Weed Kills

There is little doubt that major news medias are more about sensationalism than they are about giving viewers real news. They love coming up with headlines that basically say, "Weed Kills!"

The stories reported in this Colorado News cast, are about people who died and part of the reason attributed was Marijuana overdose. I want to address two things about these stories and others like them.

The first thing I want to say is that in each of these stories, the person who died had huge amounts of THC in their system. I don't know of anyone who wants to see Marijuana legalized advocating this sort of abuse. Getting so shit faced you do stupid things is not a good idea. It isn't a good idea with pot, it isn't a good idea with any substance.

Abuse is just that, abuse.

It's not good with Marijuana, it's not good with alcohol, it's not good with aspirin, it's not good with cheeseburgers. You get the picture.

It isn't using the substance responsibly, it's not using good common sense. I believe that Marijuana has some wonderful attributes, but they come with using it in the right way. Getting so blazed that you can't carry on a conversation or get out of your chair is stupid.

One of the biggest concerns with edible Marijuana is that people can easily get too much. They take a bite of brownie or a piece of chocolate and nothing happens. They wait a half hour or forty-five minutes and they feel nothing. What do they do? They eat the whole damned brownie or candy bar. Just about the time the finish it, they realize that they are getting buzz. The problem is, unless you want to stick your finger down your throat and puke up what you just ingested, you are in for a very strange time.

Smoking can certainly be abused, I used to do it all the time, but I think it is much less the case for most people. The effects of smoking are pretty much immediate. You can tell that you are getting too high and stop.

The second thing I want to say might piss some people, especially the relatives of those that died, off.

I think there was a problem there before they smoked or ingested Marijuana. I worked for several years in the mental health system. Most people who abuse substances do so because of some other reason. A couple of the people who died were teenagers. Being a teenager is enough of a problem all by itself, but I bet there was something else going on. I doubt seriously if their lives were as perfect as their relatives are saying.

I'm not trying to say that they were bad people. What I am saying is that they abused pot for a reason. The reason might have been as simple as peer pressure and they were not strong enough to resist it. Had they thought of suicide before? Suicide rates among teens is high already. Adding substance abuse to that fire is not a good thing.

The guy that fell is another story.

It may well be that the extremely high levels of THC in his system made him do something he might not have normally done. However, most substance abuse does not lead people to do things they normally would not do or have never thought of. It may block their inhibitions so that they do something stupid, but it is often something they have thought about or might even have done before. Was this guy a risk taker? Might he have done this while straight and his being high exacerbated the fall?

The point to this is not to say that Marijuana is a perfect substance with no risks involved. The point is that these unfortunate people may not have done what they did if not high, but maybe they would have.

Abuse is abuse. People are people. We need to not over react when we hear stories like the one above, but keep a clear head and regulate the use of Marijuana so everyone can be as safe as possible.

I did like that the reporters mentioned that many more people die due to alcohol than to Cannabis.

Stoney

Marijuana Creates Jobs

Marijuana creates jobs. Yes, you heard me. Marijuana creates jobs. Now, how can I say this? It's easy.

My state just recently passed a medical Marijuana law. It is so new that, in my neck of the woods, there aren't any grow farms or dispensaries. In the local paper this last week there was a story about a grow/dispensary going up in a small town near me. At first I was really surprised. After reading the article, I understood a lot better.

The article quoted one of the town supervisors as saying he was pleased that this facility was going up because the jobs were desperately needed.

What?

That's right. This little conservative town doesn't give a shit about devil weed coming into their little slice of heaven. They want the jobs!

This is why it is so hard to fight against fracking. Fracking, IMHO, destroys the environment, but when you have an area that is depressed by lack of jobs, working a drill site looks pretty good. Hell, raping and stealing from old ladies looks good when your kids are going hungry.

Now I do not want to imply that the Marijuana industry is the same as fracking. 

It isn't. 

Not by a long shot!

