Economic Affairs Minister Maxime Verhagen explained that marijuana with over 15 per cent of THC, its main active chemical, is much stronger than marijuana decades ago. As such, it should be considered as a different drug.

There are doubts on how to implement the plan, however. Gerrit-Jan ten Bloomendal, spokesman for the Platform of Cannabis Businesses in the Netherlands, asked: “How are we going to know whether a given batch exceeds 15 per cent THC? For that matter, how would health inspectors know?”

Jeffrey Parsons, a psychologist at Hunter College in New York, also doubts if this plan would actually yield its expected benefits. He said: “If it encourages smoking an increased amount of low-concentration THC weed, it is likely to actually cause more harm than good.” He explained that extra inhalation may increase the risk of lung damage and cancer.

This move is part of the ongoing Dutch crackdown on marijuana, which saw the government announcing plans to ban tourists from buying weed. The city of Amsterdam, where marijuana cafes actually attract tourists, resisted the plan.

According to a report on The Wall Street Journal, federal authorities were able to seize 21,800 pounds of marijuana from the warehouse, after these were delivered by six rail cars from Mexico. The street value of the pot was estimated at $22 million, and has been described as the largest seizure of marijuana in the Chicago area. Before this bust, the largest seizure happened in the early 2000s, with the interception of 8,000 pounds of marijuana.

The sting operation that led to the seizure of marijuana in the Chicago area began on November 17, in the rail yards of Eagle Pass, Texas. This was revealed in the 74-page complaint that was filed on Thursday in federal court in Chicago. U.S. Customs and Border Protection agents were able to uncover pot that was loaded on rail carsin bundles that were marked with the words “TITANIUM PIGMENTS OR,” through the help of drug-sniffing canines.

The U.S. Justice Department described each bundle as “encrusted in a thick layer of fine red masonry pigment dust.”

Documents that accompanied the shipment indicated that its origin was a company in Jalisco, Mexico. Its destination, still according to the accompanying documentation, was a company called Earth Minerals Corporation, in Illinois. There are, however, no public records of a company in Illinois that carried that name.

The seven men who were charged are as follows: Carlos Osvaldo Quintero, 31 years old; his father, Martin Quintero, 63; Felipe de Jesus Magana-Campos, 47; Eduardo Angel Zalayaran-Ruiz, 54; Javier Vera, 24; Miguel Cordova, 20; and Christian Gonzalez, 24.

The team successfully busted a total of more than 500 pounds of marijuana, 1.5 kilos of cocaine and some guns. Four people are now facing charges for what has been uncovered by the sting.

It has been a fact that in recent days, the streets of Minneapolis have been a site for violence where gangs and drugs play great roles. With what the police has been able to do, it sends out a clear signal that they are dead set on catching the criminals.

Capt. Don Banham, a member of the Enforcement Team has said that they were able to establish three things on this operation. First, they were able to take out the drugs in the street. It’s no joke to have that much drugs in the area and the money involved will really be significant. Second, by catching the criminals, they have somehow disrupted their behaviors and prevent their planned drug-related activities. Third, with the arrests made and people put behind bars, Minneapolis streets may become a little peaceful, although not completely free from crooks. This can somehow decrease violent scenarios in the streets which have been happening for the past couple of months.

Aside from the drugs and guns that were seized, a whopping $100,000 was also confiscated. Minneapolis Police authorities are hoping for more successful drug busts in the coming days. They are seeking the help of civilians to eradicate violence and drug operations on the streets. If people will become active in the fight against illegal drugs, police work can be made a lot easier.

The components of marijuana are not toxic enough to cause an illness or death. It has even been used as a form of medication in a number of states in the US. However, if we talk about using marijuana with other drugs or using marijuana while or shortly before doing activities that require focus and coordination, such as driving or operating a heavy machine, then marijuana can be dangerous and can even cause death.

Is it dangerous to drink alcohol and smoke marijuana at the same time?

Drinking too much alcohol can cause serious illness or death. Throwing up is the body’s way to get rid of poison. Smoking marijuana suppresses the body’s need to purge when the blood alcohol content reaches dangerous levels. That is why binge drinking and marijuana smoking make a dangerous combination.

Does using marijuana always lead to abusing other more dangerous drugs?

Marijuana has been referred to as a gateway drug, a label which many marijuana advocates strongly oppose to. Many drug abusers may have started with marijuana, but only a small percentage of marijuana users actually move on to using other more dangerous drugs. What marijuana users should be concerned about is not how it can lead to further drug abuse, but what its effects are to the brain even when taken without other drugs.

