cannabisnews.com: Marijuana as Medicine! 





Marijuana as Medicine! 
Posted by FoM on April 11, 1999 at 09:47:36 PT
very good article!
Source: MAP Inc.
State and federal laws should be changed to allow use of this drug to ease suffering.After years of fighting with no cease-fire in sight, perhaps a settlement of the 1960s marijuana wars finally can be negotiated. The prize would be the chance to do serious, long-term scientific research into marijuana's effectiveness as a medical drug. It also would aid some of the nation's most helplessly ill: terminal cancer patients.
To achieve those goals, Americans must acknowledge that a drug demonized by some as emblematic of wanton drug use and moral degeneracy is - while not the equivalent of aspirin - not exactly a pipeline to crack cocaine, either. An avenue to a new dialogue was paved last month by "Marijuana and Medicine," a report by the National Academy of Science's Institute of Medicine. They're legit, not hopheads.First, consider the institute's conclusions on what can be called the "cultural" issues.Marijuana is not particularly addictive, and withdrawal systems "appear to be mild" compared to commonly prescribed drugs like Valium and Xanax.Much has been made of marijuana as a "gateway" drug that leads to hard drugs and addiction. That's not what the evidence proves. "Most drug users begin with alcohol and nicotine," not marijuana, says the report. Plus, here's a rarely discussed truth: The nation's unprecedented technological boom and economic expansion is being fueled today by millions of baby boomers who once did, indeed, inhale. They later went into business, not cocaine and heroin. None of which is to suggest that marijuana should be legalized simply for the purpose of getting high. Rather, state and federal laws should be changed to permit marijuana use where it has been shown to alleviate the suffering of those with fatal or near-fatal diseases. Two specific instances where it makes good sense: for terminal cancer patients and AIDS-related illness. Marijuana demonstrates therapeutic value for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation.In instances where marijuana will be the best drug for a particular patient, doctors should be free to prescribe it from government stockpiles. For other potential uses, the government should launch serious medical research into cannabinoids, the active ingredients in marijuana, of which THC is the best known. Research with the plant's active extracts would allow clinical testing of the drug at known strengths and known formulations - crucial to determining whether they can indeed help sufferers of diseases such as multiple sclerosis or glaucoma. But that research will not occur until the law is changed to encourage it and until the drug's cultural stigma is eliminated. That is not as unlikely as it may appear. Voters in five Western states have approved ballot initiatives to legalize marijuana for medical use, a grassroots legislative tool not available in Pennsylvania. Even in those states, however, medical use has been stymied by local legal issues and by federal law, which makes no significant allowance for medical need. In Harrisburg, the state Attorney General's Office reports there is no sign of a legislative initiative to permit medical use, and the attorney general himself, Mike Fisher, opposes any relaxation of the drug laws.All of which means Congress must step in to amend the nation's drug laws to encourage thorough clinical testing of marijuana as medicine, and to allow individuals to smoke the drug for limited medical use. MAP posted-by: Richard Lake 
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Comment #4 posted by Rainbow on April 11, 1999 at 20:23:30 PT
LawMan wrong again
LawManGo to bed take your zoloft or prosaic and chill out. It is interesting that you go after the messager not the message. Goes to show that the LawMen are getting aggitated at hearing the truth.Thanks to FoM for keeping us informed and spreading the truth no matter where it comes from.Rainbow
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Comment #3 posted by Grower Girl on April 11, 1999 at 17:28:54 PT
If you have nothing good to say, then don't say it
Hey LawMan, why don't you take a big puff of some tasty buds, and relax. FoM does a great job here, and doesn't need your unnecessarycriticism.You must have been beaten as a child. What a pity. 
http://www.madd.org
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on April 11, 1999 at 11:04:05 PT
Sorry
Sorry I try to be fair! I didn't fine this article so I gave credit where I found it!
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Comment #1 posted by LawMan on April 11, 1999 at 09:58:52 PT
Screwed Up Again
 Please get it right, you screw-up. The correct source is:Source: Philadelphia Inquirer (PA) Copyright: 1999 Philadelphia Newspapers Inc.  Stop breaking the law as a news service and post the correct sources.
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