Amendment 3
We all saw it coming. In 2016 medical marijuana was made legal in Florida. Does it help some people? Yes. Your congenial editor had a friend who used it. He did not enjoy it and never had designs of getting high on it, but it did help with his health problems—particularly nausea. He usually used some before eating. And, yes, doctors are now prescribing it in various circumstances. We have been informed that there is a strain developed in Canada which really is medicinal. It allegedly has health benefits without making a person high.
One of the biggest sponsors of the initiative was a law firm named Morgan and Morgan. They bought a considerable amount of advertising pushing the amendment in 2016. They related how people were suffering because they could not get it. Of course, everyone knew it would only be a matter of time, once having procured medical marijuana, that they would be at the forefront of trying to get recreational marijuana made legal. Every time we have heard Morgan and Morgan's advertisement, “For the People,” we have immediately corrected it, “For the Stoned People.” We have not been disappointed. Amendment 3 will be voted on this fall. It will make the recreational use of marijuana legal if it passes. And guess who is at the forefront of supporting the amendment? It figures, doesn't it?
According to the Internet, “The initiative would legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 years old and older.” Of course, people know how that will filter down to minors. Most young people below 21 have always been able to procure alcohol—despite the laws. They help themselves to their parents' supply—or maybe they have a friend with an older brother. The same will happen with legalized, recreational marijuana. In fact, the afore-mentioned friend visited a licensed dispenser of “medical” marijuana, and he was not even asked for a prescription from a doctor.
The arguments are nothing new. People are in jail for merely possessing a small amount of marijuana. Okay. How many? Is someone on death row? Morgan and Morgan has plenty of lawyers; they have branches in numerous cities. They boast of having “more than 1,000 trial-ready attorneys”; why don't they use some of these to beg for clemency on all those they believe to have been unjustly treated? The second argument is that marijuana is not as dangerous as alcohol. According to CNN, documented marijuana-related traffic accidents requiring emergency rooms increased 475% between 2010 and 2021. Perhaps the injuries are not as bad as those caused by alcohol, but it is doubtful that such information will be of much comfort to those who are victims. Society does not need more problems to contend with; fewer would be preferred. Vote NO!