With medical marijuana getting the approval of legislators in certain U.S. states, questions are being raised — why is marijuana still prohibited in several other states?

The answer is simple — it is not for everyone.

While patients of specific illnesses may benefit from the effects of marijuana to the body, some should not even try it.

Impact of Marijuana to the Brain

THC finds brain cells, or neurons, with high concentrations of cannabinoid receptors, and binds to them. The areas of the brain most affected by marijuana are the hippocampus, the cerebellum, the basal ganglia, and the cerebral cortex. The hippocampus has a big role in the learning process, and THC may thus interfere with learning and memory. This is especially critical for children or teens whose brains are still developing.

Marijuana may also affect judgment, coordination and perception. Under the influence of marijuana, remembering things you have recently learned or driving a car may seem to be a challenge.

This is why a patient who needs marijuana must get a medical transcription from a doctor to make sure that one can really take benefit from the use of marijuana.

Marihuana (1936). Well, the title of the movie says what it’s all about — marijuana, weed, pot. Classified as an exploitation film, Marihuana follows the life of Burma, a girl who attends a party, smokes marijuana and goes skin-dipping with other girls. One of the girls drowned. Later in the film, Burma becomes pregnant, gives up her child for adoption, becomes a drug dealer and plans to kidnap her sister’s adopted daughter, who turns out to be her own.

Reefer Madness (1936). Another exploitation film, it presents the events that happened after pushers lured high school students to try marijuana. It was originally made to show parents the dangers of cannabis by using tragic events such as hit-and-run accident, manslaughter, rape and suicide. The film was not well received then. It was rediscovered in 1970s as an unintentional comedy. In 2004, major American film studio 20th Century Fox released a colorized version of the film on DVD.

Assassin of Youth (1937). Although often referred as a clone to Reefer Madness, this film is a thriller that reflects the ill effects of marijuana use. It showcases marijuana-dealing youths, all-night parties, obscenity and violence.

Recent films on marijuana, however, are less critical of marijuana compared with these old ones.

Substance abusers who fail to abstain from chemicals despite several treatment efforts, generally think of switching over to some other forms of chemicals for harm minimization. Often we come across confused parents who try to make a deal with their children that, “if you stop using all other drugs you will be allowed to smoke only pot.” This is not really surprising since throughout the world marijuana is the most popular drugs because of its euphoric effects. The myths associated with marijuana are also responsible for its widespread acceptance. A good number of users and their family members believe that they are smoking herb – a natural product. Isn’t that a consolation!

But parents must be aware about the three common myths about marijuana use and then decide on their course of action.

#  Marijuana is not addictive. It does not create physical dependence. This is absolutely an incorrect notion since continued use of pot leads to physical dependence which is evident from the symptoms that are noticeable once the substance is withdrawn. Lack of appetite, poor sleep, fatigue, aggression are some of the withdrawal symptoms associated with the substance. 

# Marijuana is natural and thus good for health. All natural products are not safe for health. Mother nature also produces certain things which are detrimental for health. Marijuana affects the Central Nervous System specially the cognitive aspect of the brain. The effects, though subtle, are often irreversible. Short term memory is impaired, a slower processing speed leads to slowing down of the brains ability to solve problems. Prolonged usage in adolescence might lead to neuroplasticity.

# Marijuana is a natural healer for diseases that cause pain. Studies have shown that THC, the primary chemical in marijuana helps AIDS patients to gain weight and prevents cancer patients from experiencing nausea. Thus THC is filtered and extracted and used in different pills. But actual marijuana has at least 400 cancer causing chemicals apart from THC which might cause devastating effects when they react with THC in the body.

Let us explore today some blogsites that I found to be informative and interesting. Hope our readers will like them too.

The first I found is Drug Addiction Support (http://www.drug-addiction-support.org/drug-addiction-blog.html). The site discusses common issues related to drug addiction, drug addiction syndromes, most common causes behind drug addiction, effects of drug addiction, and treatment modalities.

You will find nice, information rich articles that are easy to read and understand. It has a section on various drugs like cocaine, crystal meth, heroin, suboxone, marijuana, etc.

Next I found Narconon of Georgia (http://narcononofga.wordpress.com/alcohol-awareness/) quite interesting. Nice topics and good, authoritative content may help you if you are seeking information on drug and alcohol addiction. The site has added some videos which you may find to be very appealing.

