Marijuana, Good or Bad?
A cranky opinion for
CRANKY OPINION SATURDAY
The following is the opinion of a
cranky old man with almost no knowledge on the topic opined. Opposing opinions are welcome…they are
welcome, but wrong. As always, no name
calling, and that means you, you big stupid-head!
It’s April
20 as I write this, apparently it is some sort of a marijuana special day. I don’t know why, but it is a good excuse for
an opinion piece this Saturday for “Crank Opinion Saturday.”
Unlike
former President Clinton, I have inhaled marijuana. I have inhaled it several times. In the very early 70’s I had a puff or two so
as to not look like a dork when a joint was being passed around at a party. I got a bigger high from a Marlboro than from
that 1970 cannabis. Still if I was
caught with a joint in my hands in those days I might have done some serious
jail time.
Years later,
while stuck with several co-workers in a hotel during a major NYC snow storm, I
took another hit off a joint. This one
knocked me for a loop. I think, on
further reflection, it was laced with something. It made me very paranoid and I did not like
it.
Fast forward
a few more years, and I imbibed with a friend whose wife used it to combat the
effects of chemotherapy for her brain cancer.
It made me silly, but I quite enjoyed it. That is my total experience with marijuana.
That is the
problem with pot. One batch does
nothing, one batch plays with your head in a very negative way, and one batch
is enjoyable. You do not know what you
are getting.
Based on my
limited experience, I am not a big fan of pot.
I find it to be antisocial and I
prefer alcohol as my drug of choice.
Should it be
legal?
How do you
seriously keep it illegal?
Hell, the
stuff grows like a weed, because, well…it is a weed. Throw a few seeds anywhere, and it will
grow. How do you regulate something that
grows anywhere? We had enough trouble
with prohibition in the 20’s, and you couldn’t throw a vodka seed in the garden
and grow a fifth.
Pot is not
going away. Like it or hate it, and
there are many negative things to say about it, it is not going away. If it is legal, at least it can be regulated
for potency and some taxes can be collected to offset some of the negative
social issues that go along with the drug.
Pot is not
good. Gambling is not good. Alcohol is not good. Tobacco is not good. Prostitution is not good. Pornography is not good. TV is not good. Soda is not good. Sugar is not good. Any current music is not good. We allow, we enjoy lots of stuff that is not
good. Where do we as a society draw the
line? What do we allow?
If it can
kill you or others, I say it has to be illegal.
If it makes you stupid but harms no one else, it should be
discouraged. If it is unproductive,
perhaps it should be regulated. Pot does
not seem to kill others, it sometimes does make you stupid, it is not
productive, so I say let it be legal and let it be regulated.
The world
has lots of problems, I am in favor of eliminating one of them…make pot legal
and regulated. Have a drink, eat a bag
of chips, bet your week’s salary on the horses, chug down that caramel colored sugar water, enjoy a good cigar, watch some
crappy reality TV. If it only hurts
yourself, it is your life, your choice, have at it.
The preceding was the opinion of a
cranky old man, and not necessarily that of management, Mrs. Cranky.
Son may (or may not) use marijuana. That's my disclaimer. But I did ask him about 420 and apparently its a police call for a drug related call, thus the significance of 420. He may or may not use 420 in his screen name, just saying.
ReplyDeleteI never used pot. It scared me to death. I was afraid what I used would be laced with something else and I didn't want to face the consequences.
I typed a bit for a group of hospitals in Colorado (where it is legal). In the social history part of the report, they list habits (tobacco, alcohol, drugs, etc., ) along with marital status, jobs, children, etc. It took me a bit for them to be blase about marijuana. While maybe they didn't support it, at least they realized it was part of the culture.
I'm not sure if it should be legalized or not. It could cause more headaches than benefits, but that's just coming from my own perspective. Arizona voted it down to be legalized this year. I went with the majority, so I guess that shows perhaps where my stance might be?
betty
betty
What do you men sugar is not good? I think it's fabulous. I love the stuff. Possibly I like it too much....
ReplyDeleteMarijuana? I'm told it helps pain and so should be legal for those that need it. But does it really? Or does it just numb the mind to the point where you don't feel anything? Is that a good thing? Having a numb mind? I personally don't think so, but when other painkillers have proven ineffective, what's left?
On the other hand, I have seen what recreational use has done to my son and his partner. He's an alcoholic now that he gave up the pot, she's a mental wreck who can't or won't stop taking it.
I can't really comment. It wasn't around in my early days so I never tried it, nor would I want to now.
ReplyDeleteThe biggest problem with the argument that "it doesn't hurt anyone else" is that everything has consequences beyond what we can see.
ReplyDeleteTo give a completely different example, there was a woman who used to say "I don't wear a seat belt, and I won't wear one, I don't care, the only one who would be hurt if I get killed is me!" The problem was that she wasn't killed, she was in a persistent vegetative state for 10 years after the accident. It bankrupted her husband's business and her daughters had to grow up without their mother.
Your sugar addictions doesn't hurt anyone but you? Wrong, it hurts all of society when you become another diabetic and need all that medical care. Your consumption of alcohol doens't hurt anyone but you because you only imbibe when you get home from work in the evenings? Wrong, it hurts all of society when your children watch you medicate the pain that way every night and grow up to be addicts who medicate their own pain with other substances.
You are correct that it's not going away and it needs to be regulated at least for medical use. Just please don't think that what one person does to themselves has no effect on others. What we do has repercussions well beyond anything we could think or imagine.
