Marijuana - Advice?

[Navvan]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Ranyilliams - Yes in fact I was about to bring up that point in my original post, the whole "you can't judge something you haven't tried". I completely agree, it's just when it comes to weed I just can't bring myself to do it. I have such a predisposition to it. That and I'm in the Army. If I'm caught I will get kicked out and charged. I had this feeling about weed long before I joined the army so I don't think the threat of being kicked out of the military factors into my feelings either.

I understand the point of "you probably have a problem with it because it's illegal" and yes that makes sense, but it feels like I have a much bigger problem with it than anyone else, even if they agree with it being illegal.

I definitely would never try weed. It's like smoking. It smells like ass and I don't care about some psychological effects. Even if it turned out to be great, why should I try it if it's so much trouble? I'd rather be blissfully unaware of the "high life" (lolpuns) than to have tried it and opened up the door for the bad things that can come with it.
It's a matter of risk vs reward, and the reward seems hardly worth pursuing.

In terms of why I hate it, it's likely the illegality factor for one, and the stereotypical view of people who smoke pot. Those I know that do, fit the bill quite well, and the stereotypes don't paint them in a very good light either.

I know the other stereotype, the Carl Sagan stereotype, weed helping creative people be creative but that is just me. If you ever do that please keep that in mind, try to think creatively.

Also there is a technique called vaporization that does not involve smoking. It uses heat to pull the THC out of the weed in water vapor using heat. No smoke, no smell, not heat. Just telling you there are options out there.

I do agree about the risk stuff. It depends on you, think a bit about whether you would be likely to freak out, if not (and if you dont have a family or personal metal illness history) then you could try low doses to see if you like it. I am not trying to convince you to try it just to educate you about it. Don't take this as propaganda. Go ahead don't smoke, just know that there are many factors and that stereotypes are almost always damaging.

Sure, it won't kill you, but it turns you into a useless sack of what should be human. I'd rather be dead. People should do more with their lives than get high and eat Cheetos all day. Just saying.

People should do more with their lives than play video games and eat Cheetos all day.

Any form of escapism is a problem if you do it too much.

All most all the posts on this thread have been great and open minded but deathmeggadon is a little annoying to me I must admit.

meggadon refers to a damaging stereotype about cannabis that I despise. I see canabis as a creative drug. Helping people like carl sagan and the guy who hypothesized the benzene ring (the story goes he was tripping on some drug cocktail and saw the ouroboros which made him think of the ring structure). Artists of all kinds (especially but not limited to musicians), politicians (obama, Thomas Jefferson, etc...) and most of the people of the highest walks of life have admitted to trying it some even admit to using it frequently.

"If people let government decide which foods they eat and medicines they take, their bodies will soon be in as sorry a state as are the souls of those who live under tyranny."
-Thomas Jefferson

Note: I am not American I place the quote without national relation. Second I do NOT smoke or vaporise weed I just hold a strong opinion about it.

No to the chemistry one. The man who thought of it (and this was in the mid 1800's so its rather hard to confirm anything) said he came up with the idea (after years of studying the compound) on a bus while daydreaming. There was no mention of him "tripping on drug cocktails" when he talked about how he came up with the idea from what I've found.

Personally I hate the "weed makes you creative!" argument. While I don't care who smokes weed (so long as I don't have to smell it and I'm not liable) there is no evidence that it enhances creative thought or helps you be successful. I'm fine with people wanting to use is as a recreational fun thing but its another thing when its heavily implied that it does positive things for you (except the whole feel good high thing) that it hasn't been shown to do. To say such things is as bad as saying it makes you into a useless sack in that neither have any real evidence for them.

 

[Cavouku]

Logic doesn't need to have anything to do with it. As much as some people may dislike this, it's not the only thing in the world. Opinions can, and often are, entirely baseless. For instance, I am totally pro-sobriety. I really value being sober, and I appreciate other people who are sober, and always have been sober.

