Which is worse: Weed or Alcohol?

[Ornery]

"...marijuana is a gateway drug..."

Everybody I know who smoked pot, started first with alcohol. Guess that makes alcohol no better than pot in that regard, eh?

 

[Unicron80]

Weed. Alcohol is more addictive, causes more health problems, and more headaches for society in general. But then again boozers don't subject us to the constant parade of telling us about how nothing wrong ever came from their drug of choice but a case of the munchies, how it's so evil that the government continues to make their junk illegal, et al ad nauseam. It seems to be one of the side effects of marijuana that you are physiologically impelled to constantly remind the rest of us how harmless your habit is.

What's worse, marijuana smokers trying to justify their habit, or the fact that every other commercial/billboard/advertisement in general is about beer or some fancy new malt liquor? That is a pretty witty observation though, kudos

here are some links for you to ponder over, take their validity at your leisure. In the interest of fairness,there are some graphs here that don't paint marijuana in the most favorable light.

This is my favorite one, although I haven't seen it in this form, kind of hard to read until you stare at it for a few minutes. Relative Addictive Properties

Here are some on the annual death figures:
Annual Drug Deaths in the U.S.

Risk of Death
(Food kills people...let's ban food!) Sorry that was too easy.

Number of Deaths per Year

This one is kind of disturbing to think about:
Age of First Use

Just something to chew on.

Strangely enough, this thread started as a question of "which one was worse: weed or alchohol" and it degenerated into name-calling and value challenging and so on. Let's stick to the thread topic.


Personal Experience: If you care, I'm a few months from starting my career as a high school teacher in Texas. I've taken both alchohol and marijuana, and smoked about ten cigs in my life. Nothing harder, but I wouldn't mind trying acid maybe. Maybe. I'm thinking of quitting alchohol, at least for the most part. Just don't see any benefits to it except feeling naseasus sometimes and losing control of my actions if I drink too much. Weed, on the other hand, I still believe it to be the least harmful of any substance, maybe caffiene is next to it. Everyone has their own values and beliefs, not everyone should do it and no one should feel forced to try anything. Everything in moderation, I say.

/begin rant

It's not that weed is great for you, that's not the argument I will ever make. I just believe our government and police could spend their time and money a little better by not throwing non-violent drug offenders in jail and save that space for rapists and murderers. Put that money we spend futilly on the drug war into our education system, and you'll see much better results.

/end rant

Anyway, kudos for people who can argue thoughtfully on the subject and say a little more than "it's illegal, I win." The more we debate about issues that affect us, the better solutions we can get to the problems we face and the more power we have over the ever increasingly distant government we have in America.

Keep debating.

 

[VFAA]

Both are bad if you're an addict. They both kill you slowly.

 

[scottrico]

You know I had to respond to this.
To say one is worse than the other is implying to they are both bad.
Anyone from Cali can tell you that there is nothing wronge with that stricky green bomb, baby. it is all good!
Great for online PC gaming.

Alcohol is bad for PC Gaming.
so,

DON'T DRINK AND FRAG!!!!

And stay away from those $10.00 beers At Pac Bell Park.

 

[bigshot]

There isn't anything in here that makes sense except for the last sentence. Just because it's natural doesn't mean it's good for you - is drinking natural piss good for you? The government wants to protect their investment in drugs - dude, that is a some whacked out conspiracy theory. canada is gonna "decrimilize" pot - I assume you mean, "legalize". It's not too hard to figure out you're a pretty big pot smoker. Maybe you should stop smoking and drinking; I think you've lost too many brain cells as it is.

yes the government does wanna protect its investment. Do you think after the spend BILLIONS of dollars on war on drugs and saying how weed is bad etc. they will just turn around and say, weed is ok to smoke. no way would they ever do that.
no canada is probably going to decrimilze not legalize. that means a fine instead being arrested and getting a criminal record for small amounts. i admit i do smoke the occasional weed, but i dont smoke heavily, jeez i got school to deal with

