Don’t Bogart that joint …

[heron, ASN, RN]

I am old enough to be legitimately called an old hippie. Serendipitously, recreational cannabis became legal in my state the day after I retired. It started me thinking …

Should reefer be decriminalized at the federal level also or should it be up to the states, as it is now?

[toomuchbaloney]

It should be decriminalization at the federal level.  That truly allows states to regulate as they prefer.  Now states are restricted in financial, delivery and other options and considerations because of the federal attitude.  The criminal status of plant and the active ingredients makes robust and rigorous study difficult and narrow because of the laws.

[heron, ASN, RN]

Well, It’s going to be interesting. I go back to when a nickel bag (1/4 ounce)really cost $5.00. (Now it’s $175-$200, depending on the market.)

Have you noticed how so much of the current culture war seems to revolve around who gets to control recreational activities?

Obviously, I’m presently inclined to agree with you, but perhaps for different reasons.

I hope I’m around to see how it turns out, at least in the short term.

[No Stars In My Eyes]

Yep, Ima oldie also. I remember getting an ounce of weed for $10. Of course it was that old Mexican stuff and didn't glow with that multi-colored fuzz on a good, skunky-fragrant bud.

[heron, ASN, RN]

1 hour ago, No Stars In My Eyes said:

Yep, Ima oldie also. I remember getting an ounce of weed for $10. Of course it was that old Mexican stuff and didn't glow with that multi-colored fuzz on a good, skunky-fragrant bud.

Yep, but it did the trick. The Vietnam war changed all that when Asian strains hit the markets here.

What interests me is the evolution of legislation, enforcement and social attitudes over the last 60 years.

Prior to the sixties, cannabis use was confined primarily to black ghettos and beatniks (1950’s version of hipsters). Some social historians have theorized that it was classified as a narcotic in order to weaponize law enforcement against urban black populations.

Then it busted out of the ghettos when white kids found out about it and things have never been the same.

Do you remember Arlo Guthrie’s song “Alice’s Restaurant”?

 

 

[chare]

20 hours ago, heron said:

[...]

Should reefer be decriminalized at the federal level also or should it be up to the states, as it is now?

Considering how well the war on drugs has worked over the last 50 plus years, yes.

[heron, ASN, RN]

28 minutes ago, chare said:

Considering how well the war on drugs has worked over the last 50 plus years, yes.

Agreed - I think all drugs need to be decriminalized (not legalized). Think of the money that would be freed up for, say, addiction treatment, LEO training, community policing and education, post-incarceration support systems …

[No Stars In My Eyes]

3 hours ago, heron said:

 

Do you remember Arlo Guthrie’s song “Alice’s Restaurant”?

 

 

(Walk right in, it's around the back, just a half a mile from the railroad tracks...)

When I was about 16 or 17, Arlo Guthrie was playing at a coffee house in Ipswich, Massachusetts. I had two friends just beg me to go to the coffee house with them because, they said, I would REALLY like Arlo. They had hung around with him, talking in between sets. They were trying to fix me up with him! I refused, saying that I didn't go on blind dates. They said, "But he's Woody Guthrie's son!" I said I didn't care who his father was, I wasn't going to the coffee house with them to meet him. 

So, that's my "I Almost-Coulda Dated Arlo Guthrie" story!?

[heron, ASN, RN]

My late partner worked at the real Alice’s Restaurant in Stockbridge for a couple of years. Alice is still alive and I have some of her artwork hanging in my kitchen.

The radio still plays the song every thanksgiving, but sadly not the original version. I think the original is still available on Youtube. The greatest anti war song EVAH! Not to mention the longest…

[No Stars In My Eyes]

How cool!

And yes, the original was THE best!