Marijuana can benefit our country only if you let it benefit our country

The legalization of marijuana is an extremely controversial topic when regarding politics today. While there are states that have already legalized marijuana, it isn’t as easy as it sounds to do so. Marijuana is still illegal at a federal level, therefore states can make it legal but the federal government can come in and shut it all down. As of right now there are 21 states and the District of Columbia that have legalized medical marijuana. Two of those states, Colorado and Washington, have legalized marijuana for medical and recreational purposes.

More and more people are starting to argue that marijuana should be decriminalized, if not legalized, in the United States. It is obvious to that it would only benefit our country if it were legalized. Colorado has been the most known state for legalizing marijuana. People outside of Colorado try to make arguments against legalization by attempting to convince others that the people of Colorado regret legalizing marijuana. The fact is that even more people in Colorado are in favor of it, 6% of those people made that decision AFTER the legalization had been put into place. Police reports have also noted that crime has gone down 10.1% since 2013. They have also estimated that the marijuana industry in Colorado will bring in between $60 and $100 million dollars from tax revenue, licensing fees, and application fees.

Of course there is one problem that I should address: the fear of major drug dealers uprising to the legalization and taxation of marijuana. This would obviously hurt their business greatly, and is something important to keep in mind when thinking about legalizing marijuana. Nobody wants a war over drugs to come out of this, and this is a major reason why nothing has really been done yet. Regardless of this, I believe that our government could work out a way to have marijuana legalized and taxed in a safe way. I think its time to put emotions aside and look at decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana at an objective point of view and see how this could really help out our country.

The Mean Reds

“You know those days when you get the mean reds? The mean reds, you mean like the blues? No. The blues are because you're getting fat and maybe it's been raining too long, you're just sad that's all. The mean reds are horrible. Suddenly you're afraid and you don't know what you're afraid of. Do you ever get that feeling?” 

 Like Holly Golightly from Breakfast at Tiffany’s, I get the mean reds. For me the mean reds are the days where I’m on edge all day long, cant get anything done except sit, worry and smoke one cigarette after another until my hands finally stop shaking. When I’m extra stressed, I get the mean reds more often than usual and I need to take a break from my normal routine and have some “me time”.

While Holly likes to take a trip over to Tiffany’s, I like to go to the beach. I like to leave my phone in the car so no one can bother me, take a walk or sit on the rocks and watch the waves crash onto the shore. Spending some alone time in a relaxing environment is more effective at boosting my mood than any medication will ever be.

 For those of us who suffer from depression and anxiety, it is important for us to have outlets or ways to relax and distress without taking any type of drug. Holly Golightly likes to go to Tiffany’s, I like to go to the beach, my father likes to garden, my mother likes to read. Activities where we just focus on us and things we like to do are unbelievable important to our mental health and sanity. Doing activities that make us happy, boost our serotonin levels naturally and don’t involve any nasty side effects like medications do. So the next time you feel the mean reds coming on, take a minute and think about all of the things you enjoy doing. Even just thinking about doing those things will distract you from your anxieties and provide a little relief. Being able to go and do those things is even better!

Eliminating the Stigma

Can anyone tell me why exactly the government made marijuana illegal in the first place?

Let’s go back to 1930 when Harry J.Anslinger was hired as the leader of the Federal Bureau of Narcotics. At this time, opiates and cocaine were the major drugs the Bureau sought to regulate. But the Bureau needed to build an agency on more than two substances; Anslinger quickly became the voice of marijuana propaganda. He linked marijuana with these hard drugs and created a reputation for weed that made it sound worse than shooting up. Anslinger claimed that “marijuana makes darkies believe they’re as good as white men, the primary reason to outlaw marijuana is its effect on degenerate races”.

Let that sink in. Could you imagine anything being deemed illegal today based on blatantly racist terms? Anslinger wouldnt even recieve a jury duty summons, nevermind lead the Bureau of Narcotics.

 Anslinger had additional help in stirring up the public’s fear of marijuana from William Randolph Hearst, a master of yellow journalism. Many articles were published (such as the one below) claiming that weed was a “killer drug” and drove its “victims” to commit acts of crime, rape and murder. Not a single one of these claims were supported by doctors, scientific evidence or police reports.

