cannabisnews.com: Hard Scrutiny for a Soft Drug





Hard Scrutiny for a Soft Drug
Posted by CN Staff on January 25, 2003 at 12:44:38 PT
New Studies Point to Health Dangers of Marijuana
Source: Zenit News Agency 
Oakland, California -- The controversy over marijuana for medical treatment came into focus again this week as a court case got under way in California. Ed Rosenthal, who promotes the use of marijuana, went on trial in a federal court in San Francisco, the New York Times reported Jan. 21. Rosenthal is on trial for his role in growing marijuana for medical use. His business operates under the local laws of the city of Oakland, which allow for medical marijuana. Federal authorities are fighting against the spread of such municipal ordinances. 
California voters in 1996 approved a referendum, Proposition 215, which allows for medicinal marijuana. Since then another eight states have passed similar laws -- and legal battles have ensued, the Times said. Still unresolved is he underlying conflict between state laws, which permit medicinal marijuana, and federal law, which considers all marijuana use illegal. An initial wave of referendums in past years had approved limited use of marijuana (also known as cannabis). But last autumn's polls saw a reversal, the Washington Times reported Nov. 26. Voters in Nevada rejected a move to legalize the sale and use of 3 ounces or less of marijuana. Voters in Ohio and Arizona turned down proposals to allow the drug for medical purposes. Even before November, marijuana proposals had run into problems. Earlier in the year, medicinal-marijuana advocates in Florida failed to gather enough signatures to put a referendum on the ballot. In Michigan, the state Supreme Court barred a proposal from the November ballot because of technical errors in the wording. The gateway debate One argument cited by opponents of marijuana is that users will then pass on to other, more dangerous drugs. This debate intensified in December when a RAND study seemed to support legalizers by saying that marijuana is not a gateway to other drugs. Many of the media stories on the study were inaccurate, the Christian Science Monitor reported Dec. 16. Andrew Morral of RAND told the newspaper that he did everything he could to explain that the study did not disprove the gateway theory, but many did not want to listen. The study, in fact, discovered a high incidence of progression from marijuana to heroin and cocaine use. RAND also found that the younger a first-time marijuana user is, and the more often he uses it, the more likely he is to end up turning to cocaine and heroin. The problems of interpretation arose when the study noted that addicts might have a natural tendency toward drug use -- and that marijuana is just the first illegal drug they come across. Another marijuana study recently appeared in the Journal of the American Medical Association. Based on 311 sets of Australian twins, the study supports the idea that marijuana can lead to harder drugs, the Associated Press reported Jan. 21. Only one of each of the twins had smoked marijuana before reaching age 17. Researchers found that the early marijuana smokers were up to five times more likely than their twin to move on to harder drugs. They were about twice as likely to use opiates, including heroin, and five times more likely to use hallucinogens, such as LSD. The lead researcher, Michael Lynskey, admitted that the study has several limitations, including relying on participants' reporting of their own experiences. And it doesn't explain why early marijuana use may lead to harder drugs.  More carbon monoxide What does seem clear is that marijuana use poses serious health risks. Many have incorrect ideas about marijuana, said John Walters, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, in an AP article Sept. 17. More teens enter rehabilitation centers to treat marijuana addiction than alcohol or all other illegal drugs combined, Walters said. U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona noted that marijuana contains three to five times more tar and carbon monoxide than tobacco. And it affects the brain in ways similar to cocaine and heroin. In the United Kingdom, the British Lung Foundation published a report stating that marijuana cigarettes have up to 50% more cancer-causing agents than tobacco, the Telegraph reported Nov. 11. The Lung Foundation said that 1960s research suggesting that cannabis cigarettes were safe can no longer be relied on. "Three or four cannabis cigarettes are equivalent to smoking 20 tobacco cigarettes a day in terms of the risk of lung damage," the report says. Moreover, marijuana smokers tend to inhale four times more smoke with a cannabis cigarette, added Dame Helena Shovelton, chief executive of the foundation. "You inhale deeper and hold your breath with the smoke for longer before exhaling," she explained. "This results in more poisonous carbon monoxide and tar entering the lungs." The mental health of marijuana users also raises concerns. Dr. Deepak Cyril D'Souza, associate professor of psychiatry at Yale University School of Medicine, said that people who smoke a lot of cannabis for a long period of time might be at higher risk of developing schizophrenia, BBC reported Nov. 6. D'Souza presented new evidence on the link between cannabis and schizophrenia at the Institute of Psychiatry, at Maudsley Hospital in London. His research suggests cannabis may induce psychosis by its action on cannabinoid receptors in the brain. Similar concerns were raised in a series of articles published in the Nov. 23 issue of the British Medical Journal. "The link between cannabis and psychosis is