Position on cannabis

[Magikarp From Hell]

Legalize it.

• You don't hurt anyone
• The habit of smoking can be adictive, but the Pot doesn't contains any addictive elements.
• It's nice..

I've done weed a couple of times and bought it one time myself. You got tons of kinds.
I prefer it way more than cigarettes.

 

[Corvus of the Black Night]

I think the smell of marijuana is, well I mean it depends on the strain, but its usually very strong. Pungent. Very earthy, but very strong and distinctive. I wouldn't say it smells bad if you're getting good stuff, it's just very strong and you can smell it across the room. Bad stuff usually either is weak in smell or doesn't smell... uh... right.

Please note that marijuana has a distinct smell and unless you actively wash it off it will take a bit to get out. If you smoke indoors you WILL smell like it. Also, if you stash it somewhere, that will smell like dope too. A wash though usually does the trick - if you smoked in your car just leaving the windows down does the trick - unlike tobacco the smell doesn't really "stick" so it goes away after a while. But if you smoked in clothes, especially indoors, I recommend a simple throw in the washer and you'll be good as new.

Have you ever been somewhere such as a neighbourhood or a dorm or something where something just smells really strong, a little like a tinge of skunky smell with an earthy tone? Yeah, probably marijuana. There's a guy I know in my neighbourhood that smokes every few days and I didn't realize that was marijuana for a looong time until I toked some myself.

 

[DowntownDumpling]

Skunk is really the best way to describe its smell, but I did weed years before I ever smelled a skunk; they're not common around here. How I described it once to my brother is that it smells like a cross between cotton candy and cigarettes.

 

[Gexeys]

Hi there. I think this ends here, since you tore apart even the slightest comment and decided to repeated swear for no apparent reason.

Really, all you have done is highlight both paranoia (about a government out to punish you) and aggression at even the faintest opposition.

Good day.

Your ideas of him are totally misguided, you're looking for an excuse to blame weed on everything. He's clearly supporting the pro-use of weed and he's clearly passionate about it. You're trying to link his anger to weed because of your misguidance about weed. Your whole first argument was wrong and riddled with false information. The only reason why you've not responded was because he tore apart your argument was it was wrong. He gave you an effective counter argument which blew you out of the water and you have no argument against it so you turned to the classic bashing weed statement.

 

[T The Manager]

I'm not sure how you think statistics work. Not everyone is going to get cancer, not everyone will show all symptoms, some people may get lucky with none. It's also near impossible to diagnose your own addiction, due to that dandy thing called denial.

How many times do we have to say marijuana isn't addicting? Or how many times do we have to say EVERYTHING CAN BE ADDICTING? It's near non-impossible to diagnose an addiction due to denial. Marijuana doesn't make it so you need it, most people just want it. Where is the problem with someone wanting marijuana? Why does it matter if someone consumes marijuana? It's not your body so why should you care? So I guess if someone smokes weed their addicted to it just like your addicted to spewing false information right?

Also, yes, caffeine can be addictive but it's also pretty harmless.

Yes caffeine is pretty harmless but so is marijuana and caffeine has more negative side effects than marijuana if used outside of moderation.

Here are some titles of 'New Scientist' marijuana articles, a reputable scientific magazine, the good and the bad (italised positive articles):

Marijuana takes on colon cancer.

Colon cancer or not, marijuana still helps kill the spreading of cancer cells. Marijuana is not the magic cure for cancer, but it does nothing but good to someone with cancer. At least they can eat because it settles any sickness and the stomach allowing the patient to eat properly.

Marijuana wrecks havoc on brain's memory cells.

This is false. It freezes brain cells but marijuana can also promote the growth of brain cells. Not saying it makes you a genius or nothing, but it doesn't make you stupid either.

Marijuana makes blood rush to the head.

This is partially false. Blood only rushes to the head if 1. Held in for too long of a period of time or 2. Smoked with a blunt wrap because blunt wraps are made of tobacco which means tobacco causes the head rush not the weed. The reason blood rushes to the head after holding in for a long period of time is because the brain has lack of oxygen giving that read rush feeling.

Marijuana robs men of their sexual highs.

It can, but it's something very few male smokers get.

Marijuana really does cause a headrush.

No it doesn't.

Marijuana used in pregnancy damages kids' learning.

I highly doubt this is the case for every mother smoking weed during pregnancy. If the mother smokes a lot, then yeah the baby could come out with mental issues but the baby could also come out perfectly normal. If the mother smokes weed on special occasions it will do little to nothing to her pregnancy and her child at birth.

Marijuana may cause pregnancy to fail.

I could see this as a possibility. But then again, cannabinoids (which is in marijuana) is in a mothers breast milk naturally.

Marijuana does not dent IQ permanently.

I could of told you this. Sometimes it helps you learn while other times not so much.

