Thread: Marijuana

What are your feelings on
a)marijuana prohibition?
b)medical marijuana?
c)effects of marijuana?

What are your feelings on
a)marijuana prohibition?
b)medical marijuana?
c)effects of marijuana?

Living in the Netherlands,
a) I'm against it. I believe individuals should not be restricted in their freedom to use whatever means they wish to affect their perceptions and cognitions.
b) Sure, why not?
c) I don't really have an opinion on this - not sure what you mean with that. I generally feel good after using marijuana..

Mr U

right on man i deff. wish i lived in the netherlands. you guys should annex the united states
you're right, i was not clear about what i meant.

by effects, i mean neurologically and health concerns

Health concerns? It is quite possible to gain a strong reaction to penicillin. Of course, there are concerns about its usage - but that does not warrant the global outcry against it.

Mr U

Yep all drugs should be legalised, - with suitable warnings, it should however remain an offence to 'spike' someone's drink, or attempt to persuade someone else to use it. If some junkie wants to OD fine, it'll make room for someone else - eventually we will either become immune or the gene that makes us susecptible to addiction will be wiped out.

Controversial or what?


"I didn't get where I am today by smoking pot" - Reginald Perrin.

I disagree. they've legalized enough poison. Nothing like another legal drug that kills brain cells, damages your lungs (some say less than cigarrettes, but I've found that claim bogus), hampers brain development, etc.

Freedom wise, make it legal. logic wise? no.

Back in high school I might have agreed to this. But after witnessing the horrible things various drugs, including marijuana, have done to people I'd say no. As already stated, it destroys brain cells. Just look at what happened to Bush, poor guy.

It also causes seizures, numerous brain development problems, dissociative disorders, and other psychological problems. I for one do not like the idea of developing a market for more poison. They already did it with tobacco.

Originally Posted by Jeremyhfht

It also causes seizures, numerous brain development problems, dissociative disorders, and other psychological problems.

These are all untrue. People with a genetic predisposition to certain disorders may find it awakened by using marijuana.

Nothing like another legal drug that kills brain cells, damages your lungs (some say less than cigarrettes, but I've found that claim bogus), hampers brain development, etc.

Kills brain cells? HU-210 has been demonstrated to enhance neurogenesis in patients of whom it was disrupted. As for 'some', the word you are looking for: scientific research.
As for hampering brain development, I encourage you to support that, and your other claims.

Mr U

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

These are all untrue. People with a genetic predisposition to certain disorders may find it awakened by using marijuana.

Untrue how? It can cause seizures. You only say "with people that already have a genetic predisposition." However try and read on the effects it has on the brain activity. I personally find it amazing all heavy smokers don't get seizures (and a lot of them have at one point).

Kills brain cells? HU-210 has been demonstrated to enhance neurogenesis in patients of whom it was disrupted.

I've read a report that shows a smoker that smokes an average of 1 a week showed a 5+ IQ raise in a month. However, I am referring to more avid smokers. It causes an overload of brain activity that leads to cells being destroyed. Stimulating neurogenesis or not.

As for 'some', the word you are looking for: scientific research.
As for hampering brain development, I encourage you to support that, and your other claims.

I've yet to meet one person that provided a source for the claim. And in people I've seen smoke it, they develop similar lung problems as cigarettes. However weed doesn't have the same amounts of certain chemicals (and lacks others) which cause cancerous effects.

And the brain development bit IS supported by current scientific research. Woo.

Originally Posted by Jeremyhfht

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

These are all untrue. People with a genetic predisposition to certain disorders may find it awakened by using marijuana.

Untrue how? It can cause seizures. You only say "with people that already have a genetic predisposition." However try and read on the effects it has on the brain activity. I personally find it amazing all heavy smokers don't get seizures (and a lot of them have at one point).

Cause seizures? The problem here is that the usage of marijuana is illegal and that testing on human beings is therefore impossible. Not long ago people died from a cure that worked on mice and other animals, demonstrating once again the difference between humans and other animals. Direct causality does not exist in scientific literature.

Also, almost all schizophrenics (75% to 90%) smoke tobacco. Does that mean that tobacco causes schizophrenia? Of course not. Co-occurence says nothing about causality.

THC even in enormous dosages does not cause death. Nicotin, alcohol, salt does.

