Manitou Springs had a big issue on the ballot this election.
Should we prohibit Recreational MJ or allow it to be sold in our town?
I had friends on both sides of this issue.
At the same time this petition was submitted, two more bars were were approved to open in downtown Manitou Springs. This seemed very counter-intuitive to me. Protest the use of a plant for relaxation and health reasons, while supporting more options to indulge in alcohol.
I have always said that the biggest mistake the country made was to make Hemp illegal. Hemp has many uses and has no drug potential use. It is easier and better for the soil to grow than many plants, including tobacco. It could make a difference in our need to import oil, as it is a fuel that can be used in many ways. It can create cloth or paper saving many trees. I won’t go deep into this, but I hope the brave farmers in Colorado who are legally in Colorado growing hemp prove to the rest of the country how it is a beneficial plant that needs to be made legal again!
The second biggest mistake was to make MJ illegal. Why cause prohibition of a plant, but allow the distillation of plants to be consumed for the same concept? To get a buzz.
Now I have seen people addicted to MJ, but many more addicted to alcohol. I have seen people abuse MJ, but way more people in my world have been know to abuse using alcohol. I have seen people drinking become violent, but I have never seen anyone using MJ become violent. I have seen MJ help with many illnesses cope with pain and depression. Now some people may claim the use of alcohol might dull their pain, but more often than not, they will drink so much they also cannot function. And which one of these drugs do you think contributes to depression, rather than eases it?
And have you ever heard of a disease being cured or eased by the use of alcohol? Yet hundreds of children have been helped with a variant of MJ that has been created to relieve seizures. And the relief from pain and post traumatic stress documented by users has been growing.
I am hopeful that the two, yes, only 2 stores that are open in Manitou Springs will continue to set a positive example of how this plant can be regulated similar to alcohol, and causes fewer over all problems in our community and surrounding communities.
Manitou Springs has a new tax base to support its business and art communities and serve as an example of how educate its youth in using all mind altering substances in a mindful way, rather than abusing them.
Education is key!