Welles: Legalized marijuana would hurt Alaska

  • By Stan Welles
  • Wednesday, October 1, 2014 8:23pm
  • Opinion

How do you destroy a State in one easy lesson? Vote in marijuana!

Drugs are definitely not family friendly are they?

Have you ever had an employee on drugs? Just like the $600 Wagon Wheel theft the other day in Homer, the Homer police found one of our first employees of our Pizza restaurant at home with our cash drawer and drugs on the table.

Our last trip to Colorado in April was the most depressing trip we have ever had to Colorado. Drugs are now placed in food. One kid knowingly ate a laced cookie, went nuts and jumped out a window to his death. A fourth grader stole his Mother’s ‘medical marijuana’, took it to school and sold it!

My wife’s sister and husband live in Nederland. They say that 80% of Nederland is on drugs. The smell is nearly always in the air.

My wife is from Colorado. I went to college there. Over some 20 years, we have lived and/or worked in Englewood, Cascade, Colorado Springs, Boulder and Broomfield as well as on a ranch at 9,000 ft above sea level with an address of Tenth and Plumb: Ten miles south of Parshall, Colorado Plumb at the end of the road! Deer and elk were plentiful. The first elk I shot from my porch using the tractor to put it in the barn! We loved Colorado. Had the international steel market not gone flat in the early 1980’s taking the molybdenum demand down with it; we would probably still be there.

While the politicians are jumping for joy over the tax revenues — though they have not been as high as anticipated — they don’t see the phase lag of the tax burden freight train coming at them due to the:

— destroyed lives of the kids

— destruction of the families

— inability of employers to find drug free employees

Just like Washington State where Boeing has moved a lot of its production out of the State and moved its headquarters, Colorado employers will be bailing out also.

Phase lag taxation is one of the stealth tax forms commonly over looked. Phase lag taxation is that form of stealthy taxation that strikes after a foolish, emotion-appealing policy has been implemented. A suburb example was Saturday, September 13th Alaska Dispatch News’ Commentary “Break up Alaska’s economic monopoly by legalizing and taxing marijuana.”

In Colorado an attorney friend tells me non-violent crime is accelerating. Here in Alaska drug abuse is already epidemic even without legalization! Take the September 26-27 edition of the Clarion’s article, “Nikiski residents fight back against rampant property theft”. Non-violent crime is accelerating here in our State and I bet it is in your area as well? The State Patrol has a real challenge meeting the need. They are having great difficulty filling vacancies. There are currently 16 State patrol vacancies Statewide.

As a potential steward of your resources and property rights, I would strongly recommend rejection of this Ballot initiative.

More in Opinion

Photo courtesy Kaila Pfister
A parent and teen use conversation cards created by the Alaska Children’s Trust.
Opinion: Staying connected starts with showing up

When our daughter was 11 and the COVID lockdown was in full… Continue reading

Juneau Empire file photo
Larry Persily.
Opinion: The country’s economy is brewing caf and decaf

Most people have seen news reports, social media posts and business charts… Continue reading

Patricia Ann Davis drew this illustration of dancing wires affected by air movement. From the book “Alaska Science Nuggets” by Neil Davis
The mystery of the dancing wires

In this quiet, peaceful time of year, with all the noisy birds… Continue reading

A vintage Underwood typewriter sits on a table on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022, at the Homer News in Homer, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)
Letters to the editor

Protecting the Kenai River dip net fishery? Responding to a letter by… Continue reading

Larry Persily. (Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: Poor Southcentral spending decisions matter to everyone

Too many residents, business owners and politicians of Southcentral Alaska — we’re… Continue reading

This mosaic image shows combined passes from NOAA 21, Suomi NPP and NOAA 20 satellites. All show the auroral oval during the geomagnetic storm of Nov. 11-12, 2025. Vincent Ledvina, a graduate student researcher at the UAF Geophysical Institute, added the typical auroral oval to the image before posting it to his Facebook page (Vincent Ledvina — The Aurora Guy). Image by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and Vincent Ledvina.
As the dark season begins, more light

It’s November in Fairbanks, when the sun reminds you of where on… Continue reading

Conrad Heiderer. Photo courtesy Conrad Heiderer
A vintage Underwood typewriter sits on a table on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022, at the Homer News in Homer, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)
Letter to the editor: Protecting the Kenai River dipnet fishery

The Kenai River dipnet fishery is one of Alaska’s greatest treasures. Attracting… Continue reading

Charles and Tone Deehr are photographed with their daughter, Tina, near Dawson City, Yukon in 1961. Photo courtesy Charles Deehr
Red aurora rare enough to be special

Charles Deehr will never forget his first red aurora. On Feb. 11,… Continue reading

Larry Persily. (Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: New service takes the crime out of being a bagman

Used to be, a bagman was the guy in the movie who… Continue reading

A vintage Underwood typewriter sits on a table on Tuesday, Feb. 22, 2022, at the Homer News in Homer, Alaska. (Photo by Michael Armstrong/Homer News)
Letter to the editor: An ode to public workers

I recently attended a local event in which we had some state… Continue reading

Larry Persily. (Juneau Empire file photo)
Opinion: Candidates should pay a penalty for false promises

A lot of time, energy and legal fees have been spent on… Continue reading