One more idea

6 comments

1 Chris Barthol { 01.13.10 at 2:25 pm }

That is an interesting statement, because it really shows a difference between East Coast and West Coast mentalities. Legalizing marijuana is not even thought about or discussed here, and I think if you brought it up to the majority of people that would think that you are crazy. We hear about the ideas of legalizing it Over There, like it is another country and just go about our lives. No one Over Here is even thinking about it. I cannot even buy alcohol in a supermarket (6 pack or less at some with licenses), and I have to buy liquor at a state store. Alcohol prohibition still exists, so I do not think there will be an end to marijuana prohibition, at least not Over Here.

2 Peyton { 01.13.10 at 6:20 pm }

I don’t know… I certainly hope you’re right— that issues of human sexuality and marijuana become more accepted in the future. However, history might point to otherwise. Societies such as Ancient Greece and Elizabethean England have been, in some areas, more progressive than our “modern” society— and even in Spain we both saw in Toledo how that society went from extremely progressive in the acceptance of multiple groups to then going into the Inquisition. Even America’s founding fathers had, in some areas, more liberal views than the rather Puritanical movement that emerged with strength some time in the 1800s. I am just scared that though some progress has been made— not enough has. I was really disappointed in Maine, and though I am very happy that DC is going to legalize same sex marriage shortly… the church I attend, may lose its support from the greater Methodist church if they start performing same-sex marriages. I am also afraid that we both live in bubbles— San Fran and DC are not representative of the nation as a whole although I think our generation is making progress. My biggest fear though, is that if there is some success in these areas, whether with gay rights or marijuana, that if there is a crisis, these groups will be blamed for the crisis. For example, if the economy falters, will it be blamed on the “destruction of family values” or that America has become a nation of “lazy, potheads”? How will “progress” in America be viewed by the rest of the world as well? If one of the trends of the next 50 years is to be a more global economy— which culture will really become the most accepted?… the bottom line is that, the reason I think Martin Luther King Jr. and remembering the Holocaust are so important is because it has become engrained into part of my own identity— but who’s to say what the next generation will really care about? I don’t know, I hope you’re right… but I think we all need a bit of doubt about “progress” to actually make progress a reality… sorry for the rant

3 Peyton { 01.13.10 at 8:00 pm }

oh… and also… i wonder how ideas of “nationalism” and “religion” will change… as the world becomes smaller through media like Google— will this change how people identify themselves? I think this is already being examined in places like the European Union and United States, and perhaps even in places like Iran.

4 Ted Mielczarek { 01.14.10 at 9:48 am }

New Jersey just passed a law to legalize marijuana for medicinal use, so I don’t think the East Coast is really that far behind…

5 Matt { 01.14.10 at 10:47 am }

@Chris, Ted – There has been some progress on the east coast, but I agree there’s a clear difference in public discourse between the coasts. That’s a good point about how many ridiculous alcohol laws are still on the books in Pennsylvania, though even that has made some progress in the last 5 years. I think it’ll come down to experimentation in some state, eventually. There’s a distinct lack of political will on the issue (see: Obama’s mocking response to these questions). I think that’s caused by the issue being framed horribly: it’s presented like “these potheads want to legalize weed” instead of “why are we wasting huge amounts of money and resources criminalizing a drug that lacks the addictive and and carcinogenic properties of cigarettes?” I’ve still yet to hear a good response to that, which is why prohibitionists just give mocking responses.

6 Matt { 01.14.10 at 10:57 am }

@Peyton- While I’ll submit that progressivism isn’t monotonically increasing over time, I think some of your examples are a bit misleading. Weren’t the regressive cultural changes of Spain, Greece, and Rome all caused by conquest and destruction? Alcohol prohibition provides an example of a wave of puritanism sweeping of a society without catastrophic change, however. Looking at the polling on these issues, however, shows a clear correlation with age.. far more dramatic than on other left/right issues (e.g. abortion doesn’t show the same trend). I don’t recall the exact numbers, but I read somewhere if people our age or younger were the only voters, gay marriage would be legal in 38 states. I don’t think this is a question of convincing people as much as it’s just an effect of time and generational shift.

Then again, if you used the same logic in the 1960s, you’d probably imagine modern day looking quite a bit different than it does.

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