HTTP/1.0 200 OK Content-Type: text/html A Harmless Soft Drug? 
Pubdate: Sun, 25 Sep 2005
Source: Quesnel Cariboo Observer (CN BC)
Copyright: 2005 Quesnel Cariboo Observer
Contact:  http://www.quesnelobserver.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1260
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)

CANNABIS: A HARMLESS SOFT DRUG?

The legalization of cannabis is a regularly occuring topic.

The constant increase in consumption leads us to believe it is a fairly 
harmless soft drug.

Nonetheless, its effects are all too often downplayed and can be 
unpleasant, given the percentage of THC (the psychoactive ingredient in 
cannabis) has increased from two per cent in the 1970s to between 15 and 25 
per cent today.

Increasingly potent and widely used, marijuana can wreak havoc on the lives 
of many people.

While certain effects are still not clearly understood and vary from one 
individual to the next, the risks connected to marijuana consumption are, 
nonetheless, very real. By affecting the capacity to think and react, 
cannabis creates a state of confusion, a decrease in judgement, short-term 
memory loss and difficulties in concentration and coordination, which can 
put the smoker and the people he or she is with in danger.

In the long-term, there is a decline in motivation, a tendency to become 
withdrawn, apathetic and anxious. This tends to create a kind of dependence 
that leads to constant smoking, which is, in turn, detrimental to 
maintaining family relationships and friendships, as well as the capacity 
to pursue personal dreams or professional ambitions. Physically, the 
respiratory, cardiac, immune and reproductive systems can be gravely 
affected. A single joint contains the same quantity of carcinogens as a 
half a package of cigarettes.

The feelings of euphoria and calm that the smoker seeks with "just one 
little joint from time to time" could carry a high price tag in the 
long-term. And all of that without mentioning that it's easy to get hooked.
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MAP posted-by: Jo-D