I am not interested in defending the old draconian laws against cannabis, or the false claims of past decades. I will not review the case for cannabis in treating glaucoma, AIDS wasting syndrome, or the side-effects of cancer chemotherapy. I am not going to make comparisons with alcohol. What I will do is present what I think is a convincing case against its use by members of our fraternity. However, there is reason to be concerned about the long-term effects on the brain.
Users frequently report problems with short-term memory, both while using and between uses.
Short-term memory is the most fragile brain function, and this spontaneous observation tells me that something real is happening. We don't know what this means yet, except that it's clear that using cannabis does alter the molecular structure of the brain. Although we don't know what the cannabinoid receptors do for us in health, they must be there for a reason. And smoking cannabis alters them. The effects of marijuana smoking on the unborn child are unknown.