Kills brain cells? HU-210 has been demonstrated to enhance neurogenesis in patients of whom it was disrupted.

I've read a report that shows a smoker that smokes an average of 1 a week showed a 5+ IQ raise in a month. However, I am referring to more avid smokers. It causes an overload of brain activity that leads to cells being destroyed. Stimulating neurogenesis or not.

The study that talks about IQ raise:
Clicky
Refutes almost all of the prohibitionist arguments!

---edit fixed the URL for you. Doesn't work with quotations. jeremyhfht----

As for 'some', the word you are looking for: scientific research.
As for hampering brain development, I encourage you to support that, and your other claims.

I've yet to meet one person that provided a source for the claim. And in people I've seen smoke it, they develop similar lung problems as cigarettes. However weed doesn't have the same amounts of certain chemicals (and lacks others) which cause cancerous effects.

Anecdotes do not constitute evidence. Do these people smoke pure THC? Or can such diseases be caused by what they smoke with that THC?

And the brain development bit IS supported by current scientific research. Woo.

Am I supposed to take your word for this? As I remember, they have yet to let children smoke marijuana in an effort to evaluate the effects on development.

Mr U

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

Cause seizures? The problem here is that the usage of marijuana is illegal and that testing on human beings is therefore impossible. Not long ago people died from a cure that worked on mice and other animals, demonstrating once again the difference between humans and other animals. Direct causality does not exist in scientific literature.

My father, in his youth, smoked it. He knew many people that did. All had seizures at one point (he lived during the hippy era). granted, personal experience may not amount to much, but it suggests something.

Also, almost all schizophrenics (75% to 90%) smoke tobacco. Does that [mean that tobacco causes schizophrenia? Of course not. Co-occurence says nothing about causality.

Hee...this is great...

Cannabis use has generally higher among sufferers of schizophrenia, but the causality between the two has not been established.

click

And now I must ask you for that statistic. As it appears so abhorrently large it has to be wrong.

THC even in enormous dosages does not cause death. Nicotin, alcohol, salt does.

and here's why:

Studies of the distribution of the cannabinoid receptors in the brain explain why THC's toxicity is so low (i.e., the LD50 of the compound is so large): parts of the brain that control vital functions such as respiration do not have many receptors, so they are relatively unaffected even by doses larger than could ever be ingested under any normal conditions.

Toxic to your health? Not so much. Mental state? Hell yes. However this calls for a lengthy explanation that covers both sides:

click

which covers one (very poorly biased, I might add) side of the discussion. For my own psychoanalysis: Marijuana can, depending on the person, increase or decrease the risk of certain psychological problems. Since it causes an imbalance in the brain, there is some risk to taking it.

example: i know a guy who used to smoke it. the result was a transformation from a caring attitude to a non-caring one. this is the same reason why it helps OCD cases, but may harm those without it.
unfortunately since there is a lack of scientific tests, there can't be much said about this. I'll leave it at "depends on the person"

The study that talks about IQ raise:
Clicky
Refutes almost all of the prohibitionist arguments!

---edit fixed the URL for you. Doesn't work with quotations. jeremyhfht----

the test utterly omits important environment factors. I can't exactly trust it when it does so. also, it uses the word "estimate" a lot. It acts like it goes more on guesswork than actual scientific methods.

my personal experience again comes into play here: All marijuana smokers I've seen end up progressively DUMBER. this is why environmental factors have to be included in reports. as environments vary, so do the results, and the brain types.

once again I leave it at "it depend upon the person"

Anecdotes do not constitute evidence. Do these people smoke pure THC? Or can such diseases be caused by what they smoke with that THC?

you answered yourself. "smoke." The smoke is what causes most of the similarities. as for the THC, I'm not aware of any study that tests what it does on the lungs.
however:
http://www.healthcentral.com/newsdet...8/1507989.html

I question that source heavily. As it appears forged, but I give you it anyway.

Am I supposed to take your word for this? As I remember, they have yet to let children smoke marijuana in an effort to evaluate the effects on development.

I'm having difficulty finding that news report. Perhaps I was mistaken, and it was something else I heard. I'll mention it later if I ever locate it.
In fact, I found something that supports the opposite:
click

so yeah, I was apparently mistaken.

