Quote:
Originally Posted by Janszoon
What does it matter if the harm to the individual outweighs the benefit? As long as they are an adult and are aware of the risks, shouldn't they be allowed to make their own decisions?
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I agree that adults aware of the risks should be allowed to make their own decisions, which is one reason I feel drugs should be legalized (the other reason being that I want to cut down on the illegal trade of drugs that leads to so many murders, other crimes, and money wasted on the war against drugs).
My comment you wrote about was my attempt to point out that current laws appear to reflect the government's/people's idea of which drugs are most harmful to users.
Just like Tore said, I feel the severity of drug side effects matters because when people in a society are on drugs and if this increases their risk of illness or lessens their ability to work effectively, then their problems become society's unnecessary burden and expense, just like Tore said. Even if a society has no socialized medicine, having people addicted to drugs can be a drag (no pun intended
) on the society.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Freebase Dali
How are the negative side effects similar?
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Tobacco and marijuana side effects are similar in that they affect the brain and expose the smoker to carcinogens. In some ways marijuana sounds worse, such as with its impairment of brain function and work ability:
Quote:
Marijuana - InfoFacts - NIDA
Marijuana intoxication can cause distorted perceptions, impaired coordination, difficulty in thinking and problem solving, and problems with learning and memory. Research has shown that marijuana’s adverse impact on learning and memory can last for days or weeks after the acute effects of the drug wear off.2 As a result, someone who smokes marijuana every day may be functioning at a suboptimal intellectual level all of the time.
Marijuana increases heart rate by 20–100 percent shortly after smoking; this effect can last up to 3 hours. In one study, it was estimated that marijuana users have a 4.8-fold increase in the risk of heart attack in the first hour after smoking the drug.
Numerous studies have shown marijuana smoke to contain carcinogens and to be an irritant to the lungs. In fact, marijuana smoke contains 50–70 percent more carcinogenic hydrocarbons than does tobacco smoke.
Research clearly demonstrates that marijuana has the potential to cause problems in daily life or make a person’s existing problems worse. In one study, heavy marijuana abusers reported that the drug impaired several important measures of life achievement including physical and mental health, cognitive abilities, social life, and career status.11 Several studies associate workers’ marijuana smoking with increased absences, tardiness, accidents, workers’ compensation claims, and job turnover.
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Chewing marijuana baked into brownies wouldn't have the lung effects, but should have all the others. I don't know what effects eating marijuana has on mouth and stomach cancer. Chewing tobacco increases mouth cancer risks, so I wouldn't assume eating marijuana will be harmless with regards to cancer.