LEGALIZING DRUGS COULD RING DEATH TOLL FOR COUNTRY

Even in the "me" society we live in, it's shocking that anyone would believe
that legalizing drugs is an answer to anything.

President-elect Barack Obama admits that while he supports
legalization of medical marijuana, he is concerned that the "reasons
for the use of marijuana would grow and create a 'slippery slope,'"
according to a Nov. 24 NBC report.

Think about it.

In a country that is increasingly more concerned about its own
comforts and pleasure than it is in its physical, mental and spiritual
health, those slippery slopes are present in every aspect of life.
There are even arguments for limiting individuals in what they consume
- - whether it be food, beverage or medication.

Drugs, however, are a completely different animal because they can
actually alter the chemicals in the brain. Have you ever heard someone
say "his brain is fried on drugs"? That's because it can happen.

Some supporters attempt to draw parallels between legalizing alcohol
and legalizing drugs. Author Theodore Dalrymple, who has written
several books on the subject of a failing society, says the argument
is inexact and false. "It is one thing to attempt to ban a substance
that has been in customary use for centuries by at least nine-tenths
of the adult population, and quite another to retain a ban on
substances that are still not in customary use, in an attempt to
ensure that they never do become customary," he wrote in a 1997
article in CITY Journal.

"If the war against drugs is lost, then so are the wars against theft,
speeding, incest, fraud, rape, murder, arson and illegal parking. Few,
if any, such wars are winnable. So let us all do anything we choose,"
Dalrymple wrote.

His theory is that societies always find ways to make the unthinkable
into something thinkable and then move on to making these same things
doable.

Right now, legalizing meth, cocaine and heroin are unthinkable to most
people. Some of these same people believe differently about legalizing
marijuana.

If you're not under the influence of a mind-altering chemical, think
about this.

Although proponents of legalizing marijuana claim it is not a "gateway
drug," it usually is the first one young people use when experimenting
with drugs. It is often while under the influence of marijuana that
young adults are lured into trying other more harmful drugs. According
to the National Institute on Drug Abuse, "Research has shown that
marijuana's adverse impact on learning and memory can last for days or
weeks after the acute effects of the drug wear off. As a result,
someone who smokes marijuana every day may be functioning at a
suboptimal intellectual level all of the time."

NIDA, which studies the science of drug abuse and addiction, says
there are studies that show links between marijuana use and increased
rates of anxiety, depression, suicide and schizophrenia. The study,
which was updated in June 2008, goes on to list the adverse effects of
the drug use on family life, the lungs and the heart.

Are we still talking about that "safe" drug, marijuana?
Yes.

Now think about this if you're a parent of a high school
student.

At least 40 percent of all high school seniors have experimented with
the drug, according to the NIDA research.

If you didn't know about that, what else don't you know
about?

It's unthinkable.