Let’s fast forward to present day. There is a significant amount of scientific evidence which has the government singing, or rather humming, a very different tune about marijuana. In 2013, the government signed a patent stating that “Cannabinoids as antioxidants and neuroprotectants”. Turns out weed isn’t the killer drug the government made it out to be.

 Guess what Harry J! There still have not been any marijuana related murders, reports of insanity or rape. In fact, the CDC does not even have a category for marijuana related deaths.

The larger problem lies in the fact that the government was able to flat out lie about how marijuana affects the health of the American people. It is the governments’ job to present accurate information about any substance and allow people to make conscious decisions about what they put into their body.

It only makes me wonder what other information they may be fabricating.

Stop saying, "They should legalize Marijuana" and start saying, "We should legalize Marijuana".

Something that genuinely bothers me. Every time, and I mean every single damn time I am sitting with my "stoner" friends they say, "They should legalize Marijuana." They should? Who the hell is "They"? The saying “If you want something done, you got to do it yourself.”  Has always held a lot of weight with me.

We should also stop calling it the "war on drugs" and start calling it "prohibition." That's what it is. It is a removal of your right to choose what to do with your own body. We need to. Stop being so lazy and actually start expressing the pros. We really do have logic on our side. Believe it or not it actually makes sense to legalize marijuana. We have all these people in jail/prison for marijuana related "crimes" that we, as tax payers, are giving food, clean clothing, electricity, running water, and shelter. We also pay for all the raids of "pot dens" and all the busts.

The politicians aren't going to. They see marijuana as just another drug that will lead the youth to start injecting heroin. They see people who use cannabis as the hippies of yesterday, "dressed in odd clothes and having poor hygiene", and not what we really are, business men, musicians, students, and engineers who are simply wanting a relatively harmless way to relax. 

Take it in your own hands. Tell them you, as the people, want it.

Become active.

• Legalize.

• Educate.

• Regulate.

• Medicate.

Handing out prescriptions like candy

I tried convincing my parents for at least ten years that I had ADHD. My mom said it was an excuse for laziness but I really just couldn’t focus. So finally about five years ago, I drove myself to see Dr. Fox, my pediatrician of 17 years. I told him my situation, he asked me a few questions, and within minutes he was writing out a prescription for Adderall.

            He told me “scientifically diagnosing” ADD/ADHD is a long and expensive process. It consists of multiple visits with neurologists and psychiatrists and basically, it’s a pain in the ass.

            “This is what we’re gonna do,” he said. “We’re gonna do this thing backwards. I’m going to give you this prescription and you’re gonna take 20 mg twice a day, for two weeks. In two weeks, you’ll come back and talk to me and let me know how it worked. If it fixed your problems, then I’d say it proves your diagnosis for ADHD.”

            Well, that was easy. That was too easy.

            Doctors are handing out prescriptions like candy. You can’t concentrate? Here take this Adderall. You’re in pain? Here’s some Percocet. It’s a struggle for you to get out of bed in the morning? Well I’ll tell you one thing. It has NOTHING to do with the fact you’re on Facebook until 3 AM, nope, you sound depressed and you should be taking these anti-depressants.

I’m in no way trying to make a mockery of people with depression. Research supports the idea that most depressed people have reduced serotonin transmission. Low levels of a serotonin byproduct have been linked to a higher risk for suicide ((Harvard Medical School). Anti-depressants are made to replenish certain chemicals and neurons that the brain is lacking. The thing is doctors don’t feel the need to run these tests before giving you a prescription to treat something they’re not even really sure you have. The reason doctors prescribe without a proper diagnosis is because they claim you can’t have too much serotonin in the brain, so if you’re not clinically depressed, basically nothing will happen at all.

Except all the side effects.

Which includes risk of suicide.

Which is supposed to be exactly what it’s intended to avoid.

            In reality, prescription drugs haven’t existed long enough for us to know the long term effects of them. An 85 year old woman hasn’t been taking anti-depressants for 70 years so we really don’t know what happens to your body over that long period of time.

            So why are doctors handing out prescriptions left and right? Let’s pretend your back hurts so you pay a visit to your doctor. He writes you out a script for Vicodin and says that should do the trick. Your curiosity tells you to ask if there’s another route that doesn’t involve medication, maybe a chiropractor?

