To the Editor:
“Marijuana is not safe. It can kill you.”
It most certainly can. But then again, so can sharing our nation’s roadways with people who run red lights or cannot go even a minute without interacting with their beloved, don’t-ever-leave-my-side, cellphone.
In a previous editorial you made the case, quite nicely I might add, for voting NO on legalizing recreational marijuana shortly before the proposal made its debut on Missouri ballots. Unfortunately, a majority of voters disagreed with you; the measure passed; and purchasing the key ingredient for getting stoned is now easier (and a helluva lot less clandestine) than it has ever been in my 68 years. I guess living with (or least tolerating) decisions one doesn’t agree with is the price paid for living in a democracy that is governed by a majority-rules philosophy. (The antiquated Electoral College being a rare, and arcane exception.)
There will always be those who consider themselves invulnerable and find flirting with danger and engaging in risky behavior too enticing to disregard. Then, when that behavior bites them or harms a totally innocent individual (or family), they scramble to find someone/anyone other than themselves to blame. Rather than owning up to their involvement, they offer up something along the lines of, “Hey, I had a dysfunctional childhood and upbringing and that’s what’s responsible for my behavior, NOT my short-sighted, immature, irresponsible decision making.”
In today’s world of 24/7 news and opinion, anyone above the age of seven who isn’t aware of the inherent dangers of drug use, hasn’t been paying attention. Most likely they’ve been too busy spending countless hours on social media or the latest video game to be bothered with becoming informed.
Call me callous if you must, but I turn a deaf ear to the woes of crybabies who refuse to take responsibility for their actions. I don’t want to hear excuses, I want wrong-doers to be held accountable and have their day in court. I’m sure those in the legal system desire the same.
I learned my lesson the hard way when I made a foolish, extremely short-sighted decision and found my teenage self in some serious trouble. When I attempted to extricate myself by laying the responsibility for my actions everywhere but where it belonged, my father was having none of it.
He summed up my harrowing situation with a stern and succinct, “You made your bed, now sleep in it.”
The lesson proved to be quite painful, and those eight words still haunt, but have served to protect, me. They come to mind every time I consider doing something “out of the realm” with first dissecting the action mentally, picturing and evaluating the worst-case scenario should things go sideways, and then sleeping on it for at least one night. More often than not, this three-step procedure leads me to shelve, if not totally abandon, the idea.
You can argue that this makes Patrick a highly dull individual, but I’m certain it has saved me substantial $$$$ and countless headaches. For that kind of return, I’ll gladly embrace dullness.
I guess the message I’m attempting to make with this creed is: If you wish, ingest marijuana to your heart’s content, but please have the maturity and common sense to do so responsibly. And never forget that if you play with fire, there’s always a chance you’ll get burned.
If that chance materializes and you find yourself in trouble, be a stand-up individual, admit your mistake/involvement, and save the folks who choose not to play with fire the aggravation of hearing you whine about it.
Patrick J. Leslie
Owensville