Marijuana might cause new brain cell growth.

Omg, here it is. Something I already said was actually true.

Smoking Marijuana could trigger relapse in drug addicts.

What type of drug addicts?

As you can see, some positives revolving around healthcare but many negatives that outway them. Also note the amounts of 'may's and 'might's in the titles which shows research that is not entirely conclusive or verified.

Yet you still post it as evidence?

Interesting fact from 'Talk to Frank'[/QUOTE]

 

[Puddle]

I have smoked weed here and there through my life and I have many friends who do it on a regular basis. I still believe that it should really only be for strict medicinal purposes. People say that our debt would decrease but if you think about it, the negatives out weigh the positives.

People who are high have poorer judgement, therefore they may do more stupid things. Such as go drinking after smoking. Or just driving in general. Marijuana screws up your depth perception making it harder to see. Thus resulting in more accidents/deaths.

Also, Marijuana is still a depressant and it can truly effect someone if they go overboard with it. I'm sure there would be a lot more people smoking to try and tune out the real world and ultimately only being happy when they're high. This'll cause more suicides/deaths/general problems.

Finally, Marijuana is still always going to be a gate way drug. And if people get hooked on Marijuana, they could get hooked and addicted on things like Crack or Heroine. So this will cause more deaths.

Really, it's your viewpoint. Are more deaths to help our debt and have a few more people be happy really worth it?

 

[Kanzler]

Yet you still post it as evidence?

Addressing this one sentence accounts for addressing all of the points said above. It goes both ways. The fact of the matter is that we know little about how marijuana affects the body - so we should tread lightly when we talk about how it can harm AND help us.

It's ridiculous that a plant can do anything significant in any direction towards cancer and brain cells. I know this from my exposure to medicine and biology. We should not stretch the truth when it comes to marijuana's "medical" properties. It affects the mind, so it's reasonable that it can help people manage pain. But promoting neurogenesis and preventing the spread of cancer - nothing grown from the ground can do this. Medications must be designed and manufactured and targeted, and only technology can accomplish this, not the randomness of nature.

Be aware of your knowledge, or the lack thereof, when it comes to scientific terminology. Cannabinoids are chemicals that affect the cannabinoid receptor in nerve cells, and that's all the definition means. Drugs that affect one receptor system in the body can do it multiple ways. To give you an example, I have a heart condition. Caffeine will activate my condition and trigger heart palpitations. Adenosine, if injected into my bloodstream, will cancel it out. These drugs both affect adenosine receptors, but they have the exact opposite effects on my symptoms. Our bodies use our own cannabinoids to signal our cells to do certain things, we've evolved that over millions of years. But we shouldn't assume that taking in a foreign cannabinoid that has nothing to do with a human body will have any synergy.

Also, the people who claim that marijuana taxes can help save our debt are deluding themselves - I thought these were the very libertarians who hated the idea of taxes and government to begin with. They underestimate the size of the government and our economy. Defense spending, but a fifth of the American annual budget, accounts for nearly $700 billion USD - the sales of the tobacco industry amount to around $100 billion, the profits only a third of that. How much of the profit could we take from the hands of marijuana capitalists - a third perhaps, ten or twenty billion? And you know how capitalism works - once the marijuana industry sets in, they won't be satisfied with their markets. They'll only want more, and they'll want people to get hooked. It's the same as any other capitalist endeavour - they need demand and they're make more of it if there isn't enough.

Just because using the plant is something you enjoy shouldn't cloud your understanding of how little it can actually help us. At least understand that there is little we know even about the chemicals within the plant and that if any drugs were to be developed from it, they'd likely be genetically engineered and purified - definitely not something you blaze up.

 

[ANARCHit3cht]

Addressing this one sentence accounts for addressing all of the points said above. It goes both ways. The fact of the matter is that we know little about how marijuana affects the body - so we should tread lightly when we talk about how it can harm AND help us.

It's ridiculous that a plant can do anything significant in any direction towards cancer and brain cells. I know this from my exposure to medicine and biology. We should not stretch the truth when it comes to marijuana's "medical" properties. It affects the mind, so it's reasonable that it can help people manage pain. But promoting neurogenesis and preventing the spread of cancer - nothing grown from the ground can do this. Medications must be designed and manufactured and targeted, and only technology can accomplish this, not the randomness of nature.

