Dartblog

At the University of Colorado yesterday thousands of people celebrated 4/20, a date for the celebration of marijuana. While this practice is illegal and university police have cracked down heavily in the past, this year enforcement was essentially nil, perhaps an indication that the tides of public (and legislative) opinion may be swinging towards legalization.

I think my favorite party of this story was an entrepreneurial student who capitalized on the mass of pot-smokers and set up a stand selling peanut-butter and jelly sandwiches and other assorted munchies. If this is not the very definition of filling a market niche, I don’t know what is.

Yet another student used the event to distribute Rice Krispies treats with the message “Tomorrow, when you’re sober … call the White House at 202-456-1414,” urging students to voice their opinion about US (in)action Darfur.

JOE adds: Over cigars a few afternoons ago, Zak and I mused over the topic of marijuana. I fail to join his enthusiasm for the legalization of the stuff, even—as his advocacy is—only in principle. It is simple enough to sail into non-territorial waters, as William F. Buckley once did, to sample the stuff. But the day fly-by-night autocoidal salves were outlawed because they posed a public hazard, the American public accepted government oversight of dangerous substances. And if there are just a handful of things the government is good for, one of them is ensuring the public health. (Note that this hardly permits banning smoking at private restaurants, one subject on which Zak and I agree.)