Fri, December 11, 2009 - 12:56 PM
Thanks for sharing that, Bob! My thoughts:

According to the United Nations, 158.8 million people around the world use marijuana – more than 3.8% of the planet’s population.
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I suspect more than that but yes...

Hashish is a related form of the drug, made from the resins of the Indian hemp plant.
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It is actually exactly the same chemicals as straight up dried flowers but in concentration. No different and unchanged chemically.

The amount of THC found in any given batch of marijuana may vary substantially, but overall, the percentage of THC has increased in recent years.
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I agree. So has the required dosage as a result. But I suspect with that comes a general higher administering of the drug overall because of the fact that it is, for all practical purposes, virtually impossible to overdose on cannabis (in terms of a life threatening biological situation).

Marijuana is usually smoked as a cigarette (joint), but may also be smoked in a pipe. Less often, it is mixed with food and eaten or brewed as a tea. Sometimes users open up cigars and remove the tobacco, replacing it with pot – called a “blunt”.
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People also vaporize cannabis.

...it has been found that consuming one joint gives as much exposure to cancer-producing chemicals as smoking five cigarettes.
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Yes. That is totally true. But THC/CBD's also provide a benefit that is shown to negate what should be a predictably hard hit on the lungs (in terms of COPD's and the like - Tashkin's study suggests there is no correlation between cannabis and lung cancer and other chronic COPD's):

www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn...29.html
www.lung.med.ucla.edu/faculty...hkin.htm

The mental consequences of marijuana use are equally severe.
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As a medical marijuana patient, I would have to say that this statement is overgeneralizing quite a bit. I think it really depends on the circumstances of usage taking into account psychology, physical health and social factors.

Marijuana smokers have poorer memories and mental aptitude than do non-users.
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Generally yes.

Physical reactions are followed by depression, sleepiness, personality and mood changes, inability to understand things clearly.
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I think this is possible but not consistent or even typical. Well, mood changes are pretty consistent and usually on the up while under the effects. For example, I use medical cannabis primarily for insomnia and intolerance to therapy I need to deal with my sleep apnea (BiPap machine). And, the secondary reason I use it is to help with my depression. It works great for me in both areas - more so than any other chemical I have tried.

Marijuana itself does not lead to other drugs; people take drugs to get rid of unwanted situations or feelings. The drug masks the problem for the time while the user is high. When the “high” fades, the problem, unwanted condition or situation returns more intensely than before. The user may then turn to stronger drugs since marijuana no longer “works”. The vast majority of cocaine users (99.9%) began by first using a “gateway drug” like marijuana, cigarettes or alcohol.
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Personally, I don't consider cannabis to necessarily be a gateway drug. I think that cannabis, combined with gateway behavior, gateway settings and gateway personalities can lead to harder drug use. There is probably a much higher correlation with alcohol use and future drug use than cannabis - if so, my theory is that its not an issue of cannabis or alcohol themselves, but the fact that some people have predispositions or opportunities presented regardless - with higher number of the population who drink recreationally vs. using cannabis, there is probably a similar stat in terms of percentage of users. Its a theory.

www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/

By giving the truth about drugs anyone can help others to make informed decision to live a drug free life. To get the facts visit www.drugfreeworld.org.
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I think the concept of a drug free America is really a pipe dream. By nature we are a drug culture. We are inundated with ads about drugs all day. Pharmaceutical industrial complex encourages drug use at high costs and with the prevalence of OTC drugs, self-medication. If we look at places like Amsterdam, we cannot directly equate drug use with crime or deeper, negative social impact. Its a combination of culture and substance. American culture, imho, encourages bad behavior.

And for the person with a drug problem, there are also real solutions to addiction. Narconon, a drug rehabilitation program that utilizes the methods of L. Ron Hubbard, has a success rate of more than 75%. (www.narconon.org)
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That is a great number!

A check and balance:
www.drugpolicy.org/marijuana/factsmyths/

With love and respect...
MC