What are your thoughts on smoking pot for recreation?

[rubecube]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

my alcohol point still stands, i just thought of a better argument right after hitting post

a guy who goes home and has a beer after work (me) and a guy who goes home after work and smokes a joint are the same thing in my book

How so? If the guy goes home and has a beer he's not going to get drunk. If he smokes a joint he's going to get high. One beer != intoxication, one joint does. Your argument should be if the guy goes home and drinks 6 beers.

And as a matter of fact I do think smoking cigarettes is stupid

[kermitology]

Originally Posted by Reaper

Just to play "devil's advocate," is alcohol also one of those things that one would need to grow out of past the age of 25?

I think the concept of getting absolutely trashed on a regular basis is something you should grow out of.

I like certain alcoholic beverages because of the taste and not really the effect per-say.

[Berger_4_]

Originally Posted by Locke

I also had a problem last winter with one of the kids I was coaching at the time showing up for practices and games stoned.

Here is a situation for you: I had a 14 year old kid show up to 2 practices and 1 game stoned despite my numerous private warnings not to. My assistant coaches (parents aged say, 35-45) didnt even notice.

Tell me what you'd do and then I'll tell you what I did. I guarantee you I didnt do the 'right' thing as many here will undoubtedly proclaim.

I'm curious to know what you consider to be the right thing...

I had a doper on a couple hockey teams through the years, and I doubt the kid lasted half a season with us. He'd just quit showing up.

As for your kid, I think I woulda kicked him off the team. If I'd have been coaching the team and one of my players showed up high once, it'd have been the end of the game or practice for him. Oh, he'd still have to sit on the bench, but he wouldn't see the ice. If it happened a second time...the kid is no longer on the team. Doesn't matter if it's house league or triple A. Especially when you're 14.

Now I'm not proclaiming that's the right thing to do, just what I think I'd do.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

if you're gonna call a guy in his 30's a loser who needs to grow up and quit smoking pot, then i'm gonna call a guy in his 30's who buys a pack of cigarettes every few days a loser who needs to grow up and quit wasting money

What about a guy in his 30s who buys a pack of cigarettes every few days. I guess he's the ultra-loser? Oh well, I can live with it. I've known since I was a kid that I wasn't perfect. When did you learn that you were?

[kermitology]

Originally Posted by Locke

I also had a problem last winter with one of the kids I was coaching at the time showing up for practices and games stoned.

Here is a situation for you: I had a 14 year old kid show up to 2 practices and 1 game stoned despite my numerous private warnings not to. My assistant coaches (parents aged say, 35-45) didnt even notice.

Tell me what you'd do and then I'll tell you what I did. I guarantee you I didnt do the 'right' thing as many here will undoubtedly proclaim.

I would do what you did to start off with. Talk to him and tell him that if he wants to participate on your team that coming stoned is disrespectful to the other members of the team and that if he continues to do so you will speak to his parents about his continued participation on the team.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by RougeUnderoos

What about a guy in his 30s who buys a pack of cigarettes every few days. I guess he's the ultra-loser? Oh well, I can live with it. I've known since I was a kid that I wasn't perfect. When did you learn that you were?

try looking at the point in context with the argument. my point was that if you're going to label pot smokers with a certain stigma, then it would be hypocritical to exempt other smokers

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Berger_4_

I'm curious to know what you consider to be the right thing...

I had a doper on a couple hockey teams through the years, and I doubt the kid lasted half a season with us. He'd just quit showing up.

As for your kid, I think I woulda kicked him off the team. If I'd have been coaching the team and one of my players showed up high once, it'd have been the end of the game or practice for him. Oh, he'd still have to sit on the bench, but he wouldn't see the ice. If it happened a second time...the kid is no longer on the team. Doesn't matter if it's house league or triple A. Especially when you're 14.

Now I'm not proclaiming that's the right thing to do, just what I think I'd do.

The first thing I told him was that I was not going to tell his parents. At 14 he has to start learning to make his own decisions. And I never did tell his parents.

At first he was nothing short of amazed that I noticed. At the time I was only 22, so the behaviour of the stoned is fairly obvious to people that age, I was fairly startled that no adults noticed. Even his parents. Hell, his parents drove him there.

The first practice, I gave him a free pass. I believe that everyone is entitled to one (fairly) serious mistake and should have the opportunity to correct it themselves, and as far as my involvement in his fairly brief life that was as serious as it was likely to get.

