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Today at 10 a.m. (EST) on WAMU 88.5's Diane Rehm Show: The Justice Department signals a new stance on medical marijuana. The U.S. attorney general directs federal prosecutors not to pursue medical marijuana cases in states where it's legal. What do you think of this policy shift?

Have a look at the Wall Street Journal article on the shift.

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A VERY bad idea. All the dangers (and in fact more) of smoking and plus they are higher than balloon boy.

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Good. Time and money can be better spent than in the pursuit of sick people who use marijuana to ease pain or create the desire to eat.

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or making people sicker and more stoned and thus injured fron the stoend driving....
Karl said:
Good. Time and money can be better spent than in the pursuit of sick people who use marijuana to ease pain or create the desire to eat.

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John, although I respect your opinion and your right to have it, it is sadly misinformed. The use of marijuana dates back thousands of years, it happens to be the oldest recorded medically used plant and is considered sacred by various cultures around the world. Prior to federal legislation in the U.S. it was also widely used here. Believe it or not it has many documented and researched benefits and is far safer than both alcohol and tobacco. There is no actual need to smoke it, it can be eaten, made into a tea or a tincture. The dangers you speak of are (with the exception of possible lung damage) non-existent or a product of prohibition itself. Examples of problems arising from prohibition range from the proliferation of a black market for the substance which creates violence and wastes law enforcement time and money to the idea of a "gateway drug". However the "gateway drug" argument is fundamentally flawed because without prohibition marijuana would not be surrounded by the stigma created by its schedule 1 status. By keeping it illegal it places power in the hands of dealers who may also be dealing truly harmful drugs. If you get in just as much trouble smoking pot as you do from doing cocaine it becomes hard to differentiate truly harmful substances from relatively benign things like marijuana. As for your argument/response "or making people sicker and more stoned and thus injured from the stoned driving...." is also a poor argument seeing as it is completely legal to get as drunk as you want, and although it is illegal to drive in such a state it happens and is far more harmful. Would you also argue for a ban on alcohol? How about tobacco? Tobacco use directly contributes to hundreds of thousands of deaths a year and is far more addictive, would you also consider a ban on it? Prescription drugs contain cocktails of synthetic chemicals which when used at length (even for legal prescribed use) or abuse of can be extremely harmful. Even over the counter painkillers like Ibuprofen can be extremely harmful to your liver and digestive system with prolonged use. Marijuana, when grown correctly, is a completely organic plant material that requires no chemical processing and is completely natural. Thus far no prolonged negative effects have been associated with its use with the exception of lung damage as a result of smoking. In fact it has been found in several studies to inhibit cancer cell growth and may even be helpful in treating certain symptoms of Alzheimer's or ADHD. Aside from its already recognized use for things like glaucoma, insomnia, alleviation of pain and loss of apatite due to cancer or HIV/AIDS treatment, depression and anxiety to name a few, it is also a much safer recreational substance choice than the over consumption of alcohol which is an extremely large problem in this country especially among younger populations. With over 50,000 deaths a year associated with alcohol and over 400,000 with tobacco given the fact it is physically impossible to overdose on marijuana its continued illegal status is simply not logical. The war on drugs has been an utter failure, it is easier than ever to purchase high quality marijuana and use continues to increase among all demographics. It has even been shown by a recent Gallup poll that its medical use is becoming more and more acceptable every year. When anyone can grow marijuana in their closet, garage, or garden continuing to pursue failed enforcement policies is simply nothing more than masturbation and accomplishes nothing. Ruining lives simply for possession of a natural plant material and its personal use does nothing but cost the federal and state governments billions of dollars a year and continues to stress our already over crowded prison system. It may not be an easy transition but legalization and taxation could raise billions for government coffers and reduce stresses on law enforcement so they can focus on real crime. To go even further legalization would effectively eliminate the black market thus greatly decreasing drug trafficking related violence and leave the foreign cartels without a market or a reason to set up in the states. The reasons for legalization are too many to count. In the interest of time i decided to leave citations out but all of this is easily substantiated. A great resource is the NORML website www.norml.org, there you can find cited facts and figures about the damage that has been done by marijuana prohibition. It has made no one safer, caused no benefit, and has not curbed use at all. In fact I guarantee you that one could walk into any high school in this country and by the end of the day have found some pot or someone willing to sell you pot. This can only be solved by legalization and responsible education/enforcement of policy. I hope you will reconsider your views.

