Smoking Bud Cafe - Fact or Fiction

FACT: Annually, on the 20th April (420 pronounced four-twenty), cannabis users gather to celebrate marijuana; 04:20 and 16:20 are popular times to be consuming cannabis. The tradition is said to have been started in the USA during the 1970's.

FACT: In Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction, all the clocks are set to 4:20.

FACT: Substantial research exists regarding marijuana and addiction, while the scientific community has yet to achieve full consensus on this matter, the majority of data demonstrates that risk of addiction to marijuana is less or equal to that of the legal substances alcohol and nicotine.

FACT: Legal cannabis (Dronabinol or Marinol) contains delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol however this is only one of the compounds isolated in marijuana that effects users. The therapeutic properties of Cannabidiol, an anti-convulsant, and cannabichromine, an anti-inflammatory, are only available by using cannabis.

FACT: THC is an abbreviation for tetrahydrocannabinol, this is the chemical compound responsible for the high.

FICTION: Holding cannabis smoke in your lungs for longer increases the subsequent high.

FICTION: Cannabis is only legal in Amsterdam. In Denver and Massachussets possession of up to one ounce has been decriminialised. In Alaska up to four ounces can be kept at home for in-house and personal use. In the Australian Capital Territory, two plants both less than 6 feet tall are allowed for personal use however in South Australia possession of marijuana remains illegal.

FACT: Tommy Chong served nine months in jail between 8th October 2003 and 7th July 2004 after pleading guilty to distributing drug paraphenalia from his company Chong Glass.

FACT: Members of the National Organisation for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) include Woody Harrelson, Bill Maher, Tommy Chong, Daniel Stern and Rick Steves.

FACT: When Cheech and Chong starred in South Park their voices were recorded seperately.

FICTION: Marijuana is an unpopular antisocial drug. Cannabis is in fact the third most popular recreational drug in the world.

FACT: The side effects of Marijuana consumption include short-term memory loss, distorted perception of social situations, difficulty with thinking and problem solving, loss of coordination and anxiety.

FICTION: Too much weed can cause death. There have been no reported deaths or permanent injuries sustained as a result of a marijauna overdose, a user would have to intravenously inject the level of cannabis required to cause death by overdose. Smoking cannabis increases the risk of cancer to the lungs and parts of the respiratory tract because marijuana cigarettes are usually rolled with tobacco.

Scientific Breakthroughs:

1991 - NO BRAIN DAMAGE IS SEEN IN MARIJUANA EXPOSED HUMANS

1991 - WEED INGESTION DOES NOT LOWER TESTOSTERONE IN MONKEYS

1992 - MARIJUANA DOES NOT CAUSE FETAL ALCOHOL SYNDROME