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Pot criminalization is failing your grandchildren; teens have been reporting for years that they can get pot more easily than cigarettes or beer - which stands to reason, since only sellers of legal goods have incentive to 'card' buyers.

You're clearly entitled to your opinion, even if it flies straight against established scientific facts.

How about we try an experiment ?

I'll do everything I can to convince my kids and grandkids to "stay the hell away from pot", whether it's legal or not.

You, on the otherhand, can enjoy being the "cool grand parent" who puts the reefer in the brownies and does a 420 with his teenage grandkids on the family camping trips.

We'll get back together in 25 years to see who's kids and grandkids are "loser dopers" who deliver pizza or stand on the corner waving some idiotic sign to attract customers to Jake's Tatoo Emporium ...

or who's kids are doctors, lawyers, engineers, airplane pilots, pastors, chemists, military satcom experts, or the first astronaunts to Mars.

I'm pretty comfortable to being "judged by history".

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THE HARMFUL EFFECTS OF MARIJUANA

Source: http://www.drugfreeworld.org/drugfacts/marijuana/the-harmful-effects.html

The immediate effects of taking marijuana include rapid heart beat, disorientation, lack of physical coordination, often followed by depression or sleepiness. Some users suffer panic attacks or anxiety.

But the problem does not end there. According to scientific studies, the active ingredient in cannabis, THC, remains in the body for weeks or longer.

Marijuana smoke contains 50% to 70% more cancer-causing substances than tobacco smoke. One major research study reported that a single cannabis joint could cause as much damage to the lungs as up to five regular cigarettes smoked one after another. Long-time joint smokers often suffer from bronchitis, an inflammation of the respiratory tract.

The drug can affect more than your physical health. Studies in Australia in 2008 linked years of heavy marijuana use to brain abnormalities.

This is backed up by earlier research on the long-term effects of marijuana, which indicate changes in the brain similar to those caused by long-term abuse of other major drugs. And a number of studies have shown a connection between continued marijuana use and psychosis.

Marijuana changes the structure of sperm cells, deforming them. Thus even small amounts of marijuana can cause temporary sterility in men. Marijuana use can upset a woman’s menstrual cycle.

Studies show that the mental functions of people who have smoked a lot of marijuana tend to be diminished. The THC in cannabis disrupts nerve cells in the brain affecting memory.

Cannabis is one of the few drugs which causes abnormal cell division which leads to severe hereditary defects.

A pregnant woman who regularly smokes marijuana or hashish may give birth prematurely to an undersized, underweight baby. Over the last ten years, many children of marijuana users have been born with reduced initiative and lessened abilities to concentrate and pursue life goals. Studies also suggest that prenatal (before birth) use of the drug may result in birth defects, mental abnormalities and increased risk of leukemia1 in children.

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