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Does marijuana produce an amotivational syndrome? Whether the amotivational syndrome exists or not is still controversial; there are still too few poorly controlled small studies that don't allow a definitive answer. Most people who use marijuana don't develop this syndrome.

The post Does marijuana produce an amotivational syndrome? appeared first on OUPblog.

A quite lively discussion has blown in from space on a friends Face-postcard about something I forgot because it went a completely different way in short order and is now a history lesson on indigenous peoples.

It was said the “Native “”American”” people” were here first and that they claim to be “Indigenous” and that they have their traditional stories to back up their claim to properties etc.

That got me to thinking (usually leads to minor disasters) that just because someone in your past lived some place and told creation stories doesn’t always mean you have any more rights than the guy who was born there after you lost the battle, in my case way after.

I know, growing up, my mother used to tell me, when I asked how I got here that I came from heaven and perhaps, if I’m a good boy, God will give me land there again though I think he may balk at the casino I want to build even if it is to take all the sinner’s money or credits or what ever the currency of his realm is.

And further more if in the past there was only one super continent, Pangaea or what ever they really called it, then we all have a claim to everywhere cause we are all descendants of the original inhabitants and I’ll bet a dollar to a doughnut there aint anywho who can tell me where they thought they came from even after the break up.

I thought perhaps we are all from Mars via the Pleiades star system but had to leave cause the Marshonians wanted the place back so we moved on as they had come from the Hercules system to Mars first.

To send every one back to where they came from is stupid, you can’t fit that many people on Ellis Island let alone grow enough hemp there to have a trade economy with New York.

I don’t know the answer other than if we don’t start being natives from “EARTH” the little grey men will boot us out and wipe out the myths of our origins from then to eternity.

It’s a race none us may win …

I know some people, not to mention names, who are like old teasel.

They grumble and rumble and sometimes grumble about their rumble.

At times their age shows in the form of sharp barbs and spotted faces.

But I would not trade them for any other because you see they are still beautiful to me.

They are still like that quick young person I knew when they get sassy and say things that others may fear to say.

But now they don’t whisper it and come right out loud and say it to my face.

When they put on a new hat they are still handsome, though in a more dignified way even if some of them don’t pick the best look, they never did then either.

Yup! they may be old and slow and have weaker eyes to see all my imperfections with but I still got um and maybe my barbs are showing a bit more too.

I think all those young and brash weeds I knew may not be young in the eyes of the world but I still see them fresh and green with high hopes.

I try to listen more to what they  have to say too because the older I get the more there is to know.

Young weeds tell me what they think is right, and where they think I should go and how  I should go because they read it in a book  but old thistles tell me from experience what’s really in store for me because they wrote the book.

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By Marcello Pennacchio

Few plants have generated as much debate and controversy as cannabis (Cannabis sativa). Throughout the ages, it has been labelled both a dangerous drug and potent medicine. Where the former is concerned, law-enforcement agents and governments spend millions of dollars fighting what many consider to be a losing battle, while fortunes are being pocketed by those who sell it illegally. This is in spite of the fact that cannabis produces a number of natural pharmacologically-active substances, the medicinal potential of which were recognized thousands of years ago. Chinese Emperor, Shên Nung, for example, prescribed cannabis elixirs for a variety of illnesses as early as 3000 BC. It was equally prized as a medicine in other ancient civilisations, including India, Egypt, Assyria, Palestine, Judea and Rome and may have been instrumental in helping Ancient Greece’s Delphian Oracle during her divinations.

While its more common contemporary uses are mostly recreational, cannabis continues to enjoy widespread use as a medicine. It is smoked to ease glaucoma, to help with the degenerative loss of condition and body mass associated with diseases such as HIV/AIDS, and it helps to ease chronic pain in people suffering from terminal cancers and other debilitating illnesses. It has been used for treating malaria, gout, multiple sclerosis, eating disorders, promoting euphoria, as well as for dispelling grief and sorrow. A number of serious side effects have also been linked to its use, however. These include heart problems, immune system suppression, cancer, depression, reduced cognitive function and poor fetal development. It can lead to a variety of psychological problems, too, such as psychosis and schizophrenia, as well as to addiction to this and other drugs. Then there is the added danger of inhaling dangerous chemicals generated during the combustion of organic matter. Chief among these are carbon monoxide and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons.

