Pot not so bad for you after all?

[croxis]

10) MARIJUANA USE HAS NO EFFECT ON MORTALITY: A massive study of California HMO members funded by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) found marijuana use caused no significant increase in mortality. Tobacco use was associated with increased risk of death. Sidney, S et al. Marijuana Use and Mortality. American Journal of Public Health. Vol. 87 No. 4, April 1997. p. 585-590. Sept. 2002.

9) HEAVY MARIJUANA USE AS A YOUNG ADULT WON’T RUIN YOUR LIFE: Veterans Affairs scientists looked at whether heavy marijuana use as a young adult caused long-term problems later, studying identical twins in which one twin had been a heavy marijuana user for a year or longer but had stopped at least one month before the study, while the second twin had used marijuana no more than five times ever. Marijuana use had no significant impact on physical or mental health care utilization, health-related quality of life, or current socio-demographic characteristics. Eisen SE et al. Does Marijuana Use Have Residual Adverse Effects on Self-Reported Health Measures, Socio-Demographics or Quality of Life? A Monozygotic Co-Twin Control Study in Men. Addiction. Vol. 97 No. 9. p.1083-1086. Sept. 1997

8) THE “GATEWAY EFFECT” MAY BE A MIRAGE: Marijuana is often called a “gateway drug” by supporters of prohibition, who point to statistical “associations” indicating that persons who use marijuana are more likely to eventually try hard drugs than those who never use marijuana — implying that marijuana use somehow causes hard drug use. But a model developed by RAND Corp. researcher Andrew Morral demonstrates that these associations can be explained “without requiring a gateway effect.” More likely, this federally funded study suggests, some people simply have an underlying propensity to try drugs, and start with what’s most readily available. Morral AR, McCaffrey D and Paddock S. Reassessing the Marijuana Gateway Effect. Addiction. December 2002. p. 1493-1504.

7) PROHIBITION DOESN’T WORK (PART I): The White House had the National Research Council examine the data being gathered about drug use and the effects of U.S. drug policies. NRC concluded, “the nation possesses little information about the effectiveness of current drug policy, especially of drug law enforcement.” And what data exist show “little apparent relationship between severity of sanctions prescribed for drug use and prevalence or frequency of use.” In other words, there is no proof that prohibition — the cornerstone of U.S. drug policy for a century — reduces drug use. National Research Council. Informing America’s Policy on Illegal Drugs: What We Don’t Know Keeps Hurting Us. National Academy Press, 2001. p. 193.

6) PROHIBITION DOESN’T WORK (PART II: DOES PROHIBITION CAUSE THE “GATEWAY EFFECT”?): U.S. and Dutch researchers, supported in part by NIDA, compared marijuana users in San Francisco, where non-medical use remains illegal, to Amsterdam, where adults may possess and purchase small amounts of marijuana from regulated businesses. Looking at such parameters as frequency and quantity of use and age at onset of use, they found no differences except one: Lifetime use of hard drugs was significantly lower in Amsterdam, with its “tolerant” marijuana policies. For example, lifetime crack cocaine use was 4.5 times higher in San Francisco than Amsterdam. Reinarman, C, Cohen, PDA, and Kaal, HL. The Limited Relevance of Drug Policy: Cannabis in Amsterdam and San Francisco. American Journal of Public Health. Vol. 94, No. 5. May 2004. p. 836-842.

5) OOPS, MARIJUANA MAY PREVENT CANCER (PART I): Federal researchers implanted several types of cancer, including leukemia and lung cancers, in mice, then treated them with cannabinoids (unique, active components found in marijuana). THC and other cannabinoids shrank tumors and increased the mice’s lifespans. Munson, AE et al. Antineoplastic Activity of Cannabinoids. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Sept. 1975. p. 597-602.

4) OOPS, MARIJUANA MAY PREVENT CANCER, (PART II): In a 1994 study the government tried to suppress, federal researchers gave mice and rats massive doses of THC, looking for cancers or other signs of toxicity. The rodents given THC lived longer and had fewer cancers, “in a dose-dependent manner” (i.e. the more THC they got, the fewer tumors). NTP Technical Report On The Toxicology And Carcinogenesis Studies Of 1-Trans- Delta-9-Tetrahydrocannabinol, CAS No. 1972-08-3, In F344/N Rats And B6C3F Mice, Gavage Studies. See also, “Medical Marijuana: Unpublished Federal Study Found THC-Treated Rats Lived Longer, Had Less Cancer,” AIDS Treatment News no. 263, Jan. 17, 1997.

3) OOPS, MARIJUANA MAY PREVENT CANCER (PART III): Researchers at the Kaiser-Permanente HMO, funded by NIDA, followed 65,000 patients for nearly a decade, comparing cancer rates among non-smokers, tobacco smokers, and marijuana smokers. Tobacco smokers had massively higher rates of lung cancer and other cancers. Marijuana smokers who didn’t also use tobacco had no increase in risk of tobacco-related cancers or of cancer risk overall. In fact their rates of lung and most other cancers were slightly lower than non-smokers, though the difference did not reach statistical significance. Sidney, S. et al. Marijuana Use and Cancer Incidence (California, United States). Cancer Causes and Control. Vol. 8. Sept. 1997, p. 722-728.

