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Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

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Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#341

Post by lolcraft »

foobarbazqux wrote: post #324
rhizome wrote: post #320

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Right, during a period in which pot use increased.

Sure, but it's entirely possible the schizophrenia-prone population did not alter their pot usage. Also, if there's a link to the amount consumed, the number of individuals smoking pot at all could have increased while the number of individuals smoking enough pot to trigger psychosis and schizophrenia stayed constant. Wider consumption of alcohol doesn't necessarily correlate with more alcoholism.

Yeah, but this population prone to schizophrenia would have: a) to know they're predisposed to this condition; b) to know that weed would worsen it; c) to believe that this effect on schizophrenia would be bad enough to outweigh smoking a joint. Or have another factor linked to schizophrenia that makes them avoid weed. It's possible, in principle, but I think you're stretching it too far.

And it's assumed the distribution of smoking per capita didn't change by much. I think that's a good assumption; again, it's possible that what you suggested happened, but it's a bit sketchy.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#342

Post by selectodude »

deadfall wrote: post #292
selectodude wrote: post #265

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's called Weed for a reason. However, the stuff you get from a dispensary will have a significantly higher THC count than the stuff you grow in your backyard during the summer.

Arguable. Probably depends on experience. The farmers that grow in the green triangle california mostly grow outdoors and they supply dispensaries.

And they're professionals with the correct seeds, equipment, and climate.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#343

Post by foobarbazqux »

lolcraft wrote: post #341
foobarbazqux wrote: post #324

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sure, but it's entirely possible the schizophrenia-prone population did not alter their pot usage. Also, if there's a link to the amount consumed, the number of individuals smoking pot at all could have increased while the number of individuals smoking enough pot to trigger psychosis and schizophrenia stayed constant. Wider consumption of alcohol doesn't necessarily correlate with more alcoholism.

Yeah, but this population prone to schizophrenia would have: a) to know they're predisposed to this condition; b) to know that weed would worsen it; c) to believe that this effect on schizophrenia would be bad enough to outweigh smoking a joint. Or have another factor linked to schizophrenia that makes them avoid weed. It's possible, in principle , but I think you're stretching it too far. And it's assumed the distri…

Oh, I meant the opposite, that if being schizophrenia-prone made you cannabis-prone (self-medication, effectively), that more people overall smoking pot might not mean that more schizophrenia-prone people were smoking pot, because that population would already be saturated.

I'm not saying that my hypotheses are correct, I'm just pointing out that if we're going to be scientific about whether cannabis induces schizophrenia we need to avoid jumping to conclusions.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#344

Post by redwood »

ledge wrote: post #305
sliverstorm wrote: post #281

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Can't LSD cause you to hallucinate? Hallucinations seem like the #1 thing you wouldn't want to happen to you while you are driving.

Not really in the conventional way people think of hallucinations. What you see is distorted, but everything you see is actually there. The walls might look like they're dripping or wavy, the branches on a tree appear to reach out at you, and colors become more vibrant, but you won't ever see gigantic bunnies or flying unicorns or some other stupid shit that often ends up in film depictions of a psychedelic experienc…

You and I both know it's all about dose :)

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#345

Post by jff »

dylanhassinger wrote: post #235
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…

the reason cigarettes are so dangerous is the tar and carbon monoxide. Smoking weed does not have that problem. Also, many people vaporize their weed or use wick to smoke with - which lowers the temperature of the heat. Across the board, smoking weed is much safer than smoking cigarettes

Aren't tar and carbon monoxide (CO especially) kind of explicitly what you get from burning plant matter?

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#346

Post by throwaway0808 »

As someone who does have schizophrenia and did smoke weed heavily (once a day, an eighth a week), I support its legalization with the caveat that people should be screened for its use and people with likely predisposition for schizophrenia should avoid it, and if Big Pharma (which I hate) wants to develop a version which lowers the likelihood of developing schizophrenia (which I do not believe is likely), I'm all for it. I would not say marijuana use caused schizophrenia in my case, there's a possibility that I would've developed schizophrenia later in life when I had a career, and it might've been worse for me, or might have been better.

I'd also like to add that stimulants, alcohol, and psychedelics are some other classes of drugs to avoid, if you feel you are predisposed to schizophrenia.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#347

Post by tsotha »

JPKab wrote: post #242
knowaveragejoe wrote: post #216

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Being a bit pedantic here, I'd just like to point out that development of schizophrenia is not a mild side effect. With higher THC% strains, we have no idea the extent of latent mental disorders we're stimulating.

As a person who had a roommate whose schizophrenia was likely induced by heavy marijuana use (along with his tripping on multiple bottles of Robitussin), the fact of the matter is that the harm done to this small percentage of people is vastly outweighed by the damage done to people who can't get access to it for their medical needs. And that's ignoring the huge harm caused by prosecuting recreational users due to an…

Why do you assume the schizophrenia was "likely induced by heavy marijuana use"?

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#348

Post by tsotha »

j2d3 wrote: post #124
tptacek wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

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 conc…

"In many major metro areas, you're more likely to be ticketed for cannabis than arrested." - as long as you are white and not wanted by the authorities for some other issue.

There's no actual evidence you're less likely to be arrested if you're white.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#349

Post by tsotha »

pekk wrote: post #237
WarDekar wrote: post #210

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There are 3 main active ingredients in marijuana: THC, CBD, and CBN. The places I go get their strains and edibles/topicals/whatever lab tested so you know the %s of each. In general, higher CBD+CBN levels are better for pain relief and insomnia and will cause more grogginess/drowsiness than strains higher in THC which are more for appetite stimulation, euphoria, anxiety relief, etc. At least in SF the legitimate dis…

If I am trying to get relief for pain and insomnia, why would I begin with the assumption that I am looking for a strain of THC at all? Why not get medical advice on how to treat the pain/insomnia/underlying conditions?

People usually go to the weed doctor after they've exhausted other avenues. For one thing, if you have insurance it's going to be a lot cheaper to take standard pharma products than weed.

Re: Why I Changed My Mind On Weed

#350

Post by tracker1 »

knowaveragejoe wrote: post #313
tptacek wrote: post #267

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The problem is that there are two simultaneous arguments happening. The first is whether cannabis should be legalized and available as a business opportunity. You'll find very few people here to disagree with about this; there's a practically universal belief that cannabis should be legalized. The second is whether cannabis is benign. There is a valid discussion to be had about how safe cannabis is. Having it does no…

Very well stated, this is essentially what I'm getting at. I'm all for legalization/decriminalization, but there are serious issues with chronic marijuana use that need to be addressed.

Here's the question as far as I am concerned.. are the medical risks associated with chronic use of marijuana greater than, or less than other less than universally beneficial and completely legal substances (tobacco, alcohol, trans-fats, hfcs, etc)?

I'm not a pot head, and for that matter, I only have a drink a handful of times a year.. that said, I don't think that marijuana should be illegal for recreational use, let alone medical use.

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