Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:
It's not about being superior, enough of this pity party. I never called any of you any of those names. The only word I used was IRRESPONSIBLE. I don't drink, I don't smoke. I get my relaxation and adult time in other manners that don't put my children at risk but that's just how I prefer. I'm very risk averse. Good if you guys are brave and like taking such stupid worthless risks but it's not my cup of tea.

If there's an emergency and you must take your child to the ER what will you do? Drive under the influence?

Oh wait, you can call the ambulance and wait, right? Because you're stoned and driving would be putting your child and everybody around you at risk,but again... would you think that far being under the influence? Hm... IDK.

And I'll ask once again, since none of you responded to me. Where will you draw the line when teaching your kids when it's OK to break the law and when it's not?

It sounds like you have very high anxiety. I'm not trying to insult you, I know plenty of women with this problem and I really do feel for you. However, I think you need to realize that while you may be super risk adverse, that doesn't mean that people with an average level of risk aversion are irresponsible, unfit parents.

As for an emergency, it's the same reasoning as parents who feel comfortable have a couple of drinks. You don't drink, but do you seriously expect that no parent ever have a drink at any point until their children are grown?

As for what to teach my kids, I won't be teaching them to break any laws. That includes underage drinking and pot smoking. Like most parents here, my smoking pot as an adult does not mean that I'll allow or accept my teenage children doing it - they're too young to use it responsibly. They won't hear my honest opinion on pot use until they're adults, and at that point they'll be old enough to make up their own mind on the issue. There's lots of hypocritical things we teach our children to encourage good behavior when they're young and impressionable, and there are lots of things that are ok for adults that aren't for children. At least with pot smoking, my kids won't actually witness me doing it while telling them not to (like with alcohol).

Thanks for responding my question.

On the anxiety thing... No, I don't have a problem with it. I just think people in general don't realize how serious their behavior is until something really happens to them. My DH travels for work so even though I'd love to have a glass of wine here and there in the end of the day I don't. We have no family or friends in the area and I'd hate for something to happen to my family while I was in charge and not being able to act because I'm under the influence of any drug - legal or not.

Anyway, I think my background also adds up to the issue. I was a teacher in the public system in a third world country and I saw first hand what alcohol, marijuana and other drugs did to the families and children I worked with and I cannot see anything relaxing about any drug at all.

You people are financing a very horrible market. Because of people like you my children keep dying and being abused. I only wish this whole thing would stop by either legalization so the black market would disappear (at least virtually) or more strict laws to scare you guys away from using it.

If you were the parents of those children transporting the drugs in their backpacks during school breaks being shot by rivals or being tortured by folks looking for drugs for free I wonder if you'd have the same POV on this issue...

Anonymous wrote:
And I'll ask once again, since none of you responded to me. Where will you draw the line when teaching your kids when it's OK to break the law and when it's not?

CPS sister here.

That's just not your business to decide. It's mine. I'm sure you'd agree that the kids who bravely sat at drugstore counters, when it was illegal for them to do so, were justified in breaking the law. My husband and I strongly disagree over whether the kids in McPherson Square are justified in squatting in, and ruining, the whole of McPherson Square's plant life (guess which side I'm on?!?!). We agree over whether the government has the right to tell us to wear seat belts. We agree on gay marriage. We disagree on a few other issues. We agree, even though I'm the only user, that the government has no right to ban the possession of small amounts of marijuana.

Each family will teach their children what they believe, and how to use their common sense, sense of morality, and risk-assessing skills to decide what is justified and what is not. You teach your children and I will teach mine. And I will add no snarky comment onto the end of this, because I hope that in the end ALL of our kids grow up to be good, smart, kind, and moral people. The idea that there's only one road to that result is a farce.

Anonymous wrote:
It's not about being superior, enough of this pity party. I never called any of you any of those names. The only word I used was IRRESPONSIBLE. I don't drink, I don't smoke. I get my relaxation and adult time in other manners that don't put my children at risk but that's just how I prefer. I'm very risk averse. Good if you guys are brave and like taking such stupid worthless risks but it's not my cup of tea.

If there's an emergency and you must take your child to the ER what will you do? Drive under the influence?

Oh wait, you can call the ambulance and wait, right? Because you're stoned and driving would be putting your child and everybody around you at risk,but again... would you think that far being under the influence? Hm... IDK.

And I'll ask once again, since none of you responded to me. Where will you draw the line when teaching your kids when it's OK to break the law and when it's not?

It sounds like you have very high anxiety. I'm not trying to insult you, I know plenty of women with this problem and I really do feel for you. However, I think you need to realize that while you may be super risk adverse, that doesn't mean that people with an average level of risk aversion are irresponsible, unfit parents.

As for an emergency, it's the same reasoning as parents who feel comfortable have a couple of drinks. You don't drink, but do you seriously expect that no parent ever have a drink at any point until their children are grown?

