There are reported lines of customers outside the pot shops
rivaling those seen at bakeries in communist East Germany. It makes me wonder
just how safe it will be to drive in Colorado once these pot stores get a full
inventory.
Not to fear, the state government says. They have laws
against driving high. Right, they also have laws against driving drunk, but
booze is legal, people buy it legally, and get in their cars and drive
illegally drunk. At least when pot was illegal, it was more difficult to drive
while high. It’s too early for comparable statistics, but if and when they are
made does anyone doubt the rate of driving under the influence will be up?
I’m no teetotaler
(not to be confused with tea partier). I enjoy a beer or two now and again. Okay, maybe more than a beer or two on rare occasions. But alcohol is not a “gateway” drug. Sure, alcoholism is a terrible disease, and yes, it is an addiction. Alcoholics only look for more booze, not stronger stuff.
Marijuana has been termed a gateway drug. It leaves the user
craving for an even bigger high, which frequently drives the user to stronger
drugs.
Colorado claims to have strict laws regarding the use of
this dope, but they haven’t even figured out how to tax the stuff. To keep
outsiders from buying the drug a valid Colorado ID is needed for each purchase.
Those who can buy it are prohibited from mailing or transporting it outside the
state. Just how they intend to enforce these well-meaning safeguards has not
been reported.
The laws against driving high have not been repealed, so we should be able to get data on the increase of violations soon. Of course, employer drug testing is still legal and pot smokers can be fired or not even hired.
One thing the sellers of this drug should seriously consider
is the report that the cartels that illegally smuggle pot into this country are
very displeased with marijuana legalization. These are the same cartels that
lop off heads and hang the bodies from bridges in Mexico. How long will it be
before the violence takes hold in Colorado?
So far, there are 20 states allowing the sale and use of
medical marijuana. Colorado and Washington are the only two states where
anyone 18 or over can legally buy
and use the weed. It may be safe to say that medical marijuana laws have led to
the desire for even more liberal use.
The ridiculous idea that a medical professional – doctor, Physician’s Assistant or Nurse Practitioner – can “prescribe” pot for any malady a patient complains of and requests using marijuana has made a mockery of the law. I have to wonder why this drug is not dispensed by registered pharmacists at legal pharmacies like other legitimate medicines. Has the FDA or any drug company researchers actually found any beneficial use for pot?
California voters rejected the unrestricted use of marijuana
twice, but there is currently a possibility that the 2016 elections may see yet
another proposition attempting to legalize the weed in the state. We can only
hope that two years worth of data on unrestricted use will be enough to show
the very real dangers of legalization.
So, now that Coloradoans are now enveloped in a blue haze of
pot, will the next call to be the legalization of cocaine, crack, meth, or
heroin? How many lives need to be destroyed by this crap before we reject at
least one aspect of the sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll legacy of the ‘60s?
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