[april15Bendovr]

This might be better though I screwed up the title

[jocon307]

Marinol is cr*p. Marijuanna is a naturally growing thing, something God made. We give people a lot more dangerous drugs than Marijuanna ALL THE TIME.

I support medical marijuanna without question, and the legalization and taxation of marijuanna with some restrictions.

[steplock]

da killer weed!

[Mjaye]

Great article, so true. The only people who don't seem to get this are the users, who often insist it doesn't affect them when they use it in any negative way. Unfortunately, they can't see themselves as others see them.

[Luigi Vasellini]

I was gonna write about this too............but marijuana makes nothing happen!

[tickmeister]

Yeah, MaryJane is bad for the kiddies. So is Mountain Dew, potatoe chips, Marlboro's and vodka. I didn't eat, drink, or smoke any of that stuff when I was young, mostly I still don't, and the result is that I am pretty dang healthy now at 58. I figure old age will get me before any degenerative diseases that I initiate now. So my question is if I want to smoke a joint why is it any of anybodies damn business?

[sphinx]

Other linked side effects include a symptom called amotivational syndrome, in which people become passive, apathetic, unmotivated, hedonistic, unconcerned about the future, unable to make plans and increasingly introverted.

This is a thin wedge to a much broader argument, and I don't have time to pursue it tonight. But I do think the drug culture has direct and significant impacts on character formation and, by extension, life outcomes and political orientations. Every habitual drug user I know, including the dopers who take the "it's only marijuana" line, is a lefty.

Yes, yes, I know: the libertarians are the exceptions to the rule, but as a broad proposition it holds.

[Libloather]

The truth about marijuana. Me

Who are you?

[perfect stranger]

=D

[bahblahbah]

Before we change any of the drug laws, we need to secure our border. The war on terrorism may very well fail just like the war on drugs is currently failing. The problem is at the borders and they aren't secure. I'm for decriminalizing personal use of marijuana. Jail time for dealing or growing marijuana. Give licenses to some farmers to grow the stuff and tax the hell out of it. Make the age of use to be 21. We should make the age of use for tobacco cigarettes to be 20. Cops should fine kids with cigarettes when they're underage.

Just think of the disinformation put out by the Federal Bureau of Narcotics director Harry Anslinger at congress when they were voting on the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, "Marijuana is the most violence causing drug in the history of mankind." "Most marijuana smokers are Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos and entertainers. Their Satanic music, jazz and swing, result from marijuana usage. This marijuana causes white women to seek sexual relations with Negroes." Now do you really believe that marijuana is the most violence causing drug in the history of mankind? The truth is marijuana was banned because you have this huge bureaucracy which has its funding cut because prohibition just ended. You also have lobbyists from the timber industry who don't want to compete with hemp for making paper. Marijuana should have never had been banned as a result of so much disinformation. This was all done contrary to what the American Medical Administration said at the time.

[John Lenin]

THC is highly adictive and has a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde effect on some people. No drugs are safe unless used in moderation.

[SiVisPacemParaBellum]

Possibly a case of "Reefer Madness"?

[GLDNGUN]

Good info. Now get ready for the irrational reasoning of those in favor of legalizing some/all drugs like pot. Their 2 favorite lines are "the WOD is a failure!" and "hey, booze is legal and it's a lot worse than pot!". Now just try and follow the logic: ALCOHOL=BIG PROBLEM & LEGAL, POT=SMALL PROBLEM & ILLEGAL. Did it ever dawn on these people that alcohol is a much bigger problem BECAUSE it IS legal and readily available? Evidently, the reasoning is let's make pot legal so it will be as big of a problem as alcohol. That way it's "fair" and not "hypocritical". What a hoot. Also, if drug problems pale in comparison to alcohol problems, how can it be argued that the WOD is ineffective? They simply can't have it both ways. If drugs are a small problem in America, then the WOD must be working after all. If drugs ARE a big problem, then making them a BIGGER problem through legalization is insanity.

