Hepmfest in Seattle, WA

I saw this video clip from the CNN site, about a Hempfest in Seattle, WA. The festival was full of "pot heads" smoking joints and bongs out in public...and free to do so, because it's now legal to smoke Marijuana in WA. In the video clip is a couple (Mike and Barbara Hughs) in there mid-60s visiting from Virginia. In Virginia they currently can't smoke Marijuana legally. While on vacation, in legalized Marijuana town of Seattle, they can partake legally at this festival. Seattle Police passed out "munchies" with a label on the bags stating the DOs and DON'Ts of legal Marijuana. (image below)

This got me to thinking...others who are there, from out of state, visiting and partaking in this public use of Marijuana....then they go back to their home towns where it is illegal to smoke...the drug is still in their systems. Let's say a person was at the festival over the weekend, and on Monday has a new job starting up, and needs to do a drug test. The company will have tested for drug use, and comes back as positive. The applicant has recently smoked Marijuana and therefor is "on drugs" which is illegal in their state. But technically that applicant was legally partaking in the drug, at a festival? Does this applicant get the job? OR Is he/she automatically denied the new job for failing the drug test?

This seems like a questionable scenario as more states start to legalize the drug and other states remain illegal use of the same drug. In the state of WA, people are allowed to smoke Marijuana within their homes legally and still not be in public (aside from the festival) using the drug. The way that it is explained by the article "Mariwhatnow?" on the Seattle.gov page, Marijuana will be treated like Alcohol use, only for people over 21 can use Marijuana, and it's illegal to drive under the influence, and like cigarette smoking rules to follow, with certain public areas to not be able to smoke Marijuana either.

I am curious how the economy of getting hired for a new job will be affected? We can't show up to work drunk with use of legal alcohol, so we also can't show up to work high off of legal use of Marijuana. Does the applicant for a job still get drug tested? We don't get tested for alcohol use. Do they get the job if the drug test is positive? Does the applicant continue to smoke legally in their home and work at the company as we would be legally drinking alcohol on our personal time off work? Can I work here in California and visit my Brother up in Washougal, WA for the week and smoke some Marijuana at his house, then come back to my workplace in CA where Marijuana is illegal to partake in? In all 50 states, alcohol is legal, but currently only a handful of places have legalized Marijuana use. It will be a few more years to a decade when all 50 states come to legalizing Marijuana nationally. I don't know what my point to this blog post is? Really was just curious about the couple from Virginia visiting WA and attending the Hempfest. It opened up a list of questions I had for other people visiting WA and partaking in the Marijuana legally, only then to go back home where it is not. And how this could affect people from getting a job after taking a mandatory drug test?