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| Stronger Marijuana Propels Abuse Rates |
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Posted by CN Staff on May 05, 2004 at 22:35:42 PT By David Wahlberg, Palm Beach Post Source: Palm Beach Post 
Atlanta -- Marijuana abuse and addiction have increased over the past decade, even though the percentage of people using pot has remained roughly the same, a new study says. The reason: It's not your parents' marijuana.A 25 percent increase in serious problems with marijuana from 1992 to 2002 is likely explained by a 66 percent increase in the potency of the drug, researchers from the National Institute of Drug Abuse report in today's Journal of the American Medical Association. Marijuana has become so strong that the liberal government of the Netherlands is considering classifying it as a "hard" drug to be banned from the "coffee shops" of Amsterdam, where it has been sold openly for years. Hydroponic growing techniques and the selective use of seeds from powerful strains contribute to the higher levels of THC, researchers say. "People still have a naive approach to marijuana and think of it as a harmless substance," said Dr. William Compton, lead author of the new study and an epidemiologist with the National Institute of Drug Abuse, one of the National Institutes of Health. About 4 percent of Americans age 18 and older say they smoked marijuana in the past year, the same as a decade ago, the study found. But use of the drug among African-Americans and Hispanics increased, with use among blacks now surpassing that by whites. Overall, more than a third of marijuana users report signs of abuse or addiction. The study is based on two sets of information gathered in interviews by the U.S. Census Bureau. Marijuana users who acknowledged at least one of four criteria for abuse, such as interference with job performance, were considered abusers. Those who noted at least three of six other criteria -- including the need to use more pot to achieve the same effect -- were categorized as dependent, or addicted. Another report, released last month by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, said that among people ages 12 to 17, marijuana use appears to have stabilized. But emergency room visits implicating marijuana use among that age group jumped 48 percent from 1999 to 2002, the report said. The proportion of children and teenagers in treatment for marijuana use soared 142 percent from 1992 to 2001. Source: Palm Beach Post, The (FL) Related Articles & Web Site: Santa Cruz - Dutch Study in PDF Baby Boomers are Going To Pot Making Pot Legal Does Not Boost Use Dutch Drug Policies Do Not Increase Marijuana Use Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #14 posted by Truth on May 06, 2004 at 10:30:28 PT |
| Darn right. My dad's "marijuana" was scotch. He died. God bless him. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #13 posted by Petard on May 06, 2004 at 08:56:58 PT |
There's X amount of "chemicals" in cannabis, multiplied by this Y factor of %age increase in potency, multiplied by the amount of truth in these claims (0), equals ZERO. So, the final outcome is the same as the number of WMD's possessed by Saddam in Iraq at the time of invasion, therefore cannabis is a terrorist weapon. See it all makes so much sense now. So elect me as your next president and I'll gaurantee to make a good salary and recieve benefits paid for by all of you for the rest of my life. Fits just like OJ's hand in that glove doesn't it? [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #12 posted by Robbie on May 06, 2004 at 08:18:04 PT |
| that they can get away with all that tired, stale propaganda. Hell, this same article has been posted many, many times under different names and circumstances. I know I've seen the "this isn't your daddy's marijuana" meme several times now. It's probably all written ddown in some ONDCP handbook they send out to the newspapers about "How to Write Maximum Propaganda" [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #11 posted by RasAric on May 06, 2004 at 07:48:28 PT |
| Dear Editor:Your recent article, Stronger Marijuana Propels Abuse Rates by David Wahlberg spouts extremely flawed logic. The "It's not your parents marijuana" argument is something used as pure scare tactic and propaganda by N.I.D.A. and O.N.D.C.P. These two federal organisations are not exactly non-biased. Their existence, as well as the D.E.A. and other groups and businesses, rely on spreading mythical fears that cannabis is evil and deadly. Netherland's government is not considering banning high potency cannabis because it is potency. If that were true there would've been a major uproar over the Hashish trade decades ago. Hash is a refined form of cannabis and can be quite potent even if produced from low grade cannabis. The reason for this possible move in the netherlands is based on pressure from US officials to have cannabis criminalized in other countries. Also, some Dutch are concerned with having a reputation of being the world's cannabis capitol. For this we, the land of the not so free, can fault our own government for imposing decades of prohibition, thus forcing cannabis users to visit more tolerant countries... All the statistics about people in treatment and emergency rooms is also misleading at best. Most in treatment for marijuana are there only because of court mandates. Once your caught with cannabis and do not agree to treatment, you may face imprisonment and criminal records as an alternative. Those who go to the emergancy room are usually not there for cannabis use but, because they admit to having used marijuana it goes onto their record as a marijuana related admittance. These flawed studies are written by officials with an agenda. The facts have been manipulated and the public is being deceived by our government once again. Propaganda is not the answer. Eric Knudsen Palm Beach Post Reader [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #10 posted by Trekkie on May 06, 2004 at 07:39:21 PT |
| When Everclear was introduced, did alcholholism rise? When Marlboro 100's were introduced, did nicotine addiction rise? Just because there is more "active ingredient" in something, it does not make it more addictive. I think the ONLY conclusion to draw in this constant lie (which seems to be repeated daily, like a religious mantra), is that the closer one gets to the truth, the more the greedy liars lie. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #9 posted by afterburner on May 06, 2004 at 07:33:22 PT |
