Posted on 08/15/2018 9:06:53 AM PDT by fwdude
Yesterday I visited our local bookstore and was struck by the abundance of magazine covers promoting marijuana. Later my wife commented that she’s received two ads this week for cannabis products, something she’s never received before! What’s going on?
In case you haven’t noticed or are simply distracted by the busyness of life, propaganda promoting marijuana and its legalization is bombarding us. Should we be concerned about something that is celebrated as a “harmless recreational” indulgence that progressive people should embrace excitedly?
Recently our state newspaper ran a prominent piece by a young woman calling for weed to be legalized. Coincidentally, she works for a statewide cannabis advocacy group. Reading her arguments and questionable statistics made me wonder if we should begin distributing marijuana freely since she opines it is so harmless and beneficial!
What follows is my pushback to the propaganda. Feel free to “borrow” any and all my counterpoints for op-eds you can submit, exposing the seductive logic.
Let’s Get Serious
“There are three kinds of lies: lies, dxxxxd lies and statistics,” said Mark Twain. He was pointing out the use of statistics to bolster weak or fallacious arguments. The dope supporter whose article appeared in our newspaper, typical of many, deserved a five star Pinocchio award for her misleading stats and misguided presentation.
Recently, I had an in-depth conversation with a police officer formerly on paid leave who has since retired. He was rehabilitating from a serious injury sustained when he confronted a young man about to commit a crime who was stoned on marijuana. He subsequently assaulted the officer, tearing his rotator cuff. He now faces numerous felony offenses plus decades behind bars, in addition to the impounding of his car containing marijuana and drug paraphernalia.
Olympic gold medalist, Michael Phelps, often appears in the news with his lovely wife and two little boys celebrating his success emerging from rehab and his near-death experience. “Not wanting to be alive anymore” at one point, the champion who smoked marijuana, deceived it would not affect his ability to excel, now swears off any drugs as he encourages youth to emulate his example.
Close to where I live, a 33-year-old woman was sentenced to 30 years in prison for her reckless driving which resulted in the death of a teenager helping change his mother’s flat tire. The THP report showed her high on drugs and impaired in her driving ability as she callously fled the scene of the homicide. She’ll now have many decades to ponder her stupidity, recreational drug usage and the devastation it brought her and a grieving family.
With scores of people killed, maimed, or disabled for life from drunk driving, especially by young people, do we really want to compound the problem by adding marijuana to the mix? Teens can think they are invincible and adding a joint can seem innocuous until the tragedy happens, which it does all too frequently.
Contrary to what drug proponents profess, marijuana and other drugs take a toll—eventually, if not immediately. Drugs don’t deliver as advertised. Why do you think they call it “dope?”
Even pot-smoking, poster boy Willie Nelson, battling emphysema and pneumonia four or five times, admits his lungs have gotten “really screwed up.”
In Willie’s own words, “There’s been a lot of talk about marijuana being harmless, but I think it’s a lot more dangerous to the lungs than most dope smokers realize. Especially the strong marijuana that’s around these days. Each year it seems to get a little stronger … your lungs are not really supposed to breath anything but oxygen—pure, fresh air.”
How about the tragic, premature deaths of both Whitney Houston and Amy Winehouse portrayed in recent documentaries? Both got started on the path to their destruction the exact same way, smoking weed, those “harmless” joints.
Research Studies Should Not Be Ignored As Sergeant Joe Friday used to say on the TV program Dragnet, “Just the facts!” so here they are …
The United States Drug Enforcement Agency states: “U.S. drug overdose kills more people than traffic accidents and gun incidents.” The total number cited was 46,471! If we could ask these victims how many started on marijuana or maintained their marijuana usage along with other drugs, I wonder how many would hang their heads in regret wishing they’d never succumbed to the seduction of the Pied Piper’s enticement onto this pernicious path?
My best friend growing up started experimenting with recreational drugs when he started college with me. What started as a fun escape spiraled into his premature death in his mid-20s. I carry an ache in my heart to this day from this experience.
When marijuana proponents glorify drugs and celebrate its “harmless” even “beneficial effect,” they should take heed to the words of an expert, Dr. Ed Gogek, an addiction psychiatrist. He wrote the following in the uber-liberal New York Times: “I’ve spent 25 years as a doctor treating drug abusers and they are con artists…. Marijuana activists are phony scientists. For years they said marijuana is good for glaucoma when it actually worsens it! They said it is not addictive and this is false! They said it doesn’t increase usage among teenagers and all evidence says the opposite…. It is not harmless! Youth do worse in school and have two times the dropout rate while marijuana permanently lowers their IQ.”
Joseph Califano, head of the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse, declares without qualification that “pot smoking adversely affects motor skills and does serious damage to the brain over the long term.” It is a fact that objective studies repeatedly show that regular users find their IQ dropping and all cognitive functions hindered. Finally, a recent study from Northwestern University established clearly that teen “potheads” had brain abnormalities related to poor short-term memory performance. Healthy individuals who did not use marijuana scored 37 times better on average than users—not just addicts—who had smoked pot in the past. The National Institute of Health makes it clear: “One in six youth who try marijuana before age 18 will either abuse it or will become addicted.” Those are dangerous odds, parents. Is this what we want for our children and grandchildren? What’s Happening in Massachusetts? The state of Massachusetts jumped on the bandwagon to legalize marijuana. After a number of months, a study was done to discover the impact on young people. The results are sobering and startling: currently 1/2 of youth ages 18–25 have smoked marijuana in the past month!
