Seeing as you find other people's opinions on here re drug taking so funny maybe its time you read up on the facts about "cannabis" use amongst teenagers. I shall focus on teenagers as this seems to be the age circle you associate with.
What has made me really annoyed about some of the postings on here re smoking hash is the message it may be sending out to those still too young to have tried it. YET! I think it has to be remembered that not only adults browse this website.
Fantoosh you are doing a course on Child and Youth studies according to your profile. I imagine you wish to work with children in the future. You give me the impression from your posts that you don't think there is anything wrong with people who either smoke hash or take recreational drugs at weekends. Say for instance you were in a work situation and a teenager asked you is it OK to smoke a joint, what would your answer be? What are you being taught at college re the use of drugs amongst teenagers?
In the eyes of teenagers it might be cool to have a joint with your mates its what it leads to in the future that concerns me. You ask me what kind of stoners have I seen. Let me tell you Ive been around a lot longer than you and have seen more stoners than you ever will, the most recent are the ones on in years from being a teenager who now suffer from mental illnesses especially schizophrenia.
It is estimated that at least 10 per cent of all people with schizophrenia in the UK would not have developed the illness if they had not smoked cannabis, so there are thousands of individuals whose lives have been ruined by cannabis. The age of starting to use cannabis has been steadily lowering. It is now commonly taken at 15 and there have even been 12 and 13 year olds who have had to seek medical help due to their addiction.
Another point I'd like to make is that the traditional cannabis beloved and introduced en masse by Britain's Sixties youth, or hippy generation, isn't around any more. The amount of cannabis now grown and sold in the UK has risen significantly. New strains of cannabis such as skunk are being home grown under ultra-violet lights and dealers have been able to intensify the quantity of the chemical tetrahydrocannabidinol (THC) - a psycho-active compound that disrupts brain activity and distorts sensory perceptions. In short, the part that gets you high. A cannabis joint today may contain 10 to 20 times more THC than the equivalent joint in the 1970s. This results in feelings of euphoria and relaxation being soured by paranoia and memory loss. Significantly, teenagers whose brains are still developing are more sensitive to the sudden rush of THC into the brain. The drug has increased in strength but reduced in price making it more available to teenagers. Thousands of young people are in treatment programmes for skunk abuse and hospital admissions due to the drug are at their highest ever.
The skunk smoked by the majority of young people nowadays bears no relation to traditional cannabis resin - with a 25-fold increase in the amount of the main psychoactive ingredient, (THC), typically found in the early 1990s. Studies have now reported that those who consistently take large amounts of cannabis or skunk have an increased risk of later developing schizophrenia-like psychosis.
The people who are now in their twenties and suffering from mental illness started using less powerful cannabis eight to ten years ago. The "cannabis" teenagers are trying out today is much more powerful, skunk is an example.
Many people have this image of stoners as you call them being the happy crew who sit in the corner smiling and don't cause any trouble. I agree with them on that Ive seen many myself on a night out. You can spot them a mile off in comparison with those who are "high" on drink. Will they be as "happy" 10 years down the line? I very much doubt it.
Originally Posted by Venture
ha ha
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