Ya smoke damages your lungs, but its no where as much crap in weed smoke than there in cigarerttes and you dont smoke 25+ joints a day either. the occasional joint or even regular use will not damage your lungs like cigarettes can (they put a ton of other crap than just nicotine in cigarettes)

marijuana is a gateway drug

marijuana is not a gateway drug and ill tell you why. Do you think people will start CRACK or HEROIN, EXTASCY before using weed or alcohol? Very few people ever do that because weed is easy to get, cheap, and alot of people do it. if you go by the anaolgy that they tried weed first then tried harder drugs, then alcohol is just as bad cause hell they probably drank some liquor or beer and got drunk before they tried weed (not all the time but usually) i have smoked weed and know hundreds of other people who have either and probably 5% to 10% try these harder drugs, the others stick to weed and weed only. Weed does not make you wanna try harder drugs, its all up to the user and if he wants to try other drugs, its his decision but it should not be blamed on marijuana, thats for sure

 

[BreakApart]

ROFL @ this thread!

It wasn't long ago alcohol was illegal also, let's not forget that, so the illegal-legal argument is silly.

The Alcohol Overdose argument is lame... you can overdose on water also, guess pot is safer than water, right? get a clue.

Ohh great, Weed is natural so it's safer, get a clue...cyanide is natural, guess it's safe, right?

Debating about behavior at extreme ingestion levels is also lame...ever seen a child on too much sugar? (Kinda scarey) Just about everything is bad for you at extreme levels.

Adolecents do alot of stupid things for many stupid reasons...alcohol, pot, other drugs, speed, speeding, showing-off, fighting, silly hair styles. It's all apart of growing up, but once you mature...if you still continue with childish behaviors then you have serious problems.

Nobody is saying alcoholics are healthy, they are part of the extreme, and as such if it wasn't alcohol they were using it would have been some other substance that they used to extremes-(perhaps even pot). They have problems already, alcohol is just the obvious sign of it.

Pot smoking is an adolecent behavior, find someone over 35 still smoking pot, and you'll see someone with serious issues.-(some would say a loser)

If it wasn't for Alcohol some of you wouldn't even be here. *i bet some of you already know that*

If you want to smoke dope, that's your business... Someday you'll grow out of it like Red Dawn did.

 

[Gaard]

I think some people have to reread the first sentence of the first post again. Casual usage is what the poster is talking about.

 

[slaman]

This thread is too funny. Anything in excess is bad. Water in excess is bad. Knowing one's limits is the most important thing.

If you drink and put yourself in hospital, you passed your limit. You can die from alchohol poisoning. You can buy alchohol from the store. The government regulates it (in most areas - I'm Canadian) and taxes it. The effects of alchohol is loss of stability and movement - also brings out violence. I'd be more scared of a drunk than a stoner. Alchohol is physically addictive as well as psychologically addictive.

Weed on the other hand, has not led to a single death. You cannot overdose on weed - chances are you'll fall asleep before you even come close to reaching a dangerous level of THC (is there such a thing?) There are no proven long-term effects. Numerous studies have shown all traces of THC leave your system completely after 3 months. Your short-term memory loss will return. And yes I speak from experience. The effects are not violence or loss of movement/stability. It slows your reflexes down. Weed is not physically addictive, but is psychologically addictive (but things like spaghetti could be psychologically addictive so it's a stupid argument)

As far as finding "additives" in your weed. I've never seen that in my life. I don't think anyone would go out of there way to put a more expensive drug (E, Heroin, Coke) in their weed to "screw with people". Some people enjoy doing that - just trust your supplier.

Mixing booze and weed is fine. I know hundreds (yes hundreds) of people who do it. Both weed and alchohol is accepted in society - booze more-so because it's legal

Finally, those guys who think it's wrong and intoxicating one's self is wrong, I point you to the word's of Ben Harper, "Before you knock it, try it first". I have fun sober yes. I have fun intoxicated yes. Your point? Maybe some of you don't get exposed to these things because you refuse to leave the comfort of your computer room...

Results:
-Weed has no long-term effects (FACT)
-Alchohol does (liver disease, etc)
-Weed cannot lead to overdose
-You can easily overdose on alchohol
-Weed is not physically addictive (FACT)
-Alchohol is physically addictive

You tell me which one is "worse"

 

[slaman]

Originally posted by: bigshot
i really like weed, i really do. i love taking huge bong hits, hitting a fatty or hitting a pipe with a couple buddies then just chillin. i find it fun and i love the high. i like alcohol too...nothing better than a newcastle or guiness on tap...wow.