Why? I'unno. It just feels more 'right' to me, and someone might come in with some explanation about how it's all about legality this, and image that, and some other thing. For me, I just feel like being sober is right.

As for how that puts me with pot, it actually is the reason I resent it more than more addictive substances. With more addictive substances, you've got more of a biochemical reason (or something like that) to be compelled to take the drug. I know... personally, no smokers who want to keep smoking. I also appreciate willpower, yes, but I'm more ready to forgive the person who can pull out a doctor's note written beside some x-ray of their brain that says they are technically addicted to something, *inhales* than someone who repeatedly leaves sobriety by choice which is in almost no visible way connected to addiction.

This also makes me dislike people who drink only a bit. They're not addicts, they just drink. Yes, I actually have more leniency with the addicts, because they're more excusable to me. That being said, if it's a choice between the two, don't care about what I say, less of this stuff is always better than all of it.

Point is, all those people who aren't addicted to something they're doing could totally not be doing it. This is different escapism than reading, video games, movies, or other entertainment media. Those things put you into a different state of mind, but you're still sober. And besides, that entertainment is (read: 'should be') a compelling piece of media that rewards your attention with information, or thought-provoking questions and a new outlook on things.

That's how I feel about it, and I really don't want to offend anyone, and I'd like to think I'm not important enough to. No, I'm gonna try for "important enough for the OP to read and maybe consider". Solid goal. But no matter what logical fallacy my argument may hold, or how prehistoric my feelings may be, they're part of me, and they're what I value, and I wouldn't be myself without them.

 

[DazBurger]

Research research researsh...

I don't do weed and never will.

Don't believe anyone with any real interest in the subject (and its reeeaaaaaally hard finding any materiel that is not grossly biased)

I my self have dedicated hours and hours and hours (and hours and hours...) to research, just because I was tired with all this "its not worse than drinking" argument.

Aaaaaaaaaand what I found out was... They are right, its not.. IF we are talking about the pure natural form... The one originally found in nature and is virtually impossible to get.

Why? It doesn't have much effect on people.. Its too weak, and therefore at the dawn of its discovery was subject to selective cultivation, which have resulted in the popular variants we see today.. Most of which wreak havoc on your brain!

Aaand yes, it only makes your brain cells sleep where alcohol kills em, but the brain is used to brain cells die, happens all the time, but having them wake up again is a very different story, and the brain doesn't always cope well with it.



So what did I get out of my research? Absolutely nothing.
Turns out that using facts on the types who really want to argue and defend marijuana, works about as well as discussing facts with a devout christian.
...
Or Bieber-fanboy. Or mac-fags, pc-tards, linux-nerd, xbox-kids and PS-noobs.

 

[Sazazezer Mililpili]

I'm hoping that i come across as a fairly unique perspective here (my ego demands it) in that i not only have issues with smoking weed, but smoking in general, alcohol, other narcotics, excessive gambling, religion or essentially anything that when taken, provides a simulated emotional experience that goes beyond one's own control once things get started. Whilst I'm fine with people making the decision to engage in these activities, it's their choice after all , i cannot deny how annoyed it makes me feel that people would choose to have emotional states thrust upon them via the use of a pill or other drug at the expense of living their life with perfect awareness of what's going on around them and choosing more engaging experiences. I would prefer to (and do) live a full life not regulated by shoving things through my system that don't need to be shoved in there than live a hollow one where i pop a pill to make myself feel good or relaxed.

But honestly, I'm with most people here where i can't help but feel the reason you have issues with smoking weed but not with smoking tobacco is simply because one's illegal and the other isn't. Both alter your state of mind your state of mind to varying effects and essentially sit in a similar category to each other. Hating one but not the other suggests to me nothing more than the peer pressure brought on by society.

Here's another perspective for you. If Weed was legal and all your friends smoked it, and your parents smoked it (for none medicinal purposes in your mother's case) and even your Commanding Officer smoked it, would you light up along side them, or still say no?

