A Non-Stoner's Opinion on Amendment 64

Nov. 15: Link to an item in the news you’ve been thinking about lately, and write the op-ed you’d like to see published on the topic.

Article: Amendment 64 Passes: Colorado Legalizes Marijuana for Recreational Use

My way of cutting to the chase. As if the title wasn’t obvious enough.

That’s it. The world has gone crazy. At least, that’s what the majority of the conservative adults I know are thinking. They don’t really understand how to process the fact that both Colorado and Washington State have voted to legalize the use of marijuana (weed/cannabis/grass). I on the other hand, am ecstatic. As stated above in the title, I don’t smoke weed, nor have I ever tried it or any of its variations. The reason why I’m happy about this is because it shows that the US is finally waking up and seeing that their “war on drugs” isn’t being won. Or at least, it isn’t being won by the government.

Now, I don’t think that trying to stop or control drug use is a bad thing, in fact, I believe just the opposite, especially in regards to drugs like cocaine or LSD. The reason why this “drug war” needs to be stopped is because the main drug that is being opposed or discussed always seems to be marijuana. I will seriously never understand why this is the case when the focus should be shifted to drugs that are infinitely more harmful and addictive like heroine and cocaine. So, the war on drugs that the US Federal government is trying to wage is focused on the wrong drug. Right now, even though it isn’t a nationwide change, parts of the US are realizing that they need to shift their focus to things that actually matter.

There are other reasons of course, that I support the legalization of marijuana even though I’m a non-user. One them  is that the tax money that would be generated by the controlled sale of this drug would really, really help the US government chip away at its large deficit. It just makes economic sense. Another reason why I support legalization is that it provides an alternative to alcohol consumption and participation in illegal activities. Alcohol use is shown to be a lot more harmful to society and the individual than marijuana use is, so hopefully having weed available will cut down on the amount of people destroying their liver (and getting into drunk driving accidents). Legalization would cut down people involved in illegal activities as it would basically destroy an entire sector of the black market. This might even help create jobs because  more people would be willing to work in producing/selling weed if they knew that they would not be penalized for it.

I know this is an opinion piece. I also know that it involved a lot of fact-based insights. But hey, that is my opinion. It’s something that is grounded in fact. I can’t write anything about using weed and stuff because as I said in the beginning, I’ve never done it. I do know that this is important, and something that is totally unprecedented in North America. Even though I’m a non-user, I will be living somewhere on that continent by September 2013. That is why this affects me. That is why I’ve been thinking about this for a while. I’m honestly just glad to know that I’ll be living in a place where the ever-growing knowledge and acceptance of its citizens is clearly reflected in its legislature.