should weed be legalized?

[Psycho]

why is it ilegal? cigar and drinks are much more dangerous to your life and they are legal, but weed, weed is natural, doesn't hurt the enviorment, is cheap to produce, is safe (well sorta) to health, etc... what do you think?

[Shadow Raki]

I think it should because it less lethal than tobacco. But the only reason tobacco is big in America is because tobacco built this nation. Tobacco also controls the government.

[Psycho]

yeah man, if the good weed was produced in the U.S. it would be legal

[sj2k]

Honestly, weed is not hard to get now. What happens is people hoard it, its price soars, and the government gets no taxes. People can't be informed of how to use it safely, since there not supposed to use it at all. Quality can't be checked by the FDA, and age limits cannot be set. If it were to be legalized, we could fix many of these problems. Alchohol is also more dangerouse, as are IMO tobbaco products. Also, its like prohabition in the 20's, just because its banned doesn't mean people won't use it. The government should legalize, legitimize trade WHILE cutting drug dealers off from a very profitable product, and insure quality.

[Psycho]

well, the S.D. 50 of weed is over 100 times bigger then tobbaco's

[deadfishy00]

legalized weed = taxing = more money going to the country

[Psycho]

basicly, yeah, and it's not harm-full to the enviorment like cigerets or cigars

[Uncle Lunchwagon]

Does it need to be legalized? It's not like people don't smoke it.

[Kush P]

Yeah it needs to be legalized..I dont want cops harassing me while I smoke my blunt in peace, whether it be on my house, my yard, street, car or parks..I think weed should be legalized but the government are just scared and ashamed that they might get a bad rep like all their citizens are pot-heads...Plus medicine corporations would lose billions cuz of marijuana can be substituted for their products..

[gaaras_lover]

No, weed should not be legalized.
You can't trust people with something like weed.

[2D]

No. its stupid.

[Jones]

the only reason weed, prostitution, and the other drugs are illegal is because the government can't put a tax on them. if the government were to stop caring what relgious people and soccer moms cared about and took over the markets for weed and prostitution we'd be a very rich country. government weed and legal hookers, no problems with me. if what tobi said was correct and weed is cheap to produce it wouldn't take that much to sell it and then everybody would buy it, making everyone, including the government, happy.

[Psycho]

No, weed should not be legalized.
You can't trust people with something like weed.

why not? it's not like it diminuishes senses like alcohol or alterates reaction time like LSD, like i said the L.D. 50 of weed is extreamly high, you need to smoke (thinking that the normal blunt is 0,9 grams) over 10.000 weed cigerrets in less then 15 minutes to have an minor O.D.

[sj2k]

No, weed should not be legalized.
You can't trust people with something like weed.

You know, you could be right. However, a high person is certainly able to think clearer and have better reaction time than a drunk person. If we outlaw weed for that reason, we MUST outlaw alcohol. and while theoretically I don't have a problem with that, we all know it would never work (see 1920's). So, if we have a drug which is MORE dangerouse than weed legal, why isn't weed legal? We need to stop listening to the conservative right (hell, a real republican, who cares about the economy, and not the bible, would realize it would create a huge profit for the government, of course, bush isn't a real republican) and start listening (not neccecarily to the liberal dem's, though there better than the right), but rather to common sense, logic, and reasoning. Plus, as someone said, I want to smoke my blunt in peace :P

[Psycho]

i don't smoke weed, but i know people who smoke, one of them once got his arm fractured when a police officer hit him after seing him smoking a joint, all you people that have drinks at home and say something like "you can't trust people with drugs" are hypocrits, NAME 1 PERSON WHO DIED OF WEED OVER DOSE!!!

1 JUST 1

i can name 1 who died of acoholic coma, actually 2, actually 3, weed is 100 times safer then alcohol, but yet it is ilegal

[DragonBlade]

wutever we do people are still gonna do it...so it doesnt really matter

[nedaime mizukage]

I think that it should be legal.

-Safer than people think. It's safer than drinking or smoking.

-can't die of overdose.

-tax it and the country becomes rich.

-People are going to smoke it anyways

-Good medical useages

-The cops will stop harrasing me for having weed. :P

[hcheng02]

I think that weed should be legalized, but only on a very limited basis. Marijuana should be legal only for medical and research purposes, and not for recreational use. The problem with the debate right now is that people think that legalization means that weed should be sold like cigarettes, in brownie mixes, and over the counter cold medicine. I disagree with that. Research has shown that prolonged marijuana use does induce brain damage as well as a variety of other health problems.

However, that doesn't mean that we should ban it altogether. The main active chemical in weed is THC, which has been shown to help induce hunger and relieve pain without significant side effects in people like chemotherapy patients. As person who gone through chemotherapy, I can tell you that loss of taste and hunger are very common side effects. If marijuana is the most effective treatment, then patients should have access to it. It should have the same status as other medicinal drugs like morphine. Morphine is a very addictive drug and 100 years ago people used it to get high on it all the time. However, the government didn't outright ban it, because it is a very effective pain reliever in surgery and whatnot. Now you can't just buy morphine over the counter but only with a proper prescription. People should not ban a drug because of potential of abuse, because prescription drugs can be abused too.

There is a good middle ground on the legalization issue.

[Louchan]

No. its stupid.

Best answer in this thread.

[Sir Whirly]

Does a bear shit in the woods?

[Demon Lord]

No, it wouldnt be as fun doing it if it were legal

[Shonin]

Smoke Weed every day!. IMO, no. What's the difference between weed and a regular cigarette anyway? A different taste? We don't need more people smoking cancer sticks, IMO.

[wiggely]

the only reason weed, prostitution, and the other drugs are illegal is because the government can't put a tax on them
this isn't true at all. as evident that weed is legal in certain area's of the country.

weed was originally out lawed to disinfranchise mexican immigrant voters in the early 1900's. most drugs in america where outlawed because racial groups were scaring the people in charge, meaning white elite life. another example of this is the smoking of opium done in chinese opium dens.

everyone should watch the "hooked on drugs" series created by the history channel i believe. it details the history of opium, morphine, herion, cocain, weed, lsd, kat, and mgh (e) in the united states. very interesting stuff such as the first major addiction was created by the use of opium by doctors in the civil war. and that addiction as well as alcoholism was treated by doctors by prescribing morphine. also at one time around the 1900 it was estimate that nearly 1/3 of the population of china was addicted to opium (from smoking).

weed was outlawed the way that another drug was outlawed, i forget which, by the passing of a tax on the drug. this was because at the time no drug had been outlawed in america at the time because everyone was free to do what they wanted and were protected by the constitution to do so, so the gov had to find a way around this (lsd was the first drug to be outlawed for the drug being "bad for societ/people", and created a new wave of legislation known as the "war on drugs" all other outlawed drugs up to then were created by such loopholes). basically one could legally posess marijuana if one recieved a stamp made by the government saying that you paid the tax. but just like the other drug that was outlawed the government purposelly did not make any marijuana tax stamps, making it impossible to posses marijuana legally.

[EXhack]

Government subsidized drugs would be a lot safer than than the crap some pusher sells you that's cut with bleach, oregano or parmezzan.

[GaaraOfTheDesert]

No, it wouldnt be as fun doing it if it were legal

QFT

The thrill of knowing your doing something illegal makes the excitement so much bigger, besides making it legal will cause more people to smoke it and therefore it wouldn't be much fun if everyone did it. Plus weed tends to be (in very few cases off course) a step to a higher level of drugs. So legalizing is a big nono to me. :nod

[wiggely]

Plus weed tends to be (in very few cases off course) a step to a higher level of drugs.
thats complete propaganda created by the anti-weed establishment in the 1930's. has never been true and has been proven to be not true. it followed the same lines as other propaganda that was created in the 1930's by the government: smoking weed will make one a rapest, a killer, and crazy. since at the time it was illegal to make a drug illegal that is how they waged war on marijuana. they even called it the deadliest drug ever, worse than cocaine, morphine, opium, and herion.

if you refer to my post a couple above it describes why weed was first outlawed (not the same reason it is today). around the time a drug first became illegal for social reasons, lsd, the government decided to try to change all drugs from the previous tax stamp methode to them being determental to society. a president, i forget who someone before nixon, then created independent studies of drug effects. the two government funded studies concluded that weed should be decrimalized. needless to say those where the last two goverment studies on the effects of marijuana. but the point remains, every time the government has researched the effects of marijuana the findings conclude that marijuana should be legal, the people in charge then rejected the findings (the first head of the DEA).

The thrill of knowing your doing something illegal makes the excitement so much bigger, besides making it legal will cause more people to smoke it and therefore it wouldn't be much fun if everyone did it
that statement directly contradicts itself. if legalizing it would make doing the drug less fun then less people would do it.

[Psycho]

Smoke Weed every day!. IMO, no. What's the difference between weed and a regular cigarette anyway? A different taste? We don't need more people smoking cancer sticks, IMO.

wanna know a little secret? weed doesn't cause cancer, doesn't damage your lungs, doesn't affect your mind (only on the first few minutes)

did you know that weed can be: ate, smoked, inhaled, injected and even be used as car fuel?

[darkviper]

well if you did legalize it there would be no one left in school. and the world would blow up

[Demon Lord]

QFT

The thrill of knowing your doing something illegal makes the excitement so much bigger, besides making it legal will cause more people to smoke it and therefore it wouldn't be much fun if everyone did it. Plus weed tends to be (in very few cases off course) a step to a higher level of drugs. So legalizing is a big nono to me. :nod

:thumbs
Just how I see it

[Kush P]

someone actually neg repped me and said I fail at life cuz i smoke bud. haha whoever you are, you trippin man, cuz im livin oh so well..if you see me im probably on my ride, smilin, with my girl rollin a fat ass blunt.. basically lovin it..while i blow smoke in your sad, lonely, jealous hatin face.

[Dei-Senpai]

Yes and No....It's additctive and bad 4 you, but some use it for better!

[ShampooNinja]

yes... cos if u cannn legally buy it then it would hopefuly get rid of weed dealers etc, and if u cud legally do it in a social place such as a pub, or sum kinda weed-bar then itcanbe kept under controle.. i've found weed effects me less than alchol, so it can only be as bad as nockin bk a few aftershocks an buds and feelin affected... sure theres a buzz 2 it bein illegal but its not much of a bigdeal, like we use canabiss in drugs to help cure thingssuch as heartdeseise because it relaxes the muscles, so yeah.. legalise ittttttt :nod

[Shinobi_God]

Government subsidized drugs would be a lot safer than than the crap some pusher sells you that's cut with bleach, oregano or parmezzan.

I can see them doing that with oregano and maybe lol maybe parmesan (if you couldnt tell there was cheese in your bud you shouldnt be smokin anyway) but not bleach unless the person wants you to die.

1. Its bad for business people would be going to the hospital from smoking bleach and rat him out when they got out then he's got attempted murder charges along with selling bud.

2. No ones gonna come back to that guy for some more.

[Marcoux]

Actually they can put quite a bit in to certain drugs without killing or sending someone to the hospital. It adds a "better" effect when the person tries to get high. Not that I'd know. :P

Should it be legal? I'd say that it doesn't really affect me.

Marcoux

[Enigma Hector]

It should be legal....

Tom: yeah it should be I maid it for people to use it, + it makes things interesting

[Smokes]

Marijuana can prevent Alzheimers, help cancer, and does nothing to mess up pregnany. People don't die from smoking it, they die from things that happen while they were high (ex: Jimmy got high, then drove somewhere and got in a car accident, resulting in death). Marijuana helps more people than it hurts them.

[Swimfan908]

Theres no advanatge to legalizing it. If someone is sick (cancer) and can be aided by smoking a joint here or there, they can have it prescribed. (Yes, doctors will do it) Might as well just leave it at that

[Botzu]

legalizing it would make the government more money through taxes and make it safer for those using it, so yeah it should be legalized. People will use it either way so why not make it a safe process and keep the money out of the hands of drug dealers.

[Kush P]

yeah on second thought I hate the idea of taxes on weed or just the fact that the government have their filthy hands of marijuana lol! They'll probably mess another good thing some of us enjoy..I do urge the government to deal with hemp though..they could probably create so much helpful everyday environment-friendly products with hemp

[Blaze of Glory]

I hate to say this; but some of y'all in this thread are retarded. Weed is made from mother nature,which means It's one of god's creations and him doing this means It's perfectly alright for us smoke. I'm not saying I do or anything. I mean c'mon I'm 16 people. I mean Weed hardly causes death, It makes you stupid for the first couple of minutes you start lighting it up but after that It does nothing. Hell, did anyone here know it can be used to fight against aids, or any injuries?

Of course not. The goverment never thinks about any of this. They just want to hear themselves talk and earn points with the public whenever it comes to decriminalizing things that might be harmful to minors or that might cause death. Weed=medicinal instrument as well as food product. I doubt that counts as something. There's already enough educational programs that are pushing children away from this. It also pisses me off how they always pull over and arrest anyone just because they have weed. Other stuff such as weed and crack are more harmful and the chances of death are higher.

[knight_of_rain]

Absolutely not. Why? Because:

1. The government would never be able to regulate who can and can't be in possession of it. Example? Many minors drink alcohol without getting caught.

