Pat Robertson

[eddanco]

NYT: Pat Robertson says pot should be legal - US news - The New York Times - msnbc.com

Give me a break- come on , farmacia

Matthew 24:22

King James Version (KJV)


22And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: but for the elect's sake those days shall be shortened.

[YeuEmMaiMai]

? confused as to why he would think this....

[GlennO]

His bulb is growing dim

[OnceWasLost]

Perhaps he has been sampling some "herbal products"?

[Petezzzz]

Go Pat! Prohibition was a failure too.

[OnceWasLost]

Go Pat! Prohibition was a failure too.

You agree?

[Robert]

Go Pat! Prohibition was a failure too.

[KissimmeeBeliever]

The ban on pot has been as succesful as the war on alcohol in the 30's. No matter what your opinion is on the stuff it is the truth. The use of this substance is not rare in this country by any means. It is used by the wealthy to the poor. There has been zero deterant by jail time, fines, probations to halt its use. Pat is simply pointing those facts out because it is the truth. Now since these are the facts what would decrimalization do to it? Who knows? Who taught us that it was the devil? The government is who. Did G-d teach us it was? Did G-d say all things that he created was good? He did. Why do we believe the government? Just some questions to ponder.

[WKUHilltopper]

Go Pat! Prohibition was a failure too.

Not for the mafia...

[Saved Through Jesus]

i disagree with many things Pat says but i have to say i agree with him on this.

I choose to not do it, but i think it is way too hyped up as being "evil". I wouldn't go so far as to say, as some people do, that anything God makes is "up for grabs" (would you smoke or eat poison ivy?), but to throw people in jail, sometimes for years, over a drug that is considered safer than alcohol is to me, utterly ridiculous - and that is an understatement.

I don't see how a drug that simply: relaxes, is virtually impossible to O.D. on, makes one laugh more, and makes one like music more - i don't see how that is "evil". People do not get mad or angry while on it, in fact just the opposite.

I'm not saying it's healthy for you, nor would i encourage one to drive after smoking (i wouldn't even encourage one to smoke period.), but if someone wishes to do it in their own house, i feel that is fine. I think there is something incredibly wrong when people who physically assault others get less time then those who simply have a joint on them in their house.

[YeuEmMaiMai]

would you really want to work with people who are stoned all the time? would you want to share the roads with them?

I wouldn't. I have a few friends that smoked weed a long time ago and to this day they are still suffering from the effects.....ie slow thinkers, difficulty using advanced logic, etc....

[Saved Through Jesus]

would you really want to work with people who are stoned all the time? would you want to share the roads with them?

I wouldn't. I have a few friends that smoked weed a long time ago and to this day they are still suffering from the effects.....ie slow thinkers, difficulty using advanced logic, etc....

Who says they would be stoned all the time? And to answer the question, obviously no. But the same can be said for alcohol.. marijuana is considered less dangerous than alcohol. Why is alcohol legal but you can be put in jail for years for simply having a joint on you?

The fact of the matter is responsibility. Your making it out that by making weed legal everyone would be stoned all the time, and everyone who does it would drive while intoxicated. By that logic, you should say the same about alcohol - a more dangerous drug. That would be saying "would you want to work with people who are drinking/drunk all the time? would you want to share the roads with them?"

There has never been a single instance of any human OD'ing on Marijuana. It isn't humanly possible. Like i said above, its responsibility. Jesus turned water into wine, Paul encouraged Timothy to drink wine to help his stomach. Alcohol is a more dangerous drug than Marijuana. I believe if both are used responsibly, both should be legal. If either of the 2 should be illegal, based on safety, it should be alcohol.

I don't personally see why anyone who wishes to do it within the confines of their own house should risk being jailed to do so.

[YeuEmMaiMai]

lol like people can control themselves.....just take a look at the drunk drivers.... and alcohol is LEGAL

[micah719]

As someone with a lot of experience with pot pre-Salvation, I can weigh into this "debate" with some force and conviction.

I smoked that garbage for over 15 years. At the "height" of my partaking, I was going through a quarter ounce per day.....about 8 grams, and it was not the weak stuff from the 60's, it was the postmodern hybrid stuff bred in Holland and grown with all sorts of chemicals and lights. It is far removed from what The Lord intended...perhaps He made it as a medical herb, perhaps as a trap for the ungodly, but whatever, it is not good for you. It is pharmacopeia.

