What's your opinion on

[mjkoehler]

Use it if you want, I have no issues with that. I haven't touched the stuff in years. Like anything else, use at your own risk and do not overdo it.

[ycartrob]

Pot has been largely decriminalized in Canada (my homeland), which is fine by me. But the drug isn't harmless and it is addictive, so use at your own risk.  

It's not addictive in the same way tobacco is. I had to stop smoking pot for six months after smoking everyday for 3 years. The first day I got a headache but saw nothing after that. I had to go without smoking cigarettes for three days for a surgery, and I almost died; cold sweats, fever, trembling.
Yeah, smoking's bad.

For me, nothing was as difficult as kicking nicotine. However, marijuana (just like any other drug) can be used responsibly or not. How we define "responsible" is a whole other topic. And, as corny as it sounds, weed is a gateway drug. Few people just decided one day to shoot heroin or do some blow, it's a progressive thing that starts with something as "harmless" as weed.

Yep, I Agree.

C'mon guys.  Gateway Drug = Faulty Logic.  I guess correlation equals causation?   Are you all drinkin' the political Kool Aid?  

Items to add to the Gateway label/hypothesis - Lack of parenting, alcohol, tobacco, late curfew, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg.....

Those who have a need will continue to climb the ladder.  Some will step on all the rungs and others will climb straight to the top.  It seems to me that most people are scared of heights.

But hey, that's just me and my useless 2 cents :)

There can be a billion-six "gateway" correlations. Having worked as an addiction's counselor, it's a no brainer for me that marijuana is a gate way drug for those who move on to harder drugs. A large % of addicts I have worked with say they started with marijuana. This isn't a "kool aid" PC statement, it's a fact. There's evidence based research that shows this is true, there's evidence based research that show it's irrelevant. But my statement comes from years of experience, both personally and profesionally.

[Ruckus]

Pot has been largely decriminalized in Canada (my homeland), which is fine by me. But the drug isn't harmless and it is addictive, so use at your own risk.  

It's not addictive in the same way tobacco is. I had to stop smoking pot for six months after smoking everyday for 3 years. The first day I got a headache but saw nothing after that. I had to go without smoking cigarettes for three days for a surgery, and I almost died; cold sweats, fever, trembling.
Yeah, smoking's bad.

For me, nothing was as difficult as kicking nicotine. However, marijuana (just like any other drug) can be used responsibly or not. How we define "responsible" is a whole other topic. And, as corny as it sounds, weed is a gateway drug. Few people just decided one day to shoot heroin or do some blow, it's a progressive thing that starts with something as "harmless" as weed.

Yep, I Agree.

C'mon guys.  Gateway Drug = Faulty Logic.  I guess correlation equals causation?   Are you all drinkin' the political Kool Aid?  

Items to add to the Gateway label/hypothesis - Lack of parenting, alcohol, tobacco, late curfew, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg.....

Those who have a need will continue to climb the ladder.  Some will step on all the rungs and others will climb straight to the top.  It seems to me that most people are scared of heights.

But hey, that's just me and my useless 2 cents :)

There can be a billion-six "gateway" correlations. Having worked as an addiction's counselor, it's a no brainer for me that marijuana is a gate way drug for those who move on to harder drugs. A large % of addicts I have worked with say they started with marijuana. This isn't a "kool aid" PC statement, it's a fact. There's evidence based research that shows this is true, there's evidence based research that show it's irrelevant. But my statement comes from years of experience, both personally and profesionally.

I guess it just depends on what we mean by gateway (causation vs. chronology).  Did these same people start with tobacco or alcohol?  I surely agree where marijuana lands on the totem pole of drug abuse and agree that it is one of the first to be tried except for the aforementioned two.  I do not, however, see what is accomplished by labeling it a "gateway" drug.  As I mentioned before, those that are addicts will do what they do whether they started with marijuana, alcohol or percocets.

If we were to live in a hypothetical world without marijuana, would the number of meth, crack or heroin addicts decrease?

[ycartrob]

If we were to live in a hypothetical world without marijuana, would the number of meth, crack or heroin addicts decrease?

too hypothetical, IMO. I understand your argument and I am balancing out with the question of: What's the worst thing in the world that could happen if marijuana is considered a gateway drug?
nothing.

I totally believe in drug education and people who are genetically pre-dispositioned to become addicts need to know that many things (alcohol, marijuana, etc...) may lead to addiction. For some (actually many) this is the case. And if it's not the case (for argument's sake) so what?