 

[Ohhi]

Meh I personally do not see anything wrong with smoking weed but that's just me. As to why you feel the way you do it is probably because you got fed too much anti weed propoganda by your school and parents when you were younger. Also don't force your girlfriend to stop smoking it just because you have a problem with it that is selfish and shortsighted. let her smoke weed if she wants to but just let her know nicely that you would prefer it if she did not do it around you.

 

[Jack O'Shea]

you hate something but don't know why, am i the only one who thinks thats stupid and that hating something without knowing why is dangerous thinking.

 

[Jaime_Wolf]

Just a question here.. Where did the "It's not bad for you" Idea come from. I'm genuinely curious about that. If anyone happen to know a scientific study that shows how it's (not) harmful, I would like to see it. My own limited personal experience tells me that people who smoke seem rather... how to put it.. dumb. I know only a few persons who I would consider smart, at leastr smarter than me, who smoke.

If you google around, you can find studies in a matter of minutes. UCLA did one that got a lot of press a couple of years ago (it got reported with some rather sensational claims about reduction in cancer that I don't think are actually very well-supported in the study).

Also, this gets to the notion of where the burden of proof should lie and of how you prove that something isn't harmful.

First, as a naturally-occuring plant, we would, in all cases other than plants put into the category of "drugs", put the burden of proof on the harm side - you don't need a study showing that tomatoes are harmless to make them legal. Hell, you didn't need a study showing that tabacco was harmless to make it legal.

Second, a lack of studies showing harmful effects is functionally equivalent to studies showing no harmful effects, assuming there are actually studies being done. In this respect, my understanding is that there are essentially no reputable studies (peer-reviewed in a popular journal in the relevant field) showing significant ill effects. Many of the most often-cited studies were not peer-reviewed, did not publish their methodology, or failed to control for something as obvious as additional drug use (as it turns out, if you don't control for the fact that heroin users are more likely to smoke cannabis than people who don't use heroin, you see negative effects on health for instance).

There's also the issue of how hard the government makes it to conduct research on illegal substances. This is the primary reason we see so few experiments. I've heard anecdotally from researchers that it also tends to be harder if they don't think you have a personal stake in showing negative effects (institutions or groups known to hold independent moral objections to cannabis for instance).

Also, be careful with the causality involved. We all know a lot of, shall we say, less gifted people who smoke cannabis. Probably the majority of people I know who do fall into that category too. But I knew most of them before they started smoking it and they were just as dumb then too. The fact that stupid people tend to smoke it more than more intelligent people do is not indicative of the notion that it is what made the people stupid. If anything, I imagine its relative social acceptance coupled with its illegality are one of the things that make it so attractive to these people. These same people tend to drink more too - is alcohol necessarily what made them stupid? Smoking cannabis is like drinking ("let's get fucked up guys!") with the further attraction of illegality.

 

[Zack Alklazaris]

Its wrong because the country finds it wrong. If you get caught it could fuck you over later and for what? a high? Been there, done that, learned that some things just are not worth risking your career.

 

[thenumberthirteen]

I don't like it. I've tried it a couple times, but it's not my bag.

My problem with it is that it can mess people up if they become addicted, and that's something I most definitely don't want to happen to me.

 

[xXGeckoXx]

snip

An interesting argument. Wasn't Kekulé infamous for his drug use. Maybe I am wrong. I do however like the weed makes you creative argument though I admit I misphrased it. I used it as a counter to the "weed makes you lazy" argument and not as stand alone. When I posted I was making a commentary on how many great people used and enjoyed weed while creating (in the case of many musicians the actual act of creating music under the influence) and therefore the stereotype of the lazy dope falls flat.

