Marinol has proven semi-effective in treating appetite disorders, but is almost totally ineffective in treating irritable bowel syndrome, one of the most common uses of medical marijuana.

How is that a good point? First of all, the homegrown stuff is what IS out there. Legalizing it would enable actual regulation, which doesn't currently exist.

Second, most of the b_s about people "lacing" marijuana is just silly. Drugs cost money. Lacing pot with another substance would be a dealer cheating themselves out of money.

Some people will respond, "they do it to create addicts." OK, but if they don't know what they're addicted to/how they got it, that still won't profit the dealer, will it? There may be the occasional psycho that tries to poison potheads, but then the same psychos try to poison anything from cigarettes to apples.

Yes, cannabis is a mood-altering substance. Like most mood altering substances, it affects different people differently. Some people drink and get violent, some fall asleep, some get ill, and some get depressed. As with all substances, it affects different people differently.

No, but reading posts above yours before replying would be a nice habit to get into.

Why, thank you, Hikerchick. I'm flattered. Too bad you don't live closer, I know a lot of great trails in my area.

Thank you, Daniel. I appreciate your willingness to admit when you were wrong, and to learn from it. That is one of the truest marks of open-mindedness and of intelligence.

Twilights - You make some decent points, though none of them go back to the "no"s you bracketed that paragraph with. You also fail to take the point I made above. When we label all illegal substances as "drugs" or "street drugs" and fail to distinguish between them, we are doing our children a severe injustice.

There are MAJOR differences between various drugs, whether natural or pharmacological, and the only effective method of prevention is education. At present your children have a 90+% chance of having a non-tangential relationship with a marijuana-user before the age of 18. At least 80+% of Americans will try marijuana at least once in their lifetime. This is not something that will go away because we say "drugs bad".

I seriously recommend the website www.erowid.org to all teens and parents who might be reading this. Here's a blurb from their website: "Our Mission: Erowid is a member-supported organization providing access to reliable, non-judgmental information about psychoactive plants and chemicals and related issues. We work with academic, medical, and experiential experts to develop and publish new resources, as well as to improve and increase access to already existing resources. We also strive to ensure that these resources are maintained and preserved as a historical record for the future."

Again, education, not taboo, is the only way to control the spread and use, not only of substances such as marijuana, but of far more harmful substances such as crack cocaine, meth amphetamine, ketamine, and heroine.

I'd run a series of public service programs entitled "Why the lottery is a tax on the mathematically illiterate" and try to teach some of you lottery nuts some sense. Why do the people with the least money feel the most need to waste it on such a foolish endeavor?
Buy insurance against being struck by lightning, instead. The payoff is better, as are your odds of "winning".

Absolutely. You hear a lot of BS about marijuana being a gateway drug, and it is, but not because of anything inherent to marijuana.

Marijuana is a gateway drug because once kids meet someone who smokes it, and is a happy, productive, well-adjusted, profitable member of society, then they think back to all of those "this is your brain on drugs" ads and realize they were full of s**t. At that point, they start experimenting with harder stuff.

When we fail to distinguish between something as harmless as pot and something as harmful as meth, how can we expect our kids to make the distinction?

Wow, when I clicked on this topic I was thinking, "thug". Now that I've read all the posts, I'm thinking "poor dude."

Shoes - Get over yourself. You sound hypocritical, judgemental, and far less intelligent than you seem to believe.

Don - I agree that this is a very important time to keep your head down and play by the rules. I also agree that pot should be legal, that smoking it is not a moral consideration, and that judging you for that is pretty pointless.

Daniel - Nope, you are just plain wrong. Bongs and pipes are usually used for pot, and if it has pot residue in it, they can definitely nail you on a charge of paraphenalia. None of that implies any stronger substance whatsoever.

Sheesh. What a lot of judgemental people. Fortunately, none of you would be allowed to date my kids, if I had any.

OK, but you're kind of missing the point. One advantage of the internet is that with the added anonymity and lack of repercussions, people are sometimes much more honest than people are face to face. Of course, given that some people have no manners when they're online, this can also be a pretty serious drawback. Still, haven't you ever wanted to know what people think of your looks/writing when they aren't being simply rude or polite?

Besides, a lot of us aren't here "only here to see", nor, evidently, are you, given what your profile says. Given the inherent bias of being the author and liking the way you speak, it can be pretty helpful to know how it looks to others.

Symbel-
I take your point about gender roles. After all, I'm hardly the most testosterone-laden guy in most rooms. I've got my manly-moments, but mostly I'm the sensitive type. As such, I have my own reasons for resenting gender roles.