Haha straight to the point... if you don't like the fiya, then don't come around

Weed and booze is good. If you don't like it - don't preach. If you do like it - don't preach. I only "offer" people the opportunity to try either and most will say yes or no and I leave it at that. Most of the time, their curiosity will win.

Now they are all potheads and alchoholics! Damn straight!

 

[Therapist928]

Originally posted by: Booster
Well, Therapist928, it's so easy to label smth 'stupid'. But, unfortunately, you haven't introduced anything positive into the discussion. If you want me to back up my words with links, I won't do that. First, I don't have those links, second, I wouldn't bother posting them. Science has proved that both alcohol and weed are toxic, you can't deny that. So what was your point? You seem to agree with everything yet try to insult. Why?

Oh my god. Did you even read anything I wrote?

"you haven't introduced anything positive into the discussion"
Didn't i just say that no one has even addressed the fact that inhaling smoke in general is bad? That just because something is natural doesn't mean it's good for you? That using pain as a measure of system damage is unfounded?

"You seem to agree with everything yet try to insult"
If you think that I agree with everything in my last post, then don't bother posting to me again. It's obvious you're not even reading this thing.

Here's your original post:
"Well, I guess that the difference between alcohol and weed is huge. Alcohol destroys one's liver and body in general, and pot is aimed at one's brain solely. Thus, alcoholics may look bad, like drunkards do, may have liver problems, become more stupid, but when they're sober their brain works OK (*I think *). As for potheads, the weed destroys their brain much faster than alcohol, like any drug does. A pothead's brain won't stay the same, I'll eventually degrade and the person will have less and less consciousness left. "
Dude. We had about 100 people say that already. What did you add to the conversation? "Science has proved that both alcohol and weed are toxic" Yeah - I agree. where did i ever deny this? And just because both things are toxic doesn't mean that the rate of brain degeneration is different (laughable that someone would even say this). Please read more carefully, and preferably, go to medical school, like me.

 

[Therapist928]

Originally posted by: bigshot
how does weed destroy someones brain? does it turn it into mush so your just a walking zombie? its natural, people have been smoking it for 100's of years, this is just the government telling you this (they gotta protect their investment and jobs on the war on drugs, im glad Canada is probably gonna decrimilize in the near future (couple months) because they know, and so does britian that it should not be illegal and its ridicilous that it is. by the way alcohol is a drug too.

and

Originally posted by: bigshot
i admit i do smoke the occasional weed, but i dont smoke heavily, jeez i got school to deal with

I thought you said that weed doesn't destroy people's brains. So, you got nothing to worry about, school-wise. Smoke up.

 

[slaman]

Marijuana causes long-term brain degredation... hrm, I doubt it... medical studies links? I have many that say there are NO longterm effects and/or damage to the brain.

 

[smp]

Originally posted by: Ornery
"...marijuana is a gateway drug..." Everybody I know who smoked pot, started first with alcohol. Guess that makes alcohol no better than pot in that regard, eh?

 

[Gaard]

n/m

 

[BreakApart]

Results:
-Weed has no long-term effects (FACT)
-Alchohol does (liver disease, etc)
-Weed cannot lead to overdose
-You can easily overdose on alchohol
-Weed is not physically addictive (FACT)
-Alchohol is physically addictive

You tell me which one is "worse"

OMG!
How ignorant are you to actually believe pot isn't addictive?

Addictions often overlap
First Sentence:
"Women are more likely than men to become addicted to caffeine and chocolate, whereas men are more likely to get hooked on alcohol, cigarettes, gambling, television and Internet use, according to a new study from the Department of Psychology in Arts & Sciences."

So chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, gambling, and television have all been listed as addictive, but according to you Marajuna isn't addictive. Give me a break.... isgust:

N.I.D.A.
Long Term Effects
Effects on the Brain
Lots of Marajuna Info Links

"Can a person become addicted to marijuana?
A: Yes. While not everyone who uses marijuana becomes addicted, when a user begins to seek out and take the drug compulsively, that person is said to be dependent on the drug or addicted to it. In 1995, 165,000 people entering drug treatment programs reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse, showing they needed help to stop using.(12)

Some heavy users of marijuana show signs of dependence because when they do not use the drug, they develop withdrawal symptoms. Some subjects in an experiment on marijuana withdrawal had symptoms, such as restlessness, loss of appetite, trouble with sleeping, weight loss, and shaky hands.

According to one study, marjuana use by teenagers who have prior serious antisocial problems can quickly lead to dependence on the drug. That study also found that, for troubled teenagers using tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana, progression from their first use of marijuana to regular use was about as rapid as their progression to regular tobacco use, and more rapid than the progression to regular use of alcohol."

 

[bigshot]

I thought you said that weed doesn't destroy people's brains. So, you got nothing to worry about, school-wise. Smoke up.

actually when im at school, i dont like being high for the plain reason is when im high i dont wanna do any school work, math calculations or anything of the sort. i dont have time to smoke weed, and then do 5-6 hours of math work, so i leave it for the weekends. i smoke weed recreationaly, when im out with friends, when i go for a couple drinks etc. im not worried however destroying my brain, smoked most of last year and still ended up with A average so its not making me dumber, thats for sure

 

[Unicron80]

If pot is legalized you'll probably see just as many accidents caused while a driver is stoned

Marijuana also impairs judgment and reaction time. Road tests for marijuana intoxication are not routinely done, but a special study in Memphis, Tennessee, showed that one-third of drivers stopped for reckless driving were high on marijuana. Another study revealed that of drivers involved in accidents who were treated at a trauma center, 15 percent had been smoking marijuana.

Actually, numerous extensive studies have shown that marijuana has little to no effect on driving, and in some cases, a positive effect.

Examples:

Australia Study
Toronto Study
UK Study
Netherlands Study

Quote from this study: "Evidence from the present and previous studies stronly suggests that alcohol encourages risky driving whereas THC encourages greater caution, at least in experiments. Another way THC seems to differ qualitatively from many other drugs is that the former's users seem better able to compensate for its adverse effects while driving under the influence"

Some studies say marijuana impairs driving, others refute that statement. Personally, I have never heard of a "high" driver ramming into a church bus or something, yet I hear reports of drunk drivers killing someone nearly every weekend.

 

[BreakApart]

Actually, numerous extensive studies have shown that marijuana has little to no effect on driving, and in some cases, a positive effect.

Selective reading there friend?

I'll use YOUR own Articles...
Toronto Study
"While smoking marijuana does impair driving ability"
"Both substances impair performance,"
You'll also notice she uses words like "does not significantly increase" Which means IT DOES effect driving, it just didn't turn people into road rage crazies or anything, like some people claim.

Your Media Awareness links are so biased i'm suprised they don't offer to send you a free dime bag, after reading it.

Here is your UK article that they twisted into a total contradiction.
"Regular smokers were used because previous tests in America using first-timers resulted in the volunteers falling over and feeling ill. "

Ummm... ok so you have to be a regular pot smoker or this entire pot smoking and driving study is worthless. That just great, they dismiss all the other marijuana driving studies because the subjects were not junkies. Ohhh that's not biased, nope not at all.

I really enjoyed these two contradicting quotes:
"Although the cannabis affected reaction time in regular users"
&
"Australian Drugs Foundation found that cannabis was the only drug tested that decreased the relative risk of having an accident."

Umm ya, it DOES impair your driving EVEN for the regular pot-heads. Then they have the nerve to say it decreases the risk? I think they were smoking pot when they wrote this study.


Keep shoveling your Marijuana propoganda all you want, it IS Addictive, and it DOES effect your perception.

If it didn't effect your perception what would be the point of taking it?

 

[Unicron80]

I thought someone would take note that those studies were on sites that are "pro-legalization" so I tried to directly link as much as I could, but I couldn't sift through the millions of articles on some of those sites. I just did a quick Google search to show that there are studies that dispute your theory of "drug crazed" drivers that you believe would be rampant if we legalized marijuana. Am I supposed to prove my point with studies that disagreed with my view? That wouldn't make sense.

