The “Natural Healer” New Cannabis Compound - Fallacies

Photo by Shane Rounce on Unsplash

          Whatever your thoughts may be on cannabis, it is certainly something that is being discussed more and more in the media, especially the effects it can have on people medically. In Austin Schoonmaker’s article, “New Cannabis Compound Potentially 30 Times Stronger than THC Discovered”, Schoonmaker seems to be very interested in this new compound and expresses that it is naturally occurring as well. From this, Schoonmaker makes two fallacies in his article, one-sidedness and appeal to nature, as he really tries to paint the compound as nothing short of a medical marvel. Although I personally believe that cannabis can provide medical advances in numerous ways, it is important to also mention potential side effects and explain that there be health risks with anything unregulated. However, Schoonmaker does not do this and instead states that “the discovery of such a potent cannabinoid will likely have many wondering if it can provide a stronger high, there is an opportunity to determine if the compound can provide other health benefits”, which is reasonable to assume, but the author makes it seem as though a stronger high and the fact that it is more potent is all positive instead of also discussing the adverse effects. He does not describe what can happen to the person potentially if they consume this powerful cannabis compound as it seems to have a more significant effect on people than regular THC. Schoonmaker also likes to mention the fact that he believes the compound to be fully natural. He says that with “cannabis research dipping into the forefront of medical research, there are vast opportunities for new medicines and treatments to be derived and developed from natural sources. As the general acceptance of cannabis becomes greater, so will its use as an effective natural healer in mainstream medicine” and it is quite obvious that he uses this in a positive way. The problem with this is that the appeal to nature fallacy is a vague concept to grasp as almost anything can be called natural if you believe it to be so. Anything that is unnatural is perceived as bad while natural is perceived as good, which explains why Schoonmaker would say natural a few times in his article as he wants to make people believe that this compound and cannabis overall is a beneficial way to medicate. Again, I agree that cannabis can be effectively used for medicinal purposes and that it should not be perceived overly negatively, but it is also important to not be one-sided and use the appeal to nature fallacy. There can be potential health risks involved with it like addiction, especially with something so potent, so it is important to address these risks.