I'm glad to see teen drinking down...drinking can be very addictive, ruin your liver, etc..I just hope kids who are smoking pot are not driving...One thing I've learned: you have lazy people, lazy people who smoke pot, successful people, successful people who smoke pot...

More U.S. teens may be smoking marijuana than cigarettes but fewer are binge-drinking, federal health officials said Tuesday.

Less cigarette smokers, less binge drinkers, more pot smokers... I say that's a good trade off.

"These high rates of marijuana use during the teen and pre-teen years, when the brain continues to develop, place our young people at particular risk," National Institute for Drug Abuse director Dr. Nora Volkow said in a statement.

Well, I'm not ok with the pre-teen years, but the teen years are the best time to do it... expand your thinking and awareness while your brain is developing... not every smoker is a goofy, lazy, pothead...

research tells us that about one in six people who start using it as adolescents become addicted."

That's odd, considering all previous studies have determined that pot is NOT addictive.... and it is common knowledge that alcohol IS VERY addictive, and yet VERY legal.

"Our government has spent decades refusing to regulate marijuana in order to keep it out of the hands of drug dealers who aren't required to check customer ID and have no qualms about selling marijuana to young people.," said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project.

Exactly... end prohibition, and start regulation.

Well, you do have these people who think they need it, is can be quite psychologically addicting, but it is not even close to alcohol, ecstacy, cocaine, heroin, crack, meth, and any other drug you can get from your corner coat drug store. Do they not realize that there is a correlation between ecstacy use increasing, with pot use increasing? They are getting pushed on it by their dealer... or are attending too many raves.

State laws and enforcement have limited the ability of minors to purchase alcohol. Because marijuanacan be found from any drug dealer, it is easier to acquire. Of course the drug dealer wants them to try some of their other products (gateway) and the new heroin can be smoked.

Can we not learn from history. Prphibition did not work for the people. It did make the mafia very rich and powerful and when it ended, they moved into heroin.

Legalize marijuana and sell it like alcohol and enforce it like it is done in those states that bust and fine those people selling to minors. Of course tax it and regulate the quality and no one will want to buy off the street. You will also see a huge drop in shootings and killings. Street gangs that make a fortune from selling will be hurt and residential crime will drop.

"Mixed messages about drug legalization, particularly marijuana, may be to blame. Such messages certainly don't help parents who are trying to prevent kids from using drugs," said Gil Kerlikowske, director of the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy.

I beg to differ sir. INACCURATE messages about the relative dangers of cannabis when compared to other drugs, including legal ones, lead children to dismiss most information from the DEA and ONDCP, as the hysterical dangers of cannabis are quickly proven false.

'Controlled Substances' should be a phrase banned from governmental literature and marketing, as the folks who control those substances do NOT work for the government.

We have abdicated control of a market we cannot suppress without turning the US into a police state. We must regain control, we must do the hard thing, the right thing. We must legalize and regulate drugs.

I don't want to have to trust the black market to check my daughters' ID before selling them dope.

The fact that you said your daughter's ID show some insight into your parenting skills. The article said it impaired people's learning skills which is a good reason not to do it with your homework. I remember the potheads in school and most of them sat in the back of the room and were not the leaders of the school or did well afterwards.

If pot is the gateway for one kid to heroin or any other drug then it is to much. And please don't keep comparing it to alcohol as we all know that is not the healthiest drug either. But to compare the two and the laws behind them and the timing of the laws in the Country is ridiculous.

In some Towns it is illegal to curse in the street but in most places it is not. Should we change that also. Or the fact that it is illegal to spit on the sidewalk.

Point is it is illegal to smoke pot and sell it and the pot movement couldn't even pass in CA so I guess the majority of the people are against it.

The fact that you said your daughter's ID show some insight into your parenting skills.

Really? Like what? Feel free to elaborate on your not too apparent point about my parenting skills. I can educate my daughter until I'm blue in the face, but as many other parents know, what you teach them, and what they do are unfortunately not always the same thing.

If pot is the gateway for one kid to heroin or any other drug then it is to much.

But it isn't. Per the 1999 Institute of Medicine study, cannabis is NOT a gateway drug, rather, alcohol and tobacco are.

Point is it is illegal to smoke pot and sell it and the pot movement couldn't even pass in CA so I guess the majority of the people are against it.

True, but it failed by just 46-54 percent, a far narrower margin than only a few short years ago. The masses are unlearning the inaccurate rhetoric spread by the DEA and ONDCP. Truth and science are now the order of the day, and cannabis will soon be legal for use by adults. It should remain illegal for those underage, or anyone operating a vehicle or heavy machinery.

Point is it is illegal to smoke pot and sell it and the pot movement couldn't even pass in CA so I guess the majority of the people are against it.

True, but thankfully, that majority is growing slimmer with every election. It is truly just a matter of time before it becomes legal, something I look forward to, as a liberal who advocates LESS government intrusion into personal decisions. 8)

i smoked my first joint around age 11 and yes i liked it and continued to use it until just 5 minutes ago i smoked a big fat joint , i am a high school graduate and i am a self employed licensed contractor with 32 employees most of them smoke weed also however they will be fired if they smoke before or during work hours and i have many many repeat customers , so i think that they need to do another study and follow these last test subjects and see how many graduate high school and how many go to college and how many turn into basement pets for their parents and i think that they will find that most will make it in the real world just fine, its all bull chit from refer madness still holding things back and this was propaganda made up by our elected officials thinking that they knew what was good for us when they had absolutely no clue what they were talking about OH @!$%# history actually is repeating itself every day...oh yea i forgot to add that i am 54 today so 43 years and still goin strong ad i will sign up for any study about smoking weed that there is..

You smoked a joint and then wrote this. Evidently, it does effect learning.

noiwontyesiwill,

Residential crime will go up if pot is legalized. Follow me here. Thousands of "out of work" and otherwise unskilled dealers and runners with nothing better to do and used to "earning" large sums of money. My oh my what are they to do? They're going to turn to home invasion, mugging, anything to keep from actually having to actually work for a living.

The solution? Well for one, put a large part of that newly found state revenue into law enforcement programs designed to minimize the onslaught of criminals redirected to other criminal activity. How about programs to turn at least some of those former dealers and runners into entrepreneurs. Show them how to start a small business selling the same product they previously sold illegally. Only now they would be selling it legally. Sure it's less money, but at least they don't have to look over their shoulders for police anymore. And sadly, for those who just don't get the message, some of that newly found revenue from the now-legal marijuana industry would have to go toward building new prisons because just-say-no just isn't in some people's' vocabulary.

I'm just saying, there is going to be a whole new set of issues for a legalized- drug society. Not to mention the onslaught of new legislation that will be required to keep us safe. Unless you really want Pilots and bus drivers to be using. I'm not sure about you, but I don't feel comfortable getting on a plane with a half baked pilot that is pretty sure he can still remember how to fly. Also, the thought of an air traffic controller that says "Wow, I could have sworn I had another plane on my scope here somewhere" doesn't exactly inspire me to want to fly the friendly skies.

I'm just sayin.....

I am a conservative that for years has advocated legalizing it. If we did and taxed it with a alcohol like tax we would raise large revenues instead of spending money putting people in jail for smoking.

This article and the finding is government bullsh@t, if you look at studies done overseas you will see that the facts do not bear out what the writer is trying to state. And worse of all is to list it as an addictive drug, cigarettes and alcohol are more addictive then pot.

Personally I do not smoke it, but I do have Quada Equina Syndrom, which in any state it is legal pot is prescribed for it, instead I have to stuff myself with muscle relaxers and Valiums. I do not want to get stoned, nor smoke it, but if I could get it in a pill with the side effects minimized and the effects of relaxing the muscles enhanced would take it in a minute, but it is illegal in my state so I can not or all my medicine will be taken from me.

Also my sister has stage four breast cancer, and when she undergoes Chemo it has been stated that pot would help with her nausea and help her have an appetite (as long as it is not for chips and candy like it was for me when I was a kid ;) ).

Actually, you can be prescribed Marinol (THC) quite legally. It has been available for almost 25 years. Ask your doctor, and good luck. As to this "report", I think a decrease in tobacoo and alcohol use amongst teens with an increase in marijuana use is a reasonable trade-off, if you compare the drugs' respective toxicities.

if there was any concrete proof of harm caused by NJ...

One needn't look further than the morons on Jersey Shore for concrete proof of the insidious evil wrought by New Jersey ;)

So Tbenton, you're a conservative and Savaria is a liberal - hey we may have found some of that common ground we've been looking for ;)

I'm disturbed by their definition of "binge drinker". All these years I thought I was just a "casual drinker".

Please do not get me started on politics. It seams like all we have left today is people wanting to point out who is the bad guy, who they hate the most, who is the most conservative or the most liberal. I hope we will get over this behaviour that we would not even tolerate from our children and one day our politicians might really want to do what is good for this country instead of what is good for their party or what ever special interest they support. I am afraid that they will not wake up until it is too late.

Listen to these high ranking narcotics officers expose the harms and waste of the drug war: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LayaGk0TMDc

The Failure of U.S. Drug Policies: http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/90295/

Cannabis Reduces Infant Mortality: http://www.salem-news.com/articles/june272010/marijuana-infants-sc.phpThis is a great example of information the evening news mentions in passing if at all. Why is it harder to get govt approval to conduct research on mariuana than crack? But those that have found for example, if babies are getting natural cannabis like substances in mother’s breast milk, they are less likely to have SIDS

Anyone that wants marijuana is already getting it. Legalizing and rationally regulating marijuana is not adding another harmful intoxicant to society, legalizing gives people the legal opportunity to make the SAFER CHOICE! Alcohol, tobacco, many Rx drugs, many over the counter drugs, even caffeine, aspirin and non-aspirin, can all be deadly and are well documented as being the direct cause of hundreds of thousands of deaths in the USA every year! http://www.saferchoice.org/content/view/24/53/

No one, of any age, in all of recorded history, anywhere on planet earth, has ever died from the ingredients in marijuana and they never will, marijuana is nontoxic. Many have died from marijuana prohibition and tens of millions have been jailed or otherwise harmed. In the US we arrest someone on marijuana charges every 38 seconds. Marijuana charges account for roughly 50% of all drug arrests. Would you rather have your kid locked up with killers and child molesters or would you prefer to do your own proper parenting?

