If you have not seen the documentary film, “The Culture High,” make it a point to do so.
Ostensibly it is the story of America’s changing attitudes about marijuana, but I think at a much deeper level it is an indictment of the ignorance and hypocrisy surrounding what is called America’s “war on drugs.” It has its bias, but the information is reliable.
First the ignorance.
Evidence shows that marijuana is NOT an entry level drug leading to worse drug use and eventual addiction, nor is it listed as a cause of drug related deaths by the Center for Disease Control, but people still believe otherwise.
Evidence shows that more deaths are caused by prescription drugs than all other illegal drugs, drugs the pharmaceutical industry makes billions of dollars selling, but few people think about the abuse of prescription drugs being a serious problem.
Evidence shows that alcohol poisoning causes on average six deaths every day, or some 2200 per year, but few people think about alcohol itself being dangerous.
Evidence shows that the medical benefits of marijuana are real, but most politicians and public leaders insist that this argument has been fabricated by people who just want to smoke pot legally, and the public believes them because at this point in our collective life too many Americans listen more to opinions than facts.
Evidence shows that America’s war on drugs launched under the Nixon administration in 1971 has thus far been an abject failure.
The reason is obvious. It has been waged against the wrong enemy. Smoke a joint and you’re in the joint, which makes for good statistics, but does nothing about the sale of hard drugs.
Making matters worse is the fact that money is also driving the war on drugs, what with police departments getting millions of dollars from the federal government to get rid of marijuana, money they are not about to give up now.
Adding to that is the growing privatized prison system that has turned incarceration into a prisoner-for-profit industry. More prisoners equals more money, and marijuana convictions are a primary source of revenue.
I could go on, but you get the point. Now for the hypocrisy.
Every president since Nixon has known the truth about marijuana, but also knew that because of public ignorance about it, telling the truth would not pay politically.
Worse, the last three presidents – Clinton, Bush, Obama – have all admitted they smoked pot when they were young (Bush even did cocaine).
Had they been caught and convicted under the laws they have supported, not one of them would have become president.
The hypocrisy is appalling.
Then there is the fact that the most harmless drug around – marijuana – is illegal, but the drug that is wrecking havoc in people’s lives and costing the country billions of dollars annually – alcohol – is legal everywhere.
More than that, when kids get caught drinking none of them is sent to prison for it, even when they buy beer for somebody else, but they had better not get caught using or sharing marijuana.
Maybe more appalling than anything is the fact that people will sit around and talk about how worried they are about drugs in schools while having a drink!
As I said, the hypocrisy is appalling.
So what can we do? Here are seven steps that could be taken that have the potential of addressing this crisis.
First, we should admit our hypocrisy in supporting laws that allow us to enjoy and profit from the legal sale of alcohol while kids get arrested and jailed for smoking pot.
Second, we should support making the sale of marijuana legal and governed by the same laws that regulate the sale and use of alcohol. We don’t send kids to jail for having a beer. The same standard should apply to smoking pot.
Third, the medical benefits of medical marijuana should become a priority in research funded by tax revenue from the sale of alcohol and marijuana, as well as research on the effects of alcohol use.
Fourth, the medical community should recognize the problem of over-prescribing addictive drugs and take steps to stem the rising tide of prescription related deaths.
Fifth, we should insist that politicians and police put time and money into fighting the sale and use of hard drugs that really are the danger rather than promoting their success in making marijuana arrests.
Sixth, adults can face up to the fact that the difference between having a drink and smoking a joint is social acceptability, except that alcohol is a lot more dangerous for you. Essentially a pot party and a “social” are the same thing, it’s just that the former appeals to young people and the latter appeals to their parents.
Seven, as individuals we could recognize the obvious, that life really does not consist in the abundance of things, despite what our consumer society wants us to believe.
Such recognition might lead people to find meaning to their lives outside of the possession of things, which in turn might mean fewer and fewer people will try to escape from life through the use of some kind of drug.
Whether or not any of these steps will be taken, or help if they are, remains to be seen, but this much I am sure of.
The pressure to legalize marijuana is a perfect time for all of us to become a lot more informed and a lot less hypocritical about the actual social and personal impact drug use and abuse are having in our country, and the reasons why.
Maybe it’s not just the future of our kids at stake here. It may be the future of all of us.
linnposts.com 
I am “shocked, shocked,” to learn that there is hypocrisy in America!
In America, no surprise, it’s all about the money! I read recently that a 1974 DEA marijuana study on rats, done to support the case it causes or worsens cancer, actually supported the opposite; rats with tumors got better! The study was defunded and the records sealed.
