In the Post Below please respond to them by: Poses a thoughtful…

In the Post Below please respond to them by:
Poses a thoughtful question.
Validates post with additional evidence from the literature.
Provides an alternative point-of-view.
Offers additional insight into how the concept might be understood.
Write to each post separately.
Provide 1 scholarly reference for each post min.
POST 1 (D. Morant) _________________________________________________________
Respond to this POST following guidelines above:
For this week, we are to answer the following question: “What are the threats from cannabis cultivation/marijuana production in the United States?”
Before I go into my spill, I completely understand that marijuana is still considered a schedule one substance and is still federally illegal. I don’t agree with it, but I definitely understand it. Rules are rules. With that being said I do believe there are threats involved with cannabis cultivation/marijuana production in the U.S. One thing us Americans love to do is to come up with more creative ways to make more money. In this particular case, how to make the marijuana better/stronger. Unfortunately that can come with some issues. As stated in my week 1 discussion post, dealers are lacing marijuana with fentanyl. It takes very little to kill someone, but dealers are lacing it in hopes of building a stronger customer base to sell more, in order to make more money. Another threat from cannabis cultivation is turf wars/gang wars. Everyone wants to drive out their competition and make the most profit possible. That can’t happen if another person is taking customers away. This causes friction between two groups and can most certainly lead to murders/kidnapping amongst other horrible crimes.
Something I learned researching this week is that cannabis cultivation/marijuana production in the U.S also presents a environmental threat. ONE cannabis plant requires six gallons of water per day. ” The high water demand leads to water pollution and diversion, which could negatively affect the ecosystem.” (Kelsey Fiddes 2021). I also found out that indoor growing comes with a lot of energy use and can even come with some indoor air quality issues. Marijuana needs to be controlled. I understand that the government is doing it’s best to combat the threats mentioned above, but like everything else bad that ever happened, we learn through trial and error, and I believe that one day there will be a way to combat most of the threats at hand with growing/producing cannabis.
References:
Drug fact sheet; https://www.dea.gov/sites/default/files/2020-06/Marijuana-Cannabis-2020_0.pdf
Kelsey Fiddes 2021, A narrative review on environmental impacts of cannabis cultivation; https://jcannabisresearch.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s42238-021-00090-0
POST 2 (C. Beach) _________________________________________________________
Respond to this POST following guidelines above:
First I would like to start by saying that, there is little to no research currently presented by any science that suggests that cannabis has or does kill anyone from overdoses. While it is still federally illegal, some states (which they are allowed to do for those who don’t agree) have legalized it for more than just medicinal use. While I personally have never tried and will likely never try it, I know plenty of people that have and enjoy it. It’s far from a major threat in this US bit like everything does have its own consequences. I do not condone the use of it where it is illegal per the state legislature, even though there has been a growing outcry for it to become legal at least on the state level across the country.
Now for the issues is poses, regardless how I or any of us view it, it still does technically inhibit the individual to some extent. Meaning that even in the states were it is legalized, driving is still illegal under the influence of cannabis. One major concern I have noticed is that, because of it being illegal, people will grow and sell it illegally in their towns. Getting caught and getting jail time causes more issues with the prison system because you now have people in jail or prison for growing or selling cannabis. This leads to over crowding in prisons and jails for a minor concern over something more substantial in the overall grand scheme of the US. There has also been studies conducted that show that some indoor cannabis growers have used ultraviolet lighting to help in the agricultural process. Long term exposure to ultraviolet radiation can have long lasting effects on the person, causing serious issues later on.
While there are risks involved with the growth of cannabis in the US, it is nominal when you put it up against other drugs that are trafficked into the US. While it might not be the number one, the issue of how it is grown can not be understated in the least, because the effects of extended exposure to ultraviolet radiation has long term effects, while the use of cannabis itself has little or minimal health risks.