Drinking alcohol and smoking pot – what are your thoughts?

[Porknpie]

I’m not a pot smoker, but I will answer you that what you posted about pot is the same symptoms related to drinking alcohol. I believe Catholics and Christians can drink alcohol with these same symptoms as you listed above to the glory of God. Until you are willing to start a prohibition movement against drinking for Catholics, you argument holds no water from my perspective. I think you are in the wrong Christian circles because I do know Catholics laity and clergy drink quite a bit of alcohol. Your personal views on drinking and smoking fit well in Christian Protestant Fundamentalism with rules of no drinking, no dancing, or no dating women who do those things. Until the Catholic Magestrieum makes a dogmatic statement on legalized pot smoking, I think you should leave this issue to the individual conscience of your fellow Catholics. In addition, are you willing to fight a prohibition against medical marijuna usage for those who beneift from it?

CU, I confess…I do not know what happened to my link. I always test drive them to make sure that they will work…perhaps I failed. Here’s another link on marijuana (cnn article from Mayo Clinic). All the points the same but they add the carcinogenic issue…of course if one is Bill Clinton and didn’t inhale the risk would be minimized. Nothing holy here. Of course I defer to doctors on the subject of medical marijuana but we were talking about recreational usage.

www-cgi.cnn.com/HEALTH/library/GA/00014.html

Not without risks

Though some doctors and patients suggest marijuana has a legitimate use, the United States government disagrees. Federal law recognizes marijuana as a Schedule I drug, which classifies it as one of “the most dangerous drugs that have no recognized medical use.” If law-enforcement officers find you with the drug in your possession, the penalty can range from a small fine to a prison sentence.

Along with the legal implications, smoking marijuana poses several health risks, including:

Impairment of thinking, problem-solving skills and memory
Reduced balance and coordination
Increased risk of heart attack
Heightened risk of chronic cough and respiratory infections
Potential for hallucinations and withdrawal symptoms
Also, marijuana smoke contains 50 percent to 70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than does tobacco smoke and has the potential to cause cancer of the lungs and respiratory tract. Marijuana smoke is commonly inhaled deeper and held longer than is tobacco smoke, increasing the lungs’ exposure to carcinogens.

These risks should be taken into account when considering the use of marijuana for medical purposes. If you are experiencing uncomfortable symptoms or side effects of medical treatment, especially pain and nausea, talk to your doctor about all your options before trying marijuana.

 

[JonNC]

Pope Benedict XVI is a fellow Bavarian. If he doesn’t know good beer, there is no hope left in the world.

Jon

 

[Christian_Unity]

I told my children that if I ever catch them with pot, that I will personally call the police and have them arrested, and then I will take their college fund and buy a ZR1 Corvette.

Anyone who smokes pot is an idiot, like I was for eleven years.

-Tim-

What is not done in faith is sin. For your brother, smoking pot is sin. The police are not going to arrest them for possession of a small amount of pot.

 

[april32010]

The police are not going to arrest them for possession of a small amount of pot.

depends on where he lives

 

[Christian_Unity]

depends on where he lives

It’s quite benefical to live in those blue states.

 

[Porknpie]

It’s quite benefical to live in those blue states.

If you believe that smoking pot is beneficial.

 

[Swiss_Guy]

If you believe that smoking pot is beneficial.

Depends which blue state; then it depends if you aren’t an unborn child

 

[JonNC]

If you believe that smoking pot is beneficial.

And oppressive tax rates.

Jon

 

[dzheremi]

My current state “went blue” again this year. The benefits of that choice are not immediately obvious to me…

 

[CopticChristian]

It’s quite benefical to live in those blue states.

CU,

Here is some reality testing for you…

npr.org/blogs/money/2012/11/16/165245222/its-legal-to-sell-marijuana-in-washington-but-try-telling-that-to-a-bank

Banks won’t lend money to start up Medical Marijuana clinics because Federal Law Prohibits use of Marijuana…

npr.org/blogs/health/2012/11/20/165554172/when-your-state-says-yes-to-medical-marijuana-but-your-insurer-says-no

Insurance companies may not cover medical marijuana, why? Because…

It’s a federal crime to use marijuana, even in states that permit it for medicinal purposes, she says. And employers and health plans want to see stronger scientific evidence that marijuana is as safe and effective as other drugs to treat pain or nausea, for example, before they cover it.

 

[andrewstx]

I was reading an article in TEXAS MONTHLY last night about Willie Nelson that made a lot of sense to me.

The marijuana trade is responsible for many deaths each year, esp in border states like Texas. The drug cartels more or less run mexico, and cause a lot of crimes other than just pot crimes, supporting the marijuana trade.

Like gun running, kidnapping, and of course murder. The border Mexicans even honour a non-existent “saint” called Santo Muerto (saint death in Spanish). Texas has the most prisons in the US full of drug users.

I do not smoke marijuana!

So why not make marijuana legal, tax it heavliy for revenue the state desperatly needs, and free many non-violent drug users?

That will end much of the border crime when people can meet their needs legally. The drug warshould not last forever, and we all will be the losers.

Sorry for not expressing myself more clearly.

 

[Porknpie]

I was reading an article in TEXAS MONTHLY last night about Willie Nelson that made a lot of sense to me.

The marijuana trade is responsible for many deaths each year

A joint can blow up night clubs and decapitate bodies?

The drug cartels more or less run mexico, and cause a lot of crimes other than just pot crimes

True. Your assumption that if you remove the evil of marijuana the cartels will make peace is faulty. The cartels will find other illegal activities to keep themselves in power and to enrich their wallets.

