February 18, 2012

The 69-year-old Paul McCartney announces he's quitting smoking pot after 50 years.

For the sake of his 8-year-old daughter (not that he hasn't had other children over the years).
"I smoked my share... When you're bringing up a youngster, your sense of responsibility does kick in, if you're lucky, at some point."
And that point, for Sir Paul, is age 69.

73 comments:

bagoh20 said...

I'd like to hear his talk where he explains how it ruined his life - such a tragic waste of talent. He could have been a star.

Mark O said...

Yes. I, too, today vow to be a better person. Thank you.

Automatic_Wing said...

Alternate headline: Aging has-been desperately tries to remain relevant.

garage mahal said...
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MadisonMan said...

Was she complaining that he was hogging all the good stuff?

garage mahal said...

Seems like all the old pot heads are still going strong. It's the prescription drugs they pass out like candy that kills people.

MadisonMan said...

By the way, I'd like to announce that I am giving up urinating while standing up. Henceforth I will sit.

Thank you.

MadisonMan said...

Totally bizarre.

I've posted two comments, and one has vanished, and blogger says I removed the other one.

They were both very very witty, but I feel like re-posting them would make them stale. Sorry. I hope you all saw them.

traditionalguy said...

McCartney has had his share of fun. I believe Lennon quit at age 40.

Anonymous said...

If Paul - pot = the Grammy performance from last week, i would recommend he resumes the habit.

Madison man - all of your comments are very, very witty. All you would have had to say is, "I posted two comments that have vanished". The wittiness is understood.

chickelit said...

"Sometimes, the straight people are right..and they're right in the fact that one drug will lead to another because you meet more people who are doing drugs."

PSA from Lemmy

chickelit said...

Althouse wrote: And that point, for Sir Paul, is age 69.

My resentment detector is going off.

Tibore said...

"garage mahal said...
Seems like all the old pot heads are still going strong. It's the prescription drugs they pass out like candy that kills people."


Oy... ignorance on display there. Prescription drugs are given to people who are either ill or have some chronic issue to begin with. So the prescription drug patients are already less healthy at the start.

Garage's statement is like knocking emergency department doctors over chiropractors because they lose more patients. Yeah, duh... those patients are the sicker ones to begin with.

Unknown said...

Next thing you know, he'll be hanging out with George Bush!

Tank said...

His daughter will Google this tomorrow and seek out what she is missing.

How does one of the most famous, most successful, billionaire musicians argue/explain to his daughter how evil pot is and the horror it's caused him lo these many many many many many years?

the wolf said...

He must have been high when he said that.

Chuck66 said...

Well, at the age he falls asleep anyway by 7 PM.

paminwi said...

Did we need to know this?

Crimso said...

"Will ya still smoke me, will ya still toke me, when you're 64?" (Answer: yes, for a few years more)

edutcher said...

He's been telling us he's been meat-free for 20 years.

I assume that's the pot talking, too.

dbp said...

Maybe his daughter will quit smoking pot when she is 69 too. Of course, being only 8 now, she has to wait 11 years before taking up the habit.

William said...

It does seem that if chronic pot use had deleterious, long term effects, those effects would have shown up in the general population by now.....OK, the hippies got one right. On the other hand, giving people with serious emotional problems the LSD drug so that they could undergo the liberating effects of a psychotic lesion was very stupid. Future generations will regard the LSD therapy the way we now regard frontal lobotomies.

MayBee said...

It does seem that if chronic pot use had deleterious, long term effects, those effects would have shown up in the general population by now

How many people do you think are honest with their doctors about their pot use?

For all we know, it causes autism in offspring, or diabetes.

sakredkow said...
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sakredkow said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
William said...

I think it went out with Abbie Hoffman. Hoffmann had a bipolar disorder which he treated with cocaine and LSD. He was an LSD evangelist and right up to his suicide claimed that this drug made him a better person.

Brian Brown said...

The Boomers are the most pathetic generation the world has ever produced.

sakredkow said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
garage mahal said...

. Yeah, duh... those patients are the sicker ones to begin with.

I look at what killed Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson, and it wasn't pot. It never could kill them, that's what I was getting at.

sakredkow said...
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DADvocate said...

"at some point"

Slow learner.

Guess I'll have to find a new supplier now.

DADvocate said...

The Boomers are the most pathetic generation the world has ever produced.

I resemble that remark. (And, I agree, although I ask, "What the hell did the "greatest generation" do to raise such a bunch of spoiled, self-centered whiners?)

