Drug Testing in High School

[Justin]

By my observation, weed has different effects on different people. Certain people do indeed become the classic pothead with mental problems.

However, that is not the case for everyone. In fact, most people I know who have been smoking it regularly for years seem to be no worse for wear. I myself, smoke it occasionally, and it has had no lasting effect on me.

But, I'm not saying it's healthy, either. I'm sure I'd be just as well as if I had never smoked weed; and I do know a few people who would be MUCH better if they had never touched the stuff.

This topic is like any cigarette/alcohol topic. There are people who will say 'yes' and people who will say 'no'...I think it's important(no matter how wrong you may think someone to be) that we consider everyone else's feelings.

-Justin

[Harry]

Nobodies died of weed.

[Heaven's Cloud]

[color=indigo] Actually, Heart Disease and Lung Cancer have not been positively linked to Marijuana, It is just assumed that it can lead to these things because it contains many of the same carcinogins that tobacco has. Most doctors agree that Marijuana is not too likely to be the direct cause of these ailments because of the incredible amount that a person would have to use. There is an old, glaringly false statistic, that states 1 joint = 20 cigarettes in terms of toxic carcinogins. This statistic was long ago disproven by both Duke University and UCLA.

I am not saying that pot is a healthy thing, actually, I think if it is used habitually, it is infinitly worse then cigarettes. The toxins, especially THC, in pot can cause severe memory loss, contributes to ahlstimer disease, and rapidly destroys brain cells. In general, it makes people stupid, fast.

Now, back to the original issue. I am against this law for one reason and one reason only. It segregates a particular population in the school systems. It only effects those students that participate in extraciricular activities. I don't think it targets the true problem...why segregate one group of students from the others, why not make the law apply to all high school students.[/color]

[SSJ Gotenks ok]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by Lady Macaiodh [/i]
[B][color=darkblue]oh my god, i cannot even believe the things i'm reading.

first of all, i happened to notice that everyone who is judging weed (who have never really done it, mind you) are making all sorts of assumtions based on what they've been told by the media, d.a.r.e class, & basic anti-marijuana advocates. yeah, they're real unbiased. "don't knock it 'til you've tried it." unless you've been there, don't act like you know what you're talking about.

secondly, i never said that weed is good for you. everyone knows it's not. i just think it's rather audacious that alcohol is legal & marijuana is not. weed is a [i]lot[/i] less dangerous than alcohol. i've never heard of anybody killing anyone in a car wreck, ODing, or getting a deadly disease from marijuana. even in the cases where somebody died of cancer who smoked weed, they usually smoked cigarettes too. so who's to say what they actually died of? from experience, the people i know who smoke weed who don't smoke [i]cigarettes[/i] are in a lot better health than the ones who do smoke cigarettes. so i haven't seen any evidence w/ my own eyes that proves weed is worse than cigarettes.

third, son goten is right. there is no way prohibition is going to fly. illegal distribution of alcohol was so rampant during prohibition, the govt. was forced to make it legal again. they could use the same logic for weed... you don't see dealers on the corner selling alcohol. that's b/c it's legal. gangs & "mafia" type organizations make their money off of drugs. if weed was legal, they'd have a lot less business in that area. crime would drop so much, it wouldn't even be funny.

lastly (& this was the thing that really pissed me off), i have a big problem w/ [i]someone[/i] implying that pot-smokers are stupid b/c they smoke. yeah, it's not great for you... so what? neither is eating fatty foods. i know plenty of potheads who are really smart. gotenks probably already didn't know how to type correctly. pot probably didn't have anything to do w/ it. i have been smoking weed for years & i don't think i'm too dumb. i actually think i'm very articulate. i may make a typo here & there, but so does everybody. so if you want to use potheads as an example of what weed does to you, why don't you look at some people who are smart & successful? but, no, nobody looks at those people.

