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Marijuana and Me
A few months ago we started putting together the July/August issue of the magazine, which focuses mostly on the war on drugs. (The full package, "Totally Wasted," is here.) When my editors learned that I live the life of a monk — I don't drink, I don't do drugs, and I've never taken even a single toke of marijuana — they were pretty amused. So they decided I should write a piece on marijuana legalization. And I did.
There's no simple money graf to pull out of the piece, but you probably won't be surprised at the conclusion:
Going into this assignment, I didn't care much personally about cannabis legalization. I just had a vague sense that if other people wanted to do it, why not let them? But the evidence suggests pretty clearly that we ought to significantly soften our laws on marijuana. Too many lives have been ruined and too much money spent for a social benefit that, if not zero, certainly isn't very high.
The bad news is that, at least for now, the chances of fully legalizing marijuana are essentially zero. We may continue to make progress toward partial decriminalization, which is better than nothing, but at least in the near future that's about all we can look forward to. Read the article to find out why.
The rest of the piece is a look at what the likely effects of decriminalization and legalization would be. Some of them may come as a surprise, some of them won't. As for the title of the piece — "The Patriot's Guide to Legalization" — well, I'm not really sure what it means either. I just write the text around here and let other people worry about the creative bits. I think it's meant to go with the picture, though I have to say that perhaps "The Geek's Guide to Legalization" would have fitted the illustration better.
Anyway, now that that's done, maybe I should try some pot one of these days. After all, do I really want to go to my grave not knowing what it's all about?
A matter of time.
Now that you've made a public declaration of you inexperience (along with a confessed curiosity), be careful about the provenance of your brownies.
Well you live in California,
Well you live in California, so at least you can try it "fairly" legally by telling your doctor you've got insomnia. Or something. I think the more interesting thread would be: "What movies/music do you guys recommend when I first try it?" :)
what music?
What music to listen to? Whatever you like best when you are straight. Whatever it is, it will be better.
What movies? Nothing with an intricate plot to remember. Dumb comedies or action flicks are easy to follow. Blazing Saddles is perfect.
trying Marijuana
If you havent tried it by now, it could be a disappointment when and if you do try it.
Your best strategy would be to light some candles, put on some Keith Jarrett, and convince Marian to join you. Shades drawn. Naked. Computer off. Cats in the room.
See, its a lot of work to get the proper mood.
Scrumptious
Toll House Choc Chips (the non poisonous ones) are the best delivery method. Blazing Saddles - sure. Monty Python's Holy Grail - better.
Just don't attempt to solve
Just don't attempt to solve any hard math problems if you try it, you might hurt yourself in the process.
What's your address Kevin?
I've never tried it with cats in the room. Is it better this way?
minority opinion here, but
Speaking as a long-time heavy user who recently gave it up, my advice would be that if you've managed to enjoy your life so far without it, don't bother.
PS
I found the presence of cats in the room made little difference in the experience one way or the other.
having an effect
I've tried it 2x and never gotten an effect. In a bio of Carl Sagan, the same thing happened to him, such that he initially thought it was psychosomatic. But the third time, it hit him, and he said it led him to great insights.
Weed
Kevin, I've been smoking weed for over 40 years. There's few things better than coming home after work and settling in with a cold bottle of Anchor Steam beer and a joint. Coming home and finding out that our duaghter brought the grandson over for a visit is one of them, and no, I don't smoke around the kid. Just like I didn't smoke around his mother when she was young.
I think you'd enjoy the experience. Just make sure you're in a safe, comfortable environment if you try it. You don't want to have to deal with any kind of jangling influences. Have some good fresh fruit around in case the weed works and you get the munchies. Trust me, if you get stoned you will get hungry and the munchies are not to be denied. You're old enough so that the fruit is a better choice than a bag of Reeses Peanut Butter cups. I smoke before I make dinner now for that reason. Remember, it often takes people several tries before they actually realize they're stoned, do don't smoke, decide it didn't work and then go for a drive. If you smoke, remember the designated driver rules.
In the end, it's a fun way to start the evening. But it's not a big deal. Have fun!
B, yes it's better with cats in the room, especially lap cats that want petted. Some cats like the contact high and get real playful.
