The Effects of Pot

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Legalization would also open up more states to industrial hemp for the textile industry and since it's a weed it could be grown across the US in various climates. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$

but it seems uneducated prejudice toward pot is slowing this progress.
 
I recall my teenage years, when I and a group of friends all smoked on a regular basis.

I recall being in cars while friends that were high were driving, and I hadn't smoked in a day or two, so my thought processes were clear, or at least clearer. I remember becoming concerned enough about their poor driving, that I asked if they were okay. The response was always the same, they would claim they were driving great.

When I brought this up when they weren't stoned, they invariably said they had noticed the same thing about my 'high' driving ability.

So I and my friends may not be representative of all the stoners out there. But I'd be willing to bet that everyone that smokes and then gets behind the wheel is more impaired than they realize.

Dulling the senses is kind of the point of smoking pot, after all.

After I had the reality check about my friends poor driving abilities while they were high, and they confirmed my own impaired abilities. I decided it wasn't worth the risk, and gave it up.

I don't have a problem with pot being legalized. But like alcohol, I think it should have serious consequences if you operate a vehicle while you are impaired.

If the pot of today really is that much more potent than the pot of nearly thirty years ago, as some have said, then I hope I can avoid the stoned drivers, especially while I'm on my bike.
 
Pot is definetly more stronger but I've got over 25 years smoking it but it's also a better high and it's still the user's choice to drive or not drive. I for one keep it at home or at shows.
 
Pot is definetly more stronger but I've got over 25 years smoking it but it's also a better high and it's still the user's choice to drive or not drive. I for one keep it at home or at shows.

I guess it's a good thing it wasn't as strong back in the day, or I might not remember the great Iron Maiden 'Somewhere On Tour' concert I and those friends went to. :guitar3:
 
I know pot affects my short term memory so I actually don't smoke it at shows and my last Maiden concert (in August) was as clear as my first back in '83 when I was 15. I'm selective about my partaking.

I also think it helped that I didn't discover weed til after HS since it doesn't really help retaining things you should be learning for most young smokers.
 
I've never smoked it myself. I had lots of friends in highschool that did. I have personally seen smart kids get into it and completely throw their lives away. Of course, you could argue these same peopleight just use alchohol instead if pot wasn't around.

The bolded part is the most important part. Pot did not make them throw their lives away. They chose their path. But, as someone that has never smoked, you can't possibly begin to understand what you're actually talking about in this regards. Everything you know about the discussion is 3rd part knowledge. I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just saying that those who have first hand have a better understanding of the concepts being discussed here.

Likewise, I'm not a gun guy, so I haven't posted much in your Hypocrisy at its worst thread. I really have no experience with guns or gun laws so I really have no credibility in that discussion, short of my own opinion.

I'm all for people doing what they want at home, but all you guys talking about driving while high are ignorant. Driving under the influence of ANY mind-altering substance is irresponsible and dangerous. There is NO excuse. We had a drunk driver decapitate a 13 month old and his father last year in my town.

From what I can see pretty much everyone (including the users) agree that driving high is not the best way to drive. But, sometimes it is necessary. Please, don't get all fundamental on me and say "nobody put a gun to your head, etc." But, if you're at a concert with friends and smoke a little during the set you might have some lingering affects when its time to go home. Making the decision to drive is similar to saying, "I've only had 3 beers, I'm safe to drive." Which legally, may be true. However from a fundamental point of view, one could argue that one shouldn't drive under even the slightest influence. But that would also include driving while tired, angry, stressed, sad, drunk, texting, you get the idea. Humans are not robots so there isn't a perfect driving scenario. It would be ideal if everyone were well rested, in a good frame of mind, sober and obeying all laws, when they drive. But that just isn't very realistic.
 
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I know pot affects my short term memory so I actually don't smoke it at shows and my last Maiden concert (in August) was as clear as my first back in '83 when I was 15. I'm selective about my partaking.

