Posted by Trixie on July 05, 1998 at 20:06:01:
In Reply to: You've got my vote posted by rpcman on July 05, 1998 at 17:35:26:
: I've never tried the stuff (and cannot forsee myself ever doing so even if it is legalized). What is the difference between its side affects and those of all the legal drugs? If it is only a matter of degree then the public should know that fact--not be thrown in jail for using or selling it.
I used pot on a somewhat regular basis before joining the church at age 19. I had also used alcohol during that time period. I found the side effects of alcohol to be so unpleasant that I had decided, on my own (no peer pressure, pre-missionary lessons, so no church pressure) to drink only socially and moderately...maybe one (or, at the most, two) drinks to get a "buzz", but no more than that. The unpleasant side effects were as follows - nausea, poor coordination, poor judgement, hangovers, and, most importantly, stupidity. However, I found pot to be a very pleasant social alternative (I never felt the need to smoke alone.) There was NO nausea at all, my coordination didn't seem to be as affected (although I certainly never drove under the influence of either). There was no hangover the next day, and, although I suffered from giggles and extreme mellowness under the influence, I do not believe that my judgement was as impaired, and I do not believe that the stupidity factor was as extreme (although a dispassionate viewer of my giggles might have disagreed). I also believe that alcohol unleashes aggression in many individuals, whereas pot normally mellows everyone out. (as in: groovy, man)
As far as the commonly reported fear that pot usage leads to harder drugs, I have not found that to be true in my personal experience. I was always very wary of trying any drug that was known to be highly addictive or invasive to the body, even after trying pot. Personally, I think if someone is prone to abuse serious drugs, they're going to do it whether or not pot is their launching pad.