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News & ArtsThursday, December 13, 2012
Drugs Walking Down Broadway the Other Night, I Passed Three Different Couples Smoking Weed on a Single Block
Posted by Christopher Frizzelle on Thu, Dec 13, 2012 at 4:17 PM
You're not supposed to do it outside the privacy of your own home, but that's not stopping people. And for the time being at least, SPD's only giving verbal warnings. I heard one of the women saying to her male companion as I passed, "The laws are more lax than Amsterdam's."
1
So long as they don't do it within 25 feet of the door of a bar, coffee shop, or restaurant, I really don't see why we should care.
Just think of it as the Fremont reset for our state.
Just think of it as the Fremont reset for our state.
2
The two policemen that were directing traffic in front of PacPlace saw me a) hitting a dugout, b) remarked to each other that I was hitting a dugout, c) laughed and d) waved to me. A rather refreshing interaction with the popo for sure.
4
I hope people follow the lead from alcohol: Drunk and stumbling and slobbering over a container in public is stupid, baked and stumbling and sparking up in public is equally stupid. Don't flaunt it, be cool, and we will set a good example while under this national spotlight.
6
And how different is that from Broadway before 502 passed? Plenty of somewhat-discreet pot smoking was taking place before 502 passed. I'm sure it will continue now that the shit's legal. Yeah, there will be idiots who flaunt it inappropriately, but I have a feeling most of the folks who were considerate about it before will continue to be considerate about it now.
Like @4 is saying, just don't be an asshole about it and there likely won't be any problems.
Like @4 is saying, just don't be an asshole about it and there likely won't be any problems.
7
I've been walking around smoking joints for years in Seattle and some East-side cities (villages/towns...). If you look plausibly legal and aren't being an idiot, ain't nobody gonna care.
... But I must acknowledge that being a white dude probably helped me get away with it.
... But I must acknowledge that being a white dude probably helped me get away with it.
8
@4 "Drunk and stumbling and slobbering over a container in public is stupid"
Like that ever stopped anyone ...
Like that ever stopped anyone ...
9
Ironically, the garden rooftop of the Law Courts in downtown Vancouver is packed with people blowing weed.
10
In Seattle, smoking cannabis in public is effectively decriminalized.
While the state law prohibits it, Seattle law makes enforcement of "personal use" marijuana-related offenses the lowest possible priority. You're more likely to get ticketed for jaywalking.
Disclaimer: I'm too high to give legal advice.
While the state law prohibits it, Seattle law makes enforcement of "personal use" marijuana-related offenses the lowest possible priority. You're more likely to get ticketed for jaywalking.
Disclaimer: I'm too high to give legal advice.
11
The other night, just after a co-worker expressed to me her concerns over people smoking and driving, I waited at a crosswalk on 15th Ave E and started to cross when the light went green ("green" - hahaha) - only to be nearly bowled over by a vehicle barreling through on the red light, leaving in its wake a giant stanky cloud of weedsmoke.
The timing was too, too perfect....
The timing was too, too perfect....
15
I disagree with the previous posts. Please flaunt it and be disrespectful. Same goes for alcohol.
16
I was in Amsterdam last Spring - you can smoke outside anywhere except next to monuments. The locals explained to me that they don't want tourists to have people smoking weed in their photos....but even then, it's not *illegal,* the police will just ask you to move along if you are smoking too close to a famous building or statue.
18
I kind of worry about this.
I-502's appeal to me originated in a desire to get profits from marijuana sales out of the hands of gangsters and cartels. Locally grown pot sold through state run stores means no money for Los Zetas or Sinaloa. This may not be enough to get rid of these thugs, but it seems more likely to start their decay than Felipe Calderon's failed drug war.
If the stores open at all, they are at least a year away. In the meantime, open-air black market sales will provide these cartels a chance to capitalize on the lax enforcement.
The upside is of course that 18 year old kids will no longer have their lives ruined for simple possession. I am grateful for that. Even though I am far from being 18 and do not consume weed myself, I have nothing against 18 year old potheads and certainly want them kept safe from prison. I just wish they would have access to locally grown (why not organic? Hell, spike it with Vitamin C while we're at it), cartel-free pot.
I-502's appeal to me originated in a desire to get profits from marijuana sales out of the hands of gangsters and cartels. Locally grown pot sold through state run stores means no money for Los Zetas or Sinaloa. This may not be enough to get rid of these thugs, but it seems more likely to start their decay than Felipe Calderon's failed drug war.
If the stores open at all, they are at least a year away. In the meantime, open-air black market sales will provide these cartels a chance to capitalize on the lax enforcement.
The upside is of course that 18 year old kids will no longer have their lives ruined for simple possession. I am grateful for that. Even though I am far from being 18 and do not consume weed myself, I have nothing against 18 year old potheads and certainly want them kept safe from prison. I just wish they would have access to locally grown (why not organic? Hell, spike it with Vitamin C while we're at it), cartel-free pot.
19
@3: True that. I was blazing in the smokers circle outside neumos when two cops appeared out of nowhere, said "hmm, what's that I smell?" and continued on their way.
23
I'm sure things are different up there on Capitol Hill, but the Downtown Dirtbags don't look any less dirtbaggy to me now that they're all smoking weed instead of cigarettes.
24
I've seen it all over since the law was enacted. Best thing I've seen so far is the old (75+) man smoking a joint as he was walking down Harrison St. on Capitol Hill. He was smiling and happy. Loved it.
25
@18: The cartels make money because enforcement artificially increased the price. With the decriminalization initiative, the price should fall substantially. What that means is that even if the cartels continue supplying a product (which I'm not even sure they do in Washington since Canadian and American weed is so abundant), they will not make the same absurd profits. In fact, the price will drop to the point were it is no longer economically feasible to kill people or commit violent crime to maintain their market. The cartels are going to be in a position similar to what the Mob was in when Prohibition ended. They can try to go into different crime markets or they can try to legitimize themselves, but they will not be able to compete against the likes of Budweiser or Jack Daniels. The same applies to weed. The only way violent crime could possibly go up is if Washington starts exporting weed to other states where it is still prohibited. The more States that decriminalize marijuana and the less enforcement that is used to elevate prices, the sooner these cartels will be out of the weed business.
26
@22: Cigarettes are worse than pot since cigarettes are incredibly addictive, and you need to smoke a substantial amount per day to get your nicotine fix. A person who smokes weed will probably smoke a couple of joints a week. A person who smokes cigarettes will smoke one hundred of them or more per week. So while neither of them is good for your lungs or the health of secondhand breathers, smoking weed is far less harmful overall.
27
I actually live in Amsterdam, across the street from a "coffee shop", and you rarely see anyone smoking pot on the street (btw, the Dutch use pot at about 1/3 the rate of Americans). Public drunkenness is much more common (thanks England!). It's not that you will be arrested, it's more that it's a social faux pas to be blowing skanky weed at people who just want to get home from work. Also, since it's been effectively legal here for so long, no one is impressed. Part of what you are seeing in Seattle may be a bit of showing off; at least it was for me when I last smoked weed in front of a club on Market Street in SF (I always seem to smoke more when I'm in the States).
BTW, the exception in Amsterdam is Queen's Day, when you can smoke whatever you want and no one is bothered.
BTW, the exception in Amsterdam is Queen's Day, when you can smoke whatever you want and no one is bothered.
29
No, things have changed noticeably. It used to be discreet, now it's happening openly at my bus stop. People need to respect the no smoking policies no matter what they're inhaling. That stuff stinks...it smells like skunk.
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