Originally Posted by Jeremyhfht

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

Cause seizures? The problem here is that the usage of marijuana is illegal and that testing on human beings is therefore impossible. Not long ago people died from a cure that worked on mice and other animals, demonstrating once again the difference between humans and other animals. Direct causality does not exist in scientific literature.

My father, in his youth, smoked it. He knew many people that did. All had seizures at one point (he lived during the hippy era). granted, personal experience may not amount to much, but it suggests something.

Also, almost all schizophrenics (75% to 90%) smoke tobacco. Does that [mean that tobacco causes schizophrenia? Of course not. Co-occurence says nothing about causality.

And now I must ask you for that statistic. As it appears so abhorrently large it has to be wrong.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q..._uids=12084420
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...t_uids=7864277

THC even in enormous dosages does not cause death. Nicotin, alcohol, salt does.

and here's why:

Studies of the distribution of the cannabinoid receptors in the brain explain why THC's toxicity is so low (i.e., the LD50 of the compound is so large): parts of the brain that control vital functions such as respiration do not have many receptors, so they are relatively unaffected even by doses larger than could ever be ingested under any normal conditions.

Toxic to your health? Not so much.

I'm glad we agree.

Mental state? Hell yes. However this calls for a lengthy explanation that covers both sides:

click

which covers one (very poorly biased, I might add) side of the discussion. For my own psychoanalysis: Marijuana can, depending on the person, increase or decrease the risk of certain psychological problems. Since it causes an imbalance in the brain, there is some risk to taking it.

This I do not deny. There is risk. However, there is risk in eating a bloody peanut or taking penicillin as well. You could die of traffic. The question is whether the government should regulate such risks or not.

example: i know a guy who used to smoke it. the result was a transformation from a caring attitude to a non-caring one. this is the same reason why it helps OCD cases, but may harm those without it.

Perhaps he was 'naturally transforming' (he knew you, after all :P) and his smoking was part of this transformation, or merely enhanced it. You speak of correlation, not causality..

unfortunately since there is a lack of scientific tests, there can't be much said about this. I'll leave it at "depends on the person"

Indeed. Which makes the matter somewhat difficult.

The study that talks about IQ raise:
Clicky
Refutes almost all of the prohibitionist arguments!

---edit fixed the URL for you. Doesn't work with quotations. jeremyhfht----

the test utterly omits important environment factors. I can't exactly trust it when it does so. also, it uses the word "estimate" a lot. It acts like it goes more on guesswork than actual scientific methods.

Nice try. Publish in a journal with that criticism, and you'll have a point. The criticisms you pose do not apply so much to this article as much as they do the whole of contemporary science. That's a whole different problem, and much of what you base your views, and I base my views on, is founded in such dubious research.

my personal experience again comes into play here: All marijuana smokers I've seen end up progressively DUMBER. this is why environmental factors have to be included in reports. as environments vary, so do the results, and the brain types.

I occasionally smoke marijuana, and I'm the smartest person I know.

once again I leave it at "it depend upon the person"

Then let that person decide.

Anecdotes do not constitute evidence. Do these people smoke pure THC? Or can such diseases be caused by what they smoke with that THC?

you answered yourself. "smoke." The smoke is what causes most of the similarities. as for the THC, I'm not aware of any study that tests what it does on the lungs.
however:
http://www.healthcentral.com/newsdet...8/1507989.html

I question that source heavily. As it appears forged, but I give you it anyway.

"according to a French National Consumers' Institute study." :? <- This approximates my facial expression.. Even if this is true, this is no reason to ban marijuana. A cigarette smoked in vast quantities will cause similar problems.

Am I supposed to take your word for this? As I remember, they have yet to let children smoke marijuana in an effort to evaluate the effects on development.

I'm having difficulty finding that news report. Perhaps I was mistaken, and it was something else I heard. I'll mention it later if I ever locate it.
In fact, I found something that supports the opposite:
click

so yeah, I was apparently mistaken.

I referred to this earlier, HU-210. May be interesting to do a search on it.

