11-21-2012, 03:59 AM
Okay, well those were made-up examples based on a composite of observations. I have smoked marijuana and I did inhale, deeply. When I have, I know from personal experience that I get wary, quite paranoid and mistrustful. I have seen this in others, to a degree, too. Most of the world handles it much better than I do, and, indeed, they function beautifully and, as you say Bullwinkle, are home for dinner. In the parlance, I think you say they are "high functioning". Some are amazingly energetic and high functioning. It just depends on the person. But the literature is pretty clear on this one issue though: a side effect of marijuana use is an increase in paranoia. Like many side effects, it does not occur in every person.
But the problem in Puna is ICE and not marijuana. No one functions well on ICE though for very long. I used to work in drug court and so am pretty good at recognizing the symptoms. I've seen some Wal-Mart cashiers compromised on this stuff. The pimply faces. The vacant look. The bad complexion.
Puna is kind of the Amsterdam of Hawaii. Anything goes. It is the beautiful thing about our area, really. But every beautiful thing has a downside, too, except for a diamond, I guess.
Come to think of it: A unpolished diamond can cut up up pretty bad and a polished one can be very expensive. Downsides to everything.
But when you love a place like I do Puna, you accept the downsides. Puna is not perhaps a diamond, but is at least a gorgeous geode. The focus on the druggie aspect of things ignores the beauty, the energy, the uniqueness, the barely tamed wildness, the mana of this special place and the very special people that live here. There is darkness here, too, but even that is often studded with stars. And every single day has both darkness and light. And every new day in Hawaii begins in Puna.
But the problem in Puna is ICE and not marijuana. No one functions well on ICE though for very long. I used to work in drug court and so am pretty good at recognizing the symptoms. I've seen some Wal-Mart cashiers compromised on this stuff. The pimply faces. The vacant look. The bad complexion.
Puna is kind of the Amsterdam of Hawaii. Anything goes. It is the beautiful thing about our area, really. But every beautiful thing has a downside, too, except for a diamond, I guess.
Come to think of it: A unpolished diamond can cut up up pretty bad and a polished one can be very expensive. Downsides to everything.
But when you love a place like I do Puna, you accept the downsides. Puna is not perhaps a diamond, but is at least a gorgeous geode. The focus on the druggie aspect of things ignores the beauty, the energy, the uniqueness, the barely tamed wildness, the mana of this special place and the very special people that live here. There is darkness here, too, but even that is often studded with stars. And every single day has both darkness and light. And every new day in Hawaii begins in Puna.