64 lines
3.4 KiB
Plaintext
64 lines
3.4 KiB
Plaintext
THE HIGHS AND LOWS OF CANNABIS
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AKA: marijuana, grass, weed, pot, ganja, skunk, hash, dope.
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Price: marijuana and cannabis resin, £100-£140 an ounce (28g). Generally
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bought in quarters, priced £25-£35
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Form: cannabis comes in three forms: marijuana (or grass), the herbal form,
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comprising the heads of the female plants (the most important psychoactive
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ingredients in cannabis are tetrahydrocannabinols or THCs, which are
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concentrated in the top of plants); cannabis resin (or hash), a compressed
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brown or black powder that is heated and crumbled for use; and, more
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rarely, cannabis oil, a thick dark brown, viscous substance extracted by
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infusing the plant in solvents, which come packed in a paper or plastic
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wrap and is removed with a warm knife. All forms can be smoked (mixed with
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tobacco and/or pure) or eaten (most commonly in cakes or pure)
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Duration of high: approximatley two hours.
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Legal status: Class B
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History: the plant Cannabis Sativa originated in Asia, first cultivated by
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the Chinese. Its stem fibre has long been used in the production of hemp
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rope, coarse weave cloth and paper and its seeds, when crushed, yield oil
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used in cooking, paint and soap. Easily grown in tropical and temperate
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climates, the plant soon spread from Asia through Europe. It is thought to
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have been brought to North America by the Spanish. Cannabis was introduced
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into Western medicine in the 1840s and, throughout the nineteenth century,
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was used to treat everything from period pains, headaches and insomnia to
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strychnine poisoning and delirium tremens. More recently, cannabis has also
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been recognised as effective in the treatment of glaucoma in America, and,
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more controversially as a muscle relaxant in the treatment of multiple
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sclerosis and as a means of triggering the desire to eat in people with
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AIDS. Though in India, where the plant's consciousness altering effects
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first became known, it has been used in religious ceremonies for thousands
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of years, cannabis has only been widespread, recreational use in Western
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society for about the past 50 years. It was first made illegal in this
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country 1925.
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Highs: cannabis causes enhanced feelings of well-being, relaxation and
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happiness. Users claim increased intuitive insight, heightening of the
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senses and, occasionally, when used in large amounts (particularly eaten),
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hallucinations. Perhaps the safest of the illegal substances, cannabis is
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non-addictive and causes little or no hangover. No one has ever died of a
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cannabis overdose but a lethal dose is thought to be around 1½ lbs eaten in
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one go. Enough to make an army see God.
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Lows: the said increased intuitive insight is likely to bore anyone within
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a tenmile radius at which point, rampant paranoia may set in, not helped by
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physical effects which include reddening of the eyes, an increased pulse
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rate, a drop in blood.pressure, a dry throat and mouth, tiredness and 'the
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munchies' -an uncontrollable urge to eat everything in sight.
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Tips: smoking cannabis is easy to regulate, eating is more difficult. If
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you are going to eat it, in food or pure, be prepared for more dramatic
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effects. Also, recent batches from Holland (skunk, in particular) have been
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found have an unusually high THC content. Here again, the effects is likely
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to be more extreme.
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From the magazine TimeOut No.1239 May 18-25 1994
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Typed by Dr. Benway
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