Marijuana Legalization

[yourownself]

they just voted to decriminalize here in mass, which i understand, but i don't know where i stand on the actual legalization of the drug.

i DO believe it's a gateway drug, and that using it opens the doors to all kinds of other illegal drugs, HOWEVER: there is a part of me that believes that a big part of this "gateway" is due to the desensitization of the laws against substances. if it were legal, it might be less of a gateway, due to the elimination of the "well, it's only a LITTLE more illegal than the pot i've been smoking" mentality

naturally, there are going to be the "high chasing" types, that no matter what, want that instant gratification of "smoke this now, get high now" which seems to go hand in hand with "how can i get higher faster?" just like how there are alcoholics who start with a little bit of beer now and again, and will graduate to cheap beer, and then to copious amounts of the hard stuff.

i guess you could say i'm on the fence about the issue.

on a slightly unrelated note, i once heard that the reason that marijuana was originally outlawed was because it was a serious cash crop and the cotton farmers did some serious lobbying and eliminated their competition!
i don't know how much of it's true, but it makes for a good story!

 

[v8power]

i just ask myself.. what good can come out of it? just like drinking, if anyone of you can give a reason why drinking or doing that sort of stuff is good. let me know. and because its fun is not a reason. why would anyone want to put that crap in there bodies any way?

 

[83cut350chev]

but isnt weed more addictive than alchol? doesnt it make you crave more powerfull drugs? alchol once your drunk, your drunk, but with weed, isnt it true that the high starts wearing off faster and you start craving a longer high- thus making you want harder more dangerous drugs?

weed isn't addictive its just a gateway drug by some people but most people never take the step and just like to enjoy smoking weed

the whole gateway drug thing i think is jsut an opinion. i think it would really depend on the person if they were to move on to other drugs. alcohol has been proven to be more dangerous than marijuana, alcohol poisoining/deaths,car crashes related to drunk driving, etc. there has never been a recorded "overdose" of marijuana, as with alcohol you take over 15 shots (even 10) theres a good chance ur gona be feelin it later.jus sayin..

 

[custom442]

I think it's only a gateway drug for really young people - like 15/16. Granted if you get hooked on pot for a long period of time, you've basically screwed potential in that part of your life. I've seen a bunch of people go either way, and alcohol is worse and more addicting every time. I really can't see how marijuana is worse than alcohol at all, except that it's illegal. A hard cigar will give you the same effect, and it's cooler/cheaper. But I've never smoked pot cuz it's illegal.

 

[dan2286]

but isnt weed more addictive than alchol? doesnt it make you crave more powerfull drugs? alchol once your drunk, your drunk, but with weed, isnt it true that the high starts wearing off faster and you start craving a longer high- thus making you want harder more dangerous drugs?

I really think it depends on the person if it is addictive or not. I used to smoke back in high school and I just stopped after a while. I also used to have a drinking problem, but just kinda cut down my drinking and now I just drink one or two days a week if that, and I know when to stop. I also have done some pretty so called "addictive" drugs in the past and had no urge to continue doing them after that.

I guess it just depends on the person in general. Maybe it depends on how you were brought up, events that happened in your life, I really cant say for sure. I am not an expert about this kind of stuff. I am just going by people that I know, some are like me and dont have a problem and others unfortunately are letting their lives go down the drain.

 

[Silent viewer]

wow! so many misconceptions! first of weed is not addictive, i dont care what anyone says, no more addictive then beer. 2, it is not a gateway drug in any way at all, i have smoked for over 10 years and never even thought about doing anything else at all! there are however potheads that are religious about it and i just dont understand that. i am what you might call a recreational smoker, there are times where i might smoke 3 times a day like on a boating weekend or something and there have been times that i have went for months without even thinking about it so i will say it is no way addictive. as far as ruining your life, come on! i own 7 cars, a boat, a pretty nice house in a good area, i have a great job, i went to school. i make decent money...... my parents who are in their 50s are both sucessful people who just celebrated 30 years together and they both smoke on occasion. people think it is so bad, it is better then drinking by far. for example drinking can make people aggresive and want to fight, have you ever seen someone who has smoked want to fight? no way, you can talk trash to them and they are going to laugh at you lol. the worst part of it might be that you get the munchies. i think it is unfair to people when they get drug tested and can get away with most all drugs and drinking and many people have big issues with it but the one that should not even matter is the one that sticks around for a long time and might prevent someone from getting a job. would you rather havr someone working for who smoked the night before and passed out 2 hours before bedtime or stayed up late drinking the night before and is hung over the next day? i am willing to bet that well over half of the people in this country smoke and i am willing to bet there are many people you know and you dont have any clue that they do

 

[Coveted]

lol@ you saying beer isnt addictive. have you not saw an alcoholic before? Weed is deffinatly addictive but that dosent mean anything. Sex, soda and video games are addictive too, along with coffee ect. its not the addictive fact its the you cant overdose on weed fact that seperates it from the other drugs.

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

Weed IS addictive to some people. Physical addiction is rare, but it does happen. I have known quite a few potheads who were addicts. Psychological addiction is more common as some people need it to sleep or relax, etc. However, it is not completely harmless either. Bad pot experiences are horrible things to go through. I know that from experience as I used to use it on occasion to fall asleep and deal with my severe depressive episodes years ago. I stopped when the several hour long panic attacks, pressure and ringing in my ears, heart palpitations etc. (I wrote down the complete list somewhere if anyone wishes to know all of the side effects) told me that it was not a good thing. My longest bad experience lasted 9 hours after consuming it in food. Word to the wise: if you rarely use pot, don't eat the brownies made by someone with a $500 a month habit. That pretty much cured me of ever trying it again! It's one of the things I truly regret having done in my life, but I figured I would post the bad for anyone who thinks it does not exist.

 

[custom442]

Agree with brougham 100% on this one, I had a reaction once, with some friends smoking from the same bag I did. For some reason my body decided to shut down, and I laid almost out of body, blacked out for 5 minutes. People were shaking me to get up - it was not something you want to go through, scary as hell. But every other time I did, it wasn't as bad as smoking a double ligero cigar.

 

[85 Cutlass Brougham]

You have to remember that it is a drug that is intended to act on your brain. Any time you play with that you run a risk. Also, not everyone has the same tolerance. I knew some people that could go through 2 bowls before it really affected them. For me, it was 2 hits, and I weighed more than they did. There is no such thing as a 100% safe substance so think long and hard before trying it. There are also different types of pot and they react differently with your emotions and actions. Some make you energetic, and some slow you down, etc. It also amplifies your mood, so if you are depressed it may make you worse, not better. For me, it initially made me happy, but as I used it more and more times it devolved into a mental hell that no one would ever wish to endure.