The laws prohibiting marijuana are NOT a result of any harm from marijuana: “WHY IS MARIJUANA ILLEGAL, Pete Guither” and “MARIJUANA AND HEMP THE UNTOLD STORY, Thomas J. Bouril”, click the links to those articles on this webpage:
Internet Explorer web browser: http://jsknow.angelfire.com/home
All Other Browsers: http://jsknow.angelfire.com/index.html

There is a very real danger in smoking pot. It is not the content but the way the young people pass it around. When the joint or pipe is passed around from mouth to mouth bad things can happen. My grandson contracted Mono, the mono went untreated and now has turned into Hodgkins Lymphoma.

fayse - I wish your grandson all the best in his fight against Hodgkins. However, I must take issue with your assertion that it necessarily correlates to the danger of smoking pot. After all, using your same rather circuitous logic, one could equally declare that kissing should be outlawed.

hell, blame the government and a treaty that was made back in the 20's or 30's, plus we wont legalize it because we have no other fallback country to examine

notatall - I'm just saying, there is going to be a whole new set of issues for a legalized- drug society. Not to mention the onslaught of new legislation that will be required to keep us safe. Unless you really want Pilots and bus drivers to be using. I'm not sure about you, but I don't feel comfortable getting on a plane with a half baked pilot that is pretty sure he can still remember how to fly. Also, the thought of an air traffic controller that says "Wow, I could have sworn I had another plane on my scope here somewhere" doesn't exactly inspire me to want to fly the friendly skies.

To be frank, you are correct that there WILL likely be an upswing in use. The curious, the timid, and others WILL experiment, and some of them will have issues with it. But so long as we continue to tell the TRUTH about cannabis, it's effects and it's dangers, we can minimize those effects far better than we are now. The illegality of it hasn't stopped many from using. Indeed, during Alcohol's Prohibition, it has been cited that usage slowed to about 60-70% of the norm, so expect a few more users, but not a vast tidal wave, by any means. Most of those who want to use, already are. Such is the effectiveness of the 'War on Drugs.'

And I agree, I don't want a pilot or an air traffic controller high on the job, but I'd rather have a high controller, than a drunk controller any day. At least the high controller will be paranoid about screwing up.

Smoking pot can destroy your memory and .... I forgot what I was going to say.....

OH Yeah! and cause a profound case of the lazies....

My mom has stage IV lung cancer and I KNOW pot would help her tremendously with her nausea and appitite. It would also be nice to see her sit there and giggle too.

"It is not the content but the way the young people pass it around. When the joint or pipe is passed around from mouth to mouth bad things can happen.". This is why a strong bottle of alcohol should be passed around with it..... and you can get "cotton mouth" also....

Sonflower, that's not true...those symptoms you describe are short-term side effects of marijuana use. Experienced marijuana users have no difference in their perception and do not lose their memory if they smoke regularly...

Neurophysiological and cognitive effects of smoked marijuana in frequent users.
Overall performance accuracy was not significantly altered by marijuana

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20600251?dopt=Abstract

"In contrast to the compensatory behavior exhibited by subjects under marijuana treatment, subjects who have received alcohol tend to drive in a more risky manner. Both substances impair performance; however, the more cautious behavior of subjects who have received marijuana decreases the impact of the drug on performance, whereas the opposite holds true for alcohol."
REFERENCE: A. Smiley. 1999. Marijuana: On-Road and Driving-Simulator Studies. In: H. Kalant et al. (Eds) The Health Effects of Cannabis. Toronto: Center for Addiction and Mental Health. Pp. 173-191.

That's short term side effects for new users...why else all the horror stories?? Cuz everybody's checkin it out once in a while...these are not experienced users...

And regarding the addictive issue...caffiene is more addictive than marijuana and it is a psychoactive substance....more dangerous than marijuana...and almost all of you guys are under its influence...you're all altering your own minds as you judge us...(well...the coffee drinkers against legalization are anyway...)

Americans have all kinds of drug addictions. Some drugs are illegal substances, some drugs are prescription, and some drugs are perfectly legal. They can all be abused. They can all lead to dependence/addiction. They are all potentially detrimental to your long term health.

Smoking pot is detrimental to your long term health for the same reasons smoking tobacco is. The statistics out there aren't all that reliable because most regular pot smokers also regularly smoke cigarettes.

Vaporizing pot is much safer.

Stoners are generally safer drivers than sober people, and I've had more than a few college professors who agreed with me on that.

When are they gonna stop lying about the addiction issue? 1 in 6 kids gets caught and instead of jail/probabtion they choose to plead guilty and take the treatment classes. So now you mark it up to marijuana addiction, how bout we call it what it really is, blackmail. People are blackmailed into saying its bad and they're addicted just so they can get off with a slap on the wrist. All the while the DEA sits back and adds to the numbers so they can keep their drug war going.

NotAtAll said the following

Residential crime will go up if pot is legalized. Follow me here. Thousands of "out of work" and otherwise unskilled dealers and runners with nothing better to do and used to "earning" large sums of money. My oh my what are they to do? They're going to turn to home invasion, mugging, anything to keep from actually having to actually work for a living.

I guess you must be one of those dealers or runners to have such insights to what they will do if MJ is made legal.

The solution? Well for one, put a large part of that newly found state revenue into law enforcement programs designed to minimize the onslaught of criminals redirected to other criminal activity. How about programs to turn at least some of those former dealers and runners into entrepreneurs.

Like republicans would ever offer a dollar to retrain a drug dealer into something. They will never allow it unless they somehow get a cut.

Show them how to start a small business selling the same product they previously sold illegally. Only now they would be selling it legally. Sure it's less money, but at least they don't have to look over their shoulders for police anymore. And sadly, for those who just don't get the message, some of that newly found revenue from the now-legal marijuana industry would have to go toward building new prisons because just-say-no just isn't in some people's' vocabulary.

So we would have to build more prisons for the drug dealers that have now become cat burglars? That is just ignorant. There would be plenty of room in prisons once the folks that had been jailed on pot charges were released.

I'm just saying, there is going to be a whole new set of issues for a legalized- drug society. Not to mention the onslaught of new legislation that will be required to keep us safe. Unless you really want Pilots and bus drivers to be using. I'm not sure about you, but I don't feel comfortable getting on a plane with a half baked pilot that is pretty sure he can still remember how to fly. Also, the thought of an air traffic controller that says "Wow, I could have sworn I had another plane on my scope here somewhere" doesn't exactly inspire me to want to fly the friendly skies.

Are you really so stupid to think that something like that is not in place already? They make sure pilots are not drunk before they fly, it would be easy to check pilots for being high. Do you think they don't check Air traffic controllers now? The problem is with folks like you who over exaggerate things and play "what if" with some ignorant examples. Most folks in important positions are checked now for booze and prescription usage. But you folks think just because something is made legal they would stop checking those folks? That my friend is just ignorant.

I'm just sayin.....

Joe420, my information came from a VERY experianced pot smoker who, before smoking pot for 25 years, daily, was incredibly smart, had a photographic memory, strong perception and very bad eyesight.

During pot use, eyesight improved, energy level went down, creativity went up, short term memory loss increased, reading comprehension skills went down, ability to do math went down. All of these symptoms slowly increased in severity over the 25 years.

After terminating pot use, eyesight went bad, energy went up, creativity, concentration and focus are extremely dim. Memory is very bad, but improving with "brain training" techniques, but only after several years of being off pot.

Trust me! This person would rather have skipped the pot and kept the brain cells.

sonflower,

I have used daily since I was 20 and I am now 50 years of age. All these things you claim happened to your friend from smoking pot has not happened to me.

I have a feeling your friend was doing more than smoking pot. My math skills are great they are actually better than when I left high school. I am a voracious reader reading from 2 to 5 books a month, from the likes of Steven King, George r.r. Martin. Big books with lots of words (no pictures) and a varied vocabulary.

But of course you will continue to use your "friend" as an example. It's a shame when people use imaginary dope smoking friends as examples. You are just another person telling lies to try and prove pot is bad when there are millions of us that do use it and KNOW YOU ARE TELLING LIES.

SonFlower,

Marijuana does not kill brain cells. Its been proven. The study that came out with the false information was done on monkeys. They placed gas masks on them with marijuana smoke pumped in and no oxygen and basically suffocated them for a period of time everyday, thus killing brain cells. Also im not sure what your trying to say about eye sight unless he has glaucoma and was using it medically to help with that. Marijuana has no effect with someone that wears glasses, if it did, everyone that wore glasses would be high all day.

Also the thing about math, are you serious? Im an engineer. In college my frat house was like Cheech and Chong's second home. None of them boys had any problem passing Calc I or II. You should stop listening to this VERY experienced pot smoker and start looking up some real facts.

Uuhm, Chris, I'm sure many reading my comments are smart enough to actually know who I was talking about even though I referred to "them" in the "third person". I never used the word "friend".....YOU did. I've changed my life and don't really like to talk about it except to warn others that you really do lose brain capacity.

Let me ask you, Chris, have you stopped smoking pot? The symptoms were noticed alot more once the FOG went away for good. If it wasn't the pot, then maybe it was old age, or chemicals in the food, or who knows? It could be a combo of alot of things.

I remember visiting a friend in rehab for alcohol use. And this was a real friend ....:) We saw a movie about pot use and what it does to your brain. The "tar" or "resin" that we are all familiar with, actually coats individual neurons in the brain and prevents them from firing. This coating can take several years to "dissolve". The longer you smoke the more neurons that get coated. So brain cells don't actually FRY, they just get turned off.

Anyway, I remember what it was like to defend my use, and I don't want to fight with you. I just wish I had my IQ back.

OK, so "they " were not your "friend", I stand corrected, but there are many people out there that lie and claim they were effected by pot in drastic ways. But medical science has proven that the effects you listed are not effects created by pot smoking. I an glad you changed your life, but just because you had issues does not mean the rest of us do.

No I have not stopped smoking pot. But your ignorance (lack of information) is showing again. The effects of pot only last a few hours, and as I don't smoke all day every day, I am out of the "Fog" from when I get up in the morning until I get home and toke up. So again you are saying things in ignorance. But you were willing to lay the blame on pot.

As for your educational film you saw , it was government lies. The government has lied and continues to do so about the effects of smoking pot. If you have lost IQ points it is not from smoking pot but from something else you have used (if you did). As a matter of fact they have shown that one of the new artificial sweeteners causes brains in kids to not develop as well as it should. http://www.wnho.net/aspartame_brain_damage.htm

Also there have been no medical studies that show pot causes IQ loss.