I also think it helped that I didn't discover weed til after HS since it doesn't really help retaining things you should be learning for most young smokers.

My first Maiden Concert was also in '83, at the age of 15. It was just with a different group of people. Good times.

[PSA on]

Another big factor for me in quitting, was just what you alluded to. I wasn't too interested in doing the things I needed to be doing, such as schoolwork. Fortunately for me, I managed to get my act together, and I am a productive member of society today.

[/PSA off]

:D
 
The bolded part is the most important part. Pot did not make them throw their lives away. They chose their path. But, as someone that has never smoked, you can't possibly begin to understand what you're actually talking about in this regards. Everything you know about the discussion is 3rd part knowledge. I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just saying that those who have first hand have a better understanding of the concepts being discussed here.
.

I have personal experience and I can tell you're just too biased to admit the truth. His friends chose to throw their lives away because of drugs and pot was for the lack of a better term gateway. It is very rare for someone to start out doing hardcore narcotics they almost always start with the harmless little bud. I knew plenty of people that pissed their lives away and ended up homeless, in jail or totally strung out before turning their life around and you know what started it? Yes they chose to do those things but they wouldn't have without weed, they thought "hey this drug makes me feel good, I wonder how good this drug will make me feel".

That situation happens everyday and you cannot argue the fact. I'd be a hypocrit if I blamed the drug instead of the person but since they were already weak minded and using a mind altering drug then it is kind of hard not too.

Side note I think it's worse if you experiment at a young age than when you're older and less impressionable.
 
The bolded part is the most important part. Pot did not make them throw their lives away. They chose their path. But, as someone that has never smoked, you can't possibly begin to understand what you're actually talking about in this regards. Everything you know about the discussion is 3rd part knowledge. I'm not calling you out or anything, I'm just saying that those who have first hand have a better understanding of the concepts being discussed here.

Likewise, I'm not a gun guy, so I haven't posted much in your Hypocrisy at its worst thread. I really have no experience with guns or gun laws so I really have no credibility in that discussion, short of my own opinion.



From what I can see pretty much everyone (including the users) agree that driving high is not the best way to drive. But, sometimes it is necessary. Please, don't get all fundamental on me and say "nobody put a gun to your head, etc." But, if you're at a concert with friends and smoke a little during the set you might have some lingering affects when its time to go home. Making the decision to drive is similar to saying, "I've only had 3 beers, I'm safe to drive." Which legally, may be true. However from a fundamental point of view, one could argue that one shouldn't drive under even the slightest influence. But that would also include driving while tired, angry, stressed, sad, drunk, texting, you get the idea. Humans are not robots so there isn't a perfect driving scenario. It would be ideal if everyone were well rested, in a good frame of mind, sober and obeying all laws, when they drive. But that just isn't very realistic.

Ok. If this is a "what's it like to smoke pot?" thread and not a "should pot.be legalized thread" you're right Dusty. So, I'll bow out of this one.
 
I have personal experience and I can tell you're just too biased to admit the truth. His friends chose to throw their lives away because of drugs and pot was for the lack of a better term gateway. It is very rare for someone to start out doing hardcore narcotics they almost always start with the harmless little bud.

I think the disconnect here may be that we're discussing 2 different truths. Pot dosn't force people to throw their lives away. I can agree that it could be considered a gateway drug, from the standpoint of opening one's mind to the opportunity to do/get different drugs. No one that doesn't do drugs would walk up to a total stranger and ask where the can score some coke. But, if you already have a pot guy you can ask him if he knows where to score some. One thing that smoking pot does do for people is teach them how to network.

Going back to the gateway thing. When you're young, you're taught how evil pot (and other) drugs are in programs like D.A.R.E. The teachers talk about worst case scenarios and use scare tactics to try and solidify the idea that pot is evil and you could die if using it. Well, some kids choose not to heed the warning and try it. What they find out is that was one great big lie. Extrapolate that truth and by association and one could surmise that the rumors they've heard about coke and heroin were also a lie. The unfortunate part is that the rumors about coke and heroin are true. They are highly addictive and could very easily kill you. Pot, on the other hand is not addictive and you could never smoke enough pot to overdose and die. I won't say it isn't habit forming, it is, but it's not addictive.

