It seems that, in this debate, the morality of legalizing and taxing marijuana was overlooked. Proponents may point at the hypocrisy of penalizing pot, while taxing alcohol and tobacco, but this is a false analogy to a morally problematic policy.

In the case of tobacco, we tax it as a disincentive to its use, not as a way to fund public services. If our only means to fund government is to inebriate the population and then tax their intoxication, then we are surely living in a failed state.

If the campaign succeeds, why stop at pot? Will initiatives to legalize psilocybin mushrooms or peyote cactus be next? LSD precursors can be easily extracted from the seeds of common plants. Should these also be packaged into candies and sweets?

As if our nation’s heroin epidemic and fascination with prescription medications weren’t enough, at what point do we become a population so addled by drugs that our society stops functioning?

This is terrible public policy.

We can take meaningful action without creating a pot free-for-all.

Advertisement

We need more job training and social engagement programs. Give people tools to build purposeful lives and they won’t need to escape into mind-bending drugs.

These would be moral, social and financial victories – victories that do not force the state to expand its role in promoting the public’s inebriation.

This issue demands action, but Question 1 isn’t the path. Our inaction allowed predatory, out-of-state companies to shape our values for us.

We need to deny the profiteers their revenues at our expense. We must challenge our legislators to create policy that corrects the failures of the past, recognizes the realities of the present, and sets a course of moral leadership for Maine’s future.


Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.

Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.