This is not going to be a popular article. People might think that I’m anti-weed, I’m not. I’m just anti my son smoking it. Everyone else has to make their own decision on the matter. There are reasons why I’m against legalizing Mexican Dirt Weed and they have nothing to do with bible thumping or me being some kind of overly judicious nut job that that thinks you have to walk a straight line. My reasons are purely related to climate change, sort of, ok, they’re not, but they have the same concept in mind. It’s the long game.

In climate change advocates, which I’m one of, and as you can see in this article, it is only getting worse, climate change (link brings you to a weather channel story) is not something you can stop in one day. It requires that you think about the long game. It requires that you think into the future and see the disasters that lay ahead for our children and grandchildren. Well, making Mary Jane legal needs those same considerations.

Let me start pre-pakaloco era. Remember when cigarettes came out. All the cool people were doing it and if you weren’t smoking then you just weren’t cool. You guys might know some of these people. I think one is a former President. I’m a Mets fan, so I don’t know if that’s Babe Ruth or Joe Dimaggio, but just remember that the Yankees promote smoking, well used to, and go visit Citi Field instead.

To no fault of their own, these people endorsed the use of cigarettes. Why wouldn’t they. The doctors all said that there was no harm from smoking and that it was safe for all ages, maybe they didn’t say all ages, but you get the point. What the doctor didn’t tell us is that he has a brand new yacht that is in the harbor by his, (I don’t say her not because women couldn’t be doctors, I just think they were too smart to promote cigarettes), brand new beach house in Bermuda and it is paid by the cigarette manufacturers. We all now know how that little tidbit of research ended up. Just in case I’ll post some of those tidbits. This is what cigarettes do according to the CDC. Just click on the link, don’t forget to come back.

Smoking is the leading cause of preventable death.

• Worldwide, tobacco use causes nearly 6 million deaths per year, and current trends show that tobacco use will cause more than 8 million deaths annually by 2030.²
• Cigarette smoking is responsible for more than 480,000 deaths per year in the United States, including more than 41,000 deaths resulting from secondhand smoke exposure. This is about one in five deaths annually, or 1,300 deaths every day.¹
• On average, smokers die 10 years earlier than nonsmokers.³
• If smoking continues at the current rate among U.S. youth, 5.6 million of today’s Americans younger than 18 years of age are expected to die prematurely from a smoking-related illness. This represents about one in every 13 Americans aged 17 years or younger who are alive today.

Still not convinced. Let’s do the other legal addictive drug. Alcohol. Who doesn’t enjoy a good stiff drink or two after a hard days work or while out driving, wait not driving, strike that, while out and about. I know I do. And, hell, even Jesus, if you believe in the Nazarene, turned water to wine but he didn’t turn it into a shot glass full of whiskey. I’m sure he could have if he wanted to but he knew that whiskey didn’t go with fish or anything else for that matter. While wine, in moderation, has actually been said to have rejuvenating effects on the body, Reseveratrol, a bottle of wine has shown to do just the opposite on your liver. Just ask your liver, don’t really ask your liver because if it talks back you have other issues. I would post images of people endorsing alcohol but, right now, I don’t think it would be the smartest move plus I like some of the people that they showed. The fact is that alcohol, in moderation, actually has some healthy benefits or, at least, that’s what the doctors tell us. Damn those yachts.

The other fact is that a certain percentage of people that use alcohol become addicted. That addiction, alcoholism, takes a heavy toll on people. Alcohol abuse, according to the CDC, causes a list of problems that lead to death that is longer than your arm, you know, the thing that bends at the middle to bring the glass to your lips. What’s sad is that the link provided has a page for deaths caused by chronic use of alcohol by people under 21. That means that these poor souls were addicted prior to the legal age of drinking. How? If the law says you can’t drink until 21, how can you be a chronic user before that? Because some people do not have scruples. I was a teen, growing up in Paterson, NJ when I first tried my first taste of alcohol illegally. We just waited outside a liquor store and gave a guy five bucks to buy us the holy grail of cheap booze, MD2020. The wino wine. It wasn’t hard, we just had to buy him his OE 800. This is what transpires and it’s not that unusual. So if you think that because they make a product only for adults that the youngens are not going to partake, well, that’s hopeful wishing.

This brings us to the topic at hand. Making fatty boom blatty legal. There are some misconceptions on how this is going to go down in the future. People think it will reduce the amount of illegal marijuana, it won’t. They think it will reduce jail times, it won’t. People think it will have a positive effect on society, we’ll see, maybe.