2. Adding one more addictive stimulant to the market will not help anyone. While not everyone may become addicted to weed, there are always those who are prone to abusing it like they would with any other substance.

3. Legalizing such a drug could also lead people to question the legal status of other drugs such as crystal meth, which is a huge problem on it's own. Deadlier drugs than weed have literally torn families apart. While some people who are under the influence of such drugs may defend their right to use it, often times they end up hurting those closest to them, their family and their friends. The children of such addicts usually end up in foster homes and even then they are not always guarenteed to have a normal life. I don't think it's fair that they should live like that. It's not fair to those born with severe birth defects as well. Is it fair that they should suffer the consequences of the decisions of their parents? This is a real problem. It is not just some sob story they tell teenagers in drug awareness programs.

Legalizing weed for money just sounds like a temporary solution which I think will only lead to more problems for the government in the long run.

Sorry if that was a little preachy, but that's just my two cents on the matter.

People don't die from smoking it, they die from things that happen while they were high (ex: Jimmy got high, then drove somewhere and got in a car accident, resulting in death).

That sounds similar to the effects of alcohol on drunk drivers. The possibility of more car accidents doesn't sound too appealing to me.

[Smokes]

That sounds similar to the effects of alcohol on drunk drivers. The possibility of more car accidents doesn't sound too appealing to me. Too much alchohol in the system can kill you. Too much marijuana in the system does not.

[Psycho]

yes you can O.D. with weed, but... you need to smoke 15 tons of it in 15 minutes... yeah, i'm serious

[Doc. Q]

3. Legalizing such a drug could also lead people to question the legal status of other drugs such as crystal meth, which is a huge problem on it's own. Deadlier drugs than weed have literally torn families apart. While some people who are under the influence of such drugs may defend their right to use it, often times they end up hurting those closest to them, their family and their friends. The children of such addicts usually end up in foster homes and even then they are not always guarenteed to have a normal life. I don't think it's fair that they should live like that. It's not fair to those born with severe birth defects as well. Is it fair that they should suffer the consequences of the decisions of their parents? This is a real problem. It is not just some sob story they tell teenagers in drug awareness programs.

Legalizing weed for money just sounds like a temporary solution which I think will only lead to more problems for the government in the long run.


you can't compare meth to weed. To many diferences, its like comparing smoking cigerettes to inhaling arsenic fumes. Just because they're similer in some tiny way doesn't make them comparable.

And the money issue is really a side benefit, Compare the money from weed going to organised crime as compared to making money for the government, it would be short sighted to keep it illegal because the money used for selling it buys guns.

[wiggely]

Theres no advanatge to legalizing it
ever heard of crimes being committed because of drugs? killings, assualts, and other bad things because people are doing this all while hiding from the law. all that would disappear.

Absolutely not. Why? Because:

1. The government would never be able to regulate who can and can't be in possession of it. Example? Many minors drink alcohol without getting caught.
argument = fail
the government has considered your argument and denied it. example: as you gave, alcohol is legal.

Adding one more addictive stimulant to the market will not help anyone. While not everyone may become addicted to weed, there are always those who are prone to abusing it like they would with any other substance.
argument 2 = fail
weed is not a physically addictive substance. the government does not out law substances that cause addiction (even physical). examples: cigarettes and alcohol. (oh and everything in existance can become mentally addictive.

it isn't and has never been the government's job to protect from addictive products that don't cause harm to the individual.

. Legalizing such a drug could also lead people to question the legal status of other drugs such as crystal meth, which is a huge problem on it's own
not at all. the reasons given for legalizing marijuana wouldn't work for crystal meth. they are two different drugs and the push to legalize marijuana is there because it is a much different drug from meth

Legalizing weed for money just sounds like a temporary solution which I think will only lead to more problems for the government in the long run
thats funny because every government study conducted on the matter has concluded that crimalizing marijuana causes far more problems in the long run.

[poona]

Weed shouldn't be legalised, there would be too much trouble hiding it from the kiddies, not to mention there would be public outcry over something like this, and corner stores would need to get licenses to sell weed. I think the weed trade is perfect as it is.

BTW, I don't smoke weed, or take any other drug. Don't even smoke tobacco. I'm a good boy...!

[wiggely]

there would be too much trouble hiding it from the kiddies
not to mention there would be public outcry over something like this
corner stores would need to get licenses to sell weed
none of these are reasons for something (anything) being outlawed. the government does not make things illegal for such reasons

[Century]

Hell Yeah it should, people sell it anyway so atleast if its legal you can get it from the store and tax it, seems the Gov't would want that, dumbasses hahaha

[Keoni-chan]

Actually, in my country weed is legal (anybody wanna take a guess? :laugh )
And I can personally assure you, we're not all stoned 24-7. I have never even tried it, even though I can and it wouldn't get me into any trouble.

My government has no problems regulating it, since only specified shops are allowed to sell it. These places are usually pubs which don't allow children under 16/18. (So no harm to the kiddies) People hardly ever smoke it on the streets.

The reason why marijuana is legal and the other stuff isn't, is because some people use marijuana for medical perposes, because it eases pain. So to them the legalisation of marijuana has been a great help.

[Psycho]

weed is harm-less (if you don't smoke more then you breathe)

you need to have more marijuana fumes in your system then oxigen to O.D.

never compare weed to other drugs like meth, LSD, heroine or any other ilicit or licit drug, weed reduces the chance of having parkinson or ausenhimer's syndrome, increases blood coagulation between other things

[killinspree42099]

yes, weed is the less harmful drug out there. in recent study they proved that weed doesn't cause lung cancer.

[Psycho]

wee doesn't cause any cancer, any disease, helps cure anorexia, and other stuff

[Guy-Fawkes]

Well, first of all, WEED IS NOT ADDICTIVE.

The people who say they are "addicted" are, as it has been phrased, addicted to not being sober. The only 'addiction' you can get from weed is not medical. You just want it. Same effect if suddenly you couldn't eat your favorite food anymore.

I know this as a fact as I haven't smoked a single bud for 3 months (came to China) and I never felt bad. I wished I had some, but didn't feel like shit... any of the such.


Also, one perfectly healthy way of ingesting marijuanna has not been mentioned.

Vaporization.

The problem with smoking weed, is just that, you're smoking. With vaporiztion (heating the weed in a way not burning it but releasing the THC from the drug) is perfectly healthy, and MUCH more effectve way of using weed. Your getting the pure THC, youre inhaling vapor, not smoke, and so much effect is not wasted.

I would explain an easy way to vaporize but I'm not sure if the rules permit me to, but I'm pretty sure you could find ways, and detailed scientific information on not only marijuana, but many, many other drugs (including user experiance reports) on erowid.org.

[UberCool]

Well, depends on how you use it

[Psycho]

most people think that when high on weed you feel invincible, or get depressed or try crazy stuff

WHEN YOU ARE ON WEED, YOU JUST THINK EVERY THING IS FUNNY, YOU WON'T FEEL THE URGE TO DO SOMETHING STUPID LIKE SHOOTING YOUR-SELF, YOU WON'T GET DEPRESSED AND PESSIMISTIC, ETC...

[nedaime mizukage]

Can you show me where you get these facts about weed being good. All of the sources I found said that weed was bad.

[Suzumebachi]

No. It should not.

I didnt read the thread, so I hope no one is saying it should be.

[Vicious-chan]

To answer why it is illegal, back in the 1930s, during the depression, weed became illegal because non-whites would use it a lot and some guy (I forget who) pushed it to be illegal to demoralize them and keep them from getting jobs. As it was believed only non-whites smoked it back then they would throw the person in jail for life for only having one joint. That's why, some white supremecy asshat back in the 30s during the depression wanted to keep the non-whites down so since they were the ones "often doing weed" they were thrown in jail for life if they had even one joint on them to keep them out of jobs for the white man.

Should it be legalized? Hell yes it should. I don't care who uses it or to use it myself, but if the government wants more ways to get money, tax the fuck outta it and BAM they've got a HUGE increase of money coming if they did that.

No. It should not.

I didnt read the thread, so I hope no one is saying it should be.

I want your arguements why it shouldn't be. Alcohol and Cigs are FAR worse for your body. Hell, weed doesn't even have a long term effect like alcohol and cigs do. It might not be great short term for you but neither are cigs or alcohol really and those are legal. Seriously, also tell me whether you think alcohol and cigs should be legal and weed not or anything. Personally, a victimless crime shouldn't be illegal in the first place.. those being prostitution, gambling, doing weed/crack/etc. If they choose to do it themselves, so what, their body, let em fuck it up.

Can you show me where you get these facts about weed being good. All of the sources I found said that weed was bad.

Like almost all drugs, it can be good and bad depending on the amount and whatnot. It can be a great way to deal with pain like morphine is. Granted, short term its bad for your thought process but that doesn't last and weed will not fuck up internal organs like alcohol or Cigs will.

[Guy-Fawkes]

Well, people have asked, so I will provide a site that has everything you need to know either their, or links to articles and research documents and the such with anything you could possibly want to know.

http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis.shtml

I hope everyone who wants to know anything about cannabis go to this site. Those who have been told they have incorrect data go to this site, those who wish to back up their facts with a multitude of scientific documents go to this site, and anyone intrested in any aspect of marihuana, use this link.

Also, another site with fact and data, go to this link

norml.com

That is the foremost site pushing the legality of marijuana.

totse.com

That site has some facts and articles and such from users about just about all drugs, as well as a very good buliten board. Check out the drug sub-fora of the forum, and you can find some interesting stuff.

[ThisCorrosion]

When people are addicted to cannabis, they are generally addicted to the tabacco that you put in the joint.

Anyway, I say yes to the legalisation of cannabis. And not only that, I think all drugs should be legal. People will do these drugs anyway no matter what the laws are so instead of spending money on throwing them in jail so they can come out and do it all again, money can be spent on helping them instead.

Also, if all drugs were legal, the amounts and what they are cut with can be regulated. As in LSD doses would be a certain amount so one tab won't have enough to kill you on it. Or cocaine wouldn't be cut with whatever the hell they can find so there will be less deaths.

[Dante]

I don't consume weed so I don't care, however I think weed consumers don't want for it to really be legalized as it's price would really increase with time.

Still, legalizing more drugs that alter your condusct would exponentially increase the number of deaths in the road for example, I think that it's enough with alcohol now :(

[Guy-Fawkes]

Well, I personally think it's a persons body, they can do whatever they want to do with their body.

Though they should have like drug room things where people can go into a padded empty room with like one other sober person and maybe some other friends who want to get high so everyone stays safe.

[The Space Cowboy]

Weed? Legal. It'll never happen, especially with the anti-smoking jihad some places have started. And whether cannabis or not is harmful in and of itself, you're still putting burnt particulate matter down into your lungs if you smoke it.

Coal miners know that breathing stuff like that can be a tad dangerous.

Now I wonder. Can the pro-cannabis folks come up with supporting documents that aren't related to their ideological group, for some...corroboration?

[Vicious-chan]

Also, if all drugs were legal, the amounts and what they are cut with can be regulated. As in LSD doses would be a certain amount so one tab won't have enough to kill you on it. Or cocaine wouldn't be cut with whatever the hell they can find so there will be less deaths.

it can't COMPLETELY be regulated, but, true, it would be more regulated than now. There are people that grow their own tobacco and weed.

[Doc. Q]

Weed? Legal. It'll never happen, especially with the anti-smoking jihad some places have started. And whether cannabis or not is harmful in and of itself, you're still putting burnt particulate matter down into your lungs if you smoke it.

Coal miners know that breathing stuff like that can be a tad dangerous.

Now I wonder. Can the pro-cannabis folks come up with supporting documents that aren't related to their ideological group, for some...corroboration?

theres a similer topic on this section of the forum where I spit all over an argument like this by quoting the canadian medical journal as well as several respected newspapers. lets see if i can find my past posts... i'll be back

[ThisCorrosion]

it can't COMPLETELY be regulated, but, true, it would be more regulated than now. There are people that grow their own tobacco and weed.

True. But it would still be better than the problems we have now.

[Psycho]

you cannot be addicted to cannabis, i mean in the same way you can be adicted to tobacco, cannabis can create a mental adiction, but anything can, adrenaline, chocolate, sex even licking walls can create a mental adiction, without weed, you feel perfectly normal, a weed burner without weed is the same thing as any other person without they're favorite dish

[Lain]

Eh... I can never really get into the whole weed legalization thing because there's always someone overly biased supporting the legalization. And half of the time that person sounds like a damn stoner.

Just because weed is "less dangerous" that doesn't mean it sould be legal. We don't legalize speeding just because it's "less dangerous" than driving on the wrong side of the road. So alcohol and smoking are legal. Yeah? It's been a part of American culture since America was bloody founded. That's why it's not illegal. Weed is legal in Jamaica because it's been a part of their culture since, well, a long time ago! If people want to smoke legal weed (and probably better weed) than why don't they just buy themselves a ticket down to Jamaica?

[Altron]

yeah...why fight it? its just like prohibition in the 20's that didnt work. just legalize it since many of us smoke it anyways.

[Victory's Trap]

I voted that it doesn't make any difference to me. I don't like drugs and I don't use it, but I think weed is not the worst thing in the addictionworld. Smoking, hard drugs and alcohol are worse than weed. Weed is simply a plant that causes 'pleasure' to some people. I don't think that's really bad, unless you can't control yourself and start to act weird while using weed, that's a different story.

