Posted on 04/21/2014 6:23:08 AM PDT by Kaslin
Sure… Sunday was Easter Sunday (the most important day of the year for the world’s 2-3 billion Christians). But, c’mon! It was 4:20 dude! And while millions of Americans flocked to their churches and Cathedrals, the Denver Post thought the front-page story of the day ought to be Colorado’s annual “toke-out” at Civic Center Park in Denver. Heck… The 15 year anniversary of the Columbine High School shooting was even pushed back to accommodate the “high times” of Civic Center potheads.
Living a mere handful of blocks from Denver’s Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, I can personally attest to the contact high received by Colorado’s largest Catholic congregation on their way to Easter Mass. (I also assume that a decent portion of the congregation took communion simply because they were starting to get the munchies.)
The Post’s decision to highlight the illegal marijuana smoke-out (getting blazed in public is still frowned upon by authorities... yeah, even the ones in Denver) underscores New-New-York’s divorce from propriety. And, no: I’m not about to rail against pot legalization… But, I’m not really going to defend it either…
Colorado’s experiment in drug legalization isn’t really the prominent issue for most traditional conservatives. After all, it’s somewhat difficult to argue with libertarians on things like marijuana prohibition. (Not because they’re right… It’s actually just frustrating because they tend to be a little high.) The big question on the minds of most marijuana skeptics, is whether or not we are applying an adequate amount of scrutiny to “Mary Jane.” After all, cigarettes come with Surgeon General Warnings. Alcohol comes with some pretty serious restrictions on consumption. Even Sudafed requires scrutiny from an administering pharmacist.
Yesterday, while millions of Christians celebrated the Resurrection of the Lord, potheads descended on Colorado’s capitol building to light up a joint. It was 10 in the morning when I caught the whiff of Colorado’s new state plant wafting from Civic Center while I walked to the Cathedral (yeah… I go to the late Mass). If I showed up with a group of drinkers in Civic Center, on any Sunday morning, to drink beer and proclaim my right to indulge in alcoholic beverages – the only news story written would be about the group of drunkards who were arrested over the weekend in front of the Capitol building. And that story would be quickly followed up by an intervention, and my first sobriety chip.
Even Saint Patrick’s Day (the drunkard’s very own 4:20 style holiday) sees a different perspective on alcohol consumption than the Post’s celebration of downtown Denver potheads. Drinking a beer on a public street? Arrested. Being visibly intoxicated in a public place? Ticketed, arrested or escorted out. Coverage of Denver’s St. Patrick’s Day festivities are generally told through the creative narration of police reports – not front page puffery.
I mean, most of us would agree: People who feel like getting wasted on 40’s and handles of tequila at 10am on a Sunday morning are usually encouraged to go to meetings. Most doctors tend to hand out pamphlets on the dangers of alcohol if you admit to having more than three alcoholic beverages each day. But potheads are invited to appear on the front page of Denver’s only hometown paper… And the rest of us are supposed to shrug our shoulders and roll our eyes as hipster yuppies “blaze one” in downtown Denver on Easter Sunday.
So, maybe we should reevaluate how we look at Colorado’s new tourist drug before getting too excited about legalization. And, maybe, a rearrangement of the Post’s priorities should be in order as well.
Happy Easter 4:20, Colorado!
I know I’m going to catch flack for this but I bet the overall condition of the state will deteriorate as well. Back in the day, I used to have friends that smoed marijuana every day. I could take you to their apartments and my other non-smokers apartments and without saying a word could ask you which was which and there would be no question who was who. Pot makes you letharthic and lazy. I think you are going to see evidence of that manifest itself on a wide scale over time in the state.
I suspect many of them are invested in the WOD. The WOD goes away, so does their job.
> Every negative you can say about pot can be found even worse in alcohol, tobacco and Rx pills. Unless government bans ALL the far more dangerous/addictive/toxic substances too, pot prohibition is just another obvious case of government corruption for money and control.
No one will disagree with you on this I think. Its the politics, public opinion and the $$$ that determines what is made legal or not anymore. I think alcohol can be very debilitating to your senses. There’s no doubt why ut us legal; HUGE tax revenue and a fines to be made for the court system.
