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Can we talk about weed?

Discussion in 'Chit Chat' started by Love4Ever, Nov 17, 2018.

?

What are your thoughts on weed?

  1. I smoke weed and think it should be legal

    24 vote(s)
    40.7%
  2. I don't smoke weed but it should be legal because I don't care if others do

    28 vote(s)
    47.5%
  3. I don't smoke weed and don't agree with legalizing it

    7 vote(s)
    11.9%
  1. Austin

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    I don’t smoke weed. I think it should be demoted to a lower class drug (not up there with heroin) with lesser punishment. It should also be legalized to research the components for their therapeutic effects etc (like opioids). Recreational use shouldn’t be legal. We already have enough legal garbage.
     
  2. LaurenSkye

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    I very much against the idea of legalizing it. Getting high is not a good thing (nor is getting drunk), but unlike alcohol, it only takes one joint to get high. Plus, seems like every time I am at the bus stop someone near me is smoking cigarettes, and that bothers me and I have to stand away from them. It would only be worse with weed.
     
  3. Brandy Bee

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    Also Canadian, definitely not akin to cigarettes because it impairs your ability to function in most situations.
    I've smoked more of this stuff in the past than I care to admit. I do not think the government should be involved in the retail sale of pot as it is a sign of a government without a better plan to generate revenue.
    Decriminalized. Definitely. But legal to the point of government having a vested interest in a stoned citizenry, no.
    Trust me, smoking weed besides medical purposes, isn't doing you any favors in life.
     
  4. Mihael

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    What is your view on marijuana causing mental health issues, if I can ask? Few people have the predisposition for schizophrenia, however, I have seen first hand this drug cause other mental-emotional health problems even after one time usage.
    Is this ease with which marijuana causes problems because it’s influence on the nervous system is stronger than that of alcohol, caffeine and other widely accepted substances? That is the largest problem with it in my opinion, the ease with which it triggers things.
     
  5. Chip

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    There is little to no objective evidence that marijuana causes mental health issues, especially after a single use. However, there is some evidence that among people who already have predispositions to various issues (anxiety, depression, schizophrenia or other schizoaffective-spectrum disorders, various other psychotic spectrum disorders), marijuana can trigger those issues, and in a few cases, it does seem to happen after a single use. (The same can be said for mushrooms or LSD or other psychedelics.) The likely method of action is the impact of marijuana on specific neurotransmitter pathways that may already be either overactive or deficient in an individual.

    This, according to the most current research, is also true of just about every other drug of abuse as well, because for the most part, marijuana acts on the same pathways as other drugs of abuse.

    The interesting thing about marijuana is that it is considered an "all-arounder", meaning it is not simply a sedative/hypnotic or an amphetamine or a psychedelic, yet, depending on the strain and the level of active ingredients (principally CBD and THC) it can act as any or all of these.

    Also, the objective clinical data on use of marijuana for most mental health related disorders is pretty scant; while there are some limited reports, and some very good data on, for example, glaucoma, appetite enhancement in cancer patients, and a few other things, much of the purported value appears to not really stand up to rigorous evaluation. One of the big problems is that so many of the studies are outright crap funded by pro-marijuana groups, so it can be hard to discern, unless you really know how to read methodology (and sometimes to read between the lines).

    But as far as marijuana causing mental health issues... I'll agree that like others principally in the amphetamine and psychedelic class, it can exacerbate traits that already exist (even if not noticeable beforehand), but that is, to the best of my knowledge, as far as we can reasonably carry that idea.
     
    #105 Chip, Dec 1, 2018
    Last edited: Dec 1, 2018
  6. Mihael

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    It's possible that those people I know had some predispositions to mood disorders, however, nothing indicated that they were feeling unwell to such a degree. I mean, before using the drug, what they experienced wasn't outside the norm. I'm sure those people weren't able to tell either and this is why they somked it. This is why I find the whole "knowing how you feel" bollocks. You're not going to know. You don't know what happens unless you try. You just won't. Well, just my three cents on the topic. It's just risky to smoke weed. And depression isn't fun. Nor is anxiety and nor is mania.

    Yes, unfortunately there are groups who have an interest in advertising marijuana and people who just are uncritically enthusiastic about weed. Who caught the bug, so to say. Bad scientific practice is a thing, unfortunately. Especially when someone has an interest in getting certain results.

    Thanks for your reply. It's good to know the explanation why such things happen to some people and not others.
     
