I am not Mr. Pothead

Intro

It's funny how people act or react when they find out someone else is involved with marijuana. People who were once glorified in their respective professions, awarded for their accomplishments, turn into thugs and criminals over night.

• A doctor who prescribes marijuana to patients becomes a drug dealer.
• A police officer joins LEAP (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition) and becomes a traitor.
• A teen is caught smoking a joint and becomes a junkie.
• A longtime friend admits marijuana use and becomes an outcast.
  

A society that once saw a hero, now sees a villain. Something is wrong this picture.

President Anthony is not Mr. Pothead

I'll use myself as an example. I have been smoking marijuana for about 6 years now. While many people know, many don't know. But, when they do find out, a lot changes. I am no longer a simple person anymore. I am whatever I was before plus the term "pothead", almost like a last name. Before, I was cute, educated, smart, and many other things. Today, to those so-called friends, I am a cute pothead, educated pothead, and a smart pothead.

It's not so much the "pothead" that bothers me. Yes, I am a pothead.. well.. a marijuana connoisseur better describes me. But, it's that arrogant derogatory usage that gets to me when non-marijuana users use it. It's like being called "black" by a completely up-turned nose white person. Most darker skin folks understand what I mean as they've most likely experienced the usage toward them. You can almost sense the arrogance in the tone and that they think less of you.

The truth...

...is that there's nothing that person can do or say to make things better because it's not the terms they use but the way in which they used those terms that does the damage. And the damage multiplier is when it comes from a longtime friend/family or client or patient or coworker. This person knows you. They never could discern the difference when you were high or sober - driving, talking, walking, gaming, etc. I always find it HILARIOUS when those cancer smoking and alcohol drinking friends accuse me of being high when I hadn't smoked anything in more than a week. But, now they KNOW more about you, you've become Mr. or Ms. Pothead.

So, the question then becomes, what changed?

Yes, I am okay.

I didn't change. I am still me. Just yesterday, we were doing this and doing that. You didn't know I was high. For years, you never knew I was high. You never even thought anything was strange with me. All of a sudden, you're cutting your eye at me. You're treating me different. You're asking if I am okay. I have been just as okay as you've known me for the past six years when you never knew I smoked marijuana. Why should my current state of well being be questioned now? Why should it be questioned when I wasn't even smoking anything?

In fact, I am NOT okay. I am actually very sober and I NEED to get high just so that I can tolerate your NEW bullshit.

Silver Lining

Eventually, people grow up. Look at the United States. In 1970, the Controlled Substances Act included marijuana as a Schedule I narcotic. Thirty years later, marijuana has been decriminalized in many states and 14 states have medical marijuana laws. The more friends get to see you high, the more they realize that marijuana is not some evil addictive narcotic. I won't glorify marijuana. But, there's a reason more and more people are smoking marijuana today. There's a reason for the state-by-state change in marijuana policy. There's a reason why quite a few of my friends seem to be coming out of the closet.

It's because many of us potheads have put up with the bullshit long enough that others can stop acting like complete idiots, adjust their arrogance, alleviate their ignorance, and even move toward actually smoking with you instead of looking down on you.