Drugs, the President, and kids

"Rudy defends Obama's discussion of previous drug use" screams the headline, but "Romney feels ... [that] Obama committed a huge error.”
So, is admitting drug us an error? Is admitting it to students a bad mistake? Is Rudy making room for his own faults ("ye that live in glass houses...")?
First, drug use is not only bad, it is stupid. While doing drugs should not be a life sentence, it is both an indication of poor judgment and physically effects the brain. I know this for a fact. I have a brother who smoked a lot of pot in the 70s and now is an avowed liberal. He voted for Clinton, TWICE, as well as alGore and Kerry, and is proud of it!? If that isn't a reason not to use drugs, I don't know what is. Talk about being scared straight!!!! (Oh, and I would never vote for my brother for President.)
There are two reasons to admit drug use. First to get help, second to let the cat out of the bag before your opponent uses it as a tool against you. Obama doesn't need help with drug use now (I think).
So, is it bad to tell students they can turn their lives around? Of course not. Part of the problem with addiction is the feeling that you are worthless and cannot correct your errors. The fact that Obama overcame a problem and made something out of himself despite it is what makes America great. But he is missing a great Liberal opportunity by not pointing out that Big Government made it possible through welfare, social programs, and redistribution of wealth.
Is Mitt Romney wrong then in saying it is an error to tell students of his past faults? In a way. Obama caveatted that his conversion was based on lies "noticing ... some places poor, some rich. We spend so much money on military, but we don't spend our money on schools." Admitting a fault, even to children, isn't a bad thing. Instead of showing how individual effort and knowledge corrected that fault, he uses mis-characterizations (spending no money on schools and all the money on the military) and lies to promote his agenda. Romney was right in that the admission was not to help the kids in study hall, it was only to help Obama in his run for President. Kids see a drug user that, despite his lies and inability to accept the blame for them, might be President. Both Mitt and I are scared that this may come true.