Cannabis Breathalyzer Tests are Coming: Welcome to “Legalization”
By Edge Canopy
A company called Hound Labs, ironically located in Oakland, California has created what it refers to as the first cannabis breath analysis test, aiming to promote the device toward the authorities and police as a tool to detect whether or not people driving vehicles have smoked weed.
Although it has already been proven that the amount of people who smoke weed does not really raise or change much when it is legalized, authorities and private companies alike want to get in on the situation and exploit it to make money, so “As more states legalize marijuana for recreational and medical use, law enforcement officials have grown increasingly concerned about individuals driving while high,” according to Newsweek.
No real process has ever been used before in America to determine whether or not a driver had smoked weed: why? Because it’s completely unnecessary, and the idea that people are out there crashing cars because they are stoned is ridiculous. It has been claimed that car accidents related to cannabis have increased in Colorado for example, and that is cited, but it’s questionable.
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In Australia, drivers have to endure random mouth swab tests for cannabis, and it’s an unnecessary law that disrespects people with the notion that authority has to check up on them.
Now, the authorities and powers that control America seem to want the same thing, although headlines are currently only being made about the company promoting this, rather than the government seeking it.
“We are trying to make the establishment of impairment around marijuana rational and to balance fairness and safety,” the company’s CEO Mike Lynn bragged to NPR, promoting his breath test to detect THC.
“This is a disposable cartridge. And there’s a whole bunch of science in this cartridge,” he continued, appealing to science as if it is some universally appreciated authority.
He explained that the cartridge can tell if a person has smoked in the past 2 hours. At this point here’s how far the United States has come in legalization, which unfortunately has also come with strings attached in most places, including restrictions on the potency that edibles can have.
Nine US states have fully legalized recreational use of cannabis, and in 31 states medical cannabis has been approved.
Canada is, although it’s hard to believe, about to fully legalize “and regulate” cannabis in June 2019. Then, they’re going to roll out the police roadside saliva tests for cannabis, like Australia. More police state, that’s probably the reason they chose to legalize it.
According to Newsweek:
“In Canada, which moved to fully legalize and regulate cannabis in June with implementation set for October, the government plans for police to begin using roadside saliva tests to test for marijuana. That device is currently awaiting final approval from the Justice Department, according to The National Post. Once in use, officers will simply be able to swab a driver’s mouth to test for THC in their spit.”
The US wants the ability to pull people over and mouth swab them to see if they’ve been smoking too. But, the US has more of a rebellious culture than a lot of places, speaking from experience.
The more rebellious and firm people are, the less that force of the law with encroach upon them. Oakland, California, where this cannabis breathalyzer comes from ironically has a culture that is very resilient to unnecessary laws and restrictions, but that seems to be fading. California’s rebelliousness against cannabis laws led to its acceptance, and that sent a shock-wave through the paradigm of cannabis prohibition.
Some people can smoke and drive, and some people shouldn’t try it. It depends on the person, and although it shouldn’t have to be said, we don’t need the state to forcefully test out mouths for cannabis to be “safe.”
People shouldn’t be naive about the government trying to coerce them at this point.
(Image credit: mashable, Newsweek, 420magazine, tucker.liberty)
This article appeared first at Edge Canopy
