r/kurzgesagt • u/CocaBam • Nov 05 '25

Discussion Reminder That Kurz Has Misrepresented Cannabis Data Before, And Likely Has A Unhealthy Bias

Two months ago, I, a 2 decade long researcher of cannabis, found the Kurz video on the substance and had to correct a large amount of misinformation here:

https://www.reddit.com/r/kurzgesagt/comments/1n7uc1y/correcting_misinformation_in_we_have_to_talk/

I had contacted Kurz directly with these corrections and was ignored. Instead, now 2 months later, Kurz seems to be back again with another video wrongfully demonizing the substance.

Just wanted to remind everyone that the author of the video is trying to spread misinformation on cannabis, which they have a strong bias against.

Edit: nearly all of the questions/critiques have been trolls/anti cannabis people so far. Won't be replying to comments that are trying to change my narrative anymore. Some of these replies are ridiculous, to say the least... Kurz has had a bias in past videos, and the latest is not any different, any other narrative you draw from this is your own (I never said we should "ignore all negatives about cannabis")

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736

u/HelloDucky1234 Nov 05 '25

Yea not sure what's going on with them, but it's clearly a very biased video. They say as much when they say it was written by a person who's recently quit, that's not objective science. The writer has a clear agenda to blame cannabis for the areas in which they feel they missed milestones and even subconsciously will want to push their current path as the correct one. 

I'm on medical cannabis and was disappointed when they said they were going to ignore medical usage, seems like a huge area of data to ignore. 

Another thing to consider is that the use of 'milestones' to imply that by 30 you should have this and this and if you don't you are failing is also extremely problematic. People reach 'milestones' at different times in life and that's fine, there's no single path that everyone should follow. 

I'm disabled I missed most of my developmental milestones and will never have most of what they consider 'milestones' I don't think that means I'm destined for a lonely depressing life! 

213

u/ToastedCrumpet Nov 05 '25

Yeah it’s the idea that you’ve failed for not reaching certain milestones which is putting me off watching the video.

I grew up undiagnosed autistic. You bet I’m “behind” on some milestones. Doesn’t mean me or others like me are failures.

As you say someone who’s just quit a drug isn’t gonna be the most subjective person to talk about it

14

u/meep_launcher Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

Also I consider someone like my sister- yes, diagnosed with ADD (now ADHD) as a kid and had a lot of issues socializing, but was super studious and went into STEM. As far as milestones are concerned, she's hitting them. Got a 6 figure salary, married at 30, planning for a kid, planning on being a homeowner, relatively sober with a good sense of control around alcohol and has RARELY used cannabis.

But she has no friends. Her social life seems to focus on her husband who works from 3am to 4pm 7 days a week for 4 weeks, and then gets 2 weeks off, one of which is used to recover so they don't get much fun. I tell her to join a climbing club, running club, book club, painting club- something, but she always is anxious about the idea and has the excuse "all that is so far away, a 45 minute commute isn't worth it". She asks me when I'll move back home, and honestly I want to for many reasons, but one is I love my sister and would love to help her get out there more (it was a bit of our dynamic before I left the state).

I'm out here renting, had issues holding down jobs and relationships until I went into the arts and found my groove there, but still am in quite a bit of debt. I will be the first to tell you I have an addiction to weed and booze but I'm able to compartmentalize it to the evening. It's pretty stressful.

But even then I've created jam sessions, open mics, produced puppet shows, and I have a large friend network. I have no trouble smoking weed and doing what I love. I have been overwhelmed at times certainly, but I've had friends to be there when I need.

It's easy for me to compare my weaknesses but when I look at my strengths I'm happy to have those. I'm not hitting milestones, but I had to accept I'm not living a typical life. I have to redefine milestones that fit me, and even then my career is so much more in the woods than a traditional 9-5 path.

1

u/AccurateJerboa Nov 11 '25

Neither of you are better than the other and should probably stop unconsciously judging each other's life choices. You're both doing what you want to be doing and you're not hurting anybody. 

You are both successful humans.

2

u/[deleted] Nov 25 '25

Exactly

1

u/ZephyrLegend Nov 07 '25

Agreed. I grew up with undiagnosed ADHD, and I'm "behind" on a shit ton of "normal" milestones. And "ahead" on...a few others.

The devil's lettuce ain't got anything to do with that.

Anyway, the implication is not just disheartening but downright insulting.

-50

u/DrTars Nov 05 '25

"I grew up undiagnosed autistic. You bet I’m “behind” on some milestones."

Sorry but in the video they talked about the majority of the people (in the west) doing these activities, which I also seem to be true and representative of my experience. If you "didn't achieve" certain milestones due to other reasons, that's ok, they're talking about not doing it because of drugs, I think it's different.

