The War on Drugs

In the 2014 film The Culture High, they document the war on drugs and the miseducation of marijuana in modern society. This film, directed by Brett Harvey, is aimed to settle the debate about the legalization of cannabis in America, and how the illegality of it has been detrimental to the citizens who use it for both recreational and medical purposes. This film was mostly filmed in 2014 but uses footage from far back in the 2000s to better educate the audience with film candid footage. Although this film was released in New York, it was mainly filmed all over the US, allowing the producers to collect better interviews and educating themselves more on this industry. The cast includes people ranging from interviews with singers like Snoop Dog to famous American politicians like Barack Obama, in addition, Joe Rogan, Penn Jillette, and Wiz Khalifa are also included in this documentary. Each person giving their own opinion and comment on the topic of medical marijuana and their relationship with it and its incorporation within the Federal Government. Not only does this film portray factual information but real evidence too, backing it up, making it a film like no other. One very effective message of The Culture High is that the effects and uses of medical cannabis are commonly overlooked although its benefits are proven to be effective.

Marijuana has been used for decades not only for personal benefit but, mostly for use in the medical industry. Marijuana is the drug that has one of the most untrue stereotypes: that it makes you sluggish, lazy, stupid, and unconcerned. In the movie. In The Culture High ,the director expresses how medical cannabis in the US has made a huge positive impact not only on people but the government as well regarding the economy. This film has not only connected the viewer to the message portrayed but has left the viewers tremendously more educated and connected to medical cannabis. One example from the films says, “We view marijuana as a violent unnatural intrusion on human biology. It’s not, we are built with all kinds of receptors for cannabis,” Micheal Foster. The human body and CBD/THC in the drug worked together in a pack to create the effect that is desired by the patient. Cannabis is one of the safest drugs that can be used to help many medical conditions and different persona, situations. Marijuana should not be just played around with and should be taken very seriously and it’s comparison to other drugs is often perceived as a lot safer due to the fact that it is impossible to overdose. “The death toll for alcohol is around 50,000 in the last year and zero for cannabis,” Joe Rogan. Relating cannabis to alcohol is huge because the laws regarding marijuana versus the laws regarding alcohol are extraordinarily different and unfair due to the fact that alcohol is a lot more dangerous and causes uncontrollable effects if taken too much. The director relates marijuana to alcohol a numerous number of times in this film to better get the point across that it is not as dangerous and scary like a normal household item like alcohol, but yet it is still seen as a federally illegal drug. This film goes inside the life of cannabis users and shows the real story about how it has impacted their life for the better, connecting the viewer and a way I can relate to them and make them feel some sort of emotion.

The use of medical cannabis is different for each patient that uses it. Some people may use it once a day or some people may use it once a month, whatever the case is Medical marijuana is a very personal drug that can be used several times for a number of reasons but still is not addictive. People use cannabis to better perform personally and physically along with help treat many other medical conditions. “Well, is a pack of cards addictive while gambling, well no or yes. Depending on the individual so it’s the same process no matter what the addiction is the only difference is that the substance addict is getting the dopamine from an outside substance since where the behavioral addicts are having it triggered from a particular behavior,” Dr. Gaybor Mate. In this film Dr. Gabor Mate is interviewed several times, he is a doctor in the medical field and shows the viewers about the addiction process that humans have and how it can often start at a young age due to trauma. Although medical marijuana is not addictive, there are properties of addiction that some users may have. “Children with trauma in their childhood have a 4600% higher chance of having addiction problems later on in life,” Dr. Gaybor Mate. This is important to know because medical marijuana and cannabis for some people can be used as a gateway drug into harsher and more dangerous drugs like opioids. The opioid addiction problem in America is huge right now and a number of people are saying the opioid addiction can stem from medical cannabis due to its “Gateway” habitats that some people see in this drug. Medical cannabis is a serious drug and should be taken with extreme caution, not only by the users but everybody in the industry. Having this information can help interested people better educate themselves regarding addiction problems and if or if not this drug is suitable for them. And for addictive personalities, it may not be the best choice. This film perfectly describes the addiction problem in America and how it has affected the family of those users, along with the millions of dollars that have been used to try and help prevent these causes from happening.

Medical marijuana has grown tremendously especially in the medical field, helping numerous amounts of different basic to severe medical conditions. New products and streams are being created daily to help encourage and expand this new industry. “Once the herd starts moving in one direction, it’s very hard to turn it, even slighter,” Dan Rather. Dan is explaining that regarding the medical benefits and uses medical marijuana has within the last couple of years So much cannabis / CBD / THC products have been coming out to the market, making an exponential growth in this industry. Cannabis is a billion-dollar business and looking into the future it will always expand. Although cannabis is a federally illegal drug and legal actions can be quite severe in some states. It still is crucial in our economy so much so it has been made one of the largest federally illegal drugs that have ever been on the market. Medical marijuana was brought to help people with their pain along with some mental illnesses like depression which is seen in many millions of people across America. “it’s the social and emotional environment that shapes up actual biology of the brain so if you understand someone’s addiction you have to understand what creates pain in their lives,” Stephen Dawning If the government were to legalize medical marijuana, it would come with a huge list of benefits, but one reason that they are not is because of the criminalization rate and money that comes along with it in the economy. Although medical marijuana is a billion-dollar industry creating a mass amount of profit. The legal system that is formed around this could be seen as corrupt not giving the defendant true equal legal rights.

In this film, The Culture High, the director, producer, and interviewees perfectly describe what medical marijuana is, its relationship within the federal government, and how it has changed people. Medical cannabis has helped millions of Americans all across the United States and does not have a plan for stopping in the future. This film provokes emotion and the viewer’s ability to relate with many of the stories being told, giving a stronger relationship to this movie and the viewer. In the High Culture, they have effectively portrayed cannabis rights versus human rights and how they can be interlocked with each other. The war against cannabis and the Federal Government has been going on for far too long and although it is beneficial in the economy due to the incrimination rights, the health benefits regarding CBD ways out these economic benefits tremendously. After watching the films I know that they are about understanding what medical marijuana does to the human body and brain and how the government views this drug.