& i find it rather hilarious that this certain someone who criticized gotenks' typing errors supposedly b/c he smoked weed... doesn't even know how to spell the word "tobacco." don't start, james. just b/c you're in charge, doesn't mean you're perfect. practice what you preach & don't make gross generalizations. i'm sorry, but i was highly offended by what you said. & i'm actually being nice about it right now.[/color] [/B][/QUOTE]
Exactly everything i wanted to say i wouldn't concider myself a pot head beacuse i only smoke weed on tha weekends but u guys think that all people that smoke weed r stupid what gives u tha right to say that and i wouldn't call weed a drug i feel that cocain and heroin are drugs weed iz just a herb from the earth!And about my grammer and spelling i come on here quick i got alot of things to do so im not gonna waste my time on perfect grammer i just go to a thread and just post my reply and go on to the next one im a real busy guy!!So im sorry if my grammer really bothers u that bad.:D

[Transtic Nerve]

[QUOTE][i]Originally posted by SSJ Gotenks ok [/i]
[B]
Exactly everything i wanted to say i wouldn't concider myself a pot head beacuse i only smoke weed on tha weekends but u guys think that all people that smoke weed r stupid what gives u tha right to say that and i wouldn't call weed a drug i feel that cocain and heroin are drugs weed iz just a herb from the earth!And about my grammer and spelling i come on here quick i got alot of things to do so im not gonna waste my time on perfect grammer i just go to a thread and just post my reply and go on to the next one im a real busy guy!!So im sorry if my grammer really bothers u that bad.:D [/B][/QUOTE]

Well... it's more like... You're not stupid... well.. yes you are... but to me, every human is stupid, so don't take it too bad. We just don't see how one could knowling physically harm themselves by doing a drug or drugs, just because it "gets them high" or whatever.... If driving off a cliff would get you high, would you do it?... of course not... so why do you smoke weed?

[Anna]

[quote][i]Originally posted by Transtic Nerve[/i]
[b]We just don't see how one could knowling physically harm themselves by doing a drug or drugs, just because it "gets them high" or whatever.... If driving off a cliff would get you high, would you do it?... of course not... so why do you smoke weed?[/b][/quote]

Exactly. No one here can say that weed is [i]good[/i] for you, and if it's not improving your health, it's harming it. There's really no gray area there. A bag of potato chips may not kill, but it clogs up your arteries. And apple won't insta-fix your tummy flab, but it's giving your body vitamins and fiber. Marijuana may not show its negative effects now. But it's not doing anyting but killing off brain cells and damaging your lungs. For a time it may not seem like there's anything wrong, but you wouldn't really know that unless you cut open your skull to examine your brain, or pull open your rib cage and take out a lung and see how it's holding up on the inside. I think some may think that weed pales in comparison to cigarettes because the effects of smoking cigarettes show quicker than those of weed. But that doesn't mean that weed isn't as bad or worse. And I'm sorry but none here can say that weed is GOOD, and that their body has really improved by smoking it. The high doesn't count, because all that buzz is just the dulling and alteration of your senses, and that, too, is harmful. And also, if I come across mean or completely insensitive to those here who smoke it, I am sorry, but this is how I feel. I say all this as a friend in that, just like TN said, I can't see how some of you willingly damage yourselves. I mean, it really makes me sad to think about it. And I, too, have many MANY friends who smoke it.... gawl, I think it'd be easier to count all the friends I have that DON'T smoke it...... and I see their lives, I see how it totally changes their mood, and with some of them, I don't even think I truly know who they are. It's not the best that a lot of people out there deserve, this lifestyle that they wander in because they don't want to pull themselves out of it.... it's scary to think of how they could end up in a few years....

[Mnemolth]

I love it when people say 'If you've nothing to hide, you've nothing to fear'. The trouble is of course, we all have something to hide. That's why we all treasure our privacy so deeply. We might not have something to hide from the police, but that's not to say there's not stuff we'd prefer our parents not to know, or our children, or our lovers, or our friends, or our work colleagues. Despite the invent of Big Brother, most of us do not live our lives completely in the public eye. Our private sphere is important to us, because although we are a part of society, we remain individuals. In fact, individuality is the hallmark of Western civilisation. It shapes our identity. So every time our privacy is invaded, every time someone pokes, and prods and probes, we resent it, and will only tolerate if there has been a VERY good case made for it.