Do not get too excited. Many
Do not get too excited. Many people report that the first time is more of a "what is this?" reaction, not not knowing what to call it, but not sure what the feeling exactly is.
Marijuana something quite subtle until you get the hang of it--like riding a bike. In fact, after people were putting it in my hand I kept not getting it (over years, believe it or not) before I did. After that, wow.
Not even once?
This explains a lot, Kevin.
I'd recommend it to most people, but not for you. You often strike me as one who easily becomes set in your ways, and I can just imagine you either comparing the experience to sobriety and not liking it because it's (definitely) different, or being disappointed, wondering what all the hype is about.
Try it at the beach, if you must.
I agree it's worth trying
I agree it's worth trying just to find out what it's like, but in my opinion--among those who are pro--it's vastly overrated, and its genuine downsides in the case of overuse are also often foolishly overlooked.
Something to consider
Cannabinoids are complex compounds, and they induce a constellation of neurophysiological responses that at best are unpredictable, given the almost infinite spectrum of individual neuroanatomical and physiological variants that comprise the human phenotype. That's a geeky way of saying pot + people = lots of possible responses.
As a college student in the 60's, I enjoyed kicking back and listening to good music, watching funny movies, eating tasty treats, all of the iconically sybaritic indulgences that go along with the enhanced sensory responses to THC. Over time, I began to notice that in my personal response idiom, there was a certain mental dullness that persisted noticeably for 48 to 72 hours. Nothing seriously debilitating, but rather an absence of reason acuity that made it harder to complete intellectual tasks requiring intense focus and complex processing. As a professional academic, I ultimately came to realize that in my personal case, and not necessarily in any way experienced by a plurality, much less a majority of others, cannabinoid response impedes optimal functioning to a degree that I was unwilling to accept, so I stopped partaking sometime in my 40s.
It doesn't seem to be a problem with most of my friends and relatives who continue to use pot, but I just thought I'd mention it. Your work is important to a lot of people, and in times like these, it's hard enough to think clearly.
Just something to add to other thoughtful responses...
cost
I wonder how much money the federal government and California would save if they cut back on the 'war' by half.
Gateway Drug
See? Proof positive that writing about pot leads to ... um... the desire to try it... It's just a short step from curiosity to the shooting galleries, son.
Pot
Kevin, we have a lot in common. We are only one year apart in age, I went to MIT you went to Cal Tech (I know you didn't finish there, but it is the only other school that us techies respect). I did not smoke, drink or take any psychoactive drugs until I met this wonderful woman, who I later married when I turned forty. She thought it would be good for me to loosen up and try some. I didn't like it much the first time, but it got better after that. I now really enjoy pot, much more than alcohol which I also now do occasionally. Others have said this but my take:
Music : way better, incredible. Also better if you play music as I do. For example, I am an OK drummer straight, on pot way better, and it's not just because I think so.
Sex: Wow!
Food: It's no wonder you get the munchies. Food tastes great.
Oh yeah, and funny movies OMFG! My wife has a great time just listening to me laugh laugh laugh.
Last year I tried MDA (the hug drug) and LSD. My wife and I took MDA together and had an amazing experience that has brought us closer together. When I took LSD , I came up with the best idea I have ever had. I have filed for a patent and am searching for a buyer. I'll find one.
One suggestion, if you know someone with a vaporizer, use it. Much better than smoking it, more effective, cleaner, no smell and no tar. I never smoke it anymore. Don't inhale too much, take one or two tokes and see how that feels. Vaporizers are very effective, it will sneak up on you.
Marijuana
If you're 50 and you don't drink, and have never smoked marijuana, I suggest you stay that way. At your age, you wouldn't like it at all.
Observations
A close friend of mine has a medicinal cannabis prescription. Getting it wasn't as easy as he expected, he had to provide full medical records and show a history of chronic pain resulting in consuming 6 T-4's (Tylenol w/codeine) daily. His experience with the medical dispensaries has been fun to watch as he discovers "professional grade pot." No seeds, no stems. Fully documented varieties, known effects. At 1/3 the cost of street purchased product. So, if you are going to try - find a way to get the good stuff.
The way forward, IMHO, is to send cannabis laws back to the states. Let the states decide how they want to handle, just like liquor.
