Family-oriented Pueblo is the state’s best-kept secret. Lake Pueblo, Pueblo Mountain Park and Devil’s Canyon are perfect places to hike. We lived in an old Craftsman home in the historic district, with a beautiful garden and wonderful neighbors. I felt like I was living in a dream.
And then legalized marijuana came, and everything changed. It has taken nearly a decade for Colorado’s elected leaders to understand the damage pot is doing to our children. I saw it years ago.
*****
Coming from California, I can say that legalization did nothing to increase the availability nor the potency of weed. That shit was powerful and everywhere already.
What it has done was to increase the illegal and destructive grows on public and private lands, causing some major headaches between chemical dumps, garbage and water theft among other things.
" It has taken nearly a decade for Colorado’s elected leaders to understand the damage pot is doing to our children."
ReplyDeleteBut all those pot taxes, in the words of the left, are 'for our children';
No, pot is there to keep idiots high and voting.
Pueblo is a shithole, always has been. Gangs are big there.
ReplyDeleteTypical projection of her failures as a parent. It's everybody else's fault. She didn't fail to teach her son,...you tempted him, you selfish freedom freaks.
ReplyDeleteIndeed. I see a lot of language like "addicted" which denies ones own power over "habits". Who holds the power is quite important. Seems like the kid never had any responsibility, character, self-control, etc, built into him and that is the parents fault.
Delete-arc
Why would legalization, lead to more illegal grows on public and private lands?
ReplyDeleteMoney. Illegal grows aren't taxed, the finished product isn't taxed when it's sold, and weed from an illegal grow can be exported to States where weed isn't legal.
DeleteAnd since weed is legal, the consequences of getting caught with it drop like a rock.
DeleteWirecutter summed up the essentials.
DeleteThere are illegal grows because the government's definition of legalization is not the people's definition of legalization. It's not true legalization in that people can grow, use, and sell their own cannabis without restriction (aside from age) or overly burdensome taxes, licensing, and regulation. Instead, government wants to tax and regulate the cannabis market to death and the result is an incentive to continue growing without the problems created by more government.
One of the biggest downsides of not fully decriminalizing nature, respecting the unalienable right to bodily-sovereignty, or a relatively free market is that people get shot all the time over bad deals. Bodies are found in burned out cars, dumped in ditches, etc, when people don't make good on their deals at the end of the season. Faux legalization brings crime. (Source: someone who left southern Oregon.)
When government gets out of the way and respects the will of the people again, the illegal grows will cease; although someone will still need to clean up the dumps left behind. Government wants to dictate how much you can have, how many plants you can grow, what concentration you can use, etc, etc. It's no wonder people just ignore the "law" in "legalized" states.
-arc
and because it's legal, District Attorneys won't prosecute, so law enforcement ignores...
ReplyDeleteI may have told this story; if so, sorry. I got popped for smoking weed in the early 80's. The story is longish and sort of funny. But, in the end, the cops let me walk away in exchange for my promise to mend my ways.
ReplyDeleteI did. I changed my group of friends. In a month or so, my short term memory and cognitive skills sharpened tremendously. I flourished in my career. Going to jail would have devastated my professional life.
Years later, I was doing contract work in the town. On some weekends, I would eat breakfast at a small Greek restaurant near my apartment. There was a police substation next door. If there were cops in there when I ate, I bought their breakfast.
I moved to CO in 1970 when I was 18. Loved the state, western CO is gorgeous. If you can believe it, CO-1(Denver) had a republican congressman ans CO was a solid conservative state that occasionally elected seemingly sensible dems.
ReplyDeleteCO, especially Denver and Boulder Counties, slowly changed over the decades as hordes of Canadians and Californians moved in. I had to move out of Denver in 2001 as it had become an illegal sanctuary. Years of dem governance by the likes of Pena, Webb and finally Hick had turned it into a fucking shithole.
I was living in Canon when reefer was legalized. There were big promises made by those pushing it that it would be strictly regulated and kept out of underage hands. I knew that was bullshit and immediately witnessed groups of kids toking up in the mornings on their way to school.
I had several high schoolers that I employed p/t and learned from them how they consumed edibles and were high all day long without any tell tale aromas. They were consistently undependable and always ended up getting fired. Could not have stoners around molten glass.
Canon City is a pretty conservative small town and I have nothing against adults that want to smoke pot but it was now really out in the open. Cops weren't doing anything with teenagers smoking pot right in front of them. HAHA, big joke. Legalization inferred that it was harmless and numerous OD stories were played as one offs.
That and the way the state GOP fucked Tom Tancredo signaled it was time to move on which I did when an opportunity opened up in w Texas. Have not looked back but have been back many times over the years. Downtown Denver is disgusting. CO has 2 of the most worthless senators, CO-1 has the dumbest white person in the House in the country and the governor is despicable.
And where do I end up? Fuck me, WA.
I agree about the illegal grows....the revenuers are gonna' have to go after the growers with the same vigor that they went after moonshiners....the only difference is the growers have armies that will be a lot harder to overcome....if they were going to legalize it, the window of opportunity was in '69-'70....problem was then, too many in high places were making too much money off of illegal pot....now it's the cartels....who wants to fight those bastards....
ReplyDeleteDarrell is spot on, I lived there for a few years, far too long, and it has only gotten worse. Pueblo is a leftist shithole, full of the offspring of European socialists who came over to work the mines and the related industries. The Italians, Mexicans and Bojons remain big supporters of leftist causes and grifters overall. Fuck that place and fuck her for being a typical whining lib, who blames others for her poor decision-making (and shitty parenting).
ReplyDeleteI would suggest that the kid's biggest problem is that no where in the article is a father mentioned.
ReplyDeleteThe first sentence in the third paragraph told me this was a single mother. I looked up at the authors name and lo and behold...
ReplyDeleteThis is one of them…topics.
ReplyDeleteI…gots alittle time… dealin with the Altered mind crowd(S).
Damaged some of there hearing, includin mine.
Been there done that. No Thanks.
Do it over? Nope.
There all just a pain in the ass.
And sooner or later…
some asshole, Shits into the Fan.
EVERYTIME.
Nah.
Illegal growing and modern day moonshining have a lot in common. It's products people want without the taxation and control imposed by "legalization".
ReplyDelete