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What's Worse: Alcohol or Marijuana Use?
DR. WALLACE: The guy I date is a "pothead." He smokes a lot of marijuana. Sometimes he even smokes marijuana while he is driving. He says that he is in complete control at all times, even when and after he has smoked pot. He says that …Read more.
I'm Afraid to Tell My Parents He's 20
DR. WALLACE: I'm 17 and recently met the sweetest most wonderful guy in the world at a friend's wedding reception. So far, all we have done is have lunch together twice on a Saturday afternoon. I'd really like to see this fellow on a regular basis (…Read more.
Why Take Geometry? I'll Never Use it
DR. WALLACE: I'm 17 and will be graduating from high school in June. I've enjoyed my school year. I've made many friends and have enjoyed learning with most of my teachers. My only complaint is that schools teach things that most students will never …Read more.
Yearly, 7,000 Lives Are Saved
DR. WALLACE: I'd like to know why we have a stupid law in the United States that requires a person to reach age 21 before legally consuming a drop of alcohol. I am a college freshman at Miami University in Florida and if I have a glass of wine at …Read more.
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I'm Positive You'll be on My SideDR. WALLACE: I'm a senior and will graduate from high school next June. Both of my parents are dentists, and they want me to follow in their footsteps. But I have no desire to be a dentist. The thought of probing in some stranger's mouth is revolting. I would like to be a high school math teacher. My parents think this is a disgusting choice of career opportunities. Since you are a former educator, I'm positive you will be on my side. Please tell my parents that becoming a teacher is not a disgusting choice. I suspect that even if you support my choice, they won't respect your opinion because they know you are a former educator. — Alex, Seattle, Wash. ALEX: Before I would defend teaching as a career choice, I would want to defend something more basic — the right of children to choose their own career path no matter what it is. Parents who deny their children this right are overstepping their bounds and robbing their kids of the right to their own lives. When it comes to career choice, wise parents encourage; they do not demand. I speak from experience. My father wanted me to follow in his footsteps and be gainfully employed with the United States Steel Corporation in Gary, Ind. The steel mill provided him with ample money to support a wife and three children, but it was not my choice. I wanted to teach English and coach varsity basketball. I loved every minute of being an educator, and the profession provided me with ample money to support a wife and two children.
If your father and mother are still skeptical, let me remind them that they wouldn't be excellent dentists today if it weren't for dedicated professional teachers. WHICH DRUGS ARE MOST ABUSED? DR. WALLACE: There is a lot of discussion about teens being involved in drugs. Can you please tell me a good definition of what constitutes a drug? I have heard that caffeine is a drug but so is heroin. How can they both be drugs? What drugs are most abused? — Jamie, Moncton, B.C. Canada JAMIE: Drugs come in many different potencies. Health and Welfare Canada, a Canadian health organization, defines a drug as any substance that changes the way a person thinks, feels or behaves. Drugs include the alcohol in beer, wine and liquor; the caffeine in coffee and tea; the nicotine in tobacco; all products that can be sniffed; and street drugs including marijuana, cocaine, LSD and heroin. Of course, medical drugs, both over-the-counter and prescription can also be abused. The drugs most subject to abuse can be called mood-changing or psychoactive drugs. These include alcohol, all common street drugs (marijuana, cocaine, heroin, LSD, etc.) and medications used to relieve pain, calm nerves and aid sleep. Dr. Robert Wallace welcomes questions from readers. Although he is unable to reply to all of them individually, he will answer as many as possible in this column. Email him at rwallace@galesburg.net. To find out more about Dr. Robert Wallace and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com. COPYRIGHT 2011 CREATORS.COM
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