No, consumers should not be treated like dealers. They're not criminals, but victims of themselves that need therapy.
Therapy makes sense when people have problems in their life.
It is very well possible to consume drugs like marijuana without developing a dependance, and especially without getting any problems in life. Which means, without indicating any therapy.
The opposite also happens, and therapy for those who struggle definitely makes sense. It just does not make sense to generalize this way.
If someone uses drugs it's definitely as a means of evasion, so yeah, marijuana users should go to therapy no matter how they convince themselves and others to be "fine"
People use strategies of evasions in a zillion ways, most don't involve any drugs (like making holidays to evade your everyday life), some involve legal drugs like alcohol (e.g. evade your social anxiety in social events). Using evasive strategies on it's own is a normal part of live and in itself not a sufficient indicator for therapy. If the individual life suffers from it, then yes. What's the point of doing therapy with someone who is fine, after all? All while people who actually suffer struggle to get any therapy to begin with?
We could also very well argue that all of these ways in which people use evasive strategies would be worth of therapy. I could get behind that (though there are good reasons against it, too), but see no reason to single out marijuana then.
Someone who regularly drinks alcohol to forget how shitty their life is currently being definitely deserves therapy
So there were a couple of thoughts in my comment, a few perspectives and nuances. You singled out one (or actually rather projected) which suits your view which you don't want to change. There were many other ways to engage in a constructive way, which you evaded.
By your logic, don't you need therapy now? Evasion bad, right?
Do you drink alcohol? If yes, you need therapy according to your own statement. And so does every single other person on earth who consumes alcohol.
That does not answer my question? Have you ever drank alcohol (any, even once a year or a single time in your life)? If so, are you going to therapy?
Yes, but I don't use it as a "coping mechanism" and do it like a few times a year
Ah, so alcohol (which by the way causes 140.000 deaths per year in the US alone) can be consumed in moderation for recreational purposes but Cannabis cannot? How come?
Because it's a crime
Looks like you have finally got the point of this discussions. Exactly, it is currently a crime. What we are trying to convey is that it really shouldn't be.
It should stay that way. If it was plausible I'd even outlaw alcohol, but it's just too ingrained in human society for a prohibition to work. However, cannabis still isn't as broadly used
No, consumers should not be treated like dealers. They're not criminals, but victims of themselves that need therapy.
Therapy makes sense when people have problems in their life.
It is very well possible to consume drugs like marijuana without developing a dependance, and especially without getting any problems in life. Which means, without indicating any therapy.
The opposite also happens, and therapy for those who struggle definitely makes sense. It just does not make sense to generalize this way.
If someone uses drugs it's definitely as a means of evasion, so yeah, marijuana users should go to therapy no matter how they convince themselves and others to be "fine"
People use strategies of evasions in a zillion ways, most don't involve any drugs (like making holidays to evade your everyday life), some involve legal drugs like alcohol (e.g. evade your social anxiety in social events). Using evasive strategies on it's own is a normal part of live and in itself not a sufficient indicator for therapy. If the individual life suffers from it, then yes. What's the point of doing therapy with someone who is fine, after all? All while people who actually suffer struggle to get any therapy to begin with?
We could also very well argue that all of these ways in which people use evasive strategies would be worth of therapy. I could get behind that (though there are good reasons against it, too), but see no reason to single out marijuana then.
Someone who regularly drinks alcohol to forget how shitty their life is currently being definitely deserves therapy
So there were a couple of thoughts in my comment, a few perspectives and nuances. You singled out one (or actually rather projected) which suits your view which you don't want to change. There were many other ways to engage in a constructive way, which you evaded.
By your logic, don't you need therapy now? Evasion bad, right?
Do you drink alcohol? If yes, you need therapy according to your own statement. And so does every single other person on earth who consumes alcohol.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alcoholics_Anonymous
That does not answer my question? Have you ever drank alcohol (any, even once a year or a single time in your life)? If so, are you going to therapy?
Yes, but I don't use it as a "coping mechanism" and do it like a few times a year
Ah, so alcohol (which by the way causes 140.000 deaths per year in the US alone) can be consumed in moderation for recreational purposes but Cannabis cannot? How come?
Because it's a crime
Looks like you have finally got the point of this discussions. Exactly, it is currently a crime. What we are trying to convey is that it really shouldn't be.
It should stay that way. If it was plausible I'd even outlaw alcohol, but it's just too ingrained in human society for a prohibition to work. However, cannabis still isn't as broadly used