To be honest, part of what prompted me to post this thread was a bunch of female friends posting blogs on Valentine's Day cheering that their boyfriends "got it right". Literally, those words exactly, used by five different women. I have to admit, that annoyed me. I mean, what's the point of romance if you're just fulfilling some pre-programmed social perogative?

Personally, I prefer to be spontaneous. V-day is nice enough, I suppose, but it seems like one of the worst nights of the year to take someone out. I mean, huge crowds everywhere, tons of cash spent on gifts, and the whole punch-line is that rather than getting credit for being a romantic, you get penalized if you don't meet the curve? Screw that. I'd really rather make the romantic gesture when it isn't expected or scheduled and instead comes from the heart.

OK, little rant there, and not what you were asking ...

In general, I could care less about social roles. I support, though do not belong to, the GLBTQ community, and I rather like people who can't be easily boxed. That said, I find I'm more sensitive about my perceived "manliness" than I ever wanted to be, so there's my inner hypocrite for you.

Ummm ... yeah. Think I lost where I was going with that somewhere around page 5 ...

Lol. Not sure if I'd ask you out in that mask or not. On the one hand, it's kinda creepy. On the other hand, I've had a couple good relationships with wacky artistic types. ( c ;

Yep, I'm pretty sure I believe in magic in a young girl's heart. And an older girl's heart. And in the hearts of boys of all ages. Magic for everyone!!

Well, bad_girl obviously gets the 10, for attitude alone.

Wow. Women that can edit are HOT!

Looks great. You're still missing a few commas here and there, but it's a good read, and I like the photos! Too bad I don't live closer to Wisconsin.

Good luck!

Hi Elizabeth,
I like it, but your blurb is a little hard to read, and I LIKE reading. Would you forgive me for suggesting a few edits?

"Hi, I am a student working on my bachelors in criminal justice. Right now i am hoping to take a position as a crime scene investigator in the near future, but my ultimate goal is to become a profiler.

I have two great kids, my son is 17 and my daughter is 9. They are everything to me. I am big on family time so it's not unusual to see us dancing around the house with music blasting.

I enjoy cooking and trying out new recipes, sometimes they turn out well, sometimes not. I love flowers, tulips are my favorite. I love traveling, but hate driving. I love music of all kinds. Love live music and concerts. I have always wanted to learn to ballroom dance and take stripper classes, I know, total opposites... lol.

I don't take myself too seriously and have a great sense of humor. I am a kind, compassionate person, the type that gives street people food or a couple dollars. I know, people always say, "don't give them money, they will just spend it on booze or drugs", but you never know, it may be someone who just needs a little help.

I am always learning new things. Right now I'm learning to crochet with my daughter. I am also taking cooking classes with her. I am open minded and am not a judgemental person.

Barnes and noble is one of my favorite places, I am addicted to the Starbucks as much as the books. Lol. I love drinking coffee, reading a book, or listening to open mic night. I love to read, and read most anything, but if i had to choose just one author it would be Dean Koontz.

I am looking for a man that loves and respects me just as much as I do him. Romance is very important to me, as are great conversations. I want someone who shows affection and respects others, someone to be there for me through both the good and the bad, as i would be there for them. A man that is confident but not arrogant. Confidence is sexy, arrogance, not so much. Also, someone with family values.
Any questions?? Just ask."

All I did with the above was to add some capitalization and punctuation, group like statements together, and add a few spaces, but I think it makes it much easier to read. Oh, I also had one question - Dean Koontz? Really?

Ah, well. Each to their own. Again, hope you'll forgive my taking the editorial liberty. Good luck!

Well, I perceive that there isn't much to your profile, and I'm going to go ahead and assume that's reality too. One photo and no words isn't much to go on.

Also, and I hope you'll forgive my saying so, guys usually use that particular pose because it hides the belly. There's nothing wrong with having a little belly, most guys on here do. Still, if that is the case, any girl who actually dates you will notice it.

As you pointed out at the top of this topic, trying to look different than you do is a little silly, and ultimately self-defeating. Post a photo that looks like how you usually look, that way you stand a better chance of meeting a girl who likes you for who you are.

Good photos, yaya, but I'd like to see a little more about you in the blurb. As is, it's short and sweet, but it doesn't say much about what you find interesting or provocative, or for that matter what constitutes an "all around good guy" in your eyes.

That said, you'd score pretty high in my book. Good looking, good dress sense, and even correct punctuation.

Awww. Thank you, Gaijingirl. I lived in Japan for a little while myself, actually. Great profile! I like the nickname.

I assume, from context, that it's like the DL? Don't know what the acronym would be, though ...

No, definitely not on the rebound. If it has been at least 6 months or so AND THE FRIEND GIVES YOU THE OK, it might be kosher. Otherwise, nothin' doing. I care about my friends, I'm not going to screw up those relationships for sex.