Marijuana for everyone!

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  1. Should marijuana be legal?

    • 48
      It should be illegal/criminal
    • 136
      only legal for medicinal use
    • 286
      should be legal (and taxable)

470 members have participated

What is your take on the issue of legalizing marijuana?

Random thoughts . ..

When smoked, marijuana deposits about four times as much tar into the lungs as a filtered tobacco cigarette.

Legalizing it would send a message to children that marijuana use is harmless or even beneficial. (Aren't we having a discussion about cigarette companies targeting kids with those flavored cigarettes on another thread?).

Pot is 10 times more potent that in the 1960's.

Marijuana has no medical value that cannot be met more effectively by the legal, FDA-approved prescription drug Marinol. (From the FDA) Marinol does not produce the harmful health effects associated with smoking crude marijuana. The active ingredient in Marinol is synthetic THC (the major psychoactive component of marijuana), which has been found to relieve the nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy for cancer patients and to assist with loss of appetite in AIDS patients. Also unlike crude, smoked marijuana, it is a controlled dose and has been studied and approved by the medical community and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH), someone who smokes five joints per week may be taking in as many cancer-causing chemicals as someone who smokes a full pack of cigarettes per day. Smoking one marijuana cigarette deposits about four times as much tar into the lungs as a filtered tobacco cigarette.

Smoking marijuana combines the worst elements and long-term impacts of smoking tobacco, plus the mind and memory altering component and impaired judgment.

NIH studies have shown this as one of many long-term health consequences of marijuana use. Marijuana contains more than 400 chemicals, including most of the harmful substances found in tobacco smoke. The harmful chemicals and carcinogens that are byproducts of smoking create entirely new health problems.

Should marijuana be accepted as medicine?

No, marijuana should not be accepted as a medicine. Medical science is willing to approve, after testing, even dangerous drugs if they've been shown to be helpful to sick people, but to quote the FDA, "While there are no proven benefits to smoked marijuana use, there are many short and long term risks associated with marijuana use." And of those leading the legalization movement, some are political activists who have been wanting it legal since the 70s and are now claiming its medical benefits, and others are commodities traders who use their millions to fund initiative movements in states they do not even live in. Aspirin's derived from willow bark - has your doctor ever asked you to smoke a tree and call him in the morning? :rotfl:

Alaska and Oregon experienced a doubling in marijuana addiction rates when they relaxed their drug laws. Alaska finally recriminalized marijuana in 1990.

The Netherlands loosened its drug laws for adults in 1997, and marijuana use jumped dramatically for nearly every age group during a time when marijuana use in the United States decreased.

Great Britain experimented with heroin as a prescription drug and found that it created a huge black market for addicts, raising their number by 100%. A disproportionate percentage of these new addicts were sixteen and seventeen. They have since phased out this program.

In 1992 Switzerland ended their policy of decriminalization when the number of drug addicts they were attempting to contain in their needle park jumped from a few hundred to over 20,000.

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I guess it depends on where you look for information. I certainly found many sites that have studies proving addiction. And increase in usage after legalization.

Which are my points. I do think pot is addictive. I think legalizing would increase usage.

Why have more people impaired?

steph

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I say legalize it for a lot of reasons. Or make alcohol illegal. Why isn't anyone scared that people walk around on anti depressants , psych meds to be "happy" cuz doctor prescribed the high ? I am not disregarding people who have a legit chemical imbalance , but it seems to me everyone and their sister is on prozac and the like , what's up america ? We supposedly live in the best country in the world , why is everyone so unhappy? Ok OK I'll shut up now ! lol

I don't think using the argument "alcohol is legal" and "cigarettes are legal" or that people are using Prozac works.

steph

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Specializes in 5 yrs OR, ASU Pre-Op 2 yr. ER.

Just an FYI: This topic has generated some links in the "Ads by Google" box below, if anyone's noticed.

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Addictive personalities WILL find ways to circumvent the law but to make it available to everyone else? Everyone else to whom that law making it illegal was the last line they would never cross? Then the line disappears and they get pulled into making selfish decisions?

