Who will say, “I just want to smoke it”?

[MineralMan]

11. Lots of people would say that, and they do smoke it.

I used to, but quit in 1974 because the cost had gotten too high. It was illegal then, too, but was in very, very wide use in the central coast California town where I lived. Nobody got arrested for smoking it. People who weren't careful selling it occasionally got arrested, but I don't remember anyone being arrested just for smoking a joint, and people smoked it in public all the time. The local District Attorney made it known to local law enforcement that there would be no prosecutions for simple possession or use in small quantities. So the cops just ignored it. Even when a local supplier got arrested, charges were plea bargained down to misdemeanors.

That was then. Since then, I've lost touch with the community of people who use it recreationally. I assume they're still smoking it in large numbers. I imagine that, in most places, having a joint isn't likely to get you thrown in jail any more now than it did then in most parts of the country. I know there are states where it's taken more seriously, of course, but there are lots of places where casual recreational use isn't very risky in terms of law enforcement.

I'm not seeing any momentum out there for legalizing recreational use. Certainly not in Minnesota, where smoking it is pretty popular. Medical marijuana, yes. There's a push to make that use legal, but it's struggling in many places, and the Federal Government isn't all that interested in legalizing even that.

Still, If I wanted to smoke it, which I don't, I'm very sure I could call a couple of people and find some quickly. Some of my friends, and even relatives smoke it, and I have a 20 year old niece who definitely smokes it. I'm sure she could hook me up if I wanted to. And I wouldn't worry for even a minute about the cops breaking down my door. I wouldn't smoke it in public, and not in my car, either. But, I could smoke it again if I wanted, with just about the same concern as I used to have, which was none at all.

Legalizing recreational use is going to be tough to sell. It's just too easy to say no for so many people, and too easy to smoke it if you want to without fearing the cops.