Question of the Day - 21 November 2016

Ha ha! Wouldn’t that be something! But no, that won't be happening, for at least two good reasons.

Earlier this month, voters in Nevada, along with California and Massachusetts, voted to legalize the recreational use of marijuana.

The ballot initiative that was approved in Nevada permits the personal possession of one ounce or less of marijuana or one-eighth of an ounce or less of concentrated marijuana for individuals 21 years of age or older. Adults 21 and older can grow up to six plants for personal use if they live more than 25 miles away from a commercial marijuana store, but otherwise will be required to buy taxed and regulated cannabis. Nevada’s program will be open to anyone visiting the state, and supporters say the tourist-heavy market could be worth an annual $400 million, with up to $1.1 billion in economic impact (though in the ballot booklet, state officials refused to forecast any financials).

The law takes effect January 1, 2017. However, when people will be able to buy pot from a pot shop is unclear. The Taxation Department has until Jan. 1, 2018, to craft regulations and licensing to allow the stores to operate.

One possibility is that Nevada will adopt Oregon’s initial policy. A few months after Oregon voters approved retail marijuana in 2014, the legislature grandfathered medical marijuana dispensaries, allowing (only) residents to buy cannabis at those, while lawmakers worked to complete the full regulations.

However, if Nevada’s history of medical marijuana is any indication, it might take years before the issue is settled; though medical marijuana was approved in 2000, it took state lawmakers 13-plus years to green-light the operation of 66 dispensaries statewide.

Meanwhile, even after the law takes effect, smoking or consuming cannabis in public will remain outlawed, punishable by a fine of up to $600.

So that’s the first answer to your question: It’ll be illegal for casinos to hand out joints to players, like they do drinks.

The second is this: Casinos wouldn’t hand out joints to players even if they could.

To begin with, the bosses have always been anti-drug; money spent on drugs can’t be spent on gambling.

And secondly, those among us who've experienced it and look forward to the day when we can do so legally, can't really envision a bunch of potheads -- with droopy bloodshot eyes (or sunglasses) and dreads, wearing tie-dyed Grateful Dead T-shirts and hemp sweat pants, clutching pipes, bongs, and one-hitters, and talking very slowly, interspersed with "What?" "Wadja say?" "Huh?" -- hogging slot seats and passing their joints, reefers, doobies, and big fat spliffs around the casino floor.

Can you?

They’d be giggling, staring at all the pretty flashing lights, naming the songs playing over the PA, stuffing their faces with Cool Ranch Doritos, PopTarts, and cookie dough -- in short, doing everything but playing the games. And if, for some unexplainable reason, they did happen to belly up to a blackjack or crap table and lay their money down, they'd take 15 minutes to make a playing decision.

Actually, they'd probably spend hours speculating on why the straights are shoving money into slots and pressing spin buttons, though they’d be fascinated by the whirling reels, sound effects, and machine themes. Wild Cherries: Strawberries! Blueberries! Yum! The Addams Family: Lurch! Thing! Uncle Fester!

And Little Green Men: "Dude! Wouldn’t you love to be kidnapped by aliens?"

"Oh yeah, man. Tractor beams. Close encounters. Sexy Martians, yo!"

"I heard this one company in England sells alien abduction insurance."

"No way, man! How would you collect?"

"I don’t know, man, but wouldja look at those Wild Witches on that machine over there? Didja ever see one wearing a bikini like that?"

"No, man, but I wouldn’t mind being the broomstick!"

"What? Huh?"

"Broomsticks, man! Witches and broomsticks? Get it?"

"Oh. Yeah, man. That's dope. And speaking of broomsticks, fire up that last phattie, will ya?"

"Yeah, man. This is some dank bud."

Thanks for indulging that. One thing is clear, though. You won’t have a problem finding a place to buy the stuff. Clark County (Las Vegas) will have up to 80 stores and Washoe County (Reno) will have up to 20, according to the legislation.

If you have strong feelings about the new law (or even if it won't impact you), cast your vote fer or agin' in our current reader poll.

We've received a few comments on this question, all but one of which have been positive ("Great laughs." "Funny bit." "Whoever wrote this answer has the prototype 'stoner' down cold.")

However, one thoughtful respondent had the following to say. "I generally find QOD very informative, read it daily, and have submitted several questions of my own over the years. With all due respect, may I suggest that reinforcing 'reefer madness' and stoner stereotypes of marijuana consumers does not do much to advance the discourse. While I recognize it was probably a joke, I imagine that at least some readers might take it at face value. If all users were as out to lunch as your tongue-in-cheek description suggests, there is no way they would have the ability to get medical and recreational initiatives submitted, let alone passed, in 26 states, or sustain ongoing profitable businesses and non-profit medical collectives."

Actually, we totally agree. As observers of the War on Drugs over the decades and the severe polarization of the whole subject, not to mention at least one staff member who has direct positive experience with medical marijuana, we believe it's practically a miracle that pot is being legalized in state after state. And as such, we recognize the herculean efforts that has required in each time and place.

We appreciate that you recognize this answer is tongue-in-cheek. It's based entirely on the amusing (to us, anyway) vision of waitresses handing out joints to casino players. Of course, the two fictional characters in the answer are completely stereotypical and we meant no disrespect to the millions of responsible medicinal and recreational users of this particular herb.