Would you date a casual pot user? (152)

jac379: Ok. I'll throw a few things into the pot, so to speak.

1. From my understanding and experience, people tend to first smoke pot when they are young. How many youngsters rationally think through the pros and cons of a recreational substance? Its generally not considered a major life choice, any more than your first sip of beer, or learning to drive which has perhaps more potentional to cause harm than the ocassional toke on a reefer at a party.

2. Psychoactive substances such as alcohol have the potential to cause maybe far more harm if misused than pot, but we still do it. There is an issue that you pointed out relating to the illegality of pot - what is the basis for one being legal and the other not? I don't think its to do with the substance, so much as the circumstances of history. There are "acceptable risks" within cultures that maybe not based on rational thought.

3. As with most things that are illegal, or viewed as "naughty", maybe people don't assume they will get caught, whether that's pot, affairs, fraud, tax evasion, whatever. Some like yourself will assess that the risk is too high, others will see negligible risk.

You ask, "what are the pros?".

1. Pot is a way of socialising and relating to other people in the same way that alcohol is. However, its generally unlikely that people under the influence cause as much damage to themselves, or others under the influence of pot, as they are alcohol, simply because of the nature of its psychoactive effects. Whilst I recognise that not all people are mellow stoners, or aggressive drunks, there is this element to both these substances.

2. The psychoactive element particular to pot tends to promote creativity, whether that be artistic, or simply thought processes.

3. Its been cited as a good pain relief and healer. The problem with these claims is that illegality means that standard research methods are not used and information tends to be biased hearsay. Its a shame.

4. You mention people with health issues in your comment. I think psychoactive substance misuse is sometimes related to escapism. If someone has had a painful childhood, or other experiences, any substance legal, or otherwise, might be self-medication. It's then very difficult to assess if an individual's lack of health is to do with their history, possible genetic elements, psychoactive substance misuse, or an intereaction of two, or more factors. You mention turning back the clock to times when things were better and you ask who's babies they were...for some, there were no better times from when they were babies.

I think many people self-medicate with psychoactive substances. Have you never felt too tired to do something and had a cup of tea, or coffee to kick-start yourself? Have you never come home from a bad day at work and poured yourself a glass of wine, or rung a friend to go out for a drink?

For some the illegality is not the issue, its the effect.

And some just really like it.