Elton John is not holding his tongue when it comes to legalized marijuana and his personal experiences.
He has made mistakes in his life and his hope is to help others from destroying their lives.
This from cnn.com.
In an interview with Time magazine as part of their Icon of the Year coverage, the legendary singer shared his thoughts about the legalization of cannabis in parts of the U.S. and Canada.
He stated:
I maintain that it’s addictive.
It leads to other drugs.
Further:
And when you’re stoned—and I’ve been stoned—you don’t think normally.
And:
Legalizing marijuana in America and Canada is one of the greatest mistakes of all time.
John comes at it from the perspective of being sober for many years.
The publication pointed out:
[John] is Eminem’s sponsor. He orchestrated English pop star Robbie Williams’ first stint in rehab.
NOTE: Sponsorship is a form of mentoring and is a crucial tool of Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), Narcotics Anonymous (NA), and Marijuana Anonymous (MA), which all commonly fall under the AA umbrella.
One artist John regrets he could not help was the late George Michael, who struggled with substance abuse before dying with heart and liver disease in 2016. He was 53.
John said of attempting to assist Michael with sobriety:
It’s tough to tell someone that they’re being an a**hole, and it’s tough to hear.
Eventually I made the choice to admit that I’m being an a**hole.
John’s longtime writing partner, Bernie Taupin, said:
[W]hen John was hooked on drugs, I was terrified for him. It was absolutely horrible.
Further:
A lot of the work that we did in the times when he was at his worst wasn’t the best of both of us.
I wasn’t able to creatively invest any time in writing material that related to him until he actually found himself, and then it was easier for me to reflect upon it.
Final thoughts: Elton John stated he maintains “marijuana is addictive.” I agree with him, although there are opinions out there to the contrary.
Marijuana is perhaps not physically addictive like opiates and alcohol, but certainly psychologically addictive.
Besides, whether marijuana is addictive or not, it is without a doubt a Gateway Drug. And drug and alcohol abuse—even without developing into addiction—is a sure way to bring about health problems and premature death.