And as probably many people know, it is legal in Holland. Amsterdam is known for its coffeeshops where you can get weed (and also for its hookers, but that's a different story). And you're allowed to own 5 plants of weed maximum if you're 18+ (I think that's the age). But yeah I don't think it has caused a lot of trouble so far, so I don't really care...

[escamoh]

yes it should be legalized

[Razgriez]

I wouldnt have a problem with weed being legalized for a fear reasons.

1. Its produced by US companies or the government its self.
2. Its HEAVILY taxed.
3. The absence of the crap being shipped in from foreign countries. That shit is fueling cartels that practically are terrorist organizations that probably help out and support other terrorist organizations that we are fighting.

Its not the drug itself that bothers me. Its the fuckers producing it. So remember everytime you buy some weed from some guy your funding the bastards that are giving us problems. Hell, the US spends insane amounts of money just trying to prevent the stuff getting into the country. Think about your taxes lowering and you having more money if you either stopped buying it off the street or just grew it yourself or something.

[Captain]

i think it should definitely be legalized. I've never smoked. But it would definitely be benificial if it was legalized. There would be a huge economy boost, drug dealers wouldn't be as common and most would go out of business, age limits could be set (not that that always helps ex: alcohol) but it would reduce a lot of it. It's not a gateway drug as the media portrays it. There is no physical addiction like tobacco. It's not like the people who smoke it are running around the city, they are just sitting on their friends couch laughing everytime they see a bunny on tv. There is no strong evidence that it should not be legalized, so why not?

[Doc. Q]

i think it should definitely be legalized. I've never smoked. But it would definitely be benificial if it was legalized. There would be a huge economy boost, drug dealers wouldn't be as common and most would go out of business, age limits could be set (not that that always helps ex: alcohol) but it would reduce a lot of it. It's not a gateway drug as the media portrays it. There is no physical addiction like tobacco. It's not like the people who smoke it are running around the city, they are just sitting on their friends couch laughing everytime they see a bunny on tv. There is no strong evidence that it should not be legalized, so why not?

You and the cap'n make it happen. :SAG

[R3DL1NE]

I think it should be legalized. If it was, no doubt some company would pick it up and sell it. Once that happened, the government could tax it. It has similar effects as alcohol and you can't over-dose on it. The government could enforce the legal age for smoking and make it illegal to do in public places or whatever. Chances are, whether it's legal or not won't stop most people.

Plus everyone knows once it's legal, it not cool:P

[little nin]

it should be legalised, i just figured out why it isnt!

the companies selling "da legalised erb" would make too much money for ciggy companies to be happy :(

so the ciggy companies have a deal with the government? so that teh government get free Cigs :omg as long as weed aint legal :P

[Believe It!]

Anyway, I say yes to the legalisation of cannabis. And not only that, I think all drugs should be legal. People will do these drugs anyway no matter what the laws are so instead of spending money on throwing them in jail so they can come out and do it all again, money can be spent on helping them instead.

The problem with that is that is actually more profitable to the government to have those drugs be illegal. Cops make busts and take possesion of the person's belongings so they can sell them. The government gets funding for the war on drugs. The prisons get money to jail the inmates (though it isn't much on their end).

Plus, drugs are just another reason for cops to get into your house without a warrent. Believe it!

[sj2k]

Sigh, there is no reason for it to be illegal. Not when it is no worse than a cig, and its not as bad as alchohol. IF you make alchohol illegal, than I say you can get rid of weed. Otherwise no.

[rorykage]

weed should be as legal and regulated as alcohol or tobacco. you must be so many years old and have photo i.d. and if people are afraid of impairment, it could be relegated to home use, and specific venues (cafes and bars) the way alcohol is.

i think the only reason it is held back (well not the only, but the biggest) is that there is no quick and easy way to prove impairment when it comes to drivers.

in other words, when there is a "weed-breathalizer" there will be legal, regulated weed.

[Nekko-Sama]

medicinal use aside, it is the same as drinking and smoking at the same time. If it is regulated like cigerettes and alcohol then the revenue it would generate for the government should more than cover the cost to police it's use (21 and over , not while operating a vehicle which would require some kind of new test to prove that it had been consumed with in a twelve hour period not just with in thirty days, etc.)

[delirium]

The problem with that is that is actually more profitable to the government to have those drugs be illegal. Cops make busts and take possesion of the person's belongings so they can sell them. The government gets funding for the war on drugs. The prisons get money to jail the inmates (though it isn't much on their end).

Plus, drugs are just another reason for cops to get into your house without a warrent. Believe it!

I've seen some of your posts around and this is probably the only thing we see eye to eye on. :laugh

Legalise it!

[Psycho]

weed should be as legal and regulated as alcohol or tobacco. you must be so many years old and have photo i.d. and if people are afraid of impairment, it could be relegated to home use, and specific venues (cafes and bars) the way alcohol is.

i think the only reason it is held back (well not the only, but the biggest) is that there is no quick and easy way to prove impairment when it comes to drivers.

in other words, when there is a "weed-breathalizer" there will be legal, regulated weed.

did you know that the alcholism percentage in the U.S. is by far greater then the brazilian? and notice, you can get a drink basicly anywhere in this country, at basicly anytime of the day, and notice that our D.W.I. rate is also smaller, you know why, you portrait drinking as something wrong, we portrait it as something risky

[rorykage]

^^all i'm saying is that marijuana is no more harmful than alcohol or tobacco, and should no more illegal than alcohol or tobacco.

you're misunderstanding my post, i don't have anything against tobacco, alcohol, or marijuana, otherise i'd be a hypocrite. i regularly enjoy my cigarettes, my beer and my joints, but things do need to be regulated. and if weed could attain the same regulation as tobacco and alcohol, i would be a happy man.

the only point i was trying to make with my last post, is that weed won't be legal until police officers can administer a test, akin to a breathalizer, to prevent intoxication while driving.

[ensain22]

we all know good and well the long term affects of alcohol and tabacco, but i'm not sure about all the different types of mary. i dont really care whether its legalized cause i think smoking is gross anyway.
i have many friends that smoke and they seem to be able to control themselves much better than someone who has drank too much. youre much more likely to be hurt or injured while drunk than high from marijuana.

[Bishop]

Well I use to do weed and it's no worse than cigarrette(don't smoke cancer sticks).

[troublesum-chan]

...meh. If you really want it, whether it's legal or not doesn't really make a difference. Should it be illegal? Well, yeah. It smells...if you wanna do it don't get caught and don't bother others.

[Tokoyami]

I see no big problems with it being legalized.....it doesn't kill but I'm somewhat convinced that it does fuck one up.....

[troublesum-chan]

it just makes you look stupid. I knew some kids who did it first period pe, and while everyone else was doing jumping jacks, they just kind of stood around and watched us with a fascination akin to a baby or small infant.

it was really rather sad. thought we still laughed at them, partly because hey looked ridiculous, and partly because after a few minutes the cloud of mj started to smell better than it should have. second hand high, you could call it...

[Cardboard Jewsuke]

why is it ilegal? cigar and drinks are much more dangerous to your life and they are legal, but weed, weed is natural, doesn't hurt the enviorment, is cheap to produce, is safe (well sorta) to health, etc... what do you think?

Alcohol and Marijuana cuase around the same level of health problems. I personally think that they should be treated the same. Either both legalized, or both made illegal. Either one of the two would be fine with me.

I think those in power in America would rahter have both made illegal, but since Prohibition has been pretty much proved impossible, they are doing the next best thing and keeping Marijuana illegal. Becuase once it becomes legal, it will become just as difficult to make illegal again as Alcohol.

[Bishop]

Hhahaha, we got high at a younger age so we wouldn't have to worry about doing it when career time started. At first I was like "The fuck,,High, I still feel the same" two minutes later I was singing thriller by Micheal Jackson. But the main reason I did it was for my thinking process; when I got high I could thing deeper into a subject and add depth to my theory. But that was long time ago, I was 15 and dumb.

[Psycho]

medicinal use aside, it is the same as drinking and smoking at the same time. If it is regulated like cigerettes and alcohol then the revenue it would generate for the government should more than cover the cost to police it's use (21 and over , not while operating a vehicle which would require some kind of new test to prove that it had been consumed with in a twelve hour period not just with in thirty days, etc.)

what do you mean when you say "the same as drinking and smoking at the same time"?

weed does no damage to you lungs, no damage to your mouth, doesn't diminuish your eye hand cordination (or any other cordination) doesn't make you feel invincible (some idiots actually think that high on weed, you are more likely to kill your-self)

you probably won't even care about driving while on weed, you'll just think that every thing is extreamly funny and weird

remember, weed is 1/100000000000000000 of cigaret in danger

[troublesum-chan]

Lol its not really deep, you just think it is because you're high.

My cousin and his friends wrote down all their ideas they got one time as an eperiment while high.

lets just say it was all less than socratic.

[Bishop]

No really, it was deep, I can't explain it but it was like wowww. And also, when I got high and watched a movie, any movie would be the best. But I don't wanna think of the old days when I was a young teen doing stupid things, I'm grown with a career.

Back on topic: Weed does, in time, damage the brain and promotes short term memory loss along with faint reactions and nonchalaunt attitudes. Do smoke..unless you have a prescription that is.

[Cardboard Jewsuke]

what do you mean when you say "the same as drinking and smoking at the same time"?

weed does no damage to you lungs, no damage to your mouth, doesn't diminuish your eye hand cordination (or any other cordination) doesn't make you feel invincible (some idiots actually think that high on weed, you are more likely to kill your-self)

you probably won't even care about driving while on weed, you'll just think that every thing is extreamly funny and weird

remember, weed is 1/100000000000000000 of cigaret in danger

Comparing excessive drinking problems, to average smoking doesn't really work. If you smoked pot as much as Binge drinkers drank, you would start having fairly severe medical problems.

But just as Alcohol can be consumed in moderation (with positive befinits I might add) and no real damage, Pot in low quanities is not very detrimental to your health.

[rorykage]

^^my body disagrees with you.

[Cardboard Jewsuke]

^^my body disagrees with you.

Disagrees with what? That minor pot smoking is not very detrimental?

[rorykage]

If you smoked pot as much as Binge drinkers drank, you would start having fairly severe medical problems.

this is the part that i disagree with.

what kind of time frame are we talking about? i've been smoking heavily for seven years, and nothing about my general health has changed.

and i have a few friends, whose parents (in their 40's and 50's) have smoked weed since they were teens, and are still in perfect health.

[Cardboard Jewsuke]

this is the part that i disagree with.

what kind of time frame are we talking about? i've been smoking heavily for seven years, and nothing about my general health has changed.

and i have a few friends, whose parents (in their 40's and 50's) have smoked weed since they were teens, and are still in perfect health.

Effects on the Brain

Scientists have learned a great deal about how THC acts in the brain to produce its many effects. When someone smokes marijuana, THC rapidly passes from the lungs into the bloodstream, which carries the chemical to organs throughout the body, including the brain.

In the brain, THC connects to specific sites called cannabinoid receptors on nerve cells and influences the activity of those cells. Some brain areas have many cannabinoid receptors; others have few or none. Many cannabinoid receptors are found in the parts of the brain that influence pleasure, memory, thought, concentration, sensory and time perception, and coordinated movement4.

The short-term effects of marijuana can include problems with memory and learning; distorted perception; difficulty in thinking and problem solving; loss of coordination; and increased heart rate. Research findings for long-term marijuana abuse indicate some changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term abuse of other major drugs. For example, cannabinoid (THC or synthetic forms of THC) withdrawal in chronically exposed animals leads to an increase in the activation of the stress-response system5 and changes in the activity of nerve cells containing dopamine6. Dopamine neurons are involved in the regulation of motivation and reward, and are directly or indirectly affected by all drugs of abuse.


Effects on the Heart

One study has indicated that an abuser's risk of heart attack more than quadruples in the first hour after smoking marijuana7. The researchers suggest that such an effect might occur from marijuana's effects on blood pressure and heart rate and reduced oxygen-carrying capacity of blood.


Effects on the Lungs

A study of 450 individuals found that people who smoke marijuana frequently but do not smoke tobacco have more health problems and miss more days of work than nonsmokers8. Many of the extra sick days among the marijuana smokers in the study were for respiratory illnesses.

Even infrequent abuse can cause burning and stinging of the mouth and throat, often accompanied by a heavy cough. Someone who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers do, such as daily cough and phlegm production, more frequent acute chest illness, a heightened risk of lung infections, and a greater tendency to obstructed airways9. Smoking marijuana possibly increases the likelihood of developing cancer of the head or neck. A study comparing 173 cancer patients and 176 healthy individuals produced evidence that marijuana smoking doubled or tripled the risk of these cancers10.

Marijuana abuse also has the potential to promote cancer of the lungs and other parts of the respiratory tract because it contains irritants and carcinogens9,11. In fact, marijuana smoke contains 50 to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than does tobacco smoke12. It also induces high levels of an enzyme that converts certain hydrocarbons into their carcinogenic form—levels that may accelerate the changes that ultimately produce malignant cells13. Marijuana users usually inhale more deeply and hold their breath longer than tobacco smokers do, which increases the lungs' exposure to carcinogenic smoke. These facts suggest that, puff for puff, smoking marijuana may be more harmful to the lungs than smoking tobacco.


