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Buzzby

Fully Baked (The Marijuana Quagmire)
Jake Schuman | Brown Daily Squeal | 07/10/2005

Cannabis was one of the first crops ever cultivated by man. It has been used by humans as rope (boring), a food ingredient (boring), medicine (boring), and recreational drug (groovy dude!). The most widely used drug in the world, cannabis is now illegal in most countries. In the United States, 734,000 people were arrested for marijuana-related offenses in the year 2000. Though it is a simple weed and its history has been entwined (pun intended) with that of man since before recorded history, modern scientists are still uncertain as to how the drug operates, and today’s politicians are still unsure as to what to do in regards to this bothersome plant. In honor of Rhode Island recently legalizing medical marijuana, I propose that we go back to the basics, and examine the fundamentals of the world’s second-most controversial weed (after the dandelion, which I always found pretty…). Perhaps we will find some answers that will help us solve what has become a Marijuana Quagmire.

Considering this is a University blog, I am going to assume that no one is interested in the rope and nutritional aspects of cannabis, and I will just focus on its use as a recreational drug. Furthermore, considering this is a Brown University blog, I am going to assume that I do not need to give much basic background information on marijuana. It is most often smoked out of cigarettes, pipes, or water pipes (also known as “bongs” and commonly given humorous nicknames like “Bongicio Del Torro,” “Long Bong Silver,” “Sir Hits-A-Lot, ”“Bowlbo Baggins,” or “The Unibonger”). Sometimes users cook and eat marijuana in food, usually brownies. Users begin to feel the effects of the drug within a few minutes and are conscious of being under its influence for several hours.

Though recent studies have provided scientists clues as to the mechanisms of marijuana’s effects on the brain, they are really complicated and would probably only kill your buzz. Instead, I will focus on the subjective effects of the drug and leave big complex words like “cannabinoids” and “delta9-tetrahyrdocannabinol” to Babylon. Anyway, anti-cannabis sources seem to have been smoking some seriously bad bud, as their description of the effects of marijuana is entirely negative: “problems with memory and learning, distorted perception (sights, sounds, time, touch), trouble with thinking and problemsolving [sic], loss of motor coordination; and increased heart rate." Conversely pro-marijuana sources paint a much more “totally far out” picture of the drug’s effects: “General change in consciousness, mild euphoria, feelings of general well-being, relaxation or stress reduction, increased appreciation of humor, music and other art, stronger connection of body and mind, holistic attention, introspection, enhanced recollection of episodic memory, physical pleasure, increased awareness of sensation, creative or philosophical thinking… pain relief, increased appetite, reduced nausea." (to be fair, they also listed some negative effects afterwards). Though perhaps both sides of the debate are more interested in supporting their arguments than providing the facts, the short-term effects of the drug can best be described in the words of Dave Chappelle, “You ain’t crisp, but you’ll function.”

The long-term effects of chronic marijuana use are extremely difficult to study accurately, as most chronic users also consume other drugs that can skew the results. It is generally accepted that extremely heavy use can negatively affect cognitive performance in a variety of ways, but that these effects wear off within a few weeks of abstinence. Most scientists also suspect that marijuana smoke can be unhealthy in the same way that cigarette smoke is, but perhaps less dangerous because the average cannabis user smokes far less than the average tobacco user. The United States Government’s National Institute of Drug Abuse has a particularly hilarious section of their website devoted to the connection between marijuana smoke and carcinogens. The title of the page reads “What are the long-term effects of marijuana use?” Beneath that, large and in bold, the NIDA loudly declares, “Cancer.” Then, just below, smaller and unbolded, they explain: “It’s hard to know for sure whether regular marijuana use causes cancer.” What the heck? Are you stoned, the National Institute of Drug Abuse, or what? The site goes on to justify its claim, “Studies show that someone who smokes five joints per day may be taking in as many cancer-causing chemicals as someone who smokes a full pack of cigarettes every day.” Listen, the NIDA, my friend Sebastian smokes five joints per day. He sits on his couch all day, eats Doritos, watches “Half Baked,” plays Xbox, draws pictures with a highlighter, and occasionally orders hot wings. He doesn’t need his lungs anyway.

It is virtually impossible to overdose on marijuana. Research has shown that while for alcohol, a toxic level can be achieved by ingesting four to ten times the amount needed to attain intoxication, a cannabis overdose would require consuming 40,000 times more marijuana than it took to get the user high. If one attempted to smoke this much pot (intravenous use of marijuana is almost unheard of), not only would he die of carbon monoxide poisoning before he achieved his goal, but his friends would probably all come over and leach once they heard how much he was holding. Still, there’s nothing to stop you from dying from doing something stupid when you are really stoned (just like there’s nothing to stop you from dying from doing something stupid when you are sober).

