<p>moreover, just because your kid got pot doesn’t mean it’s from a sketchy drug dealer. it probably means they have a friend who knows a guy. </p>
<p>i don’t do any sort of drugs, but if I had tried to shut out all the people around me who do/have because I feared that they were some sort of ‘bad influence,’ I would have cut myself off from a whole lot of really interesting and cool people.</p>
<p>The difference is that alcohol can be consumed with pretty much no noticeable affects. One can drink alcohol without intent to get drunk. Do people smoke without the intent of getting high?</p>
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Yes, often–at least if by “high” you mean noticeably impaired. People don’t smoke with the intention of experiencing no effect at all, of course; that would be pointless. But people often will take one or two small hits in order to experience a very mild buzz that is quite compatible with coherent, satisfying social interactions, in exactly the same way people nurse a drink or two at a cocktail party.</p>
<p>The difference is that alcohol can be consumed with pretty much no noticeable affects. One can drink alcohol without intent to get drunk.</p>
<p>Certainly, especially if you are an alcoholic, you can be quite adept at hiding the effects- however- the whole point of drinking is to feel the effect & while it depends on body type and how much food you have eaten, you can feel the effect after one drink- at least I do.</p>
<p>Same thing with pot, while it does accumulate in body tissue, some people smoke just enough to take the edge off just like they might have a glass of wine with dinner.</p>
<p>However just as it takes your liver a while to metabolize the alcohol & so you may actually be drunker than you feel, pot also takes a while to " kick in", which may be why some people get so stoned they are stupid.</p>
<p>[1st</a> Medical Studies on Pot in 20 Years Find It Does Relieve Pain | Discover Magazine](<a href=“http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/02/18/1st-medical-trial-of-pot-in-20-years-finds-it-does-relieve-pain/]1st”>http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2010/02/18/1st-medical-trial-of-pot-in-20-years-finds-it-does-relieve-pain/)</p>
<p>It’s only a matter of time before it is legalized- which I think will be good for several reasons- it will be able to be regulated & taxed- but then those who can benefit from it will also have easier access.</p>
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<p>Speak for yourself. Not everyone can feel the effect of alcohol after one drink, although I guess it does affect brain activity. Furthermore, “the whole point of drinking” is NOT to feel the effect for all people. Some enjoy the taste of a red wine, Natty Light (although I feel like these are few in number) or whatever.</p>
<p>In other words, alcohol and pot CAN have completely different purposes in consumption.</p>
<p>*Speak for yourself. Not everyone can feel the effect of alcohol after one drink, although I guess it does affect brain activity. *</p>
<p>I was & I did point out that the more you typically drank, the more tolerant your body seems to become. However, * other people* can tell the difference in * you* with just one drink, as is evident from the demonstrations of radio disk jockeys who drink on the air- for demonstration purposes.</p>
<p>Some enjoy the taste of a red wine, Natty Light (although I feel like these are few in number) or whatever.</p>
<p>right- taste is subjective- and I am sure many of us have learned to appreciate the taste of a 15 yr old scotch or a nice bowl of hash. Not just the affects. ;)</p>
<p>"moreover, just because your kid got pot doesn’t mean it’s from a sketchy drug dealer. it probably means they have a friend who knows a guy. "</p>
<p>They also may be getting their drugs directly from a college student friend.</p>
<p>“Do you feel the same way about alcohol, and if not, why not?”</p>
<p>I don’t feel that people my age who socially drink are silly. Alcohol is legal. I do think it’s silly when people my age drink to get drunk and play drinking games. I don’t have friends like that, but I heard that when my kids were in high school, there were some parents who played drinking games with their high school kids. </p>
<p>When a person socially drinks alcohol, they also don’t bother other people like what happens when someone socially smokes dope. I don’t want to breathe first or secondhand cigarette or marijuana smoke.</p>
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<p>Again, that’s not necessarily true. I don’t see how you can categorize something so cleanly when you admit that it depends hugely on the person.</p>
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<p>yes. some people smoke just enough to relax a bit and destress, which are similar to the reasons why someone might have a drink once in a while.</p>
