So why do kids take drugs or join gangs? These are questions that Sgt. Lorne H. Adamitz from the "K" Division, Drugs and Organized Crime Awareness Services of the RCMP attempted to answer as he shared an excellent presentation with the Leduc Rural Crime Watch Association. Slides were shown that explained why insurance companies use age 25 as the magic number for insurance rates. While the emotional center of the brain really takes off in the teen years, the frontal lobe which gives us reasoning and good judgment is the last area to develop and is not completely developed until age 24! This explains why a teenager is emotionally driven. In addition, kids are subjected to a multiple set of beliefs/opinions from parents, relatives, friends, media, games, etc. and many of these beliefs may be inaccurate.this can lead to frustration and rebelliousness as they try to determine who or what is right Often this frustration leads to problems at home as the child tells the parent to stop treating me like a kid and the parent tells the child to stop acting like a kid if they want to be treated as a mature individual. Bring into the picture a sympathetic peer who says "they" don't understand .here take a (drug). [continues 912 words]
Dear Editor, Kudos to Brian Hahn for his article on "Numerology of a Stoner". There are "smoke" shops popping up in our communities that blatantly laugh at the Canadian Justice or lack thereof when it comes to drug Paraphernalia. The very idea of a shop owner having the legal backing to sell drug Paraphernalia and advertise for that purpose sickens me as much as it frustrates me. Not only can I walk into a certain unnamed business and buy a bong or glass pipe, perhaps even a fake can of WD40 to hide my stash in, but I can also purchase a product called Salvia. "Depending on dosage, the Salvia experience can vary from a subtle, just-off-baseline state to a full-blown psychedelic experience. At higher doses users report dramatic time distortion, vivid imagery, encounters with beings, travel to other places, planets or times, living years as the paint on a wall or experiencing the full life of another individual. Needless to say these can be extremely powerful experiences and should only be attempted with a sitter. While most people remain unmoving during the experience, some individuals will attempt to get up and walk around while in a completely dissociated state". [continues 80 words]
Dear Editor, Thank you for the very passionate if not xenophobic editorial by Mr Hahn. I do not know if Brain would care to know the story behind 4:20 that most historians agree on but here it is anyway. "The most widely-accepted birth of 420 puts the date of the phrase at 1971, five years after Dylan's '60s anthem, conceived by a group of pot-lovin' California high school students. When one of the members of the clique uttered "4:20 Louie" it meant to meet for a smoke session at the Louis Pasteur statue 70 minutes after school dismissed at 3:10 p.m." P.S. Tell Brian, "Don't worry. We are keeping an eye on you as well. We're just a bit more tolerant." Ally Lorton [end]
Dear Editor, You are wrong cannabis is not legal. Canada and the USA no less do have federal legal medical cannabis programs currently in place and have for years now. I do have one question for you that I hope you will answer. How many more expert studies do we need that clearly state prohibition of cannabis creates a lot more social harms then cannabis it's self ever has or ever could? Keith Fagin [end]
Dear Editor Boston recorded a song called "Smokin" back in the 70's. That song is exactly 4 minutes and 20 seconds long. The "secret code" started when Roadies needed the code to see who was in the "sub-culture" and who was clued out. Needless to say, the code arose to mystical levels because cannabis users need to be wary of the witch hunters. Once the code becomes universally understood and the mystery taken out, something else will come along. [continues 223 words]
Dear Editor Your article on 420 was hilarious, don't know if it was a joke or not. Why is the religious right so bent on fear-mongering against pot users. There's a lot more of us than you think and we are not the slackers you believe we are. Saying anything derogatory about stoners as a group is as accurate as saying "All christians are pedifiles because a few catholic priests are." Its not founded in any reality. There's some great pot grown in your part of the country, maybe you should try some. Thank you for your time. Jason Baker [end]
Dear Editor, As a Federal Medical Marijuana License holder who is also married to one, I deeply resent the use of the word "stoner". This word is as offensive to medical pot users like myself and my epileptic wife, as the word "junkie" might be to someone who uses prescription pain killers, or the word "cripple" might be to someone in a wheelchair. Brian Hahn has demonstrated that not only does his mind need opened and his third eye cleaned, apparently he doesn't even know how to use Google! [continues 167 words]
Dear Editor, I just read your article on the numerology of a stoner and thought you may want a little info that I learned in high school about five years ago. The time 4:20pm is an hour and 20 minutes after most high school students get out of school. This amount of time is how long takes a high school student to get out of school, get home, and roll a joint. Then the pot smoker has to just wait a few minutes and light up at 4:20. Luke Lyons [end]
Dear Editor, I am responding to your article about the number 420. I really have no clue as to it's origin, however, if you look at famous deaths. I have been told that Bob Marley died on April 20th. But I personally think that 420 goes back before Mr. Marley. Really if I have to guess I would say that 420 was something an ancient pothead said one day and it caught on like a trend, but because smoking can be a religious endeavor it never faded out. Potheads are very much a culture of their own and of all different walks of life but generally have a few things in common. Thank you for your time. Odisomus [end]
The sub-culture of the pothead has always had a special language when trying to endear themselves to society in general. The first term I learned in my youth was "Mary Jane" when referring to marijuana. Nowadays that seems pretty "square-man" But the language developed in the sub-culture has not really changed all that much. Lingo or codes are used that many folks just don't get, and parents tend to lay a blind eye towards. Sure, if you look in little Johnny's bedroom and see a Canadian Flag with a three-pointed leaf in the middle, chances are he may be more familiar with the illegal substance than you wish. [continues 668 words]
