Viewpoints about marijuana

peaceseeker81 wrote: Sorry if this topic may have been covered before...

You've no way of knowing it without searching the forums, but this topic (and many like it) comes up about once every month or two. I feel like it should be a topic that gets resigned to a specific area or thread of the forum, since it seems to be a constant and common question, but I feel like the vast majority of the time there are a lot of more worthwhile topics of discussion than personal bodily choices.

Personally I dont think that there is enough definitive research on either side of the debate to make a call. I do not use it and will not because at this point, I think the risks outweigh the possible benefits for the average person.

Anecdotally . I have seen more harm than good come from its use.

peaceseeker81 wrote: Sorry if this topic may have been covered before...

steamboat28 wrote: You've no way of knowing it without searching the forums, but this topic (and many like it) comes up about once every month or two. I feel like it should be a topic that gets resigned to a specific area or thread of the forum, since it seems to be a constant and common question, but I feel like the vast majority of the time there are a lot of more worthwhile topics of discussion than personal bodily choices.

when you run a search, there's actually no grouping by thread even you specify to sort by thread. searching for previous threads to add on rather than start a new thread is discouraging

I guess it would be ideal if no-one abused substances but I don't think that is realistic. Though... I think the 'idea' of limiting access to psychotropics is valid from a societal productivity point of view, its a bit of a totalitarian approach and frankly has not worked - instead creating a large and invasive criminal networks of production and supply. I tend to lean towards personal freedom but with regulation to support safe participation in society.

So I'd probably look at legalization of private possession, but still make if offense to sell, use in public, or operate machinery under the influence of etc. Sort of like how alcohol is in most places.

Reasoning being I think there will always be a section of the population who chooses to use psychotropics.... and I think it is much better then alcohol, stimulants, prescription abuse etc.

I guess my main reason is that perhaps it would reduce domestic violence... as alcohol and meth really seem to drive DV up, and so I'd imagine domestic violence would come down a bit since those folk would have to wonder buy meth or booze when they can grow a relaxing plant 'for free' in their backyard. It used to be the booze which seemed to cause most DV IMO, but now meth really seems to be driving a lot of violence. So while I'm sure plenty would still continue to use different things, I think the financial and accessibility benefits of growing your own might make a real dent in the purchase and use of other substances - and while it is not particularly healthy to mess around with brain chemistry or smoke anything, it might be the lesser of two evils sort of thing - since current approaches don't seem to really achieve any restriction to illegal substances like these.

Here's two documentaries about Cannabis with generally different views.

One-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WiMN9z81F68

Two-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cg2ZQDXzJr0

Another site attempting to be unbiased is this one- although I prefer the second page as part of this site which shows the scientific tests done around marijuana further down the page.

1) https://examine.com/blog/the-unbiased-truth-about-marijuana/
2) http://examine.com/supplements/Marijuana/

Personally, I think it is up for each person to take responsibility for himself/herself and that Cannabis could be treated as similar to alcohol. You don't go to work drunk- neither should you go to work high. You don't go to school drunk- you don't go to school high. If you like having a drink, know the risks of use (and especially excessive use) and likewise for smoking or eating cannabis. Some people have a higher tolerance to alcohol than others, likewise to cannabis. As for being addicted- I find myself thinking cannabis can give more of an psychological rather than a physical dependancy (although I hold that point of view lightly) and agree more and more with this next idea expressed in this video about addiction-

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ao8L-0nSYzg

Enjoy!

yes, the dependency is the risk that substances are restricted and exploited for

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Brenna wrote: Personally I dont think that there is enough definitive research on either side of the debate to make a call. I do not use it and will not because at this point, I think the risks outweigh the possible benefits for the average person.

Anecdotally . I have seen more harm than good come from its use.

thank you Brenna

brief as it was, i feel this is a high quality post, for whatever thats worth

Adder wrote: I think there will always be a section of the population who chooses to use psychotropics.... and I think it is much better then alcohol, stimulants, prescription abuse etc.

agreed

Adder wrote: .. alcohol and meth really seem to drive DV up

from personal experience, yes, this is true
and its general violence as well, but yeah youll see it especially in the domestic arena

Adder wrote: and so I'd imagine domestic violence would come down a bit since those folk would have to wonder buy meth or booze when they can grow a relaxing plant 'for free' in their backyard. It used to be the booze which seemed to cause most DV IMO, but now meth really seems to be driving a lot of violence.

this part i dont exactly agree with, and this is why:

while it is theoretically possible that legalization would "catch" people with weed, and "satisfy" them enough so they dont feel the desire to branch out into harder drugs (which tbh i really dont think is very likely, FOR THE MOST PART), those who are ALREADY doing meth and are ALREADY active alcoholics, are not usually going to (even be able if they wanted) to replace meth or booze with weed

i was an alcoholic as a teenager - or i started drinking as a pre teen and by the time i as a young adult i was a bona fide alcoholic

i also smoked weed several times a day until i was 18 - that was when i was first put on probation and i had to drug test 3 times a week

the testing decreased over time, but the probation lasted a couple years and the result was that i was away from pot for so long that when i tried getting back into it, the experience was not the same

unless i have the right kind of drunk, i dont really enjoy bud anymore

years and years later, my alcoholism actually got "upgraded" into heroin addiction-

a while later, i used meth to help me through heroin withdrawals, and since i was living with a girl who did a lot of meth and no heroin, once i kicked the H i just stuck with meth for a few years

the relationships i had during my "real drugs" years were the most awful interactions of my life lol

basically, its a different mindset from weed to meth and alcoholism

weed wont replace any other substance for those who want to do the other substances, in my experience and opinion

Adder wrote: ..current approaches don't seem to really achieve any restriction to illegal substances like these.

yeah - its a mental health issue imo, not a criminal one

as long as its treated like a criminal issue, the way its dealt with will cause more problems than it solves

for the record, i dont use any intoxicants at this time in my life and i dont judge or condemn them obviously but i dont endorse them either

and imo there is a different standard for a Jedi than for just an average person

i think Pot can be useful as a tool for the exploration and development of consciousness, but i dont believe its a NECESSARY tool, at least in the long run

i think you really have ot judge person by person, because the gamut of bud smokers is wide, and some of them are pretty healthy people overall, and some of them arent, and the use of mari-j is not, in and of itself, conclusive

i do believe that EVERYONE should, some time in their life, partake in a psychotropic ritual such as ayahuasca or a peyote ceremony, but that it should be done after one has established themselves as an adult and that it should be done intelligently

Rickie wrote: Make it legal and tax it. Use the $ to feed the poor.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sbQFNe3pkss

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T5jMC8j7ElI

So far, the places that have legalized seemed to only have done well.

Crime down, economy up.

Take for example also that you have people in jail for getting high longer than child molesters and rapists.

Also, the research that has been done has proven that comparatively, and by a large margin, its not near as harmful as people were ever lead to believe and most all have been debunked.

There is also several medical positives, as well as spiritual ones.

However, even were one only doing it to get high, veg out, and watch t.v with some chips, I couldnt possibly care less. Its not hurting anyone, and I think the biggest danger might be weight gain.

Aside from the videos on addiction above, come now, even were you to argue it, percentage wise the addiction level to marijuana and the "fallout" (see weight gain) is minimal, at best.

Here's How Many People Fatally Overdosed On Marijuana Last Year