Marijuana has a lower potential for abuse than other drugs that are subjected to the same restrictions, with scientific support for its use as a medical treatment, researchers from the US Food and Drug Administration say in documents supporting its reclassification as a Schedule III substance.
Marijuana is currently classified as Schedule I, reserved for the most dangerous controlled substances, including heroin and LSD. In 2022, President Joe Biden asked US Health and Human Services Secretary Xavier Becerra and the attorney general to begin the administrative process of reviewing how marijuana is scheduled under federal law. HHS Assistant Secretary for Health Adm. Rachel Levine wrote a letter to the Drug Enforcement Administration in August in which she supported the reclassification to Schedule III, a list that includes “drugs with a moderate to low potential for physical and psychological dependence” such as ketamine, testosterone and Tylenol with codeine.
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Rescheduling marijuana could open up more avenues for research, allow cannabis businesses to bank more freely and openly, and have firms no longer subject to a 40-year-old tax code that disallows credits and deductions from income generated by sales of Schedule I and II substances.
Even naming heroin and LSD in the same breath is laughably unhinged
America, where opening your mind is considered just as dangerous as ruining your life and health.
Psychedelics are illegal not because a loving government is concerned that you may jump out of a third story window. Psychedelics are illegal because they dissolve opinion structures and culturally laid down models of behaviour and information processing. They open you up to the possibility that everything you know is wrong.
Terence McKenna
“Fuck the drug war. Dropping acid was a profound turning point for me, a seminal experience. I make no apologies for it. More people should do acid. It should be sold over the counter.”
George Carlin
Gimme drugs, gimme drugs, gimme drugs.
Took me like fifteen years to do that without drugs. Could have saved me a lot of time.
I took acid once. I giggled a lot and led my friends on an “adventure” into my backyard where we played hacky sack until it got dark enough to watch the stars. It was awful! You don’t want no part of this shit, Dewey!
I think I kinda want it
Psychedelics are awesome. If you don’t have much experience with them, keep it to a moderate dose. I eat mushrooms quite a bit and a single dose at +5g would rock my world still.
In a healthy environment with a healthy mindset, you can discover a ton about yourself and how your mind works. Or, you can just have fun and socialize.
I use mushrooms medicinally and recreationally. If I want to chill and meditate I can. If I want to be social and have fun, I can. Regardless of my mood, they have been an awesome tool for managing my anxiety, social anxiety and depression. Best of all, it has been a key component in my recovery from alcoholism.
They are not for everyone, unfortunately. If you are not prepared for an accidental high dosage, it can be challenging. (There is so much variability in mushrooms, it can happen. Not so much with with substances like LSD.)
Yea I’ve taken lsd, mushrooms and dmt many, many times.
I used to love acid when I was younger. I bought 30 hits of blotter just for my 18th birthday for me and my friends. Never hallucinated like some people claim but had tons of energy and it made everything feel so… real? and vibrant. Shrooms were cool but just not nearly on the same level.
You definitely want to plan ahead and make sure you’re surrounded by good company and plenty to do beforehand though.
Of all the drugs I’ve done, which isn’t too many, acid is my favorite. Haven’t done it since I was in college over 20 years ago. If I knew how to get my hands on some, I’d consider doing it again occasionally. Best body high I’ve ever had.
I loved acid but I would never do it again at my age (50s). Even back in my youth I thought the experience lasted way too long - I was always ready to come back down and sleep and contemplate my experiences long before the drug started to wear off.
Apparently the dark/deep web is remarkably reliable. At least it used to be, not sure if that’s still the case. I kinda want to get some Bitcoin or whatever they’re using to get a drone delivery of acid, but that would be way too much acid.
Tbf, this is hardly unique to the US, and a handful of states are actually decriminalizing some psychedelics now. Not sure where else in the world is doing that.
