Just one in five parents stressed that marijuana is illegal. The Hazelden survey, which measured parents' attitudes and practices relative to teen-age marijuana use, is the latest in the recently reignited marijuana debate. A report this month from the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University concluded that children 12 to 17 who smoke marijuana are 85 times more likely to use cocaine than those who do not. Perhaps, say experts, children are hazy about public regard for marijuana. The president tried it.
Advocates claim medicinal value.
Politicians ponder decriminalizing it. The reason may be simple enough. Many parents probably sucked a few puffs from a joint, giggled and still managed to reach the middle class. They might not welcome pot use, but the notion that they did it without negative consequences may dampen the intensity of their cautions to children. Things are different today.