The legalization of marijuana in Colorado doesn’t mean potheads will be moving there in droves. THIS IS NOT to say marijuana is a “safe” drug. Studies show it harms a developing young brain, much as alcohol.
Availability has never been the issue.
Rather, it’s the enforcement of marijuana use and the incarceration of abusers that have created an unsupportable burden on states.
An average 750,000 arrests are made each year for marijuana. As a country, our prisons are overcrowded in part because of marijuana-related infractions.
Making marijuana a controlled substance, and not an illegal drug, takes its sales out of the black market, helps free up our prisons, and allows its distribution to be conducted in a safe manner.
For adults, it is as harmful a habit as drinking alcohol. Moderation is the key to safe use.
As with alcohol sales, Colorado not only restricts the sale of marijuana to those 21 and older but also limits the amount. A resident can buy no more than one ounce at a time, two ounces if for medicinal purposes. Cost is about $400 an ounce. Sales are expected to top $359 million this first year.
Reasons for making marijuana legal include its regulation. Buying weed on the black market is chancy including not exactly knowing its contents and how “pure” the product is.
Opponents fear its legalization will make marijuana more of a gateway drug to other, more harmful, drugs such as heroin. There’s also a connection to weed smokers becoming addicted to cigarettes.
Most physicians admit to marijuana’s medicinal value, including its use for stimulating the appetite for those who suffer from chronic illness, as well as treating chronic pain, nausea, seizure disorders, glaucoma, mild arthritis and depression.
Currently, 18 states and Washington, D.C., allow the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. In April, Washington will join Colorado in over-the-counter sales.
Because marijuana is so readily available, the conversation needs to be on its effect on the human body and psyche. Children need to understand it’s bad for their developing bodies. Adults need to understand it is a de-motivator, just like an alcoholic drink or a dependency on barbiturates.
For any age, a habit of smoking marijuana means inhaling even more cancer-causing chemicals than contained in cigarettes, risking lung damage and potential risk of cancer.
If we take away the stigma of marijuana being “illegal” and focus on its harmful effects, that would help drive the conversation into a more healthy direction, much as the war against tobacco use is succeeding.
— Susan Lynn
Legalizing marijuana can shift focus to its health consequences