Why we continue to say that alcohol is fine and legal while the much less socially damaging cannabis is verboten, continues to mystify me. Either "intoxication" is bad or isn't. Making a distinction on means of conveyance is BS.
it still amazes me that the
it still amazes me that the tax revenue wasn't irresistible: i assured people, as a dope-smoking college kid in the early '70s, that reefer would absolutely, positively be legalized by the 21st century just for the tax revenue.
Some Suggestions
The sativa strains will give you a intellectual high. If you like talking politics, you'll really talk politics on sativa. The indica strains will generally give what some people call you a body high (i.e. it will knock you back on the couch and make you want to watch silly TV shows ;-).
Try to locate some really good cannabis. It should be sticky with resin and smell -- well -- it should smell just yummy. I don't know how to describe it. Catnip for humans?
Inhale lightly, and hold the smoke in. Try not inhale enough to cough. So start slowly and work up. Take two or three inhalations (hits), and wait. Close your eyes and try to see if you feel any different. Many people, including myself, didn't get high the first time they smoked pot. I suspect it's probably due to not holding the smoke in, or inhaling too much smoke and coughing it all out before it can be absorbed. Wait a few more minutes, and take a couple of more hits if you don't notice anything. Best not to get too high your first time out.
As for music, I love jazz when I'm high. Miles, Wynton Marsalis, Coltrane, Art Blakey.
Chocolate and espresso go well with cannabis, IMHO.
I gave up smoking after grad school, but I took it up again a few years ago, and I quite enjoy it -- a couple of times a month. I like the sativa high. And I don't bother with anything but the really good weed.
As for some who have commented on this thread that complained about diminished reasoning acuity, some of the most gifted computer programmers I've met were potheads. And they preferred to work stoned. They turned out solid code, so I couldn't complain. Personally, I wouldn't try to do my taxes while high, but then again, I probably wouldn't be motivated to do my taxes while high.
Also, don't drive while high! It's easy to get distracted by extraneous sensory input.
...
It can stink horribly, it makes you hungry and dumb, and honestly, what's up with that?
But mostly, I just want to get rid of this demonization of other people's hobbies. I don't care if you get high on alcohol, caffeine, sugar, or whatever - as long as it doesn't do any more harm than alcohol, or get in my face like cigarette smoke, I'm not going to complain.
Besides, I'm all for easy and durable fibers that need less water than cotton and grow faster than trees.
warning
a word of warning, however, kevin: do not attempt to drive after you have smoked, unless you also dropped some magic mushrooms.
the innate spirituality of the mushrooms will protect you.
I have never tried marijuana
I have never tried marijuana and don't plan to. I am approaching my 64th birthday. I am agnostic about its legalization; but, I do not want to go to a restaurant or any other public venue and find someone next to me smoking pot.
Should be legal unless the user commits other crimes
Marijuana, cocaine, heroin, meth and all other illegal recreational drugs should be illegal as follows. Drug use should only be illegal in conjunction with other crimes. So anyone convicted of any crime whatsoever should be drug tested. If positive, the sentence should be a mandatory year of monthly drug testing at the perp's expense. If any of those tests are Missed or positive, the sentence for the other crime should automatically escalate to the maximum, plus one year mandatory prison, with no elligibility for parole.
So users would be left alone unless they commit other crimes, and ifthey did the other crimes would be punished harshly.
I just don't understand how
I just don't understand how or why marjuana is illegal, it baffles the mind that it is illegal and that people tolerate the governent's declaration that it is dangerous. (More dangerous than alcohol? Really???) Only someone who has no experience with drugs or people who use drugs who ever put it in the same camp as cocaine or heroin-- they're not even in the same universe.
Personally I wish that the world was filled with far more potheads than alcoholics. It would be a much more peaceful, relaxed place.
Glad I tried it ...
I got high for the first time at a bachelor party when I was 27 years old. Considering I grew up in the South Bay -- in the County strip between Torrance and Carson, to be precise -- it's quite remarkable because dope was EVERYWHERE.
But it's easy to explain. My father and eldest brother were alcoholics, and my next-older brother was a serious user (still is, currently living on the streets in Tucson I believe), so I was scared of what might happen if I tried booze or dope.
