[Simon Moon]

I used to partake of a bit of cannabis from time to time while listening to music.

I don't any more, but I do have to admit, it certainly has some music enhancing capabilities. Plenty of brain science to back this up.

https://www.mic.com/articles/141296/here-s-why-music-sounds-so-much-better-when-you-re-high-according-to-science

https://www.cbc.ca/music/read/why-does-music-sound-good-when-you-re-high-1.5064839

I also have had some profound experiences with mushrooms and music, but this was in my pre-classical days. Mostly with prog and a bit of jazz.

 

[Simon Moon]

Would the composers or the performers of CM be pleased if they knew their works were heard by people with deliberately impaired brain function? I get all the juice from music with a cleanly-functioning mind--tears, joy, tears of joy. The only music I know that is deliberately to be heard under the influence is the Semuta music of Dune

Not all drugs impair the brain. Alcohol, opioids, amphetamines, barbiturate's, certainly do.

But cannabis and psychedelics do not. At least in the way I believe you are referring to. They temporarily suppress certain parts of the brain, but enhance others.

 

[Simon Moon]

I used to smoke quite a bit of 'draw' back in the 80s and up to the kids being born. It did enhance musical experiences for me (and my friends) but I got fed up with the lethargy that came with cannabis. I'm not a sit-still type of person so it wasn't an ideal drug for me. I do enjoy a couple of drinks with music and feel it does enhance live gigs, in particular, but any more than a few and it gets in the way.

That was my main reason for quitting.

I also noticed a bit of short term memory loss. Which I recovered within a few weeks of quitting. I don't miss it. It's been decades.

I actually no longer consume any sort of drug.

Although, I really miss mushrooms.

 

[Simon Moon]

A quick scan of Internet articles suggest that we don't know for sure that cannabis use doesn't impair brain function over time.

Yeah. this is probably closer to current facts.

My statement was more referring to impairment while currently under the influence.

 

[Simon Moon]

The question is not, or should not be, what one misses by not using any sort of mind-altering agents. It should be whether one loses or diminishes one's mental/judgemental qualities and a crisp, clear mind by using such agents. What am I missing if I refrain from tobacco or gambling?

I would not trade my experiences with using entheogens (mushrooms, DMT, Peyote) for anything.

They were enlightening in the extreme, profound, incredibly connecting (internally and externally), and yes, fun.

I haven't taken any of them for decades, but they have certainly effected me in pretty profound ways.

And, at the age of 65, I am still working in advanced networking environments for a major biotec company in California, with the necessity of having a sharp mind.

Not all 'elicit' drugs can be lumped in together, in their effect on the body or mind, and addictiveness.

Not only that, but micro-dosing LSD and psilocybin have been shown to very effective in treating depression, ptsd, anxiety, alcohol abuse, quitting smoking, and more.

Ayahuasca has been shown to cure alcoholism with only one experience. It also seems to have a very positive effect on people with CTE. Quite a few ex pro athletes with CTE who were close to being suicidal, are now living happy lives after their ayahuasca experiences.

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/psychiatry/research/psychedelics-research.html

 

[Simon Moon]

Israel just released a psilocybin nasal spray for micro dosing, for the treatment for PTSD, depression, anxiety, obsessive compulsive disorder, and addiction.

There are quite a few studies that show micro dosing psilocybin is up to 4 times more effective for depression than antidepressants.

I wonder how much further ahead studies on this would have been, if it wasn't for the knee-jerk reaction in the 60's and 70's?

As if mushrooms, mescaline, LSD, should have really been on the same list as heroin and meth