Not only does the cancer wing of the health industry, as well as Big Pharma, not want marijuana’s inexpensive cancer curing abilities cutting into their multibillion dollar industries but neither do the private prison industries or the well funded law enforcement agencies who police it. It seems to me alcohol’s negative effects actually nurture all of those as well but at a slower pace. However, as you highlight, It’s the untrue and manipulated information, and, resulting prejudicial laws on pot vs. alcohol that creates the difference in daily treatment of users.
Now, during these days of tight state budgets, maybe the financial incentives to states for legalizing marijuana will tip the scales significantly in its favor. After Colorado’s first year of legalized pot they’ve racked up $1 billion dollars in sales, gained $110 million in taxes and earmarked $30 million of that for schools!
Perhaps it will be the financial incentives which lead to more just outcomes for citizens on this particular issue nationwide.
If the trend does spread I just hope it doesn’t get swallowed and controlled by the pharmaceutical industry!
Thank you for this post.
Nice post Jan. It’s taken me a long time to get to that perspective. I’m still troubled though by the frequency of use which, though not a gateway drug, I think does cause an unhealthy dependency. But I guess that’s an issue of excess not simple use which can be a problem for most things, except for golf.
Wilbur, I am not advocating the use of marijuana, only that it be made legal and treated the same way alcohol is. The myths around marijuana have been a major reason it hasn’t been up to now. Free flowing alcohol, but illegal marijuana is a contradiction that needs to be corrected. That is all I am advocating.
With alcohol, there are legal limits to drinking: getting picked up (driving in particular) and taking a breatholizer test can land you in legal trouble, mostly for the impact drinking can cause for OTHER PEOPLE. Same rules need to apply to drug use of any kind; it can/does impact others. Never in a positive way, always negatively.
I understand Jan and I’m in agreement with you totally. On a twisted, lighter side, I remember an interview I heard on NPR where a young man was asked why he was applying for a medical pot license. He said because of his anxiety. When asked what caused his anxiety, he replied, fear of not being able to get pot.
I can’t top that one!
I agree with wilressler concerning the frequency and the subsequent (psychological) dependency. I would add the potential paranoia/ schizophrenia-causing factor for some users. Besides scientific research, folks should consider the opinions of drug counselors and parents who have seen first hand the damage pot does–especially when used consistently by young teenagers. I know that teachers, for instance–who deal with kids smoking before school, who come to school high and cannot focus/learn, become unmotivated and whose undeveloped brains are seriously damaged by pot– would disagree with you about the dangers. I agree that alcohol is a huge problem as well, but that doesn’t lessen the dangers of pot–for both the user and the people who have to deal with the users(consider DWIs). I also agree that there is hypocrisy, but the solution to me is easy: take a hot bath/meditate/do good deeds/exercise and avoid alcohol, legal and illegal drugs altogether and the whole country would be better off. Idealistic, I know, but because I don’t drink or use drugs, I can honestly state my opinions without fear of being a hypocrite.
Thanks for the comment, Kay. You, Wilbur, and I are actually on the same page. I am totally against teenagers smoking pot, but I feel the same way about them drinking. My issue is that marijuana is illegal and so the consequences for kids and everyone else of getting caught with it have been out of proportion to its actual dangers. Legalization and regulation are the only way to stop ruining kids lives with laws that make them criminals when they are just being kids. The bottom line for me is that marijuana and alcohol should be mostly left to parents and kids to work out, not the police.
I agree, Jan, but I know first hand hand that the only thing keeping some kids from using/experimenting is the fact that it is illegal. If it became legal, I am afraid usage would become even more widespread and we would have more mental health issues associated with drug usage than we do now. I agree that imprisonment is not acceptable for small time users, but for illegal dealers–yes! And kids would get around any regulations for legal sales.
I’m with Kay in her opinions. I’m old as dirt, grew up on farm where first thing was to feed the livestock before breakfast. Summertime we were on the tractor in the fields pulling plow, drag, combine, and hay baler. No time for ANY tomfollery. Too tired in the evening for anything but big plate of meat and potatoes, clean up some, and get to sleep before starting all over the next day. We had too much work to do. Kids today have “nothing to do” they try to say. Well, I don’t think that’s true; I think they aren’t using their brains very well to be positively productive, and turn to “feeling good” if you can call it that. It just doesn’t make sense to drink or smoke pot; only bad things result from usage. Groups like scouting and 4-H help young kids have a group to “belong” to. Later sports or academic clubs can get them socially introduced to good behavior. Better things to do with your life than drinking and smoking. I tried drinking sometime between 18 and 30 and figured it wasn’t any fun, and that I could have more fun by being “real” without any crutch.