Viewpoints about marijuana

Proteus wrote:

Bareus wrote: I am personally against the usage of Marijuana unless it is for a medical purpose.

It is like alchohol and like cigarettes. All of them are addictive
If you don't belive me then here is what Dr. Drew Pinsky wich has been working with addicts for a long time thinks:

Warning: Spoiler!

It would be malpractice to say that cannabis isn't addictive. Anybody who's experienced it, actually been addicted to it, knows how profound that addiction is.... The difficult thing about marijuana addiction is some people, even though they're addicted can do fine with it for many many years before they start to have difficultly, but eventually the high starts wearing off, people start smoking a lot more to try to get that high back and that's when they descend into difficulties. ...I've been treating cannabis addiction for 20 years. When people are addicted to cannabis, cocaine and alcohol the drug they have the most difficult time giving up is the cannabis. It is extremely addictive...for some people. I think that's where people get confused. It's not very addictive for many people. It's a small subset of people with a genetic potential for addiction. But for them it is really tough. You only need talk to them, they'll tell you how tough it is.

And if we look at a place where it has been lagalised, amsterdam for example, and it is effecting young people there, here is what i saw in an article:

Warning: Spoiler!

Amsterdam today became the first city in the Netherlands to ban students from smoking marijuana at school.
The city's mayor Eberhard van der Laan introduced the law after school chiefs complained about pupils turning up to classes high after rolling up outside the grounds.

Marijuana is widely available in Holland as, although it is technically illegal, police can't prosecute people for possession of small amounts.

But it has also had the unwanted side effect that Dutch children are frequently exposed to the drug in public areas.

Do we want this to happen in our countries?
And it effects your health very badly:

Warning: Spoiler!

A recent Northwestern University study found that marijuana users have abnormal brain structure and poor memory and that chronic marijuana abuse may lead to brain changes resembling schizophrenia. The study also reported that the younger the person starts using marijuana, the worse the effects become.
In its own report arguing against marijuana legalization, the American Medical Association said: "Heavy cannabis use in adolescence causes persistent impairments in neurocognitive performance and IQ, and use is associated with increased rates of anxiety, mood and psychotic thought disorders."

Thank you for the quotes Barnes, but could you also site the sources they come from and verify their legitimacy for research please?

The doctor:
http://www.celebstoner.com/news/celebstoner-news/2013/11/19/dr.-drew-on-pot-its-extremely-addictive...-for-some-people/
They are a bit critical towards him though, however i find qoutes logical and relevant

Amsterdam:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2246977/Amsterdam-pot-ban-Smoking-marijuana-illegal-schools.html

The Health:
http://edition.cnn.com/2014/01/16/opinion/bennett-keep-pot-illegal/index.html?hpt=op_r1

I don’t use marijuana, but I know a lot about the stuff. I am an advocate for its legalization, however I am going to put this out there. It is NOT a miracle drug. Now yes it have been known to help with certain aliments and strains can be sythiziseds in to a liquid drug to help control epilepsy even in children. There is a problem though; the average percentage of THC and CBD in a plant is around 15% with medical strains being 21% and higher. And growers are now finding new ways to increase that percentage…

Why?..... Because the more TCH the bigger the high.

IF you do some research into it you’ll will find that it’s the THC that give the high and CBD are non-psychoactive, meaning they don’t get you high. What the CBD’s are responsible for are curing the symptoms related to certain medical disorders a lot better then THC. And we are now at the point that we can grow strains of marijuana that only produce CBD and can be harvested to be turned into medicines.

So the question becomes why smoke it if there is a medicine available?

Garwa Mayharr wrote: I don’t use marijuana, but I know a lot about the stuff. I am an advocate for its legalization, however I am going to put this out there. It is NOT a miracle drug. Now yes it have been known to help with certain aliments and strains can be sythiziseds in to a liquid drug to help control epilepsy even in children. There is a problem though; the average percentage of THC and CBD in a plant is around 15% with medical strains being 21% and higher. And growers are now finding new ways to increase that percentage…

Why?..... Because the more TCH the bigger the high.

