absolutely. Foremost, the governments job is to keep everything ticking along. My issue is with the politicians who vote against the will of the majority of the people, when it has no impact on keeping the gears turning.

Legalising weed would do nothing but good for our economy, numerous countries have already proved that. If I can step over them and skip months of bickering back and forth (so they can go back to arguing about how to improve things), I'm going to step over them.

[–] DavidDoesLemmy@aussie.zone 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

If the people voted to legalise weed, the government would be scrambling to figure out how to test if people are high when driving. What's an acceptable amount of weed in your system and can the police run accurate, cheap tests.

[–] Zozano@lemmy.world 1 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago) (1 children)

I don't think the amount of people getting high will change much. It's pretty easy to find weed wherever you go. All this will do is remove the black market, and provide high-quality weed for cheaper prices.

From Wikipedia:

No studies have been able to show [canabis impairment] increases the actual risk of crashing, or that drivers with THC in their blood cause a disproportionate number of crashes.

It seems redundant to worry about it. Alcohol is worth testing for, the physiological impairment is dangerous (blacking out, blurred vision), and drunk people make riskier decisions.

[–] DavidDoesLemmy@aussie.zone 1 points 1 year ago

The difference is now the police can charge people if they detect any cannabis in their system. If it were legal, there would need to be an acceptable level and ways for the police and the public to determine if they are over that level.

While several studies have shown increased risk associated with cannabis use by drivers, other studies have not found increased risk. From that same wikipedia article. It sounds like there's no general consensus.