Reefer Madness

[Vyce 0]

Feds Sound New Warning About Marijuana Use

 

Feds Sound New Warning About Marijuana Use By PAULINE JELINEK, Associated Press Writer

Wed May 4, 7:22 AM ET

 

 

 

Youngsters who use marijuana are more likely to develop serious mental health problems, the government said Tuesday. A private group said law enforcement increasingly is targeting people who smoke and deal the drug.

 

Past medical studies have linked marijuana with a greater incidence of mental disorders such as depression or schizophrenia. But questions remain about whether people who smoke marijuana at a young age are already predisposed to mental disorders, or whether the drug caused those disorders.

 

Government officials say recent research makes a stronger case that smoking marijuana is itself a causal agent in psychiatric symptoms, particularly schizophrenia.

 

"A growing body of evidence now demonstrates that smoking marijuana can increase the risk of serious mental health problems," said John P. Walters, director of the White House Office of Drug Control Policy.

 

Administration officials pointed to a handful of studies to make their case. One, from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, found adult marijuana smokers who first began using the drug before age 12 were twice as likely to have suffered a serious mental illness in the past year as those who began smoking after 18.

 

The ratio was 21 percent to 10.5 percent. Those who first started as teens also were at significantly higher risk.

 

Also Tuesday, The Sentencing Project released a report that found the government's "war on drugs" has become the "war on drug" as police agencies increasingly target marijuana.

 

Begun in the 1980s, the war on drugs was aimed at stopping large-scale narcotics traffickers, particularly those selling cocaine. But since 1990 more of the focus has been on catching users and low-level dealers. And more often than ever, the drug targeted is marijuana, according to the group, a national nonprofit organization that works on judicial reform and favors alternatives to jail.

 

Of some 700,000 marijuana arrests in 2002, 88 percent were for possession, it said. And only one of every 18 of those arrests ended in a felony conviction.

 

"Arresting record numbers of low-level marijuana offenders represents a poor investment in public safety" and diverts resources from "more serious crime problems," said Ryan King, co-author of the report.

 

King found that in 1992 arrests for heroin and cocaine comprised 55 percent of all drug arrests and marijuana 28 percent. A decade later heroin and cocaine arrests accounted for less than 30 percent of all arrests, while marijuana's share had risen to 45 percent.

 

Jennifer deVallance, spokeswoman for the White House drug office, said there are many reasons for the greater focus on marijuana. Among them: Marijuana is the single largest drug of abuse in the nation, the strains are more potent than ever and more is known about health dangers.

 

"For the first time, more kids are seeking treatment for marijuana use than alcohol," she said.

 

The Sentencing Project called for renewed national discussion of the war on drugs, an idea echoed by the conservative American Enterprise Institute. The group reported last month that despite spending at about $40 billion a year now and toughening drug sentencing laws, "America continues to experience the Western world's worst drug problems."

 

An epidemic of heroin use more than three decades ago, followed by a 1980s epidemic of cocaine and crack, prompted a massive intensification in drug enforcement while giving short shrift to prevention and treatment, the institute reported. It decried budgeting that spends two-thirds of drug control funds on enforcement, 25 percent on treatment and just 12 percent on prevention

[Special K 0]

You shouldn't do drugs while you're still growing. Why is this a surprise? People that drink at a young age get all kinds of fucked up too.

 

EDIT: and the single largest drug of abuse is alcohol. It's downright stupid to even pretend otherwise.

[I like Forums 0]

They've been saying all kinds of crazy shit about marijuana for years and years. The bottom line is that there is no reason why it should be treated any differently than alcohol or cigarettes. Whether that means tighter laws or looser.

[A Happy Medium 0]

If you're drinking and smoking pot when you're 12 years old, that means that something isn't right with your life to being with.

 

This isn't about pot to me. It's about what makes a kid want to do stupid things before their balls drop. Maybe they are rebeling against their family at a young age because they don't feel loved. I don't know about that.

 

But saying that marijuana may cause a mental illness that is potentially violent towards oneself and the public is just ridiculous.

 

As for the rest of the report. It's a bad and good thing that heavy drugs are not being dealt with. You know, the drugs that actually kill people. It's good because maybe the use in the country is going down. The bad news is that it is maybe swept under the rug while the Government targets weed.

[Placebo Effect 0]

Administration officials pointed to a handful of studies to make their case. One, from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, found adult marijuana smokers who first began using the drug before age 12 were twice as likely to have suffered a serious mental illness in the past year as those who began smoking after 18.

 

The ratio was 21 percent to 10.5 percent. Those who first started as teens also were at significantly higher risk.