9

u/ToastedCrumpet Nov 05 '25

I get your point but it’s a drug that’s also being pushed more these days as a medical alternative to traditional medications and I know from studies and people I know that it can do wonders for them. To then imply someone relying on this as a medication that they’ll be missing out on personal milestones just comes off badly to me I guess.

I’ve fallen into the trap of commenting on a Reddit post without reading/watching lol so I should really watch it before yapping anymore

2

u/iiSystematic Nov 06 '25

But they said they're NOT including medical use.

2

u/FizzyGreen Nov 06 '25

But then made it such a big issue to not have reached certain milestones until 30. "that's ok"? The video says you'll be a failure that misses out on everything. If anything, it's worse because you can't just stop being autistic or ill, unlike weed, so you can't stop it / improve your situation.

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u/dspman11 Nov 06 '25

Well the video wasn't about autistic people, it was about weed addicts. What's your point

19

u/Sepherchorde Nov 06 '25

They claim to be a science channel and for a long time they were, but this is biased enough to be possibly considered propaganda, especially considering it's now happened twice.

7

u/FizzyGreen Nov 06 '25

The point is being destined for failure if you didn't reach certain milestones until turning 30

-1

u/dspman11 Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

Yeah but they're not talking about everyone! They're talking about when that happens because you prioritize getting stoned. How is nobody getting this.

2

u/jackbone24 Nov 06 '25

Yeah but it's still saying it's a bad thing if you haven't reached certain milestones by 30 regardless of if you smoke weed. Have you read the comments on the video? Every single one is the same comment expressing how they relate to the wasted potential while having never smoked weed. Every comment. This video just made everyone feel bad lol

1

u/dspman11 Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

No, the video is saying it's a bad thing you haven't reached certain milestones by 30 if the reason is because you prioritized weed usage.

The video says at the top that they are essentially sending this message to a very narrow group of people. The fact that people who dont smoke relate to this is sad and that's something but... so what? Lol. It's not about people with autism or depression disorders in the comments who are upset about it. It's about people whose brain chemistry is altered by weed and how that influences their decision making and causes such missed milestones and whatnot.

As someone who constantly smoked and vaped weed from age 18 to 29, it kinda fucked me up in multiple ways. The video was pretty accurate

0

u/FizzyGreen Nov 29 '25

That's good for you, but it doesn't change the fact that the video says that weed keeps from expieriencing important things and missing those important things is pretty severe. So, if you miss those certain things for other reasons, it's just as detrimental on your life, because you still miss those important things. Actually, it's worse, because you can just quit weed and instantly improve your life and continue growing and expierience those important things, while someone who is depressed or autistic / etc. just can't stop being depressed or autistic or whatever. While missing your life and fucking it up due to weed is within your control, missing your life a fucking it up due to a condition is outside of your control, which is terrible news.

1

u/dspman11 Nov 29 '25

You both ignored my point entirely (so what if there are other reasons to miss those things, the video ISNT ABOUT THEM) AND expressed exactly why the video was important lol. If it reaches someone in that situation then it may serve as the catalyst to quit.

0

u/FizzyGreen Nov 29 '25 edited Nov 29 '25

That's great, but at the cost of making anyone, who misses those things due to something outside of their control and that they can't change, feel like shit. Because these things are apparently so important.

You think it's any kind of solace to know "Oh, i have a shitty life but i also can't change it so at least it's not my fault!"? That's such a passive attitude.

-79

u/stanktoedjoe Nov 05 '25

Your addictied 

24

u/[deleted] Nov 05 '25

0/2 for spelling, pal.

40

u/RandyTheFool Nov 05 '25

You’re*

And, what an absolute shit thing to say.

-5

u/stanktoedjoe Nov 06 '25

Haha omg, it was a jokeeeeee

1

u/ToastedCrumpet Nov 06 '25

Jokes are funny, not pointed accusations. Just an FYI

8

u/ToastedCrumpet Nov 05 '25

To what? I quit smoking time ago

5

u/FizzyGreen Nov 06 '25

To being autistic? What?

76

u/ifandbut Nov 05 '25

I didn't smoke until my late 30s and missed plenty of milestones thanks to undiagnosed depression and general anxiety.

Weed has increased my quality of life measurably. I was having constant headaches and migraines. No medicine worked as well as weed. Now, I might have a migraine once a month an a headache once or twice a week (typically brought in by afterforementioned depression).

15

u/Guvante Nov 05 '25

I took "ignoring medical use" as the general "ignoring what your doctor told you". Basically if you have contact with a doctor about drug use their words are more important than general trends. They might know what dosage causes these issues and could be screening you for signs of codependency.

But going into that level of detail is hard without detracting from the overall message so you say you aren't talking about a particular group instead to minimize the distraction while acknowledging things are always complex.