Mr U

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q..._uids=12084420
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...t_uids=7864277

There is equal evidence that marijuana does the same. Example:
http://alcoholism.about.com/od/pot/a/blacer040615.htm

This I do not deny. There is risk. However, there is risk in eating a bloody peanut or taking penicillin as well. You could die of traffic. The question is whether the government should regulate such risks or not.

http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s777336.htm
http://experts.about.com/q/Psycholog...na-effects.htm

and google for a million others of differing degree's. There is no perfectly clear proof that suggests it ISN'T definitely harmful. And chances of contracting problems from weed are higher than a peanut and penicillin. especially since the predominant amount of people I've met (who smoke marijuana) have one or more of the researched problems.

Perhaps he was 'naturally transforming' (he knew you, after all :P) and his smoking was part of this transformation, or merely enhanced it. You speak of correlation, not causality..

There is equal chance it was causality. Again, you can't know for certain. and this "coincidence" can't go ignored.

As for your comment: actually he only knew me through a (now ex) girlfriend of his. :P

Nice try. Publish in a journal with that criticism, and you'll have a point. The criticisms you pose do not apply so much to this article as much as they do the whole of contemporary science. That's a whole different problem, and much of what you base your views, and I base my views on, is founded in such dubious research.

Oh, well, fuck.

I occasionally smoke marijuana, and I'm the smartest person I know.

Again, depends on the person. The way your body and brain reacts, your environment, etc. Also how much you smoke.

Then let that person decide.

...I don't even have to remind you how stupid the "average person" tends to be on these matters. You'd basically be giving a retarded person a big shiny nuke button and telling it not to press said button.

"according to a French National Consumers' Institute study." :? <- This approximates my facial expression.. Even if this is true, this is no reason to ban marijuana. A cigarette smoked in vast quantities will cause similar problems.

...and did I not make my stance on cigarettes clear when I mentioned them as poison? :?

Originally Posted by Jeremyhfht

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q..._uids=12084420
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/q...t_uids=7864277

There is equal evidence that marijuana does the same. Example:
http://alcoholism.about.com/od/pot/a/blacer040615.htm

The same as amphetamines? I don't think so. The case of amphetamines has not been properly investigated.. The same goes for THC.

This I do not deny. There is risk. However, there is risk in eating a bloody peanut or taking penicillin as well. You could die of traffic. The question is whether the government should regulate such risks or not.

http://www.abc.net.au/catalyst/stories/s777336.htm
http://experts.about.com/q/Psycholog...na-effects.htm

Indeed. "But was the cannabis really to blame or would he have developed schizophrenia anyway? The jury is still out. But evidence suggests that in those people who are predisposed smoking cannabis can open the door to schizophrenia."

What if it just speeds it up? Then THC will not in a long shot be so guilty. More research is required.

and google for a million others of differing degree's. There is no perfectly clear proof that suggests it ISN'T definitely harmful. And chances of contracting problems from weed are higher than a peanut and penicillin. especially since the predominant amount of people I've met have one or more of the researched problems.

Are they higher? Can you back that up? :P

Perhaps he was 'naturally transforming' (he knew you, after all :P) and his smoking was part of this transformation, or merely enhanced it. You speak of correlation, not causality..

There is equal chance it was causality.

Equal chance? It's either that or the other.

Again, you can't know for certain. and this "coincidence" can't go ignored.

Indeed, further research is required. For now, if you use it moderatorely, you'll be okay, with a risk.

As for your comment: actually he only knew me through a (now ex) girlfriend of his. :P

Is that not enough? :P

Nice try. Publish in a journal with that criticism, and you'll have a point. The criticisms you pose do not apply so much to this article as much as they do the whole of contemporary science. That's a whole different problem, and much of what you base your views, and I base my views on, is founded in such dubious research.

Oh, well, fuck.

I occasionally smoke marijuana, and I'm the smartest person I know.

Again, depends on the person. The way your body and brain reacts, your environment, etc. Also how much you smoke.

Yes - and how does that plead for your cause?

Then let that person decide.

...I don't even have to remind you how stupid the "average person" tends to be on these matters. You'd basically be giving a retarded person a big shiny nuke button and telling it not to press said button.

The excuse of every dictator. What makes you less stupid than the average person? More importantly, why would you be concerned with such stupid people?

"according to a French National Consumers' Institute study." :? <- This approximates my facial expression.. Even if this is true, this is no reason to ban marijuana. A cigarette smoked in vast quantities will cause similar problems.