If you are a decent person living in CO, it is time to get out….particularly if you have children. They will not survive as whole human beings in such a dangerous place.
NOTE TO SELF: When in Colorado selling AR and AK 30 round magazines out of the trunk of your car, NEVER EAT the local food. Eat canned food bought in from another state.
Drug warriors and anti gunners are exactly the same - they both shed fact and logic like ducks shed water.
Just as Prohibition was a failure, so is the WOD, a huge violator of our Constitutional rights. Yes, I heard about the older guy getting pulled over in Idaho and searched. This took hours and the LEO didn't find anything.
NOTE TO SELF: When in Colorado selling AR and AK 30 round magazines out of the trunk of your car, NEVER EAT the local food. Eat canned food bought in from another state.
“Dude don’t you know THOSE are assault rifles. Like you need to turn those into the police. They are here to protect us so you don’t need those. Hold on I need to take another toke”...”fired one?”...”well hell yeah in Call of Duty”...
If you want to see real dopers, go to a small pharmacy just before opening time on Monday (like the one on my block). You'll see them, ghost white, shaking lining up and yanking at the door every minute. They sit on welfare/disability and eat mind-numbing pills all day (also paid by the taxpayer). Most pharmacies deliver nowadays so you don't see as much as before. The lines used to go around the block with neighbors complaining about junkies.
You can see the same thing at a liquor store at opening time. The only difference is the liquor isn't free.
Alcohol/pills are toxic and physically addictive so most of these people will be forever useless. I would prefer them to use pot since most people can quit pot in one day without any withdrawal or damage. Pot can also be grown cheaper than basil or for free as a potted house plant. Right now hundreds of billions in taxpayer funds go to big pharma to feed the Rx addictions.
My first apartment was right there on Capitol Hill. The former governor’s mansion had been converted. Mine was a teenie studio with hardwood floors, super high ceiling, and a walk-in closet - all for a whopping $50 a month! No pot smells, but that was 40 years ago.
Civic center at Christmas was somethin’ else. I was a retail artist for the May D&F advertising dept. downtown. Denver held good memories then.
“If you are a decent person living in CO, it is time to get out….particularly if you have children. They will not survive as whole human beings in such a dangerous place.”
Almost fell of my chair. Thanks for the morning laugh!
Let’s see what happens in Colorado. I suspect you are wrong. My guess is that the stoners will find a way to get the Democrats to pay them to not work.
It was my first apartment in Denver as well, a studio that was in a building on the corner of Clarkson and 14th St. right across the street from St. John’s Cathedral. Rent was $120. My kitchen window looked out across a parking lot to Colfax and a place called “Kitty’s” that sold adult toys. Hookers would often hang out at the nearby corner. It was kind of a rough neighborhood. I was an armed security guard at a nearby hospital at the time. I eventually got another apartment on St. Paul St., a nicer place. E. Colfax was kind of rough back then, but I was a young guy, recently out of the service. I looked upon it as an adventure back then! :-) Did you ever go to the Satire Lounge for their Mexican food and blue margaritas?
It is going on with booze and pills in every state so we have been there for a while. It would be better in every way if these people used pot instead of alcohol or Rx narcotics (but that’s bad for big pharma, big alcohol and big fed).
And many people just don’t feel like working. Even if they don’t do any dope.
Ending welfare and unemployment benefits will fix that right quick.
Potheads = Speed bumps
About 4 million people in Colorado didn’t smoke pot yesterday and a few million went to Christian Easter church services, so where is the reporting that Colorado is a Christian State?
Seems Chicken Little wrote this headline.
No, I was pretty boring! Dated a few nice airmen from Lowry, tho. Moved shortly thereafter to LA, married a former airman, ironically - still married, raised 2 great kids.
Didn’t live on Capitol Hill long enough to even know what was really going on much, thank goodness. Grew up in southeast Denver, good time to live there.
Someone said Denver’s the biggest small town in America.
Easter Sunrise Service at Red Rocks - happy memory!
Exactly. Red Rocks Easter services are second to none and are packed...but no headlines about that many people gathered and not smoking pot.
“Dated a few nice airmen from Lowry, tho”
Funny, I dated a few girls while at Lowry!
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