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Actually I was speaking of the smoked variety which requires apparently that the smoke be inhaled and held in longer and deeper. True yuu don't get that with the eaten version or the tea version but you still get peole high as kites wonderign around doing stupid things and driving cars adn Americans just don't need another reason to act stupid. and do stupid stuff.

Andrew said:
John, although I respect your opinion and your right to have it, it is sadly misinformed. The use of marijuana dates back thousands of years, it happens to be the oldest recorded medically used plant and is considered sacred by various cultures around the world. Prior to federal legislation in the U.S. it was also widely used here. Believe it or not it has many documented and researched benefits and is far safer than both alcohol and tobacco. There is no actual need to smoke it, it can be eaten, made into a tea or a tincture. The dangers you speak of are (with the exception of possible lung damage) non-existent or a product of prohibition itself. Examples of problems arising from prohibition range from the proliferation of a black market for the substance which creates violence and wastes law enforcement time and money to the idea of a "gateway drug". However the "gateway drug" argument is fundamentally flawed because without prohibition marijuana would not be surrounded by the stigma created by its schedule 1 status. By keeping it illegal it places power in the hands of dealers who may also be dealing truly harmful drugs. If you get in just as much trouble smoking pot as you do from doing cocaine it becomes hard to differentiate truly harmful substances from relatively benign things like marijuana. As for your argument/response "or making people sicker and more stoned and thus injured from the stoned driving...." is also a poor argument seeing as it is completely legal to get as drunk as you want, and although it is illegal to drive in such a state it happens and is far more harmful. Would you also argue for a ban on alcohol? How about tobacco? Tobacco use directly contributes to hundreds of thousands of deaths a year and is far more addictive, would you also consider a ban on it? Prescription drugs contain cocktails of synthetic chemicals which when used at length (even for legal prescribed use) or abuse of can be extremely harmful. Even over the counter painkillers like Ibuprofen can be extremely harmful to your liver and digestive system with prolonged use. Marijuana, when grown correctly, is a completely organic plant material that requires no chemical processing and is completely natural. Thus far no prolonged negative effects have been associated with its use with the exception of lung damage as a result of smoking. In fact it has been found in several studies to inhibit cancer cell growth and may even be helpful in treating certain symptoms of Alzheimer's or ADHD. Aside from its already recognized use for things like glaucoma, insomnia, alleviation of pain and loss of apatite due to cancer or HIV/AIDS treatment, depression and anxiety to name a few, it is also a much safer recreational substance choice than the over consumption of alcohol which is an extremely large problem in this country especially among younger populations. With over 50,000 deaths a year associated with alcohol and over 400,000 with tobacco given the fact it is physically impossible to overdose on marijuana its continued illegal status is simply not logical. The war on drugs has been an utter failure, it is easier than ever to purchase high quality marijuana and use continues to increase among all demographics. It has even been shown by a recent Gallup poll that its medical use is becoming more and more acceptable every year. When anyone can grow marijuana in their closet, garage, or garden continuing to pursue failed enforcement policies is simply nothing more than masturbation and accomplishes nothing. Ruining lives simply for possession of a natural plant material and its personal use does nothing but cost the federal and state governments billions of dollars a year and continues to stress our already over crowded prison system. It may not be an easy transition but legalization and taxation could raise billions for government coffers and reduce stresses on law enforcement so they can focus on real crime. To go even further legalization would effectively eliminate the black market thus greatly decreasing drug trafficking related violence and leave the foreign cartels without a market or a reason to set up in the states. The reasons for legalization are too many to count. In the interest of time i decided to leave citations out but all of this is easily substantiated. A great resource is the NORML website www.norml.org, there you can find cited facts and figures about the damage that has been done by marijuana prohibition. It has made no one safer, caused no benefit, and has not curbed use at all. In fact I guarantee you that one could walk into any high school in this country and by the end of the day have found some pot or someone willing to sell you pot. This can only be solved by legalization and responsible education/enforcement of policy. I hope you will reconsider your views.

