201–210 of 381 posts
I think people are forgetting his target audience, which is probably older. I doubt many young people watch CNN. Even the title "Why I Changed My Mind On Weed" sounds like it was written for the Readers Digest, which I used to read as a kid because my grandmother would give me her copies.
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I don't mean to sound like a jerk here, but can you link the relevant studies? We've had over half a century of malicious and premeditated disinformation on the topic of drugs--especially marijuana--and so forgive me if I'm skeptical of a claim which does reek somewhat of "think of the children!".
Just the first few results from Google Scholar. http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0890856709... http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/180/3/216.short http://www.bmj.com/content/325/7374/1195.1.short http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022395607...
Does anyone have statistics on what percentage of "medical marijuana" is actually used for the treatment of medical conditions? The de facto medical marijuana regime in California seems to be that anyone who wants marijuana goes to a doctor, says they're anxious or have trouble sleeping, and gets a card. I'm sure some people with legitimate medical problems get relief from using marijuana, but it seems to be a distin…
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The US is not lagging behind. When it comes to marijuana liberalisation, it is definitely leading the way. With the exception of Netherlands, attitudes to marijuana is pretty strict in Europe. The US has the most pot smokers/capita by a long shot. Also, Hollywood movies seem to portray it as some cool party drug, that hippies and pseudo-intellectuals use. The drug is present in most American Pie-style movies, many si…
I don't necessarily disagree with your post but you should be careful with generalizations that aren't backed up with evidence. "The US has the most pot smokers/capita by a long shot" sounds a lot like some assumption you just made up based on your own personal experience. A study like marijuana users per capita is inherently difficult because people don't like admitting that they partake in illegal activity. The onl…
Laws may be more lax in Europe but popular opinion of the drug is much more negative than in the US. But attitudes are changing largely due to how it is portrayed by Hollywood.
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…
He wrote that he's "shocked, shocked" at what he found as a device to get more people to read the piece. I'm sure that editorial decision was commercial and not public-spirited, but still. Yes, you are being overly cynical. My guess is that you agree with virtually everything in the article, and, instead of being pleased that someone has not only come around to your position in the most public fashion possible, but a…
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I'll go one further--it's clearly safer (in all respects) than either alcohol or tobacco. My only fear with legalization is that it will get pulled from the grassroots production into industrial methods, and that in turn will lower its safety (as was the case, for example, with cigarettes and the additives in the paper for them).
I share the same fear about legalization: Phillip Morris will swoop in and start mass-producing packs of joints or find crafty ways to put small grow-ops out of business. I think the "medical" route is the best way to go. Yes, it is a bit of hassle to go and get a green card, but I hope it will help slow the corporate industrialization of marijuana. Furthermore, I think that marijuana's proper position in society sho…
Bring on full legalization, regulation and taxation. It is overdue.
"Much in the same way I wouldn't let my own children drink alcohol, I wouldn't permit marijuana until they are adults. If they are adamant about trying marijuana, I will urge them to wait until they're in their mid-20s when their brains are fully developed." Good luck with that.
I think any drug that affects a developing brain can have grave consequences. I would love to see research that follows people who start MJ use at different stages of their lives.
I saw a short news report (over a decade ago) about a Swiss heroin addict who daily attended a clinic to be given heroin (not methadone) for free (the cost of legally available heroin would be minimal). She was able to hold down a job, pay rent and had no need to beg or commit crime to fund the habit. She also could afford to eat properly and was no longer at risk of acquiring disease through contaminated drugs, dirt…
From the latter perspective, your heroin addict is a massive success story. She's contributing to society instead of being a burden, and the cost is low.
From the former perspective, this is a terrible story. You're supporting drug addiction!
The former perspective rarely works, but it's extremely common, on subjects ranging from drugs to crime to tax policy to education. It is IMO a cop-out, where you simply rely on vague principles rather than actually applying thought and study.
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"We have been terribly and systematically misled for nearly 70 years in the United States, and I apologize for my own role in that." Wow. Ownership of a mistake. Rare to see on a 24 hour news network. +1 for Sanjay Considering CNN's role (as a 24 hour news network) in forcing politician's to defend anything and everything they've ever said, I really like seeing something like this coming from someone within the netwo…
> Wow. Ownership of a mistake. Rare to see on a 24 hour news network. Renouncing a position that was formerly nearly universally held in favor of one that seems to be the new trend isn't actually that rare.
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You might want to look at getting one of these: http://openvape.com/ It's very discreet and pretty effective, esp. if you are looking for a more CBD non-thc delivery method. Unfortunately these are a local Denver product right now from what I can tell (my friend in SF can't find them their yet outside of driving to Berkley); so it might be difficult to find outside of colorado. They also make a variety of cartridges…
I wonder: what's the relationship between marijuana 'strength' (measured in THC, I guess) and medical effectiveness? It seems to me the studies in the posted article are from a time when marijuana was dramatically 'weaker' than what you get today.
At least in SF the legitimate dispensaries do a good job of informing you about these things and finding the strains that will accomplish what you want.