Question 2B asks Lakewood, Colorado, voters to approve the recreational marijuana industry in their city, the 5th largest in Colorado. A committee is fighting the proposal.
In 2014, Lakewood citizens voted against recreational marijuana, thinking the issue resolved once and for all. But, no, representatives of the marijuana industry are pushing once again this year. The city is a large suburb which lies west of Denver, in Jefferson County.
Photo of Green Mountain in Lakewood, by Thomson200. Source: wikipedia
On October 23, a 21-year-old woman drove through a California neighborhood and rear ended a cyclist riding in front of her. The cyclist died at the scene, but the driver survived. Police detected the strong smell of marijuana in her car.
Police charged the driver, Korina Machuca, with DUI and vehicular homicide. Detectives in Fresno County say they’ve seen a rise in drug-related crashes. Last year they had 54 drug-related crashes, but this year 141 crashes involved drugs.
Tracing bicycle deaths of 3 children and 5 adults killed by marijuana-impaired drivers shows how justice for victims is reduced after marijuana decriminalization and legalization.
Many people tell us that the solution to the problems of marijuana legalization is “regulating,” so that the stronger stuff will no longer be sold. Let’s go back to the marijuana of the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s, they say. (THC levels had skyrocketed from 3.6% in the 1990s to around 20% in Colorado and more than 20% in Washington.) Can states regulate marijuana?
Since states are the “laboratories of democracy,” and several states have had legalization for years, we can evaluate whether or not regulation works.
By Colorado Mom I want to post so many things but I am afraid of the backlash unfortunately. I got married almost seven years ago; my husband and I have been separated over 5 years of it. At that time, he picked up marijuana usage. It is so extreme but he does not participate in our marriage or our family. We have 5-year-old little girl together and it greatly affects both of us including my other two children. He refuses to get a divorce or move back home. We live in Colorado and I am stuck in limbo.
