cannabisnews.com: Expert Urges Tough Fight Against Drugs 





Expert Urges Tough Fight Against Drugs 
Posted by CN Staff on September 25, 2003 at 08:23:56 PT
By James Hagengruber of The Gazette Staff 
Source: Billings Gazette
Marijuana is addictive and harmful and is being used by teens and children, said Dr. Susan Dalterio, a drug expert from the University of Texas at San Antonio. Efforts to legalize the drug will weaken when more people are made aware of its bad effects, Dalterio told a group of about 125 law officers and government leaders attending an anti-drug conference Wednesday in Billings.
"We need to keep the fight up," Dalterio said. "We need to inoculate every generation because these drugs are not going away. ... If you're a patriotic American or a parent or a teacher, you have to keep saying no and no and no." Dalterio made her case against marijuana at the Big Sky Illicit Drug Conference, which runs through the end of the week. The conference was organized by the Drug Enforcement Administration. Much of the conference focused on fighting methamphetamine, but the war against all illegal drugs will continue, said Bill Mercer, U.S. attorney for Montana. Terrorism and gun crimes remain the top priorities of federal law enforcement, Mercer said, but controlling illegal drugs remains high on the list. Marijuana is a "gateway" drug that leads to use of other, more dangerous drugs, Mercer said. "The tolerance level that it has in a number of communities is disturbing," he said. New measures aimed at reducing demand are being considered. One of these includes prosecuting those who possess drugs in federal court, Mercer said. The law is rarely used off Indian reservations -- where state courts have no jurisdiction -- but it might have a strong deterrent effect, especially when the drug user's actions endanger children. The first federal drug possession offense is a misdemeanor, but the second time brings a felony, Mercer said. Most likely, the prosecution would be targeted at meth users, he said. No decisions have been made yet, however. "What I need now is for people to weigh in," Mercer said. "Let's have a community conversation." Dalterio tried to debunk many of the myths about marijuana. Marijuana is addictive, she said. But this is harder to see than with other drugs because the withdrawal effects are subtle and can last for weeks, unlike the intense physical drama involved with kicking a heroin or meth habit. People get addicted to the drug because it's an easy way to experience a "dopamine moment," Dalterio said. This is the same brain chemical that's released after climbing a mountain or when watching a spring sunrise. Marijuana makes pleasure deceptively easy, she said. Without it, pot users find themselves unable to experience pleasure, she said. Heavy users gain a tolerance to the drug, making it harder to achieve the high, but they never lose the physical relaxation brought on by the drug or the feeling of time slowing, Dalterio said. In Boston in the 1960s -- the time and place Dalterio went to college -- police officers would say the only people who drove the speed limit were the elderly or stoned students. Marijuana chews up memory, Dalterio said. She told the audience to drive the point home with young people by comparing the effects to tearing out memory chips from a computer. The impairment effects of pot can last 24 hours, which is much longer than many think, Dalterio said. This was demonstrated during a study in the 1980s involving pilots who smoked the drug. The pilots said they believed the effects of pot wore off after 24 hours. Researchers tested this theory by putting the pilots in a flight simulator a day after smoking. All did poorly. One crashed the simulated flight. "They were very impaired and they thought they weren't," she said. Dalterio said she feels like screaming when she hears about the alleged medical benefits of marijuana. "This is just crazy, it's totally nuts," she told the audience. Marijuana has some beneficial effects on pain, she admitted, but other drugs do a better job and their safety and consistency are assured by the federal government. A synthetic version of marijuana is now available in pill form by prescription. It has been successful in treating nausea, pain and anorexia. People no longer have an excuse for smoking marijuana for medical reasons, she said. "They're smoking dope because they like it," Dalterio