Combining Components of Marijuana Enhances Inhibitory Effects on Brain Cancer

My position is this: There is another path that you would be treading if you were not smoking pot "habitually" as you say. So there is your present life-path - and another -that you would be doing- that you are not doing.
That may not seem like much of a difference. You may think it is simply how you might go about things one day to the next. Simple choice of daily activity.

However, when one looks back on a five year spread of time, you may then see that you might have done more with that time.
Pot, after all, is a recreational kind of thing. A social kind of thing. More is accomplished, intellectually with pot, I give you, but those are lessons that are learned and thenafter, pot is more social and recreational.

So it is not a question for anyone other than yourself - what would you accomplish if you were not smoking so much pot as compared to what you would accomplish were pot not such a large piece of your life, as it seems to be?

My response: pot has played an incredible role in my life, in fact, changed it..for the BETTER, and I'm not exaggerating at all. I got to see and experience things that I had previously closed myself off to. I've met the most wonderful people I've ever known, my best friends, and pot had a large part of that. If I had not started smoking pot, I know that I would be a different, and more than likely--less happy, person. Though it is recreational, the ripples it has had in my life are far-reaching and almost wholly positive.

I understand that it can be a time-waster for some people; something that brings out bad qualities in some people. But compared to all other substances, it is the most harmless. And for people like me, truly life changing. It has opened doors for me that I never would've explored, and not just doors to other drugs.

That's exactly what it is good for. I'm not advocating not seeing what can be seen, not discovering the world or the magic of your life.

I am saying, that what is discovery at one point - becomes solid knowledge. You know, lessons learned.

Then, many people, having such a great time, start going round and round. No longer traveling forward - no longer finding the great discoveries and uncovering the hidden mysteries of life - but kind of stuck - thinking the whole time that it is pot and the life-style that is what is cool - when the truth now is, it WAS cool. It really was cool.

Kind of like an artist who makes it big on some particular style. If good, they are finding change - but imagine staying in the same groove? Year after tired year?

It turns out change - is the horse you are riding. - It takes you to new places.

I guess that means you like your pot and don-wanna hear no nothin' else?

If we had a talk-group that was more conservative, less gays and gay supporters and less people looking to find reasons why it's ok for them to smoke pot, it would be a difficult argumentative lot, indeed. Besides, they'd all agree quickly and go on to something else.

Only my friends who smoke cannabis are out hiking somewhere in the mountains, eating organic vegan food staying healthy, but either way, your probably in the suburbs or the city so my friends are "out of your way" if segregation is really what you want.....Just like racism, I guess their are still people out their who have prejudices against people who use a particular substance and not the "normal" cultural mind altering substance (alcohol) but then again, what is the cultural "norm" now a days? Maybe those articles represent the kind of people who are on this site...In my opinion there are a lot of open minded and opinionated people on here so I just expect anything and everything, Including the well loved Cannabis Legalization Propaganda that we vote to the top every time...

Everyone knows marijuana is fun - but people (very most often) will get into an habitual mode of life.
There's a 30 day blood saturation going on - so, whether you believe it or not, you're kind of "mellow" all the time - you're actually not feeling razor sharp but kind of mellow (a feeling you probably espouse) - which, let's face it is kind of a down feeling; and well, you get a lot of colds, etc, so getting stoned brings a welcome and ongoing fun ride. A new welcome ride that you and your friends are all having - together. On your walks or just laughing at people rushing around going to work, etc.

But if you weren't getting stoned, you get sharp and focused and you'd get some personal advancement act together that would take you to a successful life. Money, fun, vacations. Fun vacations.

And your girl friends would stay around longer - because, being more productive - and razor sharp, as I've pointed out, you'd be a more viable candidate for the long term. (This is something, you will find out about).

:-}

Your welcome queengloria because actually it is a pretty smart thing to do, and fun if I might add. Smarter than most things people do now days. Like eating saturated fat, driving a car, getting drunk, bitching on the internet... LoL....

Hiking in the mountains while smoking an herb, having a good time without hurting anyone or themselves does sum it up quite nicely.

And you called it a narcotic???? It isn't heroin you know. No one has ever died from it, it is safer than alcohol, and it can be used recreationally without any permanent side effects and it is physically non addictive.

I really wish people like queengloria and 02 would look at both sides of the equation, yeah some people do use it the "wrong" way and make the majority of respectable cannabis users look bad, but don't judge every one based on a couple groups of people.

Most people I know that use cannabis are very respected people in the community, have really good jobs and have beautiful families.

And 02, I agree that it is fun and does make some people mellow but I don't think it makes people dumb down or slow minded in any way. I think that is because of a mental laziness that happens sometimes when you watch too much t.v.and by not exercising your brain, not because of cannabis itself.

My cannabis using friends are sharp minded people who are more than capable of doing everything that people who don't use cannabis do. They have husbands and wifes, they go on "fun" vacations, and are very driven to succeed in life. And I really doubt your getting colds statement, I used to smoke cannabis daily and I never got sick once.

