To all eligible voters in the State of Washington,

I had not intended to discuss this controversial subject. However, I want you to know that I do not shun a controversy. On the contrary, I will take a stand on an issue at the appropriate time, and this is an appropriate time, regardless of how fraught with controversy it may be.

You may wonder how I feel about marijuana. Here is how I stand on this issue.

If when you say marijuana, you mean the devil’s leaf, the poison scourge, the bloody monster that defiles innocence, dethrones reason, destroys the home, creates misery and poverty, takes the bread from the mouths of little children; if you mean the evil plant that topples the religious person from the pinnacles of righteous, gracious living into the bottomless pit of degradation and despair, shame, helplessness and hopelessness, and opens the door to a life of desperation, then certainly I am against it with all of my power.

But, if when you say marijuana, you mean that which promotes laid back conversation, encourages philosophical thoughts when good people relax and get together, puts a song in their hearts and laughter on their lips and the warm glow of contentment in their eyes; if you mean party cheer; if you mean the stimulating smoke that lets you forget about bad weather; if you mean the cigarette that enables a person to magnify their joy and happiness and to forget, if only for a little while, life’s great tragedies, the heartbreaks and sorrows; if you mean the possibility of mitigating the pain and suffering of cancer patients as well as others suffering from a myriad of ailments and diseases including the aged and infirm; if you mean the possible source of revenue that could pour into our treasures untold millions of dollars which can be used to provide tender care for our needy children, support our schools, repair the crumbling infrastructure in this state and country, and help to relieve some of the tax burden on the general population, then I am certainly in favor of it.

With full disclosure, the above is a modification of a speech attributed to a young Congressman name Noah S. “Soggy” Sweat Jr. from Mississippi. He delivered the 1952 speech on the subject of whether the state should continue to prohibit or legalize alcoholic beverages.

Harry M. Reichenberg, Federal Way