I help disdvantaged kids from backgrounds of chronic and extreme abuse, with extreme behavioural problems.

I have personally been involved with many drug addicted parents, I have seen heroin and methamphetamine addiction up close and personal, I have lived with such people.

I can tell you that all the kids that I have told marijuana is safe, are now only smoking marijuana and not using other drugs. All the kids that have just used marijuana are all doing well.

The kids that are basically doomed are the ones that started inject meth from around 12 years of age, in fact the youngest girl I’ve known who inject meth was 10 years of age, her mum used to whack it up her arm.

Most of these kids have seen first hand the extreme damage of drugs such as methamphetamine and alcohol. But they have observed that adults don’t become nutty when on pot.

From their own observations they have chosen pot, though I have sort to further develop and educate their perspectives on this.

I can honestly say that all the kids that have been directed to pot, are all doing quite well.

I used to give pot to kids I saw inhaling solvents and butane gas, because its much safer. Those kids stopped doing that and are now using pot.

People need to understand that when kids have been brought up by chronic drug addicts, and have chronic emotional problems from their abuse / neglect, that they are chronically predisposed to the idea of using substances to feel “better”. If they didn’t smoke pot, they would have gone onto alcohol, and like eventually graduated to other drugs.

I don’t think marijuana is ideal for teenagers. Some of them do it too much, and get lazy and don’t do much else, but this is actually the exception to the rule by my observation. Its really a behavioural issue, just like I know various teenagers that waste their lives doing nothing else but playing computer games (indeed various teenagers I know both smoke lots of pot AND play lots of computer games).

The biggest gateway effect of pot, is that kids are being given false demonized information about cannabis, they soon realize this is bullshit (and this is honestly what most kids think, including ones subjected to anti-drug education). They then get cynical about other drugs being dangerous and try them also- this is the biggest risk.

While I believe if it was sold at every super market and glamorized in TV advertisements that usage would rise, I don’t believe usage would rise if it was legalized and treated in a restricted / discreet way (no advertising), age restrictions on sale, not available everywhere only special stores with no outside advertising.
I believe usage would go down. It doesn’t matter though for every kid that chose pot over alcohol or other drugs, one life has had a better outcome.

However when organizations such as DFA, try to demonize the only safe drug- marijuana. I take issue.

There is no HARD EVIDENCE linking marijuana to mental illness of any sort, though it is known to potentially trigger panic attacks in some people (who have had too much), but this is temporarily and not directly caused by the drug (its a psychological reaction, not a biochemical reaction. I know I used to get it, but you can train yourself out it in most cases).

A lot of research has discredited much of the apparent claims of marijuana causing mental illness, but of course such research is basically snobbed. There is a dominant western culture of bias against marijuana, we see a rebellion against this in place like California, where many doctors are sticking up for the safety of marijuan.

I don’t have a problem with it being made only available medically, though I believe the criteria should not be strict, it should be up to the individual opinion of any given doctor, and it should be possible in some cases to get marijuana even for certain psychiatric problems, and alcoholism. We don’t want it just available to a select list of patients with extreme conditions. The decision of whether it is useful or not should be between a patient and his doctor- not the state.

Smoking marijuana is bad for your lungs, but generally not in the same league as tobacco smoking.

It does not damage your organs or brain. The vast majority of people do not experience problems with cannabis, and when people feel they experience problems, the reality is these are usually much milder than say for example troubles caused by alcohol.

Marijuana is MUCH safer than alcohol. Marijuana is safe for adults over 21 without a diagnosis or family history of psychotic illness. Some caution should be exercised in people with anxiety disorders, though some of such people feel marijuana helps- I myself am included as I used to suffer from multple panic attacks every day.

Marijuana has never made me feel suicidal, aggressive or depressed. Alcohol most certainly has, and as a former severe alcoholic, I almost died from my alcoholism- marijuana was what helped me get completely away from alcohol (its been over 10 years now).

FUCK people that think I should not be allowed to have marijuana, it has probably saved my life, by being the only thing that could pull me away from my compulsion to drink. I have also experienced insomnia my whole life since a child (I was taken to various doctors for insomnia even as a child). Marijuana defeated my alcoholism, helps with my diagnosed anxiety and depression (I have been hospitalized for major depression, but not in the 10 years I have been smoking pot).