My point was, in all of these arguments, you can find a study to prove your point, no matter what side you are on. You can make of that anything you want. The important lesson we can take from this fact is we need to make Marijuana a schedule 2 drug instead of schedule 1.

What does this mean? It means doctors and researchers can grow it and use it for studies to see its long-term effects. There are many barriers to being able to do that today.

If the attorney general today moved Marijuana to a schedule 2 drug, then scientists could go to work on seeing its effects on humans. I think that would benefit everyone. The more information, the better. Look how we researched tobacco, etc.

This might surprise you, but you know what? I enjoy smoking weed and fight to decriminalize it, but if U.S. Doctors were to thoroughly research (I'm talking many years) the long term effects of marijuana and we came up with repeatable, incontrevertible(sp?) evidence that marijuana was horrible for you and weed smokers were a danger to society at large, I would drop the fight that same day, and never smoke weed again.

The fact remains is, we don't know. We can't know unless marijuana is moved to schedule 2 and our government and people start being more open to solving the drug problem without the draconian solutions we have today. "Just say no" is naive, and damaging to the psyche of our children. We say "Just say no" to some things, but we turn around and say "everyone is doing it, why don't you?" to accepted substances that (to the untrained eye) might seem more dangerous than illicit substances. Very conflicting messages, and I think our youth deserve more than that.

All I want in regards to this drug problem is for people to think about other solutions. We do it for other problems, why not this one? If something isn't working, let's fix it. And no one would agree that our Drug War has an impending victory on the horizon.

 

[KEV1N]

All y'all need to get up outta your rocking chair and live a little! Hehe.

I believe that neither alcohol nor weed is inherently bad. What makes it "right" or "wrong" , depending on your definition, is what happens when the bottle or the bong reaches your hands.

It's not like if you take a drink, or smoke a little weed, you are instantly a bad person. When you assimillate drug use into your daily life without knowing and it gets in the way of things, then you may have to re evaluate your habit.

 

[d0Rk]

In response to this lame brain's comment <Weed's illegal. I win.
Why won't people just pay the hell off this or take it elsewhere?>

I just have to say it hasn't even been a century of cannabis prohibition and morons act like
it's OK to be judging what they know nothing about. Open your eyes and ears... Alcohol was illegal once too, so try and use your brain before voicing an opinion. And disagreeing that the affects of each are different... Well that just proves you really have no idea what you're talking about.

People been toking for some 4,000 years now, and American policy is the only reason that lighting a spliff is frowned upon. The governmant is also the biggest source of propoganda on the topic of "How bad weed really is for you". Near 10% of the population tokes regularly, making it a waste of resources to try and lock everyone up. And even if smoking it does lead to lung problems, dont be trying to pass off that ciggarettes aren't killing a much larger part of the population. Is it worse than alcohol... Now why would i care when I can enjoying both in moderation. I wish I could have my rights back so I wouldn't have to watch my back from badges and beatsticks... or worse... uninformed mental midgits voicing an opinion!!!

 

[BreakApart]

Originally posted by: d0Rk
In response to this lame brain's comment <Weed's illegal. I win.
Why won't people just pay the hell off this or take it elsewhere?>

I just have to say it hasn't even been a century of cannabis prohibition and morons act like
it's OK to be judging what they know nothing about. Open your eyes and ears... Alcohol was illegal once too, so try and use your brain before voicing an opinion. And disagreeing that the affects of each are different... Well that just proves you really have no idea what you're talking about.

People been toking for some 4,000 years now, and American policy is the only reason that lighting a spliff is frowned upon. The governmant is also the biggest source of propoganda on the topic of "How bad weed really is for you". Near 10% of the population tokes regularly, making it a waste of resources to try and lock everyone up. And even if smoking it does lead to lung problems, dont be trying to pass off that ciggarettes aren't killing a much larger part of the population. Is it worse than alcohol... Now why would i care when I can enjoying both in moderation. I wish I could have my rights back so I wouldn't have to watch my back from badges and beatsticks... or worse... uninformed mental midgits voicing an opinion!!!

