Wednesday, January 13, 2021 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Marijuana
sales soared
in 2020
PORTLAND (AP) 4
Oregon recreational-cannabis
sales soared in 2020, peaking
during a challenging summer
of racial justice protests and
coronavirus lockdowns.
The result was a record
year of business for mari-
juana purveyors, based on
data from the Oregon Liquor
Control Commission, which
oversees marijuana sales,
The Oregonian/OregonLive
reported. Total marijuana sales
in Oregon jumped from $795
million in 2019 to more than
$1 billion 4 $1,110,520,723
4 for the year that just ended.
Oregonians began buying
a lot more recreational canna-
bis in March when Gov. Kate
Brown instituted a stay-at-
home order and other restric-
tions in an attempt to slow
the spread of the coronavirus
pandemic. Sales numbers for
marijuana spiked about 20%
in March and kept climbing in
the following months.
In May, Oregon marijuana
sales topped $100 million in a
single month for the first time.
Sales then surpassed $100
million in each of the three
months that followed as well,
with a high of more than $106
million in July.
State tax revenue from
marijuana sales in 2020 likely
will exceed $150 million.
7
Commentary...
A teachable moment, not to be ignored
By Edie Jones
Columnist
What do we say to our
kids in the wake of the
events of January 6, 2021?
I ask this question know-
ing many of us feel what
we witnessed was unbeliev-
able, incomprehensible, and
inexcusable.
No matter our political
affiliation, there are les-
sons to be learned by us
adults and our kids. This is a
teachable moment of which
I implore every parent,
with children old enough to
understand what happened,
to take advantage.
What are these lessons?
" Preparedness. Without
more information, none of
us know why the Capitol
Police appeared so unready
for the onslaught of people.
As in all situations, plan-
ning ahead is paramount.
This is why we teach our
kids to pay attention to the
weather, why we outline
what to do in case of a fire,
and what to do if they get
lost. One of my daughters
was indeed <misplaced= for
many hours. Her instinct
and training told her to stay
where she was, a maneuver
that aided authorities and
others to eventually find her.
" The importance of
thinking about what9s hap-
pening so good judgment
can help in deciding how to
behave. Whatever we think
motivated President Trump,
I think most of us can agree
that poor judgment in his
choice of words was part of
what eventually happened.
" The importance of fol-
lowing rules. There is a rea-
son there were barricades
set up around the Capitol,
just like there are rules for
visitors coming into our
public schools. There are
reasons families have rules
for their households and
why we ask our children to
follow them. As kids grow,
they are entitled to know the
reasons behind those rules.
Nevertheless, if the reasons
make sense and it9s impor-
tant to have a rule (or a law),
it is important for it to be
observed.
" What constitutes free
speech? We all value our
right to be able to say what
is on our mind, however if
what we say causes harm to
others or our country it isn9t
protected under the First
Amendment. This applies to
obscenities, slander and to
yelling that there is fire in a
building when no fire exists.
Helping our kids understand
what this means is explicit
to the maturity we want
them to develop.
" The importance of tell-
ing the truth and relying on
facts in what is espoused as
truth. This, I believe, is a
lesson all parents want their
children to internalize.
" Respect. All our chil-
dren have to do to see many
examples of outrageous dis-
respect displayed is to watch
coverage of what took place
at the Capitol. I encourage
parents to point these out to
their kids, talk about what
was happening and con-
verse about what that kind
of behavior means in our
everyday lives. Much can
be learned about how not
to behave from these exam-
ples. Even more important
is talking about opposite
kinds of behavior and how
it9s important to be respect-
ful to everyone, no matter
our age.
" How easy it is to fol-
low the <mob= even when it
goes against our best judg-
ment. As we hear of more
and more indictments being
issued to people who may
or may not have been casual
bystanders, we wonder how
many are regretting their
own actions on that day.
" Violence or bullying is
not the way to accomplish
what you want. Pointing
out that the joint session of
Congress continued after
order was restored is a beau-
tiful example of how neither
of these approaches accom-
plishes anything positive.
" Being accountable,
taking responsibility, and
accepting consequences.
Here is probably the most
glaring lesson to be taught
and learned from January 6.
Wherever the responsibil-
ity lies for the events that
happened and who should
be held accountable, con-
sequences will happen. In
asking my son, who lives
in Germany, about the reac-
tions of the people there, he
responded that <the stand-
ing of the U.S., in the eyes
of Europeans, has plum-
meted to a very low level
and it will take years for its
position as a world leader
to be restored.= A very sad
commentary.
I thoroughly believe the
more we parents guide our
kids to become upstanding,
civic-minded citizens, the
sooner that restoration can
take place. A motto I often
share is that <the future of
our children depends on the
parenting of today.= Today
I9m thinking an even more
profound statement would
be that <the future of our
country depends on the par-
enting of today.=