...and did I not make my stance on cigarettes clear when I mentioned them as poison? :?

Well, I smoke cigars as well, so there :P

Just wait until you have smoked your first cuban, and you'll reconsider :P

Mr U

Originally Posted by HomoUniversalis

The same as amphetamines? I don't think so. The case of amphetamines has not been properly investigated.. The same goes for THC.

I mean similar, schizophrenia wise.

What if it just speeds it up? Then THC will not in a long shot be so guilty. More research is required.

This debate is pointless. It all leads up to that.

Are they higher? Can you back that up? :P

Send me statistics for peanut and penicillin causalities that develop numerous psychology disorders. :P

Indeed, further research is required. For now, if you use it moderatorely, you'll be okay, with a risk.

*shrug* difference in opinion. :P

Yes - and how does that plead for your cause?

eh?

More importantly, why would you be concerned with such stupid people?

Because said stupid people HAVE CHILDREN.

Well, I smoke cigars as well, so there :P

Just wait until you have smoked your first cuban, and you'll reconsider :P

I rest my case. <.< >.> :P

It's mostly a matter of consistency for me. If nicotine and alcohol are allowed, then soft drugs should be allowed as well. Marijuana isn't as addictive as nicotine, and doesn't kill as many brain cells as alcohol. So banning marijuana is no more than a subsidy to the beer and tabacco industry, that's the only real effect.

Yo, I thought marijuana was some weird stuff man, with hallucinations and all...

i started smoking marjuana when i was 14 and became a heavy smoker within 6 months. Although a lot of my money did go towards purchasing marijauna, At no time did i steal money or pawn anything for those drugs. It is also important to note that marijuana is easier to get than alchohol, which is legal. When i got caught smoking pot at age 15, i by then had probably smoked half a pound. I quit for the next 5 months, I felt no withdrawl symptoms, i felt no "need" to get high. My grades maintained A's/B's.

Marijuana has had NO adverse affects on me regarding my brain.(that i can tell). Both of my parents smoked Pot for 12 years everyday, at which time, they simply quit, with no withdrawl problems. My Parents are the smartest adults i know. My dad is a senior vice president of a company and my mother is a stay-at-home mother with a medical degree.

Now, however, they both smoke ciggarettes, and have both been smoking for over 30 years. Recently, both tried to quit, and failed(mind you these are not weak-willed people). Now, while ciggarettes are proven to have adverse effects from using it, there is no credible evidence that marijuana causes lung cancer, emphazima, or any other disease associated with tobacco.

so, lets make a summary.

Marijuana is illegal, but easier to get than tobacco or alchohol, which are legal. Marijuana has no proven adverse affects to lung and such, while alchohol is proven to damage the liver and kill brain cells, and tobacco causes lung cancer and emphazima.

the governments stupid. Legalize it. Regulate it. Study it.



Turn on. Tune in. Drop out.

Look, brain damage is not something you detect yourself, since whatever you're missing ain't there. Brain damage is something that others detect. To detect such a thing you have to analyse 2 periods in your past while taking regard to time past. If you consider that, surely you can see the problems arising. So you actually have to compare 2 different individuals. Compare with someone really smart and then you'll see what is missing.

Originally Posted by LeavingQuietly

Look, brain damage is not something you detect yourself, since whatever you're missing ain't there. Brain damage is something that others detect. To detect such a thing you have to analyse 2 periods in your past while taking regard to time past. If you consider that, surely you can see the problems arising. So you actually have to compare 2 different individuals. Compare with someone really smart and then you'll see what is missing.

well yeah, i know what you mean, but i was simply saying that i saw no grade change in school, and classes were not harder for me to understand, i could solve Thinking Problems at the same rate as before. That is the kind of stuff i meant when i said brain damage.

You should solve thinking problems in higher rate as time passes, especially thinking problems that you have allready solved, right?

Originally Posted by Perk

My Parents are the smartest adults i know.

Originally Posted by Perk

they both smoke ciggarettes,

The smartest people you know have scant regard for their long term health, life being our most precious asset.

I guess my idea of smart is something different.....

Originally Posted by Megabrain

Originally Posted by Perk

My Parents are the smartest adults i know.

