Pot is great, don’t let anyone tell you otherwise- people who think its bad have obviously never tried it, or think all drugs are the same, like pot is no different than PCP. I would love to see a cite where a first time “offender” got 30 days in the pokey for simple possession- I’d also like to see the cop who has so much free time and loves paperwork so much that he’d take someone in if simple possession was the only crime- hell, half the time on COPS they just make the perp surrender it if that’s the only offense- sure they’ll add it to the prostitution charge, but rarely will they give a shit if there is no other crime.
If your pastor has never smoked pot himself or known people who were able to balance smoking pot occasionally and being upstanding citizens, he has nothing to balance out the judgemental views of drug users that permeate society. There’s no need to point out the misconceptions about recreational drug users he might hold-you can see them all on display in this thread. He won’t approach you to talk about them because people usually aren’t interested in getting rid of their prejudices.
I suggest Rastafarianism.
You’re a poker dealer, right? Why don’t you move to Las Vegas? Medical MJ is legal in Nevada, and a serious bill comes up on the state level every couple of years to legalize weed completely and redirect the money currently spent on apprehending stoners to state mental health initiatives and serious, scientific drug education in public school.
Agreed.
No, that’s not “its sole purpose”. As alluded to above, it’s an effective medical treatment for:
- Wasting disorder in AIDS and cancer patients
- Side effects of chemotherapy
- Anorexia
- Bulimia, and nausea in general
- Depression
The other thing is that marijuana is somewhat psychedelic. It’s not LSD, but it’s a deep experience–depending on the strain, anyway. In many people, and with many strains, it enhances creativity; makes repetitive tasks more bearable and even interesting; enhances the appreciation of food, music, art and film; and it can fuel valuable introspection. I’ve learned a lot about myself through drug-fueled introspection, much of which came from the use of marijuana. Now, those things don’t all necessarily happen for every person or in every batch, because there are carefully bred differences between strains and there are natural chemical differences between people, but if you honestly believe that there is nothing to marijuana other than escapist/hedonist pleasure, you’re quite misled.
Frankly, you really just don’t know what you’re talking about here. Any difference in who a person fundamentally is when they’re high is in your head.
Those problems simply don’t exist with marijuana. Alcohol is much more dangerous. If I had children, I would rather they smoke weed than drink.
For that matter, if it’s bothering the OP that it’s bothering the pastor, why not talk to the pastor about it?
I was talking about it in the context of recreational use, as per the OP; I do know that it has medicinal use in pain relief, treatment of glaucoma, and so on.
I can only go by my own past experiences with it. I haven’t tried it in about 10 years, but in my younger years I did it a number of times. It was mostly a peer pressure thing for me, trying to fit in. The problem is that I didn’t really like it. I’m the sort of person that like to be in command of his faculties, and the sensation of having them slowly writhe out of my grip, along with the feeling of extreme lethargy, the dry mouth, the vague feeling that I was something that wasn’t exactly hungry but defied any closer definition, and the world appearing like it was one big strobelight, was something I just did not enjoy. I discovered no deep, personal truths, felt less creative (and I am born of genes that contain several metric tons of creativity) and did little more than lay about, occasionally finding the most inane and puerile things funny. After the fact, all I could think was, “What was the point of that?” Those that I smoked with were pretty well the same way in every instance.
I apologize, I phrased that poorly. I was speaking of personality rather than a person’s fundamental being. Their personality and the way they interact with others changes when high (or drunk for that matter). This was what I objected to. I would rather hang out with someone who has a clear head and can appreciate whatever it is we’re doing or talking about on an even keel rather than someone who’s seeing and interacting with everything through a haze of THC or alcohol. I can’t relate to a person in that state, and I will not join them just to be on the same wavelength.
Gee, I wonder why?
Many of us who have used it for purposes other than to look cool have, not surprisingly, found it to be a deeper experience.