            Your doctor will laugh at you and make you feel like a fool for asking such a thing. Chiropractors are a scam. Think of them like a plumber. Sure, they’ll fix that leaky pipe, but they’ll loosen another one so you’ll have to pay them to come back when it breaks. Once you go to a chiropractor you’ll have to go at least once a week for the rest of your life. I’m telling you, just take the Vicodin and you’ll be feeling better in no time!

            Well, direct kickbacks to doctors are illegal, so drug companies and medical supply firms  have found increasingly creative ways to put money into doctors' pockets. They'll give doctors tickets to expensive sporting events and treat them to dinner at a five-star restaurant, or pay for tropical vacations disguised as educational seminars. That's right, some doctors are being bribed to write prescriptions. Most people will find it hard to believe doctors would do anything to harm you when their purpose is to help you, but in actuality prescription drugs are some of the most addictive substances on the planet. Prescription drug overdoses kill more Americans that cocaine and heroin combined. Yet, there were 250 million prescriptions written for pain killers in the last year? 30 million Americans are currently taking anti-depressants daily?

            To those reading this in disbelief, thinking there’s no way pharmaceutical companies could get away with inadvertently killing people, think about this. The global pharmaceuticals market is worth $300 billion per year. That’s a lot of money. Enough money to buy the cooperation and hushing of the government and media?

Looks like it.

You can smoke a percocet??

My best friend has a two year old son with a junkie. Oblivious to his problem, she used to let him take their son for the day and had no idea what would happen behind closed doors. He and his friend would smoke percs with a baby just a few feet away.

I know a girl that decided that her Percocet high just wasn't cutting it anymore. She's been in and out of rehab for heroin addiction for two years.

Another friend of mine hung himself and revealed in a suicide note that he couldn't bare to live another day struggling with his severe opioid addiction.

Prescription drug abuse is spiraling out of control. The trend is running rampant in my town destroying lives. Percocets or "percs" seem to be the drug of choice. Some chew them, others snort 'em, and some even inject them or smoke them. I know, I didn't know you could smoke a pill either, but apparently people will heat Percocet on tin foil to vaporize the oxycodone, allowing it to be easily inhaled. Oxycodone is the main ingredient in Percocet, and not only does it relieve severe pain, it can also give you a euphoric high.

Prescription pain killers are some of the most addictive substances on the planet.

It gets to the point where people can't function without them. It takes over their lives. The only thing they think about and care about is how they're going to get their next high. They'll steal money from their little brother's piggy bank or their grandmother's purse if that's what it takes. I've seen it.

My town has a disgusting reputation of being filled with junkies and drug addicts. It's sad, disappointing and embarrassing because it's true.

I've watched it tear apart families, ruin relationships, and take lives.
What is it going to take for these people to realize it's not worth it?

Three Cheers for Emotional Support Animals!

While medication can make us feel better, it can’t fix our problems entirely. From my personal experience medication alone is not the best way to heal those of us with mental illnesses. There are so many other effective ways to boost serotonin levels and one I’d like to talk about today is owning a pet.

While pets can’t fix all our mental health problems, animals do have an unbelievable healing power. Caring for and spending time with animals can improve our mental health by giving us purpose, responsibility, a distraction, and affection.  If I have an anxiety filled day my favorite thing to do is to relax on the sofa and snuggle up with the cat. She is always happy to spend time with me and makes me feel loved and needed. After getting a cat I didn’t feel so alone anymore. I felt like I had purpose again and as silly as it might sound, a reason to get up in the morning.

Pets never judge, are always supportive and are cute as can be. What’s not to love? There have also been quite a few studies that have proven that just petting an animal can reduce stress and increase serotonin levels, which is exactly what anti-depressants do. There are groups like the American Humane Association that set individuals up with therapy pets that can ome and visit you regularly if you cannot own a pet; or if you can/do own a pet, you can register them as an emotional support animal for under $100. This allows you to bring them with you anywhere and lifts pet restrictions on places like apartments, restaurants, and airplanes. Many people struggle with mental illness and there are many animals in shelters in need of loving homes. It’s a win, win for both humans and animals. So if you’re looking for another option to fight off your anxiety or depression, besides or in addition to your medication, take a trip to your local animal shelter. You might be surprised by how much of a difference owning a pet can make!