The second practice I spoke with him again, and I made him understand that there would be consequences.

Now some background. I spoke with this kid's parents and several times with him and his friends and teammates who some went to school together. I was kind of surprised that they didnt notice either. Now, hes a good kid, good grades, actually, really good grades according to his parents.

He wasnt Pele or anything, but he gave 110% every shift which I admire, but for the second practice I made him play net and organized a shooting drill. So hes getting shelled by 15 other kids. Punishment. Dont do it again or it gets worse.

When he came to the game stoned I'd had enough. I'm willing to make the occasional concession at practice but a game is going too far in my eyes. So I did the opposite. I played the hell out of him.

He'd come back to the bench after a shift sucking wind, we were shorthanded so everyone had to play a lot and I felt that not playing him would be unfair to his teammates, and I'd give another player a break and send him back out giving someone else a rest.

After he puked I gave him a bit of a rest, then I triple shifted him again. He puked 3 times that game and he must have thought I was an absolute *expletive*.

His parents even asked me after why I'd played him so hard, and I told them that he'd explain it to them. Put him in the hotseat.

He never did it again though. I dont care what he told his parents, he isnt going to get away with it forever.

Never did he ever put me in that position again though, and I think he learned something. He certainly isnt going to quit because of me but if he even curtailed his use at that age a little bit I think I did something at least decent. Maybe not good, but decent.

Was it right? Probably not, I think a lot of people would counsel me to tell his parents immediately but I'm not his dad and overall its only my problem when he makes it my problem. The rest is up to him.

[Cowboy89]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

try looking at the point in context with the argument. my point was that if you're going to label pot smokers with a certain stigma, then it would be hypocritical to exempt other smokers

I'd be more than happy to paint both pot smokers and smokers with a negative stigma for the sake of consistancy. Both aren't exactly positive or beneficial things to do.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Locke

The first thing I told him was that I was not going to tell his parents. At 14 he has to start learning to make his own decisions. And I never did tell his parents.

At first he was nothing short of amazed that I noticed. At the time I was only 22, so the behaviour of the stoned is fairly obvious to people that age, I was fairly startled that no adults noticed. Even his parents. Hell, his parents drove him there.

The first practice, I gave him a free pass. I believe that everyone is entitled to one (fairly) serious mistake and should have the opportunity to correct it themselves, and as far as my involvement in his fairly brief life that was as serious as it was likely to get.

The second practice I spoke with him again, and I made him understand that there would be consequences.

Now some background. I spoke with this kid's parents and several times with him and his friends and teammates who some went to school together. I was kind of surprised that they didnt notice either. Now, hes a good kid, good grades, actually, really good grades according to his parents.

He wasnt Pele or anything, but he gave 110% every shift which I admire, but for the second practice I made him play net and organized a shooting drill. So hes getting shelled by 15 other kids. Punishment. Dont do it again or it gets worse.

When he came to the game stoned I'd had enough. I'm willing to make the occasional concession at practice but a game is going too far in my eyes. So I did the opposite. I played the hell out of him.

He'd come back to the bench after a shift sucking wind, we were shorthanded so everyone had to play a lot and I felt that not playing him would be unfair to his teammates, and I'd give another player a break and send him back out giving someone else a rest.

After he puked I gave him a bit of a rest, then I triple shifted him again. He puked 3 times that game and he must have thought I was an absolute *expletive*.

His parents even asked me after why I'd played him so hard, and I told them that he'd explain it to them. Put him in the hotseat.

He never did it again though. I dont care what he told his parents, he isnt going to get away with it forever.

Never did he ever put me in that position again though, and I think he learned something. He certainly isnt going to quit because of me but if he even curtailed his use at that age a little bit I think I did something at least decent. Maybe not good, but decent.

Was it right? Probably not, I think a lot of people would counsel me to tell his parents immediately but I'm not his dad and overall its only my problem when he makes it my problem. The rest is up to him.

i happen to think your approach is ingenious and should be applauded. how many times have we heard of the parents getting involved, only for the kid to rebel further and maybe even start into some more serious drugs. you let the kid make his own decisions, and it's awesome that you just didn't kick him off the team. that would have been the easy way out. instead he had to figure out for himself which was more important, the sport or pot. sounds like he made the right choice

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

try looking at the point in context with the argument. my point was that if you're going to label pot smokers with a certain stigma, then it would be hypocritical to exempt other smokers

By that logic, drinking pretty much anything other than water is stupid if alcohol consumption is stupid.