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John, I myself have used marijuana. I graduated from a top university with good grades, maintain an extremely active life style, and hold a job that i enjoy, all while using marijuana. I am not alone in this, hundreds of thousands of Americans use marijuana everyday for everything from recreation and to unwind to the alleviation of menstrual cramps (in fact my ex-girlfriend in college said it was the most effective thing she had ever used for cramps and pms, and i believe queen Victoria used it for cramps as well if i remember my History channel documentary facts correctly). Currently prescription pain pills are prescribed like candy, for example i went into the doctor because of back muscle spasms and was prescribed Flexeril, a high potency muscle relaxant, and was out of the office within 20 min. If you have never taken flexeril it makes you feel like a worthless pile of goo and is very incapacitating. Using small amounts of marijuana and stretching was and is far more effective and still allows for normal social and societal function, if you can look me in the eye and still say it has no medical benefit i would feel pity for that opinion. As long as the standard medical approach today is to throw pills at the problem there is no logical reason to continue prohibition when it is so obviously and completely ineffective. Especially when marijuana can be just as effective and far less harmful. High as a kite is an interesting way to view things when the mental side effects of so many legal prescriptions are far worse. Vicodin, a common prescription for chronic or severe acute pain, is a synthetic opiate that can not only greatly impair mental and physical performance it is also highly addictive and causes liver and digestive damage. Marijuana is not a cure all by any means and it cannot replace certain types of prescription applications but as a safer and cheaper option for many things it has innumerable benefits. My guess would be you have very limited experience with its use, the vast majority of marijuana users, like the majority of people who choose to drink, will not wonder around doing stupid things and are in fact high functioning members of society. The propaganda released in the past 60+ years by government agencies like the DEA is laughably false and easy to logically debunk. About the only thing that will get harmed by a chronic marijuana user is the pizza he or she will inevitably order and eat. I would even go as far as to say before you condemn it you should try it first in the safety of your own home. If you then find it to be the demon it is portrayed as you will have at least a partially informed platform from which to speak. It is not just a counter culture "drug" it is a legitimate natural substance with many safe uses that is used by people in every demographic, every age group, and every ethnic group in this country and should be accepted as such instead of stigmatized and persecuted.

John Antonelli said:
Actually I was speaking of the smoked variety which requires apparently that the smoke be inhaled and held in longer and deeper. True yuu don't get that with the eaten version or the tea version but you still get peole high as kites wonderign around doing stupid things and driving cars adn Americans just don't need another reason to act stupid. and do stupid stuff.

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You can get THC by prescription so why the need for this especailly since most people smoke it

and yes I can look you in the eye, but rather than type out all the evidence, may I suggest you do a search here on the conversation for marijuana.

Andrew said:
John, I myself have used marijuana. I graduated from a top university with good grades, maintain an extremely active life style, and hold a job that i enjoy, all while using marijuana. I am not alone in this, hundreds of thousands of Americans use marijuana everyday for everything from recreation and to unwind to the alleviation of menstrual cramps (in fact my ex-girlfriend in college said it was the most effective thing she had ever used for cramps and pms, and i believe queen Victoria used it for cramps as well if i remember my History channel documentary facts correctly). Currently prescription pain pills are prescribed like candy, for example i went into the doctor because of back muscle spasms and was prescribed Flexeril, a high potency muscle relaxant, and was out of the office within 20 min. If you have never taken flexeril it makes you feel like a worthless pile of goo and is very incapacitating. Using small amounts of marijuana and stretching was and is far more effective and still allows for normal social and societal function, if you can look me in the eye and still say it has no medical benefit i would feel pity for that opinion. As long as the standard medical approach today is to throw pills at the problem there is no logical reason to continue prohibition when it is so obviously and completely ineffective. Especially when marijuana can be just as effective and far less harmful. High as a kite is an interesting way to view things when the mental side effects of so many legal prescriptions are far worse. Vicodin, a common prescription for chronic or severe acute pain, is a synthetic opiate that can not only greatly impair mental and physical performance it is also highly addictive and causes liver and digestive damage. Marijuana is not a cure all by any means and it cannot replace certain types of prescription applications but as a safer and cheaper option for many things it has innumerable benefits. My guess would be you have very limited experience with its use, the vast majority of marijuana users, like the majority of people who choose to drink, will not wonder around doing stupid things and are in fact high functioning members of society. The propaganda released in the past 60+ years by government agencies like the DEA is laughably false and easy to logically debunk. About the only thing that will get harmed by a chronic marijuana user is the pizza he or she will inevitably order and eat. I would even go as far as to say before you condemn it you should try it first in the safety of your own home. If you then find it to be the demon it is portrayed as you will have at least a partially informed platform from which to speak. It is not just a counter culture "drug" it is a legitimate natural substance with many safe uses that is used by people in every demographic, every age group, and every ethnic group in this country and should be accepted as such instead of stigmatized and persecuted.