As a stand alone my argument is different. It goes more along the lines that ANY drug can be a mind opening experience and that if used safely and with the right knowledge they can be used to open the mind and make things that are not normally possible...possible. Of course this argument is little to do with practicality but in reality even heroin can be taken safely and enjoyed responsibly albeit with more difficulty. I also become a little anecdotal which detracts from my point but really I have seen that with the correct mindset weed can be a drug that promotes makes people more friendly and I think we need a little more of that.

snip

Hmm despite my positive stance I do agree that there are some negative effects. Some new research points to an inbuilt cannabinoid receptor related cancer threat and there are problems with mental health however I do like to point out that weed can be taken in many different douses and that "wreak havok on your brain" is a little bit of a simplification as well as the "put your brain cells to sleep one". The interactions are a lot more complex and the results more personalized.

I too have done a lot of research and I know someone who has done EVEN more so it really is quite endless and to really understand the topic you have to really know the biology.

Fun Fact: THC builds up in your fat passively (and harmlessly). If a cannibal where to eat a long time user they may get high.

 

[kypsilon]

Sounds like you need to smoke some weed.

That's what got me out of that "weed is bad" shell. I don't smoke it anyway, I'm not into the taste or the smell, but it helped put into perspective what it was that weed was about.

 

[thelonewolf266]

Some people may not think it should be illegal but it is so using it and being caught with it could ruin your life so its not just the health and lifestyle problems it can cause that you have to worry about its what might happen if you get caught with it.

 

[Thirsk]

Sure, it won't kill you, but it turns you into a useless sack of what should be human. I'd rather be dead. People should do more with their lives than get high and eat Cheetos all day. Just saying.

Uhm, it doesn't.

Of course, if you smoke loads and loads, it will, but so will anything, be it drugs, booze, candy... hell, even water.

Moderation is the key, with weed as with everything else

 

[Twilight_guy]

Yes, give into the lawful good! Fell the justice within in you, embrace it! [/reverse palpatine]

Your probably not okay with it either because the law or because you don't like the effect it has on people.
Personally I hate what it can do to people so I'm against it but I'm largely against drinking too so nobody cares what I think.

 

[AugustFall]

Hi folks, I have a huge problem with weed...

Woah woah woah, don't jump to conclusions. I never said I smoked it. In fact I never have, and I don't want to. Truth be told I hate it and I get mad at my friends who do. I'm a 19 year old university student. You'd think I'd be all into it, right? My mom even takes it in pill form legally from the government for medical reasons.

I know it's a lot less harmful than for example drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes, and I don't have an issue with those things. So why do I have such a quirk with weed? My girlfriend and I have talked about it before, she's done it a few times and I told her it made me uncomfortable that she did, and I asked her to stop. She said she would because she respected the fact that it bothered me. Although, sometimes I wonder if she still does sometimes. I don't like that it bugs me to the point of distrust.

Logically it makes no sense, I know it's not that bad for you,(compared to other legal substances, anyway) I'm okay with drinking/smoking, my own mother takes it (legally), and I've never had a bad experience, or known a friend who had a bad experience with it before. So what's my problem?

If anyone has any advice for me, or even less likely feels the same way I'd like to hear about it. Thanks guys.

Okay as this is now a Weed thread I'll try and answer your question. Stop caring. Simple as that, stop trying to control what your Girlfriend is doing- that's you underminding your own relationship, it's your problem don't force it on her, and understand that if you can't think of a reason why you don't like it than it's an irrational dislike.
If you don't want to do it that's fine and people will not care (more for them), they will care if you try and push your own values on them.

 

[Arkley]

I know it's a lot less harmful than for example drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes

Hi there! It's nice to see that you're pursuing information on the topic, so I'd just like to correct something for you, in case no one else has caught this.

It is often said that marijuana doesn't cause as much damage to the lungs as tobacco smoke, but this is largely hyperbole. You see, people are eager to point out the hypocrisy in tobacco & alcohol being legal and widely available while marijuana is illegal. It certainly is a hypocrisy, I won't disagree with that. But it's a hypocrisy because the damage tobacca & marijuana inflict is comparable, not because marijuana inflicts less damage. People often mistake or exaggerate the relative "harmlessness" of marijuana in order to further their own agendas - usually arguing in favour of legalisation. While marijuana probably shouldn't be illegal, you should be careful which sources of information you trust as fact.

