Kids And Marijuana: Not A Harmless High

The Gazette News ^ | October 26, 2002 | National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign

[Roscoe]

"There are many popular myths about the so-called harmlessness of marijuana..."

[Commander8]

When I was in grade school, I knew some honor roll students. Really bright kids. Some of them were introduced to marijuana in junior high and by the time they were sophomores in highs school, they were enslaved by marijuana and other drugs. All they could talk about was pot this, pot that. By the time they graduated(IF they graduated.) they were blithering idiots.

[Atlas Sneezed]

Most of what government has EVER said about marijuana is either a lie or a gross exaggeration. Kids who try it learn that they get more honesty from their drug dealer than from cops and politicians.

If this sentiment bothers anyone, let me know where you think the drug (which does not interest me in the least, personally) fits in the regulatory scheme with tobacco and alcohol, both of which are properly legal.

[Lexington Green]

Propaganda
The Big Lie
Marijuana
Makes you die

[Roscoe]

All they could talk about was pot this, pot that. By the time they graduated(IF they graduated.) they were blithering idiots.

Some of them must post here. :)

[BrooklynGOP]

It's also a myth that marijuana is not addictive. Marijuana sends more teens into treatment than any other illicit drug. Sixty percent of teens currently in drug treatment are there because of marijuana.

No, they are there because they are required to get "treatment" by the courts.

[Roscoe]

Source?

[jenny65]

That does it. There ought to be a law making it illegal for kids to smoke marajuana... oh wait.

Never mind.

[BrooklynGOP]

Its very well known. Juveniles don't go to jail for possesion, they are sent to drug treatment programs.

[Roscoe]

Its very well known.

Source?

[BrooklynGOP]

That does it. There ought to be a law making it illegal for kids to smoke marajuana...

Yea, really. They should make murder illegal too :P

[Roscoe]

So you agree that the claims of its "harmlessness" are false?

[citizenK]

So much propaganda, and so little time to refute...

[BrooklynGOP]

Do you agree that its not addictive? And if you still insist that it is, can you point out the chemical that makes is so?

[jenny65]

I agree 100% that kids shouldn't be smoking it. Nor should they be drinking alcohol or smoking tobacco. Once they become adults they should be able to make their own decisions.

[Roscoe]

Even the Marijuana News only claims that, "Half of marijuana treatment admissions were referred through the criminal justice system."

C'mon, what's your source?

[BrooklynGOP]

Interesting. .Marijuana News. I wasn't aware of that site... Let's see what they have there:

"Drug treatment for recreational marijuana users is booming precisely because of ever-escalating sentencing policies. Forcing pot smokers into treatment centers is often the only way to keep the jails from being completely overrun with penny-ante drug users, leaving little space for violent criminals who pose a genuine threat to others.”" from lvrj.com
Seems that with billions of dollars that we are pumping in WOD, there are a lot of interested parties in getting a piece of that pie (also, prison unions are strongly for tough drug sentencing).
Also, the statistics that you posted.. Are those for teens or over all?

[Roscoe]

No, they are there because they are required to get "treatment" by the courts.

Still waiting for that (imaginary) source.

[citizenK]

So you agree that the claims of its "harmlessness" are false?

Harmlessness is a relative concept when different drugs are compared. MJ is relatively harmless compared to alcohol, which no one need remind you is legal for adults. Nothing in and of itself is harmless especially if it is abused or used in excess. Where it comes to mj, proponents of legalization argue that it is less harmless than alcohol, and therefore mj should be placed in the same regulatory framework as alcohol. No one suggests that teens use drugs (mj or alcohol), except for maybe teens themselves.

Speaking of harmlessness - look at this recent story of a study indicating MSG can cause blindness. Perhaps Chinese food should be outlawed and the government should commence with a War on Eggrolls. To think that some people may even eat Chinese food under the influence of mj - it's a wonder our society still functions...oh, the humanity!

[BrooklynGOP]

Still waiting for that (imaginary) source.

I personally know 2 guys who were in and out of treatments for Heroin. I have never met or heard of anyone being in a treatment program volunteraly. By the way, you article doesn't mention how those teens ended up in the treatment programs. So what's the addictive chemical that's in pot? Still waiting...