Other Health Effects

Some of marijuana's adverse health effects may occur because THC impairs the immune system's ability to fight disease. In laboratory experiments that exposed animal and human cells to THC or other marijuana ingredients, the normal disease-preventing reactions of many of the key types of immune cells were inhibited14. In other studies, mice exposed to THC or related substances were more likely than unexposed mice to develop bacterial infections and tumors15,16.

http://www.nida.nih.gov/Infofacts/marijuana.html

Not eveyrone who smokes cigarettes and drinks grows up to have severe, or any, liver or lung damage. But there are nubmer that do, and reaserch has shown that Marijuana can also have severe adverse effects. Just becuase a few people you know dont have any, or dont think they have any, medical problems from it, does not make it fact.

Hell, my grandfather has smoked cigarettes like a chimey, and drank alcohol like an elephant since he was in his teens. He is now 67, and he is perfectly healthy. Does this mean that alcohol and cigaettes have no negative effects? Hell no.

[Blaze of Glory]

Disagrees with what? That minor pot smoking is not very detrimental?

From past experiences with weed before I can say with a straight face that it has no effect on your body. Trust me. Drinking hurts you more then weed does.

[rorykage]

Effects on the Brain

Scientists have learned a great deal about how THC acts in the brain to produce its many effects. When someone smokes marijuana, THC rapidly passes from the lungs into the bloodstream, which carries the chemical to organs throughout the body, including the brain.

In the brain, THC connects to specific sites called cannabinoid receptors on nerve cells and influences the activity of those cells. Some brain areas have many cannabinoid receptors; others have few or none. Many cannabinoid receptors are found in the parts of the brain that influence pleasure, memory, thought, concentration, sensory and time perception, and coordinated movement4..

-the brain also develops a tolerance to effects that these cannibinoids impose. they will eventually become inconsequential.

The short-term effects of marijuana can include problems with memory and learning; distorted perception; difficulty in thinking and problem solving; loss of coordination; and increased heart rate. Research findings for long-term marijuana abuse indicate some changes in the brain similar to those seen after long-term abuse of other major drugs. For example, cannabinoid (THC or synthetic forms of THC) withdrawal in chronically exposed animals leads to an increase in the activation of the stress-response system5 and changes in the activity of nerve cells containing dopamine6. Dopamine neurons are involved in the regulation of motivation and reward, and are directly or indirectly affected by all drugs of abuse

-Dopamine neurons are also directly or indirectly affected by things like sugar intake, and sexual activity. so basically, eating too much chocolate or having "too much" sex, can have the same detrimental effect as THC in this example.


Effects on the Heart

One study has indicated that an abuser's risk of heart attack more than quadruples in the first hour after smoking marijuana7. The researchers suggest that such an effect might occur from marijuana's effects on blood pressure and heart rate and reduced oxygen-carrying capacity of blood.

-"Tolerance can appear after a few days of frequent daily administration (two or three doses per day) of oral THC or marijuana extract, with heart rate decreasing, reclining blood pressure falling, and postural hypotension disappearing.73 Thus, the intensity of the effects depends on frequency of use, dose, and even body position."

-this increased risk of heart attack is only for a few hours (roughly the duration of the drug's effect), and is no longer a risk after a few days.

-cardiovascular changes, to date, have not proven themselves to a problem for for younger users, but can be dangerous to older generations (who are at a greater risk anyway) or those who already have coronary arterial, or cerebrovascular disease.

Effects on the Lungs

A study of 450 individuals found that people who smoke marijuana frequently but do not smoke tobacco have more health problems and miss more days of work than nonsmokers8. Many of the extra sick days among the marijuana smokers in the study were for respiratory illnesses.

Even infrequent abuse can cause burning and stinging of the mouth and throat, often accompanied by a heavy cough. Someone who smokes marijuana regularly may have many of the same respiratory problems that tobacco smokers do, such as daily cough and phlegm production, more frequent acute chest illness, a heightened risk of lung infections, and a greater tendency to obstructed airways9. Smoking marijuana possibly increases the likelihood of developing cancer of the head or neck. A study comparing 173 cancer patients and 176 healthy individuals produced evidence that marijuana smoking doubled or tripled the risk of these cancers10.

Marijuana abuse also has the potential to promote cancer of the lungs and other parts of the respiratory tract because it contains irritants and carcinogens9,11. In fact, marijuana smoke contains 50 to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than does tobacco smoke12. It also induces high levels of an enzyme that converts certain hydrocarbons into their carcinogenic form—levels that may accelerate the changes that ultimately produce malignant cells13. Marijuana users usually inhale more deeply and hold their breath longer than tobacco smokers do, which increases the lungs' exposure to carcinogenic smoke. These facts suggest that, puff for puff, smoking marijuana may be more harmful to the lungs than smoking tobacco.

- The presence of carcinogenic agents in the lungs after smoking marijuana is directly related to the filtration, which can be adjusted. Marijuana cigarettes don't tend to be filtered, whereas tobacco cigaretts are. Bong water filters out more THC than it does tar and carcinogenic agents. In fact, all evidence of marijuana's effects on the lung, vary dependning on the method of smoking (using a vaporizer, which does not cause combustion, eliminates much of the risk involved with inhaling smoke resulting from combustion.) , and marijuana does not have to be smoked, it can eaten, prepared as a beverage, or THC can be injected directly.

-If you don't smoke, you don't hurt your lungs.


Other Health Effects

Some of marijuana's adverse health effects may occur because THC impairs the immune system's ability to fight disease. In laboratory experiments that exposed animal and human cells to THC or other marijuana ingredients, the normal disease-preventing reactions of many of the key types of immune cells were inhibited14. In other studies, mice exposed to THC or related substances were more likely than unexposed mice to develop bacterial infections and tumors15,16.

-effects on the immune system are still inconclusive. evidence has shown that THC acts as dual regulator, in that it has shown the capability to suppress the immune system's functions, and just has often, it has been shown to boost them.

you might also want to check these things out:

Marijuana's reltaion to lung cancer:
http://www.webmd.com/content/article/122/114805.htm

Economic benefits:
http://www.canorml.org/background/CA_legalization.html

An extensive list of beneficial medical uses for hemp products, as well as the benfits of medical THC and marijuana:
http://www.hempology.com/?p=237

and that's just a few. it seems to me that the good far outwieghs the bad. it also seems that most of the good aspects are supported by varying solid, and promising pieces of evidence, and most of the bad aspects are based on consistently shakier studies. not to mention, more and more often new studies are popping up to discredit old ones, with much more positive, and promising results.

Basically, almost all of marijuana's negative aspects (the only exceptions are the few psychoative effects reasonablyt attributed to THC, which most often derive from a pre-existing problem anyway) are directly related to the actual combustion and inhalation of smoke. inhaling concentrations of tar and carbon monoxide is where the problems come from, and that is true for anything that burns. anything capable of burning will produce tar and carbon monoxide, but marijuana does not have to be burned.

so like i said before, i disagree about marijuana's negative effects, based not only on my own experience, but through the experience of many peers, and older individuals i know, and also the ever increasing evidence of marijuana's many benefits, and the facft that the negatives are being disproven, and those that are still present, can be avoided.

marijuana = not harmful

[Psycho]

people are just retarded, they are taught something and think that it's right, guess what, mamy and ddy are idiots to, they thaught you wrong, create a fucking mind, start thinking by yourself

[Hataki]

To be honest, I think the only reason weed isn't legal is that it would be ridiculously hard for the corporations to monopolize it. Every report I have read about the "dangers" of marijuana is just so full of propaganda it's unbelievable.

[metal_uzumaki]

You're probably right. The moment some big company gets right or figures out how to monopolize weed then someone will start getting it legalized.

[rorykage]

^^i'm telling ya. whenever they invent a "weed-breathalizer" to test supspect intoxicated drivers, that's when it will be ok to legalize and regulate. companies don't have to wait and look for a way to monopolize (as i understand, total monopolies are illegal anyway), they have to wait until the gpovernment allows them to distribute.

[brooklynhascometoruleyou]

people smoke weed anyway, it's safer to the envirement, why not, my sister smokes weed my father smokes weed and they both have respectible jobs.

[Sphyer]

I think that weed should be legalized, but only on a very limited basis. Marijuana should be legal only for medical and research purposes, and not for recreational use. The problem with the debate right now is that people think that legalization means that weed should be sold like cigarettes, in brownie mixes, and over the counter cold medicine. I disagree with that. Research has shown that prolonged marijuana use does induce brain damage as well as a variety of other health problems.

However, that doesn't mean that we should ban it altogether. The main active chemical in weed is THC, which has been shown to help induce hunger and relieve pain without significant side effects in people like chemotherapy patients. As person who gone through chemotherapy, I can tell you that loss of taste and hunger are very common side effects. If marijuana is the most effective treatment, then patients should have access to it. It should have the same status as other medicinal drugs like morphine. Morphine is a very addictive drug and 100 years ago people used it to get high on it all the time. However, the government didn't outright ban it, because it is a very effective pain reliever in surgery and whatnot. Now you can't just buy morphine over the counter but only with a proper prescription. People should not ban a drug because of potential of abuse, because prescription drugs can be abused too.

There is a good middle ground on the legalization issue.

Wow thats acually a pretty good idea. Well im for it as long as its for medical and research purposes. Before I was agenst it completly but he does does make a good point about it. Id rather have weed legalised for study in curing health rather than getting high. Besides its true that alchole can be bad for you if you drink to much so the key is to drink responsibly instead of getting drunk and hurting yourself. Alchole and tobacco have been sown to deep in our culture but at least we should keep weed from being legalized for people to smoke in that way we can protect kids from just being able to buy it from a store or somthing. Also take into note weed has messed up lots of familes to. Legalizing it would only make it seem okay for people to smoke it. Also I want to add that if it can be used to help cure sickneses then nobody should be complaining about it then because your still hurting yourself from smoking , so if that can cure sickneses with it without smoking then were going to be in luck. If you really care about curining sickneses with weed then all the better reason for there to be research and discover ways to do it without having to smoke and hurt yourself.

people smoke weed anyway, it's safer to the envirement, why not, my sister smokes weed my father smokes weed and they both have respectible jobs.

Um no smoking weed is not good for the enviorment >_> where did you get an idea like that?

[Doc. Q]

I wish this thread would stop dying and returning.

Rorykage just pwned the non-weed people with his awesome

+rep.

[sj2k]

ok, I am not bothering to read all of this. I have a very simple answer, that really no one can argue with.

First of all, decide if alchohol should be legal or illegal. Got an answer, great. Now, the same thing goes for weed.

Alchohol causes more danger than weed, is more addictive than weed, and causes more deaths than weed. There is no justifiable way to have alchohol legal, and not weed. It is hypocritcal, and really kind of sad.

If you said no, then weed, while not as bad, is simmilar. So, I understand your viewpoint. I am a big believe in individual rights, so I will support peoples ability buy these things, and also stress not abusing them, but I do understand and accept your point.

And to those who have different answers for those two, you need to rethink your logic.

Decide what you want, but please, be consisistent.

Oh yeah, on a realistic level, alchohol is never going away, so you should legalize weed too.

[Sphyer]

I completly understand where your comming from sj2k because of the fact that alchohle could do more damage than weed but not if you drink responsibly but in anycase I doubt its ever gona be leagalized anyways. But I supossse people will abuse both alchohole and weed anyways but there is a bigger picture than just being fair. Now its very unlikly there gona pass a law to legalise weed just because "We need to be fair to smokers in our countrysince alchohole does more damage if abused so were gona legalise weed". I mean great right now we can buy weed at stores and if anything more people will smoke from pure pressor and the fact that they wana fitin or just for the hell of it. Well I dont see any good from legalizing it completly but its better for medical research anyways so there shouldent be any problem with that. Individual rights is important but fact is its never gona happen because

1. Weed isnt healty so legalizing it just cause Alchohole is really wont get you anywhere.
2. If it was legalized completly then that would get sown in socity just like tobacco and it would to late to stop it.
3. It wouldent really help protect people from drugs because them legalizing it is just like encouraging it.
4.It would be a bad image for the country and alot of people would be pissed of.
5. Its would be giving more access to kids so they could smoke weed.
6. Legailizing somthing thats not as bad as alchohole but still is bad to people? I dont really see how it improves socity.

Also I should add im all for cops aresting people in possesion with them.

[Uzumaki]

Weed to every1!

[Sphyer]

im gona assume thats a joke smile-big

[sj2k]

Ok, mystic, lets look at this from another perspective.

People are going to smoke weed. Its that simple.

Now, do we want the government to spend money trying to stop it. Or to make money from it. Do we want people smoking whatever they can afford, without any test for quality? Or do we want to limit how much you can have, and make sure it is of a safe quality.

I can really think of no good reasons not to legalize it.

Every precedent we have says it should be legalized. Prohabition tells us why.

[woohoomaster]

weed shoud be legalized because if it is then people wont want to smoke it as much cause its leagal and not "cool."

