[ptmusic]

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I've been around potheads all my life, and never heard a single one describe withdrawal symptoms. My sample size is not small, and I've done the occasional bout of reading this and that about pot.

When it comes to drugs, there's almost nothing negative that won't be said about them, no matter how transparently false or purely alarmist, so I'm more than a little skeptical of what a Nightline program says, as well as what anyone says, scientists included. One thing for sure is that the government and scientists have a long and dishonorable record when it comes to straight talk about drugs.

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I'm not making judgements about smoking pot. It's obviously a positive for some people. And you're right, the government can't really be trusted in this area, and marijuana should probably be legalized and regulated.

But I've worked with all kinds of addicts to overcome their addictions, and believe me, potheads have had physical withdrawal symptoms. Nothing like heroin addicts, mind you, but definitely not just psychological: heavy sweating and severe migrane headaches for two to three days are not uncommon. True, most potheads do not have physical withdrawal symptoms, but many do.

The Nightline piece had to do with the physical changes from marijuana done to the brain as seen on MRIs. Marijuana has also been proven to lower sperm count and motility. You may not trust scientists, but it would be foolish to believe that marijuana has no physical effect on humans.

-ptmusic