Comment on the news

Since I'm a bit of a news junkie (I like to be in the know and up-to-date on current events), it would be easy for me to have a regular comment on the news. In general I'll resist the urge to indulge on my opinionated commentary, but I thought this article was worth the comment.

A CNN article online(www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/05/24/pot.lung.cancer.reut/index.html) discussed a study performed in Los Angeles and presented Tuesday at a meeting of the American Thoracic Society. When researchers compared the lifestyles of over 600 Los Angeles County lung cancer patients and 600 patients with head and neck cancers with those of 1,000 people without cancer, they found no elevated cancer risk for even the heaviest pot smokers. They had expected to find that a history of heavy marijuana use, like cigarette smoking, would increase the risk of cancer. Interestingly enough, they did (for the hundredth time), find a 20-fold increased risk of lung cancer in people who smoked two or more packs of cigarettes a day. So here's my question - WHY would someone still smoke cigarettes? Do they not care about their health? Surely they know of the bad affects of cigarette smoking.
Before I attempt to answer that somewhat rhetorical question, observe that Dr. Donald Tashkin, senior researcher and professor at the UCLA School of Medicine stated these results should not be taken as a blank check to smoke pot. He and others have mentioned that pot is associated with problems including cognitive impairment (could be a problem is someone drives an automobile while high), impotence (surely not a desirable side effect) and chronic bronchitis. Additionally, marijuana tar contains about 50 percent more of the chemicals linked to lung cancer, compared with tobacco tar according to Tashkin. Smoking a marijuana joint deposits four times more tar in the lungs than smoking an equivalent amount of tobacco. And marijuana smokers typically smoke differently than tobacco smokers -- they hold their breath about four times longer, allowing more time for extra fine particles to deposit in the lung." Their are other side effects of marijuana use, but I digress. My question is this -- why do people smoke pot? The high doesn't last forever, there are undesirable side effects, it impairs judgement to a dangerous level and we don't really know what it causes in patients long-term.

I think I know why people smoke (tobacco or marijuana) - it is selfishness. Our human nature is fallen and we selfishly want to pursue our own happiness - "calm nerves" from smoking a cigarette or a "high" from a joint - even it it may harm us or someone else in the future. We are selfish. That's about the crux of it. We crave something (or Someone) and we try to fill our lives with some "fun". I'm thankful that the Lord forgives me for my selfishness and gives me His selflessness. I want to crave Him and show others His joy.