The Reciepts To Show Marijuana Causes Violence And Before You Call B.S. Look Up The Symptoms Of Paranoia.

Laura Ingraham of Fox News blamed marijuana for one of the most recent mass shootings. I don't believe that's true. Ana Kasparian said there is no evidence to show marijuana causes violence. I intend to show that marijuana does induce violence in a small percentage of users. There was a study I read a decade ago which I hope as I write this, I can find. That study had claimed 4% of admitted marijuana get violent. 

Furthermore, I get the equivalent of liquid courage when I smoke. So I take offense to hearing pot doesn't make one violent because I'm normally passive and as gentle as can be. Unlike pot, Alcohol only makes me silly, depressed, or tired. So I know different chemicals effect me differently.

In a case report written by Masood A. KHAN. MD and Sailaja Akella, OMS-IV, "In one survey, it was reported that 15 percent of cannabis users identified psychotic-like symptoms..."

Is violence a psychotic-like symptoms? The treatment advocacy center published, "A meta-analysis of 204 studies of psychosis as a risk factor for violence reported that “compared with individuals with no mental disorders, people with psychosis seem to be at a substantially elevated risk for violence.” Psychosis “was significantly associated with a 49%–68% increase in the odds of violence.”

According to the Mayo clinic, these are just a few symptoms of psychotic behavior, "disorganized behavior, aggression, agitation, hostility, hyperactivity, hypervigilance, nonsense word repetition, repetitive movements, restlessness, self-harm, social isolation, lack of restraint, or persistent repetition of words or actions..."

The CDC backs the psychotic claims as well. Notice aggression and hostility are listed both symptoms of violent or violence. Just on the data I provided so far which I intend to include more sources backing up the claims, 15% of users could possibly get violent and those 15% have a 50% - 80% chance of increased violence. 

Another study by Antti Mustonen found, "young people who had used cannabis at least five times had a heightened risk of psychoses during the follow-up, even when accounting for previous psychotic experiences, use of alcohol and drugs, and the parents’ history of psychoses,”

Another study on marijua and violence was published by frontiersin.org written by Laura Dellazizzo, Stéphane Potvin, Maria Athanassiou and Alexandre Dumais. 

The four of them wrote, "Available evidence from meta-analytical studies in youths, intimate partners, and individuals with SMD have shown that there is a global moderate association between cannabis use and violence, which may be stronger in the latter more at-risk population. Though, not only is any type of use of cannabis associated with violence, but preliminary data has highlighted a potential dose-response relationship with larger effects in more frequent users. In this sense, the association between cannabis use and violence is not to be overlooked."

The department of Health in Sonoma County has the following on their website. "Like alcohol, marijuana and associated THC-containing products are intoxicants and can contribute to impaired judgment and increased susceptibility to mental health problems, including depression, insomnia and paranoid delusions.16

There is a significant risk of relapse or worsening of symptoms for individuals with psychotic disorders.

Regular marijuana use is correlated with an increased risk and/or worsening of the symptoms for individuals with anxiety, depression and psychotic illnesses."

Dorsa Rafiei and Nathan J. Kolla had the following published Journal of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law Online.

"The findings from this review suggest that, on the basis of the current literature, frequent cannabis use is a potential risk factor for violence and aggression, particularly in individuals who may have a unique susceptibility for engaging in violent behavior (e.g., certain individuals with SPMI). More standardized and empirical research is required."

Alta Mira has the following data on their website. "Cannabis-induced bipolar disorder occurs when someone has symptoms of mania or mania and depression as a result of using marijuana. This is a rare occurrence, and it is not always clear whether the drug has caused bipolar symptoms or if the individual had underlying, untreated bipolar disorder exacerbated by cannabis use."

Mania is another word for psychotic or psychosis.

A Cambridge study of 411 individuals showed "One fifth of those who were pot smokers (22%) reported violent behavior that began after beginning to use cannabis, whereas only 0.3% reported violence before using weed."

Politifact had to fact check Tucker Carlson's claims about marijuana and violence. Here's part of Bill McCarthy wrote in his conclusion and it goes along with what evidence has been showing. "Even if causality could be assigned, it’s also not clear from the available studies whether the drug unmasks psychotic symptoms in predisposed people or whether it triggers the onset of psychosis entirely, said James Knoll, director of forensic psychiatry at Syracuse University."

The Kraut Law group published the following just last year. Michael Kraut takes on cases involving domestic violence where marijuana was involved.