MayBee said...


I look at what killed Whitney Houston and Michael Jackson, and it wasn't pot. It never could kill them, that's what I was getting at.


Driving while high could have killed them.

Ann Althouse said...

@Madison Man Your comments were in the spam filter and I've released them.

This might be a good time for everyone to take note of the instructions above the comments compose window.

THE most ordinary explanation for a comment disappearing is that it went into the spam filter, which needs to be there to keep robot comments from cluttering up everything.

edutcher said...

William said...

It does seem that if chronic pot use had deleterious, long term effects, those effects would have shown up in the general population by now.

Uh, chromosome damage and more severe problems of the sort associated with tobacco?

As MayBee notes

For all we know, it causes autism in offspring, or diabetes.

Some people just can't let go of the idea they're nowhere near as cool as they told themselves they were.

MadisonMan said...

@althouse, the odd thing was that I saw them, and then they were gone, so it surprised me that a retroactive spam-identification had been made.

The idea that my pithy comments are spam! Perhaps this is a clue from God (or blogger) to buy stock in Hormel.

William said...

It's quite possible marijuana is harmless. It is definitely less harmful than tobacco. On the other hand, look how long it took for people to realize that tobacco was carcogenic. For all the chronic tokers knew marijuana could have had the same effects as thalidomide......Hollywood stars used to exhale with syle and panache. They did much to popularize smoking. Lauren Becall should take every fucking cent Bogie left her and donate it to cancer research. As noted, pot smoking is probably harmless, but that's not something McCartney knew with clinical certainty.

edutcher said...

DADvocate said...

The Boomers are the most pathetic generation the world has ever produced.

I resemble that remark. (And, I agree, although I ask, "What the hell did the "greatest generation" do to raise such a bunch of spoiled, self-centered whiners?)


The media image of the Boomers.

They also fought the Vietnam War and the Reagan Revolution couldn't have happened without them.

And never forget, before Brokaw and the rest of the hypocrites called them, "The Greatest Generation" (theirs was the war that saved Communism, after all), that generation was the hated Establishment to them.

They've also been called the Greedy Geezers and the Gimme Generation.

So that's how the Boomers, especially the Lefty Boomers, got that way.

Writ Small said...

McCartney has inspired me to publicly announce that I am giving up all my vices once I've reached the fifty year mark on each one.

Mary Beth said...

Why? Was Mills using it as leverage for something - reduced visitation, more money?

garage mahal said...

McCartney always struck me as a giant phony. He's so self absorbed that he needed to announce to the world, that at age 69, he's quitting pot for his daughter. Who gives a fuck?

JAL said...

I've heard of prolonged adolescence, but this must be close to the record.

DADvocate said...

They also fought the Vietnam War and the Reagan Revolution couldn't have happened without them.

You'd think that after Vietnam and Reagan, the boomers would lean right or libertarian more than the do.

sakredkow said...
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The Crack Emcee said...

"Your sense of responsibility does kick in, if you're lucky, at some point."

Liberals are s-l-o-w,....

The Crack Emcee said...

DADvocate,

What the hell did the "greatest generation" do to raise such a bunch of spoiled, self-centered whiners?

They listened to them, instead of sticking to their guns.

Pun intended.

madAsHell said...

prescription drugs they pass out like candy that kills people.

Heard during ABC World News Tonight....

If you have thoughts of suicide, constipation, high blood pressure, gas, blurry vision, dry mouth or dizziness, then consult with a doctor before continuing your medication.

Anonymous said...

Pot is far less dangerous in the short run than alcohol. Over the long term it has statistically significant links to psychosis.

The Crack Emcee said...

I feel compelled to "announce" I'm going to the bathroom.

And that I ate breakfast.

I also want to "announce" my sexual preference hasn't changed. I know, I'm weird.

If anything else important comes up, you'll hear it here, first.

John said...

Here is the question, if he had been a heavy drinker for 50 years how shot would his health be? Pretty shot I bet. Yet, with pot and Paul looks pretty good for his age.

The Crack Emcee said...

John,

Here is the question, if he had been a heavy drinker for 50 years how shot would his health be? Pretty shot I bet. Yet, with pot and Paul looks pretty good for his age.

Sorry, but that's not the question. People say things like that a lot, but - like most health-related issues - it mostly boils down to genes.

That's why I hate the whole, nanny state, don't-eat-salt-or-you'll-grow-fat nonsense. It's just mentally torturing people for nothing, because your genes are your genes. You can't make Tongans skinny, or stop people from dying when they will, so just shut up and leave 'em alone.

