Greed, gluttony and dominance are not attractive words, although they ring with a beauty that makes their meanings unmistakable. The three words don't necessarily go together unless one contemplates the ubiquitous reach of our government and then a certain connection can be made, particularly in the latest marijuana melee that is eating up a lot of headline ink. "Legalization of marijuana" seems to be the frenzied cry, although that title can be misleading. If using THC-laden plants were truly legal, we wouldn't be struggling with how to tax and control it. Anyway you cut it, and like other illegal drugs, marijuana's still a "controlled substance," just by the very nature of the laws we're creating to control it. The advantage, I suppose, is that with marijuana's "legalization," you might not rot in jail the next 20 years for sucking up a toke or two. [continues 620 words]
"Wanna go smoke some dope?" she asked. It was 1966, the calm before the "hippie" storm that soon engulfed Aspen, and although I vicariously knew about marijuana and various other drugs, I was still a virgin doper. I had no inclination to start smoking that night, either, but this good-looking girl, whom I didn't know, had singled me out of the crowd and I figured I'd be a damned fool if I said no. At the Red Butte Cemetery we fogged up the inside of my car with some "blue de hue" and steamed the windows a little bit afterward with some heavy breathing. It did nothing for me (the joint, I mean), and I figured "grass" was better left to cows and horses. Afterward, she left the baggie, still bulging at the seams, in my glove box, and for whatever reasons, our paths didn't cross again that winter break. [continues 514 words]