Originally Posted by Perk

they both smoke ciggarettes,

The smartest people you know have scant regard for their long term health, life being our most precious asset.

I guess my idea of smart is something different.....

yes, like you said, your idea is something different. Just because someone smokes ciggarettes with the knowledge that it will effect their health makes no assertion to their mental intelligence, which is the most common deffinition of smart.

Life may be your most precious asset, but it sure as hell isnt ours. Dont assume my values or those of others.

Originally Posted by LeavingQuietly

You should solve thinking problems in higher rate as time passes, especially thinking problems that you have allready solved, right?

yeah, and i was saying that marijuana has not impaired my ability to do so, as is so commonly thought to be the effect (propaganda from da man).

Originally Posted by Perk

Originally Posted by LeavingQuietly

You should solve thinking problems in higher rate as time passes, especially thinking problems that you have allready solved, right?

yeah, and i was saying that marijuana has not impaired my ability to do so, as is so commonly thought to be the effect (propaganda from da man).

When you start saying crap like "da man," I'm forced to agree with megabrain.

who cares about brain cells the man can obviously talk, write, express himself just fine and pleanty of non smokers develop alzheimers and mental illness but i would disagree with there being no evidence that smoke on ur lungs is not that bad?? maybe im wrong but smoking marijuana also cant be good i mean it coats ur lungs in smoke...thats why u choke when u smoke even once.

Originally Posted by Jeremyhfht

Originally Posted by Perk

Originally Posted by LeavingQuietly

You should solve thinking problems in higher rate as time passes, especially thinking problems that you have allready solved, right?

yeah, and i was saying that marijuana has not impaired my ability to do so, as is so commonly thought to be the effect (propaganda from da man).

When you start saying crap like "da man," I'm forced to agree with megabrain.

You simply mis-understood what i was trying to convey, which was sarcastic humor, if i would have put da in qoutation marks, perhaps you would have understood more clearly. Either way, the slang i use is not prevelant to the arguement unless it impeeds my ability to send the message i want to, which it didnt.

the joke i was implying was that jamacians are often characterized as saying the word "da" rather than "the" because of their accent. It is also a common stereotype that jamacians smoke a lotta dope. or do you have a problem with the slang lotta too?

Originally Posted by Perk

i started smoking marjuana when i was 14 and became a heavy smoker within 6 months. Although a lot of my money did go towards purchasing marijauna, At no time did i steal money or pawn anything for those drugs. It is also important to note that marijuana is easier to get than alchohol, which is legal. When i got caught smoking pot at age 15, i by then had probably smoked half a pound. I quit for the next 5 months, I felt no withdrawl symptoms, i felt no "need" to get high. My grades maintained A's/B's.

Marijuana has had NO adverse affects on me regarding my brain.(that i can tell). Both of my parents smoked Pot for 12 years everyday, at which time, they simply quit, with no withdrawl problems. My Parents are the smartest adults i know. My dad is a senior vice president of a company and my mother is a stay-at-home mother with a medical degree.

Now, however, they both smoke ciggarettes, and have both been smoking for over 30 years. Recently, both tried to quit, and failed(mind you these are not weak-willed people). Now, while ciggarettes are proven to have adverse effects from using it, there is no credible evidence that marijuana causes lung cancer, emphazima, or any other disease associated with tobacco.

so, lets make a summary.

Marijuana is illegal, but easier to get than tobacco or alchohol, which are legal. Marijuana has no proven adverse affects to lung and such, while alchohol is proven to damage the liver and kill brain cells, and tobacco causes lung cancer and emphazima.

the governments stupid. Legalize it. Regulate it. Study it.



Turn on. Tune in. Drop out.

you must lucky because marijuana had some noticable effects on my friends. as far as there minds go they may as well be addicted because all they talk about, all they seem to think about is getting high or the times that they were high, they even talk about the same things repeatedly through out the week. where they get the money from i don't know because last i heard from them they were spending about $100 a week, these are high school, or former high school, students who up until recently didn't have jobs.

don't get me started on there memory, i'm amazed they can remember any of the times they were high because they certainly can't remember much more on a day to day basis.

and yet somehow they had no change in there grades either.

me i've never smoked the stuff and have no desire to, i've got things to remember, many things to do and buying any form of plant has always struck me as odd. but thats just me and my two cents worth.