If some poor girl gets raped in a town somewhere, would it be fair to ask every man in that town to provide a DNA sample? I mean its not going to be painful, they'll just have to swab some saliva from your mouth. Would your answer be any different if the population was 100, 1000, 10, 000 or 100,000??

Of course it would help the police, if only to rule out people. But at some point the price to our privacy is too high. At some point we are all reminded that everyone is assumed innocent till proven guilty. At some point we realise that the police are suppose to conduct investigations and obtain evidence, or reasonable grounds for further investigations/searches/warrants. And at some point we realise that just because we DO DNA testing doesn't necessarily mean the culprit is going to get caught. And just because we DON'T DO DNA testing doesn't mean the culprit will escape. It all depends.

WTF does any of this have to do with drug testing in high schools? Because the issue at the heart of this maelstrom is privacy. You might say, again, that you don't do drugs, and that drugs cause problems, so people who do drugs are bad people, and who cares if the rights of bad people are violated?

Well....YOU should.

And you should care, because as soon as we diminish the rights of ANY of us, the rights of ALL of us are reduced.

What if, instead of testing for drugs, schools began random locker searches to see what students are reading and writing, especially after Columbine? Or 9/11?

Of course these are extreme examples, but they illustrate a very simple point. If something being done to someone is wrong but you don't intervene and stand by, either because you believe they deserve it or you don't like them, then sometime in the future, it may very be that that someone will be you or your friend or family. And then when you do decide to protest it will be too late.

Bad things happen because good men do nothing.

[Anna]

But drug testing in high schools is not a BAD thing. Because in schools, kids don't have all the rights as an adult, and if you subject yourself to a school's own extracurricular activities, you subject yourself to their rules and policies. It's not a right to be able to play school sports/activities, it's a privilege. And if someone is doing something ILLEGALLY, then again, there is nothing wrong with seeking out these individuals. And if some individuals on the football actually don't partake of marijuana, alcohol, whatever, and still have to take a drug test, it still isn't a bad thing because that's the policy of the higshcool. Students aren't [i]forced[/i] into these activities against their will you know, it's all their choice, just like if they were to to choose to do drugs illegally. The only "bad guy" in this situation is themselves, not the police or school or the government.

[Armadillomon]

This year is the first year my school has done drug testing. A bunch of people are ticked, but I don't see the problem. the only people who should be scared are the ones who have something to hide. Judging by the number of people who object to the testing, I'd say about 2/3 of my school is high!

[Rancid]

[SIZE=1]I don't really know what to say on this subject because people have made really good points. My friends get high about once a week, and I can admit I have tried weed but I'm not continuing with it. It does calm you down, and I do think they should legalize medicinal marijuana. Also drug testing has positive and negative effects. On the plus side it'll clean up some pot heads in the schools, but you're rights as a human being a being stripped away like Lady M mentioned. Yes blah blah blah I know you have different rights in school, personal life, and military, but what about you're rights as a human being?[/SIZE]

[Foredaddy]

Somebody may have said this, but hey if you dont do drugs then why worry. If you do drugs then too bad. Its your fault. Nobody elses. So Im glad they are doing it. I give it a Foredaddy stamp of approval and you can take that to the bank. :devil:

[chaoschris89]

ok im sorry but for no reason should a persons personal space be invade by locker checks and junk sure if you do sports or somethin then whatever but random checks thats bull if the person isnt bothering anyone let them do theyre thing and let them be if its hurtin them let them they know what theyre getting into when they start 9 out of 10 of my friends are potheads for petes sake and you wouldnt know the diff if they where high or not unless they told ya

[COLOR=Red]Edit:Eegah! The last time this thread was active was waaaaay back in 2002! Please do not bring back long dead thread. If you feel an old topic is worth discussion again please start a new thread instead of bringing back an old thread. Because of that reason I am closing this old thread. Thanks! -Panda [/COLOR]