Paul got lucky in the genetics dept., but, through the ignorance of conventional thinking, it's his lifestyle choices that get the credit:

We are going to HAVE to wise up someday,...

Chip S. said...

Didn't "LSD therapy" go out with Cary Grant and Betsy Drake?

No, I think that was Randolph Scott.

Curious George said...

"traditionalguy said...
McCartney has had his share of fun. I believe Lennon quit at age 40."

Heh.

William said...

Paul's first wife, Linda, died of breast cancer at the age of 56. She was the one who got him into vegan diets. She was into clean living. Fat lot of good it did her. Perhaps she would have enjoyed her few years on earth more if she had indulged in hard drugs, bbq, and orgies instead of all that immoderate clean living.

Joe Schmoe said...

He must've been hitting the hooch pretty hard when he wrote "Simply Having a Wonderful Christmas Time". If he wrote that sober then he's far less talented than I give him credit for.

shiloh said...

"McCartney always struck me as a giant phony. He's so self absorbed that he needed to announce to the world, that at age 69, he's quitting pot for his daughter. Who gives a fuck?"

Indeed, there was an article about ten years ago saying McCartney is the most despised musician/artist in the music industry. Hyperbole to be sure, but mostly true.

When Lennon was singin' Imagine, McCartney was singin' Mary Had a Little Lamb.

His second marriage fiasco was probably quite amusing to many of his detractors.

LoafingOaf said...

Here is the question, if he had been a heavy drinker for 50 years how shot would his health be? Pretty shot I bet. Yet, with pot and Paul looks pretty good for his age.

That probably also has a lot to do with his vegetarian diet.

LoafingOaf said...

Paul's first wife, Linda, died of breast cancer at the age of 56. She was the one who got him into vegan diets. She was into clean living. Fat lot of good it did her. Perhaps she would have enjoyed her few years on earth more if she had indulged in hard drugs, bbq, and orgies instead of all that immoderate clean living.

We all can die at any time, and we all will die soon enough. But she wouldn't have enjoyed her years more, because she stopped eating meat for MORAL reasons. She didn't care to support to torture of animals.

And she died knowing she had made opting for a vegetarian or vegan diet far more easy and convenient for millions of people than it was before. And now her daughter, Stella, has carried on the legacy and made it far easier for people to enjoy fashion (beautiful shoes, handbags, hats...) without involving cruelty to animals.

No one's forcing you to be a vegan or vegetarian, but isn't it a better world that makes it easier for you to choose?

LoafingOaf said...

The Crack Emcee: That's why I hate the whole, nanny state, don't-eat-salt-or-you'll-grow-fat nonsense. It's just mentally torturing people for nothing, because your genes are your genes.

Christopher Hitchens used to write articles saying something similar, but in the end he conceded that it was his lifestyle that did him.

It's both genetics and lifestyle. With lifestyle choices it's a gamble and you can win, but it's good to know the risks.

I don't support taxing people's lifestyle choices, or looking to ban things. But I like knowing the dangers of things I consume. Many of the companies that produce these products try and conceal the health risks, or fabricate fake health benefits. We need government to keep a watch on that.

BTW, my father's doctor wanted to put him on blood pressure medication and he didn't like the idea of taking pills. The doctor told him he'd have to drastically change his diet and lifestyle if that's how he felt. Which he did. And now his blood pressure is where it's supposed to be.

Anyway, how come conservatives who speak of the nanny state rarely seem concerned about the War on Drugs which has decimated families and neighborhoods and put so many people into the criminal justice system? Didn't I see something on this blog concerning Newt Gingrich's attempt to extend the death penalty to some marijuana possession cases? Crazy right-wingers.....

William said...

Paul has lived his long, weary life without the blessings of bbq. Who among us would really like to trade lots with him? In some ways his existence was more tormented and blasted at the roots than that of Whitney Houston. Marijuana and sex with one legged women are all very well, but they are a very poor substitute for bbq.

LoafingOaf said...

William: He ate meat for the first third of his life. Apparently he doesn't miss it. And you don't need meat to have a BBQ.....

el polacko said...

mmmmmmmmm...bbq !! (especially after a couple of tokes)

Alex said...

When Lennon was singin' Imagine, McCartney was singin' Mary Had a Little Lamb.

Well isn't that creative editing. In 1971, McCartney had released "Another Day" and "Uncle Albert/Admiral Hailsley", huge singles.

The Crack Emcee said...

