Alcohol and cannabis

Okay I can see you are very good at writing, arguing and reasoning. I can see you have an intelligent stand point, and I can also see you know nothing about cannabis. I assume you have no experience smoking it? I must implore you to answer this because if you don't know what its like then I ask how you wish to carry out this debate? So I will first go through your argument piece by piece and then tell you my view in my words. C1. Gateway drug. Textbook argument, textbook response. Illegality causes exposure to drugs because other illegal drugs are kept by dealers sometimes. Also the fact that people try this illegal drug and find it fun, makes them wonder what else the government are hiding from them. If the government didn't ban hardly anything then when they did ban something you might take more heed. Its the illegality that causes any 'gateway' effect. You say "people who smoke marijuana become habituated to the idea that drugs are not harmful and that they are in control of their drug habit. Marijuana, as a safe drug, lulls them into a false sense of security and control" Indeed. Its part of growing up, you do something that scares you and you become desensitized. I don't understand how alcohol doesn't do this? or why you couldn't draw other absurd correlations such as watching sexual music video's lead to porn which lead to rape. It sounds logical but in reality its just not the way things are. Any recreational drug desensitizes people to the idea of taking drugs, cannabis is no different from alcohol in this situation. The very fact that it is illegal makes it lead to harder drugs. I have lived in Amsterdam and let me tell you, weed smokers stay in the coffeshops and are removed from the other drugs. In the UK or USA all illegal drugs go hand in hand because of the illegality. Marijuana is not a gateway drug, this view is too simple and has no basis in reality. It is an ancient textbook argument that has been destroyed so many times I weary of doing it yet again. C2 Brain damage No proof. Never any proof. Anyone trained to look at research with a scientific mind can see that these studies you have sourced are weak and prove nothing whatsoever. I beg the readers to look at the source. Mice are not humans, also caged mice are not even necessarily mice, so this study is jumping to conclusions. Comparing them to something like a human, its old school and not credible by recent standards. schizophrenia is caused by our experiences, ask any psychologist that specializes in genes and behavioural biology. Cannabis does not cause schizophrenia, FACT. Data may show a correlation but this is expected when you look at the circumstantial differences and demographics of those who may turn to cannabis. Meaning that a high proportion of cannabis smokers may suffer from schizophrenia than the general population, but this is because the more poor people are more likely to get schizophrenia and also the more likely to try cannabis. 3. cannabis use permanently decreases motivation. I cannot load the article for some reason but I must challenge this point. The reason people think marijuana decreases motivation is because our stereotypes are based on what we see. And what we see in this society is pot smoking in unmotivated teens and adults. People become unmotivated for lots of reasons, indeed it is no surprise that people are unmotivated in this society. For this society is not natural to man. But anyway, the kind of people drawn to doing this sort of thing are the kind of people who don't move in the mainstream crowd. But this is only because it is illegal and devious, it has NOTHING to do with the drug itself. So what I mean is people draw correlations that aren't necessarily real, assuming marijuana caused the laziness and ignoring the cultural/social/psychological factors is an example of this. Another point that must be made is that marijuana can in fact encourage laziness, but I will explain how. When you smoke marijuana you relax and find fulfilment and joy in most things. You can fully appreciate the comfort of your chair and yet be fully endorsed in any program you may be watching. It makes you appreciate things more, and so you can just sit around and watch T. V or play video-games without getting as bored as you would without it. So weed encourages one to relax and enjoy the simple things, there is no need for roller-coasters, cinema's, nightclubs, snowboarding etc. And so, in a world where many people don't have the money for these things and life for most lower income children is quite dull, cannabis helps them appreciate the simple things and not worry about the bigger, materialistic things. This can cause them to be unmotivated, for they find no purpose in life, cannabis helps one see the world from a different perspective and can make you realize your reality. (that being a creature in an alien world, who is lacking in many natural necessities that our hunter/gatherer ancestors used to have, e. g. Sense of brotherhood, sense of identity and reliance, appreciate being alive and always on the go) Though stoners do not go into this detail, weed cannot make you realize that, it only makes you feel empty, like your job and your life is 'pointless'. This can cause disengagement. Also, because weed smokers are marginalized, they struggle to get the help they need or mix with the sort of successful people that could help them and encourage them. The world and society is far more complex than you are making out. Also my old head chef was from a culture where weed smoking was normal, I am not lying when I say he was the most motivated man in that place. He had a strickt system for cleaning, he was a perfectionist, and he had amazing memory. But most importantly, he was motivated. He was working days he was supposed to be off, up all night righting and re-righting menu's. He was a born leader and an inspirational guy. He smoked weed everyday from the age of about 13 and he still smokes lots everyday now (age36). So for me, this is proof that there is nothing in weed that actively decreases motivation, memory or passion. For he was not born immune, its just a culture thing. 4. muchies No, silly really. I don't know how much you know about American fast foods and food marketing, but I suggest you read up on it. You will see that an aftereffect of feeling a bit hungry after being high is just not significant at all, like turning up at a hurricane disaster with a dustpan and brush. 5. Addictive Pot, addictive qualities? None. Well known fact. Also what is now well known, amongst the psychological societies, is that addiction itself is in the person not the substance. Yes, substances can have side effects when taken for along time and stopped (marijuana not being one) but still it is in the person. For example we all go shopping, go to gym, go to work, eat, drink, smoke, have sex etc. But we don't all get addicted, so its not just the activity, its the person susceptibility to addiction, and the environmental circumstances. Indeed anyone would get anxious, depressed and even aggressive if they had their pleasure choice taken away. My mother gets stressed if she hasn't walked the dogs after work, when at first it was a pain for her. We are creatures of habit, and so to say people get anxious when they are told they carnt smoke weed, if they have let it become their crutch, does not prove it to be anymore addictive that any other comforter that people may use. Indeed the scientific evidence shows it as a substance to be less addictive than tea, meaning those physiological effects you describe are more severe in tea drinkers. Should we outlaw tea? 7. Cancer Smoking cannabis can give you cancer, less likely than tobacco, but any inhalation of burnt plant matter into the lungs has this effect. If eaten, vaporised or drunk in tea, it will not cause cancer. So cannabis does not cause cancer, smoking it does. Like smoking anything. 8. Alcohol will get you laid Yep, almost all unwanted pregnancies, regrettable one night stands and rapes, occur when drunk. Wooow! Alcohol turns one into a ID driven animal. It can make the nicest person horrible, it can make the quietest person shame themselves, it can make angry people do stuff they regret terribly. 80% of crimes are committed by drunk people, that says it all. I mean, everybody kicking up a fuss about laziness, munchies and un-proven brain effects when ALCOHOL CAUSES 80% OF CRIMES. I don't know if I need to say anymore, I mean your a smart guy does the severity of this need elaborating? Cannabis is responsible for the Beatles, Black Sabbath, The Who, Led Zepplin and so much more music and art, alcohol has achieved nothing. Can you name me anything good that alcohol was associated with, apart from like the majority of horror in this society, I mean the Muslims have band alcohol completely and we tried to not long ago, its an awful drug, awful. I accept that many can use it responsibly, like cannabis, but I still think its effects are the least desirable I could want for my society. Alcohol is dangerous and can destroy lives in a single night, It does, frequently. Cannabis may have long term effects (it doesn't as far as we know) and people can use it too much, like anything. But cannabis smokers relax, socialize and talk, which one is better for the society and the individual? I apologize for the lack of sources, I was in a rush to finish so I had little time and most of this is logical and hypothetical, and I have tried to use logic. Also as a smoker, a lot of what I write comes from personal experience and the experience of others close to me.