That first time I got a fun, mellow, giggly buzz. The second and last time I got high was in 2003, right before seeing REM at the Hollywood Bowl. My friend brought some stuff that looked like little ochre-colored tumbleweeds and it f**ed me up! I blacked out a couple of times. When I came-to at one point, a bunch of people around me were laughing hysterically at something I had said (I assumed I was being witty but probably not) and a very attractive woman had bought me a beer. I kept seeing members of the cast of Seinfeld in the crowd. And on the way home my "check engine" light came on and I joked to my friend that this was secretly a signal that told the cops you were high. I don't think I was really paranoid, but I found that wildly hilarious at the time. It still makes me laugh, and people that know me refer to a stoned person as having their "check engine light on."
Im 45 now, with five daughters, and I'm glad I tried it, and equally glad I never made a lifestyle out of it. And I tell my daughters no no no no I never touched the stuff and neither should they.
Social norms
Kevin, I tried it for much of the same reasons you say, and the effect was interesting (try swimming). But the reason for the seemingly arbitrary laws separating pot from alcohol are based on the general public's attitude. If I had a hangover, I could say to people I had too much to drink and would get a mere tsk-tsk. But to say that you got baked, you better know the other person extremely well.
I'm for decriminalizing, but I haven't been sold on legalization yet. The alcohol culture just doesn't have the same odd connotation as the pot culture.
par4 Get some good Humboldt
par4 Get some good Humboldt county tops and Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band.
drunks
And drunks are just so incredibly better for everyone.
Connotations of Culture
For sure, the pot culture doesn't have the same connotations as alcohol. Supposedly, pot smokers wear beads, eat a lot, and sit around saying "Wow". A fight between two pot smokers would be basically a Niles-and-Frasier comedy act.
In contrast, alcohol drinkers wear guns, throw up a lot, choke on pieces of meat they've tried to swallow without chewing, and get in fights or automobile accidents. In general terms, alcohol is the cause of three-quarters of our fatal car crashes and domestic violence.
But, you know what? Prohibition was even worse!
I've often wished my father would have tried LSD when he was 50. From the medical evidence we have, there is one chance in two that it would have given him an extra 20 years of happy and productive life. As it happened, a lifetime of social drinking made him tired, gave him aches and pains, and eventually left him in a chronic depression.
For a first-timer at age 50, I would prescribe a weekend at home with nothing but pleasant chores on the schedule. Smoke moderately (but not timidly) at quiting time on Friday, but if the cocktails or dinner taste better than ever before, remember, that's just the pot talking, and don't overindulge.
Then, on Saturday, smoke again. This is the most likely time to feel the effects, and a good time to listen to music, have lunch, or do whatever seems most enjoyable at the time.
One thing for sure- if you smoke, and then sit around and watch your cats, you're going to see some stuff you never noticed before. But I've said too much already.
Smoking- A Good Introduction
People who know their relationship with pot often choose to eat or vaporize instead of smoking. But smoking has some good points for beginners.
When you've learned how it feels to get "high", and you're smoking, you can stop where you want to. Against all rules of physiology, some kinds of pot actually deliver a wallop about twenty minutes after you smoke it. If you think you may be smoking some of this, you can stop when you get that first "lift-off" effect.
All of the unpleasant experiences I've had have come from eating too many brownies, and my guess would be that for someone who doesn't smoke a lot, these would be pretty unpleasant indeed.
Smoking is a first choice for controlling the experience, and still safer than breathing the air in Los Angeles.
Have you tried it yet?
Hi Kevin,
I enjoyed your article, and if you have tried ganja yet, how did it go? If not, let me encourage you to follow the advice of SMOKING or VAPORIZING marijuana the first time. It is easiest to titrate the dose smoking, with vaporizing second. When you eat marijuana, the effects are somewhat different than when you smoke it because your liver alters some of the cannabinoids, this can be good in a medical sense, you may get more cannabidiol which is probably responsible for much of the medicinal value of marijuana, but you can also find yourself uncomfortably high and experience dizziness, even nausea, for a protracted period. When you smoke or vaporize, if you stop when you start to get any effects, you will be in control of your experience and you will be high for only an hour or two. Once you're comfortable with the initial sensation, you can continue to make informed decisions. Have fun, as you know by now, you are trying something safer than aspirin AND Tylenol.