While my memory loss and lack of concentration COULD be contributed to something else, such as aging, I doubt it since it was 11 years ago that I stopped and my memory and brain function are actually IMPROVING.

We can agree to disagree, but I was a pretty hard core user, (no other drugs BTW) & I'm tellin' ya, I didn't notice how bad it was til I stopped for good.

I wish you would quit calling me a liar. Why would I be an advocate against pot use if I didn't BELIEVE that it hurt me? What do I care if you or anyone else smokes pot? Heck, I miss it sometimes! I can only tell you what happened to me and hopefully save someone else the consequences. If you choose not to listen and don't believe me....that doesn't make me a liar.

Thank God my children listened to me.

I suppose now I'm gonna get insulted for turning my kids AWAY from smoking pot.

Oh, & I don't use artificial sweetners either....

While my memory loss and lack of concentration COULD be contributed to something else, such as aging, I doubt it since it was 11 years ago that I stopped and my memory and brain function are actually IMPROVING.

I have not quit smoking and my memory and concentration are just fine if not better than before. Now while I am high I might not be the sharpest pencil in the box, But then again so are other folks that are drunk.

I wish you would quit calling me a liar.

The only time used that phrase was in post 1.31 but not in post 1.34. While I did say that people will lie about what pot has done I did not mean you at that time.

Why would I be an advocate against pot use if I didn't BELIEVE that it hurt me?

Because as far as we know you might be some DEA stooge posting on here claiming to have been a user. Or because other people convinced you it was pot that had hurt you.

What do I care if you or anyone else smokes pot?

No idea why, but people do things for strange reasons sometimes.

Thank God my children listened to me.

I suppose now I'm gonna get insulted for turning my kids AWAY from smoking pot.

Nope, no insulting here, they are your kids, who am I to tell you how to raise them?

Oh, & I don't use artificial sweetners either....

Never said you did, but offered that as evidence that something else other than pot may have caused your IQ to drop. Because there may be other items in our foods/beverages that do the same thing and we have never been told.

Sonflower,

I think you probably hit on the key to your lost faculties.

I was a pretty hard core user

Anything consumed in excess can be toxic and that even includes water.

I would be willing to bet that you were one of those people who smoked pot all day long every day. Basically stayed stoned all the time. This would explain much. Usage of that magnitude "could" coat the lungs with enough tar and resin to prevent enough oxygen from reaching the brain and therefor possibly cause hypoxia. That could have caused brain cells to die.

Anyone who would like to see what their lungs look like from smoking too much simply has to let their pipe go for a couple weeks without cleaning it. Then clean the pipe and look at what comes out of it. Not the bowl, but the stem of the pipe because that's what is eventually getting into your lungs.

The argument (and unfortunately the insults too) are probably coming from the typical pot smoker who only takes a few hits in the evening. People who smoke on that level probably won't have such a dramatic buildup on their lungs so they haven't experienced the damage you have.

Chronic and heavy pot smokers will have a better chance of being affected by hypoxia than occasional users. Hypoxia can be devastating to the brain.

But if pot is consumed either through ingestion or in moderation through smoking, the body has time to absorb the tars which reduces the threat of hypoxia.

People who "chain smoke" pot like people chain smoke cigarettes will obviously suffer the consequences.

Al, I know you're trying to be reasonable, but marijuana does not prevent oxygen from reaching the brain...in fact, that is the one biggest major difference about marijuana and other drugs, which is why it does not cause any overdoses...although I agree with the tar contents of smoking marijuana, it does have an adverse effect on you, although I'm not so sure about the hypoxia theory, certainly worth looking into...of course, you can also vaporize and many in fact do these days, and there is no tar at all from vaporizing...

Unlike µ-receptors, cannabinoid receptors are virtually absent in brainstem cardiorespiratory centers, which probably account for the lack of lethal effects from cannabis overdose.

http://www.jaoa.org/cgi/content/full/108/10/586

Also, sonflower, it does not affect your memory if you are a regular smoker...so it might be your own fool self that's the screw up....sounds like you were doing better when you smoked it up...

Cannabinoid receptors are downregulated and desensitized when exposed to high doses of THC. This effect results in "drug tolerance," which occurs at varying rates and magnitudes in different brain regions. For example, it occurs faster and greater in the hippocampus, which regulates memory, compared with the basal ganglia, which mediates euphoric effect.24 This difference may explain why memory loss decreases among frequent cannabis users, but its euphoric effects remain.25
http://www.jaoa.org/cgi/content/full/108/10/586

Joe,

First, nice post. Good information and an intelligent response.

I was not implying that "pot" itself causes hypoxia. Obviously I was unclear. I was suggesting that a build up of residue in the lungs restricted the passing of oxygen into the blood stream to the point that hypoxia may have been a possibility.

Sonflower believes that pot caused his mental disorder. In his comments he stated that he was a "pretty hard core user". I've been around pot for several decades and have seen some very heavy users. Users that literally smoke all day long (what a waste).

What I was suggesting (and it's only a suggestion), was that the same residues that build up on the inside of the pipe could be indicative of the level of residues that make it into the lungs. Just look at the amount of residue that builds up in a heavily used pipe. That's just a small percentage of what goes through the pipe and into the lungs. It doesn't simply disappear. It builds up in the alveoli. If never given a chance to be absorbed, it seems to me like it could actually build up to a point that it would actually restrict the amount of oxygen that passes to the blood stream.

Restricted oxygen supply to the brain can cause permanent damage.

It just seems like a reasonable possibility to me since Sonflower stated he was a hardcore smoker. He also stated that after quitting he slowly came back to a normal condition (for the most part). That could be an indication that the residues that clogged his lungs are being absorbed and in the process are allowing more oxygen into the blood stream.

Joe, do you not think this is a possibility?

It sounds plausible...I'll grant you that much.
And I understood what you meant by the residue, that's why I said it's worth looking into. I know you didn't mean pot caused it, but how it is consumed and when you smoke it, then you get residue. However, probably unlikely, given that millions of recreational users worldwide haven't been flooding the emergency rooms or their doctor's waiting rooms over this type of issue...pretty sure the government would've been all over it a long time ago...in fact, I'm going to look this up right now and see if I can find something out about residue buildup and marijuana.

I think it's worth the effort. I wouldn't expect a casual user to have that type of issue, but I've seen chronic users smoke from the time they get up to the time they go to bed. I've smoked for almost a half century and have never had any kind of ill effect whatsoever. I know if it (the hypoxia theory) is possible it would be the exception and not the norm.

I would bet the lion's share of people who smoke pot don't over do it, if for no other reason than cost and quality of the pot. Good smoke only takes a couple hits to accomplish whatever you're trying to accomplish. Ingesting it is probably a better way to go for medicinal purposes but takes a little longer.

Well, apparently THC is a bronchial dilator, which means it helps opening up your lungs like cough drops and helps you clean your lungs out of smoke and dirt when you cough as you smoke...makes sense, since we all cough once in a while while smoking bud....

Nicotine does just the opposite; it makes your lungs bunch up and makes it harder to cough anything up. Maybe he quit smoking cigarettes around this time?

Also, sonflower, there is another point that everyone is missing here...these symptoms you describe, isn't that just aging? You're gettin old....that's all it is right there, old man.

OMG....LOL. Thanks guys! Maybe I've just been stoopid all along and only thought I was smart cuz I was stoned all the time.

No actually, I really am from the DEA and YOU GUYS ARE BUSTED!

OH, and BTW, Joe....I'm a girl....

Excuse me. Sorry grandma.

Chris 2070660:

"I have used daily since I was 20 and I am now 50 years of age. All these things you claim happened to your friend from smoking pot has not happened to me."

That's kind of sad...Just for sh*ts and giggles, have you ever entertained the thought of going just one day without smoking a joint, to see what it's like to be stark raving sober and clear headed? Or is that of no interest to you?

Just for sh*t and giggles, have you ever entertained the thought of being nonjudgmental, to see what it's like to be stark raving sane and rational? Just because people smoke bud doesn't mean they're not sane or rational...just because people don't smoke bud doesn't mean they're sane or rational...have you seen the world out there? The hypocrisy of our government, the corruption of power players in D.C., America's actions towards it's own citizens and others worldwide...or is that of no interest to you?

Why is stupidity the norm - LOL, your blatant ignorance is showing! Perhaps you ought to worry about your own 'norm,' before pretending to have half a clue about others!

Not to mention it's easier for kids to get pot then cigarettes. Because Ciggs are legal and sold under restrictions they need to get it from someone else. People will smoke pot. And its less harmful then alcohol or ciggs. If it were legalized. Sold like alcohol, taxed, and regulated. It would be harder to get. The govt would make Billions in revenue, save billions from "the war on drugs" from locking up someone who wanted to sleep or chill or whatever. Notice how well that war works when its the legal substances that have less use cause they are regulated and harder to get. Pot even when I was in high school 15 years ago was easier to get then alcohol.

Pot smokers also run risks of lung infections such as pneumonia and develop problems associated with memory loss, learning, and coordination to name a few. Marijuana is also seldom 'pure' in that it's often laced with other substances that can have dire effects. So legalizing it is a good idea? Not unless you want your kids to become addicts and suffer the consequences of abuse.

For sure,

You just made the best arrangement for legalization. If regulated we could be far more sure that it would be "pure." Legalization solves many of the problems associated with MJ.

As for kids using bad idea but I do think twisted is right, legalization and regulation would also help limit MJs availability to kids!

Like it eliminated kid's availability to alcohol.

I see no problem with what you are saying but I still must struggle with the side effects of even 'pure' pot use- especially in children. I just don't see it as necessary to begin with but then one could argue that with alcohol consumption and a lot of other things. I suppose the best one can do is educate their kids and hope they grow up without the need for substances like pot. No matter, it's here to stay so deal with it we must.

Marijuana is also seldom 'pure' in that it's often laced with other substances that can have dire effects.

I disagree with this. My ex-husband is a successful insurance agent, and we smoked pot quite regularly during the 15 years that we were together. Not once was it ever "laced" with anything else.

Evidence, please. 8)

Usually when you get pot that is "laced" with something you will know ahead of time because they charge more for it. The last thing a dealer wants to do is mess with his customers.

Best bet there is "know your provider" or grow your own.

Seldom pure? Maybe you should stop buying your pot form the homeless guy in the alley.

