VOTE 'YES' TO DECRIMINALIZE MARIJUANA IN BRECKENRIDGE

As medical marijuana "dispensaries" proliferate in the state and
county, Breckenridge residents this Election Day will decide whether
possessing less than an ounce of the intoxicating weed should be
decriminalized. There are plenty of good reasons for doing so, not the
least of which is that Breckenridge voters resoundingly approved a
similar, statewide measure (Amendment 44) in 2006 (although that one
failed statewide). Proponents point to the non-harmful nature of
marijuana consumption compared to its more common and socially
accepted cousin, alcohol. While police blotters and courts are filled
with an extraordinary amount of problems directly related to alcohol
abuse, it's rare to ever find pot at the bottom of things like
domestic abuse, bar fights, car crashes and the like.

That's not to say pot is harmless. Despite statistics showing it to be
less addictive than alcohol or even tobacco, many of us have known
those who rely on pot as a daily opiate and fall prey to its
ambition-depleting effects. Inhaling smoke of any kind is never good
for the respiratory system, and there are studies showing other
potential health effects from cannabis consumption. The old saw that
too much of anything is bad holds true here, though, and the same can
be said about many things - from alcohol and tobacco to food and even
video games.

But that's not really the issue here. What the Breckenridge code
change would do is one thing: decriminalize less than an ounce for
adults. It will not make it more available to minors, won't make it
legal to smoke it on the street, won't get you out of trouble if
you're stoned behind the wheel. What it says is that if you, as an
adult, choose to possess small amounts of marijuana for personal use,
you won't be busted for it. It's still a much more stringent law than
those that apply to alcohol - a substance you can own as much as you
want of and consume in public.

So what about the notion that decriminalizing sends a message to our
kids that pot is "OK?" It's hard not to arrive at that conclusion, the
same way it's tough to condemn drinking outright in a county loaded
with bars and liquor stores. Children will always seek to emulate
adult behavior, and it's up to parents to help guide them through the
minefield of these temptations. Inherent in the current state of law
is the contradiction that the statistically safer drug - marijuana -
is illegal while alcohol is legal, widely marketed, even celebrated in
various events and festivals. Decriminalizing possession of small
amounts by adults, then, makes sense, and we support a "Yes" vote on
the Breckenridge question.

One last item remains, though: As the recent pot busts at Arapahoe
Basin show, consumption of marijuana can have a greater potential
"footprint" than, say, drinking a beer. No one wants to have to walk
with their children through a parking lot full of cars emitting clouds
of pot smoke, and we're behind the Summit County Sheriff for cracking
down on these folks. Eventually, it seems these small possession busts
will be a thing of the past state-wide, which makes us conclude some
kind of "nuisance pot smoke" ordinance needs to take their place -
roughly analogous to public intoxication statutes. Sure, smoke your
weed, but don't blow it in our faces.