It is a very sad thing when people must get a buzz to feel blessed. We cash-in the unspeakable blessing of sound mind for unreality. I decry the buzz not only for its impairment of the mind, but I decry it for its symbolic aspect—the penchant for addressing the hurts of life with escapism. Let me repeat my warning—we assume mind altering drugs (including marijuana and alcohol) only temporarily affect perception. There is no evidence whatever for this assumption and the likelihood of this being true is nil considering the complex structure of the brain on all levels. To the contrary, a lasting beneficent impact upon perception through inebriation is as likely as my thrusting an ice pick through a fine watch and expecting it to improve the timekeeping function. It is high time we address the causes of pain in the world and use the mind to assuage them in a way and for the purposes God set from the beginning.
Print Page
