A Critical Standpoint on Smoking Marijuana

[GreenGaucho]

After reading these forums for around a month, and attempting to comprehend certain statements that have been made about smoking marijuana, Iâ??ve decided to write a few of my thoughts about this ever so interesting plant. Let me first say that in no way am I against people smoking it, and I hope you can try to listen what Iâ??m attempting to get across with an open mind. Hopefully it will make for good discussion, as I am trying to understand why certain people think they way they do about this plant.
First of all, Iâ??m completely in support of people who use it recreationally everyday, and find it a relaxing hobby or a way to socialize with friends. I myself, love smoking a bowl or blunt every now and then amongst my friends and sharing stories. I also believe it has certain medicinal qualities to it. It can help with glaucoma, arthritis, and may even be able to help against tumors and things of that sort. Certainly one can argue that it is for the most part, a harmless weed. The trouble starts when those who use it recreationally, try to argue that smoking it â??is completely harmlessâ?� and there is no scientific proof behind claims that it can be dangerous. It seems to me that many users try to legitimize their problems with smoking by spewing out irrational lies. One great example is this particular quote from a recent thread. â??Hell no I wont admit cannabis is a bad thing. They still have yet to prove it causes any life threatening damage to the lungs.â?� As I stated above, of course itâ??s not a bad thing. But claiming that smoking does nothing negative to the lungs is just ridiculous. One person who seems to agree with me recently stated, â??I don't see how anybody can logically say it's 100% harmless. You can smoke marijuana, tobacco, a rolled up piece of old carpet, a leaf off a tree. Regardless, anything smoked is gonna clog up your lungs, restrict oxygen flow, and gunk up the works.â?� The whole reason why people cough when taking a large hit is because the body is attempting to rid itself of something thatâ??s not supposed to be there. Just ask the girl from a recent topic who claims that she has recently been experiencing â??Smokerâ??s Coughâ?� and that sheâ??s spitting up gross mucus. Anyway, it seems for a person to argue against something so concrete would be like banging your head on a brick wall. On to my next point, which is certainly up to more debate.
The long-term effects of THC on the human brain are highly disputed. THC, or tetrahydrocannabinol, has effects which include relaxation, euphoria, altered space-time perception, enhancement of visual, auditory, and olfactory senses, disorientation, and appetite stimulation. To me, these are the things that make people love smoking in the first place and this seems evident when I see my friends and I laughing at rediculous things. =) However, smokers often tend to dismiss the claim that these effects are sometimes very dangerous and can have very serious consequences. Things like reduced reaction time are what make smoking and driving dangerous. I also believe that THC truly is addictive in a sense. Many who smoke everyday claim to not be addicted at all, but my experiences say otherwise. Though it may not be as physically addicting as other drugs and alcohol, mentally itâ??s very addicting. The fact that many tokers spend a large part of their paycheck every week would suggest this. Many of my friends would rather spend their money on weed than save up for an investment that would help them in the future. I have nothing against it, but I guarantee if these people were to suddenly stop having a constant intake of THC, they would experience withdrawal symptoms and would probably be very irritable for awhile. I have seen this countless times, with many people. The rejection of the idea that cannabis does have addictive qualities to it, seems closely correlated to typical immature teenage boy attitude. (i.e.. nothing can keep them down, they can stop whenever they want to, feelings of invicibility, etc.) Surely there are those who can quit for the most part, but for the majority of people, itâ??s simply not the case.
Another way in which I think marijuana can be harmful that most smokers donâ??t seem to recognize, is the lazyness that often ensues. Sure you can make the concious decision to go out and run, or get work done, but that is not the natural effect of THC. The natural reaction to smoking cannabis is to be more relaxed and a feeling of euphoria. People use it to feel detached from reality. Just look at the indica plant and the natural â??couch-lockâ?� effect it has or the mental distortion caused by Sativa plants.. In my opinion, people can do whatever they want with their lives, but denying that itâ??s more than often counter-productive seems illogical. There are those who claim is helps them with certain tasks such as writing and I respect that.
In conclusion, smoking can be a fun, relaxing thing to do after a dayâ??s hard work or when you want to just chill with some buddies. It should be kept in moderation though, and there are those who deny the negative effects, and act as though they canâ??t be hurt by it. As shown in the topic titled â??ignoranceâ?�, smokers sometimes exibit a feeling of â??higher-intelligenceâ?� when non-smokers tell them that itâ??s not exactly healthy. And to the younger, teenage audience on these forums, parents are a valuable source of information and more than often know whatâ??s best for you. If they want you to not smoke so much, try your best to uphold their wishes. Sure it may seem oppressive now, but then again, your mind is devoloping and you eventually know why. When you get out there in the world by yourself, you will have your own household and can make your own decisions about your body. As a smoker myself, I ADMIT that it certainly isnâ??t a healthy thing to do, and try not to legitimize the reasons as to why I smoke. I like it because it messes me up, just like most other people do. Sadly, I am one of the few who will admit this.

GreenGaucho Reviewed by GreenGaucho on 04-16-2005. A Critical Standpoint on Smoking Marijuana After reading these forums for around a month, and attempting to comprehend certain statements that have been made about smoking marijuana, Iâ??ve decided to write a few of my thoughts about this ever so interesting plant. Let me first say that in no way am I against people smoking it, and I hope you can try to listen what Iâ??m attempting to get across with an open mind. Hopefully it will make for good discussion, as I am trying to understand why certain people think they way they do about Rating: 5

[Lightitup44]

You might be "one of the few who will admit this" because some people might feel different about this subject because they have different smoking patterns. They might also have different experiances than you which makes them feel different about the use of cannabis.

