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Vape Your High
This may instantly mark me as a hopelessly out-of-it person, but it’s something I didn’t know. From YaleNews: (yeah, yeah, I know, I know)
E-cigarettes not only vaporize nicotine, but they work with marijuana as well, American teenagers are discovering.
Yale University researchers surveyed 3,847 Connecticut high school students and found nearly one in five e-cigarette users also have used the device to vaporize cannabis or byproducts like hash oil, according to a study published Sept. 7 in the journal Pediatrics.
E-cigarette use among teenagers has been increasing nationally, and 27.9% of high school students reported using e-cigarettes in the current study. Of those users, 18.7% say they have used e-cigarettes to vaporize marijuana.
It seems obvious, of course, now that I think of it. E-cigs have certain advantages when you’re trying to smoke whatever you’re trying to smoke without attracting a lot of attention:
“The smell of vaping marijuana isn’t as strong as smoking it, plus the similarity in appearance of hash oil and nicotine solutions make this a really inconspicuous way of using marijuana,” Morean said.
Plus this:
Both Morean and Krishnan-Sarin stress the survey does not assess whether the availability of e-cigarettes leads to more marijuana use in youth. However, they note that vaping concentrated liquid forms marijuana can be much more potent than smoking dried marijuana leaves.
My few libertarian instincts kick into high gear here, and I want to shrug and say, C’mon! No big deal! But I wonder about that. There’s evidence, I guess, that marijuana use doesn’t have an impact on harder drug use according to some studies. But as marijuana becomes more and more legal and commonplace — and now, apparently, it’s dead easy to use — there’s got to be an effect, right? And it can’t all be good.
Published in Culture, General
Kids these days with their e-reefers and vaping what-nots! Why, in my day, we scored a dime bag off a shady drifter in the parking lot of a Night Ranger concert and smoked it like men! Sure, it smelled like oregano and our parents assumed we hung out all night at DiLorenzo’s Italian Deli & Video Hut, but, by gum, we swore we felt a mild buzz halfway through “Sister Christian.”
Safer than smoking marijuana. Safer than drinking alcohol. What’s the downside?
For now, while prohibition, there won’t be widespread adoption of pot vaping. The problem is that you either have to buy the liquid or make it yourself. Regular pot is ubiquitous. The liquid is not. And my understanding is that extracting it is not a simple process.
Frankly, I’d rather have my friends and loved ones vape pot than smoke it or drink alcohol.
Just don’t let Maureen Dowd anywhere near the stuff.
Coincidentally, I learned about this at my band’s practice this week. (Yes, this kind of thing comes up in conversation when you’re playing rock and roll, even if you happen to be in your 50s.)
I learned that vaporizers can be used to essentially “cook” the THC out of marijuana buds without burning them. In addition, oils are now available that can be vaped which avoids the possession of conspicuous vegetable matter.
From a lung-health standpoint, I suppose it’s a good thing. I’m a libertarian when it comes to drug use, so I can’t say that these developments bother me. Whatevs.
They would, as Rob says, make it easier for the Jeff Spicolis of the world to avoid attracting attention. I have no doubt that the stoner in my daughter’s high school class, whom she described to me last night, uses these methods before, after, and perhaps during school. She told me a story about this individual’s interaction with a teacher, and I said, “That’s just like Jeff Spicoli and Mr. Hand!” On YouTube I found the scene in Fast Times at Ridgemont High where Spicoli first shows up to class late, and my daughter said, “That’s him!”
Some things never change. The only difference: Spicoli said, “You d—!”, whereas my daughter’s classmate said, “F—!”
And we LIKED it!
I’d vape my scotch if the Ontariostan government allowed it.
I learned about this while skiing last year. It turns out that an acquaintance of mine is the leading producer of medical marijuana in the state of Connecticut (auto-play video of the facility at the link).
He produces THC oil for vaping—along with regular weed—out of a state-regulated plant. Ski-lift rides are an excellent opportunity to discuss things.
You do need a prescription, but I understand they’re not hard to come by.
His family business is a chain of abortion clinics, which is why the state was familiar with him and willing to give him the license, as he’d already been dealing with the regulators for a long time.
Make of that what you will.
I’m glad that the feds haven’t cracked down on e-cigarettes yet, because they enabled our oldest son to give up smoking a couple years ago. If the feds had made it difficult I’m not sure it would have happened.
Probably not all good.
This may explain the behavior of a co-worker at a previous job. He vaped all the time at work.
Seawriter
LOL. It’s not very pleasant. Hot alcohol is a serious irritant…
My high school students sneak these things into class that look like pens, but are really vapes for weed. We had a staff meeting where the principal informed us of this trend, and we were all like, ‘Oh, that’s what those are.’
If/when weed is legal, there will be new ways to use it. That shouldn’t change the fact that, as I see it, weed should be treated the same way as alcohol.
Here’s a thought: I know, we’re all small government people, but hear me out: mandatory weed. Some people need to chill out. For them, we force them to smoke a joint. Or a vape.
That is a lot to get one’s head around.
I just know Rob Long will especially love the Star Trek reference…
Yeah, it was an interesting day of skiing.
Probably not, but why is that relevant? Some things are dangerous. Some things have negative effects. You know what’s a dangerous thing with very negative effects? It begins with a G…
Good Lord. How awful. Imagine chewing your cocktail instead of drinking it, slowly, with the ice making a nice sound against the glass.
Star Trek is such a grim view of the future.
Don’t you think it is at least better than vaping it?
Why do you think Brandy snifters are so good… especially the huge ones that you get for fine cognac…
Soma Brand E-Joints.
I don’t know, Jon. Real men at a Night Ranger concert? Shoulda made it a Van Halen concert.
And Don’t Tell Me You Love Me was a way better song than Sister Christian. Not that I ever listened to Night Ranger.
We can’t Legalize Drugs. If we legalize drugs, the Democrats and Liberals will be too stoned to Vo….never mind.
I believe that Washington state marihuana shops sell THC infused e-juice for vaping. I would like to confirm that, but my wife won’t let me enter a store. She’s seen reefer madness and it really freaked her out.
I saw an article the other day about a bar in Britain, where the customers move around in a fog of alcohol: http://www.wired.com/2015/08/brilliant-bar-gets-drunk-alcoholic-cloud. It’s taking vaping to a whole other level.
Don’t Bogart that e-cig my friend .. can you Bogart an e-cig? When the 1960s begin to look quaint, it’s time to move to Perth Australia.
You can still rock in America.
Automobile in America…
Holy Moly, are you guys all so clueless? I’m 50 years old and haven’t smoked much cannabis since graduate school (electrical engineering), but I think I can add a little substance here.
Vaping has been around and popular for awhile, and not just because it helps one be clandestine.
You can get the psychoactives from weed into you body in three basic ways: smoke it, vape it, or eat it. (You can also make a tincture, in which case it absorbs through your tongue or cheek into your bloodstream, just like scotch!)
The thing one needs to keep in mind about marijuana is that though THC is the main psychoactive substance associated with the high, there are many other components that appear to have a significant effect on the kind of high one experiences. In fact, pure THC seems to provide a VERY unpleasant experience, whereas the addition of other cannabinoids, such as CBD, transform it into a pleasant one.
The leaf can just as easily be smoked or vaped, so you don’t need extracted oil to vape. However, smoking and vaping cook at different temperatures, resulting in a different mix, leading to markedly different experiences.
People will smoke or vape according to their preferred result, probably not because they want to be inconspicuous.
Most people appear to prefer smoking. I have private equity friends who smoke every day and claim to work most days stoned. Their returns don’t seem to suffer.