Your feelings on marijuana...

Wonder what the over all thoughts of this substance are. It seems as time moves on it's more socially acceptable even though in most places it is still illegal. I will admit to trying it a couple times, but not really my thing. I also don't drink alcohol, my biggest addiction would probably be caffeine.

To be honest till recently I didn't think a whole lot about it either way. But I have a childhood friend that is a juvenile probation officer. She mentioned she feels that marijuana has to be addicting. I asked her to explain and this is pretty much what she said. I have kids that come to me in trouble, and I give them the rundown of what I expect. One of them being that I will do random drug tests, and should I catch them with any substances in their sample, I will send their paperwork right to the D.A., but if they stay clean, and follow my rules this will all be done with in the allotted time. She said you would be amazed at how many test positive. Even if she warns them ahead of time that the test is coming, and the have to stay clean for it.

For me this had kind of an enlightening effect.

What are your thoughts...

 

I love marijuana. I haven't smoked it in many years, but I loved it when I did.

Marijuana is not addicting. Her observations don't prove anything. People smoke pot when they know there's a chance they'll get popped on a drug test all the time not because it's addicting but because the idea of getting caught is 'vague.' Want to highlight the difference between pot and a truly addicting drug like meth or heroin...or alcohol!...then observe two things: 1) the lengths to which people will go to get it and 2) the effect it has on a person in withdrawal. Pot should be legal. It is far less harmful to the body than alcohol and far less addictive.

 

I appreciate your feelings about pot and respect them. I also feel however that the comparison to Herion or Meth irrelevant, bringing that up only side steps the discussion. Being less harmful than something else does not make it ok. As far as being vague, I don't think I can agree with you there at all, to tell someone that in a week they will be tested, is pretty straight forward, and anyone with common sense can understand cause and effect.

 

I have to admit, when I saw the title of the thread, my first reaction was "pretty chill, usually, and sometimes a little giggly."

As a lot of folks here know, I am a staunch advocate of legalizing most drugs (though I would wish them all regulated, either like alcohol or cigarettes or like common pharmaceuticals, depending on the drug in question); but I am deeply passionate about legalizing marijuana. It is not a physically addictive substance (though in some cases it can be psychologically addictive), and it is far less dangerous to one's health that nearly any other intoxicant, save only if it is smoked incessantly, in very high amounts on a daily basis (in which case there are concerns about carcinogens in the smoke). I believe strongly that it was made illegal and remains illegal in large part due to the pressure on the government from industries that would be negatively affected by making it legal: logging (since hemp can be made into paper and particle-board of equal quality and less cost than wood), cotton (since hemp can be woven into cloth of equal quality and less cost than cotton or linen), oil (since hemp seed can produce oil often easily able to replace petroleum products in industrial, plastic making, or even fuel uses), alcohol (since it is a cheaply produced and popular low-level intoxicant), and pharmaceuticals (since it is a cheap and natural remedy for many dozens of conditions, and can readily be grown at home, thus avoiding having to pay pharmaceutical companies for expensive synthetic drugs), and now also the prison-industrial complex (given that marijuana users, growers, and sellers make up the vast bulk of imprisoned drug violators, and thus fund the privatized prisons of our nation). I also think it was made illegal for racist and classist reasons, and is being kept illegal for similar reasons.

There is, IMO, very little decent reason that marijuana should be illegal, and ample evidence that it does little harm if decriminalized or legalized and regulated. Right now our prisons are over-stuffed, and our justice system is taxed to maximum by the overabundance of petty drug cases, and often nonviolent marijuana offenders are given grossly draconian sentences: much could be relieved by making it legal, or at least decriminalizing it. Legalization would also help break the backs-- or at least kneecap-- the drug cartels, which rely on marijuana for their core profits: much like legalizing alcohol dealt a huge blow to organized crime during Prohibition.

Prohibition doesn't work, especially if everyone knows that what is being prohibited is relatively harmless and the law is stupid, and that the law is otherwise in other places, to no ill effect. People drank all the time during Prohibition, even though they knew that raids and arrests were common-- the same thing is going on with people who smoke marijuana. Though in the case of your friend's juvenile offenders, it's probably also exacerbated a lot by the fact that they're kids, and thus consistently can be relied upon to make irresponsible choices, and also that they're probably getting high to some degree to self-medicate to deal with the stresses and difficulties of their lives. I don't think that means that marijuana is generally addictive.

Personally, I have to say that marijuana is my intoxicant of choice: I drink alcohol only for flavor, and not in great amounts-- I haven't gotten really drunk since my early twenties, and I seldom even drink enough to get a buzz going. I don't like the buzz of getting drunk: it makes me feel rowdy and stimulated, not relaxed and chill. After a hard day or when chilling with friends, I have a toke or two, and get mellow. I don't often smoke enough to get wasted blasted, just enough to get happy and relaxed, which isn't much at all, since I get very high-quality weed.

