Reefer Madness

Maybe I just am not hip and with it. Certainly, I have been accused of being a wet blanket before. But this time, I just don't get it.

All over town, people are talking about DUI's, liquor law and Josh Hancock.

The Post-Dispatch devoted its Sunday cover to a feature on liquor policies and bartenders. The in depth piece, a testament to the probing journalistic practices the paper espouses, probed the issue of restaurant staff who serve alcohol to blameless adults. It seems I have been incorrect in assuming that adults are responsible for monitoring their own alcohol intake. Untrue. Instead, servers and bartenders are now your (poorly paid) babysitters.

People are trying to explain how such a promising young man threw his life away over booze. Cardinals fans rant about how drunk driving is a.) an activity in which EVERYONE participates b.) completely acceptable and c.) just not a big deal- even if it kills you. Media personalities liken the young man to Darryl Kyle, a responsible respectable player whose death inspired tears the Cardinals nation over. All of this misses the point.

The guy smoked dope. Weed. Ganja. Reefer. He was a pothead. The Anti-Doping Agency must not test for the wacky tabacky. Why isn't anyone upset about this?

Writing off drunk driving is one thing. Drinking a legal activity. Driving drunk is not, but it is a fine enough line between buzzed and drunk that it is easy to see how someone might misstep. Marijuana, exception- medical marijuana in California and a few other locations, is not legal. People go to jail for dope. A lot of people.

Where is the rage? Why aren't people asking if maybe, just maybe, being high contributed to his death more than alcohol? Why aren't they awaiting his next set of toxicology reports the way that they did the first set? Why is smoking pot okay so long as you are a sports or movie star?

I am no puritan. I do not promote prohibitions of any nature. But, I do believe that society has ground rules. Breaking these rules should be considered anti-social behavior. It promotes a lawless individualistic society of soft self-centered over-grown five year olds. Often, being an adult means contributing to the whole even when it isn't the fun thing to do. People who flagrantly violate these rules probably shouldn't be made into martyrs.

The Hancock death is unarguably tragic; the Hancock death was unarguably avoidable. Maybe, instead of focusing on naming a stretch of highway after him, St. Louis City Government should consider a more fitting tribute. I suggest a D.A.R.E. van.