<p>I don’t quite understand your point. one can drink alcohol without intending to get drunk, but they would either have to really love the taste of the drink or would intend to obtain a slight buzz, and the same logic works with marijuana</p>
<p>reasons for consuming alcohol would generally be 1) to get drunk or have fun with friends, 2) to drink socially, for a slight buzz, and 3) because you like the taste of a drink once in a while
the same reasons stand for smoking pot. sometimes people might smoke to get high with friends and watch a dumb movie, sometimes people might smoke just to get a slight buzz, and sometimes people like the smell/taste of weed, which like alcohol, would be an acquired taste.</p>
<p>Alcohol is legal for those over 21. Pot is not. I like to have a bit of wine or beer with a meal at times to complement the food. </p>
<p>We don’t need another substance to smoke. We’re working hard enough to eradicate cigarettes.</p>
<p>“It’s bad because it’s illegal” is a weak argument, just like, “Don’t do it because I said not to.” Independent thinkers don’t accept it. They want to know why. Teenagers doubly so. Smart teenagers triply so. If you can’t find a better explanation than “it’s illegal,” your kid is more likely to smoke pot than one whose parents discuss the reasons and shades of gray.</p>
<p>That it is illegal is reason enough for many not to do things, or to be very cautious in doing it. The problem of taking illegal substances is that you don’t have quality control of the product, someone is likely dealing with some criminal element that wouldn’t blink an eye to throw you to the wolves, and there is a lot you can lose for taking the stuff. Unlike alcohol, pot stays in your system and can show up on drug test for a while after used. I’ve known of several stories where young people simply forgot that they had smoked some pot a few weekends ago, and are surprised when they flunk a drug test for a simple sales clerk job. If it is for something with even more at stake, you can lose a lot.<br>
If you are pulled over for a random check, which happens often around here, especially to young people, and are asked to take a urine test, that could be a big problem too. </p>
<p>Illegal means there can be some expensive, time consuming and severe consequences. You can get thrown out of school for pot. You can spend a lot of time in those clinics taking drug counseling and education. </p>
<p>To me, pot takes the worst of smoking cigarettes and taking alcohol. It can cause judgment impairment, drowsiness, slowing of reflexes and also pollutes the air and your lungs. </p>
<p>When my son was undergoing chemo, some kids thought that pot would take the edge off of one teen who was also in treatment. Danged fools did not take into account that the stuff is “dirty”. The young man, whom I knew, lost most of one lung due to a fungal infection. He died during bone marrow transplant several months later. Couldn’t handle it with one lung. </p>
<p>The other problem is with also with those that have addiction issues. Crossing that line to illegal drugs is often a start of other experimentation. For most people, it can end with just that. For others, it is the beginning of the end. Having seen pot and drugs at college with my generation, and now with my older kids’ colleges, I know the damage that can be done.</p>
<p>^So tell us, what is the reason that pot is illegal while alcohol is not? It is clear that alcohol and cigarettes are more harmful than pot. </p>
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<p>You can get thrown out of school for alcohol. You can spend a lot of time in those clinics taking alcohol counseling and education. </p>
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<p>Except that it doesn’t really pollute the air, it is MUCH better for your lungs than cigarettes, it can’t hurt your liver like alcohol, you can’t OD on pot, you can’t get quite as screwed up on pot as you can on alcohol, and I’ve never heard of harmful second-hand effects from pot. So I’m not really sure how this is the worst of either. </p>
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<p>While tragic, this is EXACTLY why it should be legal. Legality would regulate this. However, this is an isolated case and not the norm in any way, shape, or form. Oh and I can also say that pot is really the only way my mom got through her chemo. The drugs that they gave her before medical marijuana became legal was almost as bad as the chemo itself. I’m extremely grateful that she eventually got her license (not that it stopped her from smoking, as she’s been doing since she was 16, but at least now she didn’t have to worry about getting arrested for doing something that helped her with the pain).</p>
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<p>The problem is also with those that have addiction issues. (I’m talking about alcohol here). You cannot become chemically dependent on pot like you can on alcohol. </p>
