[nashke]

I personally am in favor of decriminalizing cannabis use, as well as other drugs. Unfortunately, the debate regarding legalization is very polarized, and tends to not be based on scientific findings. One side tends to demonize cannabis while the other dismisses any information regarding negative effects. I believe there are many reasons for legalization, but mainly as a method for harm reduction, not because cannabis is some sort of a wonder-drug. Here are some studies regarding long-term negative effects: http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMra1402309

http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=24880...

Our findings in no way imply cannabis use causes suicidality. There are many other factors we couldn't analyze which could be the cause of this association. The reality is that these two behaviors (cannabis use and suicidality) are very complex, and this study is just one small step in the understanding of how these complex behaviors interact.

I believe proponents of cannabis legalization should look at all the data regarding long-term effects of cannabis with as little bias as possible - there are enough good reasons for legalization, it is dangerous to ignore scientific data regarding risks.