Red eyes, occasional meta conversations about the universe, and bags of potato chips strewn across the floor: the calling cards of a college stoner.
Marijuana is the most commonly abused illicit drug in the United States, according to drugabuse.gov. The drug is part of Schedule I, along with other drugs like heroin and ecstasy, making it more illegal and "more dangerous" than Schedule II drugs, like cocaine and morphine.
Last time I checked, stoners don't go around cracked out, eliciting sexual favors for a dime bag.
But the U.S. government has been trying to demonize the drug even before it was made completely illegal by the Comprehensive Drug Abuse Prevention and Control Act of 1970.
Here is a great timeline of quotes about the drug:
"Marijuana leads to pacifism and communist brainwashing," said Federal Bureau of Narcotics Chief Harry J. Anslinger in 1948.
Oh yeah, Harry?
"I now have absolute proof that smoking even one marijuana cigarette is equal in brain damage to being on Bikini Island during an H-bomb blast," said former president Ronald Reagan.
"Marijuana leads to homosexuality…and therefore to AIDS," said White House Drug Czar Carlton Turner in 1986.
Didn't know there was a correlation, Turner.
In 1937, because of the film Reefer Madness, the majority of the American population became convinced that smoking marijuana directly caused insanity. There was no truth in the movie; it wasn't based on any real facts – usually stoners don't beat people to death, nor laugh as they watch it happen – yet it terrified the public enough to demand war.
Being one of the most used recreational drugs in college, all you have to do is walk down any dorm hallway on campus, or take a stroll through University Heights and you can catch a whiff of weed.
Whether students are putting towels under their doors and bags over their fire alarms in their dorm rooms, or relaxing in the comfort of their own apartments' living rooms, stoners find a way around the rules.
My favorite Above the Influence commercial has to be with the two girls – one of them is normal, and the other is just a melted body, only able to move her eyes. Of course a close ringer is the one where a teenager steals money from her mom's purse, until her talking dog tells her how disappointed he is in her. Really now? Seriously; a talking dog?
But the times, they are-a changin'.
As medical marijuana is becoming legalized in certain states, the general public's opinion has changed from demonization to acceptance – begrudgingly or otherwise.
I've seen the positive effects of weed personally. My father was diagnosed with cancer when I was in high school. After going through chemotherapy he wouldn't eat – couldn't eat. As New York doesn't have medical marijuana laws, he didn't have legal access to it. But his work colleagues found weed, and brought him dozens of brownies.
Because of pot brownies my dad had a respite from his constant pain of cancer, and he was actually able to eat.
So the U.S government is trying to tell us that alcohol – which kills around 50,000 people each year from alcohol poisoning – is less dangerous than weed, a medicinal herb that helps cancer, HIV, and glaucoma patients?
If you're not in-the-know in the marijuana community, or if you don't scour the Trees subreddit page, a new study has confirmed that the smoking of cannabis is not harmful to health.
The 20-year study, done at the University of California and the University of Alabama, states:
"Smoking marijuana once a week doesn't harm the lungs." The study also stated that, "the analyses showed pot didn't appear to harm lung function, but cigarettes did," according to KSBW, a California television station.
Of course there are still inherent risks in smoking weed.
It's true: the munchies are an epidemic. When high, resist the urge to order the 5-5-5 deal from Dominos at all costs. Sounds like a good idea, but trust me, you're going to regret it three hours later.
Email: lyzi.white@ubspectrum.com