I have yet to read an article about what happens when stoners get behind the wheel. And will police be able to test drivers some way (besides smelling them)?
ReplyDeleteJust one more substance to use to distort our (apparently) fictitious reality. The thing is Joeh that using pot/alcohol/drugs doesn't just hurt the person using ... it hurts whole families and communities. Right now our police are training in how to identify the idiots using pot and driving.
ReplyDeleteWell, I still think it's premature to fully legalize it as all of the proponents have been stupidly lazy about getting standards of Under The Influence created to ensure safety on the streets. Now I know all of the claims that it doesn't impair like or as bad as alcohol but it does impair.
ReplyDeleteTrust me as someone who was caught behind an 18 wheeler going down the center of the highway. Doing 27mph with a mile or two of vehicles stacked up ..... 'cuz he was sooooo mellowed out :-)
And I understand that it shouldn't have been included with other more destructive drugs back in the day when it was declared illegal and doesn't belong in the same category but if you're gonna re-introduce it as legit at least do your homework, eh?
I have never advocated the ABUSE of pot or any substance! ABUSE which does or can affect others will always be illegal. TO all the above commentors. Making a substance legal to use does not make it legal to ABUSE. Pot like other currently legal substances can be BAD SHIT. But just like I don't like paying higher health insurance for those people who weigh 400 pounds because they are addicted to sugar, OH friggin A YES it can be a powerful distructive addiction, I don't want the fat police to come around and tell me how to live if it is done responsivly. And no, I do not use pot.
DeleteI use pot as a sleep aid and it works wonderfully. Of course, it's legal here in Oregon, not that it would matter since Oregonians are free-thinkers and pretty much do what they want.
ReplyDeleteI'm not into pot and I never will be. Whatever someone else does it's their business as long as I'm not being negatively affected.
ReplyDeleteHave a fabulous day, Joe. ☺
Huh. Turns out that there are as many opinions on pot as politics, eh? And I'd bet there is a correlation of some sort too. As many have noted, pot today is not the pot of '70....you can get some that have quite the effect on pain, help people with CA getting chemo, stuff like that, and actually does little to get one 'high'. Then there are some that get you stoned with one toke.
ReplyDeleteIt's a 'gateway' drug to the same extent that research has shown that coca cola is a gateway drug.
The event that should happen, and has an iceberg's chance in hell as long as the GOP holds the reins, is actual, gov't sponsored research. Until that happens it's all opinions and anecdotal 'evidence', i.e. nothing for sure.
Cheers,
Mike
I really have no opinion at the moment. So many say that it helps certain cancer patients and I wouldn't deny them the usage. Think there is a line between recreational and habitual use just as a cold beer on a hot afternoon is to downing a case of it because you can't stop.
ReplyDeleteI think it's stupid to spen taxpayer's money to incarcerate people caught with small amounts of pot. As for driving stoned, it does slow reflexes so those who are stoned should do like those drinking and let someone else do the driving.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you Joe. Save money by not criminalizing the substance, and collect tax on it to help pay the bills.
That's my two cents worth.
I think it is useful for those who need it for pain, recreational use worrys me the same as alcohol, I have no problem with sensible use of either, my problem is with abuse some just can't control themselves as we all know, legalizing it I really don't have a problem with, but find a way to regulate it first.
ReplyDeleteWorking in the health industry for over 40yrs I can immediately tell you how smoking cigarettes, drinking alcohol, eating too much sugar, and taking illegal drugs harms the body. There may be noticeable signs outwardly on the harm it does but under the skin, tissue and deeper it's horrible. Pot? Well, I'm all for legal pot for medical use and frankly I see no benefit in putting people in jail for smoking recreational pot. I don't condone driving after having a joint just like I don't condone drinking and driving. I choose to not drink, smoke (pot or cigs) or do drugs. (sugar is another matter!) I have much better things to spend my money on and do than any of that. But to each his own. Just be careful because anything we do is like a stone in a pond and the ripples move outward and touch others. You just have to be sober to notice that.
ReplyDeleteI did try it when younger but found I liked the party hearty high of alcohol over the mellowness of pot. I think it can help folks medicinally and I am all for that. I don't even care if it goes recreational. How to tell a pot smoker from a drunk on the road is the speed they travel. From my own experience and of my friends, you lose a bit of depth perception on pot so you end up driving quite slowly.
ReplyDeleteWouldn't mind taking it for the reason's Stephen does. I have another PNW blog buddy who has used the oil drop form for pain relief quite successfully. Think I would like it in brownie form though:))
I live in Texas, and I'm sure this will be one of the last states to legalize pot (although the Houston DA is unilaterally not enforcing thelaw, for the most part).
ReplyDeleteI don't see myself taking advantage of it much even if it were legal.
People should be able to do things I don't personally want to do, though.
I can't believe you found a topic I don't really have an opinion on.
ReplyDeleteI've never tried pot nor would I try it for recreational use if it were legal, but I would use it in a heartbeat if it were to relieve medical symptoms (pain, chemotherapy, sleeplessness, etc.)
ReplyDeleteI agree, taxing and regulating it would make much more sense than incarcerating people who are caught with small amounts of this stuff!
I'm from California and currently live in the Emerald Triangle. It is a part of life up here in Northern California. My husband works for the state, and so he can't use it. I only use it topically or in tinctures. I don't want to smoke it anymore. I'm more into the CBD content (medicinal part) rather than the THC (the part that gets you high) Face it, it's here to stay. They need to tax it, regulate it and start prosecuting those who grow it in our national forests. They pollute our rivers and streams with pesticides.
ReplyDelete