Of course, if I was stoned, I'm sure it would all make perfect sense.

[JmyBryan]

Meaningless blather about a non-problem. Marijuana rarely addicts anyone. Many, though, choose to use it. Worry about parental neglect.

[TKDietz]

"In Oldsmobile car ads, the slogan was: "It's not your father's Oldsmobile." Well, the same can be said for marijuana today. Hazelden reports the amount of THC (the main active chemical) in marijuana has increased 5 times since 1974, with the typical strength today being 15 percent. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration Intelligence Division December Report 2000 states that a form of marijuana called BC Bud (British Columbia), with Canadian growers using sophisticated cultivating techniques, has increased THC levels from 15 percent to 25 percent, compared with 2 percent in 1970."


This is just plain false. I'm posting a link from the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP). It's their "Marijuana Fact Sheet." Please note that under the section titled "Price and Potency" you will find that according to the ONDCP the "average potency of samples of all cannabis types" seized and tested was 5.2% in 2001." The average strength of the strong stuff, the sinsemilla, was 9%.

Maybe there have been a few samples found that were 25% THC, but that certainly is not the norm. According to the ONDCP the average of all of the pot seized including the strong stuff was 5.2% THC, and the strong stuff averaged considerably lower than 25%. If you publish false information like this you're likely to damage your credibility amongst your peers and your patient or prospective patients if they happen to read the newsletter.

[Lunatic Fringe]

The fact is, marijuana is no MORE harmful than alcohol. In some ways, it is LESS harmful than alcohol.

So why is it illegal again?

[GeekDejure]

Oak Hay... I have an admission to make regarding my occasional four to six hour vacations from normal brain functions whenever I am fortunate enough to share the MJ joint supplied by a visiting friend.

The "stoned" effect produced by said joint NEVER subdues my profound dislike... nay, HATRED... for the satanic death cult that masquerades as a "peaceful religion" while its Muzzle-em believers fiendishly decapitate Jews, Christians, other Infidels and Apoatates !!!

In other words... I Slam Islam !!!

[the_unchosen_one]

I am a Right Winger, a Republican, a Conservative, a Musician (believe it or not), and I am also a Pot-Head. Though I can agree with many views on this thread, I do not believe legalization would benefit the the government or the user. The user would be taxed to the nth degree on a substandard product (compared to what we have today) and the government would have so much work to do that the cost of man power would negate a good deal of the revenue. Paper and lumber costs would go down, but there is no way to control intoxication levels. Chances are that most of the revenue created would have to fund a program to control the production and regulations of the drug. The breathalizer test won't (or can't(no research to back that up))detect concentration, and the blood test cannot provide on-the-spot levels needed to regulate DUI offenses. If pot were legal, the crack and heroin junkies would infest our cities like they have in Amsterdam and some places in Canada. Not pretty places either!! Legalization would only mean that I (along with millions of people in America) wouldn't be supporting my local gangsters and we'll be helping them pay for there six kids (tax-free) who are sucking up my tax dollars through welfare and food-stamps.. what to do, what to do?? It was also mentioned earlier to keep it at home. That's what I do. My wife told me to, and she's usually right! She's not a user, she just loves one.

[muir_redwoods]

This helps exlain why George Washington and Queen Victoria were crazy.

OBLIGATORY DISCLAIMER: I don't use drugs of any kind, I don't drink alcohol at all. My stongest recreational chemical is one cup of coffee per day. The above has been true for 30 years following a fairly beer-soaked college career. I don't advocate the use of any drugs including alcohol and believe that we would all be better off sober all the time BUT, I will never understand the need to put people in jail because of their vegetable preferences.

[Moonman62]

Other linked side effects include a symptom called amotivational syndrome, in which people become passive, apathetic, unmotivated, hedonistic, unconcerned about the future, unable to make plans and increasingly introverted.

Incredibly false. I've never seen anyone more motivated than a pothead making plans to obtain and smoke more pot.