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Having seen alcohol and hard drugs with my generation, I know the damage that can be done. </p>
<p>Congratulations, you just wrote a short essay on all the reasons why alcohol should be illegal. You just accidentally substituted the word “pot” for alcohol. </p>
<p>As for the urine thing- yes, this can be avoided too by making pot legal.</p>
<p>/my discussion on this topic</p>
<p>cptofthehouse, your argument seems somewhat ignorant. i agree with romanigypsyeyes in her response to what you said. </p>
<p>you apparently feel that that an 18 yr old who smokes pot is worse than an 18 yr old who drinks alcohol, because pot is illegal at all ages whereas alcohol is legal over 21. your reasoning for pot being bad is based largely around it being illegal, and the consequences of doing something illegal. but have you not considered that perhaps the law isn’t perfect, and that legislation is constantly changing? your argument leads to the question of whether pot should be illegal in the first place. </p>
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<p>that it is illegal may be a reason not to do things, for there may be legal consequences, but the fact that pot is illegal does not necessarily mean that it is a horrible drug, and definitely does not mean that it is worse than alcohol and cigarettes, both of which are legal. because pot stays in your system longer than alcohol, it means it is ok to drink illegally but not smoke illegally? this seems like flawed logic. it may make it easier to get away with drinking than smoking pot, but it does not mean that it makes one morally wrong and the other ok. </p>
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<p>I think this is a silly superficial argument. Pot is a much less dangerous drug than either alcohol or cigarettes. The worst of drinking alcohol is not the slowing of reflexes or drowsiness, but the possibility of destroying your liver, or that excess consumption can kill you within hours. You can die from excess drinking, but you can’t overdose on marijuana. The effects of alcohol tend to induce much more obnoxious and idiotic behavior than marijuana. Additionally, pot is much less damaging to your longs than cigarettes. And the worst part about cigarettes isn’t necessarily the tobacco as much as the tar and nicotine in the product, neither of which are a problem with pot. Additionally, pot doesn’t have to be smoked. It can be inhaled with a vaporizer or consumed through edibles, which would negate any problem of an effect on your lungs or the environment.
And pot, unlike cigarettes, is not a physically addictive drug.</p>
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<p>Well, first of all, I think that children should obey their parents on matters like this, and in most things that don’t cause direct harm. But that’s another issue.</p>
<p>Second, it’s not wrong because it’s illegal, but rather because one may believe that following the law is a moral good. Just an aside.</p>
<p>We’re working hard enough to eradicate cigarettes.</p>
<p>Have we stopped subsidizing the tobacco industry?</p>
<p><a href=“EWG Farm Subsidy Database || Farm subsidies in the United States”>EWG Farm Subsidy Database || Farm subsidies in the United States;
<p>When my son was undergoing chemo, some kids thought that pot would take the edge off of one teen who was also in treatment. Danged fools did not take into account that the stuff is “dirty”</p>
<p>thats unfortunate- it is actually very easy to grow yourself - it is a “weed” ya know. ;)</p>
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<p>[Medical</a> cannabis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](<a href=“http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medical_cannabis]Medical”>Medical cannabis - Wikipedia)</p>
<p>To be fair, I think cptofthehouse gave a reasonable justification for saying “don’t do it because it’s illegal” (lack of quality control, possibility of job loss or being kicked out of school). I don’t agree with the “gateway drug” theory, and I never heard of lung infections caused by marijuana, but nevertheless, he did give reasons.</p>
<p>I agree with post #98.</p>
<p>To be fair, I think cptofthehouse gave a reasonable justification for saying “don’t do it because it’s illegal” (lack of quality control, possibility of job loss or being kicked out of school</p>
<p>This is true- BUT, laws do not make something ethical, moral or a good idea & that is why we work to change them.</p>
<p>FAFSA also bothers me- because your aid is restricted- if a drug conviction, however nothing is said about felonies, assaults etc.
Additionally, it only affects those who need aid. If you don’t need aid & have a drug conviction, thats isn’t an automatic door closing.</p>