said. Marijuana causes a wide variety of physical and mental problems. The tar found in a joint is no different from what's found in a cigarette. It's also not much different from what is used on roads, Dalterio pointed out. "In a marijuana joint you're getting 5 to as much as 25 times the tar as in a cigarette," Dalterio said. Smoking marijuana causes a variety of respiratory troubles, as well as a depressed immune system, a lack of motivation and emotional immaturity. People who smoke pot tend to have the same emotional maturity level as when they first smoked a joint, she said. Dalterio cited Austin, Texas, as a living example. It's a place full of old hippies "stuck in the '60s," she said. "They're interesting, but they're still stuck." This wasn't such a big deal in the 1960s and 1970s when most people didn't take their first toke until they were 19 years old, Dalterio said. Now, however, many 12-year-olds are getting high. This could have a huge consequences for the nation in a few years, she said. Source: Billings Gazette, The (MT)Author: James Hagengruber of The Gazette Staff Published: September 25, 2003Copyright: 2003 The Billings GazetteContact: speakup billingsgazette.comWebsite: http://www.billingsgazette.com/Related Articles:Pot Smoking Changed Pain-Ridden Author's Life http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17397.shtml Outside View: Putting Pot in Perspective http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15388.shtmlIs Pot Truly 'Addictive'? http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11982.shtml
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Comment #36 posted by Had Enough on September 26, 2003 at 23:57:52 PT
The Devil deals your soul
Just got back from the local Gin Mill. While there I met a friend who I haven’t seen in about a year or so. He had almost his whole family there, and boy were they living it up. Just so happens they were celebrating one his sisters 50th birthday. She had breast cancer and had to have a mastectomy, she had just been tested again for cancer. The results came back clean, and boy she was living it up and cutting the rug. Talk about tough, this girl is the rule. Having knowing this family for many years, to my surprise I was never told of her condition. When he told me what the deal was I was floored. The band, and the crowd, myself included, sang happy birthday to her. The place was just rockin out. She survived and was really enjoying life. While this was going on I thought about Dr. Susan Dalterio, a “drug expert”. I was thinking that these two need to get together and discuss their views on life.
She did the chemo thing, and the whole 9 yards. She survived, no thanks to our local and federal do as I say we know better than you crowd establishment, she survived despite all the things going against her. I really would like these puppets that tell people what is good for them to sit down and talk to her. If you looked up tough in the Funk & Wagnels, you would see her picture. Dr. Susan Dalterio, a “drug expert” you are a fraud. You have been bought and sold. You sold your soul to the devil for the “30 pieces of silver”. When you reach the pearly gates like all mortal man will do, St. Peter might have a few questions for you.
 
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Comment #35 posted by Max Flowers on September 26, 2003 at 15:32:21 PT
Here's the email address
president utsa.edu...let 'em rip, guys!
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Comment #34 posted by kaptinemo on September 26, 2003 at 14:49:21 PT:
Bravo, Max, bravo!
I couldn't have said it any better. Right between their eyes...and I might be tempted to add that if they get a lot more of these types of letters, Dalterio might find herself in the same unemployment line so many cannabists are standing in, thanks to her support of the system that put them there...or worse, in jail or six-feet-under. Universtities are fickle creatures; one minute they are trying to court 'names' in scientific fields, in the hope of getting funding that that name will attract, and the next moment they are dumping said 'name' because they've become too controversial and might damage their reputation. If La Delterio becomes such a liablitly because of public backlash against her extremism, the University will begin to reconsider whether they want her around, raising a stink.Hint, hint, hint to the rest of us...
