A new study released this week concluded that teens who routinely smoke marijuana risk a long-term drop in their IQ. The study drew on survey data from more than 1,000 people in New Zealand. (The study did not say why Kiwis were chosen for the study; maybe all of the Amsterdam folks were sleeping it off.)
If one reads the headlines on this study, the quick and easy takeaway is that smoking pot makes you dumber. Therefore, it's bad for you, and young people should not smoke it.
Fine...but why be so limiting? The whole truth is, teens would be adversely affected by using ANY mind-altering substances.
In America, and I suspect in New Zealand, wouldn't the outcome be the same if youngsters drank alcohol? Or how about if they consistently took anti-anxiety or anti-depression medication? Of course, the answer is yes, a conclusion I reached without using one taxpayer dime to study.
Yet it is completely legal (and prevalent) in this country for kids to take prescription medications that affect brain cells. And while it is illegal for teens to buy / sell / drink alcohol in the U.S., they don't get thrown into jail if they do it, because it's socially acceptable and tolerated.
This is where the anti-marijuana folks get it all wrong. Critical thinkers - like me! - aren't pro-pot; we're pro-decriminalizing pot. We know from a combination of experience and god-given common sense that it isn't any worse, and maybe better for you, than the other legalized mind-altering substances I've mentioned.
Throw in how marijuana decriminalization will save billions in law enforcement, and help the economy in other ways (and I'm not just talking about Doritos consumption), and even a 'dumb' pot smoker can tell you this is a 'no-brainer.'
No comments:
Post a Comment