Questions on Decriminalization/Legalization movement

[BlindBoo]

1. Are there any groups pushing for Decriminalization of Marijuana which EMPHASIZE the need to address drug abuse, addiction, and crime AS A PRIORITY and DON'T DENY or playdown the dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use?

[...]

Please provide some specifics about the "dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use."

Well the first danger to overcome is driving. If your not careful and drive too slow you might be in danger of being rear ended. The biggest danger of course is getting busted. If you don't have enough money a conviction makes you a second class citizen.

Addictions. Twinkies, Big Macs, potato chips,......very dangerous addictions.

 

[emilynghiem]

1) Marijuana is not addictive.

2) You replace the current policy with nothing, let the states and the free market work things out, like they did when alcohol prohibition was ended.

3) You don not address any health issues with more government, which itself is the problem to begin with.

(1) ???

I can't count how many friends I have (or had) who were addicted and/or their personalities deteriorated into paranoid rebellion and rejection. Are you saying this isn't from the marijuana itself but from something else specific? What element with smoking it causes them to become more and more unable to work with?

I notice the change is different from my friends with alcohol denial issues (they tend to be more verbally abusive if not physically).

The change in personality I've seen with pot smoking is more like "political paranoia."
So it could be from having to rationalize their actions while it is illegal that causes it.

(2) govt is still needed to address border and trafficking issues with security.

if so many Greens Libertarians and Democrats disagree with excessive military spending that still neglects the need of returning and retiring veterans for housing, jobs and health care, then let those Parties direct their portion of taxes for military use into developing military bases along the border, creating teaching hospitals, campuses and jobs in education, health care and law enforcement training and correctional programs. this could better serve our Vets and immigrant populations needing access to services.

(3) i agree with you that addressing health care especially the spiritual causes and cure of addiction and abuse is NOT within the jurisdiction of the govt. only where physical or criminal illness is a threat to public health and safety then the state should intervene. Why wait until it gets to that point? the church, nonprofits and schools with ability to manage local communities can better provide earlier intervention to catch and correct the root causes of abuse and addiction BEFORE they become a state issue of crime or safety.

I would really like to see activists with the health care and legalization movements create a level of law for health and safety ordinances that can be voluntarily adapted for each district, where residents vote and agree on their own local policies to enforce. And reward communities and cities for setting up and managing their own health systems locally which prevent or correct these problems at the onset, so they never become state or federal issues. By allowing taxpayers to invest directly into their own solutions they take full social and financial responsibility for, we wouldn't be fighting over insurance mandates or legalization. The conflicts come from trying to mandate one policy to cover all groups, and not everyone agrees to be responsible for the political or religious beliefs of other groups.

We either need to separate these out by party or by state and district, instead of imposing.
If we already know we are not going to agree, then we should accept this and agree to separate jurisdiction so everyone can equally exercise their own beliefs and fund them.

 

[KNB]

The legalization of Cannabis Sativa again will end the international marijuana trade. The US currently spends about $20b/yr on marijuana eradication efforts, with nearly 99% of the "marijuana" destroyed being nothing but wild hemp. At the same time, the US spends another $500m on importing hemp fibers from China.

The war on drugs is a lie. Read the report of the 1972 National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse, otherwise known as the Shafer Commission.

From the report:

We have carefully analyzed the interrelationship between marihuana the drug, marihuana use as a behavior, and marihuana as a social problem. Recognizing the extensive degree of misinformation about marihuana as a drug, we have tried to demythologize it. Viewing the use of marihuana in its wider social context, we have tried to desymbolize it.

Considering the range of social concerns in contemporary America, marihuana does not, in our considered judgment, rank very high. We would deemphasize marihuana as a problem.

The existing social and legal policy is out of proportion to the individual and social harm engendered by the use of the drug. To replace it, we have attempted to design a suitable social policy, which we believe is fair, cautious and attuned to the social realities of our time.
1972 Shafer Commission - Table of Contents

This came two years after the Controlled Substances Act listed "Marihuana" as a dangerous narcotic without medical use, and 30 years after the legalization of "Marihuana" helped America win World War II. Since this national committee advocated the decriminalization of Cannabis Sativa, the US has waged a war on drugs with Marijuana as the number one target.

