Jacob Redmond
Well-Known Member
Washington writer Bruce Barcott planned to vote no on Initiative 502, legalizing pot in his state.
"I didn't like pot, I hadn't used pot since I was in college, I didn't like the smell of it. I had two teenage kids, I didn't want them to have better access to it."
A friend who is a civil liberties lawyer urged him to do some research into pot arrest statistics. The staggering national numbers -- 800,000 arrests per year between 2005 and 2010 on marijuana charges -- changed his mind.
"I held my nose, voted yes, and the next morning I woke up and we had passed marijuana legalization. And I wondered, 'What in the world did we just do?'" Barcott said.
What Barcott did was write a book - Weed the People: The Future of Legal Marijuana in America.
For research, he met marijuana growers, pot-trepreneurs, and users. Including ballerinas from Pacific Northwest Ballet using cannabis cream for pain.
"For me it was like...wait, you're a ballerina with a professional company and you have a medical marijuana card? It really was a first step for me to realize how many different people use this substance in many different ways."
This author is also a father, and he's facing the same thing all Washington parents face now that marijuana is legal in this state:
"One of the big issues in doing this project, in writing this book, is that I have two young teenagers, and how am I gonna write a book about pot with two teenage kids at home?"
Barcott ended up having many small talks with his kids, instead of the One Big Talk he anticipated.
"My kids, they thought it was hilarious that their square dad was writing a book about marijuana."
Humor helps, but talking to kids about pot is a serious matter, especially now.
"There are real reasons for kids, teenagers, to not smoke marijuana," stated Barcott.
Reasons like marijuana's possible effect on brain development, and possible connections between early chronic pot use and schizophrenia.
We can't all use Barcott's go-to statement on our kids:
"I literally have used that line -- I wrote the book on marijuana, I know what I'm talking about!"
But we can borrow another line he borrowed from a friend, who tweaked Nancy Reagan's "Just say no" into this:
"Just say not yet."
Also, regardless of where you stand on pot now that it's legal in Washington, Barcott's book is a perfect way to learn more about the issue. So that no matter what you decide to tell your kids about pot, you'll know what you're talking about.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Bainbridge writer pens book on legal pot in America
Author: Web Staff
Contact: Contact Us | king5
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: KING5.com | Seattle Breaking News, Weather, Traffic, Sports
"I didn't like pot, I hadn't used pot since I was in college, I didn't like the smell of it. I had two teenage kids, I didn't want them to have better access to it."
A friend who is a civil liberties lawyer urged him to do some research into pot arrest statistics. The staggering national numbers -- 800,000 arrests per year between 2005 and 2010 on marijuana charges -- changed his mind.
"I held my nose, voted yes, and the next morning I woke up and we had passed marijuana legalization. And I wondered, 'What in the world did we just do?'" Barcott said.
What Barcott did was write a book - Weed the People: The Future of Legal Marijuana in America.
For research, he met marijuana growers, pot-trepreneurs, and users. Including ballerinas from Pacific Northwest Ballet using cannabis cream for pain.
"For me it was like...wait, you're a ballerina with a professional company and you have a medical marijuana card? It really was a first step for me to realize how many different people use this substance in many different ways."
This author is also a father, and he's facing the same thing all Washington parents face now that marijuana is legal in this state:
"One of the big issues in doing this project, in writing this book, is that I have two young teenagers, and how am I gonna write a book about pot with two teenage kids at home?"
Barcott ended up having many small talks with his kids, instead of the One Big Talk he anticipated.
"My kids, they thought it was hilarious that their square dad was writing a book about marijuana."
Humor helps, but talking to kids about pot is a serious matter, especially now.
"There are real reasons for kids, teenagers, to not smoke marijuana," stated Barcott.
Reasons like marijuana's possible effect on brain development, and possible connections between early chronic pot use and schizophrenia.
We can't all use Barcott's go-to statement on our kids:
"I literally have used that line -- I wrote the book on marijuana, I know what I'm talking about!"
But we can borrow another line he borrowed from a friend, who tweaked Nancy Reagan's "Just say no" into this:
"Just say not yet."
Also, regardless of where you stand on pot now that it's legal in Washington, Barcott's book is a perfect way to learn more about the issue. So that no matter what you decide to tell your kids about pot, you'll know what you're talking about.
News Moderator: Jacob Redmond 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Bainbridge writer pens book on legal pot in America
Author: Web Staff
Contact: Contact Us | king5
Photo Credit: None Found
Website: KING5.com | Seattle Breaking News, Weather, Traffic, Sports