I have been smoking for many many years and I have never experienced this laced pot you feel is abundantly all around us. Never had a lung infection either.

forsureiam

you are a paranoid fool ! ! ! marijuana is laced with nothing unless the buyer would roll it into a premo but then they would have to have some cocaine to roll up with it but marijuana is as pure as marijuana can get some is way stronger that other and thats what im looking for , the good chit . if you think dealers are potting other drugs on it before they sell it you must be from the 20s making you about 90 so im sure you are just remembering something you heard back in the 30s or 40s LOL the chit people will say !!!

Why would a dealer put other drugs into pot? If the pot is good, it does not need a boost. If it is bad, the buyer will go find something better. It costs money to put other drugs in pot, and the dealers couldn't recover the 'investment'.

This argument does not play out in real life, but if it was true it would be a good argument to legalize/regulate/tax pot.

Legalize it now and deliver a harsh blow to the Mexican cartels!

Actually dude, Sarah Palin isn't really against weed, her husband was a member of a libertarian group, she doesn't think its that big of a problem and she has smoked in her past. Get your facts before stereotyping.

I find Dems and Repubs are equally as fascist in general on the issue, its not really a party based issue, so get your head out of your butt and fight the real enemies!

You bring Sarah Palin into this .. Yet we have a LOW CLASS president who smokes 24/7 ... i have friends who work in DC and they often say he outright stinks of Cigs and a ash tray odor ...

rob is proof that the media and the left is obsessed with palin. why else bring her up? they're the only ones who pay any attention to that ditz.

on topic, this is good news, alcohol can be much more dangerous/destructive, and cigs, well, everyone knows where they lead. party on, dude!

orbust, if you were smoking a pack of mj/day like cigs.

Smoking pot over cigarettes increases your chances of lung cancer three to four times greater..

orbust - I've never heard this particular health claim. Could you possibly point me to the objective source from which you learned this statistic?

@orbust,

Actually you need to look up some new research. This is false data pushed by the opposition to keep it illegal. Marijuana has not been linked to be the sole cause in a single case of lung cancer. cmon-864012 is right to point out that less marijuana is consumed, but it has been proven (American Thoracic Society), that even heavy marijuana smokers are at no increased risk of lung cancer.

It does not cause cancer when you smoke it. It has cannabidiols in it, they are anti-carcinogenic, which means it counteracts the carcinogens you smoke as you burn marijuana:

Cannabis, of course, is more than THC. Other ingredients provide additional benefits and mitigate the adverse effects of THC.

Cannabidiol, for example, reduces dysphoria and depersonalization provoked by THC while contributing its own anxiolytic, antipsychotic, analgesic, antiemetic, anticarcinogenic, antioxidant, and neuroprotective effects.
http://www.jaoa.org/cgi/content/full/108/10/586

Our own government even holds a medical patent on cannabidiols (CBD's), US Patent #6630507, look it up sometime, they've had it since 2003

forsureiam said,

Pot smokers also run risks of lung infections such as pneumonia and develop problems associated with memory loss, learning, and coordination to name a few.

You sir have bought into all the lies the government has told about weed. If any of these are true issues (which they are not) it would be for children who might smoke it. But again none of your accusations have ever been proven.

Marijuana is also seldom 'pure' in that it's often laced with other substances that can have dire effects.

Again with the misinformation. Please just quit telling lies because you don't like something.

So legalizing it is a good idea? Not unless you want your kids to become addicts and suffer the consequences of abuse.

Again telling lies and misinformation. It has been proven that marijuana is not addictive but of course you will disbelieve the truth and listen to the lies the government has told about marijuana since Harry J Anslinger lied to congress and America about it. The fact is the American is STILL BEING LIED TO about marijuana and it's effects and it is folks like you who are to ignorant to do research for yourself that let's them keep telling lies because you ignorant people believe every word they say.

Ha! Such fervor over smoking weed! Wow, so defensive we are. Well, fine then go and smoke pot- hell, have the whole family over for Christmas and toke it up with Grandmama for all I care.

To silvaria- well, perhaps you can present solid evidence the weed you smoke isn't laced? Nope, you can't but yet you blindly toked up anyway. How smart is that? So smart perhaps is why you and your "ex" insurance sales husband arent together anymore? Heh- sorry! 8)

As for Chris- wow such beligerance. What do you do- hide under your bed afraid of little green men out to get you? It's ok dude- take a chill pill or better: smoke some pot and you'll feel better I'm sure. I'm not sold out on anything to anyone: I look at the facts- the very facts you are obviously afraid of. Medical facts about marijuana use that you & others here are in denial about. But that's fine, go ahead and rant all you want because it's this kind of close-mindedness that is part of the problem and not the solution.

Come on now...you don't get cancer from smoking bud...if regulated, it would be easier to keep out of kids hands'...and my locally grown bud is never laced...it pays to know your grower! Most potheads know their growers or have a good dependable dealer who knows their grower...that's a fact...most potheads buy local...

Spoken like a true pothead.

forsureiam,

The reason I am so as you call "belligerent" is because of people like you who talk out of your ass. All of your "Facts" are not true at all, you apparently know nothing about pot except the lies the government has told you.

As for your "medical facts" please give us links where you got your facts. You won't be able to because your "facts" are made up in your head. Face it, you just don't want people to smoke pot and you will lie to make sure they don't, just like the government has done.

Forsureiam,

Perhaps you can prove that it is laced, oh but sorry you cant. Also, how do you know that he cant provide evidence that it isnt laced? Plus most people that are into the harder drugs would love to get some laced pot for the regular price. How often do you get something for nothing? I dont see drug dealers giving away free LSD, Cocaine, PCP, or whatever else you think they are lacing it with. Wait, you do know what laced means dont you?

If you really do look at the facts, then share where your facts come from. If you would like a place to start go to www.LEAP.cc or www.drugwarfacts.org. Leap is a Law enforcement organization (Law Enforcement Against Prohibition) I really hope you guys check it out.

Well Chris, people "like me" who work in the field of alcohol & drug abuse see things from a first-hand perspective based in reality so, no, I don't talk out of my ass. My 'facts' are based on years of first-hand knowledge and medical information derived from proven scientific experimentation. You want proof: Start at your local library- better yet, go to a medical school library and start your own research on the use and effects (short term & long term) and make your own conclusions. Use a credible source- not some iffy website link. Also, don't be so quick to jump to hasty conclusions without being there and seeing first hand (like I do) how using pot affects people. You've sold yourself out on a bunch of gov't conspiracy nonsense. I don't lie and I admit it- I don't want people to smoke pot because of what I've seen it do. I'm sure you'll come up with some fancy retort... whatever. I'll stand by the facts and you can stand by the lies you have absorbed.

Pete- we send samples of pot out to labs for testing and it is seldom pure. It's found laced with other drugs, seldom lsd, but sometimes with chemicals to make it appear pure when in fact it's not and is often toxic. Street drugs of any kind are not safe period.

forsureiam,

Again, you claim to have first hand knowledge of the effects, So do I, I have yet to see any of the effects you claim in any of my friends or myself. Also my coworkers that do not smoke weed have not seen any of these things happening to me. Now granted while I am high I am not as sharp as I am when not high, but then again I get that way from drinking booze, but much worse. That's why I don't drink but very seldom. So again I seriously doubt you have seen them either. I am betting most of those people with the problems you stated have done much more than just smoke weed. But of course you will leave that bit out to prove your point.

Also since the government has done nothing but LIE about the effects(it will make you go insane) why should I believe anything they print about it? I know many pot smokers and none of us have the debilitating effects you claim, so that's why I doubt you.

So please list a few of the sources you claim to use, the medical ones at the least, but of course you won't because there are none.

I did do a bit of research and found this http://www.scientificamerican.com/blog/post.cfm?id=the-american-medical-association-ea-2009-11-17 I do hope Scientific American is not considered an "iffy" website by you.

forsureiam,

You speak of facts and truths but all you tell are lies. Where do you work that you would send out sampls of pot to a lab and see the results? I have been a smoker for quite a while now, and I have also used other drugs as well. I can tell you as a person that buys street drugs, not once have I ever bought a bag that was laced with any checmical. You want facts based on years of first hand knowledge, check out www.LEAP.cc or was that the iffy website your speaking of? Law enforcement officials speaking out against the drug war are the ones that see this stuff from a first hand perspective based in reality and your gonna try to discredit that? How about in my post #2.17, I got that info from the American Thoracic Society. I really hope your not gonna try to say thats an iffy website. All I see in your posts is your opinions, no references to any actual medical studies yet you say you facts come from medical information derived from proven scientific experimentation. Where is it proven? And as to you saying your on the front line and see these things, I dont believe a word of it or anytihng you say furthermore on the subject cause you have no credibility.

Forsureiam sure doesn't want to listen to science....the ones with the ph.d's know better than this fool at the "front lines"....

The Oregon Board of Pharmacy actually moved cannabis to schedule 2 earlier this year acknowledging that cannabis is medicine. In Iowa a fellow named Carl Olsen submitted a petition to the Iowa Board of Pharmacy to study whether cannabis should be rescheduled with the ultimate goal of allowing research into its medical efficacy. The Iowa Board of Pharmacy pooh-pooh'd his petition. Evidently it's not legal for them to refuse as Mr. Olsen, with the help of the Iowa ACLU, sued and a Court ordered the Iowa BoP to perform the study. After doing the study they recommended 6-0 that cannabis should be reclassified to schedule 2. From pooh-pooh to unanimously in favor. I think it reasonable to infer that there's a mountain of evidence that cannabis is medicine from this action alone. Something caused them to do a 180 and I doubt it's because the Iowa BoP is staffed by hippies. Iowa's lawmakers don't share my opinion because though because they've refused to reschedule. Par for the course though for government lawmakers to ignore studies they don't like when it comes to cannabis.
The governments of Holland, Canada and Israel have all recognized cannabis as medicine and provide their patients directly.
Rhode Islands legislature codified into State law that cannabis is medicine, and overrode the Governors veto of that bill. They had no regrets because after a year or two they voted for and passed an expansion of the program including authorizing dispensaries. They once again had the supermajority needed to override yet another veto from the know nothing Governor.
New Mexico's legislature studied the issue and then legalized cannabis as medicine. The State licenses dispensaries and cultivation centers to meet the patients needs.
New Jersey's legislature codified into State law that cannabis is medicine this year.
The DC City Council voted unanimously to codify cannabis as medicine earlier this year.
Maine's voters last year approved an expansion of their medical cannabis law and authorized licensed dispensaries to meet the needs of their patients.
The American Medical Association this year recommended that cannabis be moved to Schedule 2 and be recognized as medicine.
The British Medical Association recognizes cannabis as medicine.
The California Medical Association has recognized cannabis as medicine for over a decade.
The American College of Physicians recognizes cannabis as medicine.