 

[emilynghiem]

1. Are there any groups pushing for Decriminalization of Marijuana which EMPHASIZE the need to address drug abuse, addiction, and crime AS A PRIORITY and DON'T DENY or playdown the dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use?

[...]

Please provide some specifics about the "dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use."

Study: Fatal Car Crashes Involving Marijuana Have Tripled « CBS Seattle
Here's another article:
http://alcoholism.about.com/od/pot/a/pot_driving.htm

1. I found many references online to the stats my bf also cites that "car crashes from marijuana influence have tripled," and he blames this increase on the "growing propaganda" that encourages use as safe, nonaddictive, or less dangerous than alcohol.

If we can't even get drunk driving to stop while alcohol is legal
how is it going to help to make marijuana legal to add to this problem?

Shouldn't we address addiction and abuse FIRST, get that problem UNDER CONTROL,
BEFORE we legalize anything else?

We've got people dying from prescriptions and alcohol, abusing cough medicine, etc.
So I'm NOT saying this or that type is MORE dangerous,
I'm saying we need to get SERIOUS and UNIFIED about resolving ALL abuse and
addiction issues; and the other issues will take care of themselves.

We won't be clouding up the arguments and clogging up the criminal justice system,
and we'd also solve problems with health care resources if we nip this addiction/abuse
issue in the bud.

2. from my personal experience, my friends with pot and alcohol addictions are the most resistant to getting help. I think the alcohol addiction is worse, but they are both abusive.
I notice that with my friends who decide to quit smoking pot, they become more confident and natural about taking and talking about responsibility for changes in their lives, when before they were rebellious and resistant. They tend to follow the same patterns as other people who go from denial and addiction, to recovery and responsibility for change.

That is just from my own observations.

I do have friends who admit they were addicted to pot. One artist said she decided to quit when she realized the pot impaired her judgment and cost her work. The last straw was when she had spent hours creating a digital image, but she made a simple computer error and destroyed her work that she could not recreate.

Another one was addicted to cigarettes, pot and other things. As he made the commitment to give up each one in succession, he showed more and more effort to take steps to recover his health, and to follow doctor's instructions. So i can't tell which addiction to which thing was worse, they were all affecting his health and mental state.

I just know to address the addictive compulsion, and conflicts from the past these are attached to, and then whatever habits are related get resolved as a result.

Again it's not an issue of saying "this is worse than that" but curing the root conflict causing the addiction and DENIAL in the first place.

so after what I've seen my own friends suffer through
NO, I would not recommend smoking drinking or any substances to ANYONE who has an addiction or abuse issue. there is too much risk of creating an "external dependence" instead of addressing the root cause. So I support taking care of that first, and not argue or punish people for all the symptoms, but not encourage that either as if it doesn't matter.

3. as for cancer and carcinogens
a. When I looked online for studies comparing the carcinogenic effects of smoking pot or tobacco,
I found this study that cited 1 area where pot smoke had "four times the tar" of tobacco smoke,
but in the other areas tobacco caused greater risk and incidence of cancer and other conditions that pot did not:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1277837/

This article clarified that "Depending on what part of the plant is smoked, marijuana can contain more of these harmful ingredients [carcinogens']:
http://www.webmd.com/cancer/news/20051017/pot-smoke-less-carcinogenic-than-tobacco

Smoking EITHER ONE has higher carcinogenic effects than "not smoking at all."
So I would still recommend NOT SMOKING AT ALL to eliminate adding any risk at all of exposure to carcinogens found in both.
I think that is pretty obvious; and anyone who is fixated on trying to compare one to another
and NOT comparing "not smoking at all" is leaving that out for some other purpose besides maximum concern for health.

b. I believe that the effects to fight cancer using extracts do not require smoking it
and I read that some of the altered forms are even more potent as medicine.
I believe there is more good that can be derived from it, but not by smoking.

ADDED: article I found on medical studies of "reducing tumors" by cannabis oil
http://www.collective-evolution.com...-studies-that-prove-cannabis-can-cure-cancer/

NOTE 1: this does not mention curing the cause, as with spiritual healing that
addresses root conflicts in the mind and spirit that if left unresolved, suppressed and unforgiven
block natural healing which affects the mind, body, spirit and also relations with others in society
(so spiritual healing therapy removes the unnatural blocks and restores natural self-healing of the mind and body, including the ability to cure cancer, diabetes, RA, schizophrenia, and other diseases.).
cannabis does not cure these levels, but only reduces tumors (or in cases of other conditions, the positive effects still depend on continuing medication, where it doesn't cure the cause)
spiritual healing, when it works, addresses the root cause so the person is not necessarily dependent on drugs to placate or reduce symptoms if these disappear altogether.
that is why i would recommend trying that first, and always include it in addition to any other treatment, but not leave it out.