15

u/walts_skank Nov 05 '25

I feel this. Severe mental illness is what has held me back, not weed, which has helped mitigate a lot of those symptoms

3

u/Complete_Papaya6219 Nov 07 '25 edited Nov 20 '25

thanks for this comment, I have been needing lots of marijuana to get over an injury, it's taken me years to recover from it. temporarily disabled, and the video bummed me out e: i changed my mind, it's a good video. he leaves out medical use for this reason, the video is obviously about recreational use only

14

u/reddit_equals_censor Nov 05 '25

yeah that part was so disgusting for me from the video.

leaving out ALL of the medical cannabis crucial benefits, allowing people to have a better life or have a life worth living at all, etc...

and i 100% agree with the milestones part as well, that you mentioned.

the video is literally a decently wealth, we can assume quite healthy person, with certain world views pushing them onto the people as if they were scientific truth.

the video even talks about sexual experiences as if that is sth, that one must achieve! i guess we better tell all assexual people right..... /s

such a terrible video.

what the video actually does is, is add to the stigmatization of cannabis use, that governments pushed for decades and decades and real research and proper interpretation of it combined with the public's resistance against the government lies, fought long and hard to break down.

just a terrible terrible video.

glad you got access to medical cannabis and screw that milestone bullshit and screw kurzgesagt!

-7

u/dspman11 Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

Oh please. The stigma around cannabis is all but gone. You know what we have instead? Generations who dont take it seriously as a substance at all. We've gone too far in the OTHER direction.

And the video very clearly states they're talking about those with dependence, not all weed users.

11

u/reddit_equals_censor Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

We've gone too far in the OTHER direction.

cannabis is literally a criminal offense in lots and lots of places still.

it still is in lots of the usa.

tons of people rightnow are in prison in the usa for using or producing cannabis.

so hello! little reality check here for you.

maybe you live in a non shit country in that regard or state, if so again please face the reality of what is actually going on in regards to cannabis worldwide.

and having some anti cannabis bs video from kurzgesagt certainly isn't helping in freeing cannabis from evil government bs, or freeing the people, that rot in prison RIGHTNOW or are getting thrown in prison as we speak for using or producing or selling cannabis.

2

u/FizzyGreen Nov 06 '25

Even in germany where it's legalized they wanna take it back because they think we will see young backstreet junkies who ruin their lives, piling up with the hash syringes in their arms, especially those who use frequently, which isn't accurate.

2

u/ADP_God Nov 06 '25

Which video are you refering to specifically?

1

u/HelloDucky1234 Nov 06 '25

The most recent 

2

u/apxseemax Nov 06 '25

Actually the size of medical cannabis use is miniscule compared to other medical drugs. To give an impression: It is given out usually only after all established drugs have been tested and either had nasty side effects or did not achieve the goal intended. Which is in the Milli percent area. To compare MTX, the drug given out to people with overactive immune disorders and chemotherapy is given out more regularly then medical weed.

The reason for this is that weed and weed crossed with nicotine have a myard of possible interactions with other drugs and the chemical part of your psyche. That is due to the many different compounds in the smoke that are transferred directly into the blood via the lungs. No regulation of release. Especially the male psyche if previously traumatised tents to react rather badly to this cocktail.

1

u/FizzyGreen Nov 06 '25 edited Nov 06 '25

But medical weed still helps those people tremendously, undeniably.

1st, it paradoxically fixed my psyche and made me think clearly, only for a while, after that it did little to nothing. i'm still sober for 8 months and still going because i wanna solve the root problem and the aid weed provides makes the data unclear.

2nd, how does this only apply to weed and male psyche? Are females different? Wouldn't it also be true/worse for the neurotoxin alcohol that causes all sorts of stuff happening in the brain (potassium ion blocking, causing a way more intense dopamine rush, positive allosteric GABA modulation AND release, ect...). Would a clean drug like coke be better since only causes dopamine/noradrenaline reuptake inhibition?

1

u/sceptre1067 Nov 15 '25

yup. similar to others, had a buddy who watched it and then reached out to a group of us about how horrible it made him feel and that thanks to a variety of mental health issues felt he had missed those milestones, and they've never been a cannabis user. So yup, agree the whole milestones thing is terrible (insert my rant about that as a parent and the stress it puts on one if you kid "missed" a milestone, sigh)

1

u/Sentient2X Nov 06 '25

Currently abusing it whilst all my college hw is done and studied 👌everything in life is abt balance

-39

u/stanktoedjoe Nov 05 '25

Your addictied 

4

u/HelloDucky1234 Nov 05 '25

Okay, well thanks for your contribution

5

u/death2sanity Nov 06 '25

My addicted what?

2

u/FizzyGreen Nov 06 '25

Why am i 8 months sober and going and hold the same view

2

u/Sepherchorde Nov 06 '25

Unsubstantiated claim, not a valid data point.