cannabisnews.com: Dutch Government to Put Cannabis on Prescription
Dutch Government to Put Cannabis on Prescription
Posted by FoM on October 19, 2001 at 14:23:41 PT
By Anthony Deutsch, AP, in Amsterdam
Source: Independent
In a country where marijuana is already cheaper than many medications, the Dutch government approved a bill yesterday that would allow pharmacists to supply cannabis on prescription.Parliament was expected to vote in the next few months on the proposal to put medicinal marijuana on the national health care plan. If the bill is passed, the drugs would be quality-tested by a government agency before being issued.
Although the sale of marijuana is technically illegal, Dutch authorities tolerate the sale of small amounts in hundreds of so-called "coffee shops" that operate openly.There, a gram of marijuana costs about 10 guilders (£2.80). Under the new law, most users would have the cost of their spliffs paid by the Dutch government if a doctor prescribed cannabis.The draft legislation was proposed by Els Borst, the Health Minister, who pushed through the euthanasia law this year, saying it was better to regulate the existing widespread practice of mercy killing.This time, a government statement said: "An increasing number of patients suffering illnesses such as cancer, Aids and multiple sclerosis receive medicinal cannabis." The law, it said, was needed to remove an "undesirable" contradiction between practice and law "despite lack of scientific evidence" of the effects of marijuana use.Many patients using the drug without professional assistance had had successful results, it said. "Experiences are positive: less pain, less nausea after chemotherapy, less stiffness with MS," the statement added. The government cited legal medicinal use of cannabis in 19 American states and Canada and said many European states were considering following suit.Prescription cannabis will be of "pharmaceutical quality" grown to government guidelines. The Netherlands is known to produces some of the world's most potent cannabis. Complete Title: Dutch Government Plans to Put Cannabis on PrescriptionSource: Independent (UK)Anthony Deutsch, AP, in AmsterdamPublished: October 20, 2001Copyright: 2001 Independent Newspapers (UK) Ltd.Contact: letters independent.co.ukWebsite: http://www.independent.co.uk/The Dutch Experiencehttp://www.dutchexperience.orgCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by CorvallisEric on October 21, 2001 at 02:41:17 PT
poem
If anyone's interested, the poem by Don Van Vliet in comment #1 (and lots more) can be found athttp://www.beefheart.com/walker/index.htmlLook for "Odd jobs" under "Poems." I used to like this kind of stuff ... maybe if I get stoned again one of these years when everything is just right...
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Comment #1 posted by Angelfood Picasso on October 20, 2001 at 08:12:56 PT
beatnik poetry vacation
Odd Jobs The rug ripped up in cloth popcorn balls
the walls an old candy striped sack
in the corner wrinkled black and white
a table held up by legs
the peeled back red enamelled mouth of linoleum screamed
at the pasteboard door
a knob rolled off in some corner sticky
a curtain blew into a sink
dead flies and newspapers
charred fire brown wings and toast
Hobo ain't been around for some time
the gate danced without its paint on
Odd jobs is written on
spiders were the window's eyes
the sun made them look silver
the little girl from in back of the clothesline
cast a shadow like a crow
it's beak spoke open
why doesn't old Odd Jobs come around anymore
he used to ride his form-a-heap bike
and his basket was a whole candy store
he used t'make Xs from door to door
all the women and the young girls around here
ask why old Jobs don't come on home
and the gate without its paint on danced
and creaked and moaned
here he comes peddlin' up on his form-a-heap bike
a bag of skin and bones
spokes were scraping two rust fenders
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