Sunday May 11, 2008, 7:18 am
They say that smoking pot doesnt harm anyone. I disagree. My husband (ex) started smoking it, telling me it wasnt addictive. Within 3 months he had lost his job because he didnt work anymore. He didnt move, didnt think, didnt live - except to smoke pot. Within 2 months after that we had lost everything and were living on the streets, with our 10 month old baby. I have also watched my 50 year old sister smoke pot for years. Its the only thing that matters to her. She wont work, she wont clean, she only reads, plays computer games, and smokes pot. My brother is also a pot smoker. He will steal anything to get it and has also started using meth. He doesnt work either. My ex was smoking crystal meth and doing cocaine before I was able to get away with my baby. He would steal anything, do anything to get the drugs and in my humble opinion it all started with smoking pot. It makes you a non person. You think you are ok but really all you are is a pot smoker. I have watched it ruin many live. It is not a victimless crime like many say. I know I'm going to get flamed for this but dont care. Pot is an evil drug that slowly errodes the brain while making people think they are ok. IMHO Marty

Sunday May 11, 2008, 6:29 pm
This is similar to the question of whether kids are violent because video games, or are kids prone to violence chose to play violent video games.

In what way? Teens prone to mental health issues may self-medicate by smoking marijuana.

Monday May 12, 2008, 6:03 am
I agree. People around me that smoke pot only live for pot. They don't seem like people anymore, they are Zombies.

Monday May 12, 2008, 12:37 pm

- I took 30 pharma pills every day for 30 years for severe manic depression(biolar2)

.. now I take zero pharma pills at all,

.. I smoke pot, and take vitamins. that's it.

my IQ has doulbled, since then

Monday May 12, 2008, 1:03 pm
Does anyone else think it's highly motivational for the National Drug Policy people to commission this study? These will be entirely biased results with no meaning what so ever. Would you trust a study commissioned by Tide to tell you what laundry detergent to buy?

We pump kids full of antidepressants, mood altering drugs and sugar. We think there is something wrong when kids display to much energy, not enough energy, they talk to much, they talk too little etc.. We cannot talk about the harmful effects of pot until we see alcohol and tobacco for the real harmful drugs they are. How many people smoke and get drunk in front of their kids because it's legal? How many kids are getting drunk right now, how many are smoking 25 cigarettes a day or carrying a weapon? Let's focus on the real harms to our kids.

Monday May 12, 2008, 1:10 pm
Very interesting article. I especially like the part that says "Long term studies of high-school students and their patterns of drug use show that very few young people use other illegal drugs without first trying marijuana." HELLO, it would be nice to add to the study caffeine, alcohol, and nicotine, the top three MOST abused drugs in our country. Yes, these are legal, but alcohol and nicotine have as many if not more repurcussions than marijuana, yet people seem to forget about these. And not positive, but pretty sure, most teens started out with cigarettes and beer before they moved onto "harder drugs", with yes, marijuana being most likely the next. I also agree that there are people that have addictive personalities and it doesn't matter what drug of choice they prefer, they will do whatever it takes to get it. On the other side, I have had many friends who all through college smoked pot ( among a portion of many other drugs) and who walked away with 3.8 GPA in Marine Science, meaning classes that dealt with organic chemistry/calculus/oceanography that people who are completely sober can't even pass. I deal with some very smart people who I know smoke pot on a regular basis, and it doesn't affect their work production or daily lives. For them it is no different than drinking a beer everyday after work. As with any other drug, it affects people differently. I don't agree that teens should be self-medicating themselves with any drug, but I also don't agree that all the blame should be put on the so-called "gateway drug" for getting these kids into trouble.

Monday May 12, 2008, 1:10 pm

- thank you Angela,
- Bipolar, is anyone who thinks outside the box.
They didn't like the fact that I thought for myself, and once they get you on more than one drug, its hard to figure anything out.

Most mental problems are vitamin deficiencies, and dehydration. and they are banning vitamins dec. 31 2009,

.. so there won't be much unrestricted thinking going on after that.

Monday May 12, 2008, 3:33 pm
Self-medicating with pot is one thing. This requires a PRE-EXISTING condition (otherwise, what are you medicating yourself for?). However, the White House spun it so to the layperson it sounds like any pot smoking will give your kid mental disorders. NOT!

Monday May 12, 2008, 3:56 pm
The question which needs to be asked here is one of causality. Are teens more likely to be depressed because they are smoking pot, or are they smoking pot because they are more likely to be depressed? Without a doubt, pot smokers, being pushed to the fringes of our society by a "war on drugs", are statistically more likely to be depressed, anti-social, etc. It is also true that certain behaviors and ideations are more likely to occur with an habitual use of a mood altering substance like marijuanna, but the same can be said of sugar, caffeine, nicotine, or sex. We are, fundamentally, creatures of habit, and, when those habits are disrupted, we experience stress which manifests itself as depression (yes, there are other causes too). Stress and depression, however, are motivating forces for positive change. Thus, the question becomes: Are these teens being properly taught to exist within the human experience and respond to motivating forces with sound, productive decisions? It's not their drug of choice we need to worry about; it's how they're taught to choose.

Monday May 12, 2008, 4:30 pm
Love what you said Angela Q. I totally agree 100%. Thanks for this Mairead.

Tuesday May 13, 2008, 8:57 am
Marty you'e entitled to your own opinion and I couldn't agree more. I've watched this substance destroy lives right before my very eyes.

Tuesday May 13, 2008, 12:02 pm
You don't really believe anything that comes out of Washington do you?

Tuesday May 13, 2008, 2:00 pm
It is true tobacco, alcohol and caffeine are the biggest drugs in the world - in fact coffee is the biggest product in the world along with oil, illegal drugs and arms.

It is obvious you all agree - with freedom comes reponsibility. If you want to drink, do not drive. If you want to use drugs, do not hurt your family or others. I believe in freedom - let people do as they wish provided they do not harm others.

Scott, I thank you for your remarks. We are currently in a mental health crises. It is not even known if vaccines cause autism. If we do not know that, how can we say what a drug does? People are different so response to drug might be different.