There is this agency called the ATF. It stands for Alcohol Tobacco and firearms. Do you know why they have this agency even though all these items are legal, you guessed it, because someone didn’t know they were legal, the same guy that didn’t know that Puerto Rico was a territory of the United States, remember that, it was hilarious, for me, not for the people of Puerto Rico. I’m kidding of course, the reason that they have this agency is because even though these items are legal, it’s still cheaper to get them under the table or illegally and cronick will not be any different. So expect the ATF to become the MATF not in the distant future if, and only if, thai stick becomes legal for recreational use in all 50 states. I’m a downer right, bringing these silly ideas up, well, I have a kid and the last thing I want is him and his buddies hanging out outside a dispensary, giving some guy some money. Let me tell you something, oh well, I guess I’m starting to preach a little and I don’t want to do that. Nobody listens to sermons anyway and that’s not what I’m trying to do. I guess I’m being a little bit of an over protective dad. I will say that you should do research before you make it completely legal.

The little research that has been done says that 10 percent of people that try endo will become addicted. That’s 1 out of every 10, really, that’s easy math. That’s 10 out of every hundred, that’s 100 out of 1,000, 1,000 out of 10,000. and so on. They expect this to be a multi billion dollar industry, that’s great, new taxes to pay for recovery. Multi billion assumes that maybe 10 million people will relish in the glow of bong by the bonfire. Well that’s a million addicts. That’s a conservative, not the political kind but the measurement kind, estimate. That’s a sh!t load of hippie lettuce. Those addicts, after they spent their life savings, because that’s exactly what addicts do, will then resort to other methods to make money for their habit as some people with addictions like drinking and gambling will do. They will also go to their neighborhood supplier, you know the guy that you are trying to replace because he isn’t giving Uncle Sam his share, making his/her spliff cheaper. I’m painting a picture here for you or at least I’m trying. Not convinced yet.

The sticky icky also makes you dumber, according to those limited research facts, that’s why I don’t take it or, god bless, I’ll never find my way home. These effects won’t be seen right away, sort of like climate change. It will take time before they are noticeable and like cigarettes and alcohol, by then it will be impossible to revert back to the good old days when you did it 

when the authorities weren’t looking and you got a little paranoid about it. Why is that good, because when things are illegal, people tend to stay away from it. When things are legal, no matter what the harm, people will use it, it will expand. The questions you have to ask are is it worth it? Is it worth it to make something legal and expand its use? Is it worth it to accept campaign contributions by lobbyists of the MATF corporations so they can count on your support to make it legal? Is it worth it to sell your soul and dignity for money? Is it worth it to promote a substance that has no benefits for recreational use? Is it worth it? I don’t know, really, I’m asking. It may be or it may not be. The one thing we know is that we don’t know but I don’t think we should find out. I’m all for not making it easier for recreational use and all for keeping it for medicinal use. If I have cancer than who gives a crap about the THC levels in my system. I say you should keep it as difficult as possible.

For those proponents of making it legal that say everyone smokes it anyway, I say everyone that you are with smokes it anyway because hardly anyone I was with smoked it. They are making those blanket statements that have no merit. Saying everyone does it is exactly what they say when they first try to get you to use it. Sound familiar, “here, try it, everyone does it.” That person is known as an enabler, a predator of sorts. He/she doesn’t want to do it alone so they say “everyone does it”. They are also try to excuse their behavior for doing it by saying “everyone does it”. It’s like the phrase in a movie that you hear right before you become the victim of that movie. Not everyone does it, not everyone wants to. I know I sound like a fuddy duddy, keeping sh!t PG, so fuddy duddy is the recommended acceptable terminology for the time being and b!tch isn’t, but I like visiting my local drug dealer, he/she is a nice person. Let them keep their jobs, if you pass this law for rec use, he’s just going to get richer and then he’s going to move to a classier neighborhood and then we’ll never hang out. Just kidding, I don’t use, can’t afford it. Wouldn’t if I could, I have a kid, you know how expensive they are? Love my little man, wouldn’t want him to see me doing anything like that. 100, 50 maybe 30 years from now, that tax revenue and lobbyist money is not going to be worth it. Don’t let me be right and make me put your picture up here as a supporter of the left handed cigarette. Just keep the status quo, you know, the guy at the corner watching out for the police while the guys on the stoop shake your hand and make the transfer or that friend that delivers in his backpack to parties and gives the same kush with different names so he can charge more, you’re not fooling anyone pal, I’ll take the Mango Mellow please or, if you’re rich enough, you just serve it on a platter at a party. But for God’s sakes, keep it illicit and dirty, don’t put a tuxedo on a tweed and pass it as the next best thing since the previous best thing.

IF they do pass legislation legalizing Cannabis, then I’m going to invest in Wise potato chips and twinkies, I’m not for rec use but I’m no dummy, I’m opening up a 24 hour 7/11. I’ll leave you with this thought, don’t you wish cigarettes and alcohol were always illegal and we can have all, or at least most, of those loved ones back that lost their lives to that stuff. Love you pops….. no, he’s still alive but not in the best condition as he suffers from COPD and has spots on his lungs.