 

What the hell is their criteria for mental illness? Does 21% of adults, even those who smoke pot, normal for a mental illness statistic?

[Guest BDC]

They're saying it doubles the chances. Very dodgy wording, but true.

 

As for treating it like alcohol and cigarettes? Alcohol, yes, cigarettes, no. While pot and booze can mess with your mental faculties to whatever extent, don't pretend that cigarettes do the same. They're just flatout like addictive cancer sticks.

[Guest MikeSC]

They've been saying all kinds of crazy shit about marijuana for years and years. The bottom line is that there is no reason why it should be treated any differently than alcohol or cigarettes. Whether that means tighter laws or looser.

I'm not sure "Well, it's no worse than these two really bad things" is really the best justification for legalization out there.

-=Mike

[Guest Brian]

I saw a ten year old kid put out a cigarette before getting on the bus today.

[Jingus 0]

The best argument for legalization is that there is much evidence to suggest that marijuana is less harmful and more beneficial than the already legal drug of alcohol.

 

(It's all in the wording, people. Learn how to manipulate language, and you can manipulate the world.)

[tominator89 0]

Running for office, Jingus? At the very least you could be a speech writer or PR guy for a politician with those kinda skills.

[The Ill One 0]

The argument I always hear is the profit if it's government regulated, every part of it has some use, etc. I'm indifferent really because my therapist has been saying it'll be coming out soon with these results.

[Jobber of the Week 0]

I'm not sure "Well, it's no worse than these two really bad things" is really the best justification for legalization out there.

-=Mike

How about that there's no real reason to not legalize compared to some of the stuff on the market today?

 

Pot has got to be healthier than those now-pulled Limbaugh pain pills.

[Guest BDC]

I'm not sure "Well, it's no worse than these two really bad things" is really the best justification for legalization out there.

          -=Mike

How about that there's no real reason to not legalize compared to some of the stuff on the market today?

 

Pot has got to be healthier than those now-pulled Limbaugh pain pills.

It's not like those were supposed to be just availible, either.

[NoCalMike 0]

So marijuana can cause brain malfunctions, but Prozac and Ritalin are perfectly fine for a kid that is a little too figity?

[Guest MikeSC]

I'm not sure "Well, it's no worse than these two really bad things" is really the best justification for legalization out there.

          -=Mike

How about that there's no real reason to not legalize compared to some of the stuff on the market today?

 

Pot has got to be healthier than those now-pulled Limbaugh pain pills.

Except Limbaugh's pills were prescribed pain medication and not something burn-outs smoke to make them bigger idiots than usual.

 

And, again, OTHER things being legal that aren't good for the country is a piss-poor excuse to legalize this.

-=Mike

[NoCalMike 0]

I'm not sure "Well, it's no worse than these two really bad things" is really the best justification for legalization out there.

          -=Mike

How about that there's no real reason to not legalize compared to some of the stuff on the market today?

 

Pot has got to be healthier than those now-pulled Limbaugh pain pills.

Except Limbaugh's pills were prescribed pain medication and not something burn-outs smoke to make them bigger idiots than usual.

 

And, again, OTHER things being legal that aren't good for the country is a piss-poor excuse to legalize this.

-=Mike

but couldn't one agree that both, used in moderation cause little to no harm, and the fact that both, under the right moderation offer effective medicinal use?

[The Czech Republic 0]

I get the impression that NoCalMike smokes a lot of pot.

 

Anyway, whatever. Alcohol is dangerous, tobacco is disgusting, marijuana is just plain fucking annoying. Nothing like sitting around with my stoned friends as they ask me to make them pizzas, pizzas that aren't even in their house, as they try to make big sweeping philosophical revelations during WrestleMania XIX.

[NoCalMike 0]

I get the impression that NoCalMike smokes a lot of pot.

Actually I don't. I smoked once in awhile when I was younger at parties and social gatherings, and I haven't sworn it off or anything, but with me constantly changing jobs it isn't worth the risk of failing a drug test over weed, especially when there is still beer/alcohol.

 

 

EDIT:Ok maybe more then "once in awhile" but I was never an everyday "wake and bake" person.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Whatever. I'm allergic to smoke, and it makes my friends annoying, so I just don't touch the stuff. I stay away from the alcohol and tobacco because I know I'm liable to get pretty addicted.

[Art Sandusky 0]

I think we'd all benefit if everyone in the government were to light up once a month or so.

[Jobber of the Week 0]

Except Limbaugh's pills were prescribed pain medication and not something burn-outs smoke to make them bigger idiots than usual.