Kraut wrote, "Obviously, not everyone who uses marijuana becomes violent or psychotic. However, the fact that people joke about those who become paranoid after using it suggests that these effects are not just isolated or random."

It is true that people say some marijuana smokers get paranoid. Almost every pot smokers can admit to knowing someone who gets paranoid while smoking. So what are the symptoms of paranoia?

A study by the university of Oxford showed that paranoia is a lot higher than the 15% of users that get psychosis. Honor Whiteman wrote, "Results of the study revealed that among participants who were injected with THC, around 50% reported paranoid thoughts..."

Emma Stone of Leafy.com a pro marijuana website also concluded that Paranoia was high among smokers writing, "We know that paranoia can be a fairly common experience for cannabis consumers. As many as 51.4% of cannabis users have had paranoid thoughts when using cannabis. However, it appears that certain factors can make some individuals more vulnerable to paranoia than others."

WebMD list the following as symptoms of paranoia: 

"The symptoms of paranoia can include: Being defensive, hostile, and aggressive. Being easily offended. Believing you are always right and having trouble relaxing or letting your guard down. Not being able to compromise, forgive, or accept criticism. Not being able to trust or confide in other people. Reading hidden meanings into people’s normal behaviors."

WebMD also wrote that Marijuana can induce schizophrenia. They wrote, "Researchers also have found that if you carry certain types of specific genes that affect brain chemistry, marijuana use can raise the chance you'll have schizophrenia. One of those genes is called AKT1. Another is called COMT. Cannabis may cause schizophrenia symptoms to start earlier in life, too."

CNN wrote that the number of people having cannabis induce schizophrenia doubled from 2000 to 2010 writing, "In 2000, it increased to around 4%. Since 2010, that figure increased to 8%, the study found."

One last symptom check up. What are symptoms of Schizophrenia? The Mayo clinic lists the following as symptoms, "Behavioral: social isolation, disorganized behavior, aggression, agitation, compulsive behavior, excitability, hostility, repetitive movements, self-harm, or lack of restraint

Cognitive: thought disorder, delusion, amnesia, belief that an ordinary event has special and personal meaning, belief that thoughts aren't one's own, disorientation, mental confusion, slowness in activity, or false belief of superiority

Mood: anger, anxiety, apathy, feeling detached from self, general discontent, loss of interest or pleasure in activities, elevated mood, or inappropriate emotional response

Psychological: hallucination, paranoia, hearing voices, depression, fear, persecutory delusion, or religious delusion"

This articles I have shown various links about how Marijuana induces psychotic or manic behavior, paranoia, schizophrenia, and an old study from one of the most prestigious universities claiming that 22% round down to 1/5 of their test subjects got violent off of Marijuana. Now I never said the percentage rates were high but there is clearly evidence to show marijuana induces violent behavior. Many of the articles I read agreed more study needs to be done on the subject. And as it's legalized more and more, I believe that the percentages with concur with the Cambridge study results.

Here's a few more articles to read that might not be about violence but are still on the subject of marijuana. 

https://www.verywellmind.com/can-i-overdose-on-marijuana-4140975

https://www.goodrx.com/classes/cannabinoids/can-you-overdose-on-weed-with-THC

https://www.webmd.com/connect-to-care/addiction-treatment-recovery/marijuana/can-you-overdose-on-marijuana

https://recovery.org/marijuana/edibles-thc-overdose/

https://rehabs.com/pro-talk/fatal-marijuana-overdose-is-not-a-myth/

https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/teen/substance-abuse/Pages/Edible-Marijuana-Dangers.aspx

Those extra articles are all about overdosing. And the scientists and doctors will tell you that you have a greater risk of a fatal over dose from eating edibles than smoking but that it is a myth that one cannot get a fatal overdose from marijuana. It's possible, even if rare when smoking. 

If you choose to call bullshit on the scientists and doctors, than you are no different than the idiots that called BS on the scientific and medical community for telling people that masks, vaccines and social distancing saves lives. Those people enjoyed doing it and didn't want to be told things they enjoyed doing could be dangerous. And you enjoy the euphoric feeling that comes marijuana and don't want to be told it's bad for you. You're no different than tobacco smokers who say tobacco is just a plant.

The simple fact is marijuana has negative side effects. Doctors and scientists have proven this over and over again. The resistance is because people like drugs, they like chemical feelings and they like disobeying authority. I am one who believe victimless crimes like drugs should be legalized but I am also intelligent enough to know that a lot of things we enjoy from fast food to driving to marijuana, all have dangerous risks involved. It's time society started accepting that everything comes with a risk including the things we find most enjoyable.