Pot is a psychoactive drug...it will screw up your mind, and greases your skids to go try all sorts of other things; the same channels that can get you pot can often get you amphetamines in the various flavours, ecstacy, acid, even cocaine and heroin. There is nothing innocuous or harmless about it. Your short-term memory will be greatly disturbed, your higher thinking will be awry and your basic lusts will be magnified. You can forget "praying with understanding", or "loving The Lord with body, mind, strength and soul", or being "transformed by the renewing of your mind". Your thoughts will produce some very weird things indeed; foolishness! And while it is but one of the ways modern man uses to escape conviction by The Holy Spirit and the trials and deceptions of life in a sinful world that assault the mind, it is a popular one and a shameful one...the pinnacle creature of God's creation, made in His image, the only one with a mind designed to appreciate and approach The Lord, self-destroys this distinction and becomes a fool.

There is nothing harmless about pot. Prolonged use is well known to be a factor in psychosis. It will screw up your mind. Just look at some of the wacky stuff I come up with in various posts...it may be amusing, but honestly discerned I can admit that The Lord's gift to me of a mind has been impaired and twisted and will not function as it once might have. The Lord is mighty to save, and He saved me out of the depths of pot even as I was scraping new depths of depravity.....but as many redeemed sinners will testify, you get to carry some significant pieces of baggage of your former life. I look forward to the day of final glorification, where perfection will not be only positional but experiential, when I no longer have a sin nature fighting with me, when The Lord completes His purpose concerning me.

So, whoever you are that may think pot is harmless, or excusable, or able to be legalised....you are wrong. It may be useful medically, but be aware that there is a large lobby that will exploit that doorway for evil reasons. The chief of these is the devil, who loves to use any advantage against us. It is similar to the "what about victims of rape" technique in the abortion swindle....a wedge in the door to let in all the cases where it should not be allowed (a caveat....I believe even a raped woman has no right to murder the human conceived in her body...that is my opinion and not arrived at lightly, just so you don't think I approve of murder in certain circumstances). Nowadays we see pot sold in schoolyards...even in my darkest days as slave of the weed I was painfully conscious of doing any of this in front of children. At the start of the pot chapter of my life I was ashamed at the loss of ontrol over my mind; and throughout it, was never comfortable with going out in public under the influence. Legalise it and you may remove it from the criminal syndicates power...but I doubt it will ever be legalised for that precise reason, the tentacles of organised crime go as high as high can go in this world. Legalise it and you'll see it used like alcohol and cigarettes, deadly dangerous but popular, and still highly profitable.

If I hadn't blighted my mind I would be able to express my arguments more logically, and focus better on the truly important things. It shouldn't be an excuse for failure or mediocrity or laziness or foolishness, though it surely is a factor in these giants I have to face and slay every day.

There has never been a single instance of any human OD'ing on Marijuana. It isn't humanly possible

If you mean there aren't any cases where too much THC in the blood caused death....that's a handy statistic, though a false one, and a devious one. Get enough of that in your blood and you might not die from it, but you will go insane. A fate worse than death. Please, don't twist The Lord's blessing of moderate wine consumption to mean moderate pot use. They are not the same. Pot is just as dangerous as tobacco, alcohol or any other of the things in this world perverted and adulterated by sinful man, and should remain illegal. You will not find a joint in heaven, a bong or a hash-cookie. Nor will you find syringes, little bits of cardboard, dodgy little pills with curious emblems and little smileyfaces, no white powder chopped on a mirror, nor a pipe or a cigar or a cigarette.

You will see The Lord drink wine with His Bride, but there won't be any spewing drunks, no fistfights, no bums living under bridges, no bawdy songs or slurred speech or vain stupid talk. You will not hear Him say "pass the doochy to the left hand side", so please, stop promoting a dangerous and deceptive wordly practise in His Name. And if you partake of it, for God's sake and your own, STOP!

[Any Minute]

Good post micah719, thanks for sharing. You touched on a lot of truth there.

I have nothing to contribute to the debate of legalizing pot, or what Pat Robertson has to say about anything.

I had an encounter with a man a few days ago who through the conversation I found out that he is a fellow believer. As we talked and shared about our faith, he let me know the type of churches he attends and the teachers he listens to. I won't go into the WOF nonsense he buys into, but he made a few comments about smoking pot and other things that made me think he is at best still immature in his faith. He has been arrested and is currently on probation for using/ selling. He is a musician, plays in church worship bands and told me " there is nothing better than playing music and worshiping God, while stoned".

I'm not going to question his salvation, but I will pray for him.