NOTE 2: spiritual healing cures a wider range of issues, including addiction, abuse and criminal illness
cannabis does not cure addictions or criminal issues; only one person on here cited a case where someone
who already made the decision to detox used cannabis to reduce her withdrawal as the patient recovered.
however, again, compared with spiritual healing, I also heard of cases where this process got someone off heroin, within 3 days, with no withdrawal symptoms at all.
So I would still say spiritual healing is more natural and comprehensive in its applications, compared with cannabis, which I would still promote the use
of in cases where spiritual healing or other natural treatments do not work to get rid of the cancer or cause of disease at the root.

c. I believe that spiritual healing is more natural without risk of harm or side effects;
and it can cure addiction, abuse and more diseases than than cannabis which is limited in scope.

from the meeting I went to, the mothers' activist movement was pushing for more uses of cannabis than just the very limited cases currently introduced (they cited studies that autistic children were responding to it, and studies on the reduction of cancer tumors). I would have less problem if the research was equally open to studying all sources of natural cures, especially spiritual healing which can permanently cure ROOT CAUSES of conditions internally that medications only placate externally. so if we are going to get rid of the internal CAUSES of addictions (and the build up of cancer cells because the body is blocked from naturally healing or shedding these), the process and methods used in various forms of spiritual healing are a more effective focus with greater impact. It is an added bonus that these same methods then also reduce or eliminate symptoms of a wide range of other diseases, once a person's natural ability to self-heal is restored. Many other physical and mental conditions can be overcome once this healing ability is boosted (by removing the unnatural blocks to healing in the mind-body connection).

so regardless if this or that causes cancer or reduces tumors, etc.
I am concerned that only focusing on that deflects from natural methods of eliminating the root CAUSE of cancer (and other diseases), not just placating symptoms with external medications after the fact.

 

[Pogo]

Emily: your link notes correlation -- not causation. Important distinction.

>> "This study shows an alarming increase in driving under the influence of drugs, and, in particular, it shows an increase in driving under the influence of both alcohol and drugs,&#8221; Jan Withers, national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, added. <<

Again, when you have an incident and find that A, B and C are present, it doesn't mean they all caused it. What you have is an observation that (apparently) an increase in stoned driving. What you don't have is a causal relationship.

There are studies too numerous to list proving impaired judgement and reaction times as a result of alcohol ingestion. I don't believe there is such research showing the same effect from cannabis. Correlation is not causation.

I'd add that a study of how many accidents occur as a result of road rage, which is not a substance at all but may be just as deadly, might be illuminating. And then it might be worth pondering the effect of cannabis on that and calculate how many accidents did not happen because of the calming effects of cannabis.

It's not a simple matter of piling on to the alcohol model. Alcohol's effects are quantifiable. Cannabis.... not so much. You're trying to jam apples and oranges into the same box.

On the other points, once again it's been repeatedly established that there is no such thing as "addiction" to cannabis. Anything can be a habit, but habit is not addiction, and you lose credibility hawking known fallacies. I believe IIRC you'll also run into a dead end on the carcinogen front as well, though I don't have time to find a link right now.

 

[emilynghiem]

Here's another article:
http://alcoholism.about.com/od/pot/a/pot_driving.htm

First of all, my focus IS addressing the addiction issue.

I believe anyone could play with stats all day, or leave this out, or fail to distinguish factors that were thrown together, or as you say mix causation with correlation etc.

This does NOTHING to solve the addiction issue, as you say.
and that is my point also.

As with this thread, it DETRACTS attention and resources AWAY from
solving the problem of addiction, by just arguing "after the fact."

if we can't even address the addiction issue when alcohol is legal
we don't need to be adding more problems by making MORE substances legal.

I guess I AGREE that the problem is with addiction period.

But where we disagree is how to decriminalize pot
WITHOUT promoting or enabling irresponsible use.

