In what many will view as an expert attempt to deflect attention from his underhanded dealings with restrictions concerning activities during the COVID-19 restrictions, Gov. Tom Wolf has put legalizing recreational marijuana at the top of his priorities.

He saw high school sports as being far too controversial and decided to drag back out the notes from his invisible lieutenant governor’s travels around the state searching for the hot spots for selling pot as opposed to finding a cure for COVID-19.

Much to everyone’s shock and amazement, he found that people who attended a discussion about legalizing marijuana were in fact in favor of doing just that.

That is a little like attending a Corvette show (there is one in Carlisle I think) and asking if anyone likes Chevrolets. It is only a matter of time before we join the ranks of states that allow smoking pot.

It was important to pass the medical marijuana regulations first, but that was only a warmup. The sad and disappointing thing about it though is that once again they will put lipstick on the pig and tell us that this new source of revenue for the state will do everything but cure cancer.

Remember, the lottery was going to eliminate real estate taxes. How many times have you heard politicians make that claim?

As fast as the state starts collecting the billions of dollars from this new source, the same politicians will find new needs for the money and it will never get used where they promise to take it.

Do you see any roads improving? Do you see how much better senior citizens are being cared for?

Of course this is a hoax. Not the COVID-19 style of hoax that is only scary when it is going to help the average Joe and not scary at all when the governor has a friend that wants to still have his annual car show.

This one is much more bipartisan and allows all elected officials to claim some credit and remind us that this how we can avoid tax increases.

Malarkey, we say. That is an acceptable comment isn’t it? Does malarkey insult anyone in particular? Maybe our Irish friends? Billy O, is that OK? We don’t oppose legalizing the consumption of recreational marijuana. Just don’t insult us with your lies about why.

It is to get people high. It is an alternative to alcohol. It may be the fountain of youth for those of us who attended college in the 1970s.

Just don’t say it is for the good of the economy.

— RV