Oregon certainly accepts it as medicine. There are thousands of "Marijuana card holders" in our area alone that have been prescribed medicinal marijuana.

There is a difference between medicinal marijuana and street marijuana of course. In it's purest form it is useful and is gaining ground as an accepted prescription, so it has a positive use in the world. However, like with any street drug, marijuana can be potentially dangerous so it pays to know your dealer I suppose.

There is no difference between medical and street marijuana....the only difference is that the "street" dealers are waaaay more questionable than the medical marijuana growers....Both sets of growers (street and medical) strive to perfect the strains they have...

In defense of the poster 'forsureami' above here's a link to a credible source for marijuana information. I think some of you are being far too defensive and need to at least read the facts below:

http://drugabuse.gov/infofacts/marijuana.html

Especially note the part about THC and its effects on the brain. Keep in mind, there's a difference between using pot for medicinal purposes versus casual use which is to merely get high. And, note that it does allude to potentially ill effects both mentally and physically. Read it, agree or disagree, do as ye will- the choice is yours. Have a nice day.

Research into the effects of long-term cannabis use on the structure of the brain has yielded inconsistent results….Brain imaging studies in chronic users tend to show some consistent alterations, but their connection to impaired cognitive functioning is far from clear.

However, at this time, it is not clear whether marijuana use causes mental problems, exacerbates them, or reflects an attempt to self-medicate symptoms already in existence.

…however, a recent case-controlled study found no positive associations between marijuana use and lung, upper respiratory, or upper digestive tract cancers.7 Thus, the link between marijuana smoking and these cancers remains unsubstantiated at this time.

The latest treatment data indicate that in 2008 marijuana accounted for 17 percent of admissions (322,000) to treatment facilities in the United States, second only to opiates among illicit substances. Marijuana admissions were primarily male (74 percent), White (49 percent), and young (30 percent were in the 12-17 age range). Those in treatment for primary marijuana abuse had begun use at an early age: 56 percent by age 14.**

(Duhhh, why do you think that is? They were caught and arrested and told they had two choices…plead not guilty and serve time, or plead guilty and enter rehabilitation programs…joe420er)

http://drugabuse.gov/infofacts/marijuana.html

It does not cause cancer when you smoke it. It has cannabidiols in it, they are anti-carcinogenic, which means it counteracts the carcinogens you smoke as you burn marijuana:

Cannabis, of course, is more than THC. Other ingredients provide additional benefits and mitigate the adverse effects of THC. Cannabidiol, for example, reduces dysphoria and depersonalization provoked by THC while contributing its own anxiolytic, antipsychotic, analgesic, antiemetic, anticarcinogenic, antioxidant, and neuroprotective effects.

Cannabinoid receptors are downregulated and desensitized when exposed to high doses of THC. This effect results in "drug tolerance," which occurs at varying rates and magnitudes in different brain regions. For example, it occurs faster and greater in the hippocampus, which regulates memory, compared with the basal ganglia, which mediates euphoric effect.24 This difference may explain why memory loss decreases among frequent cannabis users, but its euphoric effects remain.25

Unlike µ-receptors, cannabinoid receptors are virtually absent in brainstem cardiorespiratory centers, which probably account for the lack of lethal effects from cannabis overdose.

http://www.jaoa.org/cgi/content/full/108/10/586

RESULTS:
Overall performance accuracy was not significantly altered by marijuana

Neurophysiological and cognitive effects of smoked marijuana in frequent users.

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20600251?dopt=Abstract

"[In] cases in which THC was the only drug present were analyzed, the culpability ratio was found to be not significantly different from the no-drug group."REFERENCE: G. Chesher and M. Longo. 2002. Cannabis and alcohol in motor vehicle accidents. In: F. Grotenhermen and E. Russo (Eds.) Cannabis and Cannabinoids: Pharmacology, Toxicology, and Therapeutic Potential. New York: Haworth Press. Pp. 313-323."Cannabis leads to a more cautious style of driving, [but] it has a negative impact on decision time and trajectory. [However,] this in itself does not mean that drivers under the influence of cannabis represent a traffic safety risk. … Cannabis alone, particularly in low doses, has little effect on the skills involved in automobile driving."
REFERENCE: Canadian Senate Special Committee on Illegal Drugs. 2002. Cannabis: Summary Report: Our Position for a Canadian Public Policy. Ottawa. Chapter 8: Driving Under the Influence of Cannabis.
"This report has summarized available research on cannabis and driving.
… Evidence of impairment from the consumption of cannabis has been reported by studies using laboratory tests, driving simulators and on-road observation. ... Both simulation and road trials generally find that driving behavior shortly after consumption of larger doses of cannabis results in (i) a more cautious driving style; (ii) increased variability in lane position (and headway); and (iii) longer decision times. Whereas these results indicate a 'change' from normal conditions, they do not necessarily reflect 'impairment' in terms of performance effectiveness since few studies report increased accident risk."REFERENCE: UK Department of Environment, Transport and the Regions (Road Safety Division). 2000. Cannabis and Driving: A Review of the Literature and Commentary. Crowthorne, Berks: TRL Limited.
"Overall, we conclude that the weight of the evidence indicates that:
1) There is no evidence that consumption of cannabis alone increases the risk of culpability for traffic crash fatalities or injuries for which hospitalization occurs, and may reduce those risks.
2) The evidence concerning the combined effect of cannabis and alcohol on the risk of traffic fatalities and injuries, relative to the risk of alcohol alone, is unclear.
3) It is not possible to exclude the possibility that the use of cannabis (with or without alcohol) leads to an increased risk of road traffic crashes causing less serious injuries and vehicle damage."
REFERENCE: M. Bates and T. Blakely. 1999. "Role of cannabis in motor vehicle crashes." Epidemiologic Reviews 21: 222-232.
"In conclusion, marijuana impairs driving behavior. However, this impairment is mitigated in that subjects under marijuana treatment appear to perceive that they are indeed impaired. Where they can compensate, they do, for example by not overtaking, by slowing down and by focusing their attention when they know a response will be required. … Effects on driving behavior are present up to an hour after smoking but do not continue for extended periods.
With respect to comparisons between alcohol and marijuana effects, these substances tend to differ in their effects. In contrast to the compensatory behavior exhibited by subjects under marijuana treatment, subjects who have received alcohol tend to drive in a more risky manner. Both substances impair performance; however, the more cautious behavior of subjects who have received marijuana decreases the impact of the drug on performance, whereas the opposite holds true for alcohol."REFERENCE: A. Smiley. 1999. Marijuana: On-Road and Driving-Simulator Studies. In: H. Kalant et al. (Eds) The Health Effects of Cannabis. Toronto: Center for Addiction and Mental Health. Pp. 173-191.

University Of Saskatchewan Research Suggests Marijuana Analogue Stimulates Brain Cell Growth

ScienceDaily (Oct. 16, 2005) — A synthetic substance similar to ones found in marijuana stimulates cell growth in regions of the brain associated with anxiety and depression, pointing the way for new treatments for these diseases, according to University of Saskatchewan medical research published today in The Journal of Clinical Investigation.

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2005/10/051016083817.htm

You need to stop spreading the governments' lies....

You can say that again!

Nice cut & paste job with a bunch of hair-splitting fine points that draw more non-conclusions than solid evidence. It's also amusing when people immediately rush to the government conspiracy theory when presented facts that run against their grain.

No matter, marijuana possession is illegal and probably will remain that way. Living in denial about that is only going to land you in prison with 'Big Bubba' so continue to support the drug trade and encourage more to come into our country with all the violence and death it brings. I'm sure you have a slough of web links about that... don't bother. Have a nice day.

Who's in denial? The study was full of little disclaimers added to it...I only showed them...they are what they are, DISCLAIMERS by your own government....there is more to show for the good aspects of marijuana than the bad aspects of marijluana, and yet you still want to deny the disclaimers itself that I only showed??? In your own study that you cited to bolster your own stance in the argument....I only showed WHY your reference of proof was invalid...

And I only buy locally grown bud...I support my local community and their families....you don't.....don't you know? Marijuana is america's top grossing cash crop...more than corn and wheat combined...which means I DO NOT BUY MEXICAN SH*T.....none of us (REAL hard core recreational marijuana users) do....

<Marijuana Called Top U.S. Cash Crop
Marijuana Takes the Pot as Most Valuable Cash Crop in the Country

Contrasting government figures for traditional crops -- like corn and wheat -- against the study's projections for marijuana production, the report cites marijuana as the top cash crop in 12 states and among the top three cash crops in 30.

The study estimates that marijuana production, at a value of $35.8 billion, exceeds the combined value of corn ($23.3 billion) and wheat ($7.5 billion).

"The fact that marijuana is America's No. 1 cash crop after more than three decades of governmental eradication efforts is the clearest illustration that our present marijuana laws are a complete failure," says Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington D.C., a group that focuses on removing criminal penalties for marijuana use.

Kampia, whose comments were included in the study's press release, adds, "Our nation's laws guarantee that 100 percent of the proceeds from marijuana sales go to unregulated criminals rather than to legitimate businesses that pay taxes to support schools, police and roads."

http://abcnews.go.com/Business/story?id=2735017&page=1
/P>

!

And yes, I have "spouted" the government conspirancy rant, but not at all in response to your post, yet you want to write me off as a looney government conspirancy nut based on what I've posted IN REPLY of your post?
Typical flipflop tactics...

Great points Joe!!! Ive ran my course in trying to get through to some of these people, but I feel its a waste of time. Im glad there are those that wont back down because if the laws are ever gonna change it will be thanks to people like you.

As to all this about buying drugs from street dealers business. Why does everyone think that there is a difference between street marijuana and medical marijuana. The only difference is the guy that grows it sends some to be legally sold and some to be sold illegally. When you buy you can even get brand name pot like Blueberry, OG Kush, the list goes on and on. These are all different strands of the plant, with different flavors and potency. As to it being dangerous, has there ever been a reported death due to marijuana??? No? I Didnt think so.

Just wanted to say one more thing to "absolutelyright"...