Someone else posted on here that people HAVE BEEN KILLED from crashes caused under the influence of marijuana. Arguing about the stats and studies is not going to solve the addiction and abuse issue.

I believe in focusing those research studies and resources
on SPIRITUAL HEALING to address addiction and abuse.

That will not only prove the impact on curing cancer and other physical and mental sickness
(by addressing the root cause not manipulating symptoms); but will specifically address BOTH alcohol, smoking and other addictions and abuse; AND provide avenues for the truly criminal gangs, organizations, and cults to end their violence and warfare (as former gang members and criminals can attest to spiritual healing as changing their lives where they commit to helping society instead of continuing on their self-destructive patterns).

No research or stats "comparing or correlating alcohol, marijuana or a mix of drugs" is going to do a damn thing to address the cures for addiction, abuse, or criminal behavior.

i think I should delete that and not even go there. I was trying to be helpful but it
seems to give the wrong impression when my priority and focus is on curing addiction
so we don't have any of these risks in the first place. The more we even bring up these arguments that go nowhere it just distracts from the solutions. Sorry that wasn't clear.

Emily: your link notes correlation -- not causation. Important distinction.

>> "This study shows an alarming increase in driving under the influence of drugs, and, in particular, it shows an increase in driving under the influence of both alcohol and drugs,&#8221; Jan Withers, national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, added. <<

Again, when you have an incident and find that A, B and C are present, it doesn't mean they all caused it. What you have is an observation that (apparently) an increase in stoned driving. What you don't have is a causal relationship.

There are studies too numerous to list proving impaired judgement and reaction times as a result of alcohol ingestion. I don't believe there is such research showing the same effect from cannabis. Correlation is not causation.

I'd add that a study of how many accidents occur as a result of road rage, which is not a substance at all but may be just as deadly, might be illuminating. And then it might be worth pondering the effect of cannabis on that and calculate how many accidents did not happen because of the calming effects of cannabis.

It's not a simple matter of piling on to the alcohol model. Alcohol's effects are quantifiable. Cannabis.... not so much. You're trying to jam apples and oranges into the same box.

On the other points, once again it's been repeatedly established that there is no such thing as "addiction" to cannabis. Anything can be a habit, but habit is not addiction, and you lose credibility hawking known fallacies. I believe IIRC you'll also run into a dead end on the carcinogen front as well, though I don't have time to find a link right now.

That's why I don't depend on that as an argument.

I am more concerned with research on how the process of natural spiritual healing can cure the CAUSE of cancer at the root, not whether X Y or Z causes greater risk of it.

 

[emilynghiem]

I'd add that a study of how many accidents occur as a result of road rage, which is not a substance at all but may be just as deadly, might be illuminating. And then it might be worth pondering the effect of cannabis on that and calculate how many accidents did not happen because of the calming effects of cannabis.

P.S. here, this is another reason I would focus on spiritual healing and specifically the impact of FORGIVENESS on resolving conflicts to prevent crime, abuse and violence.

true FORGIVENESS does NOT RELY on smoking pot or drinking alcohol or taking any other prescription meds to "alter someone's mood"

All this is external dependence instead of addressing the root cause of violent or abusive behavior.

I believe THAT is why so many people are against legalization of drugs, because of this attitude.

I guess I should propose a study, to find out how many people, after undergoing complete spiritual healing and forgiveness, do or do not use, encourage, promote or rely on drugs or prescription medicine to alter their moods, in addition to people who no longer need medications for other diseases either (such as the man who no longer needed any pain medications after he was completely cured of RA by spiritual healing, and could walk normally again, without any pain or symptoms that were completely gone).

Maybe I have a bias because I have knowledge, understanding and experience with spiritual healing. And all the people I know with more knowledge and experience helping other people to heal naturally do not support or encourage any kind of drug use. So maybe I am just used to the idea that once people receive full healing, this is not even an issue. There is no longer any desire or need to use any kind of "recreational drug."

 

[Pogo]

First of all, my focus IS addressing the addiction issue.

I believe anyone could play with stats all day, or leave this out, or fail to distinguish factors that were thrown together, or as you say mix causation with correlation etc.

This does NOTHING to solve the addiction issue, as you say.
and that is my point also.

