Marijuana.com

Buzzby

Weed Has A Price Over And Above Its Monetary Cost
John Wing | Athens News | 01/12/2006
2006-01-12

Ask any "pothead" and he likely will confirm that weed is expensive. Yet the real cost of marijuana is not the price of a bag but the potential cost to students' futures.

While marijuana usually isn't as dangerous as other illegal drugs, and many users are able to use it safely and moderately, its misuse can adversely affect students' educations, their federal financial aid, their health and their freedom.

"I used to go to class high all the time. That was probably not such a good idea," said an Ohio University senior, who requested that his name be withheld for fear of legal repercussions.

He recalled going to a music class after getting "really high." When he arrived, he found out that there was not one but two mid-term tests, and that he was about to take the second one.

"After that, I was just, I was done. I was able to write my name on the paper," he said. "After that, I kind of learned a lesson. You have to at least make sure it's not a test day."

Movie days are the best, he added. The senior is a self-described "pothead" who has smoked on a daily basis since he was a senior in high school.

He said that he smokes marijuana regularly because it gives him "the nice haze that I need to make my day suck a little less." He tried going through his day sober and it was "just not that fun," he said.

"I am a college student. I'm about to graduate. I don't feel that bad about it," he said. "I don't drink that much beer or anything. This is just my drug of choice."

The senior added that he plans to stop eventually and that he could not imagine himself continuing to smoke weed after he has a career and family.

Another OU student, who also did not want to be identified, said that he operates pretty much the same high as when he is sober, even though marijuana slows him down a little bit.

"I am usually on hyper drive anyway, so it is calming for people around me, too," he said.

The student said he does not consider himself a "partier" and rarely drinks alcohol. He does not plan to smoke marijuana for the rest of his life and would like to be a public school teacher. He said he is not worried about the health effects because he exercises regularly.

Terry Koons, OU's assistant director of health education and wellness, teaches a recreational drug class for students that are referred to him by OU Judiciaries. Students who are required to take the class as part of a university-mandated penalty, must pay a $50 fee, which includes a book for the course.

"Many people learn to do things in a state of intoxication. Many marijuana users are only able to focus on one thing at one time," said Koons. "You might be able to concentrate, but if your professor is talking about multiple things, or starts going in different directions, you may be at a loss or out in your own world."

Koons said that exercise will not reverse many of the health effects. It takes 15 years for a tobacco smoker's lungs to repair themselves after the person stops smoking, he added.

Regular marijuana use can cause weight gain, apathy, and cancers related to smoking, said Koons. It also can negatively impact short-term memory and learning, and weakens the user's immune system.

Regular users also can develop a tolerance just like with alcohol, said Koons.

"When you start smoking marijuana, the more often you smoke, the more it is going to take to get that same high," he said. "You might start smoking more and more to maintain it."

According to Koons, the immediate effects that a user might experience are euphoria or relaxation, reddening of the eyes, increased heartbeat, problems paying attention, paranoia and possibly breathing problems.

Marijuana has less social stigma connected to it than many other illegal drugs, such as methamphetamines, said Koons. He has even heard of some students using marijuana to counteract the side effects of their prescription medications, which is dangerous.

TOM ANGELL, CAMPAIGNS director for Students for a Sensible Drug Policy in Washington, D.C., said that almost 800,000 Americans are arrested every year on marijuana-related charges and that many of them are convicted.

"When a student gets convicted in a court of law, on any drug charge, including something as small as misdemeanor marijuana possession, they'll lose their [federal] financial aid to go to college," said Angell.

The law is referred to as the Drug Provision of the Higher Education Act, and SSDP is campaigning to repeal the provision. The Higher Education Act is an expansive law that is supposed to make education more accessible to lower- and middle-income families, said Angell.

"Department of Education statistics show that more than 175,000 students have lost their financial aid since this law was put into effect in the year 2000," said Angell.

Many students who lose their federal financial aid because of drug convictions are forced to drop out, he added.

"This provision is having the effect of punishing the very students whom the DE [US Department of Education] intended to help in the first place," said Angell. "It is completely antithetical to the spirit and the intent of the original law."

Angell said that a sensible drug policy would not block education for students who get in trouble with drugs, nor would it invade citizens' privacy with urine testing, or "flush taxpayer's money down the toilets by locking up non-violent offenders." A sensible drug policy would include reality-based drug education, said Angell.

"The current approach is sort of like an ostrich putting its head in the sand," he argued. "It's pretending that a drug-free America is obtainable when we know that not to be the case."

SSDP recently helped to repeal a portion of the drug provision to the HEA. Now only students who are convicted while enrolled in college lose their aid, whereas before, any past drug conviction was grounds to discontinue federal aid.

