Substitute the word "drunk" for "high" in the article, and read it as if it were about alcahol use and it sheds some light on the issue for me.
The people featured in the article are rationalizing the fact that it is legal to mean that it is acceptable. It isn't acceptable to get drunk in the park every day, so why would it be acceptable to get high there instead.
What if you lined up to get a fifth of vodka every morning, and then went and got drunk in the park with your girlfriend as your toddler wandered around?
I personally like the comment from the guy who "at least gets off his ass and panhandles." Wow.
As the number of users in Lake Place Park increases, it is bound to get "ugly" there eventually, be it a stabbing or a brawl. I bike through there frequently and can attest to the fact that there are ever-increasing numbers of people gathering there, usually right by the bridge to Superior Street. It is "not good."
Glad I'm getting up at 6 a.m. and going to work and paying taxes, so these jokers can use their gov't handout to buy this stuff, turn into Gobs of Goo, donate their Goo plasma, and "take care" of their children "without harming" them.
Just when did I turn into Nancy Reagan?
Legalize Marijuana! Take tho power away from the pusher.
Back in the day Sammy D used to bring that stuff to the clubhouse. Oh.. I tried it once or twice, made Dino even more of a moron and Peter Lawford would start doing his Churchill voice ... har har ... good times! Seriously, All that pot does is make you reflective, philosophical and want to clean meticulously .. no wonder the feds don't want youse doin it. As far as these ass munch leeches smoking "incense" and bath salts when they're supposed to be in charge of their toddlers, they all need a dose of reality kicked into their slacker pants behinds! That sh!t is wrong. I used to like Carlson when all he sold was dildos and numchucks but now he's a festering parasite. Keep busting him DPD!
These people are dumb or pathetic enough to smoke this crap and not the real stuff (or nothing at all...), so their stupid remarks and ignorant lifestyle seem on par for those who would use it. A stupid, dangerous drug designed to sell to stupid people with little or no money. I hope those folks with children all get a visit from Social Services this week.
Ban any and all smoking in Lake Place Park, send an officer through there once and hour or so, start issuing tickets—that will at least force them to go somewhere else and not turn the park into an open air hash den. (And while they are at it, mayhaps the police could flush out the drunks that have made it their home as well.)
Jim Carlson talks like he's some kind of moral crusader for the constitution, and he's just using it to make millions off these poor, stupid people. If he wants to preach that drug laws are hypocritical (and I believe most are) he should first take a good look in the mirror. Just because it is within your legal rights to do something does not make that something the right thing to do.
Ban this dangerous shit and legalize real marijuana. Then, Mr. Carlson can make his millions by converting the LPOE into a medical marijuana dispensary.
Could someone give Mr. Anderson the heads up that his career in elementary education is probably not going to happen? At least then he can save his tuition dollars in order to buy more.
Also, a medical question: doesn't that crap get in your bloodstream? And therefore wouldn't it be in your plasma?
Jessige, I had the same thought about the plasma donation.
Since this has turned somewhat into a discussion about legalization of pot, I have the following question(s).
Alcahol is legal, but you cannot drive under the influence of alcahol. There is an easy test to determine whether someone is under the influence (brethalizer).
I have no problem with legalized marijuana, but I would rather not have someone stoned off their butt driving a car. Is there a similar way to test for a person's level of being stoned?
It seems to me that a major hurdle to legalizing pot is how law enforcement can determine whether someone is above a legal limit of impairment.
Further, could public intoxication laws be utilized to "round-up" the stoners in Lake Place in the same way they do for the drunks?
+1 for Tony.
Is anyone else as disgusted as I am at the young couple toking up in front of their 20 month old?
Carlson isn't a crusader...he's a businessman. He's not as concerned with the legality of the shit he sells as much as the loss of dollars in his pocket. IMO, he's the real parasite here.
Scuttlebutt on the bus (overheard) is that police are hanging around in front of LPOE, making anyone exiting empty their pockets, and taking names.
If this is true, I'd like to know what their excuse for probable cause is. I mean, unless they see me buying the questionable substances, how can they justify search? The people on the bus were saying that they were checking for paraphernalia, but they weren't confiscating it. (?)
I'd be pretty pissed off if they searched me for simply being the patron of a store that is in current disfavor. If the cops searched me and pulled out my gigantic [EXAMPLE OF EMBARRASSING SEXUAL DEVICE]*.... I'd be even more pissed off. And frankly, the harassment of a business owner and their patrons, if these rumors are true, is pretty heinous.
While I think the behavior of the people in the article is reprehensible, I do think that the very obvious slant of the article is about drumming up public outcry/selling newspapers with sensationalism. So if you're outraged, thank the reporter for making sure of it. We should be concerned about this sort of behavior, yes, but the existence of the substance/its legality/health issues should be considered separately. I don't see Brandon Stahl going around interviewing people who participate in public drinking while supervising their children.
Why does the article not investigate/elaborate on the alleged harassment by the police outside the store?
Once again, I think this is clearly falling into a class issue. Users of these substances who have decent jobs and wear suits to work aren't going to be hanging out in the park getting interviewed. Also, most people of that class buy the real thing, illegally, and get away with it.
Also, I believe, ounce for ounce, that this stuff is more expensive than the real thing. The advantage is the (supposed?) potency and legality.
Until we have more than anecdotal evidence about its health effects, I would never advocate for blanket banning of synthetics and their analogs, because it falls into the banning of substances "because it gets you high," which is obviously hypocritical.
If this leads to the legalization of organic marijuana, then good. However, it seems to me that we're just going down the path of "I think users are lowlifes, and BAN IT ALL!"
* I do not possess nor do I plan to purchase a gigantic anything from LPOE or other store.
It is ridiculous. They should legalize marijuana. I think that you could probably do a cognitive skills type test and record it to issue a citation for driving while baked.
They could use Super Troopers as a training video.
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