There is a misconception that legalizing a controversial behavior suddenly renders it socially acceptable. Nothing could be further from the truth, especially when it comes to marijuana usage. The passage of Amendment 64 proves that the majority of Colorado voters approve of legalized marijuana, not that everyone has embraced the practice with open arms.

Majority rule conquers the American political sphere, but it doesn’t mean all members of this or any other state are in unison on the issue of marijuana.

No legal action can erase the stigma associated with inhaling a drug that is, taken recreationally, bereft of medical benefits. There will always be people who claim that recreational marijuana is a perfectly harmless activity, even salutary, but common sense dictates that smoking Mary Jane, often referred to as a “gateway drug,” is wrong, unhealthy and stupid.

The dated stereotype of the dazed stoner often portrayed in Hollywood is flawed, but there is a kernel of truth to it. Cannabis impairs one’s mental faculties and hardly betokens the paragon of a wholesome lifestyle to the minds of many.

I’m all for an inclusive attitude, but I can certainly identify with this perspective.

I know from personal experience that a stupefied individual is no asset in an academic setting.

Some people in Colorado might not care to have neurosurgeons operating on them, construction workers handling wrecking balls in close vicinity, or schoolteachers grading children’s tests after s smoking a few joints, whether or not they were within legal parameters.

As the weed-users continue to publicly declare their love for the substance, they anticipate a warm welcome, but resistance doesn’t go away that simply. Making something legal may marginally alleviate embarrassment and be a step towards eliminating the stigma surrounding it, but legalization can never fully remove communal dismay or personal disgust on its own.

Amendment 64 met with fierce protest prior to its victory, with incensed voices crying out against it. Just because the stir has settled down and things are eerily quiet on the marijuana front does not imply it’s a dead issue and that these negative sentiments have swayed in a matter of months.

According to Jeremy P. Meyer’s Denver Post article published Feb. 11,  “Denver City Council to vote in April whether to opt out on marijuana,” officials have evinced reluctance to enforce the amendment and the city may choose to opt-out. Meyer reports that Robert White, Chief of Police, expressed concern: “In 2009, there were 10 burglaries in which marijuana was on the premises at the time of the crime. In 2012, there were 102 marijuana-related burglaries.” The correlation between a rise in criminal behavior and marijuana abuse is clear.

In our hyper-legalistic society, it’s easy to fall into the trap of assuming everyone is on board with a particular measure merely because it’s been licensed in a voting booth or in the courtroom. However, I maintain such thinking is ignorant.
Look at the heated abortion debate. Over 40 years later, over 40 percent of the population views abortion as a humanitarian crisis and considers it in-utero infanticide, even though Roe v. Wade lifted the criminal status long ago.
Many people look down on regular cigarette smoking or excess alcohol consumption due to hazardous effects without contemplating legality, after all.

No one considers chain smoking to be a criminal activity, but droves of people balk against it nonetheless.
Why is this so different?

We have a right to personal choice in our private lives, but everything has its limits. We still owe a duty to our communities beyond the obligations imposed upon us by the government, and legal conformity cannot disguise social deviance.

If it indeed takes a village, we can’t have all of the villagers addicted to marijuana, unless we want a village full of idiots.

I doubt we’ll be seeing many proud grass-addicts prancing around shamelessly any time soon, but either way, law-abiding potheads are potheads all the same.