atomicfusion

Which do you think is more unhealthy? Alcohol is obviously more unhealthy in the short term, but what about the long term? Which is more addictive? Would you legalize pot?

nbachris2788

I don't think anybody has ever died of smoking too much pot in one night.

To show ridiculous drug policy is in America, Michael Vick is getting more flak for having a particle of marijuana in his water bottle than Shawne Merriman has gotten for his use of hazardous steroids.

atomicfusion

I know it is literally impossible to overdose on pot. The LD50 for THC is about 1,000 times what the typical person smokes in one night. That's why I said alcohol is obviously more unhealthy in the short term. I wanted to get opinions on the long term.

Venkat89

No one has died after ODing on pot (is it even possible?) but plenty of kids die of liver poisoning after drinking too much in one night. Lots of pot heads stop after college is over, while many alcoholics continue to drink for a long time. Pot has worse effects like killing your short term memory, making you apathetic, and in the long term, it destroys your brain (but alcohol does this too). Pot is supposedly worse for your lungs than a cigarette (like one joint = 4 cigarettes or something), but some people smoke a pack a day and I doubt people smoke more than 3-5 grams a day (the serious pot heads). I would legalize pot, but thats just me.

Jman2306

I'd say alcohol is worse than pot. My dad was an alcoholic for awhile, and he got angry very easily and would argue with my mom all the time. I'd just go into my room and lock it. He tries to drink less now.

Pot should be legalized, as long as the user is responsible.

nbachris2788

If we outlaw pot, I think we should outlaw football too because of all the severe brain damage that retired players have to live with.

There's no good explanation to why pot is illegal, other than the fact that marijuana is associated with groups that Washington hates: young people, hippies, blacks, etc.

Venkat89

Maybe our generation will legalize it

MallomarCookie

Alcohol is definitely worse for you both in the long term and short term. But pot is smoked--and smoking anything regularly is No Good. Plus, research has stated that chronic pot use (no pun intended haha) leads to an increased risk of schizophrenia.
I hate to say it, but pot is a gateway drug. It's not addictive at all (alcohol is much more addictive) but it is somewhat addictive in the sense that it might turn you on to further drug use. It might--I'd say most people don't move any "further" down the drug line. But some do and you should be aware of that possible mindset shift.
I wouldn't legalize pot. Pot's benign (much more so than alcohol) but the fact that drug use would spike after legalization is not good--it's not a price I'd be willing to pay (especially because it wouldn't end the serious drug-related crime: that's related to hard drugs, and those ain't ever gonna be legalized).
Part of the reason pot smoking is "safe" is that no one smokes a pack of joints a day--far too expensive. Legalization would lower prices (you can't keep prices artificially high and expect to compete with black market pot) and people would experience the negative effects of smoking. Terrible. But it's a complex issue. We'll see.

umbrellas

Alcohol is a lot more harmful, I think.
I'd legalize weed. I don't drink or do weed etc. but I think that if cigarettes and alcohol are legal and taxed, so should marijuana.

atomicfusion

What about eating pot? I know that inhaling smoke isn't good your the lungs, but there was a study recently that showed pot smoke is not carcinogenic.

Venkat89

Eating makes you high faster (havn't tired it, but thats what I hear).

atomicfusion

No.......

eating definitely makes you high much slower

MallomarCookie

Eating it straight won't do **** because you haven't activated the THC. You'd have to mix it with a fat and bake it into those infamous brownies, which are in fact powerful and effective. So yeah you can get high without smoking.

darkrulerII

Um, isn't a joint as harmful to the lungs as 10 cigarettes?

Alcohol filters out of the body over time; you need to drink excessive amounts in a short time to cause lasting damage. But with marijuana, as with cigarettes, every use causes permanent damge, however small.

I'd say pot is probably worse. But then again, not as many people use it as do alcohol, and those who do use it rarely use it permanently. It seems like a phase almost. Perhaps it isn't considered as dangerous as alcohol because so fewer people use it. There aren't many marijuana-induced car accidents widely publicized. But anywho, I think pot is probably worse, especially in the long run.

gzhang

Actually, alcohol can easliy cause liver cirrhosis if abused over a long period of time, and could also lead to esophagus/stomach/liver cancer.