Some universities are attempting to address drug abuse by expanding their authority, said Angell.

"There is sort of a new trend that's developing, where more and more schools are even punishing students for things that happen off campus," he said. "So, colleges are expanding their jurisdictions to punish students for drug and other crimes."

A pamphlet from OU's Department of Health Education and Wellness states that the OU's punishment for the possession, sale or delivery of marijuana can range from a reprimand to expulsion. However, in the Student Code of Conduct, possession of small amounts of pot is considered a less-serious Class-B offense. Possession of other drugs, or selling any illegal drugs, including pot, can bring Class-A sanctions, which can be as serious as expulsion.

However, expulsions are rarely the case, and minor use is treated like alcohol violations, according to Students Defending Students Director Leah Recht. SDS is an organization that helps guide students through OU's judiciary process.

OU Judiciaries regularly get reports from the Athens Police Department of students who have been arrested, according to Recht.

"Off campus, especially around the area, Judiciaries gets the report, or requests the report actually, from the Athens PD once a week or so," said Recht. "And they send down the cases that they think are serious enough to go through Judiciaries."

Recht said that OU is not going out of its jurisdiction because the Code of Conduct states that students are representing the university wherever they go.

"OU, for a long time, has had a policy that when you are a student of Ohio University, you are responsible, and you are carrying that title with you whereever you go," said Recht.

Most of the violations reported by the Athens Police Department to OU are related to alcohol violations and parties, said Recht. The majority of the marijuana violations that she has seen come from the OU Police Department or the Residence Hall staff.

"In the dorms, that is where it's obviously, it's the easiest to catch a kid if you can smell it," said Recht.

She said that Judiciaries take into consideration many factors, including how the student is doing in school and whether or not they are facing legal repercussions. Often an educational class is offered or a special assignment is given with or instead of probation, Recht said.

"Judiciaries aren't going to ruin student's lives," said Recht. "If they are already going through a ton of stuff because they got caught and had to go through court, then Judiciaries understands that and just handles the educational aspect of it."

A FORMER OU STUDENT, age 28, who lives outside the Athens city limits, said that he does not have trouble finding pot to buy in the area because all of his friends are "potheads." The man asked not to be identified by name for fear of legal repercussions. He said that use is common around the area where he lives.

"We'll sit out on the porch and watch kids go by here [driving and] smoking pot all the time," he said, "And that's what we used to do, 'smoke runs.'"

The man's roommate, who also did not want to be identified, said that he thinks the people they see driving by are students who live in the dorms.

"Most kids go on cruises," he said.

PERSONS CONVICTED OF DRIVING under the influence of alcohol or drugs are subject to incarceration, though sometimes that can be waived if they complete a State of Ohio Driver Intervention Program. Hector Flores, director of Flores and Associates, Inc., runs just such a program. The program lasts for 72 hours, costs $350, and focuses on educating offenders about the consequences of driving under the influence.

Flores, a licensed Independent Chemical Dependency Counselor, said that any drugs can alter the workings of the human brain.

"Anything we take outside of the norm, drugs specifically, alcohol specifically, changes the neurochemistry of the brain, period," said Flores.

The Athens Police Department declined to comment on local drug use for this story.

OU Police Lt. Richard Russell, however, said that drug use has remained steady over the last couple of years. While marijuana abuse is a problem, he added, alcohol is a larger issue. OUPD was not able to supply statistics of arrests on such short notice.

In 2002, however, Athens County had 56 marijuana-related arrests, according to a study conducted by National Organization for the Reformation of Marijuana Laws, which can be viewed on NORML's Web site, www.norml.com. Of the seven counties surrounding OU, only two had more marijuana-related arrests than Athens -- Hocking County with 84 arrests and Washington County with 80 arrests. The other surrounding counties had fewer than 10 arrests each.

Data for the study was obtained from the Uniform Crime Reports program of the Department of Justice-FBI, according to NORML. The arrests are reported by local police to state agencies, which, in turn, submit the compiled data to the national program office.

Also according to NORML's Web site, possession of less than 200 grams of marijuana, or about 7 ounces, is a misdemeanor charge in Ohio that carries no jail time for first-time offenders. Possession of more than 200 grams carries the possibility of jail time, and anything over 1,000 grams is a felony.

Even though NORML lists Ohio as a state that has "decriminalized" marijuana use, meaning possessors of small amounts of the drug are fined instead of jailed, students' recreational use can still lead them into serious legal trouble.

The possession of paraphernalia, such as a pipe or rolling papers, is a misdemeanor that carries a possible 30-day sentence to jail. Any sale of the drug carries the possibility of jail or prison time.