Perhaps the most important fact policy makers must consider is how long the drug stays active in the body. The half-life of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, is about one day. This means that if Willie Nelson smoked a joint at 8pm on Saturday night, on Sunday night at 8pm approximately half of the THC would have left his body. Though Willie may not feel high after a few hours, the THC is still inside him, perhaps having an overt effect. Because of marijuana’s relatively long half-life (alcohol leaves the body within an hour) daily users can build up a constant toxicity of THC in their blood, which could explain the medium-term negative effects of heavy use on cognitive performance. The chief concern with legalization related to this fact is that while one could go to a party, have a few drinks, hang out awhile, and then drive home safely, this is not a possibility with marijuana. Even the next day, driving performance may be impaired. “No way man, I drive BETTER when I’m high. Totally!” you retort. Well, science says otherwise, you hippie. Yet ironically, it is possible that marijuana legalization could actually REDUCE accidents caused by DUIs. Though marijuana definitely reduces driving ability, studies have shown that it is less impairing than alcohol. A whopping 85% of marijuana users involved in accidents while driving were also under the effects of alcohol! For those only under the influence of marijuana, the accident rates are much lower. Furthermore, researchers have found that decriminalization of marijuana produces a corresponding rise in pot use and a decline in alcohol use. Legalizing marijuana could cause an increase in people getting high and a decrease in people getting drunk, thus making them drive…in a LESS impaired fashion when under the influence of their drug of choice. It is not an ideal solution, but it does theoretically result in a net decrease of deaths from DUIs. Still, this does not solve the problem of pilots, heavy machinery operators, or presidents smoking up hours before important events (flying, machining, declaring war, etc.).

“OH DEAR GOD, BUT WHAT ABOUT THE CHILDREN?!?!” Yes, but what about the children indeed? No one who advocates marijuana legalization, not even Ricardo Cortes, author of the marijuana children’s book It’s Just a Plant, advocates marijuana use or legalization for children. However, if pot were legalized, it would be far easier for adolescents to obtain (they would have to go to the store instead of the arduous journey to beneath their parent’s mattress). Approximately 42.4% of American students report having used marijuana in their lifetimes, and 23.9% report having used it in the last month. In the Netherlands, where pot is legal, (“No mom, I’m just going to Amsterdam to see the Van Gough Museum!”), rates of marijuana use are equal to that of the United States for almost all age groups. The difference is that for young adolescents in the Netherlands, marijuana use is lower. The amotivational syndrome that anti-marijuana advocates so often cite as evidence for why cannabis is dangerous for children has in fact never been scientifically proven to exist. Though research has shown that heavy marijuana use is correlated with failure in school, it is also possible that students who are having difficulty with academics are just more likely to smoke pot (for psychological reasons or just for relief). This can also be applied to marijuana’s reputation as a “gateway drug” to harder substances – people who would use pot already have personalities that would lead them to try other drugs anyway.

So what should we do about weed? The U.S. government seems to be acting like that one friend who drinks alcohol every weekend but never smokes because, “its illegal…well, MORE illegal than alcohol…because you can EVENTUALLY drink legally!” Yeah, alcohol is bad for you. Yeah, cigarettes are worse. Vicoden, Xanax, Prozac – all dangerous and abused and all regulated. Yet marijuana is still highly illegal, and in many states the possession or sale of even relatively small amounts (even just 1 oz.) can result in prison sentences of up to 10 years. The National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign (set up by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy) sums up marijuana in one line: “Smoking pot can lead to anxiety, panic attacks, depression, and paranoia-and those problems don't improve over time. Also, sixty percent of teenagers in drug treatment programs are there because of marijuana." This is seems to epitomize the only view of the plant that the federal government is willing to take. Marijuana is regarded as an unhealthy, potentially addictive, unsafe to children, and socially subversive substance that is so dangerous it should be prohibited in all cases, even for medical reasons. On the other hand, Peter Tosh’s more melodic argument, “Legalize it, don’t criticize it,” seems difficult to dispute. Still, I question the scientific basis for his later contentions: “It’s good for the flu, it’s good for asthma, good for tuberculosis, even numara thrombosis…birds eat it, ants love it, fowls eat it.” Wait a minute, isn’t a bird a fowl anyway? Seems a little redundant. If only his voice weren’t so dark, silk-smooth, and alluring! In the end, what cannot be disputed is that the current government policy on marijuana is simply not working. Though marijuana use declined during the 80’s, since the early 90’s its been on the rise, and does not show any signs of slowing down. On the other hand, educational policies that focus on reducing drug related harm among youth who do experiment with drugs may be more successful.

