Legalize Marijuana...Medicinal uses for NFL?

[Whatever]

(08-16-2016, 06:05 PM)oncemoreuntothejimbreech Wrote: I agree with your first paragraph. It ranges from opponents like the DEA chief claiming medicinal marijuana is "a joke" to proponents like Tommy Chong at one point claiming it cured his prostate cancer. The truth is probably somewhere in the middle and we need more research. 

Narcotics have the same tolerance issue, they cause physical dependence, possibly withdrawal if suddenly discontinued, the potential for addiction, and I believe there were about 14,000 deaths due to narcotics last year in the U.S. alone. 

Ah, but that's a misleading statistic.  There is no national standard for what classifies a drug as a narcotic, and what qualifies varies by area.  In some places, any illegal drug including pot is considered a narcotic.  Typically, there are between 18-34 drugs classified as narcotics, so we're talking less than 400-800 deaths per year, on average, per drug.  It's a loaded argument to compare a single drug to an entire classification of drugs, in any case.  Weed is involved in over 2,000 traffic deaths a year, so is it more dangerous than the average narcotic?  Illicit drugs like heroin are commonly classified as narcotics, so how do they impact those statistics as compared to prescription painkillers?  Also, keep in mind that psychological addiction is harder to break over time than physical.