Front Porch Toking Approved in Denver

[Vitalux]

For those that thought they would ever see a day in the USA where you could smoke POT on your front porch !!

My eyes have seen the proof! :thumb:




WED DEC 11, 2013


http://assets.hightimes.com/styles/large/s3/KeyAndPeele.jpg



The Denver City Council had its third and final vote on a city ordinance regulating marijuana consumption and approved the toking of marijuana on private property even if it can be seen by the public. The 10-3 vote is final and means that adults 21 and older can smoke pot on their front porch, backyard or on any private property where the owner allows, regardless if the public can see or smell it.

This third vote follows a roller coaster of political fighting over what constitutes “public” use of marijuana, which is still illegal in Colorado. In an initial 7-5 vote (with an abstention), the council had approved language that banned any toking that could be seen or smelled by the public. Consumers protested that that kind of ban would prevent people from enjoying their constitutional right to toke on their own front porch if people on the sidewalk could see it.

As the week wore on and complaints mounted, the city council began to understand the impracticality of such a ban. Neighbors would turn in neighbors, police would be busting people in their own homes, parents would have to toke indoors in front of their kids, and people who lived in apartments might not ever be able to toke. The second vote, held Monday, had flipped to 7-5 against the sight-and-smell ban.

The city council also codified its regulations regarding possession by people under 21, with a $150 fine for a first offense, $500 fine for the second, and a $999 fine for every subsequent violation. Rules were also set to limit the personal cultivation of marijuana to six plants per adult with a maximum of twelve plants per household. Councilwoman Jeanne Rob explained that the plant limits will be zoning, not criminal, offenses, adding, “It's not going to be a police state, where officers are going to go in and inspect your house. It's going to be complaint-driven.”

Marijuana stores will open to the public in just three weeks, though there is expected to be only 12 in operation in Denver on the January 1 opening day. Cannabis consumers who have driven by dozens of “green cross” shops on Colfax or elsewhere in Denver will have to search carefully, as most of those medical marijuana dispensaries have not opted in to the recreational system. Call ahead to find what shops will be open for business on New Year’s Day for recreational customers.

[ghostrider]

strange as it may sound , now that the people in Denver can use Weed , maybe they will burn out on it , you know the outlaw idea of it is gone now ... maybe they will find balance in life ...

[Vitalux]

strange as it may sound , now that the people in Denver can use Weed , maybe they will burn out on it , you know the outlaw idea of it is gone now ... maybe they will find balance in life ...

I see it as a new direction for positive growth in human spirituality.
However, I also think many of us will see a time when our space brothers will walk openly among us in complete friendship and harmony.

Everything I see in my minds eyes is just wonderful

[Davidallany]

Wouldn't it be better to meditate as a means of reaching higher states of spirituality rather than consuming substances? One have to be completely honest with one's self when addressing spiritual improvements.

[DNA]

Wouldn't it be better to meditate as a means of reaching higher states of spirituality rather than consuming substances? One have to be completely honest with one's self when addressing spiritual improvements.

Ah yes, but,,, have you ever meditated, while smoking weed?
I mean sure, we can see into space, but we would never have entered space without a booster rocket or two. You know what I"m saying, come on, you know what I"m saying. :plane:



http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hkA9rz-1YoA

[DNA]

You know what, I"m going to take a moment and pay hommage to a man who would have loved to have seen this day happen in his life time.

Bill Hicks is hugely responsible for me peeling the scab off of my third eye, and he would have absolutely loved to see a couple of guys capable of smoking weed on their front porch.




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FHOFMiQYKI

[Carmody]

Wouldn't it be better to meditate as a means of reaching higher states of spirituality rather than consuming substances? One have to be completely honest with one's self when addressing spiritual improvements.

yep. You can get higher, meditation and third eye wise without weed. Weed kills Rem. Rem is connected to most of what we call 'spiritual experiences'. Weed is a good initial booster, but in the final spiritual analysis, when going all the way... it is a major hindrance and limiter. To reach the peak of what one is capable of, experience (and the record) teaches me that one is definitely going to have to drop the weed and clean up.

Step by step, we'll get there.

[Praxis]

decided to remove the post. condensed version: be less judgmental towards others decision and most of you do a drug too(coffee, sugar, etc.)

[TargeT]

You know what, I"m going to take a moment and pay hommage to a man who would have loved to have seen this day happen in his life time.

