Laurels & lances: Civic duty and illegal drugs

Laurel: To a valuable education. If there’s one thing our divided political landscape proves, there are a lot of people out there who could have used a civics class.

Civics is the study of what it takes to be a citizen. It teaches the mechanism of the governments that govern us. It also teaches us our part — the rights we take for granted and the duties we sometimes shirk.

It ought to be something we all learn in school. We get some of it but not enough. Between American history and world history and the other parts of social studies like geography, there doesn’t seem to be enough time left over to really ground students.

Instead, we are left with a “Schoolhouse Rock” level of familiarity. We can sing along with the greatest hits.

There needs to be more in-depth education like the Project 18 course at Hempfield. Teacher Ken Stough’s class, with 77 students this year, gives a better foundation in state and local government. That’s a critical part of citizenship that adults often end up not understanding — even when running for office.

Stough is only the second teacher in the Hempfield course’s existence. Rich Redmerski started it 50 years ago and taught it for 30 years.

A class like this should be offered everywhere. We need young people to see themselves as part of the process, from voter to taxpayer to active participant in government.

Lance: To accessible drug use. THC is the pharmaceutical part of marijuana — the part that makes it appealing for many users. If you don’t want to smoke the plant material itself, you can get oils or extracts that distill the THC to use in other ways, including in cartridges for electronic smoking devices.

Pennsylvania is wrestling with the future of marijuana’s legality. Will it remain medicinal only or will it become more freely available for recreational use? There is a lot to unpack there.

What no one has proposed is making marijuana legal recreationally for minors. Still, many are using it, and vaping is one of the methods used. Murrysville police Sgt. Dan Cox said law enforcement is “struggling to keep up” with illegal THC cartridges coming into the area.

Vaping has become popular with minors, despite state and federal efforts to restrict marketing and sales to those under 21.

Police are doing what they can. Schools, parents and legitimate retailers need to do what they can to crack down on all vaping as part of the push to stop marijuana use by minors. If the kids can’t vape at all, they can’t vape THC.