What’s Next? Caution! Toke Zone Ahead
Image Credit: Canva
submitted by Thomas Ankow –
I embrace Capitalism, Free Enterprise, Personal Choice, Small Government and Entrepreneurism. Those principals have always been my guiding light.
Personal Freedom. (NOTE: In November 2012, Colorado legalized marijuana for adults over age 21 by passing Amendment 64 to the Colorado Constitution). When I was a resident of Colorado, I read an article about how entrepreneur brothers discovered a way to grow a hybrid form of marijuana that lowered the THC level (minimizing the Psychotropic effect) and increasing the CBD (non-Psychotropic effect).
CBD was/is the apparent beneficial portion of MJ without getting the user “HIGH”. Hemp products also contain THC, although in much lower amounts. The final product when processed in “liquid or pill form” had an amazing effect on reducing the devastating seizure activity in young children suffering from that disorder.
The reason that liquid or pill form was the recommended delivery device and not inhalation was that although pills and liquid had a slower release rate into the bloodstream and brain, they were the safest, most convenient and practical way to absorb the beneficial elements.
After extensive research it appears that CBD may offer beneficial outcomes in “some” medical applications. Research is still ongoing. We have tons of research on THC. The explosion in the CBD industry began.
From the use of MJ among Mexican immigrant farm workers in the early 1900’s to the glorification of toking by Author Jack Karouac’s character, Sal Paradise inspiring “Hippism” into the Denver and Boulder Colorado areas, Pot has been transformed into an acceptable means of escaping reality.
I am not opposed to individual freedom. It is baked into our heritage. I am extremely wary of the downsides I have witnessed “post legalization”.
For example. Inability to maintain concentration. Edible poisoning. Distractability or “Zoning out” while driving. The “Jeff Spicoli effect” on teen learning. Black markets. Illegal grow operations. Gang infestation. Influx of competing drug cartels. Increased crime. Juvenile accessibility. Homelessness. Profiteering. Political greed from local “leaders”. Gateway complications for folks with low impulse control or addictive personality disorders. Vaping in schools.
Unfortunately, like alcohol the downsides outweigh the benefits. The negative outcomes have all been documented and proven to be true. Do we really need to explore this slippery slope of legalization consequences here in Tennessee?
Unfortunately, it appears that with the influx of “newcomers” to our State, legalization is just over the political horizon.
It all began with legalizing medical MJ and licensing dispensaries. We already have establishments like “TOKERS” with a foothold on the CBD trade. What’s next?
In my opinion any products that contain more than 0.3% of THC or proven to cause a psychotropic effect should ONLY be dispensed in liquid or pill form or require a doctor’s prescription.
Wish to partake legally or illegally?
Stay off of the roads while behind the wheel. Rack your bikes. Put away your skateboards, electric scooters and walk. Stick to your couches and enjoy the munchies. Promote Hemp for textiles, clothing and cash crops and stop smoking it.
THOMAS ANTKOW is currently a freelance writer and produced and hosted his own daily radio show on KCSF AM 1300 and co-hosted talk shows for KVOR AM 740 for Cumulus Broadcasting in Colorado Springs. He can be reached at taradio863@gmail.com. You can subscribe to Tom’s FREE newsletter at: Antkow.substack.com
Genesis 1:29
And God GOD!! said, Behold, I have given you(for your judicious responsible use) every EVERY!! herb bearing seed, which is upon the face of all the earth, AND(also) every tree, in the which is the fruit of a tree yielding seed; to you it shall be for meat.
Hey Dwayne. Please don’t tell me that Jesus was high on anything else but GOD’S WORDS! However, God granted us free will. How we use it will be reconciled on Judgement Day.
Tom A
Ah yes, let’s blame the newcomers not the vast sea of native liberals who are pushing for this.
Most “newcomers” come here to escape the bs.
After legalizing pot, California, Oregon, Washington, Colorado, New York etc etc have all become blue state rat holes. None of these states can find enough workers to fill positions requiring the passing of drug tests. If people want the “freedom” to do whatever drugs they want, move to one of the above mentioned states. Stop californicating Tennessee.
Amen.
They were all blue state rat holes to begin with, it was not legalization that caused that problem. NY’s program is a ridiculous mess that is barely off the ground yet it has been a rat hole on the decline for over 25 years. To blame one societal policy in the face of hundreds of other, far more damaging, liberal policies demonstrates a lack of knowledge of the far larger picture. I speak from experience since I escaped a rat hole about 7 years ago before marijuana was legal. I witnessed the State’s decline due to implementation of Socialist policies that haven’t worked for the long term benefit of society and other Country’s financial conditions. Unfortunately, too many people in those States are brainwashed and not free thinkers that do their own research. I would strongly suggest that you do some serious research before blaming one policy on any State’s decline.
Those were all blue state rat holes before they legalized pot.
It’s amazing to me how much opinion and unrelated parallels are drawn in this piece with complete disregard for more complete truth.
Legalizing medical marijuana does not create a black market. The black market is alive an thriving in TN. Legalizing even just medical marijuana puts a small dent in the prevalence of the black market and provides a safer, tested product without the risk of it having deathly things, like fentanyl, added to it. The cost of the legal market products – high licensing fees and taxes – is the biggest reason that the legal market doesn’t put a larger dent in the illegal market.
Blaming one small element of a societal policies as the root cause of a larger crisis that has many factors is ignorant and dangerous.
