Posted on 05/17/2010 9:29:02 AM PDT by OneVike
Come November, Californians will have the chance to legalize marijuana for the specific purpose of raising revenues via taxes. We all knew that it would be just a matter of time before the same individuals would get enough signatures to put the legalization of marijuana up for a vote by the California citizens. It is a bit ironic when you consider how militant the same individuals wanting marijuana legalized have gone on a witch hunt against tobacco products.
The attack on the tobacco industry began over 50 years ago when the Surgeon General forced the tobacco company's to label their products with a warning to the user about the health risk of smoking. 60 years later there are some communities right here in California that have gotten so militant in their anti smoking campaigns that they are even considering passing ordinances that would ban smoking in private homes.
Which begs the question, "If smoking tobacco is so harmful to society that we need to ban it from being smoked even in the privacy of ones home, then why legalize a drug that scientific studies have proven is 2.5 to 5 times more harmful to the body than tobacco"?
Besides the 2007 study by the Medical Research Institute of New Zealand, that smoking one marijuana joint is equal to smoking five cigarettes at the same time. there are numerous other medical reasons that should keep such a drug from being legalized. There are over 400 chemicals that have been identified in marijuana. When smoked, it generates over 2,000 chemicals that invade the body through the lungs. These chemicals have an assortment of instantaneous, short-term effects. In addition, the repetitive use of marijuana has been connected to a number of long-term effects.
As most everyone is aware of, the most important drug that makes marijuana so attractive is THC (Tetrahydrocannabinol) . This is the drug that gives the euphoric feeling that makes it so popular. When smoked regularly, a large supply of THC accumulates in the fat. This produces a high steady level of THC in the blood system which can cause a certain level of continual sedation. With this sedation, the users brain begins to become numb and the mind can begin to experience side effects of confusion, and paranoia. Once the user stops it can take upwards of 30 to 45 days before the brain can can operate clearly again.
Eventually, for the heavy pot smoker, the 'high' that they receive from the drug will gradually diminish. This is where studies have shown that the user will attempt to either find more potent marijuana to smoke, or just move onto stronger more dangerous drugs like cocaine, or even heroin. This is the reason why marijuana is called a gateway drug. Studies have shown that even the casual users often times will drink alcohol while getting high. So the problems of drinking can be added to the problems of smoking marijuana. Then there's the disturbing trend that shows the age of the average marijuana user has continued to...
(Excerpt) Read more at ChicoER ...
“And Nadar condemned the Corvair as “unsafe at any speed”
I actually owned a Corsair...’63 coupe “The Red Rocket” and it was a hoot. My problem with these little boogers on the highway today is that they weave in and out and I suspect are long gone after the collisions they might cause...I have no problems with the drivers of them getting creamed...its the rest of us that I worry about.
Pothead! LOL!
I say both marijuana and tobacco should be 100% legal.
Presume you meant Corvair? My grandfather had two of them.
Statistics and busybodies...
No! I'm Spartacus!
Shouldn’t you hunt them and “then” eat them? Are you high. LOL /s
The reason they are on a "witch hunt" is that someone is making money off tobacco. The irony is that this would of course have to also happen with pot if anyone is going to pay taxes on it.
so let’s see....harrass the heck out of smokers who light up within 50 feet of any public building, stop me five times for DUI Checkpoints during my weekend drive home, but LEGALIZE pot. What a bunch of SOOOOPER GENIUSES!
On the other hand, hemp does not store radiation. There has never been a single recorded case of cancer caused by smoking only hemp. While all smoke is damaging to the lungs, the traditional way of consuming hemp is by eating/drinking it or rubbing the body with oil. Prohibition raises prices and forces people to consume hemp in the most damaging way: smoking it.
Even if smoked, hemp smoke is far less damaging than tobacco smoke. The tars have been shown to be less sticky and do not penetrate as deeply into the lungs. I know several olympic-level athletes that smoke hemp nearly every day and it has not affected their lung function at all(athletes like Phelps are more common than you think). In fact, there has never been a recorded case of COPD caused purely by hemp. When hemp is legal, there will be no need to smoke it.
So yes, responsible use of hemp is healthier than tobacco from nearly every aspect. And if you think tobacco doesn't affect people's minds, try convincing a tobacco addict to stop taking smoke breaks on your company's time. I'd rather hire a hemp smoker as long as they don't smoke on my clock since a hemp smoker never "has to" smoke. Tobacco addicts can't function without it.
Your wrong, read the article, then go to the study that was done in New Zealand that proved one joint is equal to smoking 2.5 to 5 cigarettes at the same time. Marijuana destroys the lungs ability to exhale. Tobacco does not do that.
Wow. Terribly written article. THC does not accumulate in fat, the matabolites of THC do. There is no continual sedation...
However I agree with the headline. I am for legalization but if that means revenues for crooked governments, forget it.
It will still increase revenue won’t it?
IOW, you would support fedgov using the Commerce Clause to trample the Tenth Amendment in this case.
We cannot pick and chose which rights we will enforce and which we will not.
Either we enforce the Tenth Amendment or we don't.
Do you take that same position with regard to state initiatives against Obamacare and federal gun regulations?
excellent article, and superbly written. I agree and I have evidence from watching my nephew destroy his life over his desire to smoke pot.
He lost his job, his wife, and he is currently living off some friends who let him crash at their place.
He has been smoking pot since he was about 15, and he is an airhead.
Smoking pot really ruins people. There’s some on here that just don’t get it and never will. I’ve seen it first hand many times though, including people going into mental institutions and basically being burned out nothings in 5-10 years of it. Some may handle it, but ALL get changed somewhat.
Another problem that many proponents refuse to admit, is that Marijuana has been proved to cause psychosis in some individuals that lasts upwards of 5 to 7 days. This side effect is not some newly discovered problem, fact is that for almost 150 years, medical doctors and psychologists have both pondered the relationship of between smoking marijuana and psychotic reactions that can be life altering if not treated properly. What is most disturbing is the medically proven fact that the use of marijuana by individuals already suffering from psychotic disorders have had their symptoms exacerbated, and has been known to initiate psychosis with individuals predisposed with such disorders.So why would we legalize a product to be used freely by those who could be most effected.
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