Be aware of your knowledge, or the lack thereof, when it comes to scientific terminology. Cannabinoids are chemicals that affect the cannabinoid receptor in nerve cells, and that's all the definition means. Drugs that affect one receptor system in the body can do it multiple ways. To give you an example, I have a heart condition. Caffeine will activate my condition and trigger heart palpitations. Adenosine, if injected into my bloodstream, will cancel it out. These drugs both affect adenosine receptors, but they have the exact opposite effects on my symptoms. Our bodies use our own cannabinoids to signal our cells to do certain things, we've evolved that over millions of years. But we shouldn't assume that taking in a foreign cannabinoid that has nothing to do with a human body will have any synergy.
What exposure do you exactly have? If you have a lot, you should know that exposure with some plants does not equate to exposure withh all. Cannabinoids, the active chemicals in cannabis, have been proven to have cancer retarding effects. That being said, the specific cannabinoid that they are focusing on in the medical community is not the same one that produces the same intoxicating psychoactive effects known as THC. Instead, they are focusing a non-intoxicating cannabinoid known as cannabidiol(CBD).

As for knowning definitions, cannabinoids are of three different types. Endocannabinoids, which are produced naturally by the body. Phytocannabinoids, which are produce primarily in cannabis and some other plants, and Synthetic or lab-made cannabnioids. So, to call cannabinoids the main chemicals in cannabis is not a wrong definition at all. It doesn't specify what kind of cannabinoid, but when in relation to marijuana it should almost always be assumed to be the second of the three options.

source: https://jpet.aspetjournals.org/content/308/3/838.abstract

Finally, CBD, administered s.c. to nude mice at the dose of 0.5 mg/mouse, significantly inhibited the growth of subcutaneously implanted U87 human glioma cells. In conclusion, the nonpsychoactive CBD was able to produce a significant antitumor activity both in vitro and in vivo, thus suggesting a possible application of CBD as an antineoplastic agent.

That aside, as shown in the documentary Weed: Dr. Sanjay Gupta Reports, CBD has proven effective in the treatmeant of another disease known as Dravet's Syndrome, an form of epilepsy that resists most anti-epileptic medicines. In another case, it helped the young patient return to solid food and it calmed the persistent seizures that plagued him.

Also, the people who claim that marijuana taxes can help save our debt are deluding themselves - I thought these were the very libertarians who hated the idea of taxes and government to begin with. They underestimate the size of the government and our economy. Defense spending, but a fifth of the American annual budget, accounts for nearly $700 billion USD - the sales of the tobacco industry amount to around $100 billion, the profits only a third of that. How much of the profit could we take from the hands of marijuana capitalists - a third perhaps, ten or twenty billion? And you know how capitalism works - once the marijuana industry sets in, they won't be satisfied with their markets. They'll only want more, and they'll want people to get hooked. It's the same as any other capitalist endeavour - they need demand and they're make more of it if there isn't enough.

Your first statement is a very stereotypical and close-minded statement. There are various people who are opting for the legalization marijuana. And they aren't just talking about the kind that you pack in a pipe and smoke. Many are actually thinking more along the lines of starting a hemp industry. From hemp, you can make clothes, medicines(skin creams, lotions etc), tools(rope, nets etc), lumber(and most related products)... the list is endless. And as opposed to the typical time it takes to grow trees, you can harvest hemp 2-3 times a year in-optimal indoor settings. This alone counts for a HUGE industry worth A LOT of money.

Just because using the plant is something you enjoy shouldn't cloud your understanding of how little it can actually help us. At least understand that there is little we know even about the chemicals within the plant and that if any drugs were to be developed from it, they'd likely be genetically engineered and purified - definitely not something you blaze up.
Of course the medicines wouldn't. Anybody who expects the cancer-curing medicine to come in the form of bud is living a high-school kid's fantasy. That isn't exactly the point, though. How many medicines can you make from tobacco or alchol? Or fast food? I don't imagine the number is very high. The point is, if the compounds in it can have these medical benefits then why is the substance that naturally produces it banned as opposed to substances that could never provide such benefits?

Not-to-mention, this little nugget is a good reason to legalize it: https://www.google.com/hostednews/a...ocId=CNG.e740b6d0077ba8c28f6d1dd931c6f679.5e1

 

[acatfrommars]

Unless a person is distributing marijuana to persons under the age of 18, marijuana should not be a crime in no way, shape or form! If a person is convicted of marijuana no matter how much they have, they should definitely not receive jail fine. I'd say $100 for anything under an ounce, $300 fine for anything over. Marijuana is as dangerous as alcohol, less imo. Unless someone is caught under the influence driving then that is an entirely different story. I agree, as long as the user isn't causing problems they should be fine.

With marijuana you can have the cleanest smoke. If used right, marijuana can be consumed healthier than say tobacco or nicotine. Marijuana doesn't contain nearly asm any carcinogens as tobacco or nicotine. If the selling or marijuana was legal, I don't think it would help the debt much. As much as it would be selling, even more people would be buying. The day Colorado allowed marijuana to be publicly dispensedl egally is the day they ran out. I do think the legalization would change the U.S. nation socially though (no not socialism). I think we would form into a more open nation.