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well kudos to them. I've never seen anyone function while using pot regularly. not one person and i know a lot of smokers.

Alcohol, because of the fact that there have been no cases where someone has been killed from Pot. That and the fact that Marajuana was only illegalized to keep non-white culture opressed. When immigrants from mexico brought it over, Texas was first to pass laws against the drug, and though they said it was to keep marajuana, the 'crazy drug' under control, it was really just a reason for them to bust down on immigrants. The US government then used the 'fact' that marajuana would cause you to go crazy and kill people as propaganda against it. Ill have my resource once the page loads!

it's no worse than video games, eating, sex, gambling, or anything else that people can get addicted to.

(Doesn't this belong in off-topic? Or maybe extended discussion?)

Everything in moderation...

I drink occasionally, and smoke weed infrequently. I do not enjoy smoke, of any kind, and usually only use weed when I have a migraine. If it didn't help with those, I probably wouldn't use it at all. I enjoy drinking sometimes, but I do not enjoy being drunk.

I don't think either should be criminalized, and I have seen people dependant on both substances.

From what I've seen, people who become reliant on either alcohol or weed have other problems in their lives to begin with, and end up using the substance to escape from or cope with these problems. The same can be said of any number of other substances, both legal and not.

I have met more people who have smoked weed than haven't. I think many people who are rigidly anti-marijuana would be surprised at how many hard-working, intelligent, productive members of society enjoy smoking weed from time to time. Again, moderation is key.

In terms of heavy, regular use of either substance, I'm not sure which would be worse.

Long-term heavy drinking leads to all kinds of health problems, particularly with your liver, but also with your brain and god knows what else. I know less about the health effects of marijuana (it is difficult to find truly objective information on the matter, and I haven't been overly inclined to do much digging), but I know quite a few people who are...well, burnt out. I always find it unsettling to talk to people like that. Long-term, heavy use of weed is not a healthy thing.

Alcohol seems to be a factor in a lot of accidents, but I wouldn't be surprised if weed was, too. That said, when my friends are stoned, they aren't usually inclined to do much more than sit and eat and watch TV; engaging in reckless activities, even driving, isn't high on their list of priorities.

My mother lost her best friend (a woman that was like a second mother to me, when I was younger) to alcoholism. The woman is still very much alive, but has ruined nearly all of her friendships. Even her sons want nothing to do with her anymore. It's horrible to watch a person slowly go from smart, loving, kind, and reliable to...well...a raging, unstable, foul-mouthed harpy. >_>

On the other side of the coin, one of my former friends is so obsessed with weed that I can't stand to be around her anymore. :s All she talks about is getting high, or being high, or how great x kind of weed is...you get the idea. Her entire life revolves around marijuana, and it's just...boring and sad. And I work with someone who is downright cranky when he hasn't had his daily joint. He's a pain in the a** to work with unless he's high, because he doesn't seem to know any other way to be.

I think the deciding factor for me is violence. A lot of people get aggressive when drunk. I suppose I should say, being drunk makes an aggressive person more likely to act on the aggression, simply because it removes their inhibitions. I live near a number of bars, and fights are a guaranteed thing every night they're open. *shrug*

I've got a school full of smokers. They're not at the top of their game most of the time, but they're functional. Actually, some of them get less rowdy when they're buzzed, and it makes the class go more smoothly.

I think every deals differently with it- I know it helps some with the stress of exams, but it also loses others a lot of their thinking ability.

Marijuana can also be taken in small doses, with no ill effects. In fact, it's legally prescribed for many people in Canada and some places in the US, and legal to smoke in coffee shops in countries such as the Netherlands. :3 Just something to think about.



We are all definitely biased by what we've experienced and seen in our own lives. I never tried marijuana until I was well into university, for a variety of reasons. One of them was because all the stoners I knew in high school seemed to be slackers and idiots. xD

As I've gotten older, finished university, and have been in the workforce...my perspective has definitely shifted somewhat. That's not to say that yours will (or that it should). Life is funny. :3