While Australia probably won’t have recreational weed available in stores until well after climate change has removed all of the green from the satellite images of our country, the US state of Oregon is running absolute laps around us by taking the first steps on the way towards legalising shrooms.
As CNN is reporting, the Secretary of State has approved the language on a proposed ballot initiative that would see reductions in psilocybin criminal penalties, allow for the licensing of psilocybin administration, manufacture, possession, and delivery, and create a regulatory program around the drug’s use.
If the people behind the proposed initiative can drum up 117,578 signatures out of the state’s roughly 2.7 million registered voters, it will end up on the ballot for the 2020 general election. Back in 2012, a measure to legalise personal cultivation of weed and allow for its commercial sale made it onto the general election ballot with a goal of 130,000 signatures — whether as many people are as down for shrooms is yet to be seen. If put onto the ballot it would, of course, also have to successfully win a majority of support from voters.
Although a lot of people would likely speak in favour of the initiative solely because doing Shrooms and having your mind gently and beautiful destroyed kicks ass, Tom and Sheri Eckert, the people behind the initiative, say their interest is largely a therapeutic one:
A growing body of evidence demonstrates that psilocybin assisted therapy is safe and uniquely effective. We think that this novel approach could help alleviate the mental health crisis here in Oregon by addressing costly epidemics like suicide, treatment-resistant depression and anxiety, PTSD, and addiction to drugs, alcohol, and nicotine. Additionally, the measure would open doors for new research, create access to services for those interested in personal development, and reduce penalties for common possession of psilocybin.
Legalise it, brah.
