"Just say no..."

I've discovered that there are a few subjects that people feel really strong about - gays and pot. So today, I want to talk about pot - weed - marijuana... Granted, I've never done drugs - ever. I actually listened to what they said in my high school health class. I figured you only get one life - one brain and one body. You don't have a backup. I think drugs are the bane of our society and they are ruining lives all over the world. I get it that kids want to be rebellious or different. I get it that kids think they are going to live forever. And I get it that kids are immature, and frankly stupid, a lot of the time.

With that in mind, my 9th grader came home on Monday really down. She said after talking in most classes, she realized that most of the school "smokes." When you ask a high schooler if they mean cigarettes, they act like you're the biggest idiot ever. They say that NO one smokes cigarettes, and that THAT is just stupid because it's dangerous. And yet they think weed is just fine. DD said that smoking (weed) is very prevalent, and when she said she does not, she was ridiculed and called "Goody-goody" and "prude." It also seems that NO one waits until they are older to have sex. Even when I raised my older children, it was half and half, but no more. These kids have seen so many sexual references by the time they are in high school, they seem to think that if you don't, you are going to be a nun. I guess I shouldn't be so stunned. It's all they see - there is zero censorship. And unless you have a really strong faith, what is holding them back? They are constantly bombarded in music (and not just hip-hop, it's all over country too), movies, television, magazines, books - pretty much everything.

A report is out today that 7% of all high schoolers in the U.S. smoke weed DAILY. And 38% of 10 graders have tried an illicit drug. It's just all so depressing. The daycares are raising our children, and peer pressure is much more prevalent and important than parental pressure.

Interestingly enough, tobacco and alcohol use are at their lowest levels since they started these surveys in 1975. Teen acceptance of marijuana is being influenced by state legalization for medical use. And since many of the 20 and 30-somethings smoke themselves, they see nothing wrong with it.

My question is, why does everyone want to be high all the time? Is life so terrible that they just want to be high? I just read a few weeks ago that trying marijuana just one time can cause mental illness. It was a scientific fact. I just value my brain more than these idiots. My father had a stroke at 46 years old. He went from genius IQ to a 12 year old mentality.

Some things I guess I'll never understand...