But like I said earlier, time after time after time it starts with marijuana; marijuana did not cause it, but marijuana facilitated the progress. That is, if you buy in to the addiction theory and disease model (but that in itself is a whole other discussion).

Again, I am not one of those people preaching the evils of marijuana use. Alcohol is a much more addictive substance and destroys more familes, but alcohol is legal b/c of it's medicinal purposes  ;)

[tomEisenbraun]

legalize it

And make tobacco illegal.

No thanks? I've been a pipe fan for a while and hand rolling cigarettes at the moment and have to say I do enjoy both. Not that it's non-destructive at all, but I don't see much good in this one. Other than pissing off all sorts of people. I'll quit smoking again after a while, but I don't see any good reason to drag all the cigar and pipe smokers into it, and when there's such a gray area in there with that realm of gourmet cigarettes and really shitty gas station cigars, I can see it getting really messy trying to distinguish a line between them. People arguing over the quality of a product, and then making what would legally qualify as a "cigar" to cater back down to cigarette smokers. And how is pipe tobacco that much different (I can talk curing processes, I know the difference in production, but what I mean here is the actually substance) from cigarette tobacco? They're both basically chopped up cured tobacco leaves, and that makes another shitty gray area for legislation to deal with. The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

[Ruckus]

If we were to live in a hypothetical world without marijuana, would the number of meth, crack or heroin addicts decrease?

too hypothetical, IMO. I understand your argument and I am balancing out with the question of: What's the worst thing in the world that could happen if marijuana is considered a gateway drug?
nothing.

I totally believe in drug education and people who are genetically pre-dispositioned to become addicts need to know that many things (alcohol, marijuana, etc...) may lead to addiction. For some (actually many) this is the case. And if it's not the case (for argument's sake) so what?

But like I said earlier, time after time after time it starts with marijuana; marijuana did not cause it, but marijuana facilitated the progress. That is, if you buy in to the addiction theory and disease model (but that in itself is a whole other discussion).

Again, I am not one of those people preaching the evils of marijuana use. Alcohol is a much more addictive substance and destroys more familes, but alcohol is legal b/c of it's medicinal purposes  ;)

Agreed [smiley=thumbup.gif]

[FACE]

decriminalized in massachusetts in 2009.
doesn't really make much of a difference to me.
i'm a teenager, i'm invincible etc.
plus i don't really do drugs, unless it's summer and i want to lay in my grass with my kitties and paint.
eh.

[xmascriminal]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

[ycartrob]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

Less than 10 people a year die from marijuana use? You want to show me where that stat came from?

(and pork kills 100,000's of people a year, let's not talk about banning things that are bad for you).

[xmascriminal]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

Less than 10 people a year die from marijuana use? You want to show me where that stat came from?

(and pork kills 100,000's of people a year, let's not talk about banning things that are bad for you).

My numbers come from a study by the Center for Disease Control. Check out the data here: http://www.briancbennett.com/charts/death/cannabis-yr.htm

And of course, there is a huge difference between cigarettes and pork: pork is not addictive.

[mjkoehler]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

Less than 10 people a year die from marijuana use? You want to show me where that stat came from?

(and pork kills 100,000's of people a year, let's not talk about banning things that are bad for you).

But ribs, bacon, and pulled pork are good for you soul!

[tomEisenbraun]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

To turn that same logic around, why should alcohol be available in every convenience store when it not only kills such a high number of the people who abuse it, but also plays such a strong role in a very undeniable amount of auto accidents and deaths?

And yes, second hand smoking. But the effects of second-hand alcoholism seem to be much more dangerous from what I've seen. This gets into opinion, though.

Seriously though, a significant number of people have wasted their lives by getting too into pot, and that's no good either. With almost anything out there that can be abused, there will be people who test those limits. There will also be the people who get affected seriously when they weren't planning on it. Anything like that requires understanding what effect your intake will have on you.

I think we all know damn well what's out there that can hurt us. Hell, heroin is illegal and people still get fucked sideways voluntarily on that one. Legal or illegal, people will still take to these things.

I don't really have much of an argument, but I want to suck down some hearty unfiltered nicotine through my Zig-Zag 1" Kutcorners, please don't feel the need to stop me. I understand it's not good for me, but it's a habit and an escape and it doesn't fail any piss tests or keep me from walking right back in to work. And when you're in a lonely town with not much else to look forward to after work but a beer and a cigarette, I'll take both over just wallowing in beer.

You still didn't address my concerns about cigar and pipe tobacco? Is that stuff on the proverbial "shit list" with you as well?