I think it is immoral for us to make easily available another substance that is not good for you. We already have cigarettes and alcohol. Why add more?

I don't think your example works using sex. Sex starts out as a beautiful gift and then is subverted by Mediaography or prostitution or incest or sexual abuse. Pot does not start out beautiful. In my opinion. It starts out as a way to get high. There are better ways to get high in my opinion. Standing on the top of a snow covered mountain about to snowboard down is exhilarating - a high if you will. Watching a newborn baby come into the world is a high. Watching your 8 year old hit the baseball past the pitcher for the first time is a high. Hearing the good news that your 10 year old nephew is in remission from cancer is a high . . .oh and would you advocate children with cancer and nausea smoking pot. How about that 3 year old with glioblastoma? Hand her a joint and teach her to puff? If it is ok for an adult to get the anti-nausea effects of smoking pot, why not a 3 year old?

steph

Many treatments used for the adult population are not suitable for children. There are many safety concerns about the route of medication with children. Obviously we would not have them smoke any thing. however, nebulizing would be a thought, a transdermal patch, an ointment etc. My entire point is there are many health benefits to marijuana. Lets not throw out the baby with the bath water. Any medication we use today has its' roots from an herb, weather it be extracted or synthesized in the lab. There is no brand new molecule of anything that has not already existed in some other form or combination. I know that gets a little deep but my son is a chemical engineer and we do alot of talking at the molecular level.
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Specializes in Community Health Nurse.

only legal for medicinal use

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Okay at this point I think we should agree to disagree :rolleyes:

We all have our opinions and hopefully some day our government will say hey let's all make an informed decision and put the issue to the voters and then we can rehash this :p . Thank you for the great discussion though i love when ppl get pationate about their beliefs no matter what they believe (love those psych pt's believing the table is out to get them)

but seriously to each his own.

I am still a proud informed activist and future nurse!!!

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"Legalize It"

Peter Tosh

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They should legalize it and then tax the crap out of it...just my opinion :)

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I believe that it should be allowed for medicinal purposes.

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Marijuana is very easy to obtain, can be grown in people's houses or backyards. It's a weed, after all. It's probably easier to make yourself than alcohol.

I've never smoked marijuana or cigarettes. I also don't drink alcohol. Probably won't ever do any of the three.

But I think sending people to jail for smoking marijuana is a waste of time and resources. So yes, I think it should be legalized but with HEAVY fines for smoking it while driving or using heavy machinery or in whatever venue might make it dangerous for self or others.

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.
I think sending people to jail for smoking marijuana is a waste of time and resources. So yes, I think it should be legalized but with HEAVY fines for smoking it while driving or using heavy machinery or in whatever venue might make it dangerous for self or others.

My sentiments exactly. Marijuana should be treated just like ETOH.......legal for anyone over age 21, but with harsh sanctions against those who drive or operate dangerous machinery 'under the influence'. JMHO. :)

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Okay at this point I think we should agree to disagree :rolleyes:

We all have our opinions and hopefully some day our government will say hey let's all make an informed decision and put the issue to the voters and then we can rehash this :p . Thank you for the great discussion though i love when ppl get pationate about their beliefs no matter what they believe (love those psych pt's believing the table is out to get them)

but seriously to each his own.

I am still a proud informed activist and future nurse!!!

There is a very long thread about this issue from a couple of years ago when I first joined here and that's why I initially said "oh no not again". It went on for days and I see all of those who weighed in before have not changed their minds and neither have I so your suggestion to agree to disagree is a good one. :)

I too am an informed person both from study and from just living it, but came to a different conclusion. I'd much rather land on the side that advocates teaching our kids not to pick up a joint or pill to make themselves happy. That there are many other ways to find happiness. Right now we have a problem with kids in our local high school using steroids. One of the doctors talked to them about how that is cheating - that working hard and accomplishing a difficult feat is the reward, not popping a pill. I'd like to continue to teach that attitude. Don't rely on artificial highs.

But I'm just repeating myself so I'll hush now.

steph

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