So yesterday was 4/20. One of the largest 'celebrations' of 4/20 congregates in the middle of CU's campus. Apparently it started out as a political protest supporting the legalization of marijuana. In theory this is still the point, but mostly now it is just a party where thousands upon thousands come and sit on the ground and smoke pot. It gets all hyped up with CU making announcements telling students not to show up and police everywhere. The police do not ticket for possession, but are mostly just there to prevent violence or damage to school property.
Naturally I had to go see what all the fuss was about. The Norlin Quad was packed with people, sure some students, but hippies and potheads from all over come to this gathering. Also, I always thought pot smelled good, but my friend Jen said it smelled terrible. Now I know that the different strains have every kind of smell you could imagine. We were just trying to work our way through the crowd and a guy next to us said "Man getting through this is ridiculous, but everyone is way too happy to push and shove." :) I also overheard a police/event staff say "Today is what makes it worth having this job." Looking out above the crowd you could see a haze of smoke rising up. There were beach balls and people waving flags and protesting oil drilling.
I have mixed feelings about legalizing marijuana. I have a friend who probably ruined his life because of drugs and alcohol. So I've seen the effects it can have on people and hate it. On the other hand people ruin their lives with alcohol and affairs too. It honestly doesn't seem much worse than drinking to me. It's when you are doing it all the time and it has become a lifestyle that it begins to hurt you. Prohibition did not end the problems with alcohol, they just turned it to the underground. So can marijuana being illegal be compared to prohibition? Question to ponder.
Anyway, that's what happens in Boulder on 4/20. Anybody have thoughts on legalization or using or prohibition? Or a story?
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