The Good, The Bad & The Ugly About Marijuana

Time Magazine ^ | Nov. 4, 2002 issue | Time Magazine

[A2J]

Thought this might be of interest to any interested, especially to the pro-legalize group.

Click on the below site for complete articles.

http://www.time.com/time/covers/1101021104/

[A2J]

According to the article, the positive use of marijuana:

1. Increases the sense of euphoria. May help minimize pain of migraine headaches and the spread of cancer.

2. Reduces intraocular pressure; helping those afflicted with glaucoma.

3. Believed to help calm spasms from spinal-chord injury, MS and possible epilepsy.

4. Helps restore appetite in people who have lost weight from cancer or AIDS.

5. Combats nausea from chemotherapy and helps minimize vomiting.

The negative use of marijuana:

1. Causes change in brain activity. Marijuana hinders the neurotransmitter acetylcholine, a chemical that triggers various types of signals throughout the nervous system.

2. Leads to difficulty and concentration, attention to detail and learning new, complex information. Also impairs time perception as well as certain aspects of memory - at least in the short term.

3. Increases the work of the heart. The changes in heart rate and blood pressure are the same as those found in a person under high stress.

4. Is more irritating to lungs (50% more tar than tobacco) and has a greater effect on the upper airways (sinuses and larynx) than tobacco. May cause lung, head and neck cancer.

5. Decreases blood flow to the limbs, which in extreme cases may require amputation.

6. May reduce the number and quality of sperm and damage their mobility, possibly affecting fertility.

[Free the USA]

http://www.freerepublic.com/perl/bump-list

[rb22982]

Amazingly, all of those negatives except #4 are acceptable with alcohol. #5 must be REALLY extreme cases, maybe 1 such case a year. No one ever said marijuana was harmless but compared to alcohol and nicotine it causes far less problems

[bigfootbob]

Negative respones: 3, 4, 5, & 6 are pure propaganda, anti-pot people always wander off the truth trail.

[Paradox]

I think people who smoke MJ are stupid. Then again, I feel the same way about people who use tobacco products and spirits....

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Negative respones: 3, 4, 5, & 6 are pure propaganda, anti-pot people always wander off the truth trail.

Except to morons like Kevin Curry.

[Atlas Sneezed]

1. Causes change in brain activity. (As do tobacco and alcohol.)

2. Leads to difficulty and concentration. (As do other legal substances that are consumed for the purpose of relaxation.)

3. Increases the work of the heart. (Just like exercise.)

4. Is more irritating to lungs (50% more tar than tobacco) and has a greater effect on the upper airways than tobacco. (Fortunately, the typical marijuana smoker smokes a few joints per week, and not hundreds of cigarettes.)

5. Decreases blood flow to the limbs, which in extreme cases may require amputation. (Now you even have the elementary school kids laughing at your propaganda.)

6. May reduce the number and quality of sperm and damage their mobility, possibly affecting fertility. (Just like Jockey shorts. And I thought that reducing unwanted pregancies might be a side benefit.)

Also, note the use of the word "may" above to indicate that there is no conclusive medical evidence.

Finally, consider that in a free state, people have the option to consume things that proovide benefits and have disadvantages. If any of these claims are medically supportable, then they are good fodder for a Surgeon General's warning

I don't smoke it, and wouldn't if it is legal, but will vote to make it legal. Now, the police-state drug-thugs may chime in about how my views are caused by a drug-addled brain, since they never have the points to actually address why marijuana should be prohibited and its users imprisoned.

[Lysander]

Let’s not forget about our women y’all! It makes them want our women. And is destructive to our heritage too. These pot smokers say we came decedent from monkeys! I don’t know ‘bout y’all but I didn’t come from no monkey.

[fporretto]

It's little surprise that cannabis has anesthetic and anti-nausea effects; that's been common knowledge for a while. Some of the other bits are eye-openers, such as the part about amputation. Gahh! If true, of course.

It doesn't really matter one way or another to the legality of the drug. Equally dangerous substances are widely and legally available; nor has the law done anything to reduce the availability of cannabis intoxicants.

I'd rather no one used any drug for recreational purposes, except perhaps in incontestably mild forms such as a glass of wine. But I'd also rather be six feet four, have rock-hard abs and a full head of hair, and that my wife looked like Kathy Ireland. Wishing is no route toward anything. Others will always have their own time preference ratios and demand curves, as we like to say in economics.

Perhaps, given recent developments, the time is drawing near when we can have an inclusive and temperate discussion of how to back away from the destructive aspects of the Drug War. In my opinion, that's just about all of it, but I'm still willing to listen to rational arguments to the contrary.

Freedom, Wealth, and Peace,
Francis W. Porretto
Visit The Palace Of Reason: http://palaceofreason.com

[Wolfie]

I think the amputation bug-a-boo is supposed to replace the big lie about men growing breasts. Too hard to find guys sporting big ol' C cups, so now we'll have to be on the look out for smokers with the nickname "Lefty".

[RobRoy]

In high school I did a report on the evils of Marijuana. The results of my research led me to begin using the drug in December of '72. The last time I ever used the drug was in '77. I can't remember the date. I only bought one lid and the cops found it (I got a $150 fine for posession of a controlled substance).

People who use marijuana are either:
1. stupid
2. young (actually a subset of stupid)
3. both

Last, I STRONGLY BELIEVE that marijuana should be legalized with the same restrictions as alcohol.

[Destructor]

"The Good, The Bad & The Ugly About Marijuana"

Let's see...that would be Wolfie, Hemingway's Ghost, and Heads On Pikes about Marijuana.

[Monty22]

Basically this study says what we already know.. Pot users are lazy, stupid, and worthless leeches to society. Why don't we just kill them, I say.. Get rid of laws regarding it, but allow people found with pot to be legally executed by citizens.

That way it'll all sort itself out.

[webstersII]

3. Increases the work of the heart. (Just like exercise.)

Wrong. Stimulants are not beneficial to the heart like exercise is.

[Atlas Sneezed]

"3. Increases the work of the heart. (Just like exercise.)"
"Wrong. Stimulants are not beneficial to the heart like exercise is."

Oops! I should have said:
3. Increases the work of the heart. (Just like coffee.)

[Jabba the Nutt]

There are zero known deaths due to marijuana consumption during 30 centuries of known human consumption. Marijuana is the safest drug known to mankind. Of course, this is irrelevant to the argument over the re-legalization of marijuana. The federal government has zero authority for drug prohibition.

[caisson71]

Of course. And ALL of the positives are TRUE? Looks like #2 has been proven without doubt.

[A2J]

Negative respones: 3, 4, 5, & 6 are pure propaganda, anti-pot people always wander off the truth trail.

And you base your findings on what? Personal experiences or scientific studies?

I think you'll find the article leans toward the legalization of pot.

[A2J]

I think people who smoke MJ are stupid. Then again, I feel the same way about people who use tobacco products and spirits....

Agreed.

[Phantom Lord]

Actually, nicotine has little to no negative health effects. Its the tobacco smoke and the chemicals and agents contained therein that are harmful, not the nicotine.