Pot smoking blog stirs up hornet's nest
Published: 11/15/2012 11:24 AM
Last Modified: 11/15/2012 11:24 AM
I deviated from my usual grandfatherly stance in last week’s blog to lambast the electorate of Washington and Colorado for voting to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.
And in doing so, I stepped into a hornet's nest of angry pot smokers and civil libertarians. You would have thought I was advocating a ban on drinking coffee not smoking pot.
I also caught it on the chin from several people who thought I gave alcoholism a pass vs. marijuana.
And from people who said I shouldn’t be editorializing on the news pages.
About an equal number of people said they agreed with me, and they didn’t seem nearly so angry.
All in all, it was a fun Monday.
So, just to clarify:
This was a blog, by definition a personal opinion piece, not an objective news story. (It appears on line each week as part of the Becauseisaidso blog on parenting and grandparenting, and also appears each Monday in print in the Scene section of the Tulsa World.)
And to further clarify:
- I do not advocate driving drunk or becoming an alcoholic.
- I am opposed to lung cancer and emphysema.
- I did not address the medical use of marijuana, only legalizing its recreational use.
- I have nothing against the commercial use of hemp for rope-making and other purposes. (Yes, one caller brought that up.)
- I know America is full of successful doctors, lawyers, journalists and even U.S. presidents (who did not inhale) who have smoked pot.
I recognize some people make valid arguments for legalizing pot, including not turning a generation of young people into scofflaws, allowing its sale to be legally regulated and controlled, and eliminating its illegal trafficking.
But I stand by my humble opinion: recreational pot use should be illegal, and parents and grandparents should talk to their kids about its dangers. Legalization gives it society’s stamp of approval, sends the wrong message to young people, and makes it more accessible to adolescents, whose pliable, developing young psyches can be permanently altered by persistent pot smoking
You adults who want to stay stoned, it's your life.
Written by
Bill Sherman
Staff Writer
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