Chong, Tommy - of the duo, Cheech and Chong

By: Dominick A. Miserandino

Tommy Chong is not only famous for his Cheech and Chong movies, but lately he's famous for having been arrested and jailed for operating a website that sells drug paraphernalia. He's now staring in the Marijuana Logues and took some time out to answer a few of our questions.

DM) I grabbed the staff and had them compile their favorite questions. One of the guys asked, "With society's focus on morals values, if you were starting off on your career now, would you be able to do the type of comedy that you were famous for, with the references to marijuana and all?

TC) (laughs) Probably, more and more so. Every good story has to have conflict. In comedy that's where it came from. Lenny Bruce was persecuted when he started out in the Eisenhower era. He was persecuted for swearing. Although it kind of killed him—actually, his drug abuse killed abuse. So the answer is, yeah, it's the best time in the world for that.

DM) Is the sensitivity to moral values more prevalent now than when you were starting out?

TC) You can't put the lid back, and that's what these guys would like to do, and it's all show as far as I'm concerned.

DM) When it comes to persecution, you were arrested recently in Operation "Pipe Dream" for selling drug paraphernalia. I believe fifty-five people were arrested but, you were the only one to spend item in jail?

TC) You can tell how serious they were about it. If what we were doing was really criminal, all fifty-five people would have been in jail for it.

DM) Regardless of personal opinions on the legalization of marijuana, was what you were doing more intense or criminal than the other fifty-four people?

TC) It was only the fact that I was a celebrity and the kind of movies that I made. If I made a Terminator movie, like the Governor of California, where 100s of people are killed and violence is everywhere, than it would be fine. We have a very dyslexic society. Tobacco is subsidized by the government, and it's proven that it causes cancer. There are more deaths caused by alcohol addiction than anything else in history, but it's legal. Pot, it's been proven to help MS and Cancer patients, and it's been a medicine for thousands of years, and it's still illegal.

DM) Is there a fine line between pot and other drugs, or are they two separate worlds? Is it possible to use pot safely and not jump to the next level?

TC) Absolutely, but nothing can compare to alcohol. Alcohol is a more addictive drug. You get on alcohol, and it's a slide down. You find studies proving that most people who start with alcohol lead to other stuff. Pot is nothing compared to over the counter medication. I was in jail with people selling cold medicine. They took the ingredients from the cold medicine and made meth from it. The greatest thing about marijuana is it's not addicting. That's why it's a gateway drug. You can't really hurt yourself. In itself, it's ineffective.

DM) In your opinion, is it possible to use marijuana too much?

TC) Absolutely, there are a lot of people who smoke marijuana too much. But is that criminal? How about overeating? That certainly can lead to more deaths. They have comedy shows about overeating and trying to lose weight. Why should a pot grower go to jail for twenty-five to life, but somebody who grows wheat that kills more people get government subsidies?

DM) Have you ever had conversations with people who've used pot too far.

TC) Well, those type of people who use pot to that degree wouldn't be coming to my shows, they wouldn't get out of bed! (laughs). I usually get the doctors and lawyers coming to my shows. I've seen people who use pot who used to walk with a cane and now feel ten times better, the medical aspects too. The bad side of pot? That's the people doing twenty-five years to life for growing it because they had a medical issue. It's ridiculous. We're the only country in the world with that punishment.

DM) The argument against pot seems to be exactly created in Cheech and Chong movies. If you use pot, you'll end up like Chong, smoking pot all day.

TC) Why should that be illegal? If people decided to be Keith Richards and play the same tune for fifty years, and do drugs, and get married every once in a while, why should you go to jail for that?

DM) So, to you, it's not a question of right or wrong, it's that it's a legal offense.

TC) Absolutely, that's the center of the argument.

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