Don't Let Cannabis Dispensaries Scan Your ID

So there’s 2 problems with allowing cannabis dispensaries to scan your ID (for US citizens):

Problem 1: Cannabis is federally illegal

If old white anti-progressive assholes regain control of the federal government, they can compel dispensaries to hand over their customer databases. When that happens, you’re liable to federal prosecution.

Problem 2: Consumer surveillance is an injustice

I’ve written about how to avoid consumer surveillance before. The biggest thing is not identifying yourself. Some places of business require ID, which is not a problem as long as only a human is reading it. But if your ID gets scanned, it might be put into a database, creating a digital record of your purchase. This is an injustice and the first problem that I pointed out is just a consequence of this initial injustice. Yet another reason why we must make it illegal for businesses to collect personalized data about people.

The problem from the perspective of cannabis dispensaries is depending on the state, it may be mandatory for dispensaries to scan ID and even put it into a state database. If you live in a state which requires ID scanning, avoiding dispensaries altogether is the only way to avoid surveillance (and possible future prosecution). If your state doesn’t force dispensaries to scan ID, then look for ones that don’t scan.

Why ID Scanning Doesn’t Make Any Sense

Based on what I’ve read, alcohol is worse for your health than cannabis. It also causes more societal problems. For instance driving high is probably less dangerous than driving drunk. With cannabis being safer than alcohol in every way, it just doesn’t make any sense that there’s ID scanning of cannabis purchases and not alcohol.

Cannabis legalization is good. One step closer to ending the failed war on drugs. But states have got to respect cannabis users’ right to privacy and end the ID scanning requirement.