Now, I'm not going to 'defend' cigarette smoking, but since I smoke, I'll weigh in. Cigs are not the same as weed. Just because they're consumed the same way doesn't make them equal.
Smoking a cigarette does not impair you in any way. Just like a glass of iced tea doesn't impair you. A joint or a beer will (to varying degrees).

So if your point is that smoking cigarettes is totally unnecessary and very unhealthy, then fine. But so are chocolate bars and ice cream.

Some people hate smoking and smokers, which I understand. Every time I quit I notice the disgusting smell of lingering tobacco wherever I may encounter it. But when I'm on the cancer sticks, I genuinely enjoy them. (That, by the way, is a good portion of the battle when it comes to quitting)

So why is one form of indulgence so much more atrocious than others? Because it isn't confined to the actual consumer? When consumed responsibly, it is.

So, my point is that I get a little tired of the anti-smoking militants. Go ahead and educate me about the negative side effects, but don't condemn me for doing it anyway. Like I said, junk food is no better. Hell, a nice fat steak isn't exactly healthy either.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

try looking at the point in context with the argument. my point was that if you're going to label pot smokers with a certain stigma, then it would be hypocritical to exempt other smokers

Ha, sorry, I missed that. I'm a little sensitive I guess. I quit smoking a few hours ago. I'm about to start again so everything should be hunky dory by 5pm.

I don't really agree though. I don't think a potsmoker is a "loser" either, but it is different from smoking cigarettes. You don't get high.

I don't know, maybe a comparison would be between a guy who drinks an O'Douls when he gets home from work, and another guy who drinks 8 Pilsner. Same hobby, kinda, but big difference in what it does to you.

[Galakanokis]

I think that is a good way to handle it Locke. I like how you said the kid could explain it to his parents why he was run so hard, accountability.

What a kid does on his own time is his parents concern not mine. But the minute he steps into the rink or a practice field he is on mine and the teams time. All I want from my players (I coach lacrosse) is to have respect for your teammates. At some point, if the pot use continued, I would have made him explain to the other kids why he was treating them with such disrespect. I think kids (especially competitive ones) have a harder time knowing they have let their teammates/friends down than having their parents pissed at them.

But booze and pot are growing concern to me as I move from bantam to midget. I think back on what I did at those ages......

[dustygoon]

Originally Posted by kermitology

I don't particularly care. I don't smoke, and don't like the smell of it, so I prefer if others smoke it away from me.

That being said, it seems like one of those things that you should grow out of.. Past 25, you probably need to grow up and quit the pot.

I think I see as much of it now as I did in university. Very socially acceptable (San Francisco) at dinner parties, discussing smoking tools as Christmas presents, etc. It seems that most people I work with use something. Marijuana is the least serious of the drugs.

I stick to booze....i like how it makes my nose big and red.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by 4X4

So, my point is that I get a little tired of the anti-smoking militants. Go ahead and educate me about the negative side effects, but don't condemn me for doing it anyway. Like I said, junk food is no better. Hell, a nice fat steak isn't exactly healthy either.

you just proved my point. if you're going to condemn the pot smokers, then you're condemning yourself as well

hell, i knew a kid in highschool who was one of those extremely strung out types, always fidgety and could never keep his mind focused on one thing for very long. probably had ADD or something similar, but he never was checked out by a psychiatrist for any diagnosis. he always had trouble in school as a result, that is until he started smoking pot. complete shift in mental attitude, the pot brought him down to a normal level with the rest of us. suddenly he started scoring very high on his exams and won a scholarship to college. that's why i just laugh when anyone starts in with "it's illegal" or "they just want to get high" rhetoric

[Berger_4_]

Originally Posted by Locke

The first thing I told him was that I was not going to tell his parents. At 14 he has to start learning to make his own decisions. And I never did tell his parents.

At first he was nothing short of amazed that I noticed. At the time I was only 22, so the behaviour of the stoned is fairly obvious to people that age, I was fairly startled that no adults noticed. Even his parents. Hell, his parents drove him there.

The first practice, I gave him a free pass. I believe that everyone is entitled to one (fairly) serious mistake and should have the opportunity to correct it themselves, and as far as my involvement in his fairly brief life that was as serious as it was likely to get.

The second practice I spoke with him again, and I made him understand that there would be consequences.