I do not think that complete legalization is the answer for our country. While other nations with different cultures may find that legalizing pot solves their marijuana problem, I think it is a policy that would fail in the United States. Our culture is too focused on consumption, individuality, and pleasure maximization for total legalization to work. Americans have never shown a penchant for moderation, its part of what makes this country great. However, moderation is vital if the government is going to allow marijuana to be accepted by law and general society. I simply do not trust my fellow countrymen not to walk around blazed all the time while our government, economy, and civilization slowly crumble around us. That may be a bit extreme, but even just having a quarter of the U.S. population stoned most of the time would be a serious bummer for all of us (unless you were also stoned, in which case it would be pretty rad). For now, I think American society is better off keeping marijuana illegal. That being said, we can do much to improve our current system. Exploring the medical potentials of marijuana would not lead to chaos, destruction, or the transformation of downtowns into Trenchtowns. On the contrary, appreciation and respect for marijuana may do more to encourage a culture of moderation. Furthermore, the way we educate our youth against marijuana needs a lot of work. Government drug education programs could all use a dose (or a toke) of honesty. We should trust our children to make the right choices when presented with the truth, instead of lying and terrifying them in a vain attempt to coerce them into doing what we want. Educators simply end up losing the trust of their students, which is the one thing they must have in order teach the potential dangers of drug abuse. Finally, harsh penalties that put marijuana users in prison alongside violent criminals and more serious drug users end up doing more harm than good by creating more criminals and making them even more dangerous. Especially for a substance that does little harm when consumed privately and in moderation, the government need only enact penalties that will demonstrate its general disapproval of the drug. The Marijuana Quagmire is not going away, and our current policies are not doing much good in solving it. An answer that will fully resolve the issue is probably a long way off. Until then, we can search for a solution by working for changes in our laws, culture, and most importantly, in the ways we think about marijuana.

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JackStraw

What the hell? This statement makes no sense in general and in the context of the paragraph. First off, wouldn't it be easier to steal from your parents than buy it at the store, especially if the were going to ID you (think alcohol)? Legalizing it would, if anything, make it more difficulty to obtain. Too many small time dealers would be shut down, who mostly don't care what age they sell too?
If it was regualted like alcohol it would be more difficult to find, right?

Then after this sentence he says that in the Netherlands, where use is legal, the numbers are similar except for adolecence, who use the drug less infrequently? So isn't that evidence that legalization does not equal higher rates of underage use?

I don't agree with this either. Legalizing pot would have little or no effect on the amount of people getting drunk. The only way it would decrease alcohol consumption is someone got really baked after two beers and decided not to finish their six-pack or go out, but overall, it wouldn't change anything. I don't think legalization would cause that much of an increase in smoking either. People can get it farily easy now, I would say more people don't smoke pot because it is expensive, they don't like the effect and don't like smoke rather than soley becuase it is illegal.

This guy is obviously another idiot blogger. Let's just make sure no one thinks this is "news."

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"It is dangerous to be right in matters on which the established authorities are wrong. Liberty is not and cannot be anything but the power of doing what we will."

Voltaire

Buzzby

I disagree. Many people who would prefer marijuana to alcohol choose to drink because marijuana is illegal or because they are randomly drug tested.

My brother-in-law is a hopeless drunk with a job that has random drug testing. He drinks himself unconscious every night and will probably die young. He'd much prefer to smoke some weed, but can't because of the random tests. He'd be just as much an out-of-control pothead as he is a drunk, but at least it wouldn't kill him. He wouldn't think that he could drive when he was too high to do so. He wouldn't be nearly as obnoxious when he was loaded.

BC.Buddy

This blog entry starts off not bad, but then detiorates into a mess.

It IS extreme. That's ridiculous. Where does this fellow get his resources saying legalization would lead to more use. Or that there wouldn't be a system not unlike alcohol, restricting public usage and such.

You think incorrectly my friend. Solves their marijuana problem? I thought it made it worse? Oh, solves the problems associated with prohibition! I see now...

It's really too bad this had to be an anti-legalization entry, huh? He really lost the momentum at the end.

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