What I am saying is that our country, on the whole, needs jobs. With an industry waiting in the wings to put billions of tax dollars into the system and create thousands of jobs, why would the political/corporate machine be against it?

Well, it cuts into their greed.

It's either that or they're just fucking stupid!

I have been listening to the Cannainsider podcasts. Listen to just a few of those and you will begin to see the amazing opportunity the burgeoning Cannabis industry brings to the table. It seems the only barrier is your own imagination.

Yes, boys and girls, Marijuana creates jobs. Let's take it away from the drug lords and cartels and make it legal. Then we can all benefit!

Stoney

We Aren't All Stupid Stoners

Something that bothers me is a lot of the social media that has to do with consuming Cannabis is that it doesn't always shed the best light on who we really are. We aren't all stupid stoners.

What do I mean by that?

I follow a lot of folks on Twitter, Google+, Facebook, and others who are consumers of the devil weed. Many of the posts in these forums are thoughtful and intelligent. Many of them are not. The ones I object to go something like this.

"Yea, I smoke weed. So what? Let's get high and fuck!"

Now I don't have anything against either of those activities. I have to say that I enjoy them both. The problem with these sorts of posts is that it sheds a negative light on folks who like to imbibe in Marijuana. Now don't go all hate on me. I like to joke around too. It's just that I see way more of those sorts of things than I do positive ones.

"Took a couple hits this morning then wrote on my book a while and laid down a new track to a song I'm recording."

That's a much more positive tweet or post and if a non-smoker sees it will be much more inclined to think that perhaps those who consume Cannabis aren't all depraved drug fiends.

By the way, that's what I really did this morning.

If we want the country and even the rest of the world to see us as functioning intelligent members of society, then we have to look like it, act like it, and sound like it.

It is just a guess, but I would think that that vast majority of us enjoy taking a hit now and then, but then continue on with our normal lives. Using Marijuana isn't a way to dodge life, but to help cope with it and enhance it.

Let's take the tone up a notch and help the outside world see that we are productive useful citizens.

Then we can get high and fuck!

Stoney

I Hate Smoking Dope

Okay, now I know you're thinking, "Hey, can't this idiot make up his mind?" Don't worry, I'll still blaze with you. It's the term dope I hate. I hate smoking dope.

Now this might just be me, but the term dope, either conjures up the specter of some sticky substance made to glue two pieces of something together, or a substance that will turn me into a dope if I smoke it.

Neither is true.

I object to the fact that many people would put me, as a Cannabis consumer, in the same category as someone who sniffs glue. Glue will kill you. Pot won't. I am not in favor of people doing many of the other drugs available. I am not for something that harms you. Well, hell, life harms you, but you know what I mean.

Marijuana, although a schedule 1 drug, is not addictive, does not rot your brain, and you cannot overdose on it. You might overdose on oatmeal chocolate chip cookies, but not on the Pot.

I also don't think it makes me stupid.

"Oh sure," you say. "You're stoned out of your fricken gourd. How would you know if you were stupid?"

Well, I guess you might have a point there on the rare evening that I smoke heavier than normal. However, that's even more true on the nights that I drink more whiskey than I normally do. In fact, when I drink, which I try not to do often, I have a hard time knowing when to stop. I can get so wrapped up in conversation that I don't realize how drunk I'm getting. That doesn't happen when I smoke.

What I found since I started getting high again is that I read the same books, understand the same sort of concepts, and can still carry on as intelligent a conversation as I could do before. It might even be better.

I find that cannabis use tends to make me more productive and curious. I read more, look things up more, want to find things out more. I have no proof that this is true other than my perception. However, being as subjective as I am able, I find that I am indeed a better person because I light up the occasional bowl.

I hate smoking dope. I hate the term. If we are going to win over those small minded people who are against the legalization of this plant, then we need to project it with a better light. Using the term smoking dope does nothing to further this goal; in my humble-assed opinion.

Stoney