You just gotta keep livin' man, L-I-V-I-N

Because of a recent law passed in Colorado and Washington, a shopping list could possibly look like this:
     -Milk
     -Eggs
     -Bread
     -Cucumbers
     -Pot

     The article, Pot votes in CO, WA raise specter of weed tourism, describes a new law passed in Colorado and Washington allowing adults 21 or older to buy small amounts of marijuana in stores and the law's possible consequences on Colorado's tourism trade. With the tourist trade as CO's #2 industry because of the Rocky Mountains and its skiing industry, recreational marijuana usage could either increase or decrease tourism. This law opens up the door to increased marijuana tourism; however it is projected that there could be a possible decline in leisure tourists. It is also speculated that there will not be that much of a difference: "Colorado ski slopes already are dotted with 'smoke shacks,' old mining cabins that have been illicitly repurposed as places to smoke pot out of the cold."
     Pot votes in CO, WA raise specter of weed tourism was written by Kristen Wyatt, a Philadelphia Inquirer reporter. The Philadelphia Inquirer is a morning daily newspaper that has served the Philadelphia area since 1829, and is the third oldest surviving daily newspaper in the United States.
     The context of this article is that states are now beginning to allow recreational drug usage in their states. There are currently 18 states in America that allow medicinal marijuana usage. The author's purpose is to make people aware of a legal change in Colorado and Washington as well as its social and economic implications. I believe that the author is able to achieve this purpose, because he is able to explain the law as well as the positive and negative effects it will have, and it compares it to a similar situation in Amsterdam, Netherlands. This article could have been intended for people who are planning on going to Colorado and wish to get a well-rounded view of the state before traveling.
     I feel as if the author uses "understatement," or the deliberate expression of an idea as less important than it actually is, either for ironic emphasis or for politeness and tact, frequently in this argument to describe the issue of legalization of recreational marijuana usage in Colorado and Washington. "'Some folks might come to Colorado to enjoy some marijuana as will be their right. So what?' said Betty Aldworth, advocacy director for the Colorado marijuana campaign. The author of the article wanted to showcase the ever-growing opinion that recreational drug use is 'no big deal.'