IF you do some research into it you’ll will find that it’s the THC that give the high and CBD are non-psychoactive, meaning they don’t get you high. What the CBD’s are responsible for are curing the symptoms related to certain medical disorders a lot better then THC. And we are now at the point that we can grow strains of marijuana that only produce CBD and can be harvested to be turned into medicines.

So the question becomes why smoke it if there is a medicine available?

I agree. I think the main reason why people do is so they can get that high. But another reason why some rather smoke it is because it's cheaper. Many folks in America have medical issues that marijuana can help but unfortantly they have no health insurance. Or that the pill is so expensive that many cant afford to pay.

My perspective comes from growing up as one of a few non-smokers pretty much surrounded by self-styled "stoners". I grew up in a mountain town that was built around a ski resort, and a common phrase used there is "Skiing and Weed go together like peanut butter and Jelly".
The CNN article cited under "health" is an opinion piece from a vocal advocate against marijuana legalization, and he doesn't really cite any studies that show the ill health effects. That being said, I too have seen the effects of addiction to marijuana in many of the older adults still living in my hometown, and I would not be surprised if the rest of the info presented by Bareus were true.
However, I really think when questioning the legalization of marijuana, we should also remember that even with the ill effects of marijuana, tobacco and alcohol cause much worse and more immediately (as well as long term) health problems. One could argue that abnormal brain structure and poor memory are just as bad as lung/mouth cancer and liver disease, but in that case the question would turn from "should we legalize marijuana as well?" To "should we make everything illegal?" I would prefer legalizing everything, since we all know what happens when you ban alcohol from the Prohibition era.

mari-j is no big deal

many people find that its useful for a quite a few things (including meditation)

were it not for the fact of its being illegal, the addiction is not significantly more serious than an addiction to coffee, in terms of compulsion and withdrawal

some people go to great lengths for their coffee lol

mostly withdrawing from weed just results in being cranky and ill tempered for a couple days - ive been that way over coffee withdrawals

imo, freedom is a good thing

generally speaking, i believe in increasing personal competance rather than on reducing capabilities or options

i personally dont smoke anymore - i dont drink or do any recreational drugs, but i have done a lot of them in my life

i think its more important to create a society where people are allowed to decide for themselves, and also a society in which individuals have access to the resources needed to develop themselves as people

education and opportunity, engagement in sports and art and - lol - HIGHER culture hehe

in that kind of setting, drug abuse declines, because people are happier generally and have more fullfilling things to do

mind altering and releasing effects of cannabis use really need to be in check. most users have no knowledge or understanding of pharmacokinetics and pharmacology. what's also concerning are the reasons for using cannabis. what are we supplementing and lacking developing?

cannabis oil for chronic medical treatment and cancer would be the only circumstances. and even then, unless patients had a lifestyle improvement agreement, is just a cure instead of prevention

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There are a lot of scientific reports that show the use and abuse of Hasjies and Weed , i live in a country where it is legal to smoke ,drink and eat Hasjies, but its also allowed

*to drink Alcohol,
*to get really Fat on Mc Donalds
* to smoke cigarettes
* to have unprotected Sex etc etc

but i dont HAVE to engage in al this , there is use and abuse, its a matter of common sense, they ban Pot from schools as they ban alcohol and smoking , its being carefull of what you expose your children to .

CBD oil is freely available here in a lot of shops , THC is strickly managed and controled , as far as possible

http://www.truthonpot.com/2014/09/24/5-differences-between-cbd-vs-thc/

I love hearing people's viewpoint on this subject mainly due to the subject matter and the type of forum this is. When you get a bunch of free thinkers involved it can bring out many different viewpoints.

There are way less public problems caused by marijuana than by legal drugs, like alcohol and painkillers.

I find it ridiculous to ban something like that.

I have no problems with it, and use it to meditate in higher frequencies. Also, it helps with my Asperger.

I concur with some of the comments above about the matter over marijuana and the possibilities of confliction with the Jedi Doctrine and my view point is that it does not violate any of the doctrine some of the 16 teachings could question the use or need for marijuana, like if it's for medical purposes or to help ones self to achieve greater understanding of the world around then or spiritual enlightenment used in moderation then sure I don't see much of a problem, but if it being used just to get high and your an addict then you could question the ethics and morals of the individual person and their ability to live up to the Jedi standard.