Probably not. Yet how can that be when marijuana is perfectly legal there? Cafes sell small amounts to adults, and still, the country seems to be rather civilized and highly functioning.
Here, a group of pot proponents wants to put a question on the Colorado ballot that allows adults to possess small amounts of marijuana for their own use. Some state residents are sure to be up in arms about the idea. But should indignation be the automatic response?
I recently met a woman from the Netherlands who expressed amazement at the attitudes in this country. Where she lives, young adults tend to try marijuana once or twice. Then they move on with their lives. In the U.S., many high school kids also tend to try marijuana. They buy it illegally and smoke it on the sly. It's a cool thing to do because they're not supposed to.
The Dutch woman I met was shocked that in the United States the government has no problem legalizing prescription drugs that end up contributing to heart attacks, but makes such a huge stink about pot. She argued that our government is only too happy to gather up the taxes from cigarettes and booze, both of which kill and cause illness and addiction in its citizens.
Pot opponents in the U.S. argue that marijuana is an entry-level drug that leads some users to more serious and addictive substances such as meth or heroin. But as the pot legalization debate continues to crop up in the U.S., it's worth considering the real experience of other countries.