| that is, people elected or appointed to goverrrnment positions, who naively think that the stronger the cannabis, the more people smoke. The lawmakers, and their paid scientists and bureaucrats, must have answered "No" when Jimi Hendrix asked "Are You Experienced?". And they continued to "Just say no" during the Reagan years. They are so busy trying to prove "addiction" and all manner of propaganda lies from "Reefer Madness" that they never mention self-titration or vaporizers or harm-reduction. "Marihuana, often blamed for crime and insanity among its users who smoke it in "reefers," "muggles" or "goof-butts," was reported as a drug of potentially "great usefulness in the treatment of drug addicts" and patients suffering from mental depressions and other nervous disorders ... the drug was found to increase he appetite and induce calmness and relaxation in those previously agitated." - Science Newsletter, May 30, 1942 - [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #8 posted by mayan on May 06, 2004 at 07:03:21 PT |
| Let them lie. They have lost so much credibility from ramming the Iraq invasion down our throats that they will never recover...just look at Iraq now! They have also miserably failed to question the government's official version of 9/11 and it is all blowing up in their faces as their circulation numbers are plummeting and the internet is taking over. The masses are quickly figuring out that the great majority of the mainstream media is nothing more than a corporate/government mouthpiece. These mainstream dinosaurs are done. Put a fork in em'!!! The way out is the way in... A 9/11 Widow Speaks Out: http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/archive/scoop/stories/77/49/200405040955.f6f5d956.html Terror Flight School Owners' Flew Saudis on "Unsupervised Flights" http://www.madcowprod.com/ 9/11 Commission Accomplished: http://www.scoop.co.nz/mason/archive/scoop/stories/42/31/200405031102.fbb1f804.html 9/11 Films: http://www.snowshoefilms.com/ [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #7 posted by OverwhelmSam on May 06, 2004 at 06:59:27 PT |
| Smoke, mirrors, and puff the magic dragon. Whenever they use statistics like this you know they're peddling fear again. [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #6 posted by kaptinemo on May 06, 2004 at 06:10:45 PT:
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| drum being beaten. Namely, the long awaited accounting of roughly how much the prison/industrial system is costing Americans. Mind you, these are the figures for *2001*; they may be higher now. "Justice Expenditure and Employment in the United States, 2001" http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pub/pdf/jeeus01.pdf 167 Billion dollars...for cops, prison guards, prosecutors, judges, etc. - which would be directly threatened by drug law reform, as it's drug law violators that largely comprise our prison populations. This is why we are seeing more of this crazy BS about stronger cannabis leading to more 'treatment' being scattershot all over the place; desperate propaganda to obfuscate the issue of their failures to achieve the frankly impossible. And the terrible fiscal price incurred in doing so...not to mention the human one. 167 Billion dollars...in 2001 *alone*. What could we have done with 167 Billion dollars in 2001? Maybe had a better intel system capable of stopping 9/11? You tell me... [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #5 posted by The GCW on May 06, 2004 at 06:02:14 PT |
| Romans 1:25, “For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie.” (notice how many lies it speaks of; ONE. And that lie is began according to what it says on the very 1st page of the Bible; that all the seed bearing plants are good. Satan, when attempting to separate the most people from God will not wait for the 27th page or the 341st page, He will stumble as many people as He can starting on the very 1st page of the Bible AND HE IS SUCEEDING.) The living Bible is becoming more and more significant to the issues facing humans today. Cannabis prohibitionists are filthy. (These suckers need help. Biblically.) The Green Collar Worker [ Post Comment ] |
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Comment #4 posted by kaptinemo on May 06, 2004 at 04:24:47 PT:
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| Animals, not realizing that antifreeze containing ethylene glycol is sweet-tasing but poisonous, will quickly lap up the toxic chemical and die horribly from it's effects. American jounalists, you'd think, after a generation since Watergate, would be able to recognize the sweet-tasting poison of government 'informational' handouts and be wary of their contents. Especially after THIS particular Administration has lied about SO MUCH. But there appears to be plenty of lazy or stupid journos out there who'd prefer to guzzle the saccharine-flavored lies down with nary a blink. Had I been this journo, I'd be asking some serious questions, starting with *what constitutes responsible use of cannabis as opposed to 'abuse'*...which is most decidely NOT explained in this so-called 'study', since it *a priori* equates use AS abuse, and is suspect from the git-go. But I guess that critical thinking is no longer taught in 'journalism' schools anymore...just how to swallow sweet government lies. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by WolfgangWylde on May 06, 2004 at 03:24:46 PT |
| ...5 seconds on the web, as I just did, they would have found this from the AMA: "Despite the seriousness of DSM-IV marijuana abuse and dependence, no long-term trend information is available about whether the prevalence of these disorders is increasing, decreasing, or remaining stable in the United States." [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by WolfgangWylde on May 06, 2004 at 03:21:37 PT |
| ... of course. Frankly, I give up. The Gov't propaganda machine, couple with their toadies in the press who refuse to even lift a finger to investigate the Gov't's claim, is a monster we can't beat. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by observer on May 05, 2004 at 23:51:48 PT |
| More echoes of the original NIDA propaganda report that noted there was somewhat stronger (on average) weed these days than whenever they started really really testing it (except for hash which has always been around ... or hash oil of which particularly Anslinger himself wrote), and that the government has been forcing emergency rooms to ask and record whether marijuana was mentioned. If pot was mentioned by the patient, then that mention goes in the "emergency room visits implicating marijuana use" category. What a sham. We know the weed these days is as good as ever (and there was always good stuff like hash to be had). And we know the government lies with its phony ER mentions statistics. Government lies and pretends to impress us with jimmied-up stats. Pretend reporters like David Wahlberg of the Palm Beach Post rehash government handouts into fake news. Liars, professional or amateur, can point to this "important latest research" (i.e. well-processed government lies, using statistics) and say to the kids, "See? Those pot heads deserve jail!" see the book: How to Lie With Statistics, 1954, Darrell Huff http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/0393310728?v=glance [ Post Comment ] |
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