I’ve been following the legalization of cannabis journey in NYS for the past 3 years. During that time I have met, and been blocked by, several prohibitionists on Twitter. I’ve also attended listening sessions the DoH carried out where both pro and anti legalization folks came to talk. Some of the craziest things I’ve ever heard in my life have come out of these prohibitionist’s mouths.
During the listening session someone came up to talk and said that in the Bible, the end times of man will come at the hand of *any* drug and legalization cannabis would bring about Armageddon. The usual suspects at such sessions came out including the police and teachers. Police were, and still are, concerned about driving safety. The teachers, of course, were worried about youth access to cannabis(even though it’s illegal for persons under 21 to possess or use cannabis).
Listening to the MRTA debates in both the Assembly and Senate yesterday made me feel I was in a time warp. From statements of cannabis being a gateway drug to doomsday prophecies of our streets, below are several of the statements that struck me as just amazing:
“There’s carnage in the streets where they have legalized marijuana.”
Senator Phil Boyle
“This will cost the lives of hundreds, if not thousands, of New Yorkers.”
Senator Borrello
“No one is going to buy from these new stores. They are going to continue to buy from their dealer where they get this stuff laced with fentanyl and all sorts of psychedelics..”
Assemblymember Michael Montesano
“This will be the ruin of our state..”
Assemblymember Keith Brown
“We are setting up our communities to fail.”
Senator Fred Akshar