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Mon 19 May, 2014 03:04 pm
Should marijuana be legal or illegal?
Would it be better for it to be illegal? What would that look like? What would our environment look like?
Do you think we are wasting time and money trying to fight to make MJ legal?
Marijuana staying illegal can make the drug look appealing. It's everywhere, drug dealers can grow it, anyone can grow it. If you were to buy it from a dealer instead of a store in a state where MJ has been legalized... have you ever thought of how strong it can be? And that the strength can cause you harm? As time goes, more and more breeds of MJ are appearing on the streets and they can be lethal, it varies depending on who you buy it from. Many innocent, non-criminal people are going to prison for the possession of MJ. Is that effective? Is that going to stop people from using it? No.
So... Why don't we...
Legalize marijuana? What would THAT look like? What would our environment look like?
In my perspective, I think MJ should be legalize if people want it to be legalized, I don't really care. I think we are wasting our time and money fighting about it when we should be worrying about other important things like healthcare, education, resources, immigration. I think we are making this problem bigger than it really should.
My concern is the lack of people who lead by example. Lead by example.
Yes, I'm thinking about our kids, after all, they will be taking care of us, working for us, and accompanying us when we start aging and when we start losing our friends.
I worry that making MJ legal (just like tobacco and ETOH) will be placed in the wrong hands, in children's hands.
I worry that smokers are going to walk down the streets and pass by pregnant mothers, and they inhale MJ smoke and it can affect their baby.
Does anyone see a relationship between the rise of children with ADHD and the rise of MJ use? What about our rise of lack of motivation?
What's going to happen to our children?
What should we do? Should we set up therapeutic communities offering cognitive behavioral therapy (can help with mental illness, addiction or substance abuse).
Should we study more about how every drug affects the brain? And what we can do to stop addiction?
Addiction -> can make us miss work, miss out on family, addiction, it varies between each individual. There can be functional addicts and dysfunctional addicts.
There's a strong stigma against addiction. And yes, it is possible to get addicted to marijuana. You can get addicted to chocolate. You can can addicted to coffee. You can get addicted to anything that you and your body likes. If we were to break down this barrier (stigma), can we lead by example by just doing that?
How well do people know about drugs? How well do people know WHY they do it anyway? How well do people know that it affects everything from our children even to our economy ( like missing work, unemployment), affects our function.
I think we can't escape our triggers from daily life, but if we understand and teach others how it affects our brains, our body, our life, it can be a key component to at least leading by example. Why is it that some people can smoke MJ and not be addicted and some do? Why is it that some people can drink and not be addicted but for an alcoholic, one drink gets them addicted?
We all think, decide, feel, and act on things that we think are in the best interest of ourselves.
What does everyone think? Please, please, please be respectful towards each other. I think everyone has a right to an opinion but it must be well-mannered for the sake of this forum. I do not want to start a fight.
positive > negative Thank you =)
Thoughts?
@darthtig,
If it's legalized, just wait till the FDA takes charge. Likely, every producer is going to be certified individually. The cost of a grower's certificate and each vendor certificate is going to make the cartels look like pikers.
@roger,
Yeah, but how well do people know about it?
@roger,
I see your points but take you as exaggerating re effects if/when legal. Smoking at all is astoundingly negatively taken in many places in the U.S. (I smoked reg cigarettes twenty years, heavily, but that was a long time ago. I'm not strict about others doing it).
I also don't see legality as solving everything or maybe even anything (cartels are smarties in their ways).
I am from the pre boomer generation so was interested in having my first drink at 21, and hadn't yet heard of reefer madness. My home was 'dry', which may be why I like good scotch or bourbon should I have the investment money, all these years later.
I see nada wrong with people growing their own in mild climates outside (but wait, more to say*) or in their basements with funny lights, whether or not they have medical problems.
*I read about forest depredation in California because of the outlaw culture. I'd rather have individual people just grow a plant or two.
I haven't been around marijuana for a lot of decades, but I can see having a plant around if I get in big medical trouble. Thinking, brownies.
Oops, that wasn't meant to you, Roger but to darthtig.
@darthtig,
darthtig wrote:
I worry that smokers are going to walk down the streets and pass by pregnant mothers, and they inhale MJ smoke and it can affect their baby.
You at least had some of my interest until I got to this.
Yes, a pregnant woman walking past a person smoking pot (and who is saying it would be allowed in public? You can't walk down the street drinking an alcoholic beverage) would be putting the unborn child in terrible danger.
Come on. A pregnant woman is breathing worse air when she slows down to throw a coin in a toll booth.
@chai2,
With that sentence, my intention was to explain courtesy in public. We have smoking areas, I think we should have MJ areas. Being courteous and respectful to one another is key.
I agree with you that we do breath in worse air. I live between two freeways. I wish I could move, but I'm surrounded by poverty.
The least I can ask for is please do it somewhere else. Not in front of my house.
So basically, that is where this particular sentence came from.
Thank you for your input. =)
Any more thoughts?
@InfraBlue,
Agree, also, how well do children know about it?
The brain doesn't fully develop until age 25. And coming from my experience, I volunteered at a behavioral hospital and the youngest child I've met addicted to MJ and other drugs (inhalants) was 5 years.
I think the topic of drugs and safety needs to be brought up in conversation. No one has to pay and go to classes to know this, resources are available if kids and teens are guided to where to look i.e.
www.nida.org . and keep them interested and give positive reinforcement.
Judgement and prejudice often comes in the way. I've heard parents tell their children "You should, " or "You shouldn't" instead of "What do you think of that?" We need more understanding about people who become addicted.
My attitude towards drugs is not "We must." or "We should stop all drugs." or "The government should.." because it is what it is. The least we can do is have an open mind and talk about it.
Big things can come from small things.
Any thoughts?
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