John Antonelli said:
Actually I was speaking of the smoked variety which requires apparently that the smoke be inhaled and held in longer and deeper. True yuu don't get that with the eaten version or the tea version but you still get peole high as kites wonderign around doing stupid things and driving cars adn Americans just don't need another reason to act stupid. and do stupid stuff.

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John, first yes you can get a THC pill so to speak. Its most common forms are called Marinol or Sativex, what you obviously are not aware of is that a synthesized form of THC in pill form is far more intoxicating and far more expensive than Marijuana in its raw un-refined form and is none more effective, go ask a cancer patient who has used either of the pill forms. So given your last response I agree with you. Why would we need synthesized chemical reproductions of a completely naturally occurring chemical found in an easy to grow plant? Why make a pill that does the same thing as a completely natural and if grown correctly additive and synthetic chemical free plant? That's a great question, although I do not know the answer to that I would suggest that money has something to do with it. Possibly pharmaceutical companies realizing that there is a market for it and their desire to exploit that market.

Second, I took your advice and read the entire thread on legalizing marijuana that you participated in back in April. Believe it or not nothing you wrote even offers any sort of logical argument for continued prohibition. You in total offered possibly three (but more likely only two) links to outside sources for your info, and did not respond when counter evidence was presented and cited. Lets take this one as an example http://www.marijuanaaddiction.info/news-left.htm?aid=49 that article does a lot to continually use the name of the "Journal of the American Medical Association" or JAMA. But it never cites a single individual study, not once in the entire article. Who conducted this study? Where was it conducted? Who was it reviewed by? When was it published? What was the study group? 311 sets of identical twins? Really? So according to this completely un-substantiated article with no citations 311 sets of identical twins, in the case of each pair one twin smoked pot and one didn't, the one that did smoke went on to do harder drugs. Hmmm... seems not only pretty dubious but also pretty ridiculous. In fact I would argue that either the study doesn't even exist or this particular article author cherry picked what he or she wanted in order to support a view point. Either way if they were reporting actual scientifically accepted research that had been published in a peer reviewed journal they would have cited or at least given the name and authors of the research article.

Your other link is to the NIDA website. One this is immediately cast into skeptical light because it is directly funded by government organizations that promote prohibition, thus there is no vested interest in being neutral on the issue and adhering to the scientific process. Apart from lung damage as a result of smoking every other "negative" effect is preceded by the word may, or can, or might lead to. There is no "it does lead to" or "studies prove this" it simply says some studies suggest. So yes I agree with you, smoking anything is bad for you. If you stand next to a camp fire long enough it will cause lung damage. There for keeping marijuana illegal simply because smoking is bad for you and "may" lead to cancer makes no sense. Breathing the air in Los Angles "may" cause cancer but that doesn't mean everyone there should be required to wear respirators. Look at the list of things in California that "are known by the state to cause cancer", it's massive. However you can still purchase items with those compounds in them. Some studies have shown the prolonged cell phone use may lead to an increased risk of brain cancers, so should we make cell phones illegal? They are contributing factors to hundreds if not thousands of car accidents every year, by your argument these two things are enough to out law something. The argument you shouldn't do this because it might cause something, or saying we know that inhaling anything other than clean air is bad for you so you shouldn't in hale marijuana smoke just doesn't logically work out in support of prohibition. Coffee is bad for you and addictive, what about coffee. It's a plant with a mind and body altering chemical compound contained within it that when consumed can negatively affect the body or mind, should we out law coffee? It requires more processing than marijuana does and can contribute to un-fare labor conditions it poorer countries that participate in the coffee trade. Is it evil?