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reggie_the_dog

""After that, I was just, I was done. I was able to write my name on the paper," he said. "After that, I kind of learned a lesson. You have to at least make sure it's not a test day.""

dumb ass, i was able to pass the oral part of my graduate school exit exam while stoned. i smoked a joint about 30 minutes before i went in, well i got the MA, I also got A's and B's on many written exams during my university and grad school years while under the influence of cannabis. If it was cannabis that causes people to fail I would have failed, perhaps it was cannabis COMBINED WITH THE FACT THAT HE DIDNT EVEN KNOW HOW MANY EXAMS HE WAS SUPPOSED TO TAKE that led to his failing the test.

urania3

Great. Now what about smoking marijuana?

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Why is it that we cannot face the simple truth? Religion is at best unsubstantiated superstition. (Massimo Pigliucci)

killer12382

Damn....you're a g0d damn genius. Let me pat you on the back as your arm must be tired from doing it yourself.

reggie_the_dog

i am not saying i am a genius, i am not patting myself on the back, but if cannabis alone prevented people from doing well on tests i could not have done well on mine, i offered my past experiences to try to highlight the idea that people CAN smoke cannabis and pass.

some people may not be able to smoke cannabis and pass, perhaps they get more distracted or whatever, but this article didnt talk to someone like me who could pass, and that sends the message that you cannot smoke and pass.

 

killer12382

Smoking pot before a test isn't the sharpest thing you've done I'm sure. You wouldn't advise your kids to get high in school would you?

Cassius

This is the one thing he said that is mostly truthful. That's why I don't advocate getting high in school, while studying, or in any time of learning. Even more important than the ability to multi-task is the impact on short term memory. When you're learning, you're trying to add more information to your long-term memory. If things get lost in your short-term memory, how are they supposed to make it to your long-term memory?

As pointed out, that's true of tobacco, but what does that have to do with smoking marijuana?

First, there has been no scientific evidence that smoking marijuana causes cancer. As stated elsewhere on this site, there have even been some recent studies wherein those who smoked marijuana had a LOWER incidence of lung cancer than those who smoked nothing, and those who smoked marijuana and tobacco had a LOWER incidence of lung cancer than those who smoked tobacco only.

Secondly, it's sad that a scientist, no a PROFESSOR WHO TEACHES OUR CHILDREN, values propaganda more than his own basic training in the difference between causal and correlational relationships.

Has it ever occurred to you, professor, that maybe apathy causes marijuana use instead of the other way around? I, and many many people I know, some of which are on this site, lead very productive lives despite the fact that we use marijuana. I'm not apathetic at all, quite the contrary I get VERY passionate about some subjects. Has it ever occurred to you that maybe a lot of teenagers are disillusioned (common knowledge) and that this disillusionment can lead to apathy (also very common among teenagers) and that this apathy can lead to marijuana use in an effort to relieve the boredom that comes with apathy?

Also, the munchies cause weight gain, not marijuana. To say that marijuana causes it directly is completely misleading -- you will not gain weight just from getting high. Now, if you develop a habit of pigging out on doritoes whenever you get high, of course you're going to gain weight. But this is a matter of self-discipline, not causation. To say that marijuana leads to weight gain is like saying that using a computer leads to weight gain. If you use a computer all day (no exercise) and further don't have a healthy diet, of course you're going to gain weight!

Everyone knows marijuana negatively impacts short-term memory, but what he's not saying is that the effect is COMPLETELY TEMPORARY. When you sober up, all your memory abilities return, and there is no evidence that they don't.

As for weakening the immune system, I think that's the first time I've heard that claim (hard to remember with all the reefer madness that goes around). But I somehow doubt that doctors would be advocating marijuana use to treat the nausea and lack of appetite associated with AIDS therapy if it weakened the immune system. That kind of side effect to an AIDS patient would be disastrous -- yet we still see doctors saying that marijuana is beneficial to AIDS patients. What does that tell you about this claim about weakening the immune system?

Yep, the same is true of nicotine, alcohol, and caffeine. But again, he's not telling you that the tolerance is temporary. The way he says it, it sounds like you have to smoke more and more your whole life in pursuit of the same high. That just isn't true, a simple break from weed is all that is required to return your tolerance to very low levels.

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{ Cassius, Your Humble Narrator }
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Buzzby

Bully for you! If you're so smart you should also realize that different people have different reactions to the same drug. Some people can function quite well under-the-influence, especially people who have built up a huge tolerance. Others cannot.

It has nothing to do with being "smart" or "dumb".

Buzzby

You should take a look at our "Myths" section:

Myth #5: Marijuana impairs immune system functioning

Cassius

Oh yeah. I thought I had heard it before but didn't want to say so because I wasn't sure. I think that's one of the more ridiculous claims, based on what I said about it being recommended for AIDS patients.