As for what to teach my kids, I won't be teaching them to break any laws. That includes underage drinking and pot smoking. Like most parents here, my smoking pot as an adult does not mean that I'll allow or accept my teenage children doing it - they're too young to use it responsibly. They won't hear my honest opinion on pot use until they're adults, and at that point they'll be old enough to make up their own mind on the issue. There's lots of hypocritical things we teach our children to encourage good behavior when they're young and impressionable, and there are lots of things that are ok for adults that aren't for children. At least with pot smoking, my kids won't actually witness me doing it while telling them not to (like with alcohol).

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope not all CPS supervisors are like your sister.

If they take kids away for 1/8 of pot, then surely your wine collection should impact their decision making too. What about the beer your husband is sipping. It is all the same, don't you get it? Legal or not, it is all the same.

No, it's not the same. Illegal is not the same as legal.

My pleasure is not worth my child's safety.

But the point that you're missing is that the child's safety is not impacted. In the scenarios being discussed above, the children are not at risk. What people here are saying is that it's extremely unlikely that a child would suffer any consequences whatsoever from their parents occasional recreation mj smoking. People who smoke occasionally in the comfort of their own home are highly unlikely to get arrested. Cops aren't breaking down their doors - they aren't creating any kind of disturbance, so why would a cop suddenly appear out of nowhere to arrest them? And in the unlikely event of an actual possession charge, it's still extremely unlikely that the child would be taken from the parents. So what scenario is it that you are so afraid of exactly?

There are always risks in life, and one must accept a certain amount to just leave the house in the morning. But the point is that the mj use that people here are describing has a very low level of risk, lower than many other activities that people would not think twice about. My child is in bed asleep when I smoke, and she gets the same level of care that other children of good, attentive non-smoking parents get. I can't see how my mj use has any impact at all on her or her safety, which of course is of the highest priority, even for us crazy, degenerate weed smoking parents!

You can sit here and pretend to be super-parent, but I can pretty much guarantee that you put no more effort into caring for your children and keeping them safe than I do. But if it makes you feel superior to think that you are somehow a better parent because you spend your leisure time differently, then go ahead.

It's not about being superior, enough of this pity party. I never called any of you any of those names. The only word I used was IRRESPONSIBLE. I don't drink, I don't smoke. I get my relaxation and adult time in other manners that don't put my children at risk but that's just how I prefer. I'm very risk averse. Good if you guys are brave and like taking such stupid worthless risks but it's not my cup of tea.

If there's an emergency and you must take your child to the ER what will you do? Drive under the influence?

Oh wait, you can call the ambulance and wait, right? Because you're stoned and driving would be putting your child and everybody around you at risk,but again... would you think that far being under the influence? Hm... IDK.

And I'll ask once again, since none of you responded to me. Where will you draw the line when teaching your kids when it's OK to break the law and when it's not?

Personally, I think it's safer for parents to smoke pot in their own home once a week after the kids are asleep-- something I grew up w/ a parent doing, though I didn't realize it until I was a teenager-- than many of the other risks I see parents taking: texting while driving a minivan full of children, speeding, running red lights. I see kids in my neighborhood riding bikes all the time without helmets-- stupid and more dangerous than parent who occasionally uses pot.

Honestly, for the people who argue in favor of CPS taking kids away at the slightest infraction, if we listened to you, the majority of kids would be in foster care. I don't smoke pot, but I think it would more negatively impact my children's safety and health if I were a cigarette smoker than an occasional pot user, and certainly alcohol has an equal and often greater capacity to impair judgment and ability to care for children than marijuana.

I am not arguing in favor of pot use, just suggesting that you are probably a hypocrite if you are acting singularly outraged by marijuana.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope not all CPS supervisors are like your sister.

If they take kids away for 1/8 of pot, then surely your wine collection should impact their decision making too. What about the beer your husband is sipping. It is all the same, don't you get it? Legal or not, it is all the same.

No, it's not the same. Illegal is not the same as legal.

My pleasure is not worth my child's safety.

But the point that you're missing is that the child's safety is not impacted. In the scenarios being discussed above, the children are not at risk. What people here are saying is that it's extremely unlikely that a child would suffer any consequences whatsoever from their parents occasional recreation mj smoking. People who smoke occasionally in the comfort of their own home are highly unlikely to get arrested. Cops aren't breaking down their doors - they aren't creating any kind of disturbance, so why would a cop suddenly appear out of nowhere to arrest them? And in the unlikely event of an actual possession charge, it's still extremely unlikely that the child would be taken from the parents. So what scenario is it that you are so afraid of exactly?

There are always risks in life, and one must accept a certain amount to just leave the house in the morning. But the point is that the mj use that people here are describing has a very low level of risk, lower than many other activities that people would not think twice about. My child is in bed asleep when I smoke, and she gets the same level of care that other children of good, attentive non-smoking parents get. I can't see how my mj use has any impact at all on her or her safety, which of course is of the highest priority, even for us crazy, degenerate weed smoking parents!

You can sit here and pretend to be super-parent, but I can pretty much guarantee that you put no more effort into caring for your children and keeping them safe than I do. But if it makes you feel superior to think that you are somehow a better parent because you spend your leisure time differently, then go ahead.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I hope not all CPS supervisors are like your sister.

