Denver Post, 13 Dec 2012 – I find it interesting the people of Colorado have voted to legalize the "recreational" use of marijuana. Personally, I just can’t understand how inhaling smoke can be good for a person. The government and many private organizations have spent millions of dollars over the years fighting the big tobacco companies. Finally the truth about the bad effects of tobacco, what we always knew, comes out: it is proven to kill people. Maybe I’m just old-fashioned, but I believe the human body works best by inhaling fresh air, not smoke (of any kind). It seems to me we are taking a huge step backward. I suppose the next thing would be to turn the production and marketing of marijuana cigarettes over to Phillip Morris or RJ Reynolds, companies that really know the smoking business. That way, people could be supplied with a regular and guaranteed supply of marijuana.

Denver Post, 13 Dec 2012 – Re: "University of Colorado president sees $1 billion risk in legalized pot," Dec. 9 news story. University of Colorado president Bruce Benson’s hyperbolic pronouncements about the legalization of marijuana affecting federal aid to CU merely serve to stir up uninformed and paranoid rhetoric, rather than contribute to a rational debate.

Washington Post, 15 Dec 2012 – State’s Experience With Medical Marijuana Could Be a Blueprint On Monday afternoon, in a conference room off Colfax Avenue in suburban Denver, two dozen members of a government task force will gather to begin hashing out the details of how to create a market for legal, recreational marijuana in the state. The group includes law enforcement officials, public health experts, marijuana advocates and others who have varying opinions but each share a stake in the outcome.

Denver Post, 12 Dec 2012 – Re: "Hickenlooper signs proclamation making marijuana legalization official," Dec. 11 news story. Now that marijuana use is legal in Colorado, one of my chief concerns is the impact this has on children. Is it legal today for adults to smoke marijuana within the confines of a home when children are present? I strongly believe that exposing children to secondhand marijuana smoke is a form of child abuse that should be vigorously prosecuted under existing child welfare laws. Must we wait to protect children in their own homes until the governor’s task force issues its rules next year?

The Gazette, 10 Dec 2012 – Amendment 64 passed by just 10 votes in El Paso County in November, but neighborhood by neighborhood, the vote was anything but close. The center of Colorado Springs said yes to legalizing limited marijuana use by a strong margin, while suburbs and rural areas overwhelmingly said no, according to a Gazette precinct analysis of election results. There are exceptions. Palmer Lake and Ramah, far from the city center, both voted for legalization. And some relatively affluent Colorado Springs neighborhoods, including Rockrimmon and Upper Skyway, voted against it. But in general, the nearer voters were to the urban core, the more likely they were to give marijuana the thumbs up.

DrugSense

Seattle Times, 11 Dec 2012 – Governor Makes Low-Key Proclamation Voters Passed Amendment Last Month DENVER (AP)- Marijuana for recreational use became legal in Colorado on Monday, when the governor took a purposely low-key procedural step of declaring the voter-approved change part of the state constitution.

The Gazette, 10 Dec 2012 – Back in 2000, the people voted for qualifying patients to receive safe access to medical cannabis. There are rules and regulations as to law enforcements handling of such. The problem is that our district attorney has chosen to waste hundreds of thousands of your taxpayer dollars prosecuting sick patients and law-abiding businesses that are following "the rules," for his own agenda – attorney general. Cannabis patients and businesses make easy targets and make easy wins when they are scared or misinformed into taking less then desirable plea deals. It’s no secret that Dan May has been against safe access since taking office. He seems to be content interpreting the law based on his personal views. Our organization, Coloradans for Cannabis Patient Rights (C4CPR), and its supporters, have protested numerous times in front of the courthouse and Dan’s office. I have written letters to Dan, Barbara Miller, the chief of police, VNI, City Council and our mayor. The only response I received was from VNI and one person from city council (informing me it was not of their place.)

Denver Post, 08 Dec 2012 – The University of Colorado allows deadly firearms and alcohol on campus but not marijuana? Go figure. The logic may be that pot tolerance will make the campus more dangerous, but the mixture of guns with alcohol is a near perfect security arrangement. Logic would suggest that mixing guns-which have the sole purpose of killing something/someone-with a substance (alcohol) that causes aggression and senseless acts would not be good policy for CU.

DrugSense