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Comment #33 posted by Max Flowers on September 26, 2003 at 13:23:58 PT
I do what I can... (letter to Dalterio's boss)
I just sent this letter (well, email) to the president of the University of Texas San Antonio:---------------------9/26/03PLEASE FORWARD A COPY OF THIS TO THE DEAN AND ALL OTHER TOP STAFFDear Mr. Romo,I just read the Billings Gazette article on the presentation given by your so-called "drug expert" and staff member Susan Dalterio at the Big Sky Illicit Drug Conference in Montana, organized by none other than that bastion of scientific accuracy, the DEA.You should be mortified that someone who works for your university, one that is otherwise prestigious in the arena of science and academia, is spreading lies, misinformation and scientifically bereft opinion about the use of medicinal cannabis. To hold her up as a "drug expert," representing a large and highly recognized university, and then let her spout inaccurate and unscientific propaganda is shameful.From the article:
Dalterio said she feels like screaming when she hears about the alleged medical benefits of marijuana. "This is just crazy, it's totally nuts," she told the audience. Marijuana has some beneficial effects on pain, she admitted, but other drugs do a better job and their safety and consistency are assured by the federal government. A synthetic version of marijuana is now available in pill form by prescription. It has been successful in treating nausea, pain and anorexia. People no longer have an excuse for smoking marijuana for medical reasons, she said. "They're smoking dope because they like it," Dalterio said. 
These comments are very irresponsible, highly subjective, and malicious. I would like to ask Dalterio if she has ever watched someone who is so nauseous from chemotherapy that they CANNOT swallow a pill get instant relief from smoking some cannabis. I don't need to however, because from her ignorant statements I know she has not. Moreover, it is a widely known scientific FACT that Marinol, the pharmaceutical drug to which she so loosely refers, has quite different---and less medically useful---effects than smoked or vaporized (or for that matter, oral) cannabis because there is a large array of related but pharmacologically distinct cannabinoids in the natural product, while Marinol is an isolated THC (a single compound). Her statement "They're smoking dope because they like it" is deeply insulting to caregivers nationwide who have watched as people they love with serious illnesses suffer and in many cases die. Those people use cannabis because it is the one thing that works, the medicine that actually provides some relief to their pain and suffering. For Dalterio to belittle that process and try to stigmatize those poor folks as some kind of druggies just because they are attempting to get some peace in their disease-shattered lives is the height of arrogance and stupidity. Maybe I'll bring a cancer victim in to see her and see if she has the gall to tell him or her to their face that "you just smoke dope because you like it." I guarantee you that if Dalterio were stricken by a dread disease like cancer, AIDS or MS she would see things differently. Maybe she and everyone who takes this bigoted, cruel position should be, so that we could even the score a little on this matter.I am dedicating my life to making sure that people like Dalterio, and people like you who employ people like her, are going to start regularly experiencing the backlash from this hostile, ignorant and cold treatment of fellow human beings EVERY time they spout this kind of propagandistic, willfully deceitful garbage. Don't you have any pride at all in the academic and scientific integrity of your institution? She is dragging down your university's reputation. Is that what you want for it?? There are any number of studies which demonstrate the efficacy of cannabis to alleviate a large array of medical problems. GW Pharmaceuticals in the UK have already developed a whole-cannabis extract for medical use based on the studies that they (and other countries more enlightened than our own) have done that show its effectiveness. Do you really thing a major pharmaceutical company would go forward with that if, like your esteemed colleague so eloquently put it, the idea of medical cannabis is "just crazy... totally nuts"??I sincerely hope you will give this letter some serious thought and ask yourself whether you want your university to go on the record as being blind to contemporary drug research and backward in that field while the rest of the world advances forward, open to the truth.---------------------------I hope I pissed in their Cheerios real good with that one.MF
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Comment #32 posted by kaptinemo on September 26, 2003 at 13:05:51 PT:
Pardon my misspellings
But these people get me soooo p-d off. THEY ARE BEING PAID BY THE AMERICAN PEOPLE TO LIE TO THE AMERICAN PEOPLE! Their BS, lies and institutionalized 'fear and loathing' of cannabists gets turned into hysterically stupid legislation and used to destroy people's lives. If they had to swear to their bilge in court with the possibility of their testimony being ripped to shreds and threatened with perjury, fines and jail time they'd be a lot less vocal, I'd bet.Particularly if knew their perjury would cause them to meet some of the victims of their 'crusade' while in prison...
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Comment #31 posted by goneposthole on September 26, 2003 at 09:16:42 PT
what to do?  what to do?
banging pots and pans to drown out the ridiculous cacophony would do the job.
