Proponents for legalizing marijuana have their reasons.
- Pot use, they say, rarely leads to a DUI charge.
- Pot makes people mellow, not aggressive.
- It’s used as a medicine.
- It’s not always a gateway drug.
- And finally, criminalization is a waste of law enforcement resources.
But such reasoning ignores important facts.
For instance, just like the “big, bad” drugs, pot use builds tolerance, creating a need to use more in order to get the same effect. A significant percentage of users lose the ability to moderate intake.
Chronic use dulls thinking, curbs ambition, stifles communication, kills curiosity, leads to lethargy and creates boredom.
Finally, because THC remains in the body so long, regular users are constantly adding new doses to what remains of the last dose.
Regular pot users do everything you do -- drive cars, operate machinery, raise children, negotiate relationships -- but they do it without having a single day when they are truly drug free.
The effects may seem subtle when compared to cocaine or heroin, but the fact is: Marijuana is insidious.
I’m Fred Neuschel, and that’s my perspective.