Government biggest source of propaganda? Guess you forgot we have an elected government, not a dictator. Your parents/grandparents elected the people that passed those laws.

Murder and rape has been around longer than dope smokers....guess that's ok too? Your being silly, using time practiced by a small part of the world as a supporting argument.
10% of the population smokes dope you say? Have a link? I think your "blowing smoke".


Thank you for stopping by...

 

[joinT]

Originally posted by: BreakApart

Government biggest source of propaganda? Guess you forgot we have an elected government, not a dictator. Your parents/grandparents elected the people that passed those laws.

Murder and rape has been around longer than dope smokers....guess that's ok too? Your being silly, using time practiced by a small part of the world as a supporting argument.
10% of the population smokes dope you say? Have a link? I think your "blowing smoke".


Thank you for stopping by...

Uhh, actually - the US government IS the biggest source of propaganda & NONE of my relatives or d0Rk's for that matter (as we are both Canadian) have ever elected anyone in the US. The US has forced it's drug policy on many countries - us it's neighbour in North America being the prime example.

btw BreakApart you should learn to READ before posting replies quoting others.

-Weed is not physically addictive (FACT)

that is 100% TRUE. There are different forms of addiction - Weed only becomes an addiciton - if you LET it (a mental addiction) while all he's saying is there's no PHYSICAL addiction, like nicotine in cigarettes. Not being PHYSICALLY addictive & not being AT ALL addictive are two very different things.

so thanks for stopping by & posting your useless crappy absorbed opinion that weed is bad - why not go smoke some for yourself & tell me if you're CRAVING a joint the next day or next week.

 

[BreakApart]

joinT,
As your obviously too stupid to scroll up and read my ENTIRE post i'll repost it for you.

OMG!
How ignorant are you to actually believe pot isn't addictive?

Addictions often overlap
First Sentence:
"Women are more likely than men to become addicted to caffeine and chocolate, whereas men are more likely to get hooked on alcohol, cigarettes, gambling, television and Internet use, according to a new study from the Department of Psychology in Arts & Sciences."

So chocolate, caffeine, alcohol, gambling, and television have all been listed as addictive, but according to you Marajuna isn't addictive. Give me a break.... isgust:

N.I.D.A.
Long Term Effects
Effects on the Brain
Lots of Marajuna Info Links

"Can a person become addicted to marijuana?
A: Yes. While not everyone who uses marijuana becomes addicted, when a user begins to seek out and take the drug compulsively, that person is said to be dependent on the drug or addicted to it. In 1995, 165,000 people entering drug treatment programs reported marijuana as their primary drug of abuse, showing they needed help to stop using.(12)

Some heavy users of marijuana show signs of dependence because when they do not use the drug, they develop withdrawal symptoms. Some subjects in an experiment on marijuana withdrawal had symptoms, such as restlessness, loss of appetite, trouble with sleeping, weight loss, and shaky hands.

According to one study, marjuana use by teenagers who have prior serious antisocial problems can quickly lead to dependence on the drug. That study also found that, for troubled teenagers using tobacco, alcohol, and marijuana, progression from their first use of marijuana to regular use was about as rapid as their progression to regular tobacco use, and more rapid than the progression to regular use of alcohol."

joinT,
Before you make such an a## out of yourself again, next time you spout off about pot not being addictive at least provide some sort of supporting evidence.

EDIT: The rest of my links are in my earlier posts, have your mommy help you find them.

 

[joinT]

Originally posted by: BreakApart
joinT,
As your obviously too stupid to scroll up and read my ENTIRE post i'll repost it for you.

joinT,
Before you make such an a## out of yourself again, next time you spout off about pot not being addictive at least provide some sort of supporting evidence.

EDIT: The rest of my links are in my earlier posts, have your mommy help you find them.

Just STFU you stupid fool, I essentially said WEED IS NOT PHYSICALLY ADDICTIVE. Agreeing with an earlier post. THIS IS TRUE as there are DIFFERENT TYPES OF ADDICTION - ie. NOT ALL ARE PHYSICAL.

Like I said - LEARN TO READ. idiot