  7. Ryu

    Ryu
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    I do think it's fun.
    If I have two or three free periods back to back at school I might go out with a couple friends to get high, I did today incidentally
    One thing I like about it is that from my experience its like being drunk but it's incredibly hard to go over my limit. When I'm drinking I always try to drink more than I should, and I know it. I've been sick at so many parties by this point people don't want me at them, but with weed it hits me fairly slowly and it has all the good things about being drunk without any of the bad being sick and hangover bits.
     
  8. Cherub786

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    Without commenting on whether weed should be decriminalized (I feel it should remain criminalized), I don't understand why it is celebrated and promoted, when the liberal worldview long ago decided to discourage, and I mean strongly discourage with a very committed educational campaign, cigarettes and other tobacco products. This new promotion of weed is turning back the clock on the campaign to move beyond harmful substances to health. It is merely a cultural symbol that has become associated with the Left which is why it is promoted, and that is a huge double standard, very inconsistent.
     
  9. Batman

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    Agreed : ) I genuinely love being able to give my pot money to the government. I do find that the legalization of pot here has opened a number of peoples minds and led to some very interesting discussion on the topic. Also glad that loads more research can be done on it now!

    Yeah I'm also in the edibles/sublingual camp :stuck_out_tongue_closed_eyes: I'm very excited for regulations around edibles to come out! Excited for people to be able to better understand the dosage they are taking and for there to be federally inspected producers. So many people are interested in edible forms of marijuana but have terrible experiences as they only have access to unreliable homemade goodies from friends and take too high a dose. So excited for transparency and accountability of commercialized edible producers!!
     
  10. mychemromance99

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    I don't mind smoking in moderation.

    It's not legal in my country, but it is readily available, all you need to do is look for it in the right places.

    I smoke weed occasionally, usually with friends, but I tend to suffer from temporary derealization for awhile even after sobering up.
     
  11. MsSparkles

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    I smoke weed and am very pro legalization.
    I think past an early boom where everyone would just do it all the time because they now can, it'll eventually normalize and be used like alcohol is for the most part. During social events.
     
  12. Libertino

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    Does the condemnation of weed on the Right come from health concerns or its association with the hippie movement and the Left?

    If we are going to evaluate the legality of weed on health alone, then the politicization of it needs to be eliminated.
     
  13. Chiroptera

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    I don't smoke weed, but I support the legalization. For me, it is a matter that should be handled by the public health department/agencies, instead of the police and brute force.

    I think legalizing it would facilitate discussions about it. That includes helping people to see that the plant has some benefits in medicine, but also that is has downsides and it isn't as unharmful as some people say (especially when smoked).

    I have some friends who use weed, and they are great people. The Brazilian society usually see those people as vagabonds and criminals, and I think that's false for a lot of people (maybe most) - you can't judge someone based on their personal decision to use a certain substance (aside from psychological issues, which I'm not qualified to comment on).

    On the other hand, like I said, and I think it is important to repeat this, regardless of the morals involved, there are health risks involved in smoking weed. It doesn't justify violence and using the police to attack users, but it doesn't change the fact that it may be hazardous to one's health. Therefore, as with any drug or substance, legal or not, we need to study it and be really careful when making our personal decisions.
     
  14. Doopz

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    I have smoked it before, and I currently use the CBD oil to help with my anxiety. Though I do agree more research needs to be done on it's effects, but what we have seen currently it isn't much worse than methanol, hell in certain cases it's been shown to be quite useful. Again, going back to my borderline Agoraphobia caused by my anxiety, the prescription medication they'd give me would make me feel like a zombie, though the CBD does not have that and still helps with my anxiety, and from what I've seen it's not an isolated case.

    And on the case of recreational use, it isn't much worse than a lot of the drugs that are legal and that we already consume, the main ones being methanol and caffeine. So, in general, I agree with its legalization for research, medical and recreational use.
     
  15. phoenix89

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    I prefer edibles. Even though it is illegal in Ohio my Dad used edibles when he first got diagnosed with cancer and it helped. I would like my grandma to use it so that she can eat because she has no appetite because she lost half of her stomach due to a blown stomach ulcer.
     
  16. beenthrdonetht

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    For the same reason that slingshots and AK-47s and nuclear weapons are subject to different regulations.

    Moreover, it is completely fallacious that the "liberal worldview" has anything to do with the fact that tobacco smoking is linked to 80% of lung cancer deaths. (CDC - What Are the Risk Factors for Lung Cancer?https://www.cdc.gov/cancer/lung/basic_info/risk_factors.htm) What's not to discourage? Have all U.S. Surgeons-General (not to mention most other doctors) been promoting "liberal worldviews"?
     
    #116 beenthrdonetht, Dec 31, 2018
    Last edited: Dec 31, 2018