This is where I totally disagree....You said, "As shown in the topic titled “ignorance”, smokers sometimes exibit a feeling of “higher-intelligence” when non-smokers tell them that it’s not exactly healthy." Through all of my encounters(sp) I have yet to find a number of non-smokers that seem to know lots on any subject of cannabis yet alone the health effects. Many can say its bad for you which i very clearly understand, but they can't say why its bad for you and how bad for you this is. Besides the fact that it is bad for your lungs because of tar and other chemicals.

Most smokers are of the "higher intelligence" because they read up about cannabis and know lots about it where as many people who don't smoke aren't going to go look up facts and information on cannabis. My $0.02.

-peace

[GreenGaucho]

I agree, but a lot of the things I've said came from observing my friends who do smoke everyday, and probably have a different outlook on the subject.

[ermitonto]

It seems to me that many users try to legitimize their problems with smoking by spewing out irrational lies. One great example is this particular quote from a recent thread. â??Hell no I wont admit cannabis is a bad thing. They still have yet to prove it causes any life threatening damage to the lungs.â?�

That's not really an irrational lie. Fact is, there really is no proof that it causes any life threatening damage to the lungs. Sure, it may not be the best thing for the lungs but there's not any case in the history of mankind of it killing anyone.

Truth is, you can't really say anything is completely harmless. Anything you put into your body has the potential to hurt you. Even a benign-looking glass of water could cause serious problems if say your epiglottis sends it into your lungs rather than your stomach by mistake (it happens), and you can even die of water intoxication if you drink too much.

Thus it is up to the individual to take an assessment of the risks of their own actions. My own assessment of the risks associated with cannabis has concluded that the advantages (relaxation, social benefits, and feeling so damn good) far outweigh whatever potential health problems there might be (none so far except sometimes I'll hack up a brown loogie). The way I look at it is that I only have a few decades of consciousness to enjoy on this planet, and cannabis helps me enjoy it a lot more and it doesn't look like it'll take any years off of my time.

I smoke every day, upwards of a quarter ounce a week, and I don't see any reason to cut back. With weed, money truly can buy happiness, so why not?

[GHoSToKeR]

I totally agree with you, ermitonto!

Fruit is good for you, we all know this.. But if a person was to consume large amounts of fruit, they would feel some negative effects.. However, this does not mean that fruit is bad for you. See what i'm saying? Like I said in the other thread, i's all about moderation. I definately don't smoke every day (at least not anymore) and I feel better for it... when I do smoke, I get a hell of alot higher, my highs last longer, etc, and I enjoy it more... But when I have smoked every day, I was still able to function, go to school/work, etc, without any negative effects. Just because some people are irresponsible and get high before work/school, become lazy, etc, it doesnt mean that weed is to blame.

GreenGaucho, you almost claim that people are lying to themselves about the negative effects of Cannabis? Well, I say that you're lying to yourself, also. You're trying to blame Cannabis for people's failures.

[koshea]

i 100% agree with you green goucho

smoking anything is bad for you

it is maiming my health and ruining my mind, im addicted, but im to ignorant to care, and its odd that i know my own ignorance but it hink the lazyness by weed has caused that.

this post was not sarcastic even though it sounded so

[GHoSToKeR]

to each his own, i guess... =/

[GreenGaucho]

I'm glad to see someone agrees koshea. I think a lot of smokers would agree, but are in denial. And to ermitonto and ghostoker. Water and fruit aren't really good points guys... I understand that everything is ok in moderation, but marijuana is NEVER healthy even in the smallest amounts unless you're talking about helping glaucoma, arthritis, etc. Water is essential to the body and our bodies consist of a large % of water. Without it we die. Fruit, is a vital source of Vitamin C and other nutrients. Without it diseases like scurvy and other such things show up. You gotta remember I'm talking from a purely scientific, biological standpoint.

"GreenGaucho, You almost claim that people are lying to themselves about the negative effects of Cannabis? Well, I say that you're lying to yourself, also. You're trying to blame Cannabis for people's failures."

No I'm not. People decide things on their own, and it's entirely their mistakes. I'm just pointing out the fact that marijuana doesn't help these situations at all. Removing yourself from reality isn't the right course of action.

[Nugs4Me]

I have nothing against it, but I guarantee if these people were to suddenly stop having a constant intake of THC, they would experience withdrawal symptoms and would probably be very irritable for awhile. I have seen this countless times, with many people.

Well, as you said, it's mentally addictive. I've never been physically or mentally addicted to Cannabis. I've recently been smoking around a half oz. a week. Now I know that's a lot for ONE person to smoke. I stopped "cold turkey" for a week. I didn't feel different whatsoever. I think that the mental addiction is pure BS. I don't see how you can come to yourself saying "oh i need this OMG!" You don't need to smoke "just because" and I think that has a huge impact witht he mental addicion game. I guess it does happen though, but you're just doing it to yourself.

Great post BTW.

p.s. paragraphs = easy for the eyes

[GreenGaucho]

I'm sure there are some people like you Nugs4Me, who have no problem about not becomming addicted to a substance. However, I would argue that most peole have it in their genetics to become easily addicted. As the grandson of absolutely alcoholic grandparents and having an uncle who was so addicted to heroin that he was living in the streets, I know I had better keep everything I do in moderation. I smoke maybe twice a month, if that. I fear that if I did it more often, I would certainly become hooked on smoking weed.