[Saved Through Jesus]

You will see The Lord drink wine with His Bride, but there won't be any spewing drunks, no fistfights, no bums living under bridges, no bawdy songs or slurred speech or vain stupid talk. You will not hear Him say "pass the doochy to the left hand side", so please, stop promoting a dangerous and deceptive wordly practise in His Name. And if you partake of it, for God's sake and your own, STOP!

I have also smoked it, as recently as a few months ago. I went through a lot of personal hurt back in September, and tried it for the first time. I was doing it maybe once a week at most. I chose to stop because i didn't feel God personally wanted me to continue doing it.

However.. why would you accuse me of "promoting" it? I simply said i disagree with it being illegal, and i disagree with people being put in jail for sometimes years at a time because they choose to smoke in their own house. In fact, i said i would encourage people to NOT smoke. I gave my own opinion, based on facts and experiences i have seen.

I respect your opinion immensely, but please don't twist mine and claim i was "promoting" it and, not only promoting it, but doing so in God's name. I was not. I made it clear i do not smoke, nor do i encourage other people to do so. But i also made it clear i do not see a problem if people choose to do so responsibly in their own house, especially if it is for medical purposes.

I realize my opinion on this particular subject is not going to be popular, but i can see there are a couple others on here that agree with it being legal. Me saying it should be legal is not me condoning people doing it, or encouraging it. I will say once more though, that there are much more serious offenses then smoking a joint, and people receive much less jail time. I just don't think it adds up.

Like i said above, please don't twist my opinion and claim i was encouraging it in God's name. The only time in my posts above i mentioned God was about how some people claim anything God made can be smoked or eaten, which i disagree with. I am sorry if i came across otherwise, and am also sorry if i offended you. I will also pray for you to have a clear mind and clear thinking.

I am also assuming you were speaking to me because you quoted me in your post.

God Bless.

[mikhen7]

I have also smoked it, as recently as a few months ago. I went through a lot of personal hurt back in September, and tried it for the first time. I was doing it maybe once a week at most. I chose to stop because i didn't feel God personally wanted me to continue doing it.

However.. why would you accuse me of "promoting" it? I simply said i disagree with it being illegal, and i disagree with people being put in jail for sometimes years at a time because they choose to smoke in their own house. In fact, i said i would encourage people to NOT smoke. I gave my own opinion, based on facts and experiences i have seen.

I respect your opinion immensely, but please don't twist mine and claim i was "promoting" it and, not only promoting it, but doing so in God's name. I was not. I made it clear i do not smoke, nor do i encourage other people to do so. But i also made it clear i do not see a problem if people choose to do so responsibly in their own house, especially if it is for medical purposes.

I realize my opinion on this particular subject is not going to be popular, but i can see there are a couple others on here that agree with it being legal. Me saying it should be legal is not me condoning people doing it, or encouraging it. I will say once more though, that there are much more serious offenses then smoking a joint, and people receive much less jail time. I just don't think it adds up.

Like i said above, please don't twist my opinion and claim i was encouraging it in God's name. The only time in my posts above i mentioned God was about how some people claim anything God made can be smoked or eaten, which i disagree with. I am sorry if i came across otherwise, and am also sorry if i offended you. I will also pray for you to have a clear mind and clear thinking.

I am also assuming you were speaking to me because you quoted me in your post.

God Bless.

Could you witness to you friends with a joint hanging from your lips?

[Saved Through Jesus]

Could you witness to you friends with a joint hanging from your lips?

The same could be said with alcohol. The same could be said for pain killers. The same could be said for a cigarette or a cigar.

These are all legal (pain killers, obviously, with a perscription). I am not saying it is exactly appropriate for a christian to make it a habit. I stopped it from becoming a habit myself because i didn't feel God wanted me to continue it. The same people i used to smoke with are the same people i now tell "no" and encourage to not smoke anymore and do try to witness to.

But that doesn't take away from the fact that there are people who do not need to be put in jail because they have a joint. That is the point i am making, and the point which hasn't been addressed yet. Why is alcohol, which is considered a more dangerous drug then marijuana, legal, when being caught with a joint can get you sent to jail? That is what i am asking. That is why i do not agree with it being illegal. There are responsible ways to limit and control, to the best ability, how much and who is allowed to smoke, just like they do with alcohol. I did not say i encourage it, but i find something very wrong with people who are found with an ounce of weed can go to jail for years, but people who punch women or people who assault the elderly oftentimes do not even get jail time.