Yeah, man! buying plants is so out, microchips is the stuff! (kidding)

you must lucky because marijuana had some noticable effects on my friends. as far as there minds go they may as well be addicted because all they talk about, all they seem to think about is getting high or the times that they were high, they even talk about the same things repeatedly through out the week. where they get the money from i don't know because last i heard from them they were spending about $100 a week, these are high school, or former high school, students who up until recently didn't have jobs.

don't get me started on there memory, i'm amazed they can remember any of the times they were high because they certainly can't remember much more on a day to day basis.

and yet somehow they had no change in there grades either.

me i've never smoked the stuff and have no desire to, i've got things to remember, many things to do and buying any form of plant has always struck me as odd. but thats just me and my two cents worth.

no offence, but your friends were probably stupid before they started smoking pot, and here's why i think so.

Number one, i firmly believe that marijuana does not impede your brain's ability to do anything, with the exception of short-term memories, which i draw from personal experience and friends/parents i have known to use marijuana heavily.

Number two, most people who start smoking pot are stupid before they start smoking pot. A large amount of the kids who start using marijuana are not generally wealthy, living in poor-opportunity sections of the city. Now because of this poor-opportunity, the members of said area are more likely to pursue illegal activitys because of the large amount of money in said activities. One of these activities is selling drugs, marijuana probably being the most common.

So lets recap for a second.
Most people who use marijuana are stupid before they start using it because:
1. Marijuana has no effect on the brain (relative to intelligence).
2. Poor-opportunity in the communities they live in.

Let's move on.

Another large reason for people to claim that they have become "dumb" after quiting smoking pot is because they feel that that is societies place for them. The US gov. has been feeding us junk about how marijuana makes you into a stereotypical drugged-up retarded loser that most people use it as a scapegoat. "Oh, weed made me so stupid, i cant possibly do anything nooow, put me on Social Security and Disability payment."

trust me. pot doesnt make you the least bit dumber. I know your reluctance to try it, because if im right, no big deal, but if you're right, then you're screwed shitless.

In my opinion, tell your friends to suck it up, stop being pussies, and focus on schoolwork a little more.

I find a balance between the two is best

Originally Posted by Perk

Should marijuana be legalized?

What are your feelings on
a)marijuana prohibition?
b)medical marijuana?
c)effects of marijuana?

YES it should. Those who use it for there own childish pleasures will waste away and us intlligent people will live on like we always have. I'm sure there are healing effects of marijuana just like any other plant and they should be used but not abused.

Some known effects:
Analgestic-hypnotic, topical anesthetic, antiasthmatic, antibiotic, antiepileptic, antispasmodic, antidepressant, tranquilizer, antitussive, appetite stimulant, oxytocic, etc.

Originally Posted by Perk

no offence, but your friends were probably stupid before they started smoking pot, and here's why i think so.

Number one, i firmly believe that marijuana does not impede your brain's ability to do anything, with the exception of short-term memories, which i draw from personal experience and friends/parents i have known to use marijuana heavily.

Number two, most people who start smoking pot are stupid before they start smoking pot. A large amount of the kids who start using marijuana are not generally wealthy, living in poor-opportunity sections of the city. Now because of this poor-opportunity, the members of said area are more likely to pursue illegal activitys because of the large amount of money in said activities. One of these activities is selling drugs, marijuana probably being the most common.

So lets recap for a second.
Most people who use marijuana are stupid before they start using it because:
1. Marijuana has no effect on the brain (relative to intelligence).
2. Poor-opportunity in the communities they live in.

Let's move on.

Another large reason for people to claim that they have become "dumb" after quiting smoking pot is because they feel that that is societies place for them. The US gov. has been feeding us junk about how marijuana makes you into a stereotypical drugged-up retarded loser that most people use it as a scapegoat. "Oh, weed made me so stupid, i cant possibly do anything nooow, put me on Social Security and Disability payment."

trust me. pot doesnt make you the least bit dumber. I know your reluctance to try it, because if im right, no big deal, but if you're right, then you're screwed shitless.

In my opinion, tell your friends to suck it up, stop being pussies, and focus on schoolwork a little more.