You may also see Recovery Connection (http://www.recoveryconnection.org/) website that focuses on drug, alcohol, and substance abuse recovery and treatment plans. It has published a state-wise database of addiction treatment centers and information on the types of treatments offered in specific centers. You will find lots of information on Addiction Treatment Programs and Drug and alcohol Rehab Programs, Drug/alcohol Detox Programs, Dual Diagnosis Treatment Programs, Eating Disorder Programs, GLBT Addiction/rehab/detox Treatment and Detox Programs, etc.

Drug Rehabs.Org (http://www.drug-rehabs.org/) is dedicated toward rehab programs. You can have specific information if you are searching rehab programs for yourself, friend, family, spouse, children and you can search their database depending on the age of the person. The site has option of searching on the basis of the type of drug as well.

See Alcohol/Drug Help Line (http://www.adhl.org/) is an exclusive help line–based service provider. They run their service during Sunday through Saturday 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. (previously it was 24-hrs helpline). The site presents some useful links if you wish to be a part of the rehab services or volunteer for some counseling.

We request our readers to write to us if you find some interesting sites/resources. This would help us in fighting the menace more comprehensively.

The human brain, in very simplistic terms, has two parts – the neocortex which is located in front of the head and which receives, processes and stores information for decision making and for remembering.

The other part is the limbic system whose function is to control all the automatic systems of the body and the emotions. It also controls the survival responses, i.e. in a threatening situation it tells you to adopt “fight or flight” responses, i.e., either to defend yourself or run away from the situation.

Drugs and alcohol program the limbic system to avoid uncomfortable situations instead of making healthy responses to resolve the associated stress and the Cortex protects such faulty behavior pattern by a filtering process called denial. The result is the addictive brain.

A communication system exists within the brain whereby the information is received and processed. The individual brain cells or neurons communicate with one another through neurotransmitters or biological messengers. Psychoactive drugs change the normal pattern of communication in two ways:

• By  imitating the brain’s natural communication
• By overstimulating the brain’s reward system with dopamine

The chemical structure of drugs like marijuana and heroin is similar to that of neurotransmitters. Thus they can easily deceive the brain receptors and activate nerve cells to send abnormal messages. Cocaine and methamphetamines, on the other hand prevent the recycling of brain chemicals by releasing large amount of neurotransmitters. This blocks the signal between the neurons and the amplified message thus produced, disrupts the normal communication patterns.

Almost all drugs target the dopamine secretion which is normally related with emotions and feelings of pleasure. When overstimulated, it produces euphoric effects in response to drugs thereby reinforcing the habit of abusing drugs.

Artificial stimulation of the brain undoubtedly leads to irreparable damages in the brain cells.

Would you compromise your BRAIN for DRUGS?

Make a healthy choice, stay away from drugs.

Is cigarette a drug? The obvious answer is “NO”. But cigarette smoking has a direct influence on alcohol and other drug use. Can you ever think of a marijuana or a heroin user who has never smoked cigarette? Drug abuse and alcoholism has been a source of major concern for ages. Today young people are being exposed to drugs at a very tender age. Most of us are concerned with addiction to marijuana, heroin, cocaine, prescription drugs and others. But why do we overlook nicotine? It is high time that we deal teenage and adolescent smoking professionally. Since nicotine exposure at an early age increases the vulnerability of other drug use.

Tobacco has often been termed as a “GATEWAY DRUG” since it is the first substance consumed by the teenagers.

Studies conducted to find the origins of alcoholism and addiction to other drugs have indicated that smoking facilitates drug abuse. According to National Centre on Addiction and Substance Abuse (CASA), nicotine makes adolescents vulnerable to alcohol and drug addiction by affecting the structural and chemical changes in the brain. As compared to teenagers who do not smoke, smokers are 9 times more likely to meet the medical criteria for past year drug alcohol abuse and 13 times more likely to meet the criteria for drug abuse. In a press release, the Jr. Chairman and President of CASA said, “Smoking by teens may well signal the fire of alcohol and other drug abuse and mental illnesses like depression and anxiety disorders”. One of the studies found that those who started smoking before 12 years of age were 3 times more vulnerable than non-smokers to binge drink, 13 times more likely to smoke marijuana and 7 times more prone to use heroin, cocaine.

Spread the message. Reach out to children. Talk to them about the ill-effects of smoking. Help them in making healthy choices.