[Unbreakable Girl]

The most prevalent psychoactive substance in cannabis is delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (commonly called Δ9-THC, or simply THC). In the past two decades, the average content of THC in marijuana sold in North America has increased from about 1% to 3-4% or more. Carefully selected and cloned plants can yield as much as 15% THC.[2] Another psychoactive cannabinoid present in Cannabis sativa is Tetrahydrocannabivarin (THCV), but it is only found in small amounts. In addition, there are also similar compounds contained in marijuana that do not exhibit any psychoactive response but are obligatory for functionality: Cannabidiol (CBD), an isomer of THC; Cannabinol (CBN), an oxidation product of THC; Cannabivarin (CBV), an analog of CBN with a different sidechain, Cannabidivarin (CBDV), an analog of CBD with a different sidechain, and Cannabinolic acid. How these other compounds interact with THC is not fully understood. Some clinical studies have proposed that CBD acts as a balancing force to regulate the strength of the psychoactive agent THC. Anecdotal and inconclusive reports claim that marijuana with relatively high ratios of THC:CBD is less likely to induce anxiety than marijuana with low THC:CBD ratios.[3] CBD is also believed to regulate the body’s metabolism of THC by inactivating cytochrome P450, an important class of enzymes that metabolize drugs. Experiments in which mice were treated with CBD followed by THC showed that CBD treatment was associated with a substantial increase in brain concentrations of THC and its major metabolites, most likely because it decreased the rate of clearance of THC from the body.[3] Cannabis cofactor compounds have also been linked to lowering body temperature, modulating immune functioning, and cell protection. The essential oil of cannabis contains many fragrant terpenoids which may synergize with the cannabinoids to produce their unique effects. THC is converted rapidly to 11-hydroxy-THC, which is also pharmacologically active, so the drug effect outlasts measurable THC levels in blood.[2]

In 1990, the discovery of cannabinoid receptors located throughout the brain and body, along with endogenous cannabinoid neurotransmitters like anandamide (a lipid material derived ligand from arachidonic acid), suggested that the use of marijuana affects the brain in the same manner as a naturally occurring brain chemical. Cannabinoids usually contain a 1,1'-di-methyl-pyrane ring, a variedly derivatized aromatic ring and a variedly unsaturated cyclohexyl ring and their immediate chemical precursors, constituting a family of about 60 bi-cyclic and tri-cyclic compounds. Like most other neurological processes, the effects of marijuana on the brain follow the standard protocol of signal transduction, the electrochemical system of sending signals through neurons for a biological response. It is now understood that cannabinoid receptors appear in similar forms in most vertebrates and invertebrates and have a long evolutionary history of 500 million years. The fact that these receptors have been conserved throughout this time indicates that they must have an important basic role in animal physiology. Cannabinoid receptors decrease adenylyl cyclase activity, inhibit calcium N channels, and disinhibit K+A channels. There are two types of cannabinoid receptors (CB1 and CB2).

The CB1 receptor is found primarily in the brain and mediates the psychological effects of THC. The CB2 receptor is most abundantly found on cells of the immune system. Cannabinoids act as immunomodulators at CB2 receptors, meaning they increase some immune responses and decrease others. For example, nonpsychotrophic cannabinoids can be used as a very effective anti-inflammatory.[3] The affinity of cannabinoids to bind to either receptor is about the same, with only a slight increase observed with the plant-derived compound CBD binding to CB2 receptors more frequently. Cannabinoids likely have a role in the brain’s control of movement and memory, as well as natural pain modulation. It is clear that cannabinoids can affect pain transmission and, specifically, that cannabinoids interact with the brain's natural opioid system acting as a dopamine agonist.[4] This is an important physiological pathway for the medical treatment of pain.

The cannabinoid receptor is a typical member of the largest known family of receptors called a G protein-coupled receptor. A signature of this type of receptor is the distinct pattern of how the receptor molecule spans the cell membrane seven times. The location of cannabinoid receptors exists on the cell membrane, and both outside (extracellularly) and inside (intracellularly) the cell membrane. CB1 receptors, the bigger of the two, are extraordinarily abundant in the brain: 10 times more plentiful than μ-opioid receptors, the receptors responsible for the effects of morphine. CB2 receptors are structurally different (the homology between the two subtypes of receptors is 44%), found only on cells of the immune system, and seems to function similarly to its CB1 counterpart. CB2 receptors are most commonly prevalent on B-cells, natural killer cells, and monocytes, but can also be found on polymorphonuclear neurtrophil cells, T8 cells, and T4 cells. In the tonsils the CB2 receptors appear to be restricted to B-lymphocyte-enriched areas.

THC and endogenous anandamide additionally interact with glycine receptors.

Cannabis also contains a related class of compound: the Cannaflavins. These compounds have been suggested to contribute certain effects of cannabis, such as analgesia and anti-inflammatory properties, and are considerably more effective than aspirin. Cannaflavins usually contain a 1,4-pyrone ring fused to a variedly derivatized aromatic ring and linked to a 2nd variedly derivatized aromatic ring and include for example the non-psychoactive Cannflavin A and B.

The nature of marijuana, its lipophilic (fat soluble) properties, yields a long elimination half-life relative to other recreational drugs. The THC molecule, and related compounds, are usually detectable in drug tests for up to approximately one month after using cannabis (see drug test). This detection is possible because non-psychoactive THC metabolites are stored for long periods of time in fat cells, and THC has an extremely low water solubility. It is this slow and steady removal from the body that is linked with usually mild or nonexistent withdrawal symptoms after single or occasional use of the drug. The rate of elimination of metabolites is slightly greater for more frequent users due to tolerance, and indicates greater possibility for withdrawal symptoms after termination of chronic or habitual use.

The LD50 of THC is 1270 mg/kg (male rats), 730 mg/kg (female rats) oral in sesame oil, and 42 mg/kg (rats) from inhalation.[5]




- Wikipedia.org

These are some of the effects. I couldn't post all of them. :) (BTW, I'm against it because there are some negative effects because of overdose. I think it can be used for medical purposes, however. Cigarettes and Alchohol shoud'nt really be legal either.)

[sj2k]

BTW, I'm against it because there are some negative effects because of overdose

I can think of many reasons to be against it, but not this. I mean, in my knowledge, an overdose of weed can not kill you. Alchohol can. Even something as simple as tylonel can.

[Bishop]

OD off of weed!?!?! What the funky chess peice!! Hell you can OD off of water so...

[Doc. Q]

I thought we cleared up that OD by definition for weed is impossible. Check back a couple pages for my post on it.

And UG thats some nice copy pasta but it mainly tells us how it works, with some slight afteraffects that aren't to bad, reduced pain transmition= painkiller, useful in physical therapy and helps your muscles relax after hard physical labor.

[blueradio]

the only reason weed, prostitution, and the other drugs are illegal is because the government can't put a tax on them. if the government were to stop caring what relgious people and soccer moms cared about and took over the markets for weed and prostitution we'd be a very rich country. government weed and legal hookers, no problems with me. if what tobi said was correct and weed is cheap to produce it wouldn't take that much to sell it and then everybody would buy it, making everyone, including the government, happy.

Damn straight.
I don't think the government truly cares what people think.
And the only people who think pot is wrong are 13 year old scene girls who think they're taking a stand for something. I.E every 7th grade girl in my school.

It's not that people don't already smoke pot or do.
It's that people believe what they see on television. Pot isn't going to make you addicted to heroine or coke. That'd be your own fault and smoking pot really isn't going to make you act different anyway. It makes you happy for about 4 hours.

[Xell]

If it were legal, it would drop the crime rates by so much.

But scitzophrenia would increase. I'm gonna vote number 3. I honestly couldn't care less.

[sj2k]

Actually, the ads today are alot better than the ones before. The ones that said if you were high you would kill people, lol. No, the one where the kid says what will happen if you smoke. You don't kill people, you odn't do harder drugs, you don't really do, anything. And he wanted to do something.

I am not saying pot is good or bad, but it should be legal.

[FifiLynn]

I want it legalized, weed is less harmful than cigarettes, and you can't over dose on it, thats all the reasoning I need.

I also smoke it around every other weekend, and I've been smoking weed for almost three years, and I have good grades in high school, I have a job, I don't believe those biased studies about long term effects of weed, they just aren't true.

[DA Dave]

I say yes, if someone chooses to smoke it and mess themselves up then thats their problem atleast the economy would benefit if it was legal lol.

[troublesum-chan]

well, therein lies teh predicament. should we sell out the morals of many for the monetary benefit of the nation?

wouldn't be the first time. :oh

[FifiLynn]

The last page back says they don't want weed legalized because of "overdose" possibily, LMAO, you can't overdose off weed.

[Kush P]

Man why can't I blaze my own chronic in peace and without judgement. People should treat marijuana like a vegetable, you could grow your own in your garden you know? And control how you'd like your marijuana bud's sativa and indica strands..say if for medical purposes such as painkillers, then maybe make it more body high and less trippy high..and if your artsy then the opposite you know? And people should stop being afraid of high people..chronic-users out there are very critical thinkers. When you smoke chronic, you learn to see things different. Your creativity side, your style and your spiritual side somehow takes over your logic side..I don't even think we can make a decision about legalizing marijuana until everybody (I mean everybody, all classes, rich, poor, doctors, politicians, lawyers, and even the popo) tried it so they can judge for themselves..

[Mopes]

Hahaha it's funny people saying you can OD off weed. Its physically impossible, and not even the DEA tries to claim people have OD'd off of pot.

People saying it leads to other drugs... this is true, I won't lie. I started smoking pot and after 2.5 years since I first smoked I've tripped a couple dozen times; though I don't consider those drugs to be unsafe either, as hallucinogens have been around just as long and are not addicting (hell, experimental treatment of alcoholism with LSD had a higher success rate than AA). The only reason it is a gateway drug though is BECAUSE it's illegal. Thus its not unlikely for pot dealers to be into other illegal substances as well; someone selling illegal drugs probably isnt going to be very against other illegal drugs.

I'd argue weed is good for you. Though I personally know this doesnt apply to all people that smoke weed, it's definitely affected my life for the better. Hell, before I smoked weed I was a low B student that didn't really care about school, and now I'm a 4.0 student in college and I enjoy doing school work and reading. So yes, legalize!

[FifiLynn]

People saying it leads to other drugs... this is true, I won't lie. I started smoking pot and after 2.5 years since I first smoked I've tripped a couple dozen times; though I don't consider those drugs to be unsafe either, as hallucinogens have been around just as long and are not addicting (hell, experimental treatment of alcoholism with LSD had a higher success rate than AA). The only reason it is a gateway drug though is BECAUSE it's illegal. Thus its not unlikely for pot dealers to be into other illegal substances as well; someone selling illegal drugs probably isnt going to be very against other illegal drugs.



I don't think that's true at all, there are tons of people I know who have just smoked weed, and don't even smoke cigarettes because they think it's way more harmful than weed. It depends on the person, and if you want to use the propaganda filled "stepping stone" way they make weed look like, then I guess caffeine leads to other drugs too because thats a stimulant.

Even if people do start out with weed first, if weed wasn't there, people would use the next drug as a stepping stone, shrooms, or prescription pills for example, people who have an addictive personality would use any thing to start out with, thats just how those people are, not how weed is, it's just conveniant for them because weed is the most available, probably because it's the most accepted and healthy way of getting a high, and so they feel they need to do that along with other drugs, it's really created a bad rep for getting weed legalized because then people against legalizing weed will say "Now they'll want cocaine and heroin legalized!!" or some stupid shit like that.

[Mopes]

I don't think that's true at all, there are tons of people I know who have just smoked weed, and don't even smoke cigarettes because they think it's way more harmful than weed. It depends on the person, and if you want to use the propaganda filled "stepping stone" way they make weed look like, then I guess caffeine leads to other drugs too because thats a stimulant.

Even if people do start out with weed first, if weed wasn't there, people would use the next drug as a stepping stone, shrooms, or prescription pills for example, people who have an addictive personality would use any thing to start out with, thats just how those people are, not how weed is, it's just conveniant for them because weed is the most available, probably because it's the most accepted and healthy way of getting a high, and so they feel they need to do that along with other drugs, it's really created a bad rep for getting weed legalized because then people against legalizing weed will say "Now they'll want cocaine and heroin legalized!!" or some stupid shit like that.

Maybe I'm misunderstanding, but didn't you just basically agree with me? ALL drugs, legal or not, have the potential to be stepping stones to other drugs. That includes weed. And statistically speaking, alcohol is the biggest gateway drug in history. Not to mention a lot more unhealthy and addictive than marijuana.

[Gunners]

Blazing doesn't lead to taking higher drugs. Usually people who blaze and move too coke and heroine have a mindset where they would end down that path anyway.

I have to say from the few times I have blazed it feels pretty nice. Personally I don't think it should be illegal, they should legalise it.

[Bishop]

But your only 16!! So young, so sad.

On another note: Weed can be attictive to some people but, hell in that case dinking a soda can be adictive, and it does you rbody worse than weed. One way or another as long as it's straight weed and not sherm than I don't see why it can't be legalized; I mean people say dumb rebutales like "When they drive high they may kill some one else, well same for drinking. As long as the do it in the private security of their home(like most people do now) then it's ok.