If you’re taking any kind of recreational drug and you freak out about being “in command”, the experience is only going to get worse. The point is to let the drug take the user on a journey–that’s why they call it a “trip”. Not everybody is into that–hence why it was not a pleasant experience for you.
I dunno. I think this is a matter of perspective. I find that, at least among my close friends, their personality doesn’t change per se. Sure, they experience and interact with the world differently, but “I feel like I don’t know you, because I only see you high” just doesn’t ring true with me. Back in my more cavalier days, I had a FWB who said something like that–that she thought she didn’t know who I was because we always got high when we hung out. That never made sense to me, in any mental state. We knew each other just fine. MMV, I guess.
Possession of personal use quantities is NOT a felony. Get your facts straight. The penalty for personal use quantities are frequently no more harsh than a traffic ticket.
Alcohol is certianly more dangerous than marajuana. I’m not arguing that. I am saying we tend to view ourselves in the most positive light and not see the negative things that are happening due to the choices we make. Everyone has these things about themselves and just because he isn’t outgrowing his pants or getting headaches or waking up without remembering his actions from the night before doesn’t mean it isn’t a problem. I am not saying that it is a problem either, I am just saying that because he has a good job and a fiance doesn’t guarentee he isn’t hurting himself or others.
I am totally in favor of legalizing marijuana for medicinal purposes. When it comes to recreational purposes, though, I tend to look down on people who smoke pot. That is because, in my experience, pot-smokers really are lazy and smoking pot gets in their way when it comes to achieving great things. I think the OP is the exception, not the rule, to this tendency. I’ve seen smart graduate students skip work and seminars and do poor quality work in order to smoke, and I’ve seen college students abroad in a beautiful foreign country do nothing more than sit around the living room and smoke. As for creativity, I think that is something that is very difficult to measure. I have seen people who are high make music that they thought was the coolest thing in the world, but I thought it was crap. I don’t mean to offend anyone with what I am saying here, I just mean to say that I have never seen pot do anything good for anyone, I have only ever seen the negative effects.
So, to the OP, I don’t think you are a bad person for smoking pot, it sounds like you have your life under control and pot is not getting in your way of achieving whatever you want to achieve. But if all I knew about you is that you smoke pot, I’d probably have a different opinion, because of the stereotypes I have formed by hanging out with other pot-smokers. I wouldn’t take offense at people’s opinions though, just keep living your life as you live it and people will see that you are indeed a good person.
It’s true that the law doesn’t make an act moral or immoral, and it’s true that very often, the penalties are reduced through a diversion program, drug awareness program, or the like, for a first offense.
But that’s not what you said. You said: “The penalties for possession of small quantities are about the equivalent of a speeding ticket.” I think it’s important to underline that when you said, “penalties,” you meant, “Probable penalties for a first offense,” and not “any possible penalties.”
Right/
How do you feel about the Beatles? Louis Armstrong? Jimi Hendrix? The Byrds? The Stones? Pink Floyd? Eric Clapton?
Hmm…I can’t seem to find that on the AMA’s website.
Just to throw my two cents in…I do not think that smoking makes you a bad person, as long as it isn’t negatively effecting (affecting?) your life, which according to the OP it isn’t. I also don’t see why it can’t just be legalized already. I don’t even smoke, but I think its stupid that its such a taboo in our culture. I mean, if people can’t even get a drug for legitimate medical purposes, there is a real problem there.
Also, I love that the ad at the bottom of the page is for “healthy snack ideas” heh
Affecting. See Hostile’s Handy Homonym Helper:
Some people have found it helpful to keep this on an index card by their computer. (I’m serious.)
ETA: I left out the noun form of affect because it has nothing to do with the three words listed in the H4, and can only serve to confuse the issue.
Why do you automatically conflate being high with escaping reality? Pot’s effects vary depending on the individual, and for a great many, it’s simply a very relaxing feeling.
I find this statement hilarious in its wrongness.
