From user comments to the NY Times editor:   

    Senator Barack Obama candidly admitted in his 1995 memoir that he had smoked marijuana when he was in high school. On the other hand, when George W. Bush was first running for the presidency, he consistently refused to answer reporters’ questions about his alleged drug use.Bill Clinton admitted that he smoked marijuana, “but,” he added, “I didn’t inhale.”

    One personality trait I like about Barack Obama is how "honest" he comes off as. He seems to be the king of personality in this election! I admire a politician who can actually crack a joke and behave like a normal person; someone who isn't afraid to show his affectionate side, his family side, nor his history. This sort of thing seems to be becoming more and more prevalent these days, especially in corporations. "Change" is, afterall, the theme of this election. 

    As for campaigners who use this as a smearing device upon Obama, well, perhaps you are helping his cause? I personally do not care if any politician has done drugs before. I, along with many, many Americans, do not even view drugs as necessarily a bad thing in the first place. So kudos to you Mr. Obama for being honest! 

    Mr. Obama grew up in the 1970s. Anyone who was 15 to 30 years old during that era knows that drugs were pervasive and that almost everyone smoked marijuana occasionally. Cocaine was also commonly used.

With the change in the political climate and the rise of the Christian right, we now pretend that drugs were never mainstream and that only a few hippies and street people used drugs. We also pretend that minor drug use precludes success in life.

The reality is that students at mainstream colleges who did not use drugs were few and far between in the 70s.

I admire how Barack Obama isn't like your traditional, emotionless politician. Barack Obama is normal. How strange would it be to actually have a president who actually tells the truth..

Of course, personality isn't everything in an election, but it certainly does help. Politics is encapsulated in its own little world and most people have trouble relating or even giving a crap about politics. This election, however, seems to be having great turnout thus far. So we have a candidate in an election who has no problem openly admitting to drug use in his youth. Finally, somebody we can relate to, right?

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