Is Marijuana Bad For You And Should It Be Legalized?
I’m doing a report on substance abuse: Marijuana. And I would like to get as many people’s points of view as possible on the subject.
Feel free to answer any of the following with support to defend you’re response whether it is in support or against. Please state your age and the state you live in if you respond.
1) Is marijuana really bad for you?
2) Should Marijuana be legalized?
3) Compared to marijuana…it seems as though most drugs that ARE legal (alcohol, prescription pills, caffeine, etc.) are abused just as often if not more and are even worse for your health. Marijuana is a plant that is grown just like every other plant, it really is not that bad. TRUE OR FALSE *this is basically my view point on it*
4. Any other information about Marijuana (whether it’s about substance abuse, statistics, or personal expieriences or facts) is always wanted as well.
As for myself, I am a 20 year old female, and I have been smoking weed for about 4 years. I used to smoke it more casually, use has increased throughout the years. I do not believe marijuana should be legal (I stated my defense in #3 above). I understand that it has it’s negative effects That it can be can be psychologically addictive because I experienced the symptoms of that when I was smoking multiple times a day every day, but after just a few weeks I was able to stop mentally craving it. It can be used as an temporary escape from reality, but as long as you have control over the fact that reality is going to come back and you cant escape it forever, that’s your problem. Unmotivation is also a problem for some people as well, which is why smoking before class is a horrible idea otherwise the option of “let’s just not go to class this one time” occurs. But I think a few negative things do not out weight the positive and/or it is your own choice to make all the negative things happen NOT happen, they are all psychological and you can keep yourself from doing them if you so chose. I’d say smoking marijuana is absolutely not a problem, smoking it every day all day is a different story, that may be the “substance abuse” part of it. The irritibillity when not high for a pot head is kind of ridiculous. Sorry, this was all rambled off of the top of my head.
Please take the time out to throw me a few opinions or facts. 
Thanks alot!
I personally feel that marijuana is less harmful than both tobacco and alcohol. Actually, I know so, and it has been established as well. Furthermore, it’s only harmful for you if you smoke it; not so much if you use it to make baked goods or beverages. However, most people argue that it is illegal more importantly because it is a gateway drug. But from what I’ve heard and read, tobacco is just as big of a gateway drug, if not bigger, so I don’t know why marijuana is singled out, especially when it is less addictive than most other drugs. I mean, you can crave weed, but you don’t get withdrawal symptoms unless you have really gone over the top, and that craving dies off after a few days.
Also, if marijuana was to be legalized and enforced in the same fashion as tobacco and alcohol, then I feel there would be less problems, since marijuana is quite widespread, and it is just a waste of taxpayer’s money to enforce the use/possession of marijuana. Not to mention the fact that if marijuana was legalized, then it could be taxed, earning even more revenue for the government.
Turns out that there have been no recorded cases of casualties from marijuana overdose, because the user will be knocked unconscious before they can consume lethal levels of THC. Also, roughly 2% of all motor vehicle accidents have been linked to marijuana, but most of those incidents also had alcohol involved. In fact, drivers who are under the influence of marijuana do not show the speeding, reckless driving behavior of drunken drivers, but will drive relatively slower than average drivers, and take longer to decide to change lanes, etc.
by c1221
on 07. Nov, 2009
yes marijuana is harmful but so is anything else in excess. it should be legalized and people will still be responsible for their actions, whether under influence of marijuana or not.
by fern1135
on 07. Nov, 2009
I’m going to answer just the question no. 1
Yes, marijuana can be really harmful. Just like anything else. The cars, for instance, are far more dangerous and kill much more people..
by Europa
on 07. Nov, 2009
Patent number: 6630507
Cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuroprotectants
Assignee: The United States of America as represented by the Department of Health and Human Services
Inventor: Dr Aidan J Hampson, PhD aidan.hampson@nih.gov
http://www.google.com/patents/about?id=0pcNAAAAEBAJ
National Institute of Mental Health
http://www.mauriziogrimaldi.net/nimhprelease.htm
“When 40 mg/kg CBD was co-administered with
ethanol on days 2 to 4 of the protocol, alcohol-induced cell
death was reduced by approximately 60% in both
hippocampal granular cells and the entorhinal cortical pyramidal
cells”
http://intramural.nimh.nih.gov/lcmr/smn/pdf/15878999.pdf
Cannabinoids kills brain cells but only brain cells with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) cancer.
