Four-Twenty...dude!

A new "Church of Cannabis" has sprouted up in Indiana capitalizing on the "religious freedom law" which was a way in which Christians can protect their religion. My argument there was asking how supporters for those laws feel if Muslims, based on their religious tenets, did not do what they felt went against their religion. For instance,a married cab driver not picking up a drunk person of the opposite sex which would infringe upon two of their devout beliefs. Most would not go for that and be angrily against it.

My first thought upon reading this heading for this church was, "Oh my God!" Not because of any religious stand point, but because of the War on Drug, there has been an annoying marijuana that has derived from it.

I support the drug's legalization for many obvious reasons but like any other drug, I absolutely feel that our country needs to change its attitude on drugs before real change can take effect. There are myriad proven benefits for marijuana, MDMA, psilocibin, DMT, mescaline, etc, in the right environment, with the right intentions. But just because of those reasons, I do not feel that they should be allowed to be free and open. People need to be educated about them and make informed decisions and should not be allowed for teens whose brains are still developing and, at those ages, whose brains form addictions. Added to these reasons (which can be delved into way further) our country has an immature view towards things such as these just as they do towards alcohol and sex and look at those impacts on our culture.

That is the thing that made me feel "Oh my God" about the heading in the article because of the culture's attitude towards pot and pot is a plant teacher and there are religions based around them which could enhance religion to a better understanding in the ways in which they should be practiced before they became organized and politicized and makes much more sense in the ways in which religious traditions came out of.

...and that brings up the uninformed annoyance which accompanies most opponents of pot (or other drugs) legalization. One of which said, "'What's next?...The church of crack? The church of heroin? It's a mockery to Christianity.'"

No! Organized and Westerners' views on drugs and their versions of Christianity are the problems. First of all, if they understood the drug itself, one could not compare them to synthesized, deadly drugs such as crack and heroin which, contrary to their scheduling in our drug enforcement's minds, are completely different and have no spirituality associated to them, nor has marijuana had such an addictive, destructive, or deadly history. Added to that, if you look at real history and evolution and progression, one would see natural drugs development of our societies and culture and makes much more sense when one reads the religious stories before its politicization, manipulation, and fundamentalist interpretations.

This attitude allows many lives to be destroyed while being open to pharmaceuticals, which are just legalized versions of these other ones, which are the ones which are destroying people while other industries and people are profiting in the billions. Then one needs to understand the drug-trade in Mexico which is existing because of our people...

This discussion can go on forever, but until we re-adjust our brains and educate ourselves more (on whatever side of the spectrum one is) we cannot have a real, progressive discussion about drugs, alcohol, sex, and the other problems our country pretends we do not have.