The now-old pop culture saying, “If it feels good do it”, gave license to a lot of destructive behavior in its day. SF was a potent epicenter of that attitude then, and it is no surprise that today SF leads the way in facilitating mind-altering drug use for those who say it feels good.
Yes there are monetary wins. For one, recreational cannabis has created a taxable industry for The State to feed their ever-widening pocket. But there are significant downsides to drug use. When you boil it all down to the net result, I fail to see a truly productive societal benefit in what SF is encouraging. We all agree there are enough problems with alcohol intoxication, so why did we invite more intoxication with recreational cannabis?
From the article: “Thompson traveled from Atlantic City to celebrate his 27th birthday with his cousins, who live in Oakland. They decided to celebrate in style, getting as high as they could in San Francisco.”
At least they didn’t go to a bar and get “as drunk as they could.” They could have caused some real harm to themselves or others.
It’s too early to tell if legal recreational MJ will have any societal benefit. At the very least, it has to be less costly than the last eight decades of failed prohibition.
Yes, less costly if expanded use because of wider availability and society’s stamp of approval don’t result in:
1. More dead from car accidents due to stoned drivers.
2. More people in rehabilitation due to addiction to pot.
3. More people dropping out of school due to pot-caused lack of motivation.
4. More people mentally ill, since statistically, regular use doubles your chances of mental illness.
5. More kids damaged in the womb, if the latest scientific studies are correct.
But otherwise, full steam ahead! What could go wrong?
This is great! Potheads in San Francisco can get wasted and then just walk outside to lay down in the street with their new homeless friends!
The now-old pop culture saying, “If it feels good do it”, gave license to a lot of destructive behavior in its day. SF was a potent epicenter of that attitude then, and it is no surprise that today SF leads the way in facilitating mind-altering drug use for those who say it feels good.
Yes there are monetary wins. For one, recreational cannabis has created a taxable industry for The State to feed their ever-widening pocket. But there are significant downsides to drug use. When you boil it all down to the net result, I fail to see a truly productive societal benefit in what SF is encouraging. We all agree there are enough problems with alcohol intoxication, so why did we invite more intoxication with recreational cannabis?
From the article: “Thompson traveled from Atlantic City to celebrate his 27th birthday with his cousins, who live in Oakland. They decided to celebrate in style, getting as high as they could in San Francisco.”
At least they didn’t go to a bar and get “as drunk as they could.” They could have caused some real harm to themselves or others.
It’s too early to tell if legal recreational MJ will have any societal benefit. At the very least, it has to be less costly than the last eight decades of failed prohibition.
Yes, less costly if expanded use because of wider availability and society’s stamp of approval don’t result in:
1. More dead from car accidents due to stoned drivers.
2. More people in rehabilitation due to addiction to pot.
3. More people dropping out of school due to pot-caused lack of motivation.
4. More people mentally ill, since statistically, regular use doubles your chances of mental illness.
5. More kids damaged in the womb, if the latest scientific studies are correct.
But otherwise, full steam ahead! What could go wrong?