Pubdate: Mon, 22 Apr 2002
Source: Diamondback, The (MD Edu)
Copyright: 2002 Maryland Media, Inc.
Contact:  http://www.diamondbackonline.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/758
Note:  is also listed as email contact
Author: Nancy Leu
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n758/a07.html

SUH TAKES POT SHOTS BY MAKING VALUE JUDGMENTS

In response to Elizabeth Suh's column, ("This bud's for you, not me," April 
19) that intended to avoid the debate about why marijuana users are bad, 
Suh does just that: make value judgments about those who smoke pot.

If her argument is that meaningful connections can only be made while 
sober, than she is de-legitimizing the experiences of a healthy fraction of 
our university (and global) population. Perhaps it is hurtful for someone 
who is drug-free to believe people who use marijuana do have experiences 
just as valuable and real as those who choose to abstain. The most pressing 
issue in her column was not that her friend was a pothead, but that he 
neglected her feelings even when confronted about his exorbitant pot use. 
Why engage in a relationship in which one's feelings are ignored.

I do not appreciate Suh's "othering" of marijuana users. A good/bad binary 
is not the answer when the issue is so much more complex. People who smoke 
pot can be anyone from politicians superiors at work, our friends, lovers 
or relatives. Not all individuals who smoke are losers who sleep all day 
and can't "make anything of [their] lives." Suh would probably be shocked 
to know there are plenty of productive members of society who light up 
blunts or take bong hits. I do believe there are alternatives to getting 
high, especially when someone expresses issues that should be dealt with 
professionally.

If someone you know is having a hard time tapering their drug habits even 
when they negatively affect other people and make it difficult to function 
on a daily basis, a good friend would probably help that person seek 
counseling, not further a conditional relationship in which the pot user is 
outcasted when stoned and welcomed when sober. I simply don't see how that 
constitutes "caring" about someone.

Nancy Leu

Senior, Women's studies
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MAP posted-by: Larry Stevens