My girlfriend's dad has MS. The disease causes him a lot of pain, and he's been on pain killers for years. I can remember being at her house and her mom scream because he was putting wood into the fireplace and his legs collapsed on him and he nearly fell face first into the fire. I know he has smoked weed while he was on disability to help with the pain. I am not going to sit and judge him for doing so. I myself suffer from chronic leg pain due to a number of factors including dislocating my knee 7 times. I am perscribed pain killers, which i use to help the pain. Pain killers can be abused, you can die from overdosing, it can cause a number of problems - i do not know the specifics, but i am sure they could/are considered more dangerous then marijuana. I would hope i am not judged because i take pain killers, even though this can be looked at as "wrong". But pain killers could just as easily be deemed "illegal" like marijuana. What makes pain killers less dangerous or less of a safety hazard than marijuana?

Please do not feel like i am starting a fight. I realize we differ in opinions on this subject. Like i said above, i am sure mine isn't the popular one. But it's something i have experience in (which i am not proud of), and i think there is a responsible way to legalize it so that people aren't being put in jail, and our jails aren't being overcrowded, simply because they used a drug which is safer than alcohol.

Just because i think it should be legal, doesn't mean i think its smart to smoke, nor would i encourage anyone to do so.

[micah719]

I have also smoked it, as recently as a few months ago. I went through a lot of personal hurt back in September, and tried it for the first time. I was doing it maybe once a week at most. I chose to stop because i didn't feel God personally wanted me to continue doing it.

However.. why would you accuse me of "promoting" it? I simply said i disagree with it being illegal, and i disagree with people being put in jail for sometimes years at a time because they choose to smoke in their own house. In fact, i said i would encourage people to NOT smoke. I gave my own opinion, based on facts and experiences i have seen.

I respect your opinion immensely, but please don't twist mine and claim i was "promoting" it and, not only promoting it, but doing so in God's name. I was not. I made it clear i do not smoke, nor do i encourage other people to do so. But i also made it clear i do not see a problem if people choose to do so responsibly in their own house, especially if it is for medical purposes.

I realize my opinion on this particular subject is not going to be popular, but i can see there are a couple others on here that agree with it being legal. Me saying it should be legal is not me condoning people doing it, or encouraging it. I will say once more though, that there are much more serious offenses then smoking a joint, and people receive much less jail time. I just don't think it adds up.

Like i said above, please don't twist my opinion and claim i was encouraging it in God's name. The only time in my posts above i mentioned God was about how some people claim anything God made can be smoked or eaten, which i disagree with. I am sorry if i came across otherwise, and am also sorry if i offended you. I will also pray for you to have a clear mind and clear thinking.

I am also assuming you were speaking to me because you quoted me in your post.

God Bless.

Yes, I was referring to your post. I quote it below with some more highlighting to bring out some points I want to address. I am not attacking you and do not wish to misrepresent or misunderstand anything you say. If I have offended you in any way I beg forgiveness and assure you of my forgiveness if you feel the same.

Your original post gave me the impression you were making a defence of the use of pot, or at the very least, mitigating it. I've heard all the excuses and justifications, used many myself, but they don't carry water and are not in the best interests of the people who will suffer on account of this noxious perversion of what was once a part of The Lord's unblemished Creation. Perhaps I misunderstood, this may be an occasion to clear it up and remove any doubt or room for misinterpretation of what you meant to say.

On the point of the disproportionate application of law, namely massive jail sentences for possession of small amounts, I agree. That is subject for a thread on its own, the "war on drugs" which is actually an officially sanctioned war by means of drugs, like the very similar and closely related "war on terror". However, legalisation would simply move it from being prison-bait to just another accepted means of sin and destruction of souls, like cigarettes and the alcohol you rightly condem, and all the other reality-escapes we sinners invent (and are helped to....). Not that drinking it is a sin of itself, or that the substance is inherently evil, but the overindulgence of it is, and also the immoral overpromotion and exploitation of it.

There is a difference between having a lid in your pocket and selling it by the pound. However, I could give a lid of it to a child in the knowledge that next week he will be back to buy a quart for himself and his buddies, with the prospect of upselling to pills and powders later. I've never done such a thing but seen it happen, and while I was revolted by such people and practices it was never to the point of actively fighting it though I avoided the types that pushed it. My use was personal and as a stoner I was happy to help fellow addicts partake but never to make material profit. Even losers as I was have principles, though in our warped states this is not much consolation or reason for admiration or abating pity and revulsion.

