[Agaricus]

https://blogs.westword.com/latestword...galization.php

Some character named Kevin Sabet, aided and abetted by Patrick Kennedy, is aiming to derail legalization.
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"First, we want to make sure that the evidence of public-health harms of marijuana is much more widely understood," Sabet says. "It's ironic that legalization has been in ascendance for the past fifteen years, and during that period, we've learned so much more about the negative harms of marijuana.
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Jeez, hasn't almost a hundred years of sensationalist propaganda said enough about the "negative harms?" How about the positive harms?

A little more info here: https://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/art...stword9977.htm

This kind of BS is designed to appeal to people who understand that current policy is ineffective and irrational but who still buy into the "dangerous drug" hype. They can have the illusion of supporting compassionate and reasonable policies while still supporting prohibition and arrests.

mpp.org has quite a lot to say about it, including a petition to get Kennedy out of it (for what that's worth). Norml doesn't seem to have anything to say about it.

Let's see how this unrolls.

[Black Elf]

That is absurd!

A herb that brings peace to communities, healing to the sick, lubricates the emotions away from the neurotic patterning, is a viable, taxable and honest industry that brings in both tourism and local money and keeps it local. In to hands of the Big Brother? Nah, keep it private, local and nice. Grow your own.

Peace. Even to naysayers.

[darkstar270]

Keven got a spanking in this debate last year

https://blog.norml.org/2012/03/11/nor...stitute-video/

[armedoldhippy]

what a useless POS! Patrick should join Teddy in whatever corner of hell that is reserved for them... damned hypocrites.

[Puffaluffagus]

Kennedy is a drunk and pill addict who doesn't know his ass from a hole in the ground.

Hey pat, why don't you do us all a favor and go wash a bottle of oxys down with a liter of Jack

[mean mr.mustard]

Negative harms?

Where's the list?

[LifeIsGrowing]

I definitely don't agree with what this propagandist is purposing, but unfortunately, even if some of us want to act diluted to the fact that major studies have been done in recent years (2006-Present), that do show that cannabis use DOES affect the lungs and in some studies, even some done by different researchers from different parts of the world, show that there is an increased risk for COPD and Asymmetrical Bullous Disease in Cannabis-Only smokers, these studies DO exist and unfortunately DO provide both scientific and incidental proof that Cannabis is not necessarily as safe as we all wish it was.

Now I definitely don't like the way that this hit piece was done, but let's not shit ourselves when it comes to the fact that these studies DO exist and have very real results, and that we all know that tar build-up could very likely lead to such conditions becoming a reality. We cannot dismiss everything because we want it to be one way or the other, and do I consider cannabis dangerous myself?? No, and do I use it both medicinally and recreationally? Yes. But, I do at the very least understand that there IS scientific proof that it can cause such issues, just as much as there is proof that it might not.

Yet if we as a community only dismiss the studies, we are cornering ourselves to look like "stupid potheads", let's just admit that there is some SMALL risks, but yes this is blown out of proportion, especially by this idiot writing the article. Just saying, we do need to stay up on ALL studies, and not dismiss things just because we don't want them to be true. A big thing is, yes we all know that it's been around forever and there is LITTLE evidence to show that it has risks, but, there really hasn't been any true clinical trials of cannabis until very recently, and since then, SOME evidence does show SOME risks.

But I wouldn't ever consider it dangerous, except in the same way that some people claim to be "burnt-out" when all evidence shows that it's nuero-protective and doesn't really have much of an effect on IQ, yet some people say "I'm acting ..... because I'm just so burnt-out" - well those people are idiots to begin with, but they never admit it, and we'd be just as dumb to not admit that there is evidence that shows a contrary-to-popular belief on it's effect on the lungs.

-Life

[OLDproLg]

HOW DUMB!

People that JUDGE without accually knowing are ASSHOLES that need a LIFE?...kinda like all the judges out there,ignorant asses that play GOD with lives....
Their days are numbered so they RANT lie after lie...
Funny!

