IT’S A DRUG –
Aug. 17, 2023 – Whenever attention is paid to these problems, marijuana advocates reflexively swat them away. This is understandable: It took decades to dispel stereotypes about the drug and to persuade the public that adults should be free to choose whether to consume it, as they do with alcohol. Most Americans, it turned out, agreed with them. It’s unreasonable to expect this to change any time soon. But leaders in the cannabis industry would be wise to acknowledge the real harms their products are causing and to embrace regulation for their industry, including to ensure safety. Yes, this would restrict what products they could sell, but it would also prevent their industry from becoming a more pungent version of Big Tobacco, which spent decades downplaying the harm of its products.