LoafingOaf,

No one's forcing you to be a vegan or vegetarian, but isn't it a better world that makes it easier for you to choose?

No, those people are almost universally a pain, making the world a worse place to live.

Christopher Hitchens used to write articles saying something similar, but in the end he conceded that it was his lifestyle that did him.

Please. Just because he said it doesn't make it factually true, and there's no compelling evidence to say it is. As William said, Linda McCartney died - younger than Hitch - living in the exact opposite manner. You said yourself, "We all can die at any time, and we all will die soon enough." Don't back away from that. The only way to avoid death is to never have been born.

It's both genetics and lifestyle. With lifestyle choices it's a gamble and you can win, but it's good to know the risks. 

I don't support taxing people's lifestyle choices, or looking to ban things. But I like knowing the dangers of things I consume. Many of the companies that produce these products try and conceal the health risks, or fabricate fake health benefits. We need government to keep a watch on that.

Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit - you're a "wellness" cultist, thinking there's "good" and "bad" food. Ask a starving African if he cares whether the sandwich you give him is made from stuff from a conventional supermarket or Whole Foods. Such talk is only the pretentious posturing of Western assholes hoping to fool the gullible. Like I said, by constatly spouting such malarky - and raising the price of food in the process - you make the world a worse place to live.

Anyway, how come conservatives who speak of the nanny state rarely seem concerned about the War on Drugs which has decimated families and neighborhoods and put so many people into the criminal justice system?

The War On Drugs saved the neighborhood I grew up in. I never hear about that when you guys attack it. It's always about the dummies who got caught in it's snare. I say don't blame me, or TWOD, just because some people are doorknobs.

Alex,

In 1971, McCartney had released "Another Day" and "Uncle Albert/Admiral Hailsley", huge singles.

Are you trying to help the case for McCartney or hurt it?

Those songs SUCK.

Alex said...

Crack - sure "Another Day" is pretty forgettable, but Uncle Albert is very clever with several shifts of key and tempo. Have you ever written anything that clever?

sakredkow said...
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frank said...

Crack--I was gonna go jerk off to some porn on a different site but I think I'll see how this site works.

frank said...

It helps that I'm watching a hospital advertise hysterectomies on the Fox Business Channel. Sure beats Romney ads

frank said...

O/T, maybe, but I can tell 'big brother' is watching me as to the ads 'targeted' to my TV and computer. When I have a girl here using the puter/Direct TV--hooked to my telephone I get ads for 'nursing' schools. I don't mind that but why are they looking up 'hysterectomies'? Smile--I feel 'hurt'.

bgates said...

It's the prescription drugs they pass out like candy that kills people,

which is why it's so important for the government to force companies to make prescription drugs appear to be "free" for their employees (by forcing the companies to buy insurance plans that include the cost of the drugs in their premiums).

William said...

It's prudent to play the percentages. In later years, I've given up smoking, motorcycles, and one legged women. But bbq is a bridge too far......Research has shown that the conscientious consumption of short ribs several times a week stengthens the body's immune system. The tofu industry doesn't want you to know this....Here's an interesting little known fact about bbq: when our hominid ancestors first stood upright and mastered the use of fire, they did this not to keep warm but to cook meat. That's right. Man first gained control of a destructive force in nature in order to eat bbq. Further: man first turned to the cultivation of grain not in order to make food but in order to brew beer. There you have it. BBQ and beer: the two primal forces that have elevated man above chimpanzees. When you turn your back on these blessings, you are turning your back on evolution. Following the teachings of Paul and Linda and in not too many generations we will be back eating termite larvae on a stick.

Locomotive Breath said...

Hey Paul. Last several times I heard you sing you were terrible. I'll make you a deal. Give up performing instead of pot and we'll all be happier.

LoafingOaf said...

Crackhead said: "Bullshit, bullshit, bullshit - you're a "wellness" cultist, thinking there's "good" and "bad" food. Ask a starving African if he cares whether the sandwich you give him is made from stuff from a conventional supermarket or Whole Foods. Such talk is only the pretentious posturing of Western assholes hoping to fool the gullible. Like I said, by constatly spouting such malarky - and raising the price of food in the process - you make the world a worse place to live."

Wow, you just leap to put labels on people and spew your bullshit at them. Wellness cultist? Starving Africans? No, I just think it's a better world when consumers have alternatives to the food industry's mass torturing of animals. I also like to have information on how to be healthier. And I also know that, if left alone, companies try and mislead me about the products they want me to consume.