[sj2k]

I do have to say, while I think it can be legal, it shouldn't be treated as lightly as I see it being treated here. Its just like alchohol. If you use it too much it can be dangerous. To certian people, it can screw up their lives (even if they don't go to harder stuff) just like being an alchoholic can mess up your life. It is not 100% safe and 100% risk free. That doesn't mean it should be illegal, but give it some respect people. It CAN be very addictive, to the same extent alchohol can. It CAN ruin your life. Will it? probably not. If you treat it with respect, then again probaly not. If someone says you have a problem, you should probably listen. Doing it 5 times a day every day is no healthier than having 5 shots of wiskey every day. That doesn't mean its wrong or bad, but you should respect it and some regulations are ok.

Please don't treat it as perfectly harmless. Its not. I know people who smoke it and just do it for a little bit of fun, and nothing bad has ever happened to them because of it, and probably never will. I also know people who have become addicted, and it has seriously messed up their life. It CAN cause harm, alot of harm. So please don't just dismiss that as BS. Will it neccecarily? of course not. Just like you can have a few drinks every once in a while and it won't harm you.

But don't treat it lightly.

[Blaze of Glory]

I want it legalized, weed is less harmful than cigarettes, and you can't over dose on it, thats all the reasoning I need.

I also smoke it around every other weekend, and I've been smoking weed for almost three years, and I have good grades in high school, I have a job, I don't believe those biased studies about long term effects of weed, they just aren't true.

This post wins!

Everyone makes it look like weed will turn you into a crackhead. People need to look deep inside themselves and think when was the last time they smoked weed and how messed up they were or at times they thought it was cool.

[sj2k]

blaze, weed is in some ways less harmful than a cig. but the addiciton, if it comes, can be much worse. Then we really have to compare it to alchoholism. Of course, just like alchoholism, it might never be an issue with that individual. Again, it is no worse than what is already legal. But it can be very dangerous, if it causes addiction. Just like alchoholism can be.

[Blaze of Glory]

blaze, weed is in some ways less harmful than a cig. but the addiciton, if it comes, can be much worse. Then we really have to compare it to alchoholism. Of course, just like alchoholism, it might never be an issue with that individual. Again, it is no worse than what is already legal. But it can be very dangerous, if it causes addiction. Just like alchoholism can be.

Oh snap! I just remembered my sister smoked weed does that mean she's an addict? Cuz by now she'd still running back and forth between the house and the market to get weed. Did you know weed also cures cardiac? Why dispose of something that counts as a cure for a disease?

[sj2k]

Oh snap! I just remembered my sister smoked weed does that mean she's an addict? Cuz by now she'd still running back and forth between the house and the market to get weed. Did you know weed also cures cardiac? Why dispose of something that counts as a cure for a disease?

I never said most people were addicts. Simply that it was a posible side effect that many people feel can't or won't happen. I neve said don't smoke it, or smoking it is wrong. But I have seen people addicted, and I have seen people have their lives hurt (I hope not ruined, they are still young) by it. Of course, I know lots of kids who smoke it and are fine. I don't smoke, its just not me.

As for the whole blood clot thing, you have it wrong. Only in very small amounts will THC do that. If you smoke it, you don't get the right effect. However, yes, THC can be very usefel.

I don't oppose it, I want it legalized, I see nothing wrong with it. I just want people to accept there is some risk that goes along with it, its not competely harmless. I say the same thing about alchohol, I don't drink, but friends do, its not bad (even at my age). does that mean you should ignore the effects alchohol can have on you? or that cigs can have on you? No, you accept them THEN you make your choice, and I will respect it. But not accepting the facts is just dumb. I'm not saying you will get addicted, odds are you won't. But it is possible.

[dragon695]

Hell Yes! I'm sick of sneaking around like I'm in the CIA or something. Besides, I don't smoke that often so it is a fucking pain in the ass to find someone to get it from.

[Sound Village Chuunin]

no becuase if you were smokeing it and someone walked near you like a little kid your both geting high. Also I've lost a couple of friends of weed so I say no.

[Sayo]

Already legall here in Holland, lucky me ^^

no becuase if you were smokeing it and someone walked near you like a little kid your both geting high.eh, that's the most stupid post i've read since awhile wich idiot would smoke nearby a bunch of childeren, do it company of your friends, or alone, besides it's legall to smoke inside doors @ home/coffeeshops and to own or buy it but it's illigal use or distribute it outside.

Even when fully legalised you should atleast have the decency to think about the people around you.

[Link]

Hell no. Fuck anyone who needs a substance to have fun. Pathetic losers.

[lecya]

no becuase if you were smokeing it and someone walked near you like a little kid your both geting high. Also I've lost a couple of friends of weed so I say no.

Are you sure they weren't mixing that weed with coke/crack or something else? NO ONE has EVER died using weed alone. And that's a fact you can look up yourself. You can't "overdose" either.


Hell no. Fuck anyone who needs a substance to have fun. Pathetic losers.
No one said they NEED weed to have fun. It's just a recreational activity. Me and my boyfriend have plenty of fun without it. We just like to use it every now and again for fun and this is a fact for many people. Do you NEED a ps3 to have fun? No. But many people enjoy it here and there as one of many recreational activities.

[Sound Village Chuunin]

...
I guess i'll be going...
Sorry for bothering you....

[Zabuzalives]

yes it should

[ViЯaL]

did you know that the OD of marijauna is in the thousands and if you are trying to reach that you could be so high by then you dont give crap. And weed because of that you can only die or get in trouble due to the side effects and that should count for something so i guess im pro weed though im not swayed by it

[AshCrestedHeart]

I say no.
People get a hold of it anyways, no need to tell society it's okay to be an idiot.

[K I S K E]

To actually OD and die of pot, you would have to smoke like... 15 pounds alone, with in seconds... Seriously. So, yes, it should be legalized.

[Brandt]

It's my conviction that weed shouldn't be legalised, and that there's no point in crossing that bridge if you don't have to. What with the Canadian courts backlogged way to hell, I think weed should be decriminalised but certainly not legalised.

[AshCrestedHeart]

To actually OD and die of pot, you would have to smoke like... 15 pounds alone, with in seconds... Seriously. So, yes, it should be legalized.

Just because you can't OD on it, doesn't automatically mean it should be legalized.

[The Internet]

Just because you can't OD on it, doesn't automatically mean it should be legalized.

But is there any reason why it should be illegal in the first place?

[AshCrestedHeart]

But is there any reason why it should be illegal in the first place?

It makes people lazy, idiotic, apathetic, 50/50 chance of leading to a more serious drug addiction. I watch it deteriorate the lives of many people I used to call friends..and that's when it's illegal, legalizing it will only make it worse.

[Jessica]

It should definitely be legal.

If anything, the tables should be reversed. Cigarettes should be illegal, marijuana should be legal. Why something that KILLS and is loaded with all kinds of poisonous substances is legal is beyond my comprehension (aside from the billions of dollars) yet something as harmless as marijuana (which, yes, it IS generally harmless) is outlawed.

God, I hate government.

[AshCrestedHeart]

I agree that cigarettes should be illegal..but I still say marijuana should stay where it is...People who want it, get it, and manage to use it just fine...no use promoting the message that because it's legal it's suddenly okay to over-indulge.

[Bishop]

It makes people lazy, idiotic, apathetic, 50/50 chance of leading to a more serious drug addiction. I watch it deteriorate the lives of many people I used to call friends..

Hmm next to cigarettes. They tend to make people over relaxed, cause lung cancer, mouth cancer, lip cancer and cancer to people by second hand smoke. People are so addicted to it they have so many commercials where they sale stuff to get you off of it.

Apathetic?! Meh. People are already apathetic in general, they can care less about things. 'weed' stimulates the mind and relaxes the users mind and worries.
and that's when it's illegal, legalizing it will only make it worse.
Wow, that's wrong man. If this stuff is legalized than the dope man that sells this stuff on the street will lose his job. Less people will be killed for this stuff (Shaky deals) because it will be sold in stores. You bet your ass that what ever can be made profitable will be sold in stores, so the percentage of young kids on the streets selling this product will decrease. This product will be like stocks (ok not that wide) It'll be like "Californian weed up by 6 points".

Now I know you are stuck on the guys who do this stuff and become useless victims but does that mean it should be illegal because of the people who can't handle it? If you say yes then you should also be saying how alcoholic beverages should be illegal since so many people die each year but not weed driving but drunk driving. So many guys get addicted to this stuff they become horrible. They beat their wives and children, they swear at everyone and ruin people's lives, mostly their own. If a person is hooked on weed he can go to a rehabilitation place where as when a guy that is addicted to alcohol has lost it all and even if he gets over it, he knows he lost it all.

Not all weed should be legalized: Sherm should be so illegal that if caught with it you should get 30 years. But when you look at it logically, weed is from the earth, it is a herb that the Mexicans use to smoke when they first got jobs in America to relax them selves and then the government just outlawed it, along with other cases of course. I think some brands of Tylenol should be illegal because they are addictive and are one hell of a hallucionogen but you can get them if you just fill out a request form at CVS.

[sj2k]

I say no.
People get a hold of it anyways, no need to tell society it's okay to be an idiot.

but the government is not here to regulate morals. You don't see me geting intoxitcated, Its just not for me, but I don't try to force that on other people.

Cigs need to stay legal, the government has no right to tell you what you can and cannot put in your body. Are we going to make obesity a crime too?

It makes people lazy, idiotic, apathetic, 50/50 chance of leading to a more serious drug addiction. I watch it deteriorate the lives of many people I used to call friends..and that's when it's illegal, legalizing it will only make it worse.

Can I see some stats? You have to be careful with I agree. I have seen it hurt some friends of mine very abdly. I have also seen friends who use it, have no side effects, and don't do anything harder. So what you are saying is something that can happen.

People who want it, get it, and manage to use it just fine...no use promoting the message that because it's legal it's suddenly okay to over-indulge.

but, but but. This logic just doesn't work. If it is illegal that means that nobody should have it, nobody should use it, and we need to stop it. So if people who want it manage to get it, and its illegla, from a legal point of view we need to stop that immidiatly. Plus, when you see a friend go to court for having a bit of it, you might think differently.

[mystictrunks]

Yea it should be legalized. It's no worse than alcohol and you can buy that everywhere from the bodegas in the projects to 5 star restaurants.

[vervex]

I might be against the general movement but... I say no.

Even though I personally see nothing wrong in friends smoking weed in a party once in a while, I am against legalization of pot. It is already illegal that thousands of teens arrive at school, half conscious of what they're doing because they don't know when it's enough, and fail their exam or simply don't listen to the teachers. Of course, some people might tell me : "but not everybody is like that ! some have greater capacities and..." right, maybe SOME of the smokers are stimulated by smoking, but be realist please.... how many of you just don't go to their courses for smoking ? Are half mentally present ? I know what weed can do, I've tried it. I'm not just repeating other people's words.

I don't think a product that has the capacity of temporarily making people dumb should be accessible to everybody. If it turns to be legal, I'd like it to be used in restricted amounts so youth won't waste their lives and regret it later (which they're already doing already...)

[Invisible Phantom]

Honestly, weed is not hard to get now. What happens is people hoard it, its price soars, and the government gets no taxes. People can't be informed of how to use it safely, since there not supposed to use it at all. Quality can't be checked by the FDA, and age limits cannot be set. If it were to be legalized, we could fix many of these problems. Alchohol is also more dangerouse, as are IMO tobbaco products. Also, its like prohabition in the 20's, just because its banned doesn't mean people won't use it. The government should legalize, legitimize trade WHILE cutting drug dealers off from a very profitable product, and insure quality.

that does make sense but if you do that drug-dealers would be making no money and would be angry and then weed smoke will be all over the place then others who do not smoke would be not happy so then nobody would be happy.

[Vegitto-kun]

that does make sense but if you do that drug-dealers would be making no money and would be angry and then weed smoke will be all over the place then others who do not smoke would be not happy so then nobody would be happy.

This is the same exact scenario with cigarettes, the smoke is everywhere so nobody is happy.

[Gunners]

but the government is not here to regulate morals. You don't see me geting intoxitcated, Its just not for me, but I don't try to force that on other people.

Cigs need to stay legal, the government has no right to tell you what you can and cannot put in your body. Are we going to make obesity a crime too?
You know. I am warry whether obesity should be a sin. When your fat ass has a heart attack tax money is wasted on your hospital fees in the UK anyway. I think people should be able too do what ever they please just pay more tax if the thing is likely too kill them or put them in hospital so they cover the fees themselves.

I have no problem with people fucking themselves up, I just don't think tax money should be used on those that fuck themselves up with idiotic antics.

That being said, Weed should be legalised, ciggerates should stay legal along with Alchahol and fatty foods. You should just pay some added fees too cover the price of medical fees you will most likely undergo.

[Vegitto-kun]

Most likely? I smoked pot for 2 years, I didn't need medical help

[Gunners]

Most likely? I smoked pot for 2 years, I didn't need medical help
You might want too check that out.

Anyway keep smoking pot for the next 20 or so years and come back with that. People say it doesn't fuck you up it does. Smoking it for 2 years isn't going too do anything too you it affects you other time.

