The question has been asked, "Cigarettes are legal so why isn't pot?"

Well it didn’t take long to get some response, and further thoughts, from yesterday’s blog story … The prohibition of cannabis … “is it worth it – or can we do better by trying something else?”  Again these are just a sample of what came in, but it is a fair representation of all comments that have been made …

Cigarettes are legal so why isn't pot?

"You can't legislate morality. Look at drugs. To stop the drug issue … stop buying drugs. Keep it simple. The only person I can change is me."

A response was quick to arrive to that:
The notion that "you can't legislate morality" is philosophically untenable.   All legislation is a reflection of a certain moral code.  

When we set special speed limits in school zones, we do so based on some kind of moral presupposition about the intrinsic value of children - a moral judgement.  When we pass regulations to protect the environment, there is an inherent sense that this is the "right" thing to do ... and that sense of "right" is, at root, a "moral judgement."

When we prohibit murder, it's a reflection of a moral presupposition about the value of human life.

I could go on, but laws are based in collective sociological "morality". The real question is ... "WHOSE morals are we going to legislate?"

Comments and posts on Facebook this week

Thought I would take a look at some of the comments and postings that I and others have made on my Facebook page in the past several days.  Screening out some of what for me MIGHT be called fluff left the following, which you may or may not find interesting.

Wisdom  / Fortune Cookie type quotes

• Don't ask me why. But once in a while when confronted with self-righteous dullards like Al Gore and their ilk, I have the need to wheel out some ZZ Top 
• You have ONE life. Your expiry date might come early or late. So don't waste time. Live your life and live it well and full. Just be happy! Even if people don't share your joy, don't let them steal it from you!
• The sun reminds us that our own shining truth is never extinguished. Our light shines within us at all times, no matter what else occurs around us. Though the sun gives us daily proof of its existence, sometimes our belief in our own light requires more time