Dear Stoner: I saw something the other week about marijuana not being good for creativity. It seems like it should have come from The Onion or National Report, since pot seems to help people be more creative — but it was real. WTF?
P. Nutbag
Dear Nutbag: We thought it was a joke, too, but apparently scientists in the Netherlands claim it's true. Of course, their "study" was extremely narrow and, ironically, limited in creativity. Scientists gathered three groups of tokers in a lab and gave each group edibles — some had 22 milligrams of THC, some had 5.5 milligrams of THC, and the losers got no THC at all. Whomp. The test itself was to come up with as many uses for a pen as they could in five minutes, and to find the link between the words "hair," "time" and "stretching." (We posted the answer below so you can test yourself later while stoned.) That's it. No word on if the test subjects considered themselves creative types in the first place or even if cannabis helped increase creativity in people in other realms — like music, visual arts, dance, coding or writing. And who knows what type of herb they gave the test subjects? Some strains are only good for melting into a couch. Of course, we're also not saying that an artist in a creative slump can do a dab and instantly create a masterpiece — but to deny the link between cannabis and creativity is pretty absurd.
To quote the late, great comedian Bill Hicks: "You see, I think drugs have done some good things for us. I really do. And if you don't believe drugs have done good things for us, do me a favor. Go home tonight. Take all your albums, all your tapes and all your CDs, and burn them. 'Cause you know what? The musicians who made all that great music that's enhanced your lives throughout the years were real fucking high on drugs. The Beatles were so fucking high they let Ringo sing a few tunes." [Answer: LONG]
Dear Stoner: Hey, I've got a few questions about weed, like growing it and stuff. Thanks.
Jimmy, left on our potline
Dear Jimmy: Put down the pipe, gather your thoughts, and then call us back and leave said questions on the potline message line so that we can actually answer them. In the meantime, we'll tell you what we tell anyone thinking of becoming ganja-independent: Go get Jorge Cervantes's Marijuana Horticulture and Ed Rosenthal's Marijuana Grower's Handbook, and start reading the forums on icmag.com.