I may have partaken in the privacy of my home, others' homes, or various public places outside the presence and view of the non-partaking public. However, the rest of the time that public was subject to my impaired judgement and twisted mind (still are, in many respects), so my criminal sin was public. If the addict could lock himself away like a hermit he still sins against the rest of humanity, by having deprived them of whatever gifts The Lord gave them to bless others with; and the income wasted and sent into the drug channel (which leads to big finance and high government) is added to the lost income I could have made if I weren't too stoned, addled, lazy and self-absorbed to go do something worthwhile. Not that I could have inented a cure for cancer or a better mousetrap, but surely something better than playing umpteen iterations of some dumb game or watching Evil Dead III for the hundredth time (exaggerating here, probably only 30). Finally, all sin is ultimately against the all holy God Who made us to glorify Him, so there is no geographical or temporal or societal "safe zone" to smoke weed.

You say stoners aren't stoned all the time. Sorry, have to contradict you there. The traces remain in the body for many weeks, and the effect is in the mind longer, often permanently. It is a psychoactive drug....it goes into the soul. I thank The Lord for clearing up a lot of the damage, but I suspect He has left enough reminders to keep me going back, and to be able to warn others, even if by way of the example: "look at this nut, are you sure you want to be like this?". The Lord has worked miracles in my case, when I think of some of the blasted souls I met and dealt with I can only marvel and be grateful for His tender mercies and grace.

You also say it is impossible to overdose. In the sense that you won't find a stoner at the emergency room getting zapped back to life, unless he choked on a mars bar while in the throes of the munchies, or having running afoul of some other weirdo (speedfreaks, cold-turkey junkies, dealers chasing payment, even sober stoners after your stash can get nasty). But, I can dimly remember cone-competitions where the hero manages 18 bongs in a row of pure skunk....or memorable weekends where a rare tube of hashoil turns up and the treat of snowcones with treacly hashoil send the mind into new and strange places. Be happy if it comes back. It is possible to become quite sick from overuse, physically as well as mentally. Some folks crack up and end up in the mental ward. What certainly will happen with prolonged use is that you build up a resistance to it and end up needing more and stronger and more frequent doses. Perhaps an upgrade to more powerful things. Pot is a broad easy way with lots of sideroads to a quick nasty end, but stay on the pot road and you'll get there in the end. The supposed harmlessness of it is one of its main claws. It is often said it is not addictive, which is rubbish. Trying to differentiate on the basis of relative danger is like arguing about whether guns, knives or bombs are more dangerous. Get killed by one and it doesn't really matter, does it? Though being gutted slowly or blown up in an instant might have some talking points as to the unpleasantness of the experience. There may be some long-term occasional partakers that maintain no ill-effect....don't be so sure of that.

The communion cup of real wine is Biblically ordained for believers, but the pipe of peace is not. There is a case of degrees with alcohol, but not pot, so please don't fall in the trap of comparing apples and poison-ivy. Wine at a wedding is different from mind-bending herbs. Drinking to a coma is wrong, obviously, as is driving when impaired, beating your wife, or making a fool of yourself staggering and blathering.

Be glad The Lord caught you early and quickly and spoke with sufficient force to make you stop. Be very thankful indeed your heart is tender to respond, and your ears acute enough to hear Him, and that your conscience is not seared to the point of no return, or difficult and painful return. I don't know about how much baggage you'll carry, hopefully none. Mine could fill a jumbo freighter even after grace and mercy. I've spoken already of some of the horrors, but if I were to describe how it was the day He taught me about pharmacopaeia you'd freak out. Even the experience of a work colleague, friend and fellow stoner hanging himself with a dogchain from the stairs (and having to explain to the police who fingered me on the evidence of phone records as the last person to have contact with him that our last communication was with regard to a canceled drug-deal, namely, pot) was not enough to convince me to let it alone. Oh Micky, I failed you as a friend and a human being, and it is to my shame that my stubborness forced The Lord in His love to sacrifice your life in the campaign to make me crack. Oh I know His plan is far greater than miserable micah and His threads run through a multitude of lives, but these things are not for nothing. I can be revulsed at the religious hypocrisy I witnessed at your memorial service, and the pain at seeing the grief of parents robbed of a child at the tender age of 19, even as I remember being armed that day with the vain and presumptuous resolution to murder your boss if I judged him to be guilty enough of your death (and if the opportunity presented). Again, great reason to be thankful The Lord stayed a further calamity that dark day. We were all guilty, and as I just admitted, perhaps me more than any. I can't pray for you, you're gone, I shudder to think where, but I still pray for the faces burned in my mind. Some things the fog of weed can't obscure, ever....

