Does marijuana have a place in tomorrow's military?

If you want to smoke weed get the hell out of the Military and don't let the door hit you in the ass.

Excuse me but all I'm seeing is old people stuck in their "back in my day" mindset. Once upon a time alcohol was prohibited and once it was federally legal new laws and regulations had to be formed. Such regulations are not drinking 12 hours before a shift...not drinking in uniform..etc. It's still people who don't give 2 flying fucks. It will be people that will abide by the rules and it will be people who won't but I can guarantee that if weed was legal there would be more people joining the service. I've never heard anyone say oh I don't want to join the military because I won't be able to smoke Crack no more or shoot up. Before I joined the military I smoked weed for 2 years straight. I scored higher than more than 3/4 of my BMT flight if not all. Your not a dumb ass if you smoke weed. Just like your not a dumb ass if you drink or smoke cigarettes. But self control is something you have to have also. Why do you think it's programs like adapt around. People abuse things and after my 2 years of smoking weed everyday I was able to walk away from it because I knew the military didn't tolerate it and I had to sacrifice the one thing I love for something I loved more and that was money. I always hated drinking because drinking is more dangerous. How many people die a year from alcohol withdrawal or a drunk driver. Now compare those to how many people died from overdosing and or withdrawal from marjuanna..i can tell you the answer to that easy and that number is 0. No one has overdosed and no one has died from withdrawal because it is not possible. Even though it's an opinion ask a cop who they would rather have...a person high off weed a person sloppy drunk. Drunk people are aggressive. I would rather a bunch of soldiers walking around with pop tarts singing about peace and love than have a bunch of soldiers drunk and angry. I've personally seen alcohol ruin more careers than marjuanna and I haven't even been in a year. People get the fucking shakes from not drinking alcohol (if they are addicted) please tell me one withdrawal symptom of marjuanna that is not similar to smoking cigarettes. You may feel irritable and upset but you ain't fucking shaking and cold sweating you military people make me fucking sick with all of your bull shit "not behind me with a gun" the fuck out of here who is drinking with a gun in their hand. WHO?! Shit I don't want no one behind me under the influence if my life is partially in their hands. But what they do on their off time AS LONG AS it don't not get in the way of them being an important role in their team has nothing to do with them going to work everyday and doing their job. Just like in the civillian world your boss don't come in drunk my supervisor don't come in drunk. Stop turning all these smart minds away because once you all retire who are we going to have? Most of the people I've talked to had tried weed at least twice so I guess the new generation of soldiers are not trust worth or all former drug addicts to the old birds. Please do more research because you should like Windows 7...old and outdated.

I respect your opinion but the marijuana of today is much more harmful than that of a few years ago. THC levels for smoked varieties range from 12 to 35% in my county and the concentrates ranges from 60 to 95%+. Marijuana is causing serious crime, health, social, and environmental problems in my state (CA). Marijuana is associated with increased mental health problems, suicides, fatal accidents, homelessness, and even violent crimes, largely because of its potency. I've been in law enforcement for 43-years and the legalization of it in CA for medicinal and now recreational purposes is a disaster. CA is providing up to 80% of illegal product to the rest of the nation because the marijuana industry is largely unwilling or unable to comply with various state and federal laws. It is a psychotropic drug and virtually anyone I have known or encountered on the streets that use it regularly or even moderately suffers adverse impacts. Scientific studies substantiate what I have summarized here - Ask Mom's Strong - an organization of mothers whose sons and daughters have died because of marijuana use and you'll get a better perspective on the issue. Again, I respect the opinion of others but if you look at the facts, including peer-reviewed studies, you will see it for what it really is - A dangerous drug that helps no one for the most part, except for a very few. COL L

A1C (Join to see) - A1C: You bring up some valid points but my perspective, as a 35+year veteran of the military (enlisted and officer) and after 43-years of law enforcement experience tells me the military is a special place and we have moral and ethical standards that should not be breached, which includes abstaining from excessive use of any legal substance and avoidance of all illicit drugs. Marijuana is a violation of federal law and in my opinion, it is largely harmful to those who use it. Scientific studies link marijuana (increasingly) because of the high THC levels with crime, health problems, mental health disorders, suicide, and other life-related problems. Anyone I have known that uses for any period of time suffers for it and when I was working the streets there was a link between hard drug use and marijuana as well (not all users go to hard drugs but research and my experience corroborates that they are more prone to do so). Thanks for your commentary. As a sheriff-coroner I see the links with the accidental deaths, suicides, and some homicides as well. COL L

LMAO! SFC Carothers I am NOTHING like these hippies Im related to! 

SGT Fish

SSG V. Michelle Woods - pharmaceutical companies own the US... The military, in trying to be drug free, would rather feed us pills that turn us into zombies rather than utilize a natural resource that's not nearly as bad as all the crap we get fed from the pharmaceutical industry. The meds I have been prescribed turn me into a robot, or machine, in a zombie like state... I try to avoid taking them only until it's so bad iI have to take them. There's nothing good about rx meds. The thing i dont understand is the argument about it impairing you. I think drunk people are way more of a problem than people who smoked a little weed.

MAJ: You are right about marijuana potentially impacting one's performance. It is true that you can test positive for marijuana weeks after using it because it is stored in the fatty tissues in the body; however, with my 43-years of law enforcement experience and my 35+ years of military experience, I can verify the fact that the vast majority of people who use marijuana, especially regular users who started as young teenagers, suffer many harmful impacts. There are people who can use it when they are older and avoid many deleterious effects but I firmly believe it has no place in the military. Anyone testing positive for it should get treatment or get out of the military. There are currently 8 million citizens with Cannabis Use Disorder and the numbers are growing because of the high THC levels, which range from 10 to 95+% depending if you are talking about smoked or concentrated varieties. I live in CA and the legalization has created huge problems and I see the accidental deaths, homicides, and suicides with a marijuana link too often to endorse the drug in any form. It is also still a Schedule 1 "Dangerous Drug" pursuant to the federal Controlled Substances Act. Thank you! COL L

SSG: Great response - Thank you for the "safe and sane" answer! COL L