As with this thread, it DETRACTS attention and resources AWAY from
solving the problem of addiction, by just arguing "after the fact."

if we can't even address the addiction issue when alcohol is legal
we don't need to be adding more problems by making MORE substances legal.

I guess I AGREE that the problem is with addiction period.

But where we disagree is how to decriminalize pot
WITHOUT promoting or enabling irresponsible use.

Someone else posted on here that people HAVE BEEN KILLED from crashes caused under the influence of marijuana. Arguing about the stats and studies is not going to solve the addiction and abuse issue.

I believe in focusing those research studies and resources
on SPIRITUAL HEALING to address addiction and abuse.

That will not only prove the impact on curing cancer and other physical and mental sickness
(by addressing the root cause not manipulating symptoms); but will specifically address BOTH alcohol, smoking and other addictions and abuse; AND provide avenues for the truly criminal gangs, organizations, and cults to end their violence and warfare (as former gang members and criminals can attest to spiritual healing as changing their lives where they commit to helping society instead of continuing on their self-destructive patterns).

No research or stats "comparing or correlating alcohol, marijuana or a mix of drugs" is going to do a damn thing to address the cures for addiction, abuse, or criminal behavior.

i think I should delete that and not even go there. I was trying to be helpful but it
seems to give the wrong impression when my priority and focus is on curing addiction
so we don't have any of these risks in the first place. The more we even bring up these arguments that go nowhere it just distracts from the solutions. Sorry that wasn't clear.

Emily: your link notes correlation -- not causation. Important distinction.

>> "This study shows an alarming increase in driving under the influence of drugs, and, in particular, it shows an increase in driving under the influence of both alcohol and drugs,&#8221; Jan Withers, national president of Mothers Against Drunk Driving, added. <<

Again, when you have an incident and find that A, B and C are present, it doesn't mean they all caused it. What you have is an observation that (apparently) an increase in stoned driving. What you don't have is a causal relationship.

There are studies too numerous to list proving impaired judgement and reaction times as a result of alcohol ingestion. I don't believe there is such research showing the same effect from cannabis. Correlation is not causation.

I'd add that a study of how many accidents occur as a result of road rage, which is not a substance at all but may be just as deadly, might be illuminating. And then it might be worth pondering the effect of cannabis on that and calculate how many accidents did not happen because of the calming effects of cannabis.

It's not a simple matter of piling on to the alcohol model. Alcohol's effects are quantifiable. Cannabis.... not so much. You're trying to jam apples and oranges into the same box.

On the other points, once again it's been repeatedly established that there is no such thing as "addiction" to cannabis. Anything can be a habit, but habit is not addiction, and you lose credibility hawking known fallacies. I believe IIRC you'll also run into a dead end on the carcinogen front as well, though I don't have time to find a link right now.

That's why I don't depend on that as an argument.

I am more concerned with research on how the process of natural spiritual healing can cure the CAUSE of cancer at the root, not whether X Y or Z causes greater risk of it.

OK this is confusing. Are you saying your thrust is addiction to substances that actually are addictive? If so, the presence of cannabis in the discussion is irrelevant and misleading.

Someone else posted on here that people HAVE BEEN KILLED from crashes caused under the influence of marijuana.

-- and their evidence of causation is where?

Talk is cheap. "Reefer Madness" was cheap. Neither have a basis in fact. One of the posters here also advocates that pot smokers should be shot in the face; that doesn't make it either reasonable or right.

Anyone can make an empty claim, including the old myth that cannabis is addictive. Without a basis in reality it's not a legitimate argument.

 

[Katzndogz]

The world is ramping up for WWIII but this is what you guys are worried about..... Lord protect us from fools like these.

With a drug addicted United States WWIII would be real short. I have no objection to finding out how the Russians or Chinese would deal with our druggies.

 

[Pogo]

The world is ramping up for WWIII but this is what you guys are worried about..... Lord protect us from fools like these.

With a drug addicted United States WWIII would be real short. I have no objection to finding out how the Russians or Chinese would deal with our druggies.

Right, because there are no drugs in Russia or China.

SMH....

 

[Harry Dresden]

1. Are there any groups pushing for Decriminalization of Marijuana which EMPHASIZE the need to address drug abuse, addiction, and crime AS A PRIORITY and DON'T DENY or playdown the dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use?

[...]

Please provide some specifics about the "dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use."

