LogFAQs > #891676341

SunWuKung420 posted...

minervo posted...

Weed has caused psychosis and schizophrenia in countless people, including me. It also tore apart my family for a while. Stop acting like it's harmless and everyone should be doing it

the FDA said extensive research shows no causative link between marijuana use and the development of psychosis.

I remember explaining this to you in one of the last weed topics, so I'm disappointed to see you're still clinging to this argument.

The key word in that quote is "causative". There is an undisputed medical link between schizophrenia and heavy marijuana use. Here's 30 different studies that show the link:

http://www.schizophrenia.com/prevention/streetdrugs.html#can

Now, none of those conclusively prove that marijuana *causes* schizophrenia, which is what the FDA quote refers to. This is mostly because the experiments necessary to prove a causative link would be extremely unethical (you would have to force one experimental group to smoke marijuana, preferably from birth), but there is a clear correlation. That means that either marijuana causes schizophrenia, schizophrenics are more likely to use marijuana, or both.

Correlation doesn't prove causation, but it does wink suggestively and make seductive gestures at it.

This is without getting into other health risks. For instance, smoking weed can cause a spike in blood pressure and heart rate which, over a prolonged period of time, is a risk factor for heart disease.

People (rightly) objected to the whole "reefer madness" nonsense a few decades back, where the government grossly over-exaggerated - and, in some cases, outright fabricated - the health risks associated with marijuana... but marijuana advocates seem to have watched those old films, decided that was a pretty good strategy, and made it their own. Over the course of my life I have watched the discussion change from "Weed's not THAT bad for you" (arguably true, depending on your definition of "THAT bad") to "Weed is harmless" (false) to "Weed is good for you" (very false) to "Weed is an all-natural miracle medicine that cures AIDS and cancer" (homeopathy levels of false).

I'm fine with people advocating for marijuana legalization, but don't be fucking stupid about it. You don't need to lie about the drug and its effects to make your point and doing so makes everyone else less likely to take you seriously.
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