Last year Oregon voters approved legalization of marijuana for recreational use. Now, the lawmakers of Oregon are crafting a plan that would allow medical-marijuana dispensaries to sell pot to all adults as soon as recreational weed becomes legal in July. So, if you were wondering where would you be able to buy recreational pot in Oregon, there’s your answer. A proposal to begin recreational sales in Oregon on July 1 has attracted a lot of interest and medical marijuana dispensaries might play an important role, although temporarily, because licensed marijuana growers and retailers won’t be operating when recreational pot becomes legal July 1.
What seems to be the problem, officer?
Well, firstly and most importantly, politics is a messy business. Secondly, licenses for recreational marijuana stores are not expected to be issued until late 2016, which means that marijuana users would find themselves in a situation where they can legally buy and use marijuana, just don’t have a place that actually sells it. Being able to use it without having access to it would certainly be a problem for some folks. Others may decide to grow it at home and deal with this issue that way. Oregon households will be able to start growing up to four cannabis plants in July. But they also need seeds, right? That’s why Senator Ted Ferrioli decided to make a plan that would allow medical marijuana dispensaries to sell to everyone older than 21.
Keeping recreational separate from medical
While at first this idea may seem as a good one, if you take a closer look, numerous issues start popping out. Certainly, this would be a temporary solution, however, these two groups of marijuana users have nothing in common, besides the fact that they consume marijuana. Many medical users consume it not because they enjoy it, but because it helps them with their diseases and medical conditions. Recreational users just want to relax and have fun. It won’t be an easy solution, although it may seem like it will. It still requires a lot of rules that don’t exist yet. How would the logistics work out? Would recreational customers buy their weed in the same area as medical customers or separately? Who would be in charge of overseeing the sales? How will all this be sorted out sooner than licenses for recreational stores are issued?
That’s not what I voted for
Even though the idea of being able to buy marijuana sooner than expected is appealing, the idea of blending the medical and recreational does not appeal in the same way. Is this just another case of politicians trying to blend something together? Because ultimately, the goal is the same – from a standpoint of someone who is not using marijuana for any purpose, these two groups are just a bunch of people who want to consume marijuana. That is what scares most of us, from both sides of the spectrum, that politicians don’t really understand the underlying motivators for the different uses of marijuana. How do you feel about it? Would you support this idea, or you don’t care, and just want your legal marijuana, recreational or medical?
