by Heart Watched

Question by : Need Ur Help! Any Law Students? On Marijuana Legalization!?
we’re gonna debate on the legalization of marijuana. its more like an argument, not a trial. 10 Min’s each. i know you guys love it! we are the proponent team. now i need more examples that have a high authority, any recent case about marijuana? do you have any or a draft you’ve worked before? i checked on findlaw.com found little about it…thank u folks. contact me at [email protected]
@Ergre United States of America! thank you

Best answer:

Answer by Ergre
dude – marijuana legislation of what country?

Answer by ☯420★
The following source states how the prohibition of drugs has failed, thus recommending the legalisation of illicit substances. Specifically, it mentions the legalisation of cannabis.
– http://www.globalcommissionondrugs.org/Report

This report was conducted by the “Family Council of Drug Awareness” Europe. It states that the prohibition of cannabis is unfounded and recommends that it should be reversed. They also go into details about the Cannabis Biomass Energy Equation — it shows how marijuana is the best bio fuel.
– Cannabis: The Facts, Human Rights and the Law – The Report of the FCDA Europe:

The following is a patent given by the US government. The US government often states that marijuana has no medicinal benefits, yet it has given a patent stating that cannabinoids (found in THC in marijuana) has great medicinal benefits.
– U.S. Patent # 6630507: “Cannabinoids as Antioxidants and Neuroprotectants”

I’d recommend you do the following areas for your presentation:
– How prohibition does not work: Use the first source and examples of how the US government spends billions of dollars each year on the “War on Drugs”. In spite of this, marijuana use is on the increase and its availability is also increasing. The lack of government regulation, such as that seen with alcohol and cigarettes, means it is easier for younger people to get access to marijuana compared to alcohol and cigarettes. (CASA report: http://blog.norml.org/2009/08/28/study-says-its-easier-for-teens-to-buy-marijuana-than-beer/)
– How marijuana is medically less harmful and addictive than other legal drugs: Alcohol is more dangerous than marijuana; show how many people die each year from alcohol, compared to the number who have overdosed from marijuana — ZERO people have died from marijuana overdoses.

To summarise, think about the following:
– negative effects on society due to prohibition causing more gang crime, etc.
– negative effects on economy due to billions being wasted trying to enforce the prohibition.
– medical facts that marijuana is less dangerous than other legal drugs, and how cannabinoids have been shown to be medically beneficial.

You’ll nail the debate because there are no valid arguments from the opposition who support its criminalisation.

P.S. If they mention Dr Heath’s study in 1974 which linked cannabis to brain damage, remind them that it was because the monkeys were starved of oxygen during the experiment, as he pumped 50 joints worth of cannabis into the monkey without including oxygen — it was oxygen starvation which caused the brain damage, not marijuana!

Dr Heath’s study is the main foundation of all the propaganda and misinformation out there. Modern medical science has debunked his findings.

Also, they’ll probably mention it causes mental illnesses. Again, this is wrong. Only those who have mental illnesses in their genes are susceptible to it being highlighted by marijuana. Cannabis DOES NOT cause mental illnesses.

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Question by James: Will short term memory from weed last forever?
Im a 14 year old kid im really scared i tried weed once like one puff and now im freaking out i have really bad anxiety alot of people tell me it from that but i dont know i worry about illnesses and stuff what i do is think back to like yesterday then i forget something that happened yesterday and i freak out will this last forever when i think about it that it will last forever and my anxiety i think i should just kill myself and all my worries will go away Thanks James

Best answer:

Answer by KauaiChrons
It’s just short-term, you’re freaking yourself over nothing. However stay away from it you’re way too young, it’s not good on the developing brain. Coping skills is just one of the things you will lack if you continue to smoke weed. This is long term scientific studies recently collected, and was tested with ADULTS, but you should be more educated about marijuana:

Source:( http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/… )
Analysis of Studies Finds Little Effect From Long-Term Use
By Sid Kirchheimer
WebMD Health News
July 1, 2003 — Long-term and even daily marijuana use doesn’t appear to cause permanent brain damage, adding to evidence that it can be a safe and effective treatment for a wide range of diseases, say researchers.
The researchers found only a “very small” impairment in memory and learning among long-term marijuana users. Otherwise, scores on thinking tests were similar to those who don’t smoke marijuana, according to a new analysis of 15 previous studies.
In those studies, some 700 regular marijuana users were compared with 484 non-users on various aspects of brain function — including reaction time, language and motor skills, reasoning ability, memory, and the ability to learn new information.

Surprising Finding:
“We were somewhat surprised by our finding, especially since there’s been a controversy for some years on whether long-term cannabis use causes brain damage,” says lead researcher and psychiatrist Igor Grant, MD.
“I suppose we expected to see some differences in people who were heavy users, but in fact the differences were very minimal.”
The marijuana users in those 15 studies — which lasted between three months to more than 13 years — had smoked marijuana several times a week or month or daily. Still, researchers say impairments were less than what is typically found from using alcohol or other drugs.

