Pubdate: Thu, 30 Apr 2015
Source: Westword (Denver, CO)
Column: Ask a Stoner
Copyright: 2015 Village Voice Media
Contact: http://www.westword.com/feedback/EmailAnEmployee?department=letters
Website: http://www.westword.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1616
Author: William Breathes

CAN I GO TO A DISPENSARY WITH JUST AN ID?

Dear Stoner: I've never been to a dispensary; it looks amazing. I 
don't have a medical card. Can I go to a recreational dispensary with 
only an ID? I know I can only get a quarter of an ounce 'cause I 
don't live in Colorado.

Gabe

Dear Gabe: Yes, it is pretty amazing. Buying pot legally is a feeling 
that every toker in America should have the joy of experiencing at 
least once. And congrats! You've got the Golden Ticket: a 
state-issued ID saying you're at least 21 years old. (The medical 
marijuana registry is only available to in-state residents, which 
means you don't have the option of paying less and avoiding the 
unreasonable special sales tax that jacks up your final amount by an 
additional 10 percent.) But we wouldn't be good stoner friends if we 
didn't remind you to smoke that quarter-ounce in a location that 
allows it. Despite the strides that Amendment 64 made for Colorado, 
it's still illegal to consume pot in public. Over the 4/20 weekend 
alone, Denver cops wrote 243 marijuana-related tickets, mostly for 
public consumption. If you're not staying with friends, make sure 
you're in a smoke-friendly hotel or at least one with a balcony.

Dear Stoner: Some stoner at a party was talking about how safe 
marijuana is compared to alcohol and said that more people die 
drinking water every year than they do smoking weed. What was he talking about?

Jack Daniels

Dear Jack: That stoner was right. Alcohol-related deaths in the U.S. 
between 2006 and 2010 averaged about 88,000 a year. Add to that the 
10,000 or so drunk-driving-related deaths each year, and it's a 
no-brainer: Pot is safer.

As for the death-by-water theory? He wasn't lying about that, either. 
The condition is called water poisoning (dilutional hyponatremia, if 
you're a stickler for proper medical terms), and it's nasty. 
Basically, your brain absorbs too much water and swells - and that 
can eventually lead to seizures and death. Sounds nuts, right? Well, 
it happens. Most famously, the family of artist Andy Warhol claims 
the hospital where he spent his final days pumped him with too many 
fluids and killed him. Endurance athletes also face increased risk of 
death by water, and every year it seems someone dies as a result of 
drinking too much H20 in some hazing incident or contest.

Also more dangerous than cannabis: texting while driving (6,000-plus 
deaths every year in America) and dog mauling (more than thirty 
dog-related deaths in the U.S. each year). Hell, more people die each 
year choking themselves in a sex act than they do smoking or using cannabis.
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom