Once again, you are making dubious comparisons and trying to claim that obesity incurs equivalent costs to *other people* as drug abuse.
Consuming sugar does not make people violent. People do not steal, rob, or assault other people to get the money to buy their next sugar fix. Obese people do not physically or verbally abuse other people as a result of eating a candy bar. FUrthermore, sugar happens to be one of the groups of macronutrients that is necessary for life, and sugar provides the fuel that keeps your body functioning. Sugar is only bad if you consume it disproportionately from the other necessary macronutrients. Let me reiterate: obesity affects only the obese person. Until their weight gets up into hundreds of pounds, they still work. They still support themselves. They have health insurance. They are not burdens on society the way drug addicts are.
Also, your comparison of FDA approved and prescribed drugs to illicit drugs is bizarre. Can you actually name an approved, properly prescribed, and correctly used drug whose effects are more damaging than the brain damage and behavior deficits which result from illicit drug abuse?
BTW, I happen to be a subject matter expert in this area. I work in medical research, where I currently oversee neurology research. I point this out because you seem to be new around here and are unfamiliar with my posting style. So quit trying to snow me with red herring claims.
“you are making dubious comparisons and trying to claim that obesity incurs equivalent costs to *other people* as drug abuse.”
Who pays for these food abusing people for lost productivity, disbilities from losing hands/feet and permanent damage from stroke/heart attack? WE DO. The “other” people. Its not even close to equivalent. The cost to society from food abuse is several times that of ALL illegal drugs combined! Even when ALL costs from illegal drug crimes are included!
However, I’m not talking about the dangerous illegal drugs. Government lumps them all together and food abuse STILL costs society more. We are talking only about cannabis here so the actual comparison here is something like 5x-10x greater.
The reason these addicts are not stealing from you for their food is that their fix is extremely cheap. I can buy a box of two dozen chemically-pickled donuts that can sit for months on sale for $1.99. $1.99 worth of any illegal drug is not enough for even a taste.
Make refined sugars illegal or only available in synthetic form that costs 100x as much and you’ll 100% soon see theft/violence/smuggling over sugars.
I’ve been on FR since 2004 and have been fighting for legal cannabis for decades. I’ve seen countless sick people helped by it and begin an amazing new life after nearly killing themselves with years of Rx drugs. The side effects of many of these Rx drugs are worse than the disease! Just talk to someone who has been on the “pharma train” taking endless drugs for the side effects. Or just watch the end of the damn TV commercials that push these toxic things 24/7...
I’ve seen extremely succesful people use cannabis every day and actually HELP with their careers by giving them the rest and creative view they need. The *greatest* danger from cannabis that any of these people experienced was being arrested in one of the backward states. Several are considered some of the highest reputed fellows in their fields with the highest awards (medicine, engineering, mathematics) and relax nearly every day with a joint.
Yes, some people will abuse pleasurable things 24/7 until they cannot work, communicate or leave their basement. They’ll sit around until the bloodflow to their brain goes so low that it atrophies. The slightly increased rate of brain atrophy in long term users is likely due to lower physical activity by average cannabis users. (low exercize/flow causes dimentia and also can be seen when imagining)
But this also happens with TV, video games, porn, comics, magic the gathering, food, etc, etc. I’ve had many times more friends “ruin their lives” with video games than pot! Become dependent on their parents and then the state because they cant stop playing and become obese.
So, what are we banning next?