Yes, Amendment 64 passed. Yes, controlled regulation of marijuana is “legal” at the state level in Colorado. But, at the federal level, marijuana is still an illegal substance. So please—my peers, friends and acquaintances—try to understand that there is a difference between pot/weed/bud/etc. being legal and the controlled regulation of marijuana being legal.
Yes, there will be 21-year-olds out there who will purchase marijuana and sell it or give it to people underage. Yes, there will be people underage who will get fake ID’s so that they can purchase marijuana. And yes, there will be people of all ages who will abuse the substance and treat it as a toy, rather than what it truly is. Legal or illegal, marijuana is a drug. Legal or illegal, alcohol is a drug. Marijuana is no heroin and alcohol is no methamphetamine, but both have reached a point in our nation’s history where they are being contested and allowed for the public’s use.
Prohibition did not work for alcohol in the early 1900s and prohibition for marijuana in recent decades has not worked either. Students and adults alike have been using the drug recreationally for years and years and years, feeding into the harmful pockets of Mexican drug cartels. Amendment 64 will slow that harmful feeding and open up some of those economic resources to the state of Colorado. The first $40 million obtained from taxing marijuana will be used for new schools and renovations for old ones.
Yes, 64 passed. Yes, marijuana may potentially be legal in Colorado. Yes, there will be a new economic benefit for our state. The point is this: none of these things will happen smoothly and without confusion of some sort. Like I said earlier, teens will continue to use the substance illegally, as will adults who aren’t willing to pay for it legally. The “bud” and “blaze” that high schoolers and college kids associate will marijuana will not be legal. “Weed” is not legal. Omnipresent use of marijuana will not happen and underage smoking will remain as frowned upon as it is today. But, it will certainly not go down.
Today marks a huge part in Colorado history. Challenging the federal government rarely bodes well for the states. Our federal system seems more unitary with every passing court case. Will Colorado be the victor and make the federal government less intrusive? Will the federal government cut crucial spending for means to make Colorado repeal their new amendment?
I think that Gov. John Hickenlooper said it best:
The voters have spoken and we have to respect their will. This will be a complicated process, but we intend to follow through. That said, federal law still says marijuana is an illegal drug so don’t break out the Cheetos or gold fish too quickly.
Only time will tell what the outcomes of Amendment 64 will be. If anything, marijuana will be legal and Colorado will be a little bit richer.
I am neither for 64 nor against it. I am simply a realist of today predicting the outcomes of tomorrow. Make sure that you understand exactly what is happening in Colorado and try not to blow this amendment sky high.
Ethan Dayton
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
*Editor’s Notes are published the first and third Friday of every month, as well as the Friday that an issue is released.
