Disjointed Opinions

I was a little hesitant when picking a show for my viewing this week. I ended up watching the show Disjointed. Disjointed is a show that is all about selling cannabis and the film producers use a handful of old styled cigarette and pot ads that are intertwined within the show just like they would have shown up in old the network series. I thought that this would be a good show to write about this week because the legalization of marijuana is a controversial subject.

It is a standard multi-camera show. There is a studio audience that has a laugh track in the background. A laugh track is where jokes are told that lean on the predictable side of things for example: there are so many jokes about stoners being out of it. These remarks are basic and do not add anything important to the show. For example: In the first few minutes of episode 1, Jenny (an Asian-American employee at Ruth’s Alternative Caring), introduces herself to camera with: “Hey, I’m your token Asian.” The theme of Disjointed is basically a montage of:  “When we get high, we also go low.”

The conflict between Ruth (the main character) and Travis (Ruth’s son) erupts within the first few episodes. Just like the average mother and son have arguments, so do Ruth and Travis. The two argued over how to run and promote “Ruth’s Alternative Caring”. This is controversial because it brings up the issue about how different age groups use marijuana. Even though “Ruth’s Alternative Caring” has a variety of herbs and edibles that people can choose from, Ruth has a tough time comprehending why millennials have made marijuana a normalized drug. Travis comes to this issue with a different view point. Travis sees “Ruth’s Alternative Caring” as a prospective profitable business with the same potential to make money as any other enterprise.

The legalization of recreational marijuana is controversial nationwide and has been legalized in some states, like Colorado, but not others. The states that have legalized it have rationalized this decision by contributing tax money brought in by weed revenue, back to the community programs and public school systems. As well as the money saved on the law enforcement aspect of it as they do not have to jail petty drug offenders. The health benefits or lack of a shown detriment to your health also contributed to the decision to legalize.

On the flip side some state have not yet “caught onto” this trend. The first and foremost reason is that on a federal level, it's still illegal. If President Donald Trump wanted to send in federal marshals to Colorado tomorrow, he could do that and they could shut down all the weed dispensaries. Besides that many states are still very conservative and the public opinion/social norm on weed is negative. They also argue the health risks; Marijuana is technically a Schedule 1 drug. That is the same category that cocaine and meth are in. It is looked upon as harmful to your body, or a gateway drug at the least.