Source: ( http://www.bioedonline.org/news/news.cfm… )
Many drugs, such as heroin, cocaine and alcohol, inhibit the growth of new cells in the hippocampus, which scientists believe could emotionally destabilize addicts. Understanding how drugs affect the hippocampus may have a critical role in treating addiction.Neuropsychologist Xia Zhang and a team of researchers based at the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, Canada, aimed to find out just how marijuana-like drugs, known collectively as cannabinoids, act on the brain.

The researchers injected rats with HU210, a synthetic drug that is about one-hundred times as powerful as THC, the high-inducing compound naturally found in marijuana. They then used a chemical tracer to watch new cells growing in the hippocampus.

They found that HU210 seemed to induce new brain cell growth, just as some antidepressant drugs do, they report in the Journal of Clinical Investigation. This suggests that they could potentially be used to reduce anxiety and depression, Zhang says. He adds that the research might help to create new cannabinoid-based treatments.

“I think it’s a very exciting study,” says Amelia Eisch, an addiction researcher at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas. “It makes marijuana look more like an antidepressant and less like a drug of abuse.”

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Question by Liza Shevchuk: Natural Remedies For Brain Damage After Drug Abuse?
My older brother has done many drugs from about 16-21. Its been a year since his last use, and he’s been having some serious problems. He has high anxiety and he’s been having frequent episodes of “weird” (as he calls it) feelings. He doesn’t label it as feeling sick. During these episodes he feels jittery, emotional (even cry’s sometimes) out of control, his heart rate goes up. This also causes him to have insomnia. Maybe they’re panic attacks, but the thing is, what triggers it? This occurs randomly on a normal day. We believe its typical withdrawal symptoms, because he abused quite a few drugs. (Marijuana, cigarettes, ecstasy, crystal meth, shrooms, hookah, cocaine, inhalants, “uppers” (as he calls them))
He has gone to see his doctor several times to get treatment, and his doctor said he has migraines.
-____-
He prescribed him anti depressants and that didn’t help my brother AT ALL.
He does this herbal drop treatment (echinacea, other oils, etc) That help him sleep.
Now we’re trying to find him herbal remedies that would help repair his brain damage from all of the abuse he has done to it.
Thank you very much.

Best answer:

Answer by jannsody
I’m not sure that there will be repairing of the brain damage (presuming that he has that as I’m not a medical doctor :), but researchers believe that the brain is very “plastic” and may form new nerve pathways to *help* compensate for the injured areas.

With regard to inhalant use, my friend actually has a severe Brain Injury from huffing at the age of 12, now in her 30s. The chemicals in products used for huffing are actual *poisons* that were never meant to go through the bloodstream.

Please be *very* careful with herbal supplements or “remedies” (e.g., echinacea, ginkgo biloba, chamomile) as they can result in side effects and/or drug (medication) interactions. It’s best to check with a licensed pharmacist before taking any of them. Not everything that is “natural” is safe 😉

Regarding the panic attacks, some people have generalized anxiety (to know specific event) or other types of anxiety. The antidepressants may help to lessen the intensity and/or frequency of the anxiety symptoms. Such medications tend to take about 6-8 weeks before possibly noticing results. A caveat (warning) is that some antidepressants may cause insomnia (trouble getting to and/or staying asleep). However, there are medications that one may take to help counteract the insomnia.

Even though benzo’s (e.g., ativan, valium, xanax, klonopin) may be prescribed to help with sleep, they’re not always recommended as a medication due to their physical addictiveness. (Some withdrawal symptoms from benzo’s may include seizures, psychosis/mental break from reality, or even death.) Some psychiatrists (it’s best to get medication for mental health issues from a board-certified psychiatrist as opposed to “just” a family doctor) prescribe seroquel (or other medications), which is classified as an antipsychotic but in smaller dosages may help with sleep.

You’d mentioned that he’s gone to the doctor several times, and I’m wondering if he’s gone to a neurologist which is medical dr who can help rule out disorders of the nervous system – brain, spinal cord, nerves. I’m just thinking that to help “cover all the bases” (not trying to give false hope though, know what I mean).

I’m not sure that he’d still be going through withdrawal symptoms a year after stopping the drugs, but it’s a good idea to ask a doctor about that as well.

Pertaining to the anxiety, please show him this government site which may have some local counseling agencies: http://findtreatment.samhsa.gov/ and can click the second link. Then one can click “near you” on the left-hand side of the page under “find facilities” and can type one’s city and state of residence into search. Their toll-free 24/7 referral helpline: 1-800-662-HELP (4357). Just an fyi that the first link is for those looking for substance abuse counseling/treatment, and that may be an option if he’s still “using” or having cravings for substances.

A 12-step program, such as Alcoholics Anonymous (AA), may have some local support groups. The only requirement is having a desire to get sober. One may attend an “open” AA meeting if there is no drinking problem: http://www.aa.org

This site has some common mottos pertaining to those 12-step programs, including “One day at a time”, “First things first” and “People, places and things”: http://www.royy.com/toolsofrecovery.html

Al-Anon is a 12-step program for the *friends and family* of the problem drinker, but one may attend an “open” Al-Anon meeting if the loved one doesn’t have a drinking problem: http://www.al-anon.alateen.org

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