The US is largely responsible for the 3 international treaties that semi standardized the prohibitions that have defined and driven drug policies across most of the western world since the 60s, though.
https://www.jtl.columbia.edu/bulletin-blog/international-drug-control-regime-and-reforms#:~:text=Currently%2C three major treaties make,)%2C%20and%20(3)%20United
It’s inherently problematic that the DEA is in charge of scheduling
Rescheduling marijuana would likely lead to a lower budget for the DEA… No way is the DEA going to voluntarily lower the scheduling of such a widely used drug
They don’t get money based on how many drugs are illegal. Not to mention, they like to go after big dealers which some will continue to import illegally or grow it in illegal ways. The DEA will still come after them.
Oh sweet summer child… The dea absolutely loses money if MJ is legalized.
They get money based on the resources needed to tackle illegal drug manufacturing/sales/usage
The more widely used an illegal drug is, the more resources they need to fight it
im pretty sure the dea smokes now hemp tho
Smoking hemp leads to disappointment and headaches.
Source: got fooled while driving through Nebraska.
There is an interesting loophole active right now in the US, a person can buy ‘high THCA hemp flower’, which is identical in composition to bud sold at a recreational dispensary, and it is not regulated and can be shipped across state lines legally through even the USPS. There might be some restrictions in certain states, but you can see an example of this bud here: https://www.luckyelk.com/buy/thca/overview
So long as the THC content is below 0.3% it is not considered cannabis in the same way federally apparently. But most smokable weed has very low THC and high THCA, which is converted to THC when burned, so this bud that falls in this category is just as good as stuff you can get from a dispensary often.
Reminder that the most dangerous drug in terms of deaths caused per capita is alcohol. Refined sugar and HFCS probably has alcohol’s numbers beat if you consider that a drug though.
When I wasn’t in a position to decide my own client list, I used to hate working for some of the large companies with high sugar products. Felt like consulting for Philip Morris or something. I remember one corporate HQ had giant posters in their cafeteria talking about how scientists didn’t find a causative relationship between sugar and childhood health complications, and it felt just like the classic “nine out of ten doctors recommended XYZ brand cigarettes.”
Nicotine/cigarettes are up there too.
I’m guessing obesity beats them all.
Obesity isn’t a drug. But to be fair, food is a hell of a drug.
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It never should have been “classified” or “scheduled”.
Or alcohol should be schedule 1.
Cannabis being a “schedule 1” drug (one of the safest drugs we can consume) while alcohol (an extremely dangerous [to society and individuals] drug that is also addictive) is UNSCHEDULED and PROMOTED is beyond absurd.
Make anything make sense.
Doctor, my wife left me for my brother. May I please have a medicinal alcohol license?
Here’s some change. Get yourself a nice liquor store and a handgun.
A whole store? Golly, doc, you’re the best.
I may have just nose snorted beer onto the back of a small child while reading this.
Money. That’s how it makes sense.
It goes deeper than that. They could be making money from weed instead of alcohol.
The answer is existing wealth and power structures.
Alcohol would at worst be schedule 2 since it has medical use. It’s the cure to methanol poisoning and ethylene glycol poisoning.
But my profits!!!
- alcohol and prison companies
This is nothing new. Nixon commissioned a report that said the exact same thing 50 years ago.
Of course fucking Nixon ignored the report so that he and the rest of the right fuckos could use pot as a legal (and often physical of course) cudgel against black people and hippies.
I wonder what pain relief drugs would be available if the Executive Branch followed science.
Cannabis has always been cannabis.
It has always been safe.
Was this the review Biden asked for awhile back?
Yes,I believe so
It’s coming this summer. It’s a political winner for Diamond Joe.
Yeah it’s pretty big
i have a feeling biden will finally get this done right before the election. hopefully this will mobilize the young enough to combat the hoards of jug hooters
My guess is he promises to get it done next term tho
And then doesn’t do it.
The blame will depend on whether Republicans have control of a house of Congress. If they refuse to put it through the Republican-controlled Senate then it tracks that a Democratic presidential candidate would promise it but be unable to deliver due to the opposing party.