I’m not “precisely myself” after three cups of coffee, either. Do you look down on that? I also wonder just how many stoned people you’ve interacted with without even knowing it. Hell, there have been times that I’ve walked up to police officers and asked directions or exchanged pleasantries mere minutes after smoking (and, unlike the OP, properly neutralizing the odor) with them none the wiser.
So, to recap, even though you readily admit your views are “a little skewed” and “a little prejudiced,” and that everything about the OP seems like someone who is not a bad person in any way, and is even worthy of being applauded for his accomplishments, you still think less of him. Is that a fair assessment?
When I recognize that my own views are skewed and prejudiced, I try to work on changing them. You, however, seem content to go through life with an outlook that you know for a fact is prejudicial primarily because you can’t understand why other people enjoy something you don’t. You make up flimsy justifications for doing so. And you seem to be making absolutely no effort to change any of this.
Then you complain that other people are avoiding reality…
FYI, it’s been my experience that people who drink recreationally do so for the buzz, not strictly the taste. They want to relax a bit, and alcohol is their drug of choice.
It’s understandable that your view of pot is colored by your past experience with it - kind of like me and Scotch - you didn’t enjoy it, why would anyone else?
To the OP: you sure are a busy fellow, to work fifty hours a week, attend college, attend church every weekend, swim laps at the Y three times a week, and run a mile before work every morning. No wonder you smoke! 
This is definitely true. I find this to be especially true of people who feel the need to keep explaining why their vice is under control when you haven’t brought up the topic.
There’s nothing inherently immoral about pot smoking. But depending on where you are there can definitely be a stigma, and it’s not at all surprising that a priest would have preconceived notions about it. It can also be the victim of stigma-by-association for those who don’t like pothead slacker stereotypes, or youths, or black people, or New Yorkers, or Kevin Smith and connect the two in their minds.
The bigger issue than immorality is harm to self and harm to others. Every day does seem a little excessive, but YMMV. Anything to excess can cause problems with something that’s otherwise benign or beneficial (btw 50 hours of work plus classes really? do you sleep? no wonder you toke lol). There’s also a kind of emotional danger in “putting all one eggs in one basket” if one relies on any one thing too much for happiness at the expense of both diversity of experience and of putting too much of an emotional investment in one thing. There’s the danger of confusing love and enjoyment with habit and attachment. And as stated above, the habit could have unintended affects on those close to you without you being aware of them. If you smoke in front of others, this might bother them or make them feel uncomfortable for a variety of reasons, some legitimate and some not. Also, you may behave differently under the influence in a way that makes others uncomfortable without realizing it. Especially in that while always being in a good mood may seem like a good thing to you, people whose moods are artificially enhanced can seem overly happy and friendly in a way that is scary and creepy to others (see “The Happy Drunk”).
But again, YMMV. Ask the two or three people in your life who you care most about, spend the most time with, and who’s lives would be most impacted by the way you live yours. Ask open-endedly (no leading questions), and really listen. Then you’ll have the answer that is most appropriate to your situation.
You clearly have no idea what marijuana is actually supposed to be about. I pity you, for you have been robbed of one of life’s classic pleasures.
Not to mention that true cannabis aficionados (of which there are many in my neck of the woods) have an appreciation for the look, feel, taste and smell of different strains of sensemilla. People have been known to argue over prices based on these factors, and to spend significant amounts of time expounding upon those factors for different blends. Not to mention that cannabis, as I mentioned upthread, often has an effect of intensely heightening one’s appreciation for the arts in general. I, for one, love smoking up and watching French film.
Really, it’s the same for alcohol, cannabis, tobacco, coffee, tea, food: some people take it for the effects, and others learn to appreciate it.
Alcohol is seriously more dangerous then pot both physically and the effects that it has on society.
Wasn’t there a thread recently about some bloke being condemned by his minister for wanking?
These religious leaders who come out with this ill informed twaddle are clearly so out of touch with sane society that they are not fit to dish out advice to those poor souls who have been brought up to revere their wisdom.
They seem to do little or no good and far too much needless harm.
How would his minister know that?