Ron Strider
Well-Known Member
There's hardly a more receptive or captive audience for marketing an intoxicant than the beleaguered commuters crowded onto a rush-hour Muni bus (except perhaps the ones packed onto a rush-hour BART train). But unlike many of the dopey regulations proliferating ahead of California's legalization of marijuana for recreational purposes in 2018, Muni's decision to ban cannabis advertising makes sense.
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency's board voted Tuesday to ban recreational marijuana advertising and stop accepting medical marijuana ads once current contracts expire. The policy is in keeping with Muni's refusal of alcohol, tobacco and firearms advertising in light of the number of children who ride city buses and trains. It's also in line with statewide regulations that prohibit cannabis advertising that targets children or reaches audiences with large numbers of young people.
As with alcohol and other legal products that can be harmful, and especially so to children, marijuana regulations that aim to discourage underage use are appropriate. Conversely, much of the confusing and counterproductive cannabis regulation taking place could be cleared up by contemplating whether it might be imposed on any other comparable product. Take, for example, San Francisco supervisors' attempts to regulate marijuana dispensaries out of much of the city and micromanage the demographic composition of sellers – or the outcry over the state's failure to limit the size of marijuana farms. Such extraordinary government interventions wouldn't get very far if they were being considered for any other market.
As California and much of the country all too gradually emerge from the reefer-madness era, in which fantastical notions of marijuana's dangers provided the pretext for prohibition, officials should favor sober regulations with sensible goals – and frown on those that perpetuate the mistake of imbuing the plant with preternatural properties.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Editorial: A marijuana prohibition that makes sense - San Francisco Chronicle
Author: Chronicle Editorial Board
Contact: Customer Service - San Francisco Chronicle
Photo Credit: Michael Short
Website: San Francisco Chronicle - Bay Area news, sports, tech, food - San Francisco Chronicle
The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency's board voted Tuesday to ban recreational marijuana advertising and stop accepting medical marijuana ads once current contracts expire. The policy is in keeping with Muni's refusal of alcohol, tobacco and firearms advertising in light of the number of children who ride city buses and trains. It's also in line with statewide regulations that prohibit cannabis advertising that targets children or reaches audiences with large numbers of young people.
As with alcohol and other legal products that can be harmful, and especially so to children, marijuana regulations that aim to discourage underage use are appropriate. Conversely, much of the confusing and counterproductive cannabis regulation taking place could be cleared up by contemplating whether it might be imposed on any other comparable product. Take, for example, San Francisco supervisors' attempts to regulate marijuana dispensaries out of much of the city and micromanage the demographic composition of sellers – or the outcry over the state's failure to limit the size of marijuana farms. Such extraordinary government interventions wouldn't get very far if they were being considered for any other market.
As California and much of the country all too gradually emerge from the reefer-madness era, in which fantastical notions of marijuana's dangers provided the pretext for prohibition, officials should favor sober regulations with sensible goals – and frown on those that perpetuate the mistake of imbuing the plant with preternatural properties.
News Moderator: Ron Strider 420 MAGAZINE ®
Full Article: Editorial: A marijuana prohibition that makes sense - San Francisco Chronicle
Author: Chronicle Editorial Board
Contact: Customer Service - San Francisco Chronicle
Photo Credit: Michael Short
Website: San Francisco Chronicle - Bay Area news, sports, tech, food - San Francisco Chronicle
