Proponents of California’s Proposition 19, the Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010, back the marijuana-legalization measure for a variety of reasons–including the drug’s medicinal uses, the belief that drug laws unfairly target minorities and increased tax revenue.
But Keith Humphreys, a psychiatry professor at Stanford University and former senior policy adviser in the Office of National Drug Control Policy, rejects that stance. He warns in a podcast that the measure could give the tobacco industry a lucrative new product line, or spur a new industry that would start its own campaigns against anti-smoking legislation and health policy, The Los Angeles Times reports.
Humphreys says his No. 1 fear is that the pot proposition would create a lucrative product line for tobacco companies or create an industry that would stand “shoulder to shoulder with them lobbying against every anti-smoking restriction” and other public health initiatives.
According to Humphreys, in European countries where pot is legal, the drug often is smoked with tobacco, and the combination is “both more addictive and more cancer-producing than either of those separately.” Humphreys noted that cigarettes still kill 400,000 people every year, despite legislation and campaigns against smoking.
And though Humphreys believes marijuana has legitimate medicinal uses, that doesn’t mean that smoking the plant is always beneficial or safe.
Please stop trying to regulate what I can and can’t do to myself!!! I am a free person and I will but whatever I wish into my body no matter what the law says!
As a dad, I’ve asked myself, “If my child or grandchild got a little off track and got caught with a little marijuana, would I want him or her to go to jail, lose their college financial aid, spend a few days locked up with the sexual predators…?” Or would I rather have the chance to help them work through it WITHOUT a criminal record?
Californians: register to vote at
h t t p s://w w w .sos.ca.gov/nvrc/fedform/ Just fill out the form and mail it in!
Citizens of other states can Google your state name and “voter registration” to find out how to register; a lot of states allow instant on-line registration. Do it now so you can vote in November!
“According to Humphreys, in European countries where pot is legal, the drug often is smoked with tobacco, and the combination is “both more addictive and more cancer-producing than either of those separately.” Humphreys noted that cigarettes still kill 400,000 people every year, despite legislation and campaigns against smoking.”
Except that marijuana is not physically addictive.
This argument is an old tactic anyway — attempt to associate pot with something demonstrably bad, say cigarettes here, and then say we need to keep it illegal because that OTHER thing is so bad.
So he makes no mention of the real issues that American citizens are having their lives destroyed by the criminal “justice” system every day for a weed. Instead he inserts red herring arguments like “the tobacco industry will make money!” give me a break! These are ordinary, decent people whose lives are being ruined by these stupid laws. It’s unamerican. End prohibition!
I’m very tired of the same old “it’s bad for you” or could “harm you”arguments against legalization. If this argument made sense, then we would have to outlaw candy, french fries, potato chips, smog, sky diving, rock climbing, driving cars, war, spray paint, model glue, gasoline, and of course alcohol and cigarettes! What we as Americans decide to do with our personal lives, whether it’s dangerous or not is really NONE OF THE GOVERNMENT’S BUSINESS! To me freedom is the only proper argument in favor of eliminating any “prohibitive” law when its possible for the activity to harm only me! Just because someone might abuse it, doesn’t mean others won’t use it responsibly. I don’t need my Government to act as my parent!
Yes in europe joints usually contain tobacco and marijuana. But more and more people are switching to vaporizers, that do not burn marijuana but only release the vapors without combustion. This type of use is completely without health risk, except for the potential mental addiction (not physical) that any very pleasing activity may have, just like sex, gaming, eating etc.
I got a vaporizer since one year and I’m delighted with it. Before I had to bake/cook since personally I cannot stand smoking.
You know, there’s just the issue that he doesn’t know what he’s talking about.
Cannabis doesn’t cause cancer. Just look at Dr. Donald Tashkin’s study at UCLA (funded by NIDA/NIH) from 2006. It’s the most longitudinal study of its kind.
His concerns about tobacco/cannabis being mixed is none of his business. It could easily be prevented on a retail level (not allowing mixed tobacco/cannabis cigarettes), and regardless – it doesn’t cause more cancer to smoke them together than it does to smoke tobacco alone. Again, if you look at Dr. Donald Tashkin’s study from 2006, it shows chronic users of both tobacco and cannabis show LESS probability of developing cancer as a result (though the difference isn’t really statistically significant).
Regardless, vaporizers exist for a reason and cannabis can be cooked safely as well. It’s time for these lies and inaccuraces to stop.
This doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. If I understand it right he’s saying that treating public health problems like public health problems is bad and we should continue using the criminal justice system to deal with public health problems. Weak sauce.