PERCEPTIONS OF POT

Today, we're reminded the culture of marijuana is changing drastically.

Today, pot smokers celebrate their unofficial holiday by blazing up.
Lately, though, it is not only the stoner crowd who are advocating
the legalization of marijuana.

Given the current economic situation, several political officials
have put forth new bills that would authorize and tax the
recreational use of marijuana. There is a bill in the works in
California that, if passed, could generate $1.3 billion a year. Aside
from simply taxing the drug, there is another way to save money by
decriminalizing it.

According to the Associated Press, America spends $68 billion per
year on corrections, and one-third of those being corrected are
serving time for nonviolent drug crimes. We spend about $150 billion
on policing and courts, and 47.5 percent of all drug arrests are
marijuana-related.

Although each member of the editorial board has his or her own view
of legalization, we were reluctant to take a public stand because of
the negative stigma associated with marijuana.

Fortunately, the implications of smoking pot or supporting its
legalization are changing. It is no longer reserved for teenagers in
vans at Grateful Dead concerts. The "Dazed and Confused" youths of
the '70s are now middle-aged, and not all of them have given up their
old habits. Statistics have shown that 24.3 percent of adults between
the ages of 26 and 34 have smoked at least once in the past year,
21.7 percent of people ages 35 to 49 did so as well.

So while that stoner who sits behind you in class will probably skip
today, so might your professor.

- - Megan Otto for the editorial board