Usually I won't chime in on these type of arguments but I feel I have to on this one. Synthetic cannabinoids are definitely bad news no matter which way you slice it. Because of the fact that they are associated with marijuana very few people realize how potent they are & most assume they are no more potent than marijuana. Very dangerous combo of misinformation IMO, especially when it comes to younger people who don't know nothing about drugs but like taking them.
Now I would have much less of a problem with synthetic cannabinoids if they were regulated in some way, but since they are much easier to obtain than real weed they are becoming a major problem IMO.
What all of you who support synthetic cannabinoids forget is that because of the availability of them they are becoming the prefered high of kids. Because of their availability & the fact they do not show up on drug tests. This is what concerns me the most about these synthetics.
They are all much more potent than weed yet compared to it because of the effects of a proper dosage & the fact that they attach to the same receptors in the brain. Which is fine if you have the proper knowledge & equipment to use these compounds but unfortunately the way it is sold undermines that fact.
You pretty much have 2 ways to get synthetic cannabinoids, either from an RC seller in a huge bag of powder or from a headshop/gas station in a bag of pre blended smoking material. Both are hugely dangerous IMO & only the huge bag of powder can be used safely by someone with the proper knowledge & equipment.
The caveat is that most of the users of the synthetics have no knowledge of the different types & what size doses of what to take. All the average synthetic cannabinoid knows is that it's supposed to feel like weed & not show up on drug tests. A recipe for disaster since most of these compounds need to be dosed in the mg mcg range.
So all that considered I think until synthetic cannabinoids are regulated in some way they should be held as underground as possible. I could care less if someone with half an idea of what they are getting into kills themselves because they decided to mess with a poorly understood chemical. They knew that was a possibility.
What I do care about is the fact that these compounds are being touted to have the same saftey profile as marijuana & people are dying because they do not know the true parameters of or even what synthetic cannabinoid they are taking.
All in all I do not have a problem with synthetic cannabinoids themselves, I have a problem with the way they are being represented & sold. Until that changes my opinion of them will remain a negative one.