But you didn't slap him down on that, you slapped him down on his not having kids. But don't you worry, your own head lice will miss you when you're gone - they depend on you for their sustenence.
In any case, he wasn't bragging, he was contradicting your position (stated again below) that pot is evil and will ruin your life. He is living proof that you are wrong. He merely presented evidence to the contrary, but instead of accepting it and admitting you were wrong, you took indignation, called him a braggart, and then insulted him and the value of his life. If pot really did screw people up as you dogmatically believe, there would be zero cases of people like him. But when they show up and announce themselves, you "slap them down" instead of modifying your own beliefs. So apparently there is no evidence you would accept that you are mistaken, which is why I call your belief dogmatic. Now, you are welcome to have any dogmatic beliefs you wish (even if you don't follow their teachings, e.g. Christianity) but you aren't welcome to inflict those beliefs on others at government gunpoint (e.g. the War On Pot).
The only cognitive dissonance here is that generated by your refusal to recognize that this s--t is EVIL.
First, you are wrong, inanimate objects are incapable of evil. Second, you don't know what cognitive dissonance even is; It takes two things to generate it, that directly contradict one another. I admit that smoking pot isn't the best thing for everybody, and that it will lead some people, but not everybody, to make poor choices, and that some others will be able to lead entirely effective lives even under its constant influence. What fact can you present me that contradicts that? You, on the other hand, believe that it is simply evil and will destroy people, yet here is someone who makes six figures, is an expert at a number of things, etc... sorry, the cognitive dissonance is all yours.
Spit at me if you want. I'm just the messenger.
No you're not. You are either a soldier in the Drug War yourself, or at least a cheerleader for it. Cheerleaders aren't messengers, they are advocates. So, once again, you lie. You lied about Marx's quote, you lie about the effects of pot, and you lie about your role in the War. Typical, unfortunately, of your side.
Even if I thought you were all wonderful and asked to hit off of your collective (and collectivist) bhong, it would still be evil.
One more time, dead stuff lacks the capacity for evil. Furthermore, if people could grow their own, it would be private property, which is as far from collectivism as you can get. Please keep your cliches straight.
It's not lying if you believe it to be true
Some people don't need to use drugs to have their perception of reality distorted.
S/He seems to be saying that it caused her/his friends to be killed, it corrupts others, etc. Essentially, s/he believes marijuana is equivalent to heroin and cocaine in terms of addictiveness, which isn't true, and that is the reason it's illegal? But anything that causes pleasure is potentially addictive: love, food, drugs, alcohol, sex, gambling, video games, the internet, religion, hobbies, exercise, power, control...the list goes on and on and includes many things that are necessary for life itself or even the afterlife, if you have that belief.
I think it is evil to cause someone unnecessary pain and suffering. In the bell curve of humanity, marijuana (which has been used for all sorts of things, including medicinal purposes, for thousands of years) is most certainly going to help certain people. It is far more benign than the pharmaceuticals derived from it, far less dangerous for recreational use than alcohol (a poison) and can be grown by anyone in their own backyard...thereby eliminating the need for dangerous drug cartels. You could buy and sell it at the local farmer's markets just like tomatoes and sweet corn (I bet the FDA would like to ban those as well, once they finish with the vitamin and health food companies).
When we try to legislate against human nature, we only create forms of anarchy in a society that is compelled to violate its own laws. The nationwide 55 mph speed limit created speeders out of otherwise safe drivers. The prohibition against alcohol created criminals out of ordinary citizens and a business opportunity for organized crime (what's that about history repeating itself?). This strikes me as a government being evil, especially when otherwise good and decent people buy into the propaganda and turn on their fellow citizens, including those who simply want pain relief. This is evil. Why? Becuase the government says so. Why?
One more time, dead stuff lacks the capacity for evil.>>>
It's not the dead stuff that is evil, it is the act of inhaling it that is evil--putting selfish desire above the need of the society in which you live, not to mention your spouse, parents, and family, who are in many ways left to clean up the mess left behind by one's drug use.