Bill Hicks is hugely responsible for me peeling the scab off of my third eye, and he would have absolutely loved to see a couple of guys capable of smoking weed on their front porch.




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7FHOFMiQYKI


Yup, deserves a quote!

Mr Hicks is/was/will be a powerful influence on myself and my family..


Any step to freedom (and this is a HUGE ONE) like this deserves applause, I will be a cannabis advocate until this plant is no longer prohibited.


just think of all the people in jail on cannabis related crimes, this is a huge movement that I am trying my best to support locally, you all should do the same; who doesn't like freedom?

since we should take into our bodies Everything in Moderation.

the inference there is: NOTHING IN PROHIBITION!

[RMorgan]

decided to remove the post. condensed version: be less judgmental towards others decision and most of you do a drug too(coffee, sugar, etc.)

Totally agree.

Puritanism has nothing to do with enlightenment...Absolutely nothing...Judgmental puritanism is even worse.

Anyway, what we're really talking about is freedom. Let people be free to choose if they want to smoke weed or not. Let people smoke their weed without being afraid of being brutalized by the police or judged by others.

Freedom is never a bad thing. Never.

You know...This forum is really something...

People here are always talking about freedom and how they want to be free and all this stuff...

Then, when a big step towards a freer society happens, a lot of people simply don't like it.

People have to make up their minds...There's no "half freedom". Either you're 100% free or you're not free at all.

If you want to live in a free society, then people must be 100% free to make their own choices without fearing to be judged by anyone.

Humanity will never grow up with governments telling us what we can or cannot do. With freedom, comes self-responsibility, which is exactly what we need to change the world right now.

As for those who claim that marijuana makes people complacent, stop saying this nonsense. As I said before, I'm yet to meet a marijuana user who isn't more awake and aware than the general population. Marijuana is a peaceful drug indeed, but it doesn't make people into conformists. It usually does exactly the contrary.

And, for those who claim that such liberating measures will stimulate more people to use drugs, I wont even waste my time explaining it to you....Just go research about the statistics on countries which had taken similar drug decriminalization measures and see for yourselves.

Raf.

[Abhaya]

When I smoke weed I go into a crippling session of self analasys. In which I see heaps of faults that I must blind my self to or rationalize away when I am sober. I mean I have had sessions where I would lltterely be curled into a ball more or less tripping (needless to say I don't smoke much) while thinking of how I disrespected this person or didn't do this and that, I don't connect enough with friends and family, I am an over all failure based on my goals. On and on. Bare in mind I am a very balanced person in life normally. My over all experiance was that it was helpful. Because as long as u don't guilt trip your self over it, I think that a reminder that we still have a lot to work on can be a very good thing. Is weed something I would smoke on my front porch... Hell no. I might not get arrested for smoking it any more, but I would get arrested for being a grown man balled up and crying on his porch. Haha so for me personally regular smoking of weed does not seem to be of any benefit. However I did gain some helpful insight from the few times I did do it. It effects everyone differently. As I know some peoples reaction to smoking is the polar opposite of my own. And bottom line is if alcohol is legal you simply have to allow marajuana.... Just dosnt make sense to see those two as different. I mean I think most would see alchochol as more dangerous if anything....

My 2 cents :)

[Vitalux]

When I smoke weed I go into a crippling session of self analasys. In which I see heaps of faults that I must blind my self to or rationalize away when I am sober. I mean I have had sessions where I would lltterely be curled into a ball more or less tripping (needless to say I don't smoke much) while thinking of how I disrespected this person or didn't do this and that, I don't connect enough with friends and family, I am an over all failure based on my goals. On and on. Bare in mind I am a very balanced person in life normally. My over all experiance was that it was helpful. Because as long as u don't guilt trip your self over it, I think that a reminder that we still have a lot to work on can be a very good thing. Is weed something I would smoke on my front porch... Hell no. I might not get arrested for smoking it any more, but I would get arrested for being a grown man balled up and crying on his porch. Haha so for me personally regular smoking of weed does not seem to be of any benefit. However I did gain some helpful insight from the few times I did do it. It effects everyone differently. As I know some peoples reaction to smoking is the polar opposite of my own. And bottom line is if alcohol is legal you simply have to allow marajuana.... Just dosnt make sense to see those two as different. I mean I think most would see alchochol as more dangerous if anything....

My 2 cents :)


Perhaps the weed.....is bringing into the conscious .....what you have buried in another part. The parts that we keep submerged and do not wish to see.

