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Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

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Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#21

Post by tptacek »

jgrahamc wrote: post #18
tptacek wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

He's a practicing neurosurgeon with published research, but, like half of HN, doesn't know what he's talking about when it comes to radiological safety; therefore, his opinions on pharmacology are irrelevant to you? That seems like a surprisingly dumb argument for you, John, but maybe I just misunderstood it. At any rate, the importance of the piece isn't Gupta's authority on the subject. After all, vis a vis cannabi…

He's a practicing neurosurgeon with published research, but, like half of HN, doesn't know what he's talking about when it comes to radiologic safety; therefore, his opinions on pharmacology are irrelevant to you? I guess. I guess you are right. I probably should listen to his opinion about this. I just have a hard time with media personalities who are willing to spout crap when they don't know what they are talking…

I'm not saying it's a good thing the guy was CNN's subject matter expert on camera for radiation safety, just that he's got a legit claim to subject matter expertise regarding pharmacology. CNN is still awful.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#22

Post by tptacek »

Shivetya wrote: post #19

I found it interesting they did not comment on the means of using weed. Smoking it cannot be much better for you than smoking cigarettes. Even after the Feds remove it from the list there will be regulation governing its sale. You can grow tobacco all you want; most people don't because prep is much harder than marijuana; but run afoul of a few laws should you try to sell it. It would certainly reduce the jailed popu…

It's an article of faith that cannabis is a major contributor to US incarceration, but I think that's a belief worth questioning. I looked into this briefly for a thread a year ago and in the states I researched, domestic violence was far and away the leading cause of incarceration.

In many major metro areas, you're more likely to be ticketed for cannabis than arrested.

I haven't taken the time to come up with a conclusive answer for myself on the extent to which cannabis criminalization imprisons people in the US; maybe it's as bad as people think it is. I just think it's worth doing some research on.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#24

Post by Zelphyr »

tptacek wrote: post #10
tareqak wrote: post #6

Honest question: How many drug companies' bottom lines would be affected if marijuana was legalized right now? Reminds me of the quote: If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem.

Drug companies would be affected positively by MJ legalization. Look at how drugs are developed and marketed, at how drug companies compete with generics over marginal improvements in outcomes (or, sometimes, no improvement at all), and look at the conditions from which drug companies derive most of their profits. It's hard to see much of a threat from cannabis. For that matter, look at Abbott Labs, one of the larges…

Agreed. They've already been doing their own research and if they haven't they're ramping up now because of Colorado and Washington.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#25

Post by tptacek »

mjfl wrote: post #20

Isn't any effect that marijuana has on patients going to be confounded with the placebo effect? Not that I disagree with what is being said, I still have my doubts about the actual medical usage of marijuana, and the studies that have been done on it.

300 seizures a month -> 3 seizures a month is unlikely to be a placebo affect, but plural of anecdotes and all that, sure.

For pain management and quality of life, we probably don't need to worry about the placebo effect too much; instead, we should just measure whether cannabis gets people off opiates.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#26

Post by GeneralMayhem »

tareqak wrote: post #6

Honest question: How many drug companies' bottom lines would be affected if marijuana was legalized right now? Reminds me of the quote: If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem.

Drug companies would be able to profit by selling marijuana and trivial derivatives.

I think the more persistent lobbies will be other "sin" industries - tobacco, alcohol, etc.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#27

Post by rorrr2 »

Just a hype for his movie.

This all reminds me of how some famous supposed atheists convert to a religion X and then write books about it selling millions of copies.

Same shit. You're being manipulated.

We don't need a mediocre surgeon to tell us weed is OK. Any idiot with internet access knew that for the last 15 years.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#28

Post by fnordfnordfnord »

dave_sullivan wrote: post #11

Better late than never I guess, but what changed his mind really? "I actually did more research and was shocked, shocked by what I found!" or "I'm making a documentary and the tides of public opinion continue to shift, writing's on the wall, time to change my tune..." Maybe (probably) I'm being overly cynical, but people like him have lent support and legitimacy to a machine that literally destroys people's lives for…

Maybe (to be even more cynical) he has come to the conclusion that the regime of marijuana prohibition is coming to an end (or at least losing public support); and as a TV doctor who needs make headlines and wants to maintain relevance in the future, he has finally taken a critical look at US drug policy and discovered that it was based mostly on sham evidence. It is commendable that he apologizes and admits that he based his previous opinion on that sham.

This Howard Samuels (a person who makes his living off of a drug rehabilitation clinic) guy is an immoral shit who appears to believe that peoples' real medical needs are secondary to his opposition of "people just getting loaded". He is a prohibitionist. I am so tired of this ridiculous and harmful policy.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#30

Post by oinksoft »

tptacek wrote: post #10
tareqak wrote: post #6

Honest question: How many drug companies' bottom lines would be affected if marijuana was legalized right now? Reminds me of the quote: If you're not a part of the solution, there's good money to be made in prolonging the problem.

Drug companies would be affected positively by MJ legalization. Look at how drugs are developed and marketed, at how drug companies compete with generics over marginal improvements in outcomes (or, sometimes, no improvement at all), and look at the conditions from which drug companies derive most of their profits. It's hard to see much of a threat from cannabis. For that matter, look at Abbott Labs, one of the larges…

History shows that the major pharmaceutical companies will try every dirty trick in the book to position themselves as the exclusive producers of medical cannabis if and when the plant is descheduled at the federal level.
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