Amsterdam Bans Smoking Marijuana In School: Too Many Students Show Up Stoned
Amsterdam, Netherlands – The legalization of recreational marijuana is slowly catching steam in the US, but believe it or not, there is still a line when it comes to relaxed drug laws. Case in point, when a majority of students show up to school stoned out of their noggins, it might be time for “the man” to impose some rules again.
Amsterdam became the first city in the Netherlands to ban students from smoking marijuana at school today, reports The Daily Mail. The city’s mayor, Eberhard van der Laan, introduced the new legislation today after school official complaints that too many students would toke up off the grounds and arrive to class completely stoned.
City spokeswoman Iris Reshef said that schools have always forbidden marijuana, but that it’s difficult to enforce the policy when students smoke off campus. The wide availability and technical legality of marijuana in the Netherlands makes the drug extremely available to teens.
“It’s not really what you have in mind as an educator, that children would be turning up for class stoned, or drunk either for that matter,” she said. “But it has been a problem for some schools.”
Once national law in changed, the city of Amsterdam will be able to declare “no toking zones,” making areas like schools and playgrounds marijuana-free by law.
The AP reported several days ago that Colorado has finally joined Washington in signing recreational marijuana use into law. Though public use is prohibited, adults over the age of 21 are allowed to possess an ounce of the drug, or six plants. Commercial sale regulations are expected sometime next year. Though it’s hard to say how lax marijuana legalization will become, it’s hard to imagine it being allowed for anyone under 21.
Still, there have been several arrests in both states, even after legalization, for marijuana-related crimes. Some seem to have taken this whole “legalization” thing a bit too far.
What do you think? Should Amsterdam be rolling back their liberal marijuana laws to prevent students from showing up to school stoned?