well established, and recent studies have found a link between use of marijuana and depression," the journal stated. Regarding a link between marijuana and depression, the Journal admitted that there have been few studies on the subject. However, with the publication of new studies on groups in the United States and Australia, there is growing evidence of a relationship between the two. While admitting the difficulties of establishing a direct causal relation between marijuana use and mental health problems, the Journal did state: "The explanation most accepted is that cannabis triggers the onset or relapse of schizophrenia in predisposed people and also exacerbates the symptoms generally." Doubts had been raised over the methodology of some previous studies. As well, that many marijuana consumers also used other drugs led some to speculate that the other substances were to blame for the mental problems. But the Nov. 23 issue of the British Medical Journal published a new study that confirmed the earlier findings and established that it is marijuana, and not other drugs, that is associated with schizophrenia. The Pontifical Council for Health Care Workers, in its pastoral handbook on drugs published in an English translation last year, noted the health problems due to marijuana and stated: "Considering all the facts, it is irresponsible to consider cannabis in a trivial way and to think of it as being a 'soft drug.'" Medical evidence is increasingly showing the hard wisdom of this position.Note: ZENIT is an International News Agency. Our mission is to provide objective and professional coverage of events, documents and issues emanating from or concerning the Catholic Church for a worldwide audience, especially the media. Our team consists of independent, professional journalists, translators and information staff who bring you issues and events as they occur.Source: Zenit News Agency (Rome)Published: January 25, 2003Copyright: 2003 Innovative Media, Inc. Contact: infoenglish zenit.orgWebsite: http://www.zenit.org/Related Articles & Web Sites:NORML: Marijuana Truth Campaignhttp://freedomtoexhale.com/truth.pdfEd Rosenthal's Trial Pictures & Articleshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/trialpics.htmHigh Road: Marijuana as a Gateway Drug http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15281.shtmlAttempt to Silence Activist in MMJ Trial Failshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15275.shtmlMarijuana Use Linked To Schizophrenia http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14801.shtmlThe Special Senate Committee on Illegal Drugs http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13987.shtml 
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Comment #13 posted by malleus2 on January 27, 2003 at 13:11:51 PT
The earliest prohibition of cannabis
comes from the Catholic Church itself. This article is from a Catholic Church mouthpiece.Given how long it took for the Catholic Church to admit that Gallileo was right after all about the sun and planets not revolving around the Earth, (about 500 years) I hardly believe they'd step up and admit they're wrong about cannabis too.Poor benighted people...And, before anyone bashes me for being anti-Catholic, I *am* a baptised Catholic.
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on January 27, 2003 at 10:27:17 PT
News Article from KOMO TV
Medical Marijuana Motive For Beating, Say PoliceJanuary 26, 2003 
By KOMO Staff & News Services 
 PORT HADLOCK - A 20-year-old attacked a disabled man with a bat last week for his medical marijuana supply, investigators say. Cleve Wall, 45, was released from at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle on Saturday, two days after being attacked in his apartment. Complete Article: http://www.komotv.com/stories/22679.htm
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Comment #11 posted by Dark Star on January 27, 2003 at 09:39:39 PT
Oppose Continuation of Prohibition
Write a letter to:secretariat hnnsweden.com and say what you think about their perpetuation of the drug war.
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on January 27, 2003 at 09:25:27 PT
More Propaganda
World Opposition to Legalization:
http://coranet.radicalparty.org/pressreview/print_right.php?func=detail&par=4393
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Comment #9 posted by mayan on January 26, 2003 at 01:48:46 PT
Bodies?
If cannabis is so dangerous & causes cancer, then where are all of the bodies? There aren't any. None. 9/11 Truth Alliance: http://unansweredquestions.org/alliance/index.html
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Comment #8 posted by JHarshaw on January 25, 2003 at 19:47:20 PT
re: Cannabis and Mental Health
Greetings to all.It would never occur to these supposedly unbiased researchers that some people who are hurting inside are self-medicating with Cannabis to try and hold the wolves at bay just one more day. As for a link between Cannabis and Depression all you have to consider is the risks you run and the price you have to pay for a little bud. That's enough to depress anybody!Peace and Pot
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Comment #7 posted by observer on January 25, 2003 at 18:38:19 PT
re: run of the mill propaganda
Marijuana causes madness! Cannabis is a gateway to heroin addiction! Yes, true: this is run of the mill propaganda. Even a bot could tell it was propaganda. In fact, a bot did tell it was propaganda. ;-)Bot's content analysis of the article is here: http://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/article/zenit.org5179.htmhttp://drugpolicycentral.com/bot/ Bot's New Server! :-]
Bot!
