I've had family that started out smoking weed, they quickly became slower, lazier, less alert, and disoriented. After a while the high wasn't the same for them. They chased the high through harder and harder drugs. Now they're constantly in and out of jail and blowing every dollar they have trying to get their fix. They're no where near the person they used to be, and it all started with weed.

hmm wow that's a pretty sad story I hate to sound like an ass but it sounds like they have absolutely 0 self control in terms of "chasing the high", every person I know who smokes weed (including one who has for quite a long time) doesn't have the want to try other stuff because they know what it will do to you.

This is strictly my opinion, but I grew up around it. I've never smoked it myself but I've had a front row seat to watch the effects of it. Alot of people say that it doesn't have any effects on the health of a person. That may be true but it's not the weed that'll kill you, it's the other drugs that you get involved with because of weed that'll kill you. Anyone can say that they're just going to smoke that one blunt every now and then, but what happens when the high isn't as good as it was the last time. That's what pulls people into the harder drugs. Alot of people are going to disagree with everything I said but I've witnessed this first hand and was just smart enough to stay away from it.

 

 

I think it is a gate way drug. I will never use it.

 

 

 

Most people that have tried weed, tried alcohol first.

Okay buddy, so why is it alcohol is legal then? If it is "sort of like alcohol". Do you have the same stance on alcohol or what?

Do people forget that Alcohol is a "drug" as well. It has one purpose*, get people on a "High"/feel good. 

 

 

My stance on Cannabis:

 

Why not? If you are gonna let people become drunks and die with Alcohol, may as well let those silly fools do it with Cannabis as well. 

 

 

*Besides it being in some medical things. 

Well, If it does become legal I hope there are some restrictions on where/when it can be used.

 

I live in Colorado.  In some counties here marijuana is legal.

From what I've seen...
There is little to no tax income from it - you can grow it on your own, buy if privately, etc.  so why would you ever want to pay tax on it?

An increase in transient youngsters from out of state, causing stress on the police departments.
Yesterday I was visiting with my parents and we went shopping in Boulder county where it is, for the most part legal to be in public and high (we all live in Weld where it is illegal just as before).  From the moment I stepped through the door at Staples I could smell marijuana.  I've never liked the smell to start with.  The first thing that came to mind was "ok, who's going to jail today".  Well after spending 20 minutes in the store I noticed a customer leaving one of the offices.  The customer comes to the checkout line where i'm standing.  I'll just put it this way - had he been in Weld he would have been in the back of a police car 15 minutes later.

 

As far as I can tell it's supposed to be the same as alcohol.  The problem is, the legislation doesn't exist to regulate it properly, and not to mention that federally its still a controlled substance so any officer can stop you for it...

If I remember correctly, about 10-20% of those who drink also drive while drunk.  Everyone that I know who use marijuana also drive while under the influence.

 

It's a thing that kids do.  Kids do a lot of stupid things.

I've always said.  If it doesn't affect anyone else, you should be allowed to do it.  But the problem is, it does affect others.

 

 

 

The problems are.

-The legislation doesn't exist.
-The facts are misleading -- how many times have you heard "you can't overdose on marijuana".  That is not true.  Kids & stoners listen to everything they're told and take it as truth.

-What comes next?  Legalize cocaine?  Everyone I know who does cocaine is all for marijuana becoming legal... :/

 

 

So, i'm against it becoming legal.  It happened here (in select states), and all that I can tell is it's caused problems.
It's a fad and in 10 or 15 years it'll be gone.

 

 

I'm not planning on ever trying it, the side effects can be both good and bad as far as I know but it's not tempting for me. I would ordinarily say that it should be banned, but since I myself enjoy an Old Fashioned every once in a while, I'm biased since, as stated above, alcohol is also a drug. Both have side effects, some wanted and other are unwanted. 

I think the problem is that we need to have strict rules about the drug, and more importantly make these laws clearer. Something along the lines of alcohol, which has a clear set of rules surronded by them. Since alcohol won't hurt anyone standing next to someone drinking. It's not like "second hand smoking", where non-smokers who breathe in secondhand smoke take in nicotine and other toxic chemicals just like the smokers do. I agree with those who think that it should be okay in the comfort of your own home, making sure that the smoke does not affect anyone else. 

Edited November 12, 201312 yr by ineseri

I have no problem with it. It's straight from the ground, It's not a dangerous high and It can be used to treat a plethora of diseases/Illnesses. It does however need to be very regulated. Teens shouldn't be able to just get their hands on it.

 

I personally never tried it and probably never will. I also personally don't advise people to start using it as it could be a gateway drug. I have known people who used it however. My experience?

 

Some people really "fell apart". They started with that and used more dangerous stuff. Total social downhill tour. Then again that could've had many other reasons combined. Other people? Almost fine, did not smoke a lot.

 

Overall, I think there are worse things than 'weed'. Similar rule: Too much is not good, same for smokes and alcohol. As for legalization here in Europe I'm not sure. It varies by country more or less.

Edited November 12, 201312 yr by Unit 605

I think your view on marijuana depends on where you live. Here in Holland it's kinda legal in small amounts, although the law is a bit unclear. Anyway, I'm used to seeing people smoke weed in public but I can imagine in other countries where it is illegal people will look at it like a serious crime. The downside of teh weed shops here is theat it attracts a lot of foreigners that drive trough the border regins like absolute madmen. Now I live in the middle of Holladn so it's not much of a problem here, but I know people near the border that have a lot of Belgian, French and German people speed by, sometimes with police cars chasing them. And of course there's the tourists in Amsterdam. There's the actual tourist groups that go to all nice locations and there's the type that on arrival heads straight to the red light district and within the hour is smoking weed and banging hookers legally. If you look at last weekend's EMA Awards in Amsterdam, all international press was waiting at the location of the award show, whereas the Dutch press adn entertainment channels and magazines were checking the "coffeeshops" as we call them here. Conclusion: international superstars like weed. Well, that's my story, let me know what you think.

Well on the pro side is that Marihuana is not as harmful as cigarrettes or alcohol. Marihuana doesn't ruin your liver or lungs. But still: We already have two drugs we can consume legally, alhocol and tobacco, so legalizing a third drug wouldn't do anything good to our society. If we could choose completely new which drugs we want to legalize and make illegal, Marihuana would be the best choice, but as a third major drug, I can't support that.

 

Another problem is, that Marihuana is a hallucinogenic drug and affects our brain in ways we don't know yet. There are a lot of "studys" that say that marihuana is good for our brain but that simply isn't true. Every medical study shows that substances that effect the neuroreceptors in our brain in one or another way can cause significant changes. Our brain has a special balance and if that balance changes we might develop certain symptoms up to real psychiatric illnesses like schizophrenia. Marihuana also seems to affect the proteines, the albumen in our brain, and these proteines are incredibly important. Loosing to much of these proteines causes dementia. And I've seen so many patients suffer from dementia that I wouldn't try a drug that is suspected to cause it.

 

I have a lot of friends who regularly smoke marihuana but I wouldn't smoke it even once. The effects on our brain are not completely researched, but psychotropic substances almost never have positive effects on our brain. Also that marihuana may cause dementia frightens me a bit and I hope that my friends won't suffer from the long term effects.