why is pot on the dangerous drug list if asprin kills more people/yr?

Question

more per year as in no one has ever overdosed on pot but asprin claims about 2 lives a year in North America.

Answer 1

1900 - 20s
Mexican immigrants introduce recreational use of marijuana leaf
After the Mexican Revolution of 1910, Mexican immigrants flooded into the U.S., introducing to American culture the recreational use of marijuana. The drug became associated with the immigrants, and the fear and prejudice about the Spanish-speaking newcomers became associated with marijuana. Anti-drug campaigners warned against the encroaching "Marijuana Menace," and terrible crimes were attributed to marijuana and the Mexicans who used it.



1930s
Fear of marijuana
During the Great Depression, massive unemployment increased public resentment and fear of Mexican immigrants, escalating public and governmental concern about the problem of marijuana. This instigated a flurry of research which linked the use of marijuana with violence, crime and other socially deviant behaviors, primarily committed by "racially inferior" or underclass communities. By 1931, 29 states had outlawed marijuana.


http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/dope/etc/cron.html


Oh and I think its a lot more than 2 deaths from aspirin...
"Each year, use of NSAIDs (Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs) accounts for an estimated 7,600 deaths and 76,000 hospitalizations in the United States." (NSAIDs include aspirin, ibuprofen, naproxen, diclofenac, ketoprofen, and tiaprofenic acid.)

Source: Robyn Tamblyn, PhD; Laeora Berkson, MD, MHPE, FRCPC; W. Dale Jauphinee, MD, FRCPC; David Gayton, MD, PhD, FRCPC; Roland Grad, MD, MSc; Allen Huang, MD, FRCPC; Lisa Isaac, PhD; Peter McLeod, MD, FRCPC; and Linda Snell, MD, MHPE, FRCPC, "Unnecessary Prescribing of NSAIDs and the Management of NSAID-Related Gastropathy in Medical Practice," Annals of Internal Medicine (Washington, DC: American College of Physicians, 1997), September 15, 1997, 127:429-438, from the web at http://www.acponline.org/journals/annals/15sep97/nsaid.htm

Answer 2

Afternoon Mr President - what a great question from you there! To me, there is a clear double-thinking standard here, because from the list above it is obvious that Alcohol is responsible for more deaths than other sorts of drugs, but because it is widely available every where you go, it is classed as being more socially acceptable. However, you only have to open the papers these days to see that more and more violent crimes are linked to alcohol abuse, and people on the whole in the UK are drinking more. Like other drugs too, what can start out as recreational use can develop into addiction - how much of that is down to genetics, social background etc I am not sure, but I was reading in the paper that the amount of UK people who are struggling with drink problems has certainly gone up in the last few years - and can sometimes wait for over a year to get the right professional help. I like to have a drink indoors or go out with my friends so I am not pointing the finger or being a hypocrite here - I am aware of the risks of drinking, and choose to do so in moderation, but am only too aware of the slippery slide into alcoholism. My father lived and died an alcoholic, so I know first hand the terrible problems that alcohol can cause in people's lives. xxxxxx

Answer 3

Cite your sources of "facts". People can and do use aspirin to commit suicide. I don't know of anyone that committed suicide by smoking pot. However, if that is the only comparison, suicide, how to you know this?

i would guess pot has played a significant part in road related deaths and may have been combined with alcohol, but I have never heard of anyone dying in an accident from aspirin.

Answer 4

I've always wondered the same thing....

Its because aspirin doesn't typically kill when used properly. It kills when the morons OD and give to their kids and people that are allergic.

BTW, pot kills more than 2 a year, but I feel you with the point you're making.

Answer 5

because the government can tax asprin but they are to stupid to find a way to tax pot.

Answer 6

pales in comparison to alcohol, which is legal and costs millions of lives due to DWI, abuse and murdering of families, health problems, health insurance costs, days missed at work and jobs lost.

Answer 7

Because the people who smoke it kill more people because they get into accidents than those taking aspirin. And I haven't heard of aspirin killing people, only that it saves lives if taken during a heart attack.

Ok, so yeah you could kill yourself by swallowing two bottles. But taken normally it doesn't kill people. People that use pot however are idiots and hazards while driving.

Answer 8

You're definitely over exaggerating this point. Find out why those 2 people died of aspirin.

Answer 9

No you are just pulling fact out of thin air.

Answer 10

i guess cause all teh chemicals and stuff that are in it make it sound more dangerous