MEET JANE DOE: SHE'S 100 - AND STONED

Meet Jane Doe. She's a spry, kindly woman who turned 100 today.

Jane credits her long life to her deep faith – she attends church
regularly. She takes a two-mile walk each morning, and she likes to knit
and read. By the way, she smokes two marijuana joints a day.

If today were Feb. 26, 2060, and a recent report pans out, Jane Doe might
turn out to be your typical baby-boom centenarian.

According to the Associated Press, pot use is rising among the nation's
elderly, and the trend could continue as baby boomers transition from
middle to old age.

The AP reported that that the number of people 50 and older who use
marijuana grew from 1.9 percent to 2.9 percent between 2002 and 2008. The
biggest rise was in people 55 to 59-years old, where pot use has gone from
1.6 percent to 5.1 percent.

We can't say we're surprised, nor can we say we're happy. After all, the
baby boom generation announced itself by loudly demanding its Maypo, and
then graduated to fancy toys, cars, sex, drugs and mutual funds that would
grow forever.

But we have to ask: Doesn't anyone remember St. Paul's comment about
putting away our "childish things," or the fact that pot is still illegal,
and its marketing and distribution produces pain, violence and misery for
thousands of people?

We suspect the trend is going against us. Massachusetts has decriminalized
the personal use of marijuana, and Los Angeles reportedly has more medical
marijuana clinics than Starbucks.

And it looks as though marijuana can ease the pain of cancer patients and
people with other ailments.

Who knows? By the time Jane Doe really turns 100, pot may be legal and our
great-grandchildren will be wondering what the fuss was about.

Still, we prefer to face our golden years with the grace and dignity that
befits our age and not with a joint and a brownie.