With so many pros and cons, it’s easy to see why the issue of cannabis has so significantly polarized sentiment around the world. Those in favour of its use want it legalized, with perhaps its most vocal advocates being in San Francisco. This is where one of the world’s first universities dedicated solely to cannabis, is located. Founded in 2007 by Richard Lee, Oaksterdam University was inspired by a similar college in Amsterdam and has since spread to include campuses elsewhere in California and in Michigan. So passionate are its founders and students about cannabis that they have taken the debate of legalizing it all the way to California’s November 2, 2010, ballot, a move that has since made world headlines. Many had hoped a similar proposal in Florida, known as the Medical Marijuana Initiative, would have made it into that state’s ballot, too, but the petition failed to gather the 700, 000 signatures required for it to qualify. Florida’s four-year rolling petition system means, however, that it may qualify for the 2012 ballot.

Surprisingly, the push to legalize cannabis includes former judges, politicians and other high-profile people, many of who themselves don’t use cannabis (including this author). They believe that penalizing and incarcerating its users is far more detrimental to them than smoking its parts are. They further contend that legalizing and taxing cannabis would raise significant revenue for governments. It would also alleviate the enormous drain of cash reserves needed to police its illegal use and, in the process, eliminate the criminal syndicates that sell it. Furthermore, they claim it would ensure that the quality of the product meets stringent regulations.

These are all convincing arguments, but it is difficult for many of us to get around the fact that smoking cannabis, a

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I have set a new record! Latest-in-the-day Linked Up ever!

(I think I need some new personal goals…so if anyone has recommendations…)

5-year-old Aidan is amazing. But he has leukemia and is selling his art to help pay for treatment. Buy his art on Etsy. [tip from SirMitchell]

Are any of you fans of “The Room?” If so, you’re welcome. [The Daily What]

I wish there was a way to make drinking coffee even easier OH WAIT THERE IS! [Yanko]

This cartoon is just…amazing. [New Yorker]

I love stop-motion film. I love Lite-Brites. So. This. [Flavorwire]

Will Smith’s daughter has a recommendation for you. Careful, this will be stuck in your head for days. [Willow]

Snakes on a plane? How ’bout a crocodile? [News AU]

Shameless self-promotional plug of the week…

Dear friends from middle-school, I will probably be buying these shoes and you can’t stop me. [hypebeast]

I just discovered that there is a University dedicated to providing “the highest quality training for the cannabis industry.” So, more on that Monday… [Oaksterdam]

Like some Japanese pine, I think heavy weights have been placed on some of my thoughts to try and bend them into “Correct” shape but my acid personality, I fear, probably has eaten away the wires that holds them in place and I keep going astray ”c)~

Do YOU want to learn to write for children?

If so, then here’s a great little book that can help!

It’s called Writer’s First Aid: Getting Organized, Getting Inspired, and Sticking To It! by Kristi Holl.

Writer’s First Aid is divided into four sections for easy reference: “Getting Started,” “Work Habits That Work for You,” “Money and Other Practical Matters,” and “Creating the Writing Life You Want.”

When a writer is experiencing a particular problem, he or she can turn to the section of the book covering that topic and find 10 articles. These range from the very practical (in the work habits section) to inspirational and challenging (in the section on creating the writing life you want).

Articles in Writer’s First Aid fit the busy writer’s schedule: long enough to be helpful, yet short enough to be read during ten-minute breaks.

Think of Writer’s First Aid as a medicine chest, full of good things for what ails many writers. Medicine chests contain items that kill pain, bind up wounds, bring restoration, and increase vitality.

Order the book here.

Holl is the author of 35 books, both fiction and nonfiction. Visit her blogsite for writers called Writer’s First Aid: A Medicine Chest of Hope. Visit her website at www.kristiholl.com.