But I digress. Back to the NIDA website. Using a single study to assert a scientific assumption, especially trying to assert it as fact as this website attempts to do, does not work. Scientific and medical consensus is very different than saying a (single) study suggests. I'm sure if you wanted you could track down a published study that claims the earth is flat if you really looked hard enough. As your other postings in other threads prove you have no factual basis for any of your view points, clearly do not understand the basic tenants of science, and are promoting your view from a completely miss-informed opinion based stand point. Why don't you try marijuana? Since your only arguments are "smoking is bad for you" and "it makes you stupid" why don't you have someone bake something for you that contains marijuana. I can give you some great recipes. Then you can tell me if it makes you stupid, or if you think it is as evil as you seem to think. Believe it or not throwing a pill at the problem might not always be the best answer. The fact that you claim to be able to look me in the eye and tell me that no marijuana does not make me feel better, or it does not ease my back pain, or it does not alleviate my ex-girlfriends menstrual cramps is ridiculous. What basis do you even have to say that? You are not me, and the fact that you have been spoon fed "marijuana is bad" since a young age does not add any credence to your ability to tell me it has no medical use when anecdotal (and scientific) evidence clearly proves otherwise. I suggest you first come to terms with how to conduct proper research both of the existing literature and of your own personal experience before you try to wade into science.
Lets use your "it makes you stupid" argument. My housemate and friend has a Bachelors degree in Mechanical Engineering, a Masters degree in Climate Science and Data Analysis with a specific focus on air borne particulate matter. He works collecting and analyzing air born dust particulate data to asses air quality. He also happens to smoke more pot than anyone I know. Is he stupid? How about myself? I have a environmental degree with a sustainable development focus and work in restoring sensitive habitats, maintaining ecological function, and promoting responsible and sustainable use of our public lands including wilderness areas, managed forests and sensitive desert and mountain ecosystems. I also smoke marijuana for both therapeutic and recreational purposes. Am I stupid? Here is another anecdote from my own experience: For my job I am often required to stay in the back country for days at a time (i.e. no where near my car, my house, or most of the time even a road) this means if i need it, it comes in on my back in a pack. That often means I must walk for miles with a 50+ pound back pack on, I weigh about 145 lbs, so I have to carry over a third of my body weight around in the mountains most of the time above 9,000ft in elevation to boot. Naturally this leads to sore joints and a sore back, now i could take Flexoril (for which i have a prescription), I could use an infective over the counter drug, smoke a little marijuana, or just deal with the pain. Given that the only good options would be Flexoril or marijuana I think I will choose the one that won't completely incapacitate me and will give me an enjoyable feeling "high" if you will, marijuana fits the bill. And just to make everything better I get all of my marijuana straight from the AMERICAN grower. I know exactly where it came from, whats in it, how it was grown and where the money I pay for it goes. No cartel involvement there.

So given the absence of any legitimate scientific citations for your positions other than the well known "smoking is bad". And your complete lack of personal experience with marijuana you have no platform from which to support you views.

John Antonelli said:
You can get THC by prescription so why the need for this especailly since most people smoke it

and yes I can look you in the eye, but rather than type out all the evidence, may I suggest you do a search here on the conversation for marijuana.