In terms of damage to the lungs and respiratory system by volume inhaled, marijuana is actually considerably more dangerous - however, in the long term, the damage a regular marijuana smoker will sustain to their lungs vs the damage a regular tobacco smoker will incur are comparable for the following reasons:

1. Tobacco smokers tend to smoke much greater volumes of tobacco than their marijuana smoking equivalents.

2. However, this is somewhat offset by the fact that marijuana smokers hold their breath for considerably longer after inhaling (after all, the goal is to get high, not to sate a craving).

3. Tobacco contains high numbers of carcinogens (cancer causing substances) while marijuana does not. Although marijuana is more dangerous in terms of pure damage by volume inhaled, it comes with a lower risk of contracting cancer.

As for the comparison to alcohol, the two can't really be compared. They have entirely different physiological and psychological effects, and the amount of damage one or the other would inflict varies wildly from person to person.

Anyway, I hope I've cleared at least a few things up for you, and I wish you the best of luck in your search for knowledge on this somewhat controversial topic.

 

[TheScientificIssole]

Weed is a no-no, it removes the ability to think properly. Me loving control over my life and thoughts, would have nothing to do with weed or even alcohol.

 

[Censorme]

Problem might be with the kind of people who smoke weed.
"If you have it, share it", kinda attitude. Be lazy, goofy, have bad hygiene.

Many converted stoners are really trying to break the stereo-type by proving they can still function in society and the workplace, but SOME PEOPLE...

I was in a head-shop just today talking with the manager and some friends of his who came in. Sure they were friendly, giggly, and generous, but I felt so numb from being around them. There was this realization of a gap that hit me hard. I just finished a university class for the day, and they were busy counting change to buy a small pipe.

 

[Biosophilogical]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Ranyilliams - Yes in fact I was about to bring up that point in my original post, the whole "you can't judge something you haven't tried". I completely agree, it's just when it comes to weed I just can't bring myself to do it. I have such a predisposition to it. That and I'm in the Army. If I'm caught I will get kicked out and charged. I had this feeling about weed long before I joined the army so I don't think the threat of being kicked out of the military factors into my feelings either.

I understand the point of "you probably have a problem with it because it's illegal" and yes that makes sense, but it feels like I have a much bigger problem with it than anyone else, even if they agree with it being illegal.

I'm going to go with a different tact. Your problem with weed isn't the problem, your lack of a problem with smoking and alcohol is (Bam! Reversal!). You seem to be approaching it from a perspective of "Weed is bad, but alcohol and smoking are worse and I'm fine with those, therefore weed isn't bad". Really, if you have a problem with weed (potential for physical, social, and psychological damage, can cause social exclusion leading to an increased abuse of dangerous substances, costs money, etc) you should extrapolate it to alcohol and smoking, rather than use those two to question the former. "If weed is bad, but alcohol and smoking are worse (not to mention addictive), then clearly they are all bad and the reason I don't think that about alcohol and cigarettes is because I have been raised to accept them".

 

[manheim]

It's a bit of good old intolerance; but it's something that you can work on if you want to, you have been conditioned to not like marihuana, and although you know that it really is not bad for you, your programming takes the better of you; as long as you don't bother other people who use it, there's nothing wrong in you not liking it.

Also, you don't have a problem with alochol/tobbaco, although you know those things are worse for you than marihuana, it's only the legal status of them, at the times of prohibition, I bet you would have really disliked people drinking.

Just remember and rationalize this; not all things goverments say are true; in fact, they lie more often than not; beat the programming. Think about this: if marihuana was a million dollar industry; we would not be getting drunk; we'd be getting high.

also remember, the most evil people of history eschew all drugs; the most talented ones, gave us art and new levels of understanding.