[Agaricus]

Originally Posted by LifeIsGrowing

some studies, even some done by different researchers from different parts of the world, show that there is an increased risk for COPD and Asymmetrical Bullous Disease in Cannabis-Only smokers, these studies DO exist and unfortunately DO provide both scientific and incidental proof that Cannabis is not necessarily as safe as we all wish it was.

Now I definitely don't like the way that this hit piece was done, but let's not shit ourselves when it comes to the fact that these studies DO exist and have very real results...

Yet if we as a community only dismiss the studies, we are cornering ourselves to look like "stupid potheads", let's just admit that there is some SMALL risks, but yes this is blown out of proportion...

...yet some people say "I'm acting ..... because I'm just so burnt-out" - well those people are idiots to begin with...
-Life

I don't disagree. It irritates me that so many people try to push the idea that weed's totally harmless. Or that it can single-handedly (leafly?) save the world.

As you say, it hurts the credibility of our community. Even if it IS totally harmless, a few minor concessions may be politically necessary to convince people on the fence that we're serious and not just whistling Dixie. One step back to enable ten steps forward. Compromise.

What I DO shit myself about is that the supposedly well-meaning SAM-type crew is making such a big thing about very minor risks. Using them as excuses to force acceptance of their desire to control our lives. Their absolute belief that they're far better than the people they seek to rule. That their subjects are incapable of making their own decisions.

As for pro/con studies, I'm pretty leary of work done on the prohibitionists' dime. And it's pretty common to cherry-pick phrases from inside the documentation and ignore the conclusions, which often say the stuff ain't all that bad. Then come the cases like Tashkin's study, possibly the best and most definitive look at pot, cancer and the lungs done to date. That's in the process of being buried; it's getting more and more difficult to find references to it. The conclusions weren't what the paymasters wanted to hear, so they take it off the board.

Hell, every single government-appointed panel there's ever been since the late 1800's has come to the conclusion that marihuana shouldn't be prohibited but dweebs like Anslinger, Nixon and Reagan have totally rejected the findings and spouted shit. They certainly weren't confused by the facts.

The burnouts - well, what can ya say? They're mostly using their stonedness as an excuse for being fuckups. There are plenty of us who live "normal," productive, and even exceptional lives while enjoying our intoxicant of choice. And, hell, is it da gummint's right to say ya can't be a fuckup?

What you won't see in the coming propaganda flurry is any comparison to things that are perfectly legal and accepted. That includes chemicals and pollutants that we're exposed to involuntarily. Sports too, look at what they're learning about the cumulative and long-term effects of concussions. And when was the last time you heard of a broken leg or a ruptured spleen from passing a joint?

More times than I care to think about some dimwit will complain about making comparisons of pot to the legal stuff. The "two wrongs don't make a right" crowd. The "we're talking about the killer weed, not good old Pabst Blue Ribbon waiting in the fridge" bunch.

Anyway, sorry, I sometimes get carried away in the rants.

Bottom line, though I'll probably get some grief for the statement, weed isn't totally harmless. Though it's certainly less toxic than aspirin. Less mind-altering than Jack Daniels. On and on. It's really pretty damn benign stuff.

Unfortunately the SAM weenies will take even the hint of a negative, blow it out of proportion and use it an excuse to continue the idea that the government owns our bodies and minds and has the right to dictate what personal decisions we're allowed to make. The idea that we need some kind of "treatment" because they say so. They bury their evil under the guise of compassion and reasonableness. Require rehabilitation when in reality there was no disability in the first place. It's all political, all in the name of control.

Damn it, there I go again. I just get fucking pissed off about the assholes in charge continuing to push senseless irrational laws meant only to condition the populace to accept their dictatorial ambitions.

[Jhhnn]

Yeh, well, they're pretty much screwed by the Colorado Constitution, but they'll keep the roadshow going so as to obtain funding & posh incomes pandering to fear with disinformation. It's how the Right Wing has operated for decades- whether it's pot or politics, abortion or gay marriage. They're deeply authoritarian followers of convention, despite their relatively recent donning of the garb of Libertopianism.

It's just another attempted power scam. After they sucker more donors, they'll celebrate with 12 year old scotch & Dominican cigars...