Andrew said:
John, I myself have used marijuana. I graduated from a top university with good grades, maintain an extremely active life style, and hold a job that i enjoy, all while using marijuana. I am not alone in this, hundreds of thousands of Americans use marijuana everyday for everything from recreation and to unwind to the alleviation of menstrual cramps (in fact my ex-girlfriend in college said it was the most effective thing she had ever used for cramps and pms, and i believe queen Victoria used it for cramps as well if i remember my History channel documentary facts correctly). Currently prescription pain pills are prescribed like candy, for example i went into the doctor because of back muscle spasms and was prescribed Flexeril, a high potency muscle relaxant, and was out of the office within 20 min. If you have never taken flexeril it makes you feel like a worthless pile of goo and is very incapacitating. Using small amounts of marijuana and stretching was and is far more effective and still allows for normal social and societal function, if you can look me in the eye and still say it has no medical benefit i would feel pity for that opinion. As long as the standard medical approach today is to throw pills at the problem there is no logical reason to continue prohibition when it is so obviously and completely ineffective. Especially when marijuana can be just as effective and far less harmful. High as a kite is an interesting way to view things when the mental side effects of so many legal prescriptions are far worse. Vicodin, a common prescription for chronic or severe acute pain, is a synthetic opiate that can not only greatly impair mental and physical performance it is also highly addictive and causes liver and digestive damage. Marijuana is not a cure all by any means and it cannot replace certain types of prescription applications but as a safer and cheaper option for many things it has innumerable benefits. My guess would be you have very limited experience with its use, the vast majority of marijuana users, like the majority of people who choose to drink, will not wonder around doing stupid things and are in fact high functioning members of society. The propaganda released in the past 60+ years by government agencies like the DEA is laughably false and easy to logically debunk. About the only thing that will get harmed by a chronic marijuana user is the pizza he or she will inevitably order and eat. I would even go as far as to say before you condemn it you should try it first in the safety of your own home. If you then find it to be the demon it is portrayed as you will have at least a partially informed platform from which to speak. It is not just a counter culture "drug" it is a legitimate natural substance with many safe uses that is used by people in every demographic, every age group, and every ethnic group in this country and should be accepted as such instead of stigmatized and persecuted.

John Antonelli said:
Actually I was speaking of the smoked variety which requires apparently that the smoke be inhaled and held in longer and deeper. True yuu don't get that with the eaten version or the tea version but you still get peole high as kites wonderign around doing stupid things and driving cars adn Americans just don't need another reason to act stupid. and do stupid stuff.

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Well there we go. It is addictive. They are getting it from some jack leg grower with what potency level and with what pesticide? Most soke it which leads to other problems like oh, lung cancer.

We really don't need another avenue to get high. There are other options for the sick which can guarantee potency and purity. So there you go

I am sorry the National Institutes of Health is not good enough for you. It is fgor me.

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"Americans just don't need another reason to act stupid. and do stupid stuff....We really don't need another avenue to get high. There are other options for the sick which can guarantee potency and purity. So there you go"

Spoken like a true defender of our precious American freedoms. Somewhere Thomas Paine is crying in his beer.

:)

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What? John, not only did your response not make any sense in the context of the conversation but it did not even further your point. The link that was provided sent me to an article that offered a pretty good defense of medical marijuana and simply said that it may lead to addiction and if you notice any symptoms of addiction to seek help. There was nothing in there condemning the use of medical or recreational marijuana and it didn't even offer any scientific evidence that it is addictive. Yes a person can become addicted to anything. The 400 lb guy who eats McDonald's everyday is probably addicted to the high fat, processed, high sodium food there. I can legitimately say I am addicted to coffee does this mean I am a detriment to society? No it means I get a head ache for a few hours if I don't drink coffee then I drink some water and it goes away. The possibility of addiction is not a good reason for prohibition, otherwise the list of illegal substances would be too long to comprehend. You can be addicted to sex, attention, pain, foods, absence of food, sugar, pretty much anything.
"They are getting it from some jack leg grower with what potency level and with what pesticide?" What does that even refer to? Obviously nothing that came from this conversation. Who is They? You can't be referring to me because I told you where I get my marijuana, and there was nothing in the linked to article about any suppliers. Most people "soke it" i assume you meant smoke it but again poor argument because even though that is the most common way to use it, it is not necessary if that individual doesn't want to. So that is a personal choice. What about tobacco which has absolutely no therapeutic uses and is just plain bad for you and extremely addictive. From your previous posts elsewhere I would assume you want to out law that too and throw smokers in jail for their choice to smoke simply because it is bad for them. Your in the wrong country for that my friend.

It's obvious that logic does not appeal to you, neither do personal freedoms or science. So unless you can provide actual science to support your view other than "smoking is bad for you" or at least some kind of anecdotal evidence I will consider this conversation over, a win for me and marijuana (both medical and recreational) and consider you stubborn and ignorant. You should do some research. Smoking is bad is a pretty thin veil to hide behind.

John Antonelli said:
Well there we go. It is addictive. They are getting it from some jack leg grower with what potency level and with what pesticide? Most soke it which leads to other problems like oh, lung cancer.

We really don't need another avenue to get high. There are other options for the sick which can guarantee potency and purity. So there you go

I am sorry the National Institutes of Health is not good enough for you. It is fgor me.

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