I don't believe that is true.  I've heard of people doing micro-doses, Mark mentioned titration, and I also hear it depends on the strain. Regardless, we're speaking about the moral principles involved, namely, that if you take something that causes you to entirely lose control of your higher faculties, then it's a grave sin to do it without a proportionately serious reason.  This is more a practical consideration, whether it's possible to take a smaller does that does not have this effect.  I believe the answer is yes, and under those circuмstances, a less grave reason would suffice taking it.  There are of course extrinsic considerations are well, such as the legality (assuming it's a just law) and whether you'd jeopardize your job (I would since they do random drug testing at my workplace).  So for me to take even a tiny hit that did not impair my faculties would be a grave sin, since I would be jeopardizing being able to support my family.

There is no comparison between today's marijuana and alcohol.

Ah, there is "No comparison"… wait for it… then you make an absurd comparison…

Today's marijuana knocks the tar out of you. There is no "social drinking", or a drink to "unwind" at the end of the day, with today's marijuana, there is only getting super smashed.

Nonsense. I gave you a bibliography. You (plural) give me your half-baked opinions.

P.S.- What I see on this thread is an anonymous man who I know nothing about (Mark79) bullying Meg (who I know from herCI postings since I came here).  Maybe I should just have ignored it, since no one reads this stuff anyways. But, that's just me.

Really? Anonymity bothers you? Why are you here then?

We have "Members Only" and "Anonynmous" sections.

Excepting Sean and Matthew (others?), screen names here are anonymous.

Is your saint's name "Last" and family name "Tradhican"?

What a hypocrite.

Comparing casual use of alcohol, like drinking wine with a meal, compared with smoking today's marijuana, is like comparing an Olympic dive pool with a home or hotel pool. In the home/hotel pool a small child could play on the steps, a non-swimmer can stand in the shallow end, and a swimmier can swim across the deep end. In an Olympic diving pool, you only have a deep end 17 foot deep, you either swim, or don't jump in. With marijuana you either get wasted out of your mind or you do not smoke it.

An estimated 95,000 people (approximately 68,000 men and 27,000 women) die from alcohol-related causes annually, 15 making alcohol the third-leading preventable cause of death in the United States. The first is tobacco, and the second is poor diet and physical inactivity.
https://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/brochures-and-fact-sheets/alcohol-facts-and-statistics

Some people think one can turn black into white by posting down thumbs, it is like media voting polls.  The truth always rises to the top, no matter the opinion of the crowd. So just give it time.  It is obvious that Mark79 is down voting you here. People just won't say it, because they are afraid of him retaliating by doing what he is doing to you.

I can just imagine ………

No. I do not agree.

My advocacy put me at political and social events where I had lots of opportunity to observe the wide array of MJ culture. Sure, there were a few Rastafarians enveloped in a Cheech and Chong cloud of smoke, but most everyone else was a puff here, a puff there, even little old ladies. And, even among the Rasta dudes, all were mellow and convivial.

Not once did I ever witness the kind of aggression that one regularly sees at parties with alcohol.

I have to agree with Mark. I'm not all the way through this thread yet, but I can see the age old MJ vs. alcohol debate is going to the usual places. In my opinion, they both have costs to individuals, families, and communities. There are important differences between the two, but both are vices. One has been largely socially acceptable in most of the world for centuries. One is not as socially acceptable but is now legal in many states. Both can destroy your life if not used in moderation. MJ tends to make over-indulgers less productive, more passive citizens. The damage done is largely to themselves but lazy irresponsibility can negatively impact family and friends.

Alcohol has a much more terrible impact on the larger society. Over-indulgers kill people on the road, are far more prone to violence & conflict, and result in far more police incidents than MJ. Just ask any cop. Everyone knows how an alcoholic can destroy a family and damage children. The people around an alcoholic tend to suffer far more than those around a pothead.

One major difference between the 2 is that a person who has had 2 or 3 drinks can make a mistake on the road that kills someone. The 'pothead driver' problem exists, but the effects on human motor skills of each drug are vastly different.

My point here is that one is not morally superior to the other. They are both vices. Both can be addicting. Having a few drinks to relax is 'getting high' and so is smoking a bit of pot, in my opinion. In my own life, I've seen friends and family mess up their lives with both.

As for CBD, if it doesn't get you high (has zero THC), and the vast majority of commercial products do not, then it is just an over-the-counter drug same as any other. It's a plant. Almost all medicines come from plants. Doesn't seem like a bit deal.

Thanks to everyone for a lively debate!