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Shondelle t1_ize0p59 wrote

I think Springfield's pearl clutchers might be super surprised when things don't really change at all.

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Wrinklestiltskin t1_ize7mtz wrote

We'll have less opioid deaths, more tax revenue, more jobs... Things will certainly change, but not in line with the deluded slippery slope the right has fabricated.

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Shondelle t1_ize8z9g wrote

Agreed. No one is going to be able to look out their front door to see any of that though, and the detractors might not be interested in looking any of that up.

Regardless, today is a good day for many reasons.

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sikki_nixx t1_izeaweb wrote

Why would there be less opiate deaths? Genuinely curious.

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mcdrunkin t1_izeeha5 wrote

Less people will turn to things like oxy when they can spark a j instead. It's been the case everywhere weeds been legalized.

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sikki_nixx t1_izefzmt wrote

They can already spark a J. I guess I don't see how it would make a difference. I'll do some research. Thanks for the reply.

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hummmnow t1_izelc6s wrote

Mostly ease of obtaining it. You can walk into a dispensary and get exactly what you need and get out. Some folks needed to go to a drug dealer which then might have other party favors for sale….which for addicts can be hard to turn down and so on.

It’s nuanced for sure

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GinWithJennifer t1_izg59eg wrote

This is what I was thinking too. Especially since legalization might kill the black market it might kill a lot of peoples illegal activities from a supply and demand side. People won't be as inclined to party and network to support their habit and so won't be exposed to more than weed.

I hope one day we can just move to decriminalization of everything. Heroin addicts would NOT be moving to fentanyl if they had access to heroin. At least not most of them. In all the YouTube documentaries I watch they always talk about how all the heroin was replaced with or cut with fentanyl. And that not being able to access prescription medications drove addicts to seek out heroin/fentanyl. And then on top of that when they're thrown into jail they go through through withdrawals that are life threatening for some. I don't think anyone would be doing that crocodil stuff if that wasn't their only choice. I don't understand why we don't try a different approach. Jailing people already at the absolute bottom isn't going to improve their life or reform them. It just gonna make them feel worse and more hopeless.

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MuhFucinMason t1_izggdko wrote

People are gonna do drugs regardless it's just a sad world

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SharksForArms t1_izesghz wrote

https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0091743519301860?via%3Dihub

Here is a study that shows that legalized MEDICAL marijuana reduces the number of opiates prescribed amongst the general population. It states that recreational marijuana did not have the same effect though, probably because those recreational states have pretty much all legalized medical first, so there was increased access for actual patients already.

Although this study does not factor in illicit use of opiates, only the number of valid prescriptions being filled. I would imagine illicit recreational opiate use would decrease with increased recreational marijuana.

It's all certainly worth more study.

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CheffRick t1_izftke5 wrote

Thanks for putting up the link. There are 2 more studies if I can remember the links I will put them up.

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GinWithJennifer t1_izg5004 wrote

How does this coincide with the general clamp down of opioid prescriptions in general though? Some doctors are extremely adverse to prescribing narcotics let alone opioids. That trend has only expanded with the general upset of people and politicians rallying behind a cry to end opioid deaths since like....2008? Guessing on the date. Not to mention the recently labeled "opioid epidemic" they've been trying to tackle. How do we know it's a direct effect of Marijuana legalization and not just correlation of things that just happened to happen at the same time?

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SharksForArms t1_izgac0i wrote

This study notes that they saw this trend of fewer opioid prescriptions specifically in states with legalized medical marijuana compared to states without.

Assuming that a growing reluctance to prescribe opioids was/is relatively uniform across the nation, you can still attribute the reduction in opiate prescriptions to legal MMJ according to this one study.

While this one study makes a convincing case about marijuana legality affecting the rate of opioid prescriptions, there could be other factors involved that are not being controlled for. For example, it is possible that those states with legal MMJ also have differing social policies overall that could affect the rate of opioid abuse. I completely agree with your point about correlation vs causation; we absolutely need much more research on all aspects of marijuana to draw those lines with full confidence.

It's insane that we are only now starting to ramp up scientific study of a substance vast numbers of Americans have been using for generations.

