To blaze or not to blaze?

Note: At the original time of posting, I was still "using" recreational drugs, mainly psychedelics. Thank God, since then, I have stopped using controlled substances for any reason, be it recreational, spiritual, or any other reason you can think of. I now try to get high on God. To anybody who uses any kind of drug, I implore you: stop before it gets out of hand. It's not an efficient means of escape, and it only exacerbates the situation.
To clear up any ambiguity, I am officially stating my view on Marijuana and other psychedelic drugs. First off, let me say now that I do not advocate any "heavy" drug such as cocaine, heroin, and the like. However, I do advocate the use of "recreational" drugs such as Marijuana, and most other hallucinogens, i.e. mushrooms, etc.
Speaking healthily, statistics show that while numerous deaths and illnesses are caused as a direct result of tobbacco smoking, alcoholism, and even mass consumption of coffee, not once in history has a person died as a direct cause of blazin' the good stuff. People have gotten into car accidents and have been involved in promiscuous sex, leading to AIDs and venereal diseases, but never from cancer or illness caused by inhalation. It is extremely hard to overdose on marijuana, though mushrooms can be dangerous in the wrong amounts. Also, marijuana has good medical benefits, such as lowering blood pressure.
For research and statistics, you can go to: http://www.geocities.com/healthmoon/smoking-marijuana/home.htm; for tobbacco stats: http://www.ash.org.uk/html/factsheets/html/fact02.html; and for alcohol stats: http://www.usnodrugs.com/alcohol-statistics.htm
Of course, I don't advocate the just blazing up in any particular setting, there are certain prerequisites, and these are my guidelines for smoking up:
1) Never buy directly from a dealer if you can help it; get a friend to do it for you
2) If possible, blaze it up alone; if not possible, don't smoke with chicks, it can lead to promiscuous behavior, and aside for health risks, G-d wouldn't be happy with it (even if you offered a toke...)
3) Try to make it a positive/ spiritual experience; when I blaze, I usually listen to Shlomo Carlebach's music, or try and learn something; it's a real intense experience, and new things are just opened up to you when in an altered state of mind.
4) Do not smoke too often; if your a heavy stoner, I suggest limiting yourself to no more than 3 times a week. This staves off addiction, and keeps the experience much more potent. Depending on your habit, use discretion.
5) Be careful of what it is you're buying; try to make sure you're getting natural stuff, without any of the new chemical additives. The stuff you hear about better highs is bullshit anyway. Hydroponics are cool, though.
6) Keep healthy food nearby for the munchies; most of the time, you load up on junkfood, try something with serious protein like a steak or a big shnitzel sandwich...
7) .....................................I forgot the other stuff I was gonna post, but enjoy, and be smart about it.
Originally posted Friday, 20 May 2005