If someone gets "addicted" and throws their lives away, I would not blame the drug. I blame the person. Some people have a pre-disposition to addiction and a personality that exudes characteristics of mania. They would have had the same problem with nicotine, caffeine, alcohol, love, adrenaline, Rx, etc. Some people just have the "can't get enough" gene. If they use pot as their outlet, their professional choices are limited by what jobs they can get that don't test. But, they're not throwing their lives away, they're just not living up to their true potential.

Ok. If this is a "what's it like to smoke pot?" thread and not a "should pot.be legalized thread" you're right Dusty. So, I'll bow out of this one.

[MENTION=66624]KCcarguy[/MENTION] I'm not saying you need to bow out. I think you need to hear all perspectives to have an educated conversation. I just ask that you realize limited personal experience could alter the perspective that you have since you can't share real life experiences to make your point. There are always worst case scenarios, like the drunk driver that killed the man and young child in your town. But that doesn't automatically mean that everyone that drinks is a murderer.
 
Its funny you bring up the DARE program because we had a similar program called "just say no to drugs" in elementary school and all the kids in the "club" wore purple shirts kinda like the DARE shirts. Of all the people I knew that became addicted to drugs and messed up their life, majority were part of this group.

That's something that always stuck with me.
 
For discussion sake, lets say we're observing 2 houses on a Friday night. A pot smoker lives in House A and is planning on having some (5+/-) friends over to get high. In house B, a guy and his buddy are just about to crack open the first beer.

As everyone shows up at House A, they get high and start talking about whatever type of weed they're smoking "Frankenberry" for example. By this time, the guys in House B have finished their first beers and called a couple more friends, who bring more beers. As the group in House B starts to grow, the group in House A smokes more and continues to discuss the the effect that Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon has had on every piece of music written since it's release. Though all of them agree on how awesome this rock symphony is, they decide to get high again and listen to the album from start to finish.

At this point the guys over in House B are a couple beers deep and call more friends to come over and bring more beer. By now, the TV is on, the stereo is on (louder) to drown out the TV and people are on their phones telling more people about about the "party." Another 5-10 people show up at House B and the people at House A have to start Dark Side over because they got to talking about something else and forgot to listen to how awesome it is. So they pack another bowl and try to re-focus their attention.

By now, we have a full fledged party kicking over at House B (20+ people). The music's turned up and people are starting to shout at each other since they can't hear over the music. But wait, guy#1 has just challenged guy#2 to see who can bong a beer faster. As the bongs are filled up, the cans are tossed into a mounting pile of cans and bottles where the trash can used to be. This is about the time that House A orders pizzas. Unfortunately, the pizza guy is late to deliver because some jack hole over at House B parked like a d-bag in the middle of the street because his girlfriend told him she was just doing a girl's night and he found out she was really going over to the party at this other dude's house.

The pizza guy finds another way to get around to House A. Lucky for him, the pot heads forgot they ordered pizza, so they weren't even mad he was late. In fact, they were so happy to see him that they invited him in to get high with them - which of course he accepted. Once House A is finished regenerating their buzz, they decide to sync up Dark Side withe the Wizard of Oz and start talking about the midget that hung himself during production and how the government covered it up to protect themselves from Communists while they eat their pizza. Well, they can't find the DVD, so they just eat their pizza. They're about to spark another bowl when they hear a ruckus outside.

The d-bag that parked in the middle of the street is outside yelling at his girlfriend (who was supposed to be "out with the girls") when the winner of the beer bong contest decides to be chivalrous and come to her aid. A fight breaks out on the front lawn. And, before too long, the cops show up and warn House B to move all the cars and chill out. For a while, their party seems to have died, but then a second wave of party goers show up because they got a text about the fight. People are out in the front yard talking about it (loudly) and re-inacting the drama. There are a couple guys without shirts standing around. No one knows why they don't have shirts on, they just don't.

