I have never been considered a “bad” person. Yes, like most people I did get into trouble as a teenager, but I have no criminal record and received straight A's all through school. I recycle, compost and try to limit my use of electricity. But, like a lot of people that I know, I break the law every day. I smoke marijuana and have since I was twelve years old.

Every day I hear more and more about the war on drugs. Both in the United States and here in Canada. When I turn on the news there is usually a story of a house being raided by the RCMP and marijuana plants being found and taken. Keep in mind that I said marijuana, not cocaine or anything else. Only recently have there been stories of cocaine, crack and ecstasy. The majority of arrests though, are over marijuana. In the Unites Sates the DEA considers one marijuana plant equal to one kilo of marijuana (personally I know this isn't true, but we'll let that slide for now). Sentencing in the US can range from five to forty years. Now, that one plant that I mentioned, remember him? Oh you bet your sweet behind that it's included in the five to forty (which is a load of b.s as far as I'm concerned). Thankfully I live in Canada and our sentencing is much lighter.

Back to this “war on drugs” thing... what exactly is this war for? Answer... to make the government more money. They spend billions (that's with a B not an M) on anti drug marketing that normally consists of some crappy commercial where some chick is telling me that my brain is an egg. Guess what sweetness, I've been smoking it since the age of twelve and my brain is just fine. So these billions are spent on these b.s commercials (usually aimed towards marijuana smokers) and then they get the money back by throwing people in prison. But these prisons are getting more full by the minute and the “bad guys” aren't even the ones being locked up. Most of the people in prison for drugs are non-violent and just users of the substance. So now all of these non-violent drug users are getting locked up and cocaine, hash and other substances are getting harder to find and more expensive for synthetic substances are being cooked up instead. My opinion is that if it isn't natural, then it can't be good for you. Thanks to the government though, this is what it has come down to and they can't really make it illegal to purchase baking soda or cough medicine.

The funny thing about all of this is that marijuana is ranked as lethal as cocaine, crack, speed and methanphedimines. Who in the hell came up with this? They obviously never smoked it before making their decision. The most that is going to happen when you smoke weed is that you're going to feel really relaxed and mellow and possibly a little hungry. Alcohol is worse than this stuff! So why isn't it ranked up there with the rest? Or even cigarettes. There are over 200 toxins in those things! Marijuana has grown naturally since the beginning of time, from the earth, so what's so wrong with it? Should we not eat potatoes anymore either? We really need smarter people controlling these decisions or at least people who have tried it. I personally believe that if it were not for the United States government that marijuana would be legalized here in Canada or at least decriminalized. The DEA has an office in Ottawa, why? They have nothing to do with our laws, yet their presence is somewhat influencing Canadian policy. In reality, nobody here really cares about marijuana until the US is involved. Like the Prince of Pot for example. Anytime that he appeared in the major media in the US, he was raided. Yet he can smoke it and put it all over the CBC and nobody gives a damn (I find this absolutely hilarious).

Political and government officials believe that there are no “soft” or “hard” drugs and that they are all one in the same. Well then, if we're going to do that then let's not forget alcohol, cigarettes and pharmaceutical drugs. Oh of course, nobody would ever think to look at our doctors as drug dealers. As a teenager I was diagnosed with depression and the very first thing that my doctor offered me was oxycontin. Thankfully I knew what it was and told him to shove it. Oxycontin is harder to quit than heroin is and look at how many people have over dose on that. Guess what I did to help cure my depression... I smoked more marijuana. The Canadian government really should legalize it, then they could tax the hell out of it and it would still be great for us because the price would be about the same. Then there wouldn't be anymore dry seasons and there would be more of a selection. Now let's quickly look at the cons.... your lungs will look like that of a smoker (only if you choose to smoke it and not absorb it in some other form). Seems like that's the only con.

Really, I guess that a lot of it has to do with where you come form and what you know about it. Where we are, on July 1st of each year we celebrate Cannabis Day on the commons. Hundreds of us gather to smoke marijuana and protest the fact that it's illegal. This doesn't bother the city as long as there is no violence. In a way, we're kind of like Amsterdam in the way that we accept the use and tolerate it. We should do like they have and just legalize the organic drugs.

There is belief that marijuana causes substantial harm to our youth. There is no documentation of any harm caused to anybody just because they decided to smoke a joint. I want to see the evidence that marijuana causes harm. They've stated their case, and now they should have to prove it. An argument that I hear quite often is that it kills brain cells. If it does than it must only be the bad ones because as I stated before, I was a straight A student, and there are many intelligent people who smoke marijuana.

There are also people who have tried marijuana, or who know people that have, and are also for the decriminalization or it. Now they don't smoke it, but they know that effects that it has on people. There is a leader of a political party in my area who is for it as well. This is because they know how it can be used for may reasons including medicinal purposes. I know people with fibromyalsia that smoke it once in a while to help ease the pain. My husband has a crooked spine and it helps with the pain as well. I use it any time that I have pain because I hate taking anything that isn't organic (I also smoke it because I like to smoke it). The thing is, it's all-natural and has to be healthier than anything man made.

There are many reasons for marijuana to be decriminalized, and for it to not be ranked in with crack and other substances. I could go on for days really. Show me proof of it's negative effects on people and maybe then I'll believe you, but probably not because I always have been and always will be in love with sweet Mary Jane.

---If It Grows In The Ground Leave It Alone