So perhaps you are experiencing the affects of a "tool".

An example:

Most people that get drunk on alcohol often have a terrible side of their personality become apparent to others.
Hence, the belligerent obnoxious drunken asshole.

Problem with alcohol is it does not allow us to be aware that "belligerent obnoxious drunken asshole" exists.

Smoking pot perhaps does :noidea:. Therefore, the first stage of growth is awareness.

[Abhaya]

When I smoke weed I go into a crippling session of self analasys. In which I see heaps of faults that I must blind my self to or rationalize away when I am sober. I mean I have had sessions where I would lltterely be curled into a ball more or less tripping (needless to say I don't smoke much) while thinking of how I disrespected this person or didn't do this and that, I don't connect enough with friends and family, I am an over all failure based on my goals. On and on. Bare in mind I am a very balanced person in life normally. My over all experiance was that it was helpful. Because as long as u don't guilt trip your self over it, I think that a reminder that we still have a lot to work on can be a very good thing. Is weed something I would smoke on my front porch... Hell no. I might not get arrested for smoking it any more, but I would get arrested for being a grown man balled up and crying on his porch. Haha so for me personally regular smoking of weed does not seem to be of any benefit. However I did gain some helpful insight from the few times I did do it. It effects everyone differently. As I know some peoples reaction to smoking is the polar opposite of my own. And bottom line is if alcohol is legal you simply have to allow marajuana.... Just dosnt make sense to see those two as different. I mean I think most would see alchochol as more dangerous if anything....

My 2 cents :)


Perhaps the weed.....is bringing into the conscious .....what you have buried in another part. The parts that we keep submerged and do not wish to see.

So perhaps you are experiencing the affects of a "tool".

An example:

Most people that get drunk on alcohol often have a terrible side of their personality become apparent to others.
Hence, the belligerent obnoxious drunken asshole.

Problem with alcohol is it does not allow us to be aware that "belligerent obnoxious drunken asshole" exists.

Smoking pot perhaps does :noidea:. Therefore, the first stage of growth is awareness.


For me that was the result. Most of my friends who smoke don't have a reaction like this at all. They are pretty "silly" or just zoned out I find. Interesting how the sub-conscience can protect us from our own guilt in order to allow "addictive"? "Hurtful"? patterns in our lives.

But yeah it was certainly a useful tool for me. One that gave me a perspective shift and shake up much needed at the time. It's not a tool I need routinely however. It's what u do after your shamanic journey that is really important and not the journey itself. IMO :)

[RMorgan]

When I smoke weed I go into a crippling session of self analasys. In which I see heaps of faults that I must blind my self to or rationalize away when I am sober. I mean I have had sessions where I would lltterely be curled into a ball more or less tripping (needless to say I don't smoke much) while thinking of how I disrespected this person or didn't do this and that, I don't connect enough with friends and family, I am an over all failure based on my goals. On and on. Bare in mind I am a very balanced person in life normally. My over all experiance was that it was helpful. Because as long as u don't guilt trip your self over it, I think that a reminder that we still have a lot to work on can be a very good thing. Is weed something I would smoke on my front porch... Hell no. I might not get arrested for smoking it any more, but I would get arrested for being a grown man balled up and crying on his porch. Haha so for me personally regular smoking of weed does not seem to be of any benefit. However I did gain some helpful insight from the few times I did do it. It effects everyone differently. As I know some peoples reaction to smoking is the polar opposite of my own. And bottom line is if alcohol is legal you simply have to allow marajuana.... Just dosnt make sense to see those two as different. I mean I think most would see alchochol as more dangerous if anything....

My 2 cents :)


Perhaps the weed.....is bringing into the conscious .....what you have buried in another part. The parts that we keep submerged and do not wish to see.

So perhaps you are experiencing the affects of a "tool".

An example:

Most people that get drunk on alcohol often have a terrible side of their personality become apparent to others.
Hence, the belligerent obnoxious drunken asshole.

Problem with alcohol is it does not allow us to be aware that "belligerent obnoxious drunken asshole" exists.

Smoking pot perhaps does :noidea:. Therefore, the first stage of growth is awareness.

Yeah...You're right.

THC has different effects on different people, just like any mind altering substance...

Anyway, some people see the drug legalization issue as as an incentive to make people use more drugs, which is not.

