This post is in response to the student commentary
“Legalization of Cannabis” on the MoneyTalks blog. The article discusses the recent legalization of marijuana in
Colorado and Washington and talks about some of the pros and cons related to
said legalization. The author brings up some really good points about how
legalizing marijuana should be regulated as a controlled substance that would
only be made available when prescribed by a doctor to those who have a medical
necessity for it’s use. I couldn’t agree more with this viewpoint. Marijuana
should fall under the same regulations as narcotic drugs. These drugs certainly
have their valid place in the medical world, but they are not freely
distributed for any and everybody to use as they see fit. They are regulated
and distributed only with a doctor’s prescription (well, they are supposed to
be, at least…), and obtaining them without a prescription is illegal.
One subject regarding this legalization that I hear a lot
lately is impairment and drug testing. What happens when somebody is under the
influence of marijuana and gets pulled over or causes an accident? As far as I
know, there is no quick test to detect marijuana like there is for alcohol. How
do you hold somebody accountable who may cause an accident or get pulled over
if they are under the influence? Or, what happens if somebody is in an
accident, but they smoked marijuana 3 days ago. Technically, wouldn’t it still
be found in their system through a drug test, even though they may not have
been under the influence at the time of the accident? How do you regulate this?
I certainly agree that there has to be more regulation of this substance, rather
than just making it a free-for-all pot-fest for everybody that wants to get
high.