So, in my personal experience, using cannabis myself in the past and my close friends who currently use cannabis, your comments were generally prejudiced and just an opinion. Not the absolute truth of the matter.

I believe there is a different life path while you're on pot than if you were not. You would take different steps that lead to different places.
It is about intoxicants - they intoxicate you. You become intoxicated.

Now if you are doing this all the time - how far less are you going to be taking yourself?
Because if you were clean and straight with a healthy brain (and that only comes after prolonged clean& healthy living) - there would be countlessly comparable moments when you would be up doing something and accomplishing something rather than sitting around on a couch or hanging with friends.

Yes, it is good to take some time and see the natural world, the sea-scape - become enraptured with the starry heavens.

But I tell you, you will be the happiest when you are perfectly healthy - and that can not be experienced when your blood stream is full of intoxicants.

If you clean out - at some point, it will hit you. Then you'll know drugs may be fun - people are having fun together when they do drugs, perhaps even often, I won't argue that. But intoxicants lower your health, your brain health - and make your full potential for clear, clean experience of life MUCH lower.

I believe your life-arc potential goes way short. The whole arc, just closed on down. (cause you're sittin' around trippin' out)

First off, I am no addict. I don't smoke cannabis, I don't smoke cigarettes, and I don't even drink alcohol, I barely drink anything caffeinated. Prejudiced once again I see, just because I say it as I see it.

And for your information, I don't WANT to help myself, I DO help myself, I practice spirituality and not religious blind faith. I find real truth in first hand experience rather than in second hand knowledge. Looking back on your life and realizing everything that has happened has led to everything now is one thing, but living in the past in regret is another, I aim to live here and now, the present moment, no regrets for the past, and no worries for the future.

Secondly, you are arguing with a proud father of 3 kids who just wants you be a little more open minded.

Ok FACT: There are no documented deaths in a 10,000 year period of known and documented use, and believe me, if there were, it would be heavily advertised, so I think you need to do a little bit of research before you say something kills someone when it in FACT (keyword) it doesn't kill anyone, it is simply non-toxic, we already have cannabiniods naturally occurring in our bodies, we have brain receptors specifically made to receive cannabiniods (as with most animals).

The only reason there are so many treatment centers, treating cannabis users is because of prohibition. I know of at least a dozen people from my childhood who got arrested and was pretty much forced into treatment, they knew they didn't need it, it was either that or go to jail. And most people simply choose treatment as an easier way rather than go to jail where the real criminals are.
Go to jail with a associates degree in pot, come out with a PhD in coke.
FACT: Prohibition makes drug consequences worse than the actual drug use itself.

Say....as if.....one of your kids decides he would like to try cannabis one time with his friends, gets busted and the judge throws the book at him to make his point. Your child goes to jail and makes friends with real criminals, the bad ones, the ones who sit and plot what they are going to do when they get out. Your son gets recruited and begins his prohibition caused life of crime...it is a brutal reality, but it is real, and we need to think outside the box. I don't want my kids to go down that path and I am sure you don't either. But they have their own lives to live and once they reach a certain age you wont have control over what they do. Including smoking cannabis. We need a better answer than prohibition. It didn't work with alcohol, and it certainly doesn't work with cannabis or drugs in general. Drugs are easier to get, stronger than ever before and more kids are using them. Prohibition has made "the drugs problem" worse and has made hardened criminals in the process.

Although, I must say, most cultures throughout history have a record of using mind altering substances in a spiritual setting as well as in a recreational setting with no record of criminal punishment for their use. In my opinion these substances have helped guide the majority of human evolution in my own personal research and study.

02- I agree with you on some points but It is too generalized.
I can see how that could happen to some people. But it never happened to me or my friends. So even if it is that way for 99.9% of people, which I am sure it is not, it is still not 100% true. Maybe it was your experience, that's fine, I agree with you then, but it still leaves the whole debate in the air.
I had one experience, you had another. Example: I never just sat around tripping out on cannabis. If that was your experience, that's fine, I have no problem with that, I am just saying that it is not everyone's experience.
And success in general is really relative to what you, yourself define as success, or wealth. We probably have completely different ideas on what a true successful or wealthy life is.

One's ideas change.
Things change.

Life is Change. What is your point.

@kaseyrae. Very good comments.

@QueenGloria. Marijuana is not addictive, nor is it actually a narcotic as kaseyrae mentioned. Your comments show that you are not very informed on this subject, and who can blame you for your position given all of the misinformation out there, but instead of blindly taking a position like yours based on emotions and propaganda, you might want to inform yourself on the facts instead, if you are actually interested in this subject. For example, you might want to actually take a look at the science behind this article.

Your derogatory comments about cannabis users aside, I applaud the fact that even though you personally don't seem to like the idea of cannabis use, that you at least don't seem to want to force your opinion on everyone else. I'm basing that on your comment, "Let them smoke I guess".

Take a look at this list of people who do/did not just sit on the couch (and I'll just go ahead and assume they're more successful than you and didn't need to get out of the way of your success):

http://www.veryimportantpotheads.com/

36 States now, New Jersey just passed a Medical Marijuana bill Today.

Your points are well phrased.