“There are as many schools of thought as there are fishes in the sea. If another fish smokes pot, that’s okay with me.”

            -Ope

Mere months into the legalization of marijuana in Missouri, it’s as if we’ve entered into a brave new world. Change is in the air—change, and a lot else, mind you. It’s still strange, so many people reeking of weed in public these days. Or being able to drive down the road without fear of getting pulled over and the state trooper finding that little roach you lost beneath the seat a while back. At the very least, a certain sect of people no longer live in fear of being themselves. Regardless of your own personal ethics concerning pot, that’s progress.

Speaking of different schools of thought, a topic that has always interested me is the ‘addictiveness of marijuana’ discussion. Can you get “hooked” on weed? Is it habit forming? Is it not?

I don’t know. I’m not a doctor. Undoubtedly, it varies from person to person depending on genetics, dietetics, and the extent to which a person indulges—among many other considerations. At any rate, to Google the subject is to unveil an infinite regress of contradictions from both sides:

Not only is pot addictive, but you’ll go to hell if you smoke it;

It’s not physically addictive, but it is psychologically addictive;

It’s all good, bro;

Go to jail, directly to jail, do not pass go, do not collect $200;

No it isn’t;

Yes it is…

Okay, I’ll bite. Maybe weed is a little psychologically addictive.

Does it make me feel good?

Yes.

Do I like to feel good?

Yes.

And yet, the fact remains that the alleged addictiveness of marijuana isn’t even a real concern in the bigger picture. And it isn’t “The Gateway Drug.” (If anything, Alcohol is that sad Gatekeeper.) Marijuana isn’t even life-threatening despite how much effort was put into depicting it as such over the last few decades. (Do you remember those bizarre commercials where kids’ heads would, like, literally melt from smoking pot? I always thought the D.A.R.E. people or whoever made those commercials had to be high, themselves).

Aside from all the negative stereotypes, cannabis actually has a ton of positive attributes. For example, I can tell you from personal experience that cannabis is a better alternative than taking benzos to control anxiety—benzos being certainly physically and psychologically addictive, not to mention among the most widely abused drugs in the world. And I can tell you from personal experience that cannabis is a better alternative to opioids for pain management; and a better alternative to antidepressants. Cannabis is also an excellent treatment for insomnia. And eating disorders. On and on… What’s more, I wager that anybody who advocates against weed because of its supposed addictiveness is, in fact, addicted to something themselves. The fact is, we all are.

In today’s world, we’re hooked on everything.

We’re hooked on coffee and cigarettes and soda and alcohol and video games and drive-thru’s and gasoline and traveling and sportsball and TV and VR and LOL and power and control and secrecy and pornography and violence and double standards and TikTok and Bacefook and craft beer and shitty music and escapism and on and on. We’re even hooked on dreaming up new ideas to get everybody else hooked on something—to get rich and bow out, everybody else be damned. So, if you ask me, weed is the least of our concerns.

Still concerned? Try smoking a little weed.