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GinWithJennifer t1_izgbfma wrote

Didn't oregon or Washington decriminalize most or all drugs? How's that going? Honestly wish we'd do something besides punishing people that are already suffering. Im 2 weeks without alcohol today :)

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ProGlizzyHandler t1_izj469p wrote

I've got some issues that medical cannabis can help and I've read a number of articles about cannabis being used to treat alcoholism. I never really wanted to have to pay to get access to medicine (mmj cards) but once rec passed I took the plunge and started using cannabis (delta 8 but now that the good stuff is legal I'll be switching to that). After over a decade of alcoholism I'm 4 weeks off the shit. Between that and cannabis helping with my other issues I feel fucking fantastic.

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SharksForArms t1_izghz5s wrote

Well decriminalizing heroin would probably reduce opioid prescriptions somewhat!

Congrats on the sobriety! My partner has been sober for 7 years now. Springfield has a really robust AA community and that was a great help to her especially during the difficult times. I obviously don't know your personal situation, but you never have to be alone in recovery unless you choose to be. Sobriety gets easier the longer you stick with it, so much easier.

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budtoast t1_izh9vj5 wrote

I’m not taking opioids because I have access to weed. I used to have to but they made me uncomfortable. Idk if a personal anecdote is worth anything but yeah lol.

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GinWithJennifer t1_izhgt4f wrote

Yea but I assume you'd smoke weed anyway.

Normal people not involved with the culture or inclined to pursue it probably aren't being offered weed by their ER doctor. So for a majority of Americans that don't use or have any inclination to even consider using it doesn't make any sense

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budtoast t1_izhhtow wrote

No, my pelvic floor doctor told me I should pursue it because we had run out of options. Granted she is very open minded, but I’m happy she did. Not every doctor is that self focused (only suggesting things they can provide) and they like offering things that might help if nothing else is helping.

Edit: Part of the issue here unfortunately is the lingering stigmas around weed. I know many others suffering from chronic illness who found medical marijuana or were recommended by their doctors because opioids are torture for so many people who are in pain. “You probably would anyways” is rooted in so many negative connotations. You don’t really know my life? 10% of people with my disease consume marijuana. Yeah, I’m sure I would have eventually considering that’s becoming incredibly common increasingly and it is frequently recommended for pain.

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GinWithJennifer t1_izm3e0s wrote

It is still most likely true heuristically. I am glad it helped you but I'm replying relative to the question in OP. It won't really change much for most people. A majority of people who will smoke already smoked.

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budtoast t1_izm3w36 wrote

Well for one, many medical consumers don’t smoke and cannabis consumption isn’t just smoking. Most doctors, if they recommend it, suggest edibles over smoking as obviously that’s healthier. Anyways I get your point, there are just a lot of misconceptions about medical use.

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GinWithJennifer t1_izm57wh wrote

You're nitpicking what I'm saying. I mean most people who will consume pot already do.

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CheffRick t1_izft8uq wrote

How it makes a difference is a lot of Opioid deaths are done by taking legal prescriptions. In greater amounts than subscribe. Marijuana is cheaper than the subscriptions and in a lot of cases better for the job. So more people turn to it instead of bigfarma.

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CuriousBear23 t1_izelfcs wrote

I don’t think anything will change because everyone who wanted to smoke was already blazing.

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Shondelle t1_izescop wrote

We'll see a gentle spike in usage, and then a leveling off. Plenty of middle aged smokers who weren't willing to risk it, or didn't know how/where to acquire from the black market. Plus poorer folk who couldn't afford the medical license. I don't think it will be much of a spike though.

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GinWithJennifer t1_izg4c0m wrote

Right, nothing in my home state changed except that dispensaries sprung up everywhere. The people who already smoked....just kept smoking. Nothing changed really.

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budtoast t1_izh9il6 wrote

Can’t help but wonder if this is what the “Just cus ya can doesn’t mean ya should” letters are about in that one person’s yard with the letters that change every so often.

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jttIII t1_izebrsl wrote

right? I think those that want to partake already do and I doubt they are now going to become emboldened with some sort of rastafarian energy this time next year.

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