Marijuana

[MMM]

I am not disagreeing with you, I am just saying not everyone agrees that marijuana isn't physically addicting.

And physically addicting, psychologically addiction, I am not sure it matters. Everyone reacts in different ways. Some people do crack for years and can stop on a dime, others are addicted after one time usage.

[burkhartdesu]

Bottom line, drugs are bad... but should they be illegal?

[MMM]

Originally Posted by burkhartdesu

Bottom line, drugs are bad... but should they be illegal?

It's an interesting question. It is hard to deny the medicinal benefits of marijuana for certain medical issues and even benefits from things like things like red wine.

On the other hand, there is nothing beneficial or positive about smoking or chewing tobacco. However, they are legal (for over 18, in my state).

Hard drugs (opiates, heroin) have no health benefits, only negatives, and they are very illegal.

I think the reasons tobacco, especially, is culture and ultimately politics. Bad for you or not, the tobacco industry is a multi-billion dollar industry. Marijuana doesn't have the advantage of having a legitimate industry, so it is illegal.

[onlybyron]

i think they should just have a harmless plasebo, give a few people something the government say is pot and see what happens, if it works and people think they are getting high then they legalize that drug and call it pot so everyone thinks it is,
that way no helth risks and i can laugh at the people who think there getting high BWUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA

[Nyororin]

For some reason I am amused that some people in this thread seem to be having trouble understanding that there are people out there who think that marijuana is not harmless, yet still think that it does not need to be illegal.
I have yet to see anything from MMM that indicates he feels marijuana should be illegal. Same in what I wrote. But there seems to be a lot of defensiveness - either you approve of marijuana and think it`s totally harmless, or you must be against it and believe it is evil embodied in a plant.

I don`t think it should be illegal, as it`s certainly no worse than tobacco or alcohol - but there is NOTHING that could ever convince me that it is as natural and harmless as a mountain stream. And no, it`s not me being tricked by misinformation - it`s the result of having a mother who was a dealer.

[onlybyron]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

it`s the result of having a mother who was a dealer.

lol XD my dads ex was a herowin addict

[burkhartdesu]

Sorry if I seemed defensive to either Nyororin or MMM, though I frequently acknowledged your comments and even complimented MMM on his keen perspective. On the other hand, Tenchu is once again proving himself to be a washed-out lunatic.

I know Marijuana to be relatively addictive. Though all the negative things I've seen with weed are a result of it's illegality.

Honestly, the reason I'm so "defensive" on the issue is because the D.A.R.E. program and the Christian organization that managed my (Christian) elementary school convinced me that Marijuana was equally as dangerous as Heroin or Cocaine. Later in my life, I realized this was a blatant lie. I've had dozens of friends and relatives fall victim to drug addiction (including my own parents), but it seems to me the ones that are successful were the pot heads! Yep, I said it. But this is my personal situation.

Now, a lot of my friends from my graduating class are working $20+ jobs, most of them quit smoking immediately without any negative repercussions. Now the vast majority of my friends aren't smokers (and some who have never smoked).

And MMM, it's not impossible for there to be a legitimate Cannabis industry -- As you said, Portland just opened up a cafe for medical use. This is, if I'm not mistaken, a legitimate and taxed industry.


I'm not insisting everyone in the world smokes pot, but I find it a little strange that a plant with so many uses (this cannot be denied) is being blacklisted without much evidence to the contrary!

[MMM]

There is no reason to apologize to me Burkhartdesu. I don't think you responded unreasonably to anything I said.

There certainly could be a legitimate cannabis industry. I doubt it would ever be as large as the tobacco industry, but who knows. As tobacco slowly gets elbowed out maybe those tobacco fields could be turned into hemp fields. Wouldn't that be something?

[burkhartdesu]

[xyzone]

Originally Posted by Nyororin

I don`t think it should be illegal, as it`s certainly no worse than tobacco or alcohol - but there is NOTHING that could ever convince me that it is as natural and harmless as a mountain stream. And no, it`s not me being tricked by misinformation - it`s the result of having a mother who was a dealer.

The truth is, legitimate studies show that coffee is more dangerous than marijuana if we go by the direct deaths caused by it. Going further, by that logic, video games are more dangerous. People have died for playing world of warcraft nonstop. No need to get into the deaths undeniably caused by smoking carcinogenic tobacco (sprayed with radioactive insecticides) and alcohol abuse. There isn't a single proven death caused by marijuana smoking in history. All there is today against marijuana is 100% unfounded hyperbole, questionable personal anecdotes and urban myths. And for it being harmless, a mountain of legitimate evidence.