The word addiction brings to mind different images for different people. It can be difficult for someone suffering with an addiction or potential addiction to identify with the term addict. And it can be especially trying for a young person.
And? As a fairly regular cannabis smoker I feel its addictive potential is often understated. I am not at the moment addicted (I can and do easily cease use for weeks at a time without any withdrawal or cravings), but chronic use can lead to some bad experiences if you stop using suddenly. It's all about personal responsibility. Like with any drug (alcohol, tobacco, caffeine included) make sure you know its addictive potential. If you start using something and cannot stop you have nobody to blame except yourself. Not saying don't use drugs, in fact quite the opposite, many drugs can be wonderful and open up your mind to new ways of perceiving the world, but don't blame anyone but yourself if it goes wrong.
3 years ago i start working in an area where smoking was banned , i thought it will be best to quit my coffee habit thinking that coffee intensifies my need to smoke . 4 hours in the first day my vision got blurry and i got extremely nervous , i couldn't sit on the chair or do of my work so i got out and smoked two (*)(*)(*)(*) . Withdrawal syndrome didn't get away , it wasn't tobacco but coffee and i am badly addicted to it . If you give it a thought coffee is cheap , legal and it doesn't damage my health but it is still an addiction , saying that i am a coffee addict doesn't invoke any negative reaction since nobody takes it seriously. The only difference weed has from coffee is that it is illegal ; my grandfather smoked weed for 80 years , as a captain of a merchant ship supplying England with provisions during WW2 , as a father of 5 children , as a loving grandfather , he knew he was an addict this didn't had any effect on his life , just like my coffee.