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Comment #30 posted by kaptinemo on September 26, 2003 at 08:21:12 PT:
Hmmm...is Ms. Dalteiro also a Flat Earther?
The Flat Earth Society (yes, Virginia, there really, really is one, this is not another cuttingly witty masterpiece by The Onion):http://www.flat-earth.org/Or perhaps she also believes in phlogiston chemistry:
http://www.1upinfo.com/encyclopedia/P/phlogist.html
From the article:phlogiston theory[flOjis´ton] Pronunciation Key, hypothesis regarding combustion. The theory, advanced by J. J. Becher late in the 17th cent. and extended and popularized by G. E. Stahl, postulates that in all flammable materials there is present phlogiston, a substance without color, odor, taste, or weight that is given off in burning. "Phlogisticated" substances are those that contain phlogiston and, on being burned, are "dephlogisticated." The ash of the burned material is held to be the true material. The theory received strong and wide support throughout a large part of the 18th cent. until it was refuted by the work of A. L. Lavoisier, who revealed the true nature of combustion. Joseph Priestley, however, defended the theory throughout his lifetime. Henry Cavendish remained doubtful, but most other chemists of the period, including C. L. Berthollet, rejected it.How about "Hollow Earth"? Hitler was especially fond of this idea: http://www.t0.or.at/subrise/hollow.htmWhat's my point? Some normally intelligent people can be subject to the weirdest belief systems. Even when it's demonstrated that those belief systems are flat dead wrong, they persist in believing in them.The usual term for such beliefs is 'pseudoscience'. Since it looks like "Dr." Dalteiro are engaging in the practice of 'pseudoscience', wouldn't it be appropraite to label her as a 'pseudoscientist'? Given that she has spouted the most irrational BS about MJ that would be refuted easily and quickly in a public debate, the question is valid.As would be the questioning of her credentials.And she is conducting this claptrap psuedoscience on OUR DIME?
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Comment #29 posted by Jose Melendez on September 26, 2003 at 05:15:13 PT
published in my morning paper, also found online
debunking the drug war:http://www.buffalonews.com/editorial/20030924/1000496.asphttp://www.mpp.org/states/site/quicknews.cgi?key=4945btw alvincool, don't assume that tar comes from commercial oil based fert(ilizer)s. Use a vaporizer.
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Comment #28 posted by OverwhelmSam on September 26, 2003 at 04:50:00 PT:
The Push Against Marijuana Is On!
Okay everybody, the Federal Government is going for a full court press against marijuana, even while many other countries around the world are decriminalizing and legalizing marijuana. It's coming down to the wire. Shouldn't be long until we get the US government to back off once and for all.PS Make sure you're registered to vote.
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Comment #27 posted by AlvinCool on September 25, 2003 at 20:31:27 PT
Tar
She mentions that the tar in marijuana was just like the tar used in asphalt. She also says that tar is found in tobacco.Wouldn't it be reasonable to assume that the tar comes from the oil based ferts used commercially?If this were true wouldn't everything we grow, using oil based ferts, contain tar? Anybody got an idea on this?
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Comment #26 posted by SoberStoner on September 25, 2003 at 20:23:37 PT
sigh
"What I need now is for people to weigh in," Mercer said. "Let's have a community conversation."Hmmmm....another call for a debate....let's call their bluff."In Boston in the 1960s -- the time and place Dalterio went to college -- police officers would say the only people who drove the speed limit were the elderly or stoned students."Yet the stoners are the bad guys...This article is complete trash, but worth keeping around so once it's legalized, we can charge her with war crimes for these blatant lies...hell, they're the ones that started this and are insistent on calling it a war (except they forget to mention it's a war on their own citizens), let's make sure they pay the price when they reap what they have sown.SS
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Comment #25 posted by FoM on September 25, 2003 at 19:22:57 PT
Dr. Russo
It's great to see you! 