While I think people need to be responsible, mature and informed in regards to whether consuming marijuana is right for them, I honestly believe marijuana is not an EVIL drug, but a good drug. I view it with affection, and I completely trust the substance. I have smoked with thousand of people and I have NEVER seen a person become psychotic on weed, except for people that were psychotic BEFORE they started using weed.

Papa bear.

I also remember a time in NSW when more than a couple of drug rehab programs were run like cults. One of the reasons the field embraced training and professionalism was to avoid a reoccurance of similar situations. Now it seems the field has come full circle. With DFA, the Scientologist and a number of others declaring that they alone have “the answer” the drug problem and receiving govt funds.

More than once I have sought advice via the ADCA Update on how to address the needs of clients who have experienced permanent psychological, physical and sexual harm inflicted by the religions of which they had been members.

I believe that the basic training of D&A counsellors should include “exit” counselling, because so much of our work includes trying to help people heal from some of the “help” they have received in the past.

Gayle

I am willing to bet that those professionals who intervene and cause trouble for FASD sufferers also support faith based initiatives and ‘tough love’ treatment for drug addicts.

Terry, this unfortunately is not always the case. Professionals unfortunately are not always more knowledgeable than the parents. Take FASD for example – here in Australia the majority of ATODS professionals (or other health professionals for that matter) know very little about the impact of FASD or how to deal with a client who has FASD. Because of their lack of knowledge their intervention often exacerbates the clients condition. It is the parents who have done the research, read the scientific papers and attended the international conferences and it is the parents who have become the information source for the providers rather than the other way round. This is an untenable situation.

I have many friends whose drug use over the years would make you cringe with fear that society is crumbling. But generally speaking most people in their early 20′s who flirt with drugs will grow out of it with no ill effects, just like those who continue. Use of illegal drugs should not be a crime, and in some cases is less dangerous than smoking or drinking. Or eating peanuts.

Many drug users whom I know have important, extremely well paid jobs.

And all of them can make a better argument than you.

Each and every argument you make is shown to be wrong. You have only provided more sanctimonious dribble to be disproved once again. How about dealing with the first lot of lies.

“Anyone knowing anything about the drug recovery process understands at least the following salient points”

This simply sums up that your idea of drug treatment is confined to a small group of misguided, arrogant, selfish, ignorant, agenda driven, reality absent, non-medical, holier-than-thou zealots. You people are the parasites of the ‘junkie industry’ being that you do not contribute any scientific, psychiatric or medical input. You survive only by introducing an extra variable called morality that is not even part of this medical issue. The point is, you’re irrelevant and only exist because you have forced your way in by playing on the public’s ignorance and fear.

I must admit though, I love your reference to outspoken, right wing ultra-conservative and HR critic David Berner as some sort of proof for your argument. Canada’s own Andrew Bolt/Tim Blair. Even better are the references to Canadian Health Minister Tony Clement. Now he’s a winner. LOL.

These people are as deceitful as you. Saying “the vast majority of injections still take place in back alleys and seedy hotels” when Insite can only service 5% of the injecting population is just typical. Also saying “The centre’s $3-million annual cost would be better spent elsewhere” is not true because Insite has been deemed a success. Or “We recognize that the best recovery programs are those like AA, which cost very little money and large investments of time and effort by people who care and people who KNOW THE TERRITORY”. Or “If all of that money or even a small portion of it were dedicated to treatment, our addiction problems would be considerably relieved”. All not true thus all are lies. I can see a pattern here.

I could go on for hours.

I think this following sentence sums up your selfish ideology you try to pass off as caring for the drug addicted.

“I would argue that to a large degree, the addict is unable to soberly choose what is right for them anymore. Their loss of dignity and health speaks to that so we must be compassionate and steer them into treatment”.

Interpretation:

An addict is an undignified sinner who is unworthy of respect and must be forced to into abstinence or go to jail (compassionately of course), regardless of the medical research and evidence that they might not be psychologically ready and will most probably relapse.