 

Giving 'random drug tests' is not the same as telling some one 'you'll be drug tested in a week.' Random drug testing is very literally a vague concept. And I'm pretty sure that she'd use the former rather than the latter. Telling someone, in a week you'll be drug tested, most pot smokers will quit until the test is over.

Show me some scientific evidence that pot is addictive. I know there have been studies done that prove otherwise.

I'm not sure how bringing up drugs that are proven to be addictive side steps anything, but it gives me a pretty good idea of where this debate is going.
--- merged: Apr 21, 2013 8:06 PM ---
and, of course, children think of risk in markedly different ways than most adults due to stages of both biological and psychological development. I don't see how someone can just conclude that black is white because they work at a job and observed something that made them think otherwise.

 

Legalize it and jack up the taxes on doritos.

 

Colorado’s first legal ‘420’ rally marred by gunfire | The Lookout - Yahoo! News

I was just going to create a thread like this after reading this article.

I was in San Francisco last weekend, and I heard that there were going to be thousands of people at Hippie Hill this weekend.
hippie hill san francisco 420 - Yahoo! Search Results

Now, I've never done it. I should have in college a few times. And now I can't until I lose or retire from my job.

I have no problem with it, I just don't think it should be glamorized (except on 4-20). I think the medical industry really needs to look into how effective it is for some patients.

The Federal government (read Obama) really needs to make it a state issue or just decriminalize the use of it. If you grow or sell commercial levels of the stuff, that is a problem for me. But, I also think it should be taxed and price controlled by the government. And people should be able to grow a few plants for themselves.

 

I rather deal with someone stoned on pot than trashed on booze. Tried both and not addicted to either. It's not as bad as the Feds want you to think. And I know some cancer patients who have said it's been a great help with their pain and loss of weight. The USA has bigger criminals to deal with and should let the weekend smoker do whatever he/she wants if it's smoking a little weed.

 

I am very pleased with Mary Jane when I am associating with her. We used to better friends, but have grown apart through the years. One day though I hope to have her back in my life.

 

Colorado MMJ laws are inclusive enough that anyone over 40 has some condition that qualifies. I'm over 40 and live in CO.

It's been legal to everyone since the beginning of the year. The world didn't come to an end.

 

I don't like partaking... it makes me sleepy more than relaxed. I also had a tendency to have conversations with people in my head, and I'd get frustrated when they weren't following along (this was, I'm told, pretty hilarious sometimes.)

That said, I don't see any reason it shouldn't be legal. Regulate it, tax it, move on.

 

I did it when I was younger but don't anymore. I do feel that due to this and a number of other hallucinogenic drugs, my mental compacity has been diminished in the areas of focus and memory. There is a very clear difference in my thinking between before and afterwards.

I personally feel that alcohol is a far more dangerous drug than marijuana. Of course there are degrees to the matter but a person that is stoned is probably less likely to get in a car accident than someone that is drunk. In fact, he might be a little too careful. Anyone that has ever been high knows what I mean by that

 

I had fun in the 70s. Marijuana was occasionally part of that fun. I also drank to excess, maybe more than occasionally. Not only legal but drinking was obviously socially acceptable, so I consumed alcohol more frequently. But if I had my choice it would have been marijuana. I did some stupid things while drunk. I felt like crap the day after getting drunk. I really am lucky i didn't get picked up for drunk driving. I fell asleep after getting stoned. Big difference. Occasionally through the years I'd enjoy a smoke but I haven't in several years. The last was a chocolate chip cookie made with marijuana butter at a party. Excuse me while I leave the planet, I couldn't have gotten in trouble had I wanted too. I really don't ever need to get that wasted again, ever. The potency compared to what I had in the 70s is impressive. I'm not sure I would partake now though, I just don't have the time to zone out. As a regulated and legal substance, why not? Maybe in my retirement when I have more time on my hands....

 

One could argue that because I didn't do marijuana with my friends on Spring Break that led to me becoming depressed with how I was living my life.

 

There are strains of weed that are said to be good natural anti-depressants, and so they were usually noted at the dispensaries I used to frequent in L.A. But I can't vouch for their efficacy, as I don't use anti-depressants, and so can't judge.

From what I understand, though, marijuana does not inherently exacerbate depressive tendencies, though it can amplify various psychological responses already present in the psyche or mental state of the user while it is being used, and I could imagine that depression could be one such response. In other words, generally speaking, marijuana can amplify a feeling, mental or emotional state, or pattern of thought one already has; which is why I never smoke if I'm sad or lonely, or to escape from serious grief. But on the other hand, I will smoke if I am stressed out or angry, and the weed will calm and relax me.

But in the end, you're right that you have to listen to your instincts about what your body does or does not want, what your psyche does or doesn't think it can handle. There are certain individuals, and certain personality types, for whom nearly any intoxicant will produce negative effects; and there are some rare individuals that have inherently negative reactions to THC. For most folks it's fine, either innocuous or helpful, but if you feel strongly that it's not good for you, it's always best to follow your instincts about such things.