How marijuana legalization in Colorado and Washington is making the world better

Colorado, probably. Washington, not yet.<p>The Washington Liquor Control Board, in its infinite wisdom, only authorized about 25% of the total amount of legal pot-growing necessary to satisfy demand in the state, which means that the black market here in Washington is still flourishing: <a href="http://www.thestranger.com/slog/archives/2014/07/08/how-washington-state-screwed-up-its-legal-pot-system" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.thestranger.com&#x2F;slog&#x2F;archives&#x2F;2014&#x2F;07&#x2F;08&#x2F;how-wash...</a><p>Thankfully, it sounds like the LCB started changing its tune about pot production on Friday, but given how slow they seem to be in implementation of things like this, who knows how long it&#x27;ll be before there&#x27;s enough legal supply for the state&#x27;s demand. <a href="http://www.komonews.com/news/local/State-may-allow-more-legal-marijuana-growing-279593732.html" rel="nofollow">http:&#x2F;&#x2F;www.komonews.com&#x2F;news&#x2F;local&#x2F;State-may-allow-more-lega...</a><p>But, this still doesn&#x27;t address the other fundamental issue here: the number of places where you can legally buy marijuana in Seattle is currently 2 (not a typo).

The legal implications of these changes are only one (important) side of what&#x27;s happening.<p>I, for one, am looking forward to the renaissance that a more accepting attitude towards marijuana and psychedelics may herald. Both have the potential of transforming society, culture, and politics for the better.<p>Witness the great ferment of the psychedelic and cultural revolution of the 60&#x27;s and 70&#x27;s.<p>I hope I may live long enough to see the fruit of the next psychedelic revolution.

I agree it should be legal. However it should not be fully commercialised. Colorado has gone too far.<p>It should be like tobacco in Australia where it cannot be advertised and is sold in plain packaging from behind a counter and cannot be displayed or promoted.<p>It should not be illegal but it is a health hazard and should be treated in the same terms as tobacco.<p>It&#x27;s not a good thing that it is being sold as a &quot;fun&quot; product in cookies and food etc. Children should be discouraged from thinking it is a &quot;fun&quot; thing to do.

I wonder if the names of people who put Marijuana in the strictest schedule of various laws and agreements are known.<p>I think someone should dig them up, so the world can know its heroes by name.

People cheer for the marijuana-legalization underdogs now, but endgame, if it proceeds to all 50 states, looks like this: Altria and other players in the $112 billion US tobacco market buy up the little cannabis startups and start advertising and promoting marijuana use on large scale. The government steps in to regulate distribution and advertising. Is that what we want? Because that&#x27;s where we&#x27;re going.

I’m wondering to which extent this is simply a temporary effect because the overall population is pleased with this decision. I don’t believe it’s only that but I could imagine that it contributes with a low two digit percentage.

The U.S. has done the prohibition experiment twice now, and it was an unmitigated disaster both times. The data are unambiguous: prohibition doesn&#x27;t work, never has, never will. And yet we&#x27;re still arguing about it.<p>Funny thing, though, we&#x27;ve done a similar experiment with tax cuts for the wealthy <i>three</i> times now: once in the 1920&#x27;s, once starting in the 1980s, and most recently in Kansas. The results have been similarly disastrous all three times. And yet we&#x27;re still arguing about that too.