Cannabis, of course, is more than THC. Other ingredients provide additional benefits and mitigate the adverse effects of THC.

Cannabidiol, for example, reduces dysphoria and depersonalization provoked by THC while contributing its own anxiolytic, antipsychotic, analgesic, antiemetic, anticarcinogenic, antioxidant, and neuroprotective effects.
http://www.jaoa.org/cgi/content/full/108/10/586

Do you not even see what this means? Can you not even comprehend? This is something everyone in the know within the government understands and tries to keep from the public...yes, it is true that THC is a psychotic substance, but thanks to CBD's, it's psychotic-inducing chemicals are negated...that means marijuana as a whole DOES NOT cause psychotic or mental problems....yet everyone in the government wants to get away with saying that "marijuana causes psychosis!!" when that is not true....they should simply say, "the chemical compound THC causes psychosis, and only in people who are already subspectible to psychosis"...normal people who have no mental illness issues are protected by CBD's.....like a simple formula....1 plus 1 equals 2. With people who already have mental illness issues, the formula becomes 2 plus 1 equals insanity! Why do you think potheads have a reputation for chillin in the living room, not running around raping sheeps and nuns and killing everyone they can? You know alcohol causes psychosis too? Korsakoff's syndrome, which is the same thing the government wants to scare you about marijuana...why do you think there are more instances of psychotic breakouts with the synthetic THC made for marinol and dronabinol? They don't got any "synthetic" CBD's to counteract it! And the government has known this for a long time about CBD's, they have a patent on it for christ sakes! Since 2003!! Wake up America!!

What I find amusing is you purport yourself to be some hero by supporting your local economy by purchasing illegal drugs. As long as you don't get caught, eh? You have a point I'll admit- money is exchanging hands and everyone is benefitting.

Look, we can forever argue this but I don't have the energy anymore. So you win- I give up. Sure, you see no health issues with it- I get that but I don't have to agree. Fight for what you believe in and do as you think is right but I would like to hear you just admit once that you are engaged in some risky behaviors from a legal perspective. If you don't see it that way, then fine. But I just don't see how you can't be concerned about the legal aspects of marijuana possession and usage on your part. Is it worth the risk?

Hell yes, I'm engaged in some risky behaviors from a legal standpoint...why do you think I put so much effort in calling for LEGALIZATION!!! I'm trying to get you to understand that it is because of you, because of prohibition that the legal risk is there, and it is all for nothing...just false propaganda and more medical benefits than you know and even the DEA wouldn't let the FDA test it! Why is that? Hmm, might be because the feds already funded such a study called the shafer comission which discovered that everything they thought was true about marijuana was WRONG...Everything you're saying against marijuana is WRONG, from the effects of marijuana to the effects on society at large...It IS worth the risk, haven't you been reading anything I've posted??? Not only that, legalization would benefit our economy....marijuana also has been proven to help hard drug addicts and alcoholics quit their drugs of choice and become functioning members of our country! It will help turn our hard drug users away from the mexican's hard drugs that they smuggle into our country...it will END this ridiculous little border feud with the mexicans! It also means the end of Big Tobacco, Big Pharma, Big Alcohol, the oil companies, the coal mining industry, the logging industry, the end of America's status as the world's top consuming nation of hard drugs, much of which is funneled through mexico! It means the end of the Taliban with their poppy farmers in Afghanistan, they stand to lose as much as the mexicans do! And GOOD RIDDANCE to them ALL....

Age and unemployment, but not marijuana use, are most likely to be associated with an individual's decision to use so-called 'hard' drugs, according to survey data published this month in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior.

http://www.cbc.ca/consumer/story/2010/09/02/con-marijuana-gateway.html

Marijuana Prosecutions For Year 2009 Near Record High -- Pot Arrests Now Comprise More Than One-Half Of All Drug Arrests Nationwide

Washington, DC: Police prosecuted 858,408 persons for marijuana violations in 2009, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation's annual Uniform Crime Report, released yesterday. The arrest total is the second highest ever reported by the FBI, and marks a 1.3 percent increase in the number of arrests reported in 2008 (847,864).

According to the report, marijuana arrests now comprise more than one-half (approximately 52 percent) of all drug arrests reported in the United States. A decade ago, marijuana arrests comprised just 44 percent of all drug arrests.

http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=8342

Study: Marijuana Can Help Curb Alcohol, Prescription Drug Abuse:

Cannabis as a substitute for alcohol and other drugs

According to lead researcher Amanda Reiman:

"Substituting cannabis for alcohol has been described as a radical alcohol treatment protocol. This approach could be used to address heavy alcohol use […] People might substitute cannabis, a potentially safer drug than alcohol with less negative side-effects, if it were socially acceptable and available."

http://www.harmreductionjournal.com/content/6/1/35

Toking Their Way Sober: Alcoholics and Marijuana as Folk Medicine
http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all~content=a781260758~frm=titlelink?words=study,marijuana

How can anyone with common sense continue to support prohibition??? It is a MASS failure, good god, it is the top cash crop of USA, and the feds refuse to regulate it! I have proven that marijuana is safer than you think! It is not even more addictive than caffiene! And caffiene IS a psychotic substance! Where is the logic in this????
Prohibition is RUINING us....NOT marijuana...

You want to know what I find amusing about you, absolutelywrong? In your posts, you seem to support medical marijuana...so does that mean you support the states that have "legalized" medical marijuana? If so, you are against the federal government's will....You support prohibition, and this is what prohibition brings to cancer patients all across the country....you are nothing more than a disgusting hypocrite....HYPOCRITE.....

Under Leonhart's leadership, the DEA has staged medical marijuana raids in apparent disregard of Attorney General Eric Holder's directive to respect state medical marijuana laws. Most recently, DEA agents flouted a pioneering Mendocino County (CA) ordinance to regulate medical marijuana cultivation by raiding the very first grower to register with the sheriff. Joy Greenfield, 69, had paid more than $1,000 for a permit to cultivate 99 plants in a collective garden that had been inspected and approved by the local sheriff.

Informed that Ms. Greenfield had the support of the sheriff, the DEA agent in charge responded by saying, "I don't care what the sheriff says." The DEA's conduct is inconsistent with an October 2009 Department of Justice memo directing officials not to arrest individuals "whose actions are in clear and unambiguous compliance with existing state laws providing for the medical use of marijuana."

Ms. Leonhart has also demonstrated that she is unable to be objective in carrying out the duties of the administrator as it relates to medical marijuana research. In January 2009, she refused to issue a license to the University of Massachusetts to cultivate marijuana for FDA-approved research, despite a DEA administrative law judge's ruling that it would be "in the public interest" to issue the license. This single act has blocked privately-funded medical marijuana research in this country. The next DEA administrator will likely influence the outcome of a marijuana rescheduling petition currently before the agency. It is critical that an administrator with an open mind toward science and research is at the helm.

http://salem-news.com/articles/july212010/dea-leonhart.php

DEA raids Okemos warehouse in medical marijuana case
http://www.lansingstatejournal.com/article/20101204/NEWS01/312030025/1001/news

Federal Agents Raid At Least Five Las Vegas Medical Marijuana Dispensarieshttp://www.americansforsafeaccess.org/article.php?id=6115

DEA raids Colorado lab that tests medical marijuana samples for potency
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14290771

Medical Marijuana Advocates Protest Recent DEA Raids in Michigan & California
http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=6072

There are more stories....it is all on prohibition...All of these raids have happened in the past year, indeed, the most recent one was this month!

Why else did Big Alcohol lobby against prop. 19 (legalization bill in cali which failed)? They knew they were outta business if marijuana was legalized...This is who you support with prohibition...as well as big tobacco...big pharma....and all the other industries I've mentioned...you support the mexican drug cartels and ultimately the taliban as well with prohibition...you are UNAMERICAN....

The Economics of Prop 19

Unsurprisingly, California beer and beverage distributors, fearing new competition, are lobbying against Proposition 19. So is a police group, Public Safety First, that fears less loot from auctioning off property seized in drug raids.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told the Huffington Post that senior Mexican government officials have lobbied U.S. leaders against legalizing marijuana in California. Why? The authors of a recent Rand Corporation study conclude that Proposition 19 "would effectively eliminate Mexican drug-trafficking organizations' revenues from supplying Mexican-grown marijuana to the California market." That suggests some benefit to California marijuana growers (though they too fear a lower price) at the expense of the Mexican economy.

http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/251732/economics-prop-19-alan-reynolds

"Prohibition will work great injury to the cause of temperance. It is a species of intemperance within itself, for it goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man's appetite by legislation, and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes. A Prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded."
Abraham Lincoln (1809-65), U.S. President.
Speech, 18 Dec. 1840, to Illinois House of Representatives

Thanks for the sources Joe, have you checked out LEAP?

Yeah smalltownpete, I've heard of LEAP, I know it's law enforcement against prohibition, never checked out their website tho...I try to choose to get sources cited by neutral sites that have no bias against or for legalization, that way it's harder for opposition to question your sources when you put them up...

And yes, for anyone paying attention, one of sources I used in my above post 2.42 was from norml.com, a pro cannabis website, but they do tell facts, not lies. If you doubt their stories, they post their sources and you can see for yourself that their sources are valid...

Wow joe, it sounds like to you marijuana is the answer to all our problems in the world. You sound like you're on some 'pie in the sky' crusade with pot, trying to win over people 'like me' who you see as part of the 'problem'. Yet, I do not see a problem because I don't agree that pot should be legalized nor do I believe that would resolve any problems- in fact create new troubles for society. But that's just me and I suspect many others like me think the same or we wouldn't have laws in place protecting society and making it illegal, right? So, get on your soapbox all you want but obviously people aren't listening because the law is the law- call me a conformist if you will, but at least I rest well not taking risks that could impair my freedom. You, on the other hand, use an illegal substance and no matter how you think it supports your local economy (black market) it is a risk you choose to take. Therefore, be willing to suffer the consequences of your choices and be a martyr for your cause to legalize marijuana- something that probably will never happen. Nobody's paying attention so if you want to use your energies to fight wars that can't be won that's up to you.

