The misunderstanding of Mary Jane

So I thought I would go ahead and talk about Mary Jane, Weed, Ganja, Marijuana, Cannabis, The Devil's Lettuce, reefer and the list of names could go on, but I think you catch my drift! 😆 I think most people my age or older, grew up being told that weed was bad drug, it's a gate way drug to stronger drugs, stay away from it! And then there was D.A.R.E., which taught us that Drugs Are Really Evil, lol just kidding! It stands for Drug Abuse Resistance Education, and it taught and educated us to resist peer pressure, and to live a drug and violence free life. And they are still teaching our youth this today. Well of course weed is classified by the D.E.A. as a scheduled 1 narcotic. Along with LSD, Heroine, Meth, and ecstasy. Schedule I drugs, substances, or chemicals are defined as drugs with no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse." So why the heck is marijuana on there?? Because society, propaganda, and the government has brainwashed us into thinking it's a drug and bad for us. Of course times have changed and we know that bad rep is a lie. Let's take a small glimpse into the origins and history of Marijuana.

Use of marijuana as a medicine has been noted as far back as 2700BC. Chinese legend states that its usefulness in treating rheumatism, gout, malaria and, oddly enough, absent-mindedness was documented by Chinese Emperor Shen Nung — who was known as the Father of Chinese Medicine.

The widespread use of marijuana has been seen from China, Korea, India, and East Africa. An Egyptian papyrus from about 1500 B.C. makes mention of cannabis as a useful way to treat inflammation.

In the mid 1500s the Spanish brought marijuana to the new world, America. They brought it with the intentions to grow it for hemp, and strong fibers that could be used for clothes, bags and most especially for the rigging of ships.

Also in the mid-1500s, African slaves transported to Brazil brought cannabis with them. They worked farms in Brazil and they were allowed to grow crops of marijuana to smoke.

By 1890, hemp had been replaced by cotton as a major cash crop in southern U.S. states, but hemp plants were not grown for their intoxicating properties. The level of intoxicant in this plant was very low. That began to change in 1910 when many people fled to Mexico during that country’s revolution, arriving in America and bringing cannabis with them.

Cannabis appeared as an ingredient in many patent medicines of the day, but it was a small percentage compared to the number containing opium or cocaine.

Marijuana really didn't catch on until the mid 1920's. Some say it was brought on by prohibition. It's recreational use seemed to be mainly be used amongst Jazz musicians and people in show business. Marijuana spots called "Tea Pads" sprung up in every major city. These marijuana places were tolerated by the authorities because marijuana was not illegal and patrons showed no evidence of making a nuisance of themselves or disturbing the community. Marijuana was not considered a social threat.

A campaign conducted in the 1930s by the U.S. Federal Bureau of Narcotics (now known as the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs) sought to portray marijuana as a powerful addictive substance that would cause some users to become violent. Below area a couple examples of ads used for propaganda to show the so called "dangers" of marijuana.

Obviously we look at these now and think, how silly! But these ads and others like it did the job of scaring people into thinking marijuana was terrible, it's a gate way drug and could even lead to death! And thus parents taught their children to stay away from it.

The War on Drugs began in the 1970's and that is when Marijuana became a scheduled 1 substance. Meaning it's listed to have a high abuse potential and cold be potentially as dangerous as LSD or Heroin! And that it has no accepted medical use. How absurd!! The deaths from drugs such as LSD and Heroin are far more higher than that of marijuana! ZERO deaths have occurred from Marijuana. More people die from alcohol abuse than Marijuana. More people over dose from pills, than they do from weed, and thousands of people have and continue to die from tobacco use, one of the biggest causes of lung cancer! But they are not banned, and are legal, if you are the right age of course.

It is not justified for the federal government to classify cannabis as a Schedule I drug. It should be reclassified as a Schedule II drug because the medical benefits have been proven and outweigh potential risks. There are quite a few documentary's and even books out there that show the wonderful benefits of cannabis! They demonstrate how cannabis has helped people of all ages, even young children who suffer from seizures, as well cancer patients!

Weed has so many medical benefits! See the pic below to get an idea of it's greatness!

Thank goodness, there have been some great changes with the views and laws of cannabis and it's use today. It is however in the hands of each state to decide on how it can be used. Currently Marijuana is legal (both recreational and medical use) in 11 states for adults over the age of 21, and legal for medical use in 33 states. This is a great step for cannabis patients, users and advocates! Now to get it declassified so that larger and more federally funded testing can be done! There is more to be done, and though it is slow progress, it is still progress non the less!!

There are several ways to use weed too! You don't have to only smoke it! Also the levels and potency of it have changed quite a bit it the years. Just because you tried it once and had a bad trip doesn't mean it's bad for you. It means you probably didn't have good stuff from your street pharmacist, or you smoked too much! Yea that's a thing! The worst that could happen generally from smoking too much is usually couch lock, and napping! Hey I love naps, so sign me up!! lol Everyone's tolerance level is different. What works for one person may not work for you, and vice versa. There are tons of different strains, to choose from these days, with different levels of THC/CBD or Sativa and Indica. That's a whole different topic though! Weed can actually be pretty scientific, which generally I hate science.😝 But for weed, I'll make an exception! It actually interest me, and I like learning new things about it! It's all natural, grown from ground! I also like spreading awareness on it when I can!

So even if you still don't care for weed, don't want to smoke it, eat it, vape it, tincture it, use it at all, that's cool. But don't put other people down for their use or acceptance of it. Do some research yourself and see how beneficial it really can be! We pot heads really are't that bad! I for one would rather live in a world full of stoners, than a world of alcoholics or drug addicts.