Sameway you don't say

''I've been smoking for 2 years I haven't developed lung cancer''
''I have been sun bathing for 2 years I haven't developed skin cancer''
''I've been drinking for 2 years my liver hasn't failed''
These things don't happen overnight they affect you over time, if you don't give a fuck about it cool but I feel people should pay the fees when they do nothing too protect their health and safety.

[Bishop]

I know guys, plenty, who have smoked weed from 5 to 15 years and they are all in good financial positions and look and act healthy. Though body types are different and they react different for people.

[kantami]

no i think it shouldnt do it gives you paranoia and brain damage

[Bishop]

no i think it shouldnt do it gives you paranoia and brain damage

So does football and boxing...

[sj2k]

Kirin, I don't know about the UK, but in the US, you do pay for your own medical bills. If you somehow qualify for the government stuff, it does so little it doesn't matter. I am very split on the issue of privatized health care

no i think it shouldnt do it gives you paranoia and brain damag

lots of things give you paranoia like taxes. And you can't prove it gives you brain damage. The whole it being illegal thing kind of hurts that.

And the thing with pot is that it is like alchohol. If you smoke it in moderatino you most likely won't get addicted, and you most likely won't get cancer. But just as drinking a bit of alcohol can screw with certain people's livers, same with cancer. Weed is alot less likely than cigs though.

As for the addiction, it is just as likely to addict you as alcohol. If you are going to get hooked on weed, if you never try it odds are you get hooked on something else, becuase of the way you work.

[Gunners]

Kirin, I don't know about the UK, but in the US, you do pay for your own medical bills. If you somehow qualify for the government stuff, it does so little it doesn't matter. I am very split on the issue of privatized health care
In the uk down too higher tax medical fees are free I think. So yeah I think you should pay added tax when you do little too keep your health in check.

lots of things give you paranoia like taxes. And you can't prove it gives you brain damage. The whole it being illegal thing kind of hurts that.
It probably has been proven. Anyway it kills your brain cells when you smoke it. When your cell replicates there is a chance of mutation each time I am thinking. Also when the more your cells replicate they stop replicating the same after a while don't really know too tough. It isn't a situation I care about too much.

And the thing with pot is that it is like alchohol. If you smoke it in moderatino you most likely won't get addicted, and you most likely won't get cancer. But just as drinking a bit of alcohol can screw with certain people's livers, same with cancer. Weed is alot less likely than cigs though.
Yeah I know it is like Alchohol. I still think you should pay added tax on it, same with Alcohol. Both things do no good for your health you become a possible hindrance too society when you do nothing too prevent it you should pay.

Don't get me wrong, I think people should pay added tax if they do wreckless sports, or if someone breaks their arm doing something stupid they should pay for the fees too.
As for the addiction, it is just as likely to addict you as alcohol. If you are going to get hooked on weed, if you never try it odds are you get hooked on something else, becuase of the way you work.
Didn't say anything about addiction either. You can stop smoking weed anytime you please. Your body doesn't fuck up when you don't get a smoke, the only reason you would go back and take it is the sameway you would like certain chocalate bars. Unless you are mentally weak and use it too take you out of reality.

Meh the last part was too someone else. Well I'm not backspacing this.

[KazouJutsu]

*puff* hell yeah.

Actually, doesn't matter to me. I'm not a druggie. :P

[Hi Im God]

Weed is mentioned so this is related to a point. Reclassification has been needed for a long time.

When you get to the tabacco causes 40% of hospital illness, keep in mind weed does not cause cancer.
LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Marijuana smoking does not increase a person's risk of developing lung cancer, according to the findings of a new study at the University of California Los Angeles that surprised even the researchers.

They had expected to find that a history of heavy marijuana use, like cigarette smoking, would increase the risk of cancer.

Instead, the study, which compared the lifestyles of 611 Los Angeles County lung cancer patients and 601 patients with head and neck cancers with those of 1,040 people without cancer, found no elevated cancer risk for even the heaviest pot smokers. It did find a 20-fold increased risk of lung cancer in people who smoked two or more packs of cigarettes a day.

The study results were presented in San Diego on Tuesday at a meeting of the American Thoracic Society.

The study was confined to people under age 60 since baby boomers were the most likely age group to have long-term exposure to marijuana, said Dr. Donald Tashkin, senior researcher and professor at the UCLA School of Medicine.

The results should not be taken as a blank check to smoke pot, which has been associated with problems like cognitive impairment and chronic bronchitis, said Dr. John Hansen-Flaschen, chief of pulmonary and critical care at the University of Pennsylvania Health System in Philadelphia. He was not involved in the study.

Previous studies showed marijuana tar contained about 50 percent more of the chemicals linked to lung cancer, compared with tobacco tar, Tashkin said. In addition, smoking a marijuana joint deposits four times more tar in the lungs than smoking an equivalent amount of tobacco.

"Marijuana is packed more loosely than tobacco, so there's less filtration through the rod of the cigarette, so more particles will be inhaled," Tashkin said in a statement. "And marijuana smokers typically smoke differently than tobacco smokers -- they hold their breath about four times longer, allowing more time for extra fine particles to deposit in the lung."

He theorized that tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, a chemical in marijuana smoke that produces its psychotropic effect, may encourage aging, damaged cells to die off before they become cancerous.

Hansen-Flaschen also cautioned a cancer-marijuana link could emerge as baby boomers age and there may be smaller population groups, based on genetics or other factors, still at risk for marijuana-related cancers.




Alcohol and tobacco are deadlier than ecstasy, report warns



Jamie Doward, home affairs editor
Sunday March 4, 2007
The Observer (http://www.observer.co.uk/)

The government is to be urged to consider a controversial plan to reclassify drugs according to the harm they do. The new ranking system would see alcohol placed high on the scale because of its links to violence and car accidents. Tobacco, estimated to cause 40 per cent of all hospital illnesses, would also come before the class-A drug ecstasy.However, there is no suggestion that alcohol and tobacco should be banned. The Royal Society for the Encouragement of Arts, Manufactures & Commerce's commission on illegal drugs, communities and public policy has been examining what it believes is a 'serious misfit between the law relating to drugs and the way in which drugs are actually used by members of society'.



The commission, which includes John Yates, the Metropolitan Police's assistant commissioner, has heard evidence from experts and charities in a bid to find ways of making the UK's drugs laws more effective.It has highlighted a study carried out by a team led by Colin Blakemore, chief executive of the Medical Research Council, that suggests classification should not be linked to penalties for drug possession but rather the relative risks involved in taking them.
The study of 20 drugs - both legal and illegal - weighed up their physical harm, their relative addictiveness and the impact they have on wider society, to produce a new 'rational' league table.
Blakemore suggests current drugs laws are outdated. 'The system has evolved in an unsystematic way from somewhat arbitrary foundations with seemingly little scientific basis. We suggest a new system for evaluating the risks of individual drugs that is based as far as possible on facts and scientific knowledge. It could form the basis of a new classification scheme for the Misuse of Drugs Act.'

The Drugs league table
Drugs assessed in order of danger
1 Heroin
2 Cocaine
3 Barbiturates
4 Street methadone
5 Alcohol
6 Ketamine
7 Benzodiazepine
8 Amphetamines
9 Tobacco
10 Buprenorphine
11 Cannabis
12 Solvents
13 4-MTA
14 LSD
15 Methylphenidate
16 Anabolic steroids
17 GHB
18 Ecstasy
19 Alkyl nitrates
20 Khat

[Bishop]

Cannabis is more dangerous than ecstacy!? I wonder what type of ecstacy they used. Must have been cheap.

[Hi Im God]

Yeah not sure how much I'd take that list to heart.

[AshCrestedHeart]

woah woah, I may not want it legalized but it I'd rather smoke 40 grams of pot, and fight for it's legalization than have ecstacy legal. There is no way weed is more dangerous than e, concidering a lot of people die from doing E once when it meshes badly with their body.

[mister_manji]

the legalization of pot would add yet another liscensing system to the already oversized state and federal government. it would, however, free up some prison beds, which is needed everywhere. i dont have a personal problem with it. of course there would have to be laws. you should only be able to smoke it at certain areas, such as your own home or a 'hash bar' or something like that. obviously no smoking and driving.

[Deputy Myself]

lol, it is legal over here

kids smoke it between classes

[mister_manji]

where is 'over here'?

[Hi Im God]

There is no way weed is more dangerous than e, concidering a lot of people die from doing E once when it meshes badly with their body.

Chances are that’s not E that kills them it's what whatever dealer decides to cut the pill with. Which is a huge point of this issue. When it's not regulated you have shady people doing shady things.

Saying a friend died on ecstasy, could mean a friend died taking what they thought was ecstasy but was really DXM/XYZdrug some guy made in his basement.
The fact that drugs are illegal makes them unregulated the fact that users and their preachy friends don't research what they put in their bodies nor understand moderation and harm reduction methods, is what makes drugs dangerous.
You will find it hard pressed to find any deaths linked to the use of pure ecstasy from a regulated lab used as prescribed. However you hear plenty of horror stories of X that kills (were as it's really what they THOUGHT was ecstasy) or other combinations of outside influences such as Ecstasy AND other narcotics, Ecstasy and over-hydration, Ecstasy and over over-exertion ect.

It's like tylenol one won't mesh badly with anyone unless its overdosed, used not as intended, bought from a guy on the street ect.

Anyway a little off topic but same can be said for weed et all. I'm not going to add much more with majority of this board are under the war on drugs and misinformation issues I don't think this post will go so well too many pre-concived notions floating around.

[hcheng02]

They could avoid a whole lot of controversy and still help plenty of people if they just limit the legalization to medical and research purposes. I don't think anyone would vote against that and then people who really need it can get it. Politicians can still look good without making it seem like they are encouraging people to get high.

[Itanji Kuraisu]

Hey, hey, hey.

Smoke deew everyday!

[CurvingEdge]

alchohal and tobacco do as much if more damage than weed imo will ever do...

I dont smoke weed..I have tried on a couple of occasions ... it aint my bag

law enforcement is spending alot of money to crack down on this...and people are wasting tax money in jail just for poss of weed...imagine if it was legal...money could* be spent elsewhere like our crappy roads in Cali

so effect wise no better than alchohal or tobbacco....

[X]

I think one of the reasons weed is illegal is because it makes you high. :/ Unlike smoking tabacco. But in my opinion, it should be legalized, but maybe increased price or maybe give out special conditions to control the sale, since smoking is bad for the health. :P

[Pontago]

Well first of all, after years of biased and prejudiced information, people have been told lies and been made to look down on smokers as people with no future, ambition or drive in life. This is simply bullshit, and it may take many more years to erase the damage caused by ignorant authorities. Of course no one is saying marijuana is harmless, it has its consequences like all things, but its legality status, as of now a Schedule I drug which is the harshest type of control enacted as of now. To be classified as Schedule I, the drug must fit into a set of rules:


(A) The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse.
(B) The drug or other substance has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States.
(C) There is a lack of accepted safety for use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.


Saying we abuse marijuana when we smoke it is not in the least bit true because we're dealing with something that has no potential for addiction and will not seriously harm anyone else from the smokers use. Cancer is possibly the biggest issue from smoking, but it's something we';re willing to deal with, especially because if legalized, many ways of ingesting marijuana and absorbing THC, marijuanas active ingredient for anyone who doesn't know, such as vaporizers, water bongs, and the oral ingestion of marijuana, however, it requires a lot more marijuana to gain the same high as smoking it, and many people are not willing to pay the extra money. Of course, we will continue to smoke, eat, vaporize and ingest marijuana whether it is legalized or not, however, it would mean a great reduction of social and health risks if it were legalized, so if anything, keep real actual harmful drugs OFF the streets and allow marijuana because alcohol not only has the potential for addiction in 3 months or less, it also poses bigger health risks.


New developements and research done by people with unbiased agendas, people who really want to find out the effects of marijuana to better the general populace as well as smokers, have unearthed information i'd like to share with any who care as well as give internet sites as a reference for anyone who'd like to help in the fight to do what we love.



Myth: Pot kills brain cells
Government experts now admit that pot doesn't kill brain cells.(8) This myth came from a handful of animal experiments in which structural changes (not actual cell death, as is often alleged) were observed in brain cells of animals exposed to high doses of pot. Many critics still cite the notorious monkey studies of Dr. Robert G. Heath, which purported to find brain damage in three monkeys that had been heavily dosed with cannabis.(9) This work was never replicated and has since been discredited by a pair of better controlled, much larger monkey studies, one by Dr. William Slikker of the National Center for Toxicological Research(10) and the other by Charles Rebert and Gordon Pryor of SRI International.(11) Neither found any evidence of physical alteration in the brains of monkeys exposed to daily doses of pot for up to a year. Human studies of heavy users in Jamaica and Costa Rica found no evidence of abnormalities in brain physiology.(12) Even though there is no evidence that pot causes permanent brain damage, users should be aware that persistent deficits in short-term memory have been noted in chronic, heavy marijuana smokers after 6 to 12 weeks of abstinence.(13) It is worth noting that other drugs, including alcohol, are known to cause brain damage.