If they take kids away for 1/8 of pot, then surely your wine collection should impact their decision making too. What about the beer your husband is sipping. It is all the same, don't you get it? Legal or not, it is all the same.

No, it's not the same. Illegal is not the same as legal.

My pleasure is not worth my child's safety.

Anonymous wrote:I hope not all CPS supervisors are like your sister.

If they take kids away for 1/8 of pot, then surely your wine collection should impact their decision making too. What about the beer your husband is sipping. It is all the same, don't you get it? Legal or not, it is all the same.

I hope not all CPS supervisors are like your sister.

Very interesting but your sister is not a cop. What would a cop do? Charge of possession.

I am this poster:

Anonymous wrote:I smoked weed in college (along with most of America) and occasionally afterwards. Gave it up about 8 years ago, had two sons, and decided to take it back up again six months ago. Once every week or two, I step outside and have a smoke after the kids are in bed (though I'm not opposed to doing it while they're awake). I've successfully tended to their occasional needs. I'm a bit high, not blitzed.

I'm done pretending there's anything wrong with it. Done. All my friends can have their two glasses of wine, their cigarettes, their cosmos...I can have my weed. And no, I don't care that it's illegal. I refuse to go along with the hysteria any longer. Everyone with half a brain knows it's safer than alcohol or cigarettes. Far less violence, sickness, death, and addiction related to marijuana than the LEGAL drugs (and alcohol IS a drug). This is my choice.

And yes, I'm sure my kids will figure it out someday. I'm sure your kids will see you drinking wine, yes? I'll explain exactly what I explained here: it's relatively safe, it's safer than alcohol, you should use it occasionally, safely, not drive, and ENJOY. Stay away from the 15 beers you'll be tempted to drink at a fraternity party and get high instead. And yes, I deeply hope my sons will choose not to drink or smoke cigarettes. I hope they will make smart choices; not what the law has decided is smart for them. Because when my cousin David was murdered by a drunk driver, he had come from a legal bar handing out legal drugs. But I can't get stoned in my house and eat too many cheetos. And I just can't make sense of that.

I read everyone's responses and decided to talk with my sister. She has worked with Child Protective Services here in DC for going on 6 years now. She started doing investigations and now is a supervisor with the agency. She has been through the wringer for the past 6 years and I admire her a great deal. She is not a marijuana user but occasionally drinks.

I asked her: you get called to a home for a possession case. Let's say the parent has 1/8th of an ounce for personal use. Tell me what you'd do. Here's what she had to say:

"If the marijuana is sitting on the table, that's bad. If it's put away in a dresser drawer, that's better. Basically if it's simple possession, I'm going to check the school records to make sure kids are going to school regularly and on time (i.e.: you're not sleeping in every day because you're stoned and kids don't make it to school). I'm going to check medical records to make sure kids are getting regular checkups. I may get a test for them to see if they have any in their system, but that's only going to happen if other risk factors are suspicious.

Other than a situation where the kids are SMOKING with their parents, there's gross negligence, there's medical negligence, there's educational negligence, then I'm never removing the kids for possession. If it seems like the parents are being careless with the marijuana, leaving it out somewhere, or letting the kids be mildly affected (i.e.: seeing the parents stoned, seeing them smoke, etc.), I may substantiate for "substance abuse impacts parenting" and you'd go on a list which would make it impossible to adopt or become a foster parent. The children would not be removed in that case.

Most of my families, even when there's marijuana involved, have a much bigger problem with alcohol."

I hope that's helpful!

Again, it's clear the smoke has affected your brain.

It's not about what has happened already. It's about the non sense, useless, selfish risks you're taking.

Poor children!

Anonymous wrote:

You only forgot one small detail. Your friend having a glass of wine will never have her children taken away from her because of the wine. Now, if the authorities find out about your habits you will have your children removed from your home. Is it really worth it????

I just can't make sense of THAT!



please point to an example where a parent has lost their child because of a marijuana possession charge. which, by the way, is a MISDEMEANOR offense in DC, MD and VA. sign the ticket, pay the fine.

i'm waiting.



CPS has taken children for much lesser than that. Remember the case of a walmart employer who called the cops because of pictures of girls taking a bath together? the girls were taken away for long enough to traumatized them while the parents tried to explain that those were family pictures and not child porn.

Good luck explaining the judge that you're not an addict.

Sorry, but if someone thinks it's OK to break the law to get high and they think it's more important than their children I doubt anything an anonymous poster say here will change their mind.

I'm just very sorry for the kids who are in danger.

again, can you point to a case where a kid has been taken away because of a parent's bust for simple marijuana possession (no other factors)?? no? then go clutch your pearls somewhere else.

All you pro potheads, enjoy your white privilege. It's not like you will do a second of time, unlike us colored folk. I guess it will take busting rich white folks before you pro potheads will bother decriminalizing it.

FACT: MARIJUANA POSSESSION=CRIME

10:29 here. I'm all grown up, thank you. See, adults like to argue with FACTS, rather than feelings.