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Comment #6 posted by p4me on January 25, 2003 at 18:20:02 PT
Article is run of the mill propaganda
Our mission is to provide objective and professional coverage of events, documents and issues emanating from or concerning the Catholic Church for a worldwide audience, especially the media.What a joke. Tell me about the CIA and the Congo war they started against a tiny country of 3.5 million or the role the US had in undermining the democratically-elected president of Venezula. Tell me where all this drug money goes and how it is spent. To rehash the gateway theory when the American Public and the world wants some answers, shows the Catholic Church isn't too swift on answers or even selecting the right questions.Sounds to me like they want some faith-based money or maybe a voucher system for the schools. I could be wrong- the government may have written them a check for joining the yellow parrots.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on January 25, 2003 at 18:06:56 PT
On WorldLink TV Now
I don't know how many people get World Link TV but Peter Coyote is the host and it will have call in. The Active Opposition - Iraq: Eyewitness Reports WORLDLINK TV PREMIEREWorldLink TV debuts "The Active Opposition," a new original series focusing on national and international issues hosted by actor and activist Peter Coyote. The series launches with "Iraq: Eyewitness Reports" in which Coyote interviews Sean Penn about his recent trip to Iraq. The program will include other eyewitnesses such as Scott Ritter, former U.N. weapons inspector and Dennis Halliday, former head of the U.N. Oil-for-Food program. http://www.worldlinktv.comhttp://www.petercoyote.com/http://www.unitedforpeace.org/http://www.ceip.org/files/Iraq/index.htm
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Comment #4 posted by The GCW on January 25, 2003 at 17:19:42 PT
Alvin Cool - good letter + the FBI- walters et al.
are sickening to the health of America. Caging humans for using the plant cannabis is wicked and evil & You don't have to be a rocket scientist to know it. Hitler is proud.Deep perception of the Federal Government being the enemy, makes me rethink how I feel about all Federal employees. Do Fed. employees serve an evil master or what?I call on all Fed. employees to inform their evil master to stop the vulgar practice of caging humans for using the plant cannabis.If We blatently (although kindly) and directly inform random Fed. employees of Our distaste for their evil masters filthy barbaric addiction of caging humans for using a plant, will that help Our cause?Tell Fed. employees their boss is the bad evil.Shall We?Surly!When the urine suckers hook You up like a milk cow, do they make comparable profits?  
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on January 25, 2003 at 16:29:05 PT
Off Topic - FBI Taps Campus Police 
FBI Taps Campus Police in Anti-Terror Operations Student, Faculty Groups Fear a Return of Spying Abuses Against Activists, Foreign Nationals  
 
By Dan Eggen, Washington Post Staff WriterSaturday, January 25, 2003; Page A01 Federal authorities have begun enlisting campus police officers in the domestic war on terror, renewing fears among some faculty and student groups of overzealous FBI spying at colleges and universities that led to scandals in decades past.Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, the FBI has strengthened or established working relationships with hundreds of campus police departments, in part to gain better access to insular communities of Middle Eastern students, government officials said.On at least a dozen campuses, the FBI has included collegiate police officers as members of local Joint Terrorism Task Forces, the regional entities that oversee counterterrorism investigations nationwide.Complete Article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A40281-2003Jan24.html
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on January 25, 2003 at 14:28:41 PT
AlvinCool
Very good letter. We need to separate hard drugs from Cannabis. I believe that jail isn't the answer for a person who is strung out on Meth. I don't believe a person can get strung out on Cannabis. I have met people years ago that did lots of Meth but they are all dead now. Speed sure can kill. Cannabis would help a person come off of Meth. I wish they understood.
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Comment #1 posted by AlvinCool on January 25, 2003 at 14:10:49 PT
Letter to Devner Post on a Meth Article
Pediatrician Kathryn Wells from Children's Hospital testified that adults high on meth tend to become violent and take out their anger on children. In addition, they sleep for days and don't eat, neglecting their children in the process. Another witness representing foster parents said that children removed from meth-lab homes have been known to climb atop kitchen counters in their foster homes to reach food for themselves, not realizing that in a normal home adults cook the food and feed the children. "They don't know how to use utensils. They are animalist," the witness told the committee. 
____________________________________________________________Wait just a minute here people. Marijuana is MUCH WORSE than meth. I know this because John Walters tells me so. He also tells the nation this nonsense. Meth is just one of the many horrible drugs to come as people, who would probably be content with marijuana, go for something that isn't detectable for 30 days on drug tests. Then their life goes down the toilet. We, the people trying to get marijuana decriminalized, have tried to tell you but you just can't understand. Before it's over, and we decriminalize marijuana anyway, you will have created an entire nation of true addicts. Well done, not.Decriminalizing marijuana will break the black markets back as the majority of it's customers leave. It's like taking gas from quick stop stores. If you did they would almost have to flag down customers, people would not stop there and then pick up other things they didn't really mean to buy.
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