To ignore all the private research and proven medical benefits of the whole cannabis plant – hemp, from which CBD is prevalent and marijuana, from which THC is more prevalent is ignorant. There is plenty of proven research that THC is what helps the CB receptors in the body’s endocannabinoid system process the CBD and increase the medical effect. While less than .03% THC with the CBD works for some mild problems, it is not enough THC to work for more severe problems.
It is the ultimate demonstration of ignorance when a person thinks that just because a product has THC in it that a person will “get high” or that someone is currently impaired because they have THC in their system. When your body is using the THC for the medical product that the plant is, you actually feel absolutely 0 – little difference in any function. This includes smoking it in small amounts for controlling things like ADD and PTSD. Different ways of absorption into the body treat things in different ways.
How do I know this? I am not a big pharma fan. They make money off of treating symptoms, not the root cause. Even when their drugs “work” at effectively treating a symptom, they damage another part of the body. I watched this happen to my mother. As a person with severe arthritis diagnosed at a fairly young age who watched 1st hand how my mother’s pharma treatments hurt her body in other ways, I have tried and researched natural solutions. The 100% best, long lasting solution that I have found is a a tincture of CBG:CBD:CBN:THC in a 4:4:2:2 ratio. A quarter of a dropper 1 -2 times a day eliminates the inflammation and pain with a 100% natural solution that doesn’t damage any other part of my body, nor do I feel any “high” from it as my body is using it for it’s intended purpose. It contains more than the State allowed .03%, because that ridiculously low % is not enough for the CBD to work. If you sent me for a drug test, I would pop positive for THC in my system, yet I have not been high.
With all the available research, to deny the citizens of TN the right to use such an amazing, natural product in making their own medical decisions is wrong. Do some people use it to get high for recreational purposes – yes. They are currently doing that anyway while law abiding citizens suffer, hurt themselves with pharma products instead of having access to natural solutions.
One last point: we have a huge opioid crisis in this State (thank you big pharma). Even the NIH has published research that the States with recreational cannabis laws see a 7.6% decline in opioid related hospitalizations. The National Institute of Drug Abuse even reports there have been no recorded instances of death from marijuana alone. Can you say the same about opioids?
The only thing that I agree with you on is that people who are using it for recreational purposes should stay home. It may interesting to note that 1) just because someone (like me for example) could test positive for THC in their system in an accident doesn’t mean that they were impaired at that particular time indicating that the chances of marijuana impaired driving statistics are over stated and 2) even without that being taken into consideration, States that legalized in recreational marijuana 2016 saw an increase in the vehicle death rate of 6.0% between 2016 and 2021. What people don’t report who are against marijuana is that the national average of traffic fatalities over the the same period of time is 6.2% meaning that the legalized States showed an average below that of the National Average. This doesn’t even take the 1st argument into consideration.
It is time to stop echoing the long government propaganda on the cannabis plant and start providing real education based on facts and research, not politics. It is wrong for our amazing State to continue to deny it’s citizens the choice to choose cannabis over big pharma solutions for their medical conditions. The opioid problem in this State leads directly back to big pharma, yet it continues to deny a solution that has been proven to reduce that problem, thereby perpetuating the problem. Spreading education, not ignorant rhetoric is needed for change to happen.
Spoken like a true Libertarian. I am sure that you wish to legalize all drugs without recognizing any of the negative consequences that come along with it. You appear never to have admitted any consequences to be true. Railing about the government, big pharma and impaired driving is justified however, you need to also open your eyes to some of the truths regarding cause and effect. The facts of legalization of drugs that lead to serious social issues are finally coming to light in the progressive States that have attempted those experiments and have failed. Distractions cause the majority of traffic crashes. I know firsthand by losing my pregnant daughter and only child to a distracted driver. You never once admitted that smoking or ingesting THC had any negative effects whatsoever or that that chemical was only completely beneficial and not detrimental to operating machinery. I wish you well. Just stay off the roads or on pedestrian pathways and continue to party on. Sooner or later the choices between increasing existing black markets, crime, and traffic deaths needs to carry equal weight in any discussions. Unfortunately, this is one of those areas where I personally believe careful control needs to be in the mix.
I am sorry for the tragic loss your family suffered. No parent should lose a child. much less a child and grandchild.
It is wrong of you to assume what I think, because you don’t know and are entirely wrong. I don’t get high, I don’t get drunk or take any other products to escape reality. Either would be an insult to God and abuse of the body He provided me with. So to assume that because I am 100% in favor of a medical marijuana program for freedom of medical choice with a natural product means I am also in favor of all drugs being legalized, much less without any parameters in place for safety, not only demonstrates a lack of your reading comprehension skills, but also a serious close-mindedness to any intelligent discussion based on facts. Assuming I get high from a small medical dose of CBD with, a higher than allowed in TN amount of, THC demonstrates a lack of knowledge as to the medical use of the cannabis plant and how it works with the Endocannabinoid system in our bodies. While you are entitled to your opinion as I am entitled to mine, I did not name call or make assumptions about you personally, nor try to tell you how to live. Telling me to “stay off the roads and party on” is petty and childish. I was merely addressing some points from your post that were not factually sound with available facts. I didn’t get into what I thought would be a sound program to mitigate abuse while providing people with a natural medical choice that is currently being denied them in this State. Again you made assumptions about what I think instead of asking where I stand. I would have been happy to answer as I have acquired a lot of knowledge through studying the good and points, along with the results, of programs in other States. I also follow the research and study trials from a few leading Dr.’s who study the cannabis plant and endocannabinoid system. If you ever choose to have an informed conversation about programs that would allow people access to a choice they should have for their medical care.