Okay, fair enough. But I think the combination of personal choice and really not doing anything that harmful in adult hands makes it safe enough. I'm not really dedicated to the issue, I don't like pot or cigarettes or anything you smoke really, but the biggest negatives associated with it now wouldn't be a problem if it were legalized, commercialized, and somewhat regulated. The unknowns of the black market are the most threatening things about it. Claims that it actually hurts adults in normal amounts are sketchy at best.

 

Furthermore, everyone I've ever discussed the issue with, even the Freeper neo-con crowd, admit that the inherent dangers of pot come from it being contraband instead of being allowed as part of the free market. Everyone from both wings I've seen is either in favor of legalization or is completely apathetic to the issue. I've never met anyone who says that it should stay illegal or that there's good reason for it.

 

From the tone of your post, it sounds like you hate the archetypical pot user, and so do I. However, I don't let that cloud my judgment of the issue on a right/wrong standpoint.

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I saw a ten year old kid put out a cigarette before getting on the bus today.

She probably just got done having sex, that's why...

[CanadianGuitarist 0]

Legalize it. And I'm not an every day wake and bake permafried slacker, either. I can elaborate.

 

1) Look at how often there's tourism in Amsterdam. They're not all going there for V E Day Memorials. Though, God Bless our Boys for that, seeing as how VE Day is in fact, today.

 

2) There's enough griping over our health care system in Canada, but alas, raising taxes to improve it? No way! So, let the government step in. Run it like the LCBO or Beer Store. For those who don't know, both beer and liquor sales must be at a government controlled store in Ontario. So, that creates more revenue for the government, and it also creates jobs. Additionally, it makes it a lot safer. Who's to say the pot I buy from some guy off the street is safe? Not that I regularly buy pot from some guy I don't know, but you see what I'm getting at.

 

3) A legalisation of weed doesn't mean everyone will be blazing at every street corner. Not to go back to the smokes/beer argument, but they're both legal, but you don't see people walking down the street drinking at 2 in the afternoon every day. Why would weed be any different?

 

4) I don't blaze to rebel from the cops, so I'm not, in general, going to change my smoking habits should weed become legal. I tend to think most smokers would be the same way. I also think the cops have better things to do than worry about bud.

 

Just my two cents.

 

KKK, your last post about the 10 year old was the funniest thing I've ever read.

[PLAGIARISM! 0]

I'd like to see MS given to those who don't want it legalised. Then we'll see. Might be fun.

[Guest MikeSC]

I'd like to see MS given to those who don't want it legalised. Then we'll see. Might be fun.

I'd love to not have to support burn-outs who make that choice.

 

But, since we DO have to, that is a really effective argument against it.

-=Mike

[kkktookmybabyaway 0]

I'd like to see MS given to those who don't want it legalised. Then we'll see. Might be fun.

 

(Assuming MS means reefer) All I did was lay on a water bed and go "Oh man I'm so on drugs right now (I think...)"

[Ripper 0]

Two points:

 

Of course it should be leagalized. And the goverment aught to sell it. It would give the goverment more money, stop wasting police resources on weed crimes, and stop terrorist from blowing stuff up since, you know, when you buy weed the money is used to buy terrorist guns and shit.

 

And seriously, how can anyone realistically think that a drug that you inhale the SMOKE into your lungs so that it can affect your BRAIN is not doing some type of long term damage. I mean, just because they haven't found it yet doesn't change common sense. The human body is not made to breathe smoke. The brain is not meant to affected the way that weed or alchohol or any of that stuff affects it. Of course it is doing something.

[Guest MikeSC]

And, keep in mind, the whole "Nobody ever died from smoking marijuana" is something of a misnomer, as any death that WOULD be caused by marijuana would be labeled a "smoking-related" death.

-=Mike

[Jingus 0]

In general: marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol, and is mostly harmless with the same side effects that smoking cigarettes have. The "moral" crusade is the only thing stopping it from being legalized.

[Stephen Joseph 0]

Two points:

 

Of course it should be leagalized. And the goverment aught to sell it. It would give the goverment more money, stop wasting police resources on weed crimes, and stop terrorist from blowing stuff up since, you know, when you buy weed the money is used to buy terrorist guns and shit.

 

And that last post was such a reach mike. Acknowledge that current policy is a joke and has minimal impact at best

I completely agree with Ripper.

 

The drug war is lost. Best to acknowledge it and move on. We'd eliminate so much incentive for gang wars, turf battles, columbian coffee, etc...Our laws keep the prices way high

 

And I definitely want the government handling it, because theyd be slow and inefficient, which is good in this case.

 

That study reeks of correlation, not causation.