Going to Pot

DECRIMINALIZING MARIJUANA WRONG MOVE

Two years ago, we warned that approval of a ballot question
decriminalizing the possession of "small" amounts of marijuana
would be likely to erode respect for the law, hamper efforts to
intervene in the lives of young people for whom marijuana is a gateway
drug, and would not realize any savings.

Shortly after the ballot question was approved, many communities
addressed loopholes in the law by making it a civil infraction to
smoke marijuana in public. We advised them not to bother. The main
fight had already been lost, and the costs of enforcement would exceed
revenue that might be collected.

Now, nearly two years on, many Massachusetts communities have
basically given up the fight to curb recreational marijuana use. The
new rules aren't helping police or anyone else curb incipient drug
habits that can lead, in some cases, to much more serious drug abuse
and addiction. And instead of the state and municipalities saving
money by hauling fewer recreational users into court, there is
evidence that many municipalities are wasting time and money in a
futile effort to enforce toothless new rules for civil infractions
that are easily evaded.

The decriminalization measure of 2008 offered no coherent or
compelling logic for allowing individuals to possess an ounce of
marijuana or less for personal consumption. We believe it passed in
large measure because of ignorance regarding how much marijuana was
covered, and the effects of the drug. "Small" amounts of under an
ounce can easily translate to two dozen or more joints for
"personal" consumption.

What has certainly not changed is marijuana's negative impact on
human cognition and health. In spite of the protestations of those who
claim to use the drug without adverse effects, and the foolish cant
from libertarians who erroneously believe drug use is somehow a
"victimless" crime, marijuana has been clearly and consistently
linked to impairment of judgment, coordination, balance and cognitive
functions, and increased risk of bronchitis, emphysema and some forms
of cancer. Its impacts on individuals and society are real, measurable
and, with the exception of prescribed medicinal use, universally negative.

Decriminalization in 2008 was a mistake. Voters would be smart to begin a
campaign to reverse their poor judgment, and limit the harm that marijuana
continues to inflict.