In the classic film The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy finally pulled back the curtain and exposed the deceiving mastermind behind the façade. May we do likewise amid celebrities and other pot promoters who glamorize toking up, some under the ruse of the “medical marijuana” argument (which can have some medicinal benefits but it’s not the only alternative).
A little while ago, in the mall where I daily exercise, a middle-aged mother darted from the coffee shop and stammered these words amidst her tears, “They just found my daughter dead!” She proceeded to tell me about her 27-year-old daughter who met a young fellow who influenced her to start smoking dope. Prior to this encounter, “she had never been involved with any drugs” but this was the gateway to her death and her mother’s devastation.
Here’s the deal: Scripture says, “Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools…” (Romans 1:22). People will accuse us of being “fear mongers,” but we must not back down. Let’s winsomely and confidently communicate the truth about this massive deception permeating America today.
And the DU trolls come out of their cover.
Not to pot.
Thankfully the brief cocaine use was limited to the late 70s.
And the ones who advocate prohibition are clearly tied in with the drug cartels that want to make sure legal weed doesn't cut into their business. Simple as that. We can make all the generalizations you want!
You’ve basically added another 5% to 10% more Americans to the addiction list.
I remember meeting a young evangelist named Larry Tomczak in 1975. Is this him?
The silly argument of an anarchist.
"You can't get rid of theft by making it illegal."
"You can't get rid of rape by making it illegal."
"You can't get rid of murder or assault by making it illegal."
Well, can you?
Have no facts, resort to ad hominem attacks. Lol. You go, girl!
Not a common name, so chances are good that it is.
The time frame seems about right.
Accusations of being in business with Mexican drug cartels are not ad hominem? Go buy a brain. A nickel one will do you.
Well if a video is a source of “proof”, which says “cannabis has killed no-one” then there are reams of documents at the NIH National Library of Medicine which would expose that as a huge LIE. Just for starters:
1) smoked cannabis has 100’s of proven carcinogens in the burned/chemically converted vegetables, oils, and cellulosic compounds in the plant. 100’s. Cancer, lung and other organ cancers. No mystery about this, and no filter (just like in tobacco) will filter it out.
2.) UK breakthrough research (genomic) has ID’d gene markers inherited in different human population groups— markers that are shown to be altered. In pre-menopausal females with the inherited susceptibility to the environmental triggers, who smoke pot during and through adolescence into young adulthood (defined age)— statistically have significant development of frank schizophrenia. This from the UK (Scotland) and Tel Aviv University published studies (in TAU— Human Molecular Genetics peer reviewed medical journal). The summary phrase from the investigators: “”In other words, young people with a genetic susceptibility to schizophrenia — those who have psychiatric disorders in their families — should bear in mind that they’re playing with fire if they smoke pot during adolescence.” The genomic analysis of the marker regions has extended this definition to way beyond only those with “psychiatric disorders in their families” — to actual identification of the chromosomal regions which are triggered.
No, schizophrenia doesn’t kill-—maybe.
But the genetic region triggers also are being ID’d for other behaviours and deficits in sensory response, and potential to harm themselves as well as others. Not a small deal at all.
It is not benign. No matter how many in the machinery try to push that it is. This is not “Reefer Madness” crapola. This is peer reviewed clinical data. BTW.... am no fan of tobacco or nicotine addiction. Nicotine is more addictive than heroin. No wonder RJ Reynolds loves selling it.
The unintended consequences... become known, and not for made up reasons.
I can attest from personal experience to the disaster this brings to communities.
My sister was forced to sell her ranch to escape the doper criminals, welfare potheads and lowlife hanger's on, and it cost her about 15% of her net worth.
Increased crime, vandalism and welfare costs far exceed the "whopping" tax revenues local pols and government employees expected and didn't get.
Man, were you right. The stupid burns.
I will not argue or debate with any proponent of any vice that infringes on the rights of non-participants or impairs the users in such a way that they endanger or kill others. Use of such agents is simply wrong first and stupid second.
“”” Freedom means not only the freedom to succeed but also the freedom to fail. And the ability to be fully responsible for the results.“””
Except in this day and age the failures expect us to carry them.
A former drug user you mean. Speaking from the AA perspective.
And really trying not to be judgemental, but... clinical. Supported by clinical data, repeatable data. My profession for 30 years.
Someone will always learn how to do something better or cheaper than the "legal" market. And people will always attempt to circumvent the numerous, but predictable, regulatory laws and costs involved in "staying straight."
No, it's truth. All you are doing is making sure the cartels keep their product flowing. That is ALL you accomplish.
Here in Colorado, MILLIONS have been kept out of the hands of the cartels. New, state of the art police and fire facilities are being built. Rural areas are getting massively upgraded school facilities. City & County governments are providing more and better addiction treatment programs. Opioid use and overdoses are lower. All of this, thanks to legal pot.
But hey, screw all that. You want the cartels to continue to grow and be successful, obviously.
Alcohol is definitely addictive, physically and otherwise. That is the reason for withdrawal symptoms like tremors. Does it rise to the level you brought up before with some substances that are more physically severe, not in any except the most severe cases, but alcohol has metabolic, biochemical, and neurochemical effects on the body. I’ve known people who were alcoholics. Malaise and paranoia were very typical. Overall, alcoholics are not happy people at all, but they can’t stop going back to it
I am for Hemp and CBC but not for smoking pot for recreational use. You can’t get high from hemp but the lumped it into the drug category, same with CBC. CBC oil for pain management is much better than popping freaking tylenol and advil.
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