Myth: Marijuana causes sterility and lowers testosterone
Government experts also concede that pot has no permanent effect on the male or female reproductive systems.(14) A few studies have suggested that heavy marijuana use may have a reversible, suppressive effect on male testicular function.(15) A recent study by Dr. Robert Block has refuted earlier research suggesting that pot lowers testosterone or other sex hormones in men or women.(16) In contrast, heavy alcohol drinking is known to lower testosterone levels and cause impotence. A couple of lab studies indicated that very heavy marijuana smoking might lower sperm counts. However, surveys of chronic smokers have turned up no indication of infertility or other abnormalities.
Less is known about the effects of cannabis on human females. Some animal studies suggest that pot might temporarily lower fertility or increase the risk of fetal loss, but this evidence is of dubious relevance to humans.(1) One human study suggested that pot may mildly disrupt ovulation. It is possible that adolescents are peculiarly vulnerable to hormonal disruptions from pot. However, not a single case of impaired fertility has ever been observed in humans of either sex.




Myth: Prohibition reduces the harmfulness of pot smoking
Whatever the risks of pot smoking, the current laws make matters worse in several respects:
Paraphernalia laws have impeded the development and marketing of water pipes and other, more advanced technology that could significantly reduce the harmfulness of marijuana smoke.
Prohibition encourages the sale of pot that has been contaminated or adulterated by insecticides, Paraquat, etc., or mixed with other drugs such as PCP, crack and heroin.
By raising the price of marijuana, prohibition makes it uneconomical to consume marijuana orally, the best way to avoid smoke exposure altogether; this is because eating typically requires two or three times as much marijuana as smoking.
Unlike the government, NORML is interested in reducing the dangers of pot smoking; California NORML and MAPS (the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies) are currently researching the use of waterpipes and other advanced smoke reduction technology.
References on Marijuana and Smoking: Donald Tashkin, Is Frequent Marijuana Smoking Hazardous To Health?, Western Journal of Medicine 158 #6: 635-7; June 1993; Research Findings on Smoking of Abused Substances, ed. C. Nora Chiang and Richard L. Hawks, NIDA Research Monograph 99 (National Institute on Drug Abuse, Rockville, MD 1990); NAS Report,op. cit.; California NORML, Health Tips for Marijuana Smokers...


Myth: Marijuana is a dangerous drug
Any discussion of marijuana should begin with the fact that there have been numerous official reports and studies, every one of which has concluded that marijuana poses no great risk to society and should not be criminalized. These include:
the National Academy of Sciences Analysis of Marijuana Policy (1982);
the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse (the Shafer Report) (1973);
the Canadian Government's Commission of Inquiry (Le Dain Report) (1970);
the British Advisory Committee on Drug Dependency (Wooton Report) (1968);
the La Guardia Report (1944);
the Panama Canal Zone Military Investigations (1916-29);
and Britain's monumental Indian Hemp Drugs Commission (1893-4).
It is sometimes claimed that there is ``new evidence'' showing marijuana is more harmful than was thought in the sixties. In fact, the most recent studies have tended to confirm marijuana's safety, refuting claims that it causes birth defects, brain damag e, reduced testosterone, or increased drug abuse problems.
The current consensus is well stated in the 20th annual report of the California Research Advisory Panel (1990), which recommended that personal use and cultivation of marijuana be legalized: "An objective consideration of marijuana shows that it is respo nsible for less damage to society and the individual than are alcohol and cigarettes."


References: The National Academy of Sciences report, Marijuana and Health (National Academy Press, 1982), remains the most useful overview of the health effects of marijuana, its major conclusions remaining largely unaffected by the last 10 years of research. Lovinger and Jones, The Marihuana Question (Dod d, Mead & Co., NY 1985), is the most exhaustive and fair-handed summary of the evidence against marijuana. Good, positive perspectives may be found in Lester Grinspoon's Marihuana, the Forbidden Medicine (Yale Press, 1993) and Marihuana Reconsidere d (Harvard U. Press 1971), which debunks many of the older anti-pot myths. See also Leo Hollister, Health Aspects of Cannabis, Pharmacological Reviews 38:1-20 (1986).

Many sites will be listed in the future as I stumble upon them or they are recomended to me.

http://www.norml.org
http://paranoia.lycaeum.org/marijuana/facts/mj-health-mythology.html#myth12
google is a very useful tool as well. google search: marijuana health hazards
The Kottonmouth Kings myspace, towards the bottom, is also very useful in listing websites.

[Fulcata]

Yeah it needs to be legalized..I dont want cops harassing me while I smoke my blunt in peace, whether it be on my house, my yard, street, car or parks..I think weed should be legalized but the government are just scared and ashamed that they might get a bad rep like all their citizens are pot-heads...Plus medicine corporations would lose billions cuz of marijuana can be substituted for their products..

Actually, THC (The Active ingredient in marijuana) pills are both cheaper and more effective than actually smoking marijuana. It's a higher concentration, and it's absorbed by the stomach, instead of the lungs. Smoking ANYTHING damages the capillaries in your lungs lining.

Now, personally, I don't have any problem with marijuana. But, unfortunatly, In the U.S. this is what I like to call a "Granny-topic". One of things mothers get behind, not because they knbow anything about it, but because they think it's bad. Sorta like Rock and Roll in the 70's, or Pornography and Comics in the 80's (Nearly banned Batman, lol.) It's hard to fight in Congress, because it can't be taxed, and there's no actual use for it anymore. I say it can not be taxed because, it's all smuggled. There's no corporation. Just farmers and Cartels.

[AestheticizeAnalog]

I cannot think of a good reason why any drugs are illegal. A person owns their body and thus they have the right to do with it what they please. Making drugs illegal is like making tattooing or self mutilation illegal. We may not approve of the latter, but it is a person's right since their body is their property. The state does not own our bodies.

[Taleran]

I Have never heard a single logical reason in which this shouldn't be legal


-its safer than cigs and beer
-itd make a shit load of money for the government if they learned to market it (this is also why I believe that eventually all illegal drugs will be legal)
-non-toxic
-noone in human history had died of overdose of it.


EDIT: agreed with guy above me aswell (stupid same time posts)(and it seems to me we tend to agree alot)

[Kyon]

I cannot think of a good reason why any drugs are illegal. A person owns their body and thus they have the right to do with it what they please. Making drugs illegal is like making tattooing or self mutilation illegal. We may not approve of the latter, but it is a person's right since their body is their property. The state does not own our bodies.

Even so, the government likes to try and protect people from themselves. They feel it is their job to keep their people safe (which is true) and thus ban things that would severely damage the health of people. However, there are things where the government has gone too far.

I think pot is one of them. It has shown substantially lesser health risks than tobacco and alcohol, and it's not like it's hard to pass laws restricting what you can do on it, just like tobacco and alcohol.

I have yet to see a good anti-pot argument, though. :oh

[CurvingEdge]

protect people from themselves? alchohol is responsible for so many deaths..yet its legal..i dont even have to go into tobbacco

[~SombreroSwordsman~]

i do believe it should be legale, even tho i dont smoke it

but do you think if it did become legal, it would be as fun to do??since its illeagl, thats what makes people want to do it, ya know?>

[Kyon]

protect people from themselves? alchohol is responsible for so many deaths..yet its legal..i dont even have to go into tobbacco

The government tried prohibition.

Didn't work, so they legalized it to make a profit (among other reasons). Honestly, I don't see a difference between that and the current status of marijuana.

You lose tobacco, you lose a lot of jobs.

[Shadow Slayer]

Weed needs to be legalized. There have been no cases that I know of, of people dying from smoking too much weed. But we allow alcohol and Cigarette's which there have been cases of death. There is no reason for it to be illegal.

P.S. Sex is so much better when your high!

[Jessica]

Weed needs to be legalized. There have been no cases that I know of, of people dying from smoking too much weed. But we allow alcohol and Cigarette's which there have been cases of death. There is no reason for it to be illegal.

P.S. Sex is so much better when your high!

It's completely harmless, it does nothing to anybody. The only thing it can possibly do is bother people who do not like the smell.

I only gave it up because I didn't want something so stupid to ruin my image, because thanks to the government and the media, anyone who smokes pot is a criminal. Why? Because there is no profit in clean burning, harmless marijuana.. As opposed to cancerous cigarettes which kill thousands of people every year, even if they don't smoke.. But damn it, there's a profit so let's keep the deadly one legal!

[Elijah Snow]

The way I see it if Alcohol is legal so should weed. Alcohol can make people very violent and you can get addicted to the substance and permanently damage your body and potentially harm your family.

To this day I have yet to meet a person addicted to weed. And stoner's, when stoned, are so mellow and harmless it's almost funny.

[X]

It's completely harmless, it does nothing to anybody. The only thing it can possibly do is bother people who do not like the smell.

Doesn't it have the same effects as tabacco to the lungs?

[Jessica]

Doesn't it have the same effects as tabacco to the lungs?

I was ready for that. :D

Unlike tobacco, cannabis has not been shown to cause emphysema, lung cancer, or chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Other studies have suggested that cannabis use by expectant mothers does not appear to cause birth defects or developmental delays in their newborn children. According to a United Kingdom government report, using cannabis is less dangerous than both tobacco and alcohol in social harms, physical harm and addiction.

[Taleran]

damn I wanted to shoot down that misconception :(

[Fulcata]

I cannot think of a good reason why any drugs are illegal. A person owns their body and thus they have the right to do with it what they please. Making drugs illegal is like making tattooing or self mutilation illegal. We may not approve of the latter, but it is a person's right since their body is their property. The state does not own our bodies.

I agree with you but, your second statement is inaccurate.
Tattoos and self-mutilation don't normally alter your state-of-mind, nor do they impair your thinking ability. What I'm getting at is, a tattoo itself isn't going to cause a car crash, or other dangerous situation.

Like I said earlier, the topic of Cannabis is a "Granny-topic". Lots, and lots, and lots of things that are completely legal, on the other hand, will do exactly this. It's wrong (As are all things) only because people think so.
In my experience, Opinions are much harder to change than facts.

[Taleran]

It should be the rights of every free person to injest into their bodies whatever they want as long as it isn't causing physical harm to someone else. (assault is still a crime)

[AestheticizeAnalog]

I agree with you but, your second statement is inaccurate.
Tattoos and self-mutilation don't normally alter your state-of-mind, nor do they impair your thinking ability. What I'm getting at is, a tattoo itself isn't going to cause a car crash, or other dangerous situation.

Like I said earlier, the topic of Cannabis is a "Granny-topic". Lots, and lots, and lots of things that are completely legal, on the other hand, will do exactly this. It's wrong (As are all things) only because people think so.
In my experience, Opinions are much harder to change than facts.

Yes, but it is not inherent in taking a mind-altering substance that you will commit a crime or crash a car. So I will concede that mine was an ill concieved comparison. But that was not the point. The point was that people are self-owners and until they perform an act that violates another's liberty we cant stop them from doing anything to their bodies.

[Yadel]

Smoking tobacco, and drinking alcohol are accepted as social ways of recreation. Weed isn't.
Kind of the same reason why being nude in public is considered indecent exposure.

P.S. overdose of anything will kill you.(For those who say no one ever died overdosing on weed)

[Psycho]

Smoking tobacco, and drinking alcohol are accepted as social ways of recreation. Weed isn't.
Kind of the same reason why being nude in public is considered indecent exposure.

P.S. overdose of anything will kill you.(For those who say no one ever died overdosing on weed)

no one ever dies of weed OD, the LD50 of weed is 15 tons in under 15 minutes, and since one blunt weights about o,9 grams, and after the 15 blunt, you can't even light anoother one, i guess it's pretty safe

(OD= over dose, LD50 = lethal dose for 50% [half the test subjects died of this amount on their blood])

basicly to OD in weed, you need to smoke more then you breathe

[Yadel]

Well... it's still not accepted socially. xD
Thank you though, it never hurts to learn something new.

[The Internet]

Well... it's still not accepted socially. xD

Because the facts of weed spread throughout mainstream media makes it sound bad, makes it sound deadly, makes it sound horrible and the causes for so much death, when in fact it's a harmless, fun little drug that is actually really nice to smoke every now and then.

[Yadel]

I don't know about that. At school every little DARE demonstration they made us attend only presented the evils of weed the way commercials do it, they usually showed us accidents involving someone under the influence of weed, and the person in the other car dying. They never portrayed weed as actually being able to kill you.

The whole being socially acceptable deals more with the taboo of just doing it, not its consequences. Like having sex with an animal or something, it may not be detrimental torward your health, but people won't look at you the same way if you do it. The same goes for smoking weed I guess.

[Taleran]

I don't know about that. At school every little DARE demonstration they made us attend only presented the evils of weed the way commercials do it, they usually showed us accidents involving someone under the influence of weed, and the person in the other car dying. They never portrayed weed as actually being able to kill you.

The whole being socially acceptable deals more with the taboo of just doing it, not its consequences. Like having sex with an animal or something, it may not be detrimental torward your health, but people won't look at you the same way if you do it. The same goes for smoking weed I guess.


yes but your missing the point


Alcohol is legal

Drunk Driving is Not

Smoking Pot is Not

Driving High is Not

see where I'm going with this?

you can't use something that someone might do as a means to keep said thing illegal, that'd be like banning knives because theres a chance we could all stab someone one day.

[Psycho]

people very high on pot are most likely to out-of-their-minds to even put the key in the ignition, imagine actually drive