[benj]

So I just read the discussion about mandatory sentencing and I wonder how many villagers would support medical marijuana. Attorney John Morgan is backing a petition to legalize it. I read recently a couple of polls where approval was above 70% in Florida. From personal experience I think it was god sent for my wife during her battle with bone marrow cancer. I will always be grateful for it's benefits. So what do you think?
I have signed the petition that is available at Petition - United for Care and hope some of you will download and sign it also.

[JP]

I am in favor of out and out legalization. I think marijuana is a lot less harmful than alcohol and it can be medically beneficial.

[DougB]

Originally Posted by JP

I am in favor of out and out legalization. I think marijuana is a lot less harmful than alcohol and it can be medically beneficial.

Gotta agree with JP on this one

[CFrance]

Moi aussi. At the very least, legalize it for medical use.

[ilovetv]

Originally Posted by JP

I am in favor of out and out legalization. I think marijuana is a lot less harmful than alcohol and it can be medically beneficial.

No way!!

NIH - National Institute on Drug Abuse

Marijuana's Lasting Effects on the Brain

"...They [research studies] have shown that exposure to cannabinoids during adolescent development can cause long-lasting changes in the brain’s reward system as well as the hippocampus, a brain area critical for learning and memory.

The message inherent in these and in multiple supporting studies is clear. Regular marijuana use in adolescence is part of a cluster of behaviors that can produce enduring detrimental effects and alter the trajectory of a young person’s life—thwarting his or her potential.

Beyond potentially lowering IQ, teen marijuana use is linked to school dropout, other drug use, mental health problems, etc. Given the current number of regular marijuana users (about 1 in 15 high school seniors) and the possibility of this number increasing with marijuana legalization, we cannot afford to divert our focus from the central point: Regular marijuana use stands to jeopardize a young person’s chances of success—in school and in life.

September 10, 2012 - We repeatedly hear the myth that marijuana is a benign drug—that it is not addictive (which it is) or that it does not pose a threat to the user’s health or brain (which it does). A major new study published last week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (and funded partly by NIDA and other NIH institutes) provides objective evidence that, at least for adolescents, marijuana is harmful to the brain.

The new research is part of a large-scale study of health and development conducted in New Zealand. Researchers administered IQ tests to over 1,000 individuals at age 13 (born in 1972 and 1973) and assessed their patterns of cannabis use at several points as they aged. Participants were again tested for IQ at age 38, and their two scores were compared as a function of their marijuana use. The results were striking: Participants who used cannabis heavily in their teens and continued through adulthood showed a significant drop in IQ between the ages of 13 and 38—an average of 8 points for those who met criteria for cannabis dependence. (For context, a loss of 8 IQ points could drop a person of average intelligence into the lowest third of the intelligence range.) Those who started using marijuana regularly or heavily after age 18 showed minor declines. By comparison, those who never used marijuana showed no declines in IQ.

Other studies have shown a link between prolonged marijuana use and cognitive or neural impairment. A recent report in Brain, for example, reveals neural-connectivity impairment in some brain regions following prolonged cannabis use initiated in adolescence or young adulthood. But the New Zealand study is the first prospective study to test young people before their first use of marijuana and again after long-term use (as much as 20+ years later). Indeed, the ruling out of a pre-existing difference in IQ makes the study particularly valuable. Also, and strikingly, those who used marijuana heavily before age 18 showed mental decline even after they quit taking the drug. This finding is consistent with the notion that drug use during adolescence—when the brain is still rewiring, pruning, and organizing itself—can have negative and long-lasting effects on the brain....."

Marijuana's Lasting Effects on the Brain | National Institute on Drug Abuse

[DougB]

Ilovetv,
We aren't saying legalize it for minors

[ilovetv]

Originally Posted by DougB

Ilovetv,
We aren't saying legalize it for minors

Legalizing it for people of legal age gives teens and preteens the perception that it is not harmful, when it is:

"Unfortunately, the proportion of American teens who believe marijuana use is harmful has been declining for the past several years, which has corresponded to a steady rise in their use of the drug, as shown by NIDA’s annual Monitoring the Future survey of 8th, 10th, and 12th graders.

Since it decreases IQ, regular marijuana use stands to jeopardize a young person’s chances of success in school. So as another school year begins, we all must step up our efforts to educate teens about the harms of marijuana so that we can realign their perceptions of this drug with the scientific evidence."

Marijuana's Lasting Effects on the Brain | National Institute on Drug Abuse

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by CFrance

Moi aussi. At the very least, legalize it for medical use.

Ditto.

I see it used in hospital settings for increased appetite response in failure to thrive patients.

One note to ILoveTV: You can't believe all studies. Remember the study that shows that seatbelts in golf carts is bad? The authorities told us this lie for 20 years in TV. Tell that to the families of the 10 dead fellow TV'ers who were ejected and killed. Can't believe everything you read. Real life experience is a better indicator IMHO.

[ilovetv]

Originally Posted by Russ_Boston

Ditto.

I see it used in hospital settings for increased appetite response in failure to thrive patients.

One note to ILoveTV: You can't believe all studies. Remember the study that shows that seatbelts in golf carts is bad? The authorities told us this lie for 20 years in TV. Tell that to the families of the 10 dead fellow TV'ers who were ejected and killed. Can't believe everything you read. Real life experience is a better indicator IMHO.

