420 vote a 'coincidence,' Catania says
If you have ever come in contact with a heavy marijuana user, you probably know that 420 is the international street term for the drug.
For at least a few decades, high school and college students would get high at 4:20 p.m., when presumably classes are over. The date April 20 (4/20) has also turned into a de facto marijuana-smoking holiday for some.
According to various sources, a group of students at San Rafael High School in San Rafael, Calif., coined the phrase in 1971 when they would meet after school to smoke marijuana at the Louis Pasteur statue at 4:20 p.m. More recently, 4:20 took on a renewed meaning in some circles of pot smokers after Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead was believed to have been found dead about 4:20 p.m. in 1995.
Now, thousands of people on college campuses and elsewhere meet on April 20 for marijuana smoking celebrations, according to various press accounts. Yesterday, on 4/20/2010, when The Washington Post was trying to interview medical marijuana growers for a story about the District's medical marijuana initiative, one grower mentioned we were interrupting his party.
So did the D.C. Council purposely decided to give tentative approval the city's medical marijuana law April 20?
Hardly, said council member David A. Catania (I-At Large), the sponsor of the legislation. Catania notes council legislative meetings are almost always on the third Tuesday of the month.
"The fact the third Tuesday of the month fell on this day is simply a coincidence," Catania said.
And, for the record, Catania states he's never even taken a puff of marijuana.
"I had a mother who scared me to death" about drugs, Catania said.
-- Tim Craig
By
Kendra Nichols
|
April 21, 2010; 9:55 AM ET
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D.C. Council
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Posted by: CubsFan | April 21, 2010 11:01 AM | Report abuse
What about the fact that the story was posted at exactly 4:20pm on the website? Coincidence?
Posted by: blaketus | April 21, 2010 11:02 AM | Report abuse
puff puff pass DC (im in VA) lol
Posted by: rockettonu | April 21, 2010 12:16 PM | Report abuse
I love Mary Jane Potman
Posted by: DCFanatic | April 21, 2010 1:45 PM | Report abuse
UNBELIEVABLE, DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY LIVES WERE LOST TO THE SALE OF ILLEGAL DRUGS (COCAINE, HEROINE, AND M A R I J U A N A) IN THE D.C. AREA SINCE THE MID TO LATE 80'S ? RE-CAP: CITY UNDER SEIGE, 400-500 MURDERS A YEAR, AND GUESS WHAT.... MOST OF WHICH WERE AFRICAN-AMERICAN. MY POINT IS NOT TO DISCOURAGE LEGALIZING MARIJUANA, BUT TO POINT OUT THAT YOU WAIT TIL WE MOURN WELL OVER 10,000 TIMES ONLY TO LEGALIZE WHAT CAUSED A LARGE PERCENT OF THOSE 10,000 MURDERS. WHAT A SLAP IN THE FACE.
Posted by: 1termpoliticians | April 21, 2010 6:12 PM | Report abuse
UNBELIEVABLE, DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY LIVES WERE LOST TO THE SALE OF ILLEGAL DRUGS...
Posted by: 1termpoliticians | April 21, 2010 6:12 PM
Did you ever think about the fact that these killings were due to the fact that these drugs are illegal? People kill because of the amount of ILLEGAL money that these drugs are associated with, not because of the drugs themselves. IMO making marijuana legal puts the drug dealers out of business. When people stop buying from them, that ILLEGAL money will not be in the picture. Which would cut down on murders and incarcerations.
Posted by: TCM80 | April 22, 2010 9:17 AM | Report abuse
Are we stuck on stupid in this city??? Unfortunately, many people (including"middle age")than we care to believe are drug users. This is just opening the floor gates. We are hypocrites and the kids know it! We don't
parent now. We have mean angry kids roaming our streets,assaulting and killing. Imagine whats going to happen now.How many more children will have to go hungry cause "Momma got her groove on"
Posted by: destiny12 | April 22, 2010 6:12 PM | Report abuse
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Or is it to honor Hitler's 122nd birthday?