Legal or illegal, people only use drugs if they want to...And, of course, the current criminalization of drugs isn't exactly working as a preventive measure, right?

There's no other solution. Sooner or later, all drugs must be legalized.

Prohibition is, beyond doubts, utterly inefficient...There's no way to argue against that. The war on drugs is a complete failure.

Legalize everything and then create strong social measures to educate people about the possible side effects of drug use. Inform people, then let them make their own minds....It's the only way.

Raf.

[DNA]

For me that was the result. Most of my friends who smoke don't have a reaction like this at all. They are pretty "silly" or just zoned out I find. Interesting how the sub-conscience can protect us from our own guilt in order to allow "addictive"? "Hurtful"? patterns in our lives.

But yeah it was certainly a useful tool for me. One that gave me a perspective shift and shake up much needed at the time. It's not a tool I need routinely however. It's what u do after your shamanic journey that is really important and not the journey itself. IMO :)

This is why you are the perfect canidate for smoking my friend.

I was/am like you in this respect. As a matter of fact you are the exact type of person weed was made for in my opinion.
Smoking weed for you/me is like an excercise in socially implanted amputation.
It is a time to explore the psyche and realize, what is really "you" in contrast to all of the socially implanted paradigms that we so often mistake for as "you".

[norman]

Wouldn't it be better to meditate as a means of reaching higher states of spirituality rather than consuming substances? One have to be completely honest with one's self when addressing spiritual improvements.

I think most of the folks who will enjoy this new freedom will not be setting out on a mission towards a higher spiritual form of living when they skin up and pass a joint along the porch.

For many, myself included ( much more about the past, in my case ), it's about chilling out and re focusing attention on cultural and Art-ish stuff, probably with a few mates. There's no such implied spiritual 'purpose' regarding alcohol, and a few weekend spliffs is just a more refined version of a couple of 6 packs in the fridge.

I know there have been plenty of smokers who went about it far too earnestly and didn't take their sense of humor along with them. They may have even narrated their stories with spiritual language. That's kinda like what happens when a person gets over 'whawed' in one hit and is left struggling to find a frame of reference for it. Pretty soon, any reasonably issue free and mentally stable person will will either get bored with it or enjoy the crack with it, as a leisure pursuit.

[Davidallany]

Ah yes, but,,, have you ever meditated, while smoking weed?
Whatever I say comes from experience. I then try to convey the experience to others. That far I can go,but no farther.

[Davidallany]

Wouldn't it be better to meditate as a means of reaching higher states of spirituality rather than consuming substances? One have to be completely honest with one's self when addressing spiritual improvements.

I think most of the folks who will enjoy this new freedom will not be setting out on a mission towards a higher spiritual form of living when they skin up and pass a joint along the porch.

For many, myself included ( much more about the past, in my case ), it's about chilling out and re focusing attention on cultural and Art-ish stuff, probably with a few mates. There's no such implied spiritual 'purpose' regarding alcohol, and a few weekend spliffs is just a more refined version of a couple of 6 packs in the fridge.

I know there have been plenty of smokers who went about it far too earnestly and didn't take their sense of humor along with them. They may have even narrated their stories with spiritual language. That's kinda like what happens when a person gets over 'whawed' in one hit and is left struggling to find a frame of reference for it. Pretty soon, any reasonably issue free and mentally stable person will will either get bored with it or enjoy the crack with it, as a leisure pursuit.
Everything in life is about spirituality, including all the materials, emotions, thoughts. Why is spiritualty is so important? Because it is connected with knowing and the urge to know is built in almost every human being, sure people can get distracted by momentary toys, but they always come back to spirituality, however in most cases sporadically due to lack of patience and because of powerful attachments to concepts.

[DeDukshyn]

Never in a million years did I expect that Canada would turn so backwards in recent years, that even while 40% of Canadians have smoked it, almost no-one cares, and medicinal marijuana is hugely flourishing, the any part of the USA would see this decriminalization before Canada.

Canada is headed backwards these days ... It's hard to be proud of my country anymore.

[Vitalux]

Never in a million years did I expect that Canada would turn so backwards in recent years, that even while 40% of Canadians have smoked it, almost no-one cares, and medicinal marijuana is hugely flourishing, the any part of the USA would see this decriminalization before Canada.

Canada is headed backwards these days ... It's hard to be proud of my country anymore.


Canada is part ( more or less) of the British Commonwealth and for the most part we are still a colony of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II.
So the only way we are going to see change is when our Queen allows it.
My thoughts are, if she makes it legal here, than she will have a domino affect in the rest of the colonies.