Blame him if he gets complete control and doesn’t do it, blame the other party if they stop him from doing it.
I’m not going to give him credit for something he hasn’t accomplished.
But when we complain that we still can’t buy pot in our state we’ll get 4 replies 10 paragraphs long with citations all smugly telling us that we don’t understand, he actually got “the most work done towards legalizing pot then any president since FDR”
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What more does Biden need to do? They already directed HHS to consider reclassifying it from schedule I to III and HHS made their recommendation to the DEA who classifies the drugs. I thought it was up to the DEA now?
He said we’d look into it, so it’s accomplished!
The executive branch is a bureaucracy that has to follow procedures. The president can direct the agency to start these processes, and that’s what he done. The HHS has done the necessary work to show that cannabis is deserving of a lower schedule according to the Controlled Substances Act. It is now up to the DEA to review that data and reschedule it accordingly. This is the process stipulated by the law, and the executive branch must adhere to it. If they don’t, it will be undone in the courts.
The alternative route would be for Congress to pass a new law to specifically legalize cannabis, but they do not have the numbers, so the Biden administration has to follow the process outlined in the existing laws. He’s done what he is legally able to do, and it’s more than any of his predecessors have. It may be slow, but it’s pretty much a fast as the law allows.
The executive branch is a bureaucracy that has to follow procedures. The president can direct the agency to start these processes, and that’s what he done.
That’s great. Until it’s actually happened, it’s not an accomplishment. I’m not sure how centrists keep failing to understand this. You don’t get credit for something that hasn’t happened. Cannabis is still illegal federally. If that changes due to Biden’s efforts, I’ll happily give him credit.
But it hasn’t happened yet. This isn’t the Silmarillion. You don’t get credit for trying.
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What more does Biden need to do?
Are you unable to answer the question or do you not have an answer? Is that why you resorted to snark?
Not expect praise for something that hasn’t happened?
Centrists demand credit for non-accomplishments because they prefer to accomplish nothing.
Not expect praise for something that hasn’t happened?
Where did I demand Biden be praised?
Centrists demand credit for non-accomplishments because they prefer to accomplish nothing.
When did I demand Biden get credit?
Often on social media the same people who decry one side behaving like authoritarian dictators act like it’s acceptable for their side to behave like gasp authoritarian dictators.
Yes, some people like to give undue credit but you’re just the other side of that coin shitting on any action that is taken.
Instead of engaging in the discussion you resort to snark, assumptions and insults. It’s clear you have nothing to contribute, engaging with you any further would be a waste of my time.
Have a day!
Yes, some people like to give undue credit but you’re just the other side of that coin shitting on any action that is taken.
I’ve said that I will be happy to give Biden credit for actual accomplishments. This is not an accomplishment. It could be groundwork for one, or it could be making a show of looking into it and then not following through.
Democrats squandered what remaining benefit of the doubt they had years ago. Until it’s an accomplishment, it’s a bill of goods as far as I’m concerned.
This is not an accomplishment.
It’s not, it’s what Biden can do. That’s why you still haven’t provided an example or an actual answer to the original question, what else is there for Biden to do?
it could be making a show of looking into it and then not following through.
So you don’t understand how the process works? That’s effectively what you’re saying.
There’s a system, it’s part of how that whole checks and balances thing works. Ignorance often leads to anger as you so aptly demonstrate. I honestly wonder if people who comment like you have are being intentional or are unwittingly part of the disinformation machine.
LOL “jug hooters”… I love it!
So all the guys locked up with mandatory minimum sentences will be released now, right? Right?
There are exactly zero federal prisoners incarcerated for marijuana possession.
At this point I trust cannabis more than I trust HFC. No one is trying to sneak cannabis in my food and cannabis doesn’t make me fat.
I don’t know, man… Those munchies are killer, man… /s
Ok fine if you consumed pot every day it could cause issues.
