When asked to write an article about marijuana, I thought for sure that I was qualified enough. My only problem was where to start…
So I figured I’d start writing where I started smoking-- My first time with the pot. My memory is hazier than it used to be (hehe), but I think it was winter break in 11th grade. My best friend in the entire world had been telling me for a few weeks how he had been smoking and how it had been lots of fun. I figured: it’s vacation, I don’t have school for a few weeks, I’ll try a hit. It was glorious. I smiled and laughed and tingled and just felt great about life.
Oh, how times have changed. I went from not smoking if I had school in the next week, back in high school, to smoking every night during finals last semester. I went from hiding my smoking habits from my parents to talking about them casually over the dinner table.
So, I guess what I’m saying is that marijuana is a gateway drug. It helps with the passage from adolescence through the gateway of adulthood. This is not to say that one needs marijuana to grow up, merely that for some people, it helps.
So lately, in Canada (and god, how I love this country), there’s often talk of decriminalization and softer penalties for small-time users. www.canadaonline.about.com goes as far as to say that: “A discussion paper released by the Senate committee says that marijuana should be treated more like tobacco than like harder drugs. The Senate committee also says marijuana is not a ‘gateway drug,’ and does not lead to the use of harder drugs such as cocaine and heroin.”
So what’s the problem here? I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone who thought that marijuana was a bad thing. Certainly, I have friends who never smoke and never want to smoke, but they would never insist that I don’t smoke. They would never insist that marijuana be made illegal. It seems to me that the outlawing and prohibition of marijuana is a relic of the days of yore when people cared more about going to heaven. No, but seriously, it’s an archaic law that nobody would disagree seeing repealed.
Anyone who has ever seen anyone high can attest to the should-be legality of the drug. Nobody gets high and wants to fight. Nobody gets high and wants to vandalize things. People get high and vegetate. They want junk food and crappy TV. They want discovery channel and Bob Marley. I for one, used to love getting high and making music playlists. Does that harm anyone? I can honestly say that violence on TV (read: the NEWS) and in video games does more to hurt human society than marijuana smoke. Even driving, which most pot-smokers agree is not something people should mix with drugs, is doable while high. Certainly, some studies have seen improvements in the focus and ability to drive of some people. Being tired or on caffeine pills probably harms drivers more than marijuana, but I can understand one wanting that illegal, just in case.
So why don’t we treat marijuana like alcohol? Legal. Legal in bars. Legal in your house. Legal above an age. Illegal in the street. Illegal with minors. Illegal while driving.
So, I’ll close this article with the last time I smoked up with the wacky weed. It was, I think, I few days ago, at a friend’s apartment in the ghetto. I had never been any good at rolling joints, so I asked my friend to teach me. He did, we smoked the products of my education, and ended up watching some TV and having some nice political discussions (I think we were high, preaching the benefits of gay marriage, Canada and slushies and boo-hissing George Bush.) We didn’t fight. We didn’t declare war or formalize any “axis of evil”. We loved. We philosophized. We relaxed. We enjoyed life. Is that so bad?
