The race over Measure 91, Oregon's latest stab at legal pot, has grown insanely tight in the last couple months. From modest leads by supporters in early August, new polling from the Oregonian and KGW now suggests the race is neck and neck, with legal pot potentially trailing by a few points.
It's common, as election day draws near, for folks to drift to the 'no' side of measures they're not sure on. But Measure 91, as we've explained, is a good bet.
This race is likely to come down to how many young people show up for the vote. Regardless of your age, though, give our editorial in support of Measure 91 another read. And then vote, damn you.
CAMPAIGN SEASON is a time for hyperbole, and Oregon's latest fight over legal pot has unleashed it in droves.
New Approach Oregon, the moneyed proponents of Measure 91, argue too much police time is being spent on marijuana enforcement, and have bolstered that point by repeating misleading figures that suggest thousands of Oregonians are arrested for pot each year. Oregon decriminalized possessing less than an ounce decades ago, so actual arrests are far, far below those numbers (though small-time possession can still land you a steep ticket and a blemished record).
Other facts are less spurious. New Approach rightly points out that African Americans are twice as likely as white Oregonians to be cited for pot infractions, and notes that millions of dollars are being pumped needlessly into the black market.
"What about the children?" opponents ask. The state's sheriffs and district attorneys have lined up against the measure, spinning visions of toddlers unknowingly noshing on overpowering pot cookies and middle school students effortlessly buying joints. Best to leave pot where it is, they say: tolerated but relatively difficult to obtain.
But that argument—with its hypocritically permissive attitude toward illegal pot use—amounts to acceptance of a policy that hasn't made sense for decades. It's time to adopt a realistic view of marijuana. Vote yes on Measure 91.
If passed, the measure would legalize the sale and use of recreational marijuana statewide. You couldn't smoke on the street, and there probably wouldn't be bar-like establishments where you might light up instead. But you'd be free to smoke in private all you like, and carry up to an ounce in public without fear of citation. Licensed pot shops would offer tested, quality herb, or you could grow up to four plants for personal use without needing a license at all.
Estimates of how much tax money legalization could bring in vary widely—from $17 million to $40 million—and would mostly go toward schools, with money also reserved for substance abuse treatment and state and local police.