2) OOPS, MARIJUANA MAY PREVENT CANCER (PART IV): Donald Tashkin, a UCLA researcher whose work is funded by NIDA, did a case-control study comparing 1,200 patients with lung, head and neck cancers to a matched group with no cancer. Even the heaviest marijuana smokers had no increased risk of cancer, and had somewhat lower cancer risk than non-smokers (tobacco smokers had a 20-fold increased lung cancer risk). Tashkin D. Marijuana Use and Lung Cancer: Results of a Case-Control Study. American Thoracic Society International Conference. May 23, 2006.

1) MARIJUANA DOES HAVE MEDICAL VALUE: In response to passage of California’s medical marijuana law, the White House had the Institute of Medicine (IOM) review the data on marijuana’s medical benefits and risks. The IOM concluded, “Nausea, appetite loss, pain and anxiety are all afflictions of wasting, and all can be mitigated by marijuana.” While noting potential risks of smoking, the report added, “we acknowledge that there is no clear alternative for people suffering from chronic conditions that might be relieved by smoking marijuana, such as pain or AIDS wasting.” The government’s refusal to acknowledge this finding caused co-author John A. Benson to tell the New York Times that the government “loves to ignore our report … they would rather it never happened.” Joy, JE, Watson, SJ, and Benson, JA. Marijuana and Medicine: Assessing the Science Base. National Academy Press. 1999. p. 159. See also, Harris, G. FDA Dismisses Medical Benefit From Marijuana. New York Times. Apr. 21, 2006

Source is here: http://www.nerdhorsehocky.com/wordpress/?p=2179

 

[Godwynn]

It is time to legalize it.

OT: What is your avatar of?

 

[skadistic]

Old news. People should read "The Laquardia Report" It was the first comprehensive report done and came to similar concluesions. But being sanctioned by the government to prove a point and proving the governments point wrong was cast to the way side.

 

[De Lorimier]

Legalize it but don't fool yourself. Just like booze or vallium, if you abuse the maryjane, you'll have problems.

 

[Abaddon]

Best said above.

 

[Pyrite]

Someone very informed on this matter told me that smoking marijuana directly leads to smoking crack and then committing all kinds of crazy crimes and forgetting about them. I believe rape was mentioned. So I must disagree.

 

[Abaddon]

How did it directly lead?

Mj use causes a Crack addiction?
Mj force fed him?

 

[Bootstoots]

Someone very informed on this matter told me that smoking marijuana directly leads to smoking crack and then committing all kinds of crazy crimes and forgetting about them. I believe rape was mentioned. So I must disagree.

Red Stranger?

 

[Kan' Sharuminar]

How did it directly lead?

Mj use causes a Crack addiction?
Mj force fed him?

He's talking about our very own loveable Stranger.

Who is red.

 

[Pyrite]

Because Marijuana is like Diet crack obviously.
Except, it doesn't have less calories.

 

[Urederra]

Ops, I thought you were talking about Pol Pot, LOL

Go and legalize it. I don't care. I have to say something about the therapeutical use of pot, thought. Pot is composed of more than 100 different substances, some of them might have therapeutical use, some of them might be harmful. So the way to go is to isolate the active principles, replicate them in the lab and study their biological activities separately, one by one. Then, the therapeutical ones, or modified ones based on them, can be used to cure diseases, but not pot itself.

And his avatar is one of Dr. Seuss characters, a capitalistic one, if I remember correctly.

EDIT: It is the lorax the enviromental Dr. Seuss character.

 

[warpus]

Whenever I smoke pot I end up raping my next-door neighbour and jaywalking a lot (which is against the law, btw), so if you think that pot is harmless you better think again.

 

[Raisin Bran]

Legalize it but don't fool yourself. Just like booze or vallium, if you abuse the maryjane, you'll have problems.

Smartest thing I've heard here in a long time.

 

[Stegyre]

OT: What is your avatar of?

That would be the Lorax, who speaks for the trees.

On topic: no pot for me, thanks.

 

[GenMarshall]

I still feel that Pot should remain illegalized and kept off the streets.

 

[Abaddon]

Because Marijuana is like Diet crack obviously.
Except, it doesn't have less calories.

So why would you chose diet?

 

[skadistic]

I still feel that Pot should remain illegalized and kept off the streets.

Why?
________

 

[croxis]

I'm not a fan of diet, it tastes very bad.

Yes it is the lorax

I say leagalize it and sae restrictions as alcohol, no driving or operating heavy machinery.

 

[cegman]

Legalize with a 19 age restriction. That way kids who can't drink have something besides tobacco.

 

[CartesianFart]

The thing is that majority of people i've come to know who have abused marijuana have come to contact with other illicit narcotics.I sometimes get the impression that it is a gateway drug as long as marijuana is always continue to be in the blackmarket in the groups such as meth,cocaine,oxycontin and ect....Not saying that legallizing a small class of drug such as marijuana is a good thing but that it is wrong in the end to pollute your mind of anything.It is a means to lose one's own control.Escapism is a huge ill in the western world and the prison industries is a bonafide business.

The thing is,moderation.If you think marijuana is better than watching tv on a dayoff of work or some recreation to enjoy alone or amonst friends,then do it.But after time,you will come to the realization that this form of escape is just one of the many freedom that is offered to us as a mean to escape the reality of meaninglessness purpose(i call it the Existentialist's soma).Reality is that we are alone and this is the only way out.Euphoria is a misleading content feeling high that make you think that you are really achieving something of some kind of purpose.