Have you ever been forced into rehab because of a supposed “marijuana addiction”? If so, I promise you, you’re not alone. For years and years prohibitionists have used the number of people checked into a rehab program for marijuana as proof that it is an addictive drug.
The big problem with this theory? None of these people are actually addicted. I can pretty much guarantee that no one’s ever robbed a house or a car in order to get enough money for their “marijuana addiction”.
Actually – whether this surprises you or not:
Nearly 52 percent of people in drug treatment primarily for marijuana were referred by the criminal justice system, according to the latest Treatment Episode Data Set, which was released last Thursday. Fewer than one out of five people in treatment for marijuana checked themselves in voluntarily or were referred by another individual. – The Weed Blog
Okay, so think about that for a minute. 52% of people who are in a “rehab” for marijuana are there because a court said they had to be. This could be for a number of reasons from drug arrest (original or as a violation of probation/parole), in order to bring a child home after a failed drug test or any number of reasons.
For those who are not there on a court order, chances are, they still don’t want or need to be there. They are likely there because they were forced to by a source other than the courts such as school or a sports team.
Many people – myself included – have attended “classes” to help us with an addiction that we don’t have. We stop smoking for a month, two months, six months or a year – however long is needed to keep us out of trouble. Once that time period is up, they go back to smoking.
Does that sound like an addict to you? Can an addict just drop a habit in a single day – decide they can’t indulge right now and actually mean it? Not any that I’ve ever met. It’s a fact – marijuana is NOT addictive!
No one is a marijuana addict unless they have a completely psychological addiction – which is possible – but those people don’t prove anything because the plant itself is not causing a physical addiction. So to be completely honest, I think rehab for marijuana addiction is a joke. A very expensive joke.
All weed smokers get out of “marijuana treatment” is an out of pocket expense they likely can’t afford (or could be putting the money towards something actually beneficial to them), at least four to six wasted hours over the course of four to six weeks and a lot of time being annoyed that they can’t smoke whether it be for medical or recreational purposes.
There are some people who do get these classes at a discount because they are required to take the class and cannot afford it. If they were to take the money they use for this and put it towards helping actual addicts – people who are addicted to things like heroin, methamphetamine, pills and so many other things that are REAL addictions – think how many lives could be changed or even saved?
Weed is addictive and if you say otherwise, chances are you are delusional. Stoners think that they’re not addicted, but once you try to quit, it’s not as easy as it seems. Checked myself in to outpatient rehab today for my marijuana addition/dependence. Just because there are little withdrawal symptoms, doesn’t mean that the mental side of things can’t be severe. If you can handle the herb, good for you. But don’t make bullshit claims that it’s not addictive (just because you think you’re not), because at its core, it really could be a substance of abuse. Otherwise the number of people checking themselves in voluntarily would be zero. But clearly, and myself as an example as well, it’s not.