So why not make marijuana legal, tax it heavliy for revenue the state desperatly needs, and free many non-violent drug users?

The states don’t need more money, they need to spend less. Those who do not respect the law will find other vices. Most in prison are for dealing…they’ll deal or steal something else.

 

[Ghosty]

A joint can blow up night clubs and decapitate bodies?

The competition, largely for marijuana money, is the impetus for these actions. Just as the Valentine’s Day Massacre wouldn’t have happened without black-market alcohol money to fight over, many murders simply wouldn’t happen as the market shrinks.

There will always be criminals profiting from crime, but the drug trade (and especially marijuana) is the big money bag that most of the fights occur over. Eliminate the market and you eliminate the money, eliminate the money and you eliminate both the funding for hiring criminal killers and in the impetus for hiring them. The cartels won’t go away, but they will shrink as will their influence; there simply isn’t a market comparable to marijuana for them to fight over.

The states don’t need more money, they need to spend less. Those who do not respect the law will find other vices. Most in prison are for dealing…they’ll deal or steal something else.

How about making money AND spending less, as in making money off of taxed marijuana and spending less on arresting and incarcerating people. When “dealing” becomes a legal, regulated, and licensed there is no reason for them to enter other criminal activities.

I know many people who deal marijuana and use it (it’s been decriminalized here for some time), and none of them are “looking for other vices”. On the contrary, many of the dealers are looking at ways to enter the legitimate business of licensed selling; they don’t want to be criminals, but they like the profits.

A final point: legalizing and regulating is the best way to keep marijuana out of the hands of more kids. Criminals generally won’t have a problem selling to kids, but people who have to worry about losing their license certainly will. During Prohibition it was no big deal to sell whiskey to a 15 year old at four in the morning (selling is a crime anyway, so why be scrupulous about who you sell to), but afterwards it became much harder for kids to get their hands on liquor.

I want marijuana to be out of the hands of kids as much as possible, and legalizing it is the best option for that.

Peace and God bless!

[/QUOTE]

 

[april32010]

Criminals generally won’t have a problem selling to kids, but people who have to worry about losing their license certainly wil

so dealers will stop selling to kids?

 

[Ghosty]

so dealers will stop selling to kids?

Criminal dealers won’t be widespread anymore. For one it would be less risky to get a license, but that means being monitored and regulated. Secondly, legal pot could quite possibly be much cheaper than what’s available on the black-market as it’s not an expensive plant to grow and most the price is mark-up from risk.

Illegal dealers will still exist, and they will likely sell to kids, but it will also be easier to target illegal dealers because there will be fewer of them. The goal is to lessen the number of illegal dealers, and legalization is the best way to do that.

Peace and God bless!

 

[pismopal]

My current state “went blue” again this year. The benefits of that choice are not immediately obvious to me…

Move to California…we probably have a “program” funded by tax payers which will inform you about why you should be happy to live in a blue state. Everyone is happy here except the people who are paying the bills.

 

[Zooey]

Years ago (when I was young and stupid) I convinced a co-worker (an avid pot smoker) to smoke a crayon (actually a paper wrapped pencil) on a dare (you could smoke in the office in those days).
When the smell reached the other side of the office, a fellow worker casually walked over and asked what he was smoking (thinking it was pot). My co-worker replied “no, its a crayon”.
“Oh…ok…” the guy said, and walked away shaking his head.

I almost laughed myself into changing my pants.
I can still see the look on that guys face to this day.

What are your thoughts on eating granite?

Hard on teeth.

pig:

or what are your thoughts on smoking aardvarks?

:hypno: :dts:

pig:

or what are your thoughts on slurping slime?

I prefer Old Granddad, myslef.:kissme:

pig:

Very interesting, why do you need to?

This is a very silly thread.

What we really need is the Spanish Inquisition!

 

[JustaServant]

You really had to actually meet the guy to know it was so funny. If its true that smoking pot destroys brain cells, this guy needed to stop IMMEDIATELY.
He needed every brain cell he could muster.

 

[Porknpie]

Porknpie;10069921:

I know many people who deal marijuana and use it (it’s been decriminalized here for some time), and none of them are “looking for other vices”. On the contrary, many of the dealers are looking at ways to enter the legitimate business of licensed selling; they don’t want to be criminals,

but they like the profits.Every criminal has an excuse… “I don’t want to be a criminal” is, well, a very lame one. :ehh: I don’t trust any of them who sell to adults today, let alone children. When you walk away from God, you walk away and will find other vices. Conversion of the heart and soul is needed. On that I think we can agree… perhaps?

A final point: legalizing and regulating is the best way to keep marijuana out of the hands of more kids.

Nay. It hasn’t worked for cigarettes and alchohol. This is a supply and demand issue…the issue starts with the demand. Basic economics: lowered prices will only increase its use…you are assuming that the cartels will not respond by lowering their prices. If it is that profitable they will fight for their marketshare no matter what the price. However, price it higher than today’s street prices and this will only keep the cartels coming across the border. Either way, the cartels are a criminal element meeting a demand.

And the discussion above sidesteps the fact that pot is morally evil to begin with. Look at the side affects. Does smoking pot honor God and make us Holy? No. Not even close.

 

[triumphguy]

…

And the discussion above sidesteps the fact that pot is morally evil to begin with. Look at the side affects. Does smoking pot honor God and make us Holy? No. Not even close.

Does football, basketball or hockey?
Does going to the movie theatre?
Does eating dessert?
What about wearing baseball caps?

Lots of things we do neither honour God, nor make us holy - yet they are not sinful.