I find a balance between the two is best

where did i say anything about them being stupid?
i said there short term memory was shot to hell and they find it difficult to focus on anything other than drugs.
don't tell me that your mind is not impeded when you've drawn the conclusion that there stupid.

maybe i should provide some background on where i live.
the suburb i'm in is about 15km from the city and is a middle-class sort of place, my friends families are probably better off than i am, there is no place within 20km of us that could even be remotely classified as a poor oportunity section of the city.

perhaps satistically the points you described are valid but my reluctance stems from my personal experience of watching my friends use the stuff, i have no desire to become like them. they however don't fit into the stereotypical drug user catagory.

i'd like to tell them to focus on there studies. but they've gone and done the smartest thing they could probably do, drop out, i can only hope they've got jobs or started doing a trade but i havn't heard much from them since.

you must lucky because marijuana had some noticable effects on my friends. as far as there minds go they may as well be addicted because all they talk about, all they seem to think about is getting high or the times that they were high, they even talk about the same things repeatedly through out the week.

it sure sounded like you were calling them stupid, im sorry if i misinterpretted what you meant.

you and i seem to have different definitions of stupid then.

There's another option not mentioned in the survey

Decriminalize: meaning its is not a criminal offense like first degree murder is criminal, but its not free-for-all legal either, the same way its illegal to park a car in certain places at certain hours, you get a ticket and pay a penalty. It should be illegal (pay a fine) to smoke pot in public, and so on.

The government could free up space in prisons for serious offenders, would save costly trials and loss of revenue from the income tax lost while the person is in prison. In addition, the money raised from fines could by used directly into awareness campains demonstrating the negative effects of drugs.

Driving while Under the influence of drugs should be criminalized imo.


People with dogmatic pre-conceived ideas will probably go nuts but here's a report about a clinic in Canada that offers free heroin for drug addicts to shoot themselves under medical supervision

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2005/...in-050210.html


The result were very surprising.

Drug addiction has not increased but slightly decreased, probably because addicts comming to the clinic had access to information, support and treatements to combat the addiction from people they could trust. The image it gave of heroin is not that its legal and cool but that its a real and sad problem that should be avoided.
Crime has dropped, probably since the drug addicts that used to steal to get a fix to pay organized crime for their dose of potentialy crapy stuff could cut the middle man and get a fix without stealing or rewarding organized crime.
The number of new infection of HIV and other realted disease has dropped.

The overall effects of this endevor were quite positive. :wink:


Pot, unlike cocaine and other drugs, is not highly addictive imo. I have known many people who have smoked it in their late teens to early 20s and have never touched the shit since they became adults. For virtually everyone I know that has smoked it It was a youth thing, like young men being criminaly imbecile while driving (a condition that usually stops when the jugement centers of the brain are fully developed which occurs at some point before a person is 25) or deriving pleasure from being drunk at parties which is somehow 'cool' when you're young but in many cultures becomes 'moronic' when your an adult.

I voted for no, though I've had the opposite opinion in the past.

I do want to address this point:

Originally Posted by Pendragon

If nicotine and alcohol are allowed, then soft drugs should be allowed as well. Marijuana isn't as addictive as nicotine, and doesn't kill as many brain cells as alcohol. So banning marijuana is no more than a subsidy to the beer and tabacco industry, that's the only real effect.

I think what you say is true, but you are missing the greater point - the federal government is cracking down so hard on drugs that if alcohol and nicotine were only discovered last week, I very seriously doubt they'd be legal today. They're just so ingrained into our society that you can't get rid of them now.

We all know the stats about drunk drivers. It's ludicrous. Marijuana would only add another problem to that. This isn't the Netherlands - in the vast majority of the U.S. you have to drive pretty much everywhere you go. I drive to work. I drive to the grocery store. I drive to bars. I drive to parties. I drive to friend's houses. Mass transportation isn't great, and the distances between places are greater than all over Europe. Different country, different situation, different risks.
Nevermind the fact that marijuana is a psychedelic. Enough marijuana and you can have episodes similiar to being on LSD - it's simply not the kind of drug you want available for mass consumption.

It's a lot easier to inhale mass quantities of marijuana than alcohol, too. THC in the lungs absorbs very quickly into the bloodstream because that's what your lungs are designed for.

People are stupid and anything you put available for recreational use will quickly turn to overuse.