Pot can be Mentally addicting.....this is from Psychology Today:

between 10 to 30% of regular users will develop dependency. Only about 9% will have a serious addiction....Mental not Physical......

The large majority of people who try marijuana do it experimentally and never become addicted. Unlike other substances, pot has very few severe withdrawal symptoms and most people can quit rather easily. When present, withdrawal symptoms might include: anxiety, depression, nausea, sleep disturbances and GI problems.

Compared to other substances, marijuana is not very addicting. It is estimated that 32% of tobacco users will become addicted, 23% of heroin users, 17% of cocaine users, and 15% of alcohol users. Cocaine and heroin are more physically harmful and nicotine is much more addictive. It is much harder to quit smoking cigarettes than it is to quit smoking pot.

 

[bluesman]

1. Are there any groups pushing for Decriminalization of Marijuana which EMPHASIZE the need to address drug abuse, addiction, and crime AS A PRIORITY
and DON'T DENY or playdown the dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use?

I agree with decriminalization but have been continually disappointed
in not finding groups willing to push solid plans to replace it with.

I see plenty of people making arguments AGAINST the problems,
but I wanted to collaborate on SOLUTIONS.

Getting rid of the problem is the solution in itself. Prohibition didn't work with alcohol and we see some of the same results. One is organized crime. If we end the drug war then we will be de-funding the cartels.

The drug wars are a scam. They are supported by the prison lobby but the USA, a country which supposedly stands for liberty, has one fifth of the world's prison population.

 

[MikeK]

[...]

I disagree with the basic simplicity and 'evil' in such a view of the 'war on drugs' but that does not mean that such is without merit. The facts are that minorities are FAR more likely to be caught and jailed for drug crimes. I do not think that this is racial as much as socioeconomic and cultural though. I believe this because the problem is almost universal and while there are some racial problems the legal system is facing I have a hard time swallowing the idea that the entire system is racist thought.

[...]

I believe you're right.

All one need do to confirm what you've said is drive past any "hot" street corner, i.e., the street corners in any city where drugs are sold. Having lived in New York City for most of my life I have never seen a White dealing drugs on a corner (or anywhere else). And as you've pointed out, the reason for this is for the most part socio-economic. The vast majority of young Blacks vulnerable to arrest for dealing drugs on street corners are doing that for survival, not as a matter of casual choice.

 

[Harry Dresden]

The world is ramping up for WWIII but this is what you guys are worried about..... Lord protect us from fools like these.

so no one is allowed to talk about anything else?...am i allowed to watch some of the Basketball games or do i have to be glued to the news channels?.....geezus dude relax....

 

[Pogo]

1. Are there any groups pushing for Decriminalization of Marijuana which EMPHASIZE the need to address drug abuse, addiction, and crime AS A PRIORITY and DON'T DENY or playdown the dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use?

[...]

Please provide some specifics about the "dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use."

Pot can be Mentally addicting.....this is from Psychology Today:

between 10 to 30% of regular users will develop dependency. Only about 9% will have a serious addiction....Mental not Physical......

The large majority of people who try marijuana do it experimentally and never become addicted. Unlike other substances, pot has very few severe withdrawal symptoms and most people can quit rather easily. When present, withdrawal symptoms might include: anxiety, depression, nausea, sleep disturbances and GI problems.

Compared to other substances, marijuana is not very addicting. It is estimated that 32% of tobacco users will become addicted, 23% of heroin users, 17% of cocaine users, and 15% of alcohol users. Cocaine and heroin are more physically harmful and nicotine is much more addictive. It is much harder to quit smoking cigarettes than it is to quit smoking pot.

"Very few" means "none" and "not very" means "not". Having no withdrawal symptoms (euphemized as "very few") kinda seals the deal. Stop trying to stretch, Harry.

And we have a word for "mental addiction": habit. Anything can be a habit; coffee in the morning, taking a certain route to a destination, watching football, posting on this board. That doesn't make any of them "addictions".

Feel free to post any evidence at all of cannabis inducing nausea, "GI problems" and the like. Talk is cheap.

 

[Harry Dresden]

Please dont engage Katz on this subject. She literally makes it up as she goes and overstates for seemingly no reason

CC we have our disagreements....but i am with you on this....when it comes to Pot...Katz is fairly uninformed....she has said things in threads that just about every person in the thread is saying ....what the fuck are you talking about?....