If that shameful story revolts you, rejoice that I spare you worse, of the day I gave up the weed. You see, I have compelling reasons to wish that the Bema is a private audience. Not much glory for God evident to me in that pile of high octane kindling, but plenty of shame for me.

Ok, enough of looking in those battered steamer trunks marked "micah...round trip...open at own risk". Now do you get an idea of why I took particular care to make it as absolutely clear as I dared that pot is dangerous? That it is better to simply not go there? That I did not permit even a perhaps ill-considered and naive apologetic for using it? There are reasons why it is so widespread, winked at, easy to get-yet highly illegal, made to appear harmless....none of them good and true. Lookup pharmacopaiea aka sorcery in The Revelation, and elsewhere in Scripture.

Thanks for bearing with me and reading this far, I won't keep you further. May The Lord continue to bless and protect you, as He has clearly already begun.

Who says they would be stoned all the time? And to answer the question, obviously no. But the same can be said for alcohol.. marijuana is considered less dangerous than alcohol. Why is alcohol legal but you can be put in jail for years for simply having a joint on you?

The fact of the matter is responsibility. Your making it out that by making weed legal everyone would be stoned all the time, and everyone who does it would drive while intoxicated. By that logic, you should say the same about alcohol - a more dangerous drug. That would be saying "would you want to work with people who are drinking/drunk all the time? would you want to share the roads with them?"

There has never been a single instance of any human OD'ing on Marijuana. It isn't humanly possible. Like i said above, its responsibility. Jesus turned water into wine, Paul encouraged Timothy to drink wine to help his stomach. Alcohol is a more dangerous drug than Marijuana. I believe if both are used responsibly, both should be legal. If either of the 2 should be illegal, based on safety, it should be alcohol.

I don't personally see why anyone who wishes to do it within the confines of their own house should risk being jailed to do so.

[Saved Through Jesus]

Thank you for your post/response Micah. I did look it up, and that was one of the reasons i quit (in addition to the guilt and the Holy Spirit telling me to stop).

I guess i just have a different view than you. I don't look at Pot as some sort of "mind altering, mess your head up, go crazy" sort of drug. When i smoked, i became relaxed, and listened to music. I didn't have any sort of crazy trips, i didn't act crazy. I simply became relaxed. I have never witnessed someone smoking weed go crazy. 95% of the time, from my own experience, the people i smoked with mellowed out; the other 5% they acted goofy/silly, most of it being harmless fits of giggles and thinking everything is funny. Occasionally someone might do something that they wouldn't normally do if "sober", but nothing harmful. I do not doubt your stories, however.

I realize that prolonged exposure is sure to effect your brain. I am only 19, and i have not felt any effects of smoking it, i do not know if i ever will. You can say that about many things however.

I realize that drinking alcohol isn't a sin; the act of being drunk is. But, i wasn't turning this into a sin issue. I am not looking at whether or not smoking pot is sinful. There are some verses, like mentioned above, that lead me to believe there are instances where it is. But there are also verses that speak negatively about alcohol, and as said, i do not believe drinking is a sin, as Christ himself drank. I think turning something into a habit, to the point of putting it ahead of God, is a sin. I also think that it can apply differently to different people. I, personally, don't look at someone who smokes weed a few times a year as being sinful. I also don't look at people using it for medical purposes as being sinful. But i do look at people who do it as an addicting habit as being sinful (i am not, nor can i, give you a set number as to "do it ____ many times a week and its sinful, etc).

I wasn't turning this into a sin issue. i was making this into a legal or illegal issue. Looking at a woman lustfully is sinful, but should that be illegal? If your wife catches you staring at the cute waitress across the restaurant, should you be thrown in jail? The obvious answer is no. Not everything that is sinful is worthy of jail on this earth. We know everything that is sinful is worthy of hell which is why we needed Jesus's sacrifice.

People are going to smoke weed regardless of whether or not its legal or illegal. I believe, if i remember correctly, roughly 20 million people smoke a year (i do not remember how often). It makes no sense to me personally to throw people in jail for doing so. There are much greater offenses, as i said before, and people get much less time. I realize as a parent it is not responsible, but should a child who is in a loving and stable environment, getting straight A's in school, have to witness their parent being arrested because the officer found a joint on them?

Words cannot describe how happy i am that you are right with the Lord, and that you overcame your addictions. You are humble, which i love. We just have differing opinions on this subject. But please realize i read everything you wrote, and i very much appreciate your response and your opinion.

God Bless.