I think research has shown that every day tokers actually have a lower body fat percentage than the average. I actually get a high-protein granola from the store that has hemp seeds in it, they are high in amino acids and protein. It isn’t super obvious it has hemp in it too so in a way they did sneak cannabis into it haha.
Three decades of the munchies beat you to it. - Hermes Conrad
This article seems to imply that stopping heavy marijuana use can lead to withdrawal symptoms.
Yeah, I’m calling bullshit on that.
There’s definitely symptoms. Irritability being the main one.
Trouble sleeping is another one. It’s not a heroin withdrawal, but it’s there.
Inability to sleep and lack of appetite are also pretty common.
People can get that from not watching TV or listening to music.
Should we also ban those?
Goku goes SSII when he’s resting on his T break weekends
Irritability, sleep problems, night sweats, appetite issues, etc. These are 100% withdrawl effects for some heavy or frequent cannabis users who stop cold turkey.
Is it cocaine or heroin withdrawl? Absolutely not. But we don’t do anyone any favours pretending that people don’t experience these symptoms when stopping (though, on the other hand, not everyone does. Depends how heavy/long you’ve been imbibing and individual differences in body chemistry).
Crazy vivid dreams after stopping long term use as well.
Not necessarily a negative withdrawal effect, although the sudden vivid dreams can be extra scary if the dreams aren’t happy dreams
The body is going to react to anything that it stops getting after it has been getting it consistently. Caffeine is perfectly legal and I get bad migraines from quitting it.
Very vivid dreams for a week count?
That’s about it. I am getting a good amount of pushback from people who very much like the idea that being able to dream again and not being high are withdrawl.
And sure, they’re all technically correct in the most pedantic way.
longtime user here, i tuck in with a bowl every night, and every morning i wake up with a dream still dancing in my head. when i go on a break i don’t “start dreaming again”, I have extremely vivid and bizarre dreams for like a week and then it settles back to normal. Drugs have more effect on dreaming than just “stop” and “go”. I suspect the issue is less others being pedantic and more you being unwilling to challenge a deeply oversimplified take.
Wow, you remember vivid dreams. That’s clearly withdrawl.
…In the most technical sense, only. You’re technically correct, the best form of correct. Which is pretty much the definition of pedantry.
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You’re just straight up provoking me now without even the pretense of trying to make any kind of point, so I’m going to just hit that block button and be done with this exchange.
When I smoke more regularly everyday and stop suddenly I can feel horribly depressed, have trouble eating and sleeping, there are pretty widely recognized withdrawal symptoms though they aren’t as bad for everyone. Ask a therapist who works with substance abuse if weed has any withdrawal symptoms, plenty of people have trouble taking breaks or stopping because it can be hard for some to tolerate the symptoms. Obviously it’s not the same as something like heroin or benzos but it’s more than just more dreams.
Obviously it’s not the same as something like heroin or benzos but it’s more than just more dreams.
It’s not even the same as caffeine, my dude.
True, I feel much worse physically when lacking caffeine lol.
Well no shit.
2022, Biden: We need to shore up the youth support. What do youth vote for? Student loan cancelation and Marijuana reform? Let’s try the former for 2022 and save the later for 2024.
Wait, Ketamine and lean are schedule three* drugs? I thought those were pretty addictive and pretty damaging?
Edited number
Schedule I means not legal for any purpose, so no. Ketamine is used medically and “lean” is a fairly mild opiate, and also used medically (it’s a cough syrup, where did you think it came from?). Drugs like that are schedule ii-iv.
Schedule 3
Whoops, meant to say “aren’t”
Ketamine has medical applications such as being commonly used as an anesthetic in short term procedures and with those who do not respond positively to opioids. Ketamine is classified under low addiction risk as it’s not physically addicting as in its users do not suffer from withdrawal. The problem with ketamine however is that it helps users cope with a plethora of different mental illnesses which in itself is addictive.
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I believe that both have made a similar recommendation at this point.