Yes, I do remember. Most, if not all the golf cart studies were done on golf course turf, where being ejected onto grass is clearly safer than being ejected onto concrete curbing causing open skull fractures and hemorrhaging, and also being subject to being run over by cars and trucks going 25-30 mph.

By comparing golf course turf usage of carts to usage in TV's city streets and traffic in a city of 100,000, they were comparing apples to oranges.

And yes, my real life experience tells me many formerly brilliant people who are chronic pot users are now brain-fried and in a chronic stupor with noticeably deteriorated cognitive abilities.

I think the National Institutes of Health are qualified to do, evaluate and present the studies in the article I linked.

[Russ_Boston]

Originally Posted by ilovetv

And yes, my real life experience tells me many formerly brilliant people who are chronic pot users are now brain-fried and in a chronic stupor with noticeably deteriorated cognitive abilities.

I would suggest that this is dementia which is not related to chronic pot use. 1 out of every 6 patients I have every day has moderate to severe dementia. It's an evil disease.

[DougB]

Originally Posted by ilovetv

..........
And yes, my real life experience tells me many formerly brilliant people who are chronic pot users are now brain-fried and in a chronic stupor with noticeably deteriorated cognitive abilities.........

Man, that was a real buzz killer. Just kidding, sorry, don't smoke weed. But if ever I felt it was needed for medical reasons, I would

[kittygilchrist]

Sanjay Gupta's recent CNN special on this topic was interesting...I learned a lot about the amazing benefit for some neurological disorders. Also an interesting history about the demonization of the plant in the 30's for political gain. I'm for legalizing marijuana.

[DougB]

Originally Posted by kittygilchrist

Sanjay Gupta's recent CNN special on this topic was interesting...I learned a lot about the amazing benefit for some neurological disorders. Also an interesting history about the demonization of the plant in the 30's for political gain. I'm for legalizing marijuana.

I'm shocked! Didn't your high school show you the movie "Reefer Madness"?

[Golfingnut]

Originally Posted by ilovetv

No way!!

NIH - National Institute on Drug Abuse

Marijuana's Lasting Effects on the Brain

"...They [research studies] have shown that exposure to cannabinoids during adolescent development can cause long-lasting changes in the brain’s reward system as well as the hippocampus, a brain area critical for learning and memory.

The message inherent in these and in multiple supporting studies is clear. Regular marijuana use in adolescence is part of a cluster of behaviors that can produce enduring detrimental effects and alter the trajectory of a young person’s life—thwarting his or her potential.

Beyond potentially lowering IQ, teen marijuana use is linked to school dropout, other drug use, mental health problems, etc. Given the current number of regular marijuana users (about 1 in 15 high school seniors) and the possibility of this number increasing with marijuana legalization, we cannot afford to divert our focus from the central point: Regular marijuana use stands to jeopardize a young person’s chances of success—in school and in life.

September 10, 2012 - We repeatedly hear the myth that marijuana is a benign drug—that it is not addictive (which it is) or that it does not pose a threat to the user’s health or brain (which it does). A major new study published last week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (and funded partly by NIDA and other NIH institutes) provides objective evidence that, at least for adolescents, marijuana is harmful to the brain.

The new research is part of a large-scale study of health and development conducted in New Zealand. Researchers administered IQ tests to over 1,000 individuals at age 13 (born in 1972 and 1973) and assessed their patterns of cannabis use at several points as they aged. Participants were again tested for IQ at age 38, and their two scores were compared as a function of their marijuana use. The results were striking: Participants who used cannabis heavily in their teens and continued through adulthood showed a significant drop in IQ between the ages of 13 and 38—an average of 8 points for those who met criteria for cannabis dependence. (For context, a loss of 8 IQ points could drop a person of average intelligence into the lowest third of the intelligence range.) Those who started using marijuana regularly or heavily after age 18 showed minor declines. By comparison, those who never used marijuana showed no declines in IQ.

Other studies have shown a link between prolonged marijuana use and cognitive or neural impairment. A recent report in Brain, for example, reveals neural-connectivity impairment in some brain regions following prolonged cannabis use initiated in adolescence or young adulthood. But the New Zealand study is the first prospective study to test young people before their first use of marijuana and again after long-term use (as much as 20+ years later). Indeed, the ruling out of a pre-existing difference in IQ makes the study particularly valuable. Also, and strikingly, those who used marijuana heavily before age 18 showed mental decline even after they quit taking the drug. This finding is consistent with the notion that drug use during adolescence—when the brain is still rewiring, pruning, and organizing itself—can have negative and long-lasting effects on the brain....."

Marijuana's Lasting Effects on the Brain | National Institute on Drug Abuse

Let me understand your position. If a medication or a recreational drug has side effects it should not be legal. I say ALL medications have side effects and some come with warning labels that you may die from use. One comes with the warning that you may go blind with a 4+ hour erection, yet it is legal. Your argument would eliminate at least 90% of medications and 100% of alcohol and tobacco products.

Stop being a pawn and believing the so called legal drug dealers. Legalize it now.

[graciegirl]

If you are gonna drink, call it drinking. If you are gonna smoke, call it smoking. I feel there is SOME valid medical use for marijuana, but I also think that many people are taking "medical" marijuana to just get a high.

If it became legal. that would be resolved. I hate to say it, but it makes sense.

Now I have to tell my new view to my kids. They will think I am going over the hill. MOM SAID WHAT???

Among my children, I am referred to as "THE WARDEN".