You labelled me with some pretty harsh & unfair words above calling me 'unamerican' and a 'hypocrite' - sticks & stones. None of that is true so say what you will and keep flipflopping everything to fit your perspective all you want. But you can't discredit me for what I believe no matter how hard you try. Your use of logic such as with the first paragraph of 2.44 is inflammatory and irrational to make such a claim towards me. I support cartels & the taliban? C'mon already!! Get real. In 2.43 you claim that I 'support' medical marijuana? Really now, did I ever say that explicitly? No, I did not say it and I do not support medical marijuana so I am not a hypocrite at all. This is just another representation of someone who is a hothead, spewing out senseless lies to try and make his points stick. Obviously you have a strong need to 'win' something but all you fight is the thin air.

Absoluteyright:

There is a difference between medicinal marijuana and street marijuana of course. In it's purest form it is useful and is gaining ground as an accepted prescription, so it has a positive use in the world.

#2.30 - Fri Dec 17, 2010 8:58 PM EST

LOL...it's not even funny...
I said: "In your posts, you seem to support medical marijuana..." I didn't say you DID support it, I said you seem to support it, which I inferred from the above quote from you...still want to play the saint card?

hypocrite....

Absolutelyright,

"I suspect many others like me think the same or we wouldn't have laws in place protecting society and making it illegal, right?"

What reson was marijuana made illegal for? Do you even know? You make me sick with your ignorance. Your a sheep with blinders on. The worst kind of American there is. Just go along with it cause thats what papa Government tells you. Did you even see the quote of Abraham Lincoln that Joe posted?

"makes a crime out of things that are not crimes. A Prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded."

Trust me not everyone thinks like you, others that may be on your side have their own agendas. And Im sure Joe doesnt think that pot is the answer to all our problems, but it would help to have more resources at our disposal instead of wasting them.

That's right, it's not the total answer to every issue we face...but its a substantial answer in more than one issue out of all the issues we face...illicit hard drug use...illegal prescription drug use...alcohol use....thanks to these issues alone, we face heightened dangers from driving to withdrawing cash from the local atm....as well as fatal car accidents per year....as well as curbing illicit hard drug use in america...which in turn curbs the illegal drug cartels operating worldwide and here in america....not to mention actual patients needing its medical benefits...and actual doctors calling for repealing the prohibition on marijuana...the AMA tried to appeal the feds to change marijuana's scheduling as a schedule 1 drug, which is a category for hard drugs with absolutely NO medical uses....guess what's on the schedule 2 category? Meth and heroin...oh yeah....which is the catergory for drugs with medical use...the AMA (American Medical Association, one of, if not the, oldest medical group in america, that's like the republicans of the medical profession) knows about marijuana, in fact they protested the prohibition in 1937 when the feds made it illegal...not to mention our economy...our farmers...my father was a farmer and he lost the farm when I was 11...if it had been legal...our lives would have been different...so prohibition does effect everyone from people with absolutely nothing with marijuana to the profiteering drug cartels as well as the DEA and government...and politicians, I mean, over in Europe they tried to kickstart a program that would have issued licenses to the afghan poppy farmers to legally supply big pharma in Europe and UK so the population of afghanistan would have a reason to be happy and be able to work with the rest of the world, I mean, our own U.S. troops protect the farmers crops in the hopes of winning the population to our side, yet they still illegally fund the taliban....guess what happened to that program? American politicians nipped that in the bud, because they weren't "notified" of the program....they want to send a message to the population of afghanistan of peace? Why block the program? These drugs are coming to our country as illicit hard drugs....so yes, the taliban IS making money off of prohibition here in america...because they have a source of demand....like I said, marijuana helps drug addicts as well as alcoholics and prescription drug addicts...and I forgot about all the other aspects yet I've already mentioned them, the businesses, our own supply of fuels independent of the middle east, our renewable source of power for electricity, which half of america gets from coal...definitely not renewable...our textiles...our housing industry would benefit greatly...our medical patients....as well as lowering hospital visits due to tobacco, alcohol, prescription drugs, and illicit hard drugs...as well as boosting the economy with more jobs for the rest of us....as well as lowering our carbon footprint in terms of pollution...as well as ending deforestation...

OK, it is still not a total answer for everything, but it is a substantial answer....I haven't even finished my thoughts, there are more benefits but this post is long enough as it is...and one more thing...that quote from Lincoln? He said prohibition goes beyond the bounds of reason...he is absolutely correct, especially when it comes to marijuana...

Absoluteyright:

There is a difference between medicinal marijuana and street marijuana of course. In it's purest form it is useful and is gaining ground as an accepted prescription, so it has a positive use in the world.

#2.30 - Fri Dec 17, 2010 8:58 PM EST

LOL...it's not even funny...
I said: "In your posts, you seem to support medical marijuana..." I didn't say you DID support it, I said you seem to support it, which I inferred from the above quote from you...still want to play the saint card?

*Yawn - another example of how you twist meanings in an attempt to "win" something for yourself- to be right. Must be a lot of pressure you live under always having something to prove.

Oh what I fine line- I seem to support medicinal marijuana. Just because I say it has a positive use in the world does not infer in the slightest I support it. I do not. You draw this conclusion based on the filters you perceive through in addition to your compulsive need to be right, to be superior or omniscient.

You label me again as a hypocrite which is nothing short of name-calling and violates the rules of use on newsvine. It's inflammatory and an unnecessary misuse of language. What's more, I cannot be hypocritical because I am not contradicting anything: You are simply constructing contradictions in an attempt to force your viewpoints which are faulty to begin with. Coming from somebody who smokes pot, buys, sells, etc. doesn't put a lot of merit in your corner as it is.

Good luck to you and smalltownpete (typical smalltowner who can't help butting into coversations not his)- hey, maybe you will one day share a jail cell together. Keep denying reality of the law and you one day will. Use all the fancy quotes from Lincoln, etc. all you want in an attempt to deny the facts. Call me a 'sheep'? I don't blindly follow anything- I go in eyes wide open and understand my place very well. I choose my own destiny which is a path of peace and freedom: you choose the opposite. It's your bed- you made it, you sleep in it. Keep fighting fights that you can't win and waste your lives all you want for... what exactly?

This is Absolutelyright signing out and won't be back in this discussion again. I leave victorious as the confirmed winner of this argument and you are the delusional loser heading to jail one day. Simple: I win. You lose. Have a nice day ;]

LOL! BTW dont be proud of that vote up, that was me, I accidently pushed it trying to push the reply button...once again...LOL!

Sounds like your crowned your self king.... Fighting a fight we cant win? Um if you havent noticed in the last ten years there has been major policy changes in regard to marijuana. So it looks like were making progress no thanks to you and your un-american ideals. You can call it wasting our lives, but our forefathers didnt think that when they were "wasting" their lives for our freedoms. For you to say that its bad because its illegal is the most basic sheep with blinders example. Those fancy quotes were to show that one of the greatest americans in history doesnt agree with you what so ever. Go ahead and crown your self it doesnt bother me but fact is your wrong about pot, your wrong about the fact that we cant win this.

Another thing your wrong about, I didnt butt into your conversation retard. You came into OUR conversation with forsureiam. I love how you complain about me doing something when in all acutallity you are the one who did it. I think the definition of that would be HYPOCRITE hahahahahahahahahaha

This is SmallTownPete signing out and I will be back in this discussion again. I leave victorious as the confirmed winner of this argument and you are the delusional loser heading to your boring life with your head in the sand. Simple: I win. You lose. Have a nice day ;]

LOL...that's funny pete....

abso, I've got one last thing to say to you...where is the valid source of information regarding everything you've said? I've shown study after study with different valid aspects of marijuana from the economy (top grossing cash crop) to its inherently harmless effects on people to helping drug addicts to many other points I brought up...you brought up only one, which was full its own disclaimers after trotting out their "facts"...where are your valid counterpoints to my points, besides just spouting sh*t at random without backing it up? Basically throughout your argument it's all "you think, you think..." without any sources cited....I had tangible evidence that backed up all the points I brought up....you have nothing....maybe a nice little speech, but that's it otherwise...nothing....lol...so far all you have is..."dude...it's illegal...so it...um..yeah...it can't be legalized..."

You're just a puppet...parroting the usual useless, empty platitudes...like a faithful worker drone....good little soldier....mommy wuvs her good little boy....

Even Pat Robertson from the 700 Club supports legalization....

Hey hope you had a great Christmas & New Years. Santa left me a $60K muscle car in my fourth garage! What did he get you? Some drug paraphernalia? Wow, so cool!

LOL! I forgot all about this drivel and had to see if you replied- guess what, you did! Too bad you both are so wrong on all counts. And, yes, I have credible facts to back up all my claims and dismiss your ka-ka 'evidence' written by your fellow potheads. Maybe I'll post it here sometime but it's frankly not worth my time- we'll see. Speaking of time... I'm off to a banquet with some medical specialists at a 5-star resort for a couple of days. I'll pass along some of your tidbits of non-wisdom for some good laughs.

Have a great New Year! ;]

Oh, and another thing Smallpeter- I didn't butt into anyone's conversation. In fact, YOU did hypocrite. You aren't very good at connecting dots are you? I love it- I get the last word and the last laugh! For sure I am absolutely right and you end up the retard LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL !!!!!!

So have your mommy heat up a Hotpocket for you and go to your room in the back of the trailer with your coloring books. Once again- simple. I win. You lose. Have a nice day ;]

that's it? that's your returning fire? "i'm right, you're wrong. you're poopy ka-ka."

yeah, great points all around.

So, you have no problem with the blood spilled to get your fix? Would you feel the same if it was a member of your family killed for the pot distribution instead of a faceless mexican?

If you are against blood being shed you should push for legalization. It is the illegalization of a weed, that is the cause of the violence not the weed itself. I have known pot smokers for over 40 years and not one of them needed a fix, as you put it. POT IS NOT ADDICTIVE.

When I see proof that THC in itself is addictive, then I will believe pot is addicting. Knowing many many many many potheads myself, I have never seen one go through any kind of withdrawl symptoms as a result of not smoking on an hourly/daily/weekly basis. guest-2797901 is correct, you want to end the bloodshed, legalization is the best course, one less method to fund the drug cartels(by the way US pot growing industry is worth about $100 billion dollars alone, this does not include imports), and would be a great source of government revenue

It causes some pretty addictive (and occasionally outright idiotic) behavior tho, even if it's not physically so.

Got nothing on alcohol tho.

So we'll just forget about the psycological addiction part. Legalizing something will not stop the blood in mexico they have already moved into meth labs to export to the US. And it is also the pathway for coke coming from South America. The people have to stop the cartels just like when they got sick of Escobar.