“The major active component of the medicinal plant cannabis, ?9-THC, has been shown in experiments with rats to have therapeutic potential against brain tumors. SETH Group scientists Garret Yount, Ph.D. and Sean McAllister, Ph.D. designed experiments in a time-lapse microscope to test whether ?9-THC can stop the growth of human glioblastoma multiforma (GBM) brain cancer cells. Using the same tests that are used to judge new chemotherapies, the team discovered that the herbal compound kills human GBM cells at a concentration that is nontoxic to normal brain cells. No chemotherapy can match this nontoxic anti-cancer action. The implication is that this plant compound could be a safe medicine against brain tumors, without the side effects of chemotherapy. These exciting results may be just the tip of the iceberg, however, because ?9-THC is only one of many active compounds in medicinal cannabis. Other active constituents of the Cannabis plant (called cannabinoids) are also likely to have a nontoxic anti-cancer action.”
http://thesethgroup.org/
http://thesethgroup.org/videos.html
antibacterial properties
“The cannabinoids even showed exceptional activity against the MRSA strain”
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=5787866&page=1
Endocannabinoids in breast milk
“The detection of endocannabinoids in bovine as well as
human milk, 2-AG increased at least 100-fold to 1,000-fold and
higher concentrations than anandamide suggest a
role for endocannabinoid 2-AG in newborn milk intake.”
http://www.ebmonline.org/cgi/reprint/230/4/225.pdf
Just the tip of the hash-berg!
by John
on 08. Nov, 2009
I am a thirteen year old girl and I live in New York. I have been smoking weed since i was around the age of 11 (almost 12) no I do not live in some rusty old trailer and have scummy parents that smoke to. Actually my mom does not smoke (i know she did in her teen years but that was then and she grew out of it) my dad, started smoking at the very young age of ten. since then he has stopped he’s ways at about 18 and now I would think he only does it once every other month with his friends. My parents do not approve of me smoking weed but they know im just a teenager and kids will be kids. I smoke on the weekends sometimes every other weekend. it depends on my plans and I don’t smoke on week days during the school year. I’d say that out of the three (cigarettes, alchol, and weed) weed would have to be the healthiest and the safest. I hate drinking and I hate being hung over, there for I’ve only gotten drunk once and hated it. you’ll never see me with a drink in my hand. I really don’t think pot is that bad for you, if its not laced and your not doing it 24/7 a week and just to have a good time I think it is personally fine. Pot, i think it should be legal but that would NEVER happen. there are many easons for it being illegal but the only way i look at it is; Cigarettes and drinking can kill you: weed can not. So, if weed was legal everyone would stop smoking cigarettes and start smoking more weed and the population would go up. which the government does not want. I have a heart problem, was born with it called wolff parkinson white syndrome also known as WPW. when I first smoked i was afraid something would happen, but nothing did. I think that if you use pot in a healthy manor there is nothing to it. and really, no one ever gets addicted to it. where i live most kids start smoking at 11 or 12. I think it relaxs me more. and being a teenager and having all the stress of boys and homework pot makes me really truely laugh about anything. which I really don’t do much of anymore. I think that pot shows me how to be a little kid again. And makes me excited about little things like i would get excited for when I was at the young age of 6 and 7. I think this is a couple health issues in pot but there is in cigarettes and drinking right? And honestly I can say to you in my 13 years of living Ihave never ment one adult who hasn’t at least tried weed once. hope I help.good luck on your project.
by ashleyy(
on 08. Nov, 2009