A letter to my congressional representative on medical marijuana

[Ice]

Don't you remove the smoke caused carcinogens by making it into butter?

or simmering it in vegtable oil... or vaporizing it... there are many ways

[Philippus Flavius Homovallumus]

You're right. If we can't conclusively, without a doubt prove something doesn't cause schizophrenia, it should be illegal.

Look, I'm not screaming "reefer madness", but this whole "It's safe Guv, honest!" routine winds me up. Currently it's illegal, the jury is out on how dangerous it is, so it's going to stay illegal for the forseeable.

[Ice]

Look, I'm not screaming "reefer madness", but this whole "It's safe Guv, honest!" routine winds me up. Currently it's illegal, the jury is out on how dangerous it is, so it's going to stay illegal for the forseeable.

I disagree. Slowly, but surely, medical marijuana is being legalized in many states here in the US, while many states also are decriminalizing it along with other countries. It's a slow process, but your much hated herb will eventually be legal in my lifetime. I'll smoke an extra large blunt to spite you when the time comes.

[AlexanderSextus]

I disagree. Slowly, but surely, medical marijuana is being legalized in many states here in the US, while many states also are decriminalizing it along with other countries. It's a slow process, but your much hated herb will eventually be legal in my lifetime. I'll smoke an extra large blunt to spite you when the time comes.

SECONDED

[AlexanderSextus]

Quite literally, alcohol is an intoxicant; cannabis is not.

The word intoxicant is derived from the Latin noun, toxicum, meaning: “a poison.” It’s an appropriate description for booze. Alcohol is toxic to healthy cells and organs, a side-effect that results in some 35,000 deaths per year. Ethanol, the psychoactive ingredient in booze, is carcinogenic following its initial metabolization, which is why even moderate drinking is positively associated with increased incidences of various types of cancer. Heavy alcohol consumption can depress the central nervous system — inducing unconsciousness, coma, and death — and is strongly associated with increased risks of injury (Booze plays a role in about 41,000 fatal accidents per year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.) and acts of violence. In fact, according to the federal Bureau of Justice Crime Statistics, alcohol consumption plays a role in approximately one million violent crimes annually.

By contrast, the active compounds in marijuana, known as cannabinoids, are remarkably non-toxic and actually mimic chemicals naturally produced by the body, so-called endocannabinoids, that are vital for maintaining one’s proper health. Unlike alcohol, marijuana is incapable of causing fatal overdose — cannabinoids do not act upon the brain stem — and its use is inversely associated with aggression and injury. Finally, lifetime use of cannabis is not associated with increased risk of mortality or various types of cancer — including lung cancer — and may even reduce such risk.

[Husar]

A lot of those bad symptoms only come into play when:

[...]
B. You smoke weed somewhat regularly, and in a particular session you smoke more than you usually would, or you are smoking higher quality stuff then you are used to.
[...]

I disagree. Slowly, but surely, medical marijuana is being legalized in many states here in the US, while many states also are decriminalizing it along with other countries. It's a slow process, but your much hated herb will eventually be legal in my lifetime. I'll smoke an extra large blunt to spite you when the time comes.

SECONDED

So much about the responsible smokers?

[AlexanderSextus]

So much about the responsible smokers?

you can smoke a crapload of weed and be responsible.

Being Irresponsible would entail something like getting really high and then going for a drive or something of that nature.

And as far as the "bad symptoms" i talked about, some people dont get them at all.

I know I dont. Maybe a little paranoia now and then but it's usually along the line of:

"*hears weird noise* what the is that?!?! oh, its just two cats fighting outside. Weird, that shouldn't have startled me so much. Phew! *puffs blunt*"

And who says Ice is gonna smoke the WHOLE extra large blunt anyway?

[AlexanderSextus]

Has anyone ever thought that maybe the reason pot smokers are paranoid could be that they arrest a marijuana user every 43 seconds??!? (in the US, anyway.)

[Idaho]

Maybe it's different in the US, but here I don't think Pot is really huge business.