Having marijuana illegal has historically been a great ace in the hole for a lucrative criminal justice system.
I'm sure the criminal justice system enjoys the power that the greatest laws that strip a citizen of both his civil and human rights involve marijuana possession.

[DNA]

Ah yes, but,,, have you ever meditated, while smoking weed?
Whatever I say comes from experience. I then try to convey the experience to others. That far I can go,but no farther.

I have nothing but love for folks who continue to gain a use from marijuana. It isn't a tool for everyone, for some it is a opiate and or a novicane shot. I'm at a loss as to how and or why it affects people different in this regard but it does. For myself and many like me, it is a internal microscope immediatly pointing out falsehood. Lies that were quiet and unseen become blindingly brilliant and ugly. One is forced to become aquainted with the shadow so to speak.
Nothing I have ever experienced before or since can point the shadow out like marijuana does.
Maynard knows what I am talking about.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tja6_h4lT6A

[Freed Fox]

For myself and many like me, it is a internal microscope immediatly pointing out falsehood. Lies that were quiet and unseen become blindingly brilliant and ugly. One is forced to become aquainted with the shadow so to speak.

Absolutely, DNA... nailed it.

It was this way for me. It enabled me to more easily reside in the heart, rather than the head. After a long day, I would have a smoke, and instantly think back to some point in recent time in which I had acted callously, thoughtlessly, selfishly, or what-have-you. An automatic self-review of sorts, from a more objective and empathetic viewpoint than I can normally readily access. Perhaps best of all, rather than beating myself up about it, or becoming depressed by it, I would normally become motivated in those moments to move forward in a more conscientious, considerate manner.

I've given it up now, more out of necessity than choice (though quitting itself was no real struggle). It's been about a year now, actually, and after all this time I've literally only noticed three differences:

1. Spending less money (only positive difference).
2. Greater difficulty reaching that more objective, empathetic 'space' described above (trying to meditate more to pick up the slack...).
3. Less excitement/enthusiasm in general.

I guess it's good to know that I was never really dependent upon it. Of course, I'm not discounting that some people develop an unhealthy relationship with it either, but given the opportunity, it's one habit I would take back up in a heartbeat. :p

[sigma6]

When I smoke weed I go into a crippling session of self analasys. In which I see heaps of faults that I must blind my self to or rationalize away when I am sober. I mean I have had sessions where I would lltterely be curled into a ball more or less tripping (needless to say I don't smoke much) while thinking of how I disrespected this person or didn't do this and that, I don't connect enough with friends and family, I am an over all failure based on my goals. On and on. Bare in mind I am a very balanced person in life normally. My over all experiance was that it was helpful. Because as long as u don't guilt trip your self over it, I think that a reminder that we still have a lot to work on can be a very good thing. Is weed something I would smoke on my front porch... Hell no. I might not get arrested for smoking it any more, but I would get arrested for being a grown man balled up and crying on his porch. Haha so for me personally regular smoking of weed does not seem to be of any benefit. However I did gain some helpful insight from the few times I did do it. It effects everyone differently. As I know some peoples reaction to smoking is the polar opposite of my own. And bottom line is if alcohol is legal you simply have to allow marajuana.... Just dosnt make sense to see those two as different. I mean I think most would see alchochol as more dangerous if anything....

My 2 cents :)

I am well aware of the experience, and it is a combination of the type of weed and your own inner state of being... I would strongly suggest that you continue through the process, face the realities that are revealed to you. And think deeply about everything that comes into your sphere of conscious awareness... keep going through, don't run, don't hide, hold yourself steady in a private place, the anxiety is a legitimate feeling. It's REAL... but as you work through it keep focus as you slowly come back down. It's the most fascinating experience when you can actually peg that specific moment when the "auto creativity" shuts down and you are back in "neutral" you will be looking around yourself at the world with a hidden insight. an inner knowing, you will realize that there are subtle changes that you can make in your life and thinking, that could make a difference. If you do this enough times you will find balance, gain insight, you will reconcile things in your own mind. In the long term it will be a huge psychological equilibrium coming into effect. When you are in that state you are much more in touch with that part of your mind that doesn't speak... talk to it, or better yet listen to what it is telling you.

[Heart-2-Heart]

I tried it once ....but I did'nt ...exhale ... :drag:

H2h