But why do you keep bringing up alcohol? It sounds like the fourth grade argument-How come he can do it? Your argument for legalization has to stand on it's own merits not a comparative measure to something else.

kevin in houston - a more important question would be why would a teen put his life under the control of either substance and imperil his future?

Kevin come by Uncle Alberts any weekend ask for Biz, I got ya

Why would a Teenager worry about their future, that's for those old people.

Plus the Internet facts that a related to D.A.R.E. and adrugfreeamerica.org look who the sponsors are, Tabasco and alcohol. With that kind of infrastructure and the death tolls are staggering especially if you top it with mom and dads pharmaceuticals. And then you have the death tolls from weed...none Plus the fact that most teens do the exact opposite of what their parents tell them and what they have learned from anti-drugs make it a hit. So doing what teens do it doesnt seem like rocket science. But Im underground America, everthing most of you are not.

But why do you keep bringing up alcohol? It sounds like the fourth grade argument-How come he can do it? Your argument for legalization has to stand on it's own merits not a comparative measure to something else.

It's not 4th grade at all, and is a very valid question, one that has not yet been reasonably answered.

Why are two substances that are proven to be addictive and physiologically damaging, i.e. tobacco and alcohol, legal when a substance which is neither remains illegal on a federal level?

It is reasonable to bring up alcohol. Alcolhol is everywhere and pot is everywhere. They should be compared.

Before the income tax, the federal government relied mainly on liquor taxes. The passage of the income tax enabled Prohibition, one of the worst programs ever undertaken by the Federal government.

Today, the Federal government turns its back on a huge taxable base for no good reason. REPEAL POT PROHIBITION!!

The reason that comparisons to alcohol are made in arguing for the legalization of marijuana is that it serves as a compelling historical and legal precedent to those capable of logic and reason.

Ya that is just what we need more American men dying on the field of battle so you can sit on your ass and SUCK on your bong!!

GROW UP DUDE!!!

David-1132825

you sound like quite the proverbial tard , i dont think we've fought any war because of marijuana except the war on drugs which is the longest war in our history and it was waged against its own people so the government could bully its people into doing what it wanted them to do well guess what tardo it dontseem to be doing nothing but sucking up tax dollars it sure aint working , i have smoked pot for 43 years almost every day except for them 34 months i spent in a federal prison for pot yea lots and lots of pot ,yes sir i am a POW well ex pow and i own my own construction company with 32 employees and i work pretty f#cking hard and when i get home at night i dont mind a rip or two off that bong , i have grown up pallie and ive decided that i like my pot and im gonna use it on a daily basis ,and no i dont drink much at all nor do i smoke cigarettes so i think ill be ok and if that bothers you then YOU are the one with the problem DUDE , grow up and mind your own business and until what i do affects you then tell me about it but until then shut the hell up DUDE..i dont remember any americans dying on any battle fields for any amount of marijuana you are two fking stupid..

BY THE WAY DAVID-1132825,

Those men you are worried about are getting killed protecting Heroin right now over in Afghanistan. Yep, they are over there protecting folks growing field after field of opium poppy. But of course your head is shoved so far up your "bong hole" you didn't think of that did ya dipstick?

Let's bring it back a little there...plenty of people use alcohol responsibly, and it'd take a couple of bottles of aspirin and about a week to kill yourself.

Care to try? A handful, mind you. Hell, take em together for bonus points!

You certainly won't last a week let alone a few hours.

Aspirin overdose can be acute or chronic. In acute poisoning, a single large dose is taken; in chronic poisoning, higher than normal doses are taken over a period of time.

Either way Captain, aspirin is lethal if not used "responsibly". Marijuana on the other hand, they use terms like theroretically because its so difficult to overdose. Current estimates project that the lethal dose for marijuana is equivilent to smoking 1500 pounds in 15 min. Most of the info I have given comes from drugwarfacts.org. I would also recommend everyone check out LEAP.cc, its Law Enforcement Against Prohibition.

No, pot killed a lot of people getting to you but you don't care. How do you spell J U N K I E?

Pot never killed anyone. It is a weed created by God. I guess you believe manmade creations are more moral. somehow?

God also created Hemlock, you gonna try that tonight?

Natural =/ good, and @!$%#, beer is pretty natural it's just fermented. That's a completely natural process.

Considering this isn't hemlock, I don't see your point. You may as well have said arsenic if you're going for hyperbole.

The point is, we have hard cases of arsenic and hemlock killing. Yet we have mountains of willie nelson-types.

The best part is that marijuana doesn't even require fermentation to be useful.

I don't buy pot from mexicans...f*ckin schwagg...most experienced recreational users have a local dealer with a local grower....the ones buying from the mexicans are the inexperienced idiots (high school kids trying to impress their buddies or girl, or junkies who like to toke a lil too, etc.), or whatever....Marijuana is America's largest cash crop, it earns more money than soy and wheat combined...and it is not taxed! Not even regulated...

Just remember, most of us are supporting our local community....where you been shopping lately? Wal-mart? At least this dude was totally supporting his local community WITH locally grown bud...that was no mexican cartel schwagg.

Evidence please.

Spend a month around stoners

yeah all you'd see with a month around stoners is an increase in your food bill and alot of the history channel

Hey, at least it's educational...that sh*t gets, like, embedded into your subconcious or something...

Not the government, RJ Reynolds, Phillip-Morris and Winston-Salem. They don't want it legalized either, and they have deeper pockets.

Don M-1583061

Marijuana is generally much less harmful. But, as an adult, I believe they would be better off waiting until they are at least 21 years of age to indulge themselves with either... That said, marijuana should definately be made legal for adults over the age of 21!

Exactly the point I made to my teenager; you're still physically, incl. neurologically, developing. Wait until that's done before playing around with your biochemistry. ALL drugs have side effects, so do some research so you know what you're getting into.

Exactly!!! My son gets it as well --we have this discussion almost weekly wait until he's 21 then he can "experiment"- by then I believe he wont need anything to help get thru the day--but he can find it out for himself when he's 21!!!---but once again- I talk to him about the peer pressure, the effects and the dangers of ANY mind altering substance--alcohol especially--- at least once a week and he gets it!! talk to your kids habitually BEFORE they develop their habits YOU are the adult (i hope)---- Mexican cartels LOVE the 'War on Drugs' just like drug dealers in this country do

So, you have no problem with the blood spilled to get your fix? Would you feel the same if it was a member of your family killed for the pot distribution instead of a faceless mexican?

PA,

What are you talking about? You do realize most of the MJ used in the USA is now grown here.

My hemp is proudly grown right here in the U.S.A.. No cartel members were slain to get it to me either.

Prohibition is the reason why blood is spilled in the first place...over a harmless plant...
And yes, most bud are grown locally and sold locally...support your local grower.
Most potheads don't buy mexican schwagg...they don't know how to grow good bud anyway...

Crazy..... that's EXACTLY what I was gunna say. This cold sucks! I want a bong load!!!

Hey, "Reefer Madness" is a true story you know

Listen to a gov't who thinks POT is "dangerous" but GMO's and pesticides in your food, FLUORIDE in your water and MERCURY in your mouth is "good for you".

PHUCK THE GOV'T. This is about profits and industry pressure.... pure and simple. Always has been. The HEMP industry is SO versatile that if legalized it would put the paper and other industries out of business because hemp is a UNIVERSAL commodity that can be used for paper, rope, clothing, food, medicine, etc. It has nothing to do w/DRUGS or HEALTH/SAFETY.

Big Agri, Big Pharma and BIg BUsiness are the ones who are REALLY behind this phony "war"...the REAL puppetmasters.

Im pretty sure that was sarcasm, if it wasnt then I feel sorry for ReLiving MyYouth.

Injustice - Absolutely! It has been my opinion for most of my life that Justice is something that is seriously lacking in this country! For example, where is the justice in giving someone a nice peaceful painless death when they caused tremendous amounts of pain to their victims? Where is the justice in locking someone up in a private prison, confiscating some or all of their belongings, charging them a huge fine, taking away educational benefits, and labeling them as a criminal (thus making it very hard or impossible to get a decent job once out of prison) just because they choose to use marijuana? Clearly, there is no justice in these scenarios! If young people (and a lot of older people) don't trust their Govt, well the reasons are obvious enough to me...

I hope you're right about this new generation. But, that's what I thought back in the 70s only to have the Govt squash my hopes... Seriously, around 1975 I was nearly positive it would be legal by 1980... When Ronald Reagan got elected President in 1981 he totally squashed the legalization movement with his "Just Say No" war on the American People. That's partly because he liked being popular and among his fellow politicians it was popular to be against marijuana because it was associated with the hippies... Laws against marijuana have never actually had anything to do with the reality of it's relative safety compared to any and all other recreational drugs. That's something that needs to be changed before one more good American gets locked up or has a felony added to their otherwise clean slate.

If it cost me $30 per pack 2 purchase weed at the local convenience store I would still have to contact my dealer when I needed some. Sure I understand why they want to have high taxes on marijuana but if I cannot afford it at the store i'm gonna call up my guy and get it tax free!

I am exactly the same. I have watched the comments on everything I see on marijuana and 99% of the people feel that it should be legal. Now with those statistics how can legalization not pass. Something screwy happened in Ca. I'm planning on retiring in a year of so and then I won't have to live in fear of losing my job or income (hopefully) and I WILL stand up and carry a sign. I guess another hippie protest except it will be all over the net also. Please join me at that time unless people have the guts to do it before. Read the Declaration of Independance. When the government starts making laws against large groups of people part. It will blow your mind and I would say that marijuana smokers are certainly a large group of people.

Acme - People like you and I are the REAL Americans! People who believe in right and wrong. People who believe in Freedom. People who pursue happiness. People who stand against injustice! God knows I wish more of our elected leaders were real Americans... Sigh...

Bra--vo GUYS I WOULD SAY SOMETHING BUT ITS ABOUT THE SAME THING

Again bravo wish there were more like minded people out there but there still in the woodwork afraid to speak up.

am glad that some younger folks are going for the safer choice over drinking and cigs.

It isn't safer for the innocent mexican except they get a marker and are easy to find in the cemetary.

PA,

Again what are you talking about? Spell out some kind of argument.

If you are worried about the illegal trade, then legalization helps solve your issues, does it not!

Legalize it, Tax it and stop all of this "War On Drugs" BS surrounding it.

lets not forget about the Harrison Act 1914.

Read this to get a break down on the racism involved in making Marijuana illegal.

http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/why-is-marijuana-illegal/?%3F