Hey, sorry I've only met a dozen or so.

So you have never had any or been involved with the illegal cannabis industry but have met over a dozen dealers? Surely that tells how big and all-pervasive the industry is. How many Avon ladies have you met? That business is worth a fair few million a year.

[Tuuvi]

Marijuana does not have addictive properties. People who spend all their time doing nothing but smoking weed and screw up their life because of it are people with no self control. If it wasn't weed, it would be cigarettes, alcohol, gambling, cocaine, etc.

Marijuana does not have to have addictive properties (like heroine or nicotine) to be mentally addictive. Anything that causes pleasure, whether it's sex, t.v., this forum, computer games, the internet, good food, etc. can be addictive. Sure it depends on the person and some people are more prone to addiction than others, but I think most people have a mild addiction of some sort. Personally I think marijuana is more addictive than other things, because of the amount of pleasure that one gets from being high. My opinions on marijuana have come from observation and personal experience. I had a lot of friends who smoked pot in middle and high school and I thought of trying many times but I never did when I saw what it can do.

OK? So? if you cant overdose on THC then this does not matter. If i have to smoke a whole jont/blunt/bowl to be stuck to my couch then if i had a joint/blunt/bowl of the superweed you are talking about then i would just not smoke as much of it, and save the rest for later.

You're right, it doesn't matter. My argument was that if marijuana does become legal the government will place some sort of restriction on it, which will just create a new black market for higher quality weed. Then we'll be having the same problems all over again.

[Tuuvi]

While I am not a user, I used to believe in the legalization of marijuana, mostly because of the huge number of deaths and corruption that have resulted in banning it. However an officer of the DEA once came and gave a presentation in my U.S government class in high school and he made an interesting point. Marijuana growers are now producing plants with concentrations of THC never seen before. According to the DEA officer, those levels were so high that someone who smoked the plant wouldn't even be able to function. If the government does legalize marijuana, it will most likely place some sort of limit on the levels of THC allowed in the plant. Drug cartels will then resort to selling marijuana that is above the legal limit, so basically the black market for marijuana will never disappear. The only way to completely eradicate the black market for marijuana would be to legalize it without restriction. Because of the nature of U.S politics, this will never happen because no bill will be able to get through congress without some sort of concession/compromise made to anti-marijuana groups.

Personally I believe the massive amounts of murders committed by drug dealers is the ONLY reason for legalizing it. While I agree that the negative side effects of marijuana have been blown out of proportion, I've seen what it does to the people who use it and I hate it. Pot probably won't kill you or make you go crazy, but it will suck your life away and leave you with no freedom.

[Tratorix]

Personally I believe the massive amounts of murders committed by drug dealers is the ONLY reason for legalizing it. While I agree that the negative side effects of marijuana have been blown out of proportion, I've seen what it does to the people who use it and I hate it. Pot probably won't kill you or make you go crazy, but it will suck your life away and leave you with no freedom.

Marijuana does not have addictive properties. People who spend all their time doing nothing but smoking weed and screw up their life because of it are people with no self control. If it wasn't weed, it would be cigarettes, alcohol, gambling, cocaine, etc.

[Samurai Waki]

good on you Divinus, the DA's Office that I've been interning at has been trying to push Legislation for the Decriminalization of Cannabis, the amount of cases we're handed every year to prosecute on minor possession charges is just staggering, and costing the state a god awful amount of money.

[AlexanderSextus]

Marijuana growers are now producing plants with concentrations of THC never seen before.

OK? So? if you cant overdose on THC then this does not matter. If i have to smoke a whole jont/blunt/bowl to be stuck to my couch then if i had a joint/blunt/bowl of the superweed you are talking about then i would just not smoke as much of it, and save the rest for later.

[AlexanderSextus]

Look, I'm not screaming "reefer madness", but this whole "It's safe Guv, honest!" routine winds me up. Currently it's illegal, the jury is out on how dangerous it is, so it's going to stay illegal for the forseeable.

i have stated that it is not harmless, this is hardly any reason to keep it illegal however.