Consumption

Why I Would Rather My Kids Use Cannabis Than Alcohol, Source: Original graphic for Weedist.com by Marisa Velázquez RivasI am a parent and a cannabis activist, so stating that I would rather my kids smoke weed than drink alcohol isn’t really a show-stopper.

First and foremost, the lion’s share of why I feel this way revolves purely around safety. The simple fact is that, from the parent’s perspective, your biggest priority is just knowing where your babies are and that they are safe. This is the constant backdrop to the parent’s mindset. Ambition, motivation, kindness, etc. all matter and it is also the parent’s job to help their children navigate the pitfalls that walk hand in hand with the ignorance of youth. But I think any parent would agree, that having your child alive and healthy is the first priority.

In that light, the reasons why I would rather my kids smoke weed than drink booze should be obvious. On a global level, alcohol is associated with about 2.5 million deaths per year (6850 deaths per day, 285 per hour, nearly 5 deaths every second of every day). Cannabis can be legitimately credited with one death, ever. That death? A Brazilian drug dealer died in a car crash while fleeing the cops. The 1000 lbs of cannabis he had in the back seat of the car shot forward in the crash and crushed the dealer. That’s it in the entire history of time. Numbers don’t lie and it is simply impossible to claim that cannabis is less safe than alcohol.

As an offshoot of safety, cannabis also trumps booze on decision making and potential consequences. Alcohol is well known to remove inhibitions and impair long-term consequence analysis. For all the guff cannabis gets about impairing memory and motor function, I have never heard a story of someone being “blackout stoned” and doing something horrible and regretful. I think most of us have at least one blackout drunk story that we are less than proud of. You can get so drunk that you have no memory of your behavior.

That isn’t to say that everyone who drinks makes bad choices, but there is a good reason that many poor choices are blamed on drinking, while we really don’t hear much about doing something we wished we hadn’t while stoned. For example, I know lots of people who have gotten blasted drunk and had unprotected sex or drove a car or even just become belligerent and cruel to someone they care for. With weed, the consequences tend to be a little more G rated. I once got so stoned that I had a 10 minute conversation with a uniformed police officer at an AM/PM about corn-dogs.

So yes, while on cannabis, I have made a fool of myself. But I can’t think of one person I know who ever got so stoned they got herpes or knocked someone up. Yes, you can be stoned and still make a shitty choice, but the amount and severity of consequences isn’t even in the same ball park as alcohol.

Lastly (at least for this brief list), are the social outcomes that can accompany drinking versus smoking cannabis. Speaking only from my observations and experiences, excessive booze can lead to rudeness and a lack of compassion. Cannabis tends to bring the innocence and sweetness out in people.

So, stacked next to each other, cannabis crushes booze in every category. I want my babies’ home safe and healthy and, while I hope they abstain from both until they are old enough, cannabis is far and away my preference. End of story.

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By: Raylan Campbell. Permalink: permalink Shortlink: http://weedi.st/sBDmW