 

[Pogo]

[...]

I disagree with the basic simplicity and 'evil' in such a view of the 'war on drugs' but that does not mean that such is without merit. The facts are that minorities are FAR more likely to be caught and jailed for drug crimes. I do not think that this is racial as much as socioeconomic and cultural though. I believe this because the problem is almost universal and while there are some racial problems the legal system is facing I have a hard time swallowing the idea that the entire system is racist thought.

[...]

I believe you're right.

All one need do to confirm what you've said is drive past any "hot" street corner, i.e., the street corners in any city where drugs are sold. Having lived in New York City for most of my life I have never seen a White dealing drugs on a corner (or anywhere else). And as you've pointed out, the reason for this is for the most part socio-economic. The vast majority of young Blacks vulnerable to arrest for dealing drugs on street corners are doing that for survival, not as a matter of casual choice.

It occurs to me the locale of "street corner" and who inhabits it, says a lot about lifestyles, options of living conditions, and ultimately, economic class. The point of the original comment seems to have been racial, which is why I took issue with it.

 

[Harry Dresden]

Please provide some specifics about the "dangers and addictions associated with marijuana use."

Pot can be Mentally addicting.....this is from Psychology Today:

between 10 to 30% of regular users will develop dependency. Only about 9% will have a serious addiction....Mental not Physical......

The large majority of people who try marijuana do it experimentally and never become addicted. Unlike other substances, pot has very few severe withdrawal symptoms and most people can quit rather easily. When present, withdrawal symptoms might include: anxiety, depression, nausea, sleep disturbances and GI problems.

Compared to other substances, marijuana is not very addicting. It is estimated that 32% of tobacco users will become addicted, 23% of heroin users, 17% of cocaine users, and 15% of alcohol users. Cocaine and heroin are more physically harmful and nicotine is much more addictive. It is much harder to quit smoking cigarettes than it is to quit smoking pot.

"Very few" means "none" and "not very" means "not". Having no withdrawal symptoms (euphemized as "very few") kinda seals the deal. Stop trying to stretch, Harry.

And we have a word for "mental addiction": habit. Anything can be a habit; coffee in the morning, taking a certain route to a destination, watching football, posting on this board. That doesn't make any of them "addictions".

Feel free to post any evidence at all of cannabis inducing nausea, "GI problems" and the like. Talk is cheap.

Pogo....its from Psychology today.....i know you think im brilliant,but i did not write the article....and a "habit" is mental....is it not?....

 

[Pogo]

Pot can be Mentally addicting.....this is from Psychology Today:

between 10 to 30% of regular users will develop dependency. Only about 9% will have a serious addiction....Mental not Physical......

The large majority of people who try marijuana do it experimentally and never become addicted. Unlike other substances, pot has very few severe withdrawal symptoms and most people can quit rather easily. When present, withdrawal symptoms might include: anxiety, depression, nausea, sleep disturbances and GI problems.

Compared to other substances, marijuana is not very addicting. It is estimated that 32% of tobacco users will become addicted, 23% of heroin users, 17% of cocaine users, and 15% of alcohol users. Cocaine and heroin are more physically harmful and nicotine is much more addictive. It is much harder to quit smoking cigarettes than it is to quit smoking pot.

"Very few" means "none" and "not very" means "not". Having no withdrawal symptoms (euphemized as "very few") kinda seals the deal. Stop trying to stretch, Harry.

And we have a word for "mental addiction": habit. Anything can be a habit; coffee in the morning, taking a certain route to a destination, watching football, posting on this board. That doesn't make any of them "addictions".

Feel free to post any evidence at all of cannabis inducing nausea, "GI problems" and the like. Talk is cheap.

Pogo....its from Psychology today.....i know you think im brilliant,but i did not write the article....and a "habit" is mental....is it not?....

Well why did you post it then? Without a link I might add... of course a habit is mental. That's my point; addiction is physical. You're trying to fit an addiction peg into a habit hole. It won't work.

And yes, I know you're brilliant. That's why I wanted to put you back on track here.

 

[KevinWestern]

The thing is potheads are too drug addled to understand what principles are.

The best thing to happen to them is an accident in the back of a patrol car.

"The thing is alcoholics are too drug addled to understand what principles are".

You see how this is a pointless and vague generalization?