. . . Was Good Advice at the Time, but the City of Leduc Has Gone A Lot Further Recently in Its All-Out War Against Drugs. In December 2004 a committee was developed with membership drawn from a variety of local sources, and which immediately drew up its brief and succinct vision statement: becoming a drug aware and drug resistant community. Its purpose is to address drug-related issues in the city of Leduc by means of its five sub-committees--enforcement, identification/intervention, community networking, advocacy and treatment, and prevention and education. Its key roles are to identify, monitor, recommend and report to city council as a sub-committee of the local Family and Community Support Services board. [continues 548 words]
Alright you dared me to it. Last time I checked the United States had about 100 times the population that Alberta has, so I'm not surprised that most of the people who wrote you are from there. But alas, there are people in Alberta who agree that prohibition is useless and a complete waste of money, me being one of them. First of all, the Bible does not support marijuana prohibition as it clearly states that God gave us all the seed bearing plants for food. It's actually right on the first page. Clearly, I should be able to eat it without violating Christian spiritual directives. About the only ban that could be upheld on cannabis, following this logic, is on the smoking of it. This is very far from reality though, as we all know you are not even allowed to hold it in your hand without violating a Canadian law. [continues 401 words]
I have gotten a lot of emails concerning my stand on the drug issues, and most of them from south of the border. I guess most of the Albertans that read our paper are as rednecked as I am. Most of the emails from south of the border advocate legalizing drugs in some form or another. The contention seems to be if enough people are doing stupid and abusive things the best way to deal with it is to legalize it, that way you will cease to have a problem. [continues 71 words]
I said at one point that I would stop with the Drug related editorials, however that was before the two replies from California by one Clifford Schaffer. Mr Schaffer first emailed me when he read my first editorial on my views on the subject, and again after my latest. At that time he correctly surmised that I had not read the material he had recommended concerning the U.S. experience on drugs. As he pointed out, the full text on the subject can be found on the internet at; [continues 1271 words]
When I started this paper back in 1997, I had no idea that I would someday have a paper that has a circulation of almost eleven thousand papers. We started putting the paper on the internet about three years ago. In the first year about 25,000 visitors logged onto the site. to this date, 1,300,000 have perused our pages online. If you ask 1.3 million people their opinion on any particular subject, you will no doubt receive about 1.3 million varying opinions. The one thing that is really great about Canada is the fact that at this particular point in history anyway, we are still allowed to express our opinions in a public forum such as a newspaper. [continues 547 words]
Dear Editor Ted, I think you seem to be sadly mistaken about what world you live in. You do very much live in the Randall's world. It is a world where prohibition does nothing to control drugs other than to push their distribution and use underground. There is nothing protecting children from drugs right now, so long as they step outside of the adults' view. The most effective solution would be to make sure kids were busy all the time, but this takes large education budgets which we seem unwilling to spend. I do not think the Randall's are advocating for a government 'free for all' for drugs, but for more effective controls. It is time that drugs were not controlled by profit seeking illegal capitalists, and were controlled by people who might actually care for your children. [continues 257 words]
Dear Editor Re My letter opposing drug prohibition, Apr. 28 Your surprisingly snide response to my letter implies that I suggested the government provide drugs to users. I said no such thing. Making a drug legal does not mean the government provides said drug. Does the government provide free tobacco and alcohol? Of course not. Alan Randell - --------------------------------------------------- Dear Alan I still don't agree with what you are saying. Whether drug companies or government's supply drugs it is still a very bad idea. Just because a lot of people are doing something, doesn't make it right. I believe all drugs should be illegal and those who break the law should be dealt with more harshly. [continues 72 words]
Dear Editor, Please consider publishing the following brief letter: Your Apr. 20th editorial offered excellent advice on preventing adolescent drug use. The importance of parental involvement in reducing drug use cannot be overstated. School-based extracurricular activities also have been shown to reduce use. They keep kids busy during the hours they're most likely to get into trouble. In order for drug prevention efforts to effectively reduce harm, they must be reality-based. The most popular drug and the one most closely associated with violent behavior is often overlooked by parents. That drug is alcohol, and it takes far more lives each year than all illegal drugs combined. Alcohol may be legal, but it's still the No. 1 drug problem. [continues 112 words]
DISTRACT AND ENTERTAIN THE MAJORITY BY RUINING THE LIVES OF THE INNOCENT MINORITY Dear Editor: Re Drug awareness, Apr. 20 Why do governments prohibit certain drugs? Is it to reduce the number of people using the drugs? No, that can't be the reason because usage seems to have skyrocketed. Before marijuana was prohibited, hardly anyone used it. Now, it is difficult to find anyone who has not used it. Is it to protect users from harm? No, that can't be the reason because users suffer MORE (adulterated drugs and jail time) when a drug is banned as compared to when it is legally available. My wife and I became well acquainted with this aspect of government policy when we lost our 19-year-old son to street heroin in 1993. [continues 166 words]
I applaud your Apr. 14 editorial, "A Lot of Hurt." You have obviously dropped the moral distinction between illicit and legal drug use. Morally condemning only illegal drugs generates cynicism that exasperates the drug abuse problem. The sooner we see the similarities between alcohol, caffeine, cigarettes, and even prescription drug use to the use of the handful of drugs we have deemed illegal the better. Tyson Campbell, Calgary Alberta Gee, Tyson, just for me, I think I'll leave out the coffee part. Ted [end]
