Choose Wisely

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]I[/dropcap]t’s Saturday night and you’re out with your friends, maybe hitting up a bar or club, but you’re surrounded by people drunk with alcohol. What a downer! Drunkenness, lewd behavior, diminished inhibitions, vomiting and loss of consciousness are sometimes the unfortunate results of public alcohol consumption. A recent study from Humboldt State University found a correlation between where alcohol is sold and where instances of violent crimes take place.

What our communities need are clubs and businesses where people can consume cannabis for socialization, celebration, joviality and exhilaration. Whatever problems that cannabis may cause, pale into insignificance when compared to alcohol. In fact, studies regarding where cannabis is sold have shown a decrease in crime.

In every state that has legalized recreational cannabis, the regulations for on-site consumption of cannabis at businesses like restaurants or clubs are so byzantine and complex that they are nearly impossible to comply with if they are allowed at all. This is beyond absurd. Commercial outlets for the on-site consumption of cannabis should be allowed in the same way commercial outlets are allowed for the on-site consumption of alcohol. The health and safety advantages to the individual and the community of providing on-site consumption businesses for cannabis are enormous.

To understand this, it needs to be recognized that people enjoy altering their state-of-consciousness. Humans have been doing it for so long there is probably a genetic component for wanting to do so. Alcohol has generally been the chosen adulterant to accomplish achieving this state. This choice has been a disaster.

One-hundred thousand deaths a year, significant health related harms such as pancreatitis, cirrhosis of the liver, cardiovascular disease, cancer, fetal alcohol syndrome—all compounded by mental health problems are just a few of the common side effects of drinking alcohol. That’s not even considering the social problems resulting in domestic and random violence along with sexual assault, decimated families, drunken driving and loss of productivity. These affect not just the individual but their families and the entire community with a cost of almost a quarter of a trillion dollars each year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Cannabis, on the other hand, causes effects that are the polar opposite of alcohol. There are very few negative health-related concerns in comparison, offering serenity in place of violence, awareness instead of inhibition and open-mindedness replacing intolerance. Plus, over-consumption of inhaled cannabis is practically non-existent with far fewer consequences when someone inhales more than they are used to.

High quality cannabis can make an evening with friends far more enjoyable, more stimulating and way more fun than alcohol ever can. Whether you’re attending a concert, a movie, a theatrical production, a dance party or just getting together at a friend’s house, there is nothing better than cannabis for celebration, socialization and safe consciousness-altering.

“High quality cannabis can make an evening with friends far more enjoyable, more stimulating and way more fun than alcohol ever can.”

Unlike the classic next-day hangover associated with even moderate alcohol consumption, the morning after a night of cannabis consumption, no matter how heavy, finds the reveler waking up well-rested and ready to get on with the day’s activities.

Although our communities would greatly benefit from allowing businesses to provide for on-site consumption of cannabis, there will be ferocious opposition from interests inimically opposed to cannabis with most vociferous opposition coming from the alcohol industry. Some of the largest financial contributions opposing cannabis legalization initiatives have come from alcohol businesses as they are well aware that if cannabis is widely, easily and affordably available, that alcohol consumption will decrease significantly.

The legalization of cannabis has multiple benefits, but the most significant in terms of health and safety is its ability to act as an effective substitute for alcohol. For that benefit to be fully realized the presence of on-site consumption businesses is to be encouraged.