Also, I know some of this could come across as being read in a pretty heated manner. If it did that (and I'm sure there's a few different ways to "hear" it when you read it), please understand that I'm arguing with you not to be a vindictive shit, but to learn why you said that and why you think it should be outright outlawed. I am in complete disagreement with you on this one, and I'd like to know why you stand behind that. And if you think pipe and cigars ought to be thrown out the window as well. I understand all the bad behind it, but I still can't help but feel like that one's a personal choice.

That said, I've never had a close relative die of lung cancer, and I'm sure that changes the entire perspective here. If you've been there, you have all my condolences, and you also have a perspective to come from which I can't rival. I hope that's not the case, for sure, though.

[Penny Lane]

about 10 years i thought there might be a chance but not w/the makeup of this USSC--forget about it.

[tomEisenbraun]

about 10 years i thought there might be a chance but not w/the makeup of this USSC--forget about it.

USSC?

[tomEisenbraun]

United Socialist States of Columbia?

[xmascriminal]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

To turn that same logic around, why should alcohol be available in every convenience store when it not only kills such a high number of the people who abuse it, but also plays such a strong role in a very undeniable amount of auto accidents and deaths?

And yes, second hand smoking. But the effects of second-hand alcoholism seem to be much more dangerous from what I've seen. This gets into opinion, though.

Seriously though, a significant number of people have wasted their lives by getting too into pot, and that's no good either. With almost anything out there that can be abused, there will be people who test those limits. There will also be the people who get affected seriously when they weren't planning on it. Anything like that requires understanding what effect your intake will have on you.

I think we all know damn well what's out there that can hurt us. Hell, heroin is illegal and people still get fucked sideways voluntarily on that one. Legal or illegal, people will still take to these things.

I don't really have much of an argument, but I want to suck down some hearty unfiltered nicotine through my Zig-Zag 1" Kutcorners, please don't feel the need to stop me. I understand it's not good for me, but it's a habit and an escape and it doesn't fail any piss tests or keep me from walking right back in to work. And when you're in a lonely town with not much else to look forward to after work but a beer and a cigarette, I'll take both over just wallowing in beer.

You still didn't address my concerns about cigar and pipe tobacco? Is that stuff on the proverbial "shit list" with you as well?

Also, I know some of this could come across as being read in a pretty heated manner. If it did that (and I'm sure there's a few different ways to "hear" it when you read it), please understand that I'm arguing with you not to be a vindictive shit, but to learn why you said that and why you think it should be outright outlawed. I am in complete disagreement with you on this one, and I'd like to know why you stand behind that. And if you think pipe and cigars ought to be thrown out the window as well. I understand all the bad behind it, but I still can't help but feel like that one's a personal choice.

That said, I've never had a close relative die of lung cancer, and I'm sure that changes the entire perspective here. If you've been there, you have all my condolences, and you also have a perspective to come from which I can't rival. I hope that's not the case, for sure, though.

I'm just sad to see so many people get screwed up. I've never known anyone who's died as a result of smoking, but my parents and grandparents all smoked for decades and I understand how lucky I am that they stopped before it killed them. Basically, and I am talking about cigars and pipes as well here, you're smoking to get a certain promised effect, bascially to relax. So why not relax with a drug that kills far less people and is far less addictive? It just doesn't make sense to me that a far more dangerous drug is commonly available and a much more generally benign drug is illegal. If people smoked marijuana instead of tobacco in their cigarettes, a lot more people would be living longer. So why not make a switch?

[Penny Lane]

about 10 years i thought there might be a chance but not w/the makeup of this USSC--forget about it.

USSC?

sorry. US Supreme Court

[TheBigChicken]

Go to the cancer ward of your local hospital and talk to a few patients. Ask which of them used tobacco on a regular basis and THEN go fire up a Camel.

[ycartrob]

The only really fair way around illegalizing cigarettes would be to outlaw tobacco altogether, and that's just no good.

Less than ten people a year die from marijuana use. Usually less than five. Hundreds of thousands die from tobacco. For that reason, I don't see why it's "no good" to make it illegal. If it kills so many people, why should it be available in every convenience store?

Less than 10 people a year die from marijuana use? You want to show me where that stat came from?

(and pork kills 100,000's of people a year, let's not talk about banning things that are bad for you).

My numbers come from a study by the Center for Disease Control. Check out the data here: http://www.briancbennett.com/charts/death/cannabis-yr.htm

And of course, there is a huge difference between cigarettes and pork: pork is not addictive.

interesting numbers, thanks.

but pork is addictive  ;)

[dragonboy]

but pork is addictive

& so is porkin' !!!  ;)

Sorry  :-[