Now some background. I spoke with this kid's parents and several times with him and his friends and teammates who some went to school together. I was kind of surprised that they didnt notice either. Now, hes a good kid, good grades, actually, really good grades according to his parents.

He wasnt Pele or anything, but he gave 110% every shift which I admire, but for the second practice I made him play net and organized a shooting drill. So hes getting shelled by 15 other kids. Punishment. Dont do it again or it gets worse.

When he came to the game stoned I'd had enough. I'm willing to make the occasional concession at practice but a game is going too far in my eyes. So I did the opposite. I played the hell out of him.

He'd come back to the bench after a shift sucking wind, we were shorthanded so everyone had to play a lot and I felt that not playing him would be unfair to his teammates, and I'd give another player a break and send him back out giving someone else a rest.

After he puked I gave him a bit of a rest, then I triple shifted him again. He puked 3 times that game and he must have thought I was an absolute *expletive*.

His parents even asked me after why I'd played him so hard, and I told them that he'd explain it to them. Put him in the hotseat.

He never did it again though. I dont care what he told his parents, he isnt going to get away with it forever.

Never did he ever put me in that position again though, and I think he learned something. He certainly isnt going to quit because of me but if he even curtailed his use at that age a little bit I think I did something at least decent. Maybe not good, but decent.

Was it right? Probably not, I think a lot of people would counsel me to tell his parents immediately but I'm not his dad and overall its only my problem when he makes it my problem. The rest is up to him.

Hmmm...that's actually a really good way of dealing with it. I too wouldn't have told his parents, but making the little punk skate his guts out would probably get you farther along than sitting him. At least that way he doesn't have time to sit on the bench and stew about how big a dick his coach is.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

you just proved my point. if you're going to condemn the pot smokers, then you're condemning yourself as well

hell, i knew a kid in highschool who was one of those extremely strung out types, always fidgety and could never keep his mind focused on one thing for very long. probably had ADD or something similar, but he never was checked out by a psychiatrist for any diagnosis. he always had trouble in school as a result, that is until he started smoking pot. complete shift in mental attitude, the pot brought him down to a normal level with the rest of us. suddenly he started scoring very high on his exams and won a scholarship to college. that's why i just laugh when anyone starts in with "it's illegal" or "they just want to get high" rhetoric

Aye. OK. I guess I misunderstood where you were going with your point. And back on topic of the OP, my experience with pot is that most people I know that smoke it are less productive when stoned.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

i happen to think your approach is ingenious and should be applauded. how many times have we heard of the parents getting involved, only for the kid to rebel further and maybe even start into some more serious drugs. you let the kid make his own decisions, and it's awesome that you just didn't kick him off the team. that would have been the easy way out. instead he had to figure out for himself which was more important, the sport or pot. sounds like he made the right choice

Originally Posted by Berger_4_

Hmmm...that's actually a really good way of dealing with it. I too wouldn't have told his parents, but making the little punk skate his guts out would probably get you farther along than sitting him. At least that way he doesn't have time to sit on the bench and stew about how big a dick his coach is.

Thanks guys, at least I didnt screw up nearly as bad as I could have. I certainly didnt solve any of this kid's problems, at the end of the season the only thing he thanked me for was not telling his parents.

No thanks for the countless hours of tireless hard work or anything....

But I thought it was the best thing to do at the time. I was wary of asking anyone else for advice, not even my own assistant coaches, actually, especially not my assistants as they were parents of other kids, but in the end I thought it went over well.

[kermitology]

Originally Posted by Locke

Thanks guys, at least I didnt screw up nearly as bad as I could have. I certainly didnt solve any of this kid's problems, at the end of the season the only thing he thanked me for was not telling his parents.

No thanks for the countless hours of tireless hard work or anything....

But I thought it was the best thing to do at the time. I was wary of asking anyone else for advice, not even my own assistant coaches, actually, especially not my assistants as they were parents of other kids, but in the end I thought it went over well.

Teenagers don't give thanks for shinguard.. So I'd be more surprised if he had thanked you for anything else.

Your method was pretty cool actually. And if he stopped showing up stoned, then it worked.

[Locke]

Originally Posted by kermitology

Teenagers don't give thanks for shinguard.. So I'd be more surprised if he had thanked you for anything else.

Your method was pretty cool actually. And if he stopped showing up stoned, then it worked.

No kidding, they arent my bastid children, I dont know why I put so much effort into this.

[Flash Walken]

so far, i'm inclined to agree with FireFly