Wait, what happened to the pot heads? Well, they found the dvd and started watching it. It took a couple tries to get the first track of Dark Side synced up wit the Metro Goldwin Mayer Lion Roar but they got it. MOst of them were just about to pass out when Time came on and scared the sh!t out of them. They woke up and watched the movie for a couple more minutes before falling back asleep.

Its getting late. The pot heads decide to sleep it off for a few hours before driving home because it is about 1:30am. They know bars are closing and the cops are going to be out looking for drunk drivers that are leaving the bars. Likewise, some of the drunks from House B decide to try and drive home before they get waaaay to drunk to drive. One guy passed out in his front seat while a group of 4 hopped into a jeep, took out a mailbox while they're yelling and laughing about how drunk they are and what they're going to get a Jack in the Box.

Fast forward to tomorrow morning. The guy from House A is up around 10. He takes a few pizza boxes out to the trash and even picks up a hand full of random beer cans/bottles from House B while walking the dog. The guy from House B is super hung over and stays in bed all day. Rolls out around 3, so he can hit the bar and pre-drink before going over to someone else's house for a kegger. On Sunday afternoon, he finds himself collapsed the couch, still hung over, feeling like crap with a mess in his house and no food in the fridge, wondering how in the hell he got so drunk and if he has another sick day so he can call in tomorrow.

BwaHaHaHaHa!!!! That's the funniest chit that I have read in a while and it's true too! :lmao:
 
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I think it's worth mentioning that many of my friends in high school were examples of the 'gateway drug' argument in part due to pot being illegal.

Several friends and acquaintances got busted with pot and got probation and monthly drug screening. Yeah, they quit weed but then they sought another high that got out of their system quicker. This not only led them to harder drugs, but led them to introduce those harder drugs to other members of their respective cliques.

I'm not saying pot isn't a gateway drug, but everyone I know also drank and smoked cigarettes before pot, does that make tobacco the gateway drug?
 
Yes alcohol is usually experienced first along with nicotine (one of the most addictive drugs we've invented) and pot lastly due to it being illegal in most places so anything could be a gateway but with my experience most pot smokers I known over the last 30 years didn't move on to harder drugs.

The biggest worry in society with weed is getting caugth and if that's the biggest worry then how bad can it be. This country is already so tolerant with weed as nobody cares that Snoop Dogg hawks Chryslers,Ea games and pistachios along with all the weed references in sitcoms on national free TV and the cable shows centering on weed and in the mall store Spencer Gifts has a section devoted to Weed endorned paraphenelia and around here even the gas stations sell glass pipes.

I can even get on youtube and find several tutorials on how to make your own hash and nobody seems concerned about that as this country has bigger worries. .
 
I think I've said all that I thought might add value and this is beginning to be another circular discussion. I'll close by agreeing with RonMAIDEN about nicotine which is my latest success. After 46 years I finally quit cigarettes leaving my only remaining vice an occasional pipeful of weed in the privacy of my home as has been the case for my entire adult life. I don't believe anyone but the least knowledgable person would find this objectionable.

:wave:
 
[url="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/31/alex-echols-marijuana-autistic-rages_n_2552004.html']Alex Echols, Boy With Autism, Gets Medical Marijuana To Manage Self-Destructive Rages [/url]
 
So someone finally did a test to show the effects of pot while driving. While it might not be the end-all beat-all lab precision test, it does show what happens when driving stoned. THIS is what I remember my buddies acting like from my youth lol. I never smoked but I drank...a lot. I am from the camp of "the more I drink the more laid back I become" instead of the "I had a beer so let's talk loud and fight" so I kind of understand these guys. Anyway, this video proves that smoking pot and driving do not mix.
This is what driving totally stoned on marijuana looks like
 
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