Contributed by Adam E. Hoover
It all starts with an appreciation of life. In a world filled with toxins and riddled with poison, I grow and sell cannabis for a living. Some people thank me for it, others curse me and would have me locked up. I didn’t get into it for the money, or because I thought it was cool, I was born into a family of cannabis farmers and at a young age was taught to appreciate the plant and where it came from.
It blows me away that society in America is perfectly tolerant of the negative impacts of products like Budweiser, or Marlboro, even McDonald’s. Yet for whatever reason, we pick and choose the poisons we allow and accept in our everyday lives based on habit and emotions rather than benefits and facts.
How can any logical person with factual information take their children into the liquor store, drink around their family and friends with no shame, even brag about their consumption in the face of an undeniable alcoholism epidemic? Teen alcohol use kills 4,700 people each year. That’s more than all illegal drugs combined. Alcohol use is responsible for over 80 thousand deaths a year. Alcohol, tobacco and poor diet are the top three causes of preventable death in America. Yet we have bars and clubs in every town, liquor stores on every corner, and beer and wine on most restaurant menus. American people wish to continue to have access to regulated alcohol in our markets and homes, despite the blatant damage and death it causes.
Through the power of misinformation and propaganda, Americans have somehow been coerced into believing that cannabis is worse for us than alcohol, tobacco or a diet of soda and French fries. Sadly, most Americans still feel the weight of the stigma attached to cannabis as a gateway drug, or a surefire way to become lazy. Slowly but surely, we are starting to see actual science at work with cannabis, the studies are starting to catch up, there’s federal momentum for decriminalization, and states with legal markets are showing the rest of the country that what they thought was a gateway drug is actually a superfood, a miracle remedy, and an environmentally friendly and cost-effective alternative to a lot of products.
Alaskans are a breed of their own, kind of like a small America, it’s a melting pot of all kinds. One thing most Alaskans have in common is an appreciation for freedom and liberty. I’m not sure what would drive a person to try and convince others of an irrational fear without any logical support, I suppose the answer to that may be self-evident.
Despite the fearmongers that would have you believe one toke of the devil’s lettuce turns innocent kids to raping murderers, I believe that the truth will work its way out and the irrational fears of those too afraid to be happy will be brought to light for what they are. I have hope for Alaska. I believe that we can set an amazing example for others. The only way to get out of the dark cloud of this stigma is to move forward in a productive and positive manner, and to effectively communicate the results with those around us.