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Comment #24 posted by BGreen on September 25, 2003 at 18:09:35 PT
Her Background Information
Dr. Susan Dalterio - Gateway DrugsSusan Dalterio received a Baccalaureate Degree with a major in both Biology and Psychology from Boston University in 1971. In 1976 she received a Master's Degree in Psychology and Counseling from Assumption College in Worcester, Massachusetts. In 1978, Dr. Dalterio received a Doctorate in Philosophy, degree in Physiological Psychology from Tuffs University in Medford, Massachusetts. Dr. Dalterio received Post-Doctoral training in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio during 1978-1979. In 1979, she joined the Department of Pharmacology and, in 1984, became a Research Associate Professor in this Department. At the Health Science Center, Dr. Dalterio taught medical, dental, nursing and graduate students. During a research career of over 15 years, she investigated drug actions on the brain and reproductive system, including effects on fetal development. Dr. Dalterio is the author of over 70 scientific papers and book chapters.During the past 24 years, Dr. Dalterio has been involved in drug abuse prevention education on both national and international levels. She has served as a consultant for several organizations including the Drug Enforcement Administration, and the Texas Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, as well as Regional Educational Service Centers throughout Texas. Dr. Dalterio is presently on the faculty of the Division of Life Sciences at the University of Texas at San Antonio teaching at undergraduate and graduate levels.
Dr. Susan Dalterio
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Comment #23 posted by mayan on September 25, 2003 at 17:48:21 PT
JAIL
Anyone notice how Dr. Dalterio fails to mention the worst side-effect of using cannabis...JAIL!!!When the anti's start squealing this loud it means we are getting close!
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Comment #22 posted by Had Enough on September 25, 2003 at 16:29:11 PT
Looped sound track
Found it with search engine. Thought you might get a kick out of it. You can take Morgan's comment and apply it in many areas. Thank you MorganComment #3 posted by Morgan on October 11, 2002 at 09:53:05 PT 
Coming out of the woodwork 
Geez, it's like somebody pulled this guy's string, and like a Chatty-Cathy Doll, out comes this pre-recorded message spouting all the propaganda points that we've all heard before, and can be easily disproved with a little research.
I guess they're still stuck on the old propaganda trick of repeating something over and over again until it becomes the truth. It has been that way for much too long. This lame attempt, and all the others lately, tells me that people are waking up, and they're trying desperately to put us back to sleep. It tells me that that they are out of ammo.It tells me that we are close to our goal.This diatribe boils down to one thing. If you legalize it, Gregory M. Gasbag is out of work.Keep on keeping on. 
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Comment #21 posted by cloud7 on September 25, 2003 at 16:02:00 PT
AGHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!
Dalterio said she feels like screaming when she hears about the alleged medical benefits of marijuana.I feel like screaming every time I have to read a page and a half of lies.
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Comment #20 posted by Had Enough on September 25, 2003 at 15:39:13 PT
Looped sound track
Somebody about a year ago said these people sound like Cathy Chatty dolls. Pull the string listen to the looped sound track.
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Comment #19 posted by mamawillie on September 25, 2003 at 13:52:46 PT
Interesting article, Dr. Russo....
especially the blurb about the abortifacient issue. 
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Comment #18 posted by Ethan Russo MD on September 25, 2003 at 13:03:53 PT:
Cannabis and the Fetus
For another viewpoint on cannabis effects in pregnancy, see:http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/russo-ob.pdf
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Comment #17 posted by mamawillie on September 25, 2003 at 11:14:03 PT
She's a quack for sure...
If she's the best the drug war has, a widely-disputed fanatic, then let her speak all she wants. No one buys her shit, even colleagues. She's a laughing stock in the academic community.Marijuana and the Unborn 
(Reprinted from LISTEN Magazine, November 1984)More research is documenting the serious and long lasting effects of smoking marijuana on the fertility o offspring of male and female users. In this LISTEN interview, Dr Susan L. Dalterio reveals just what those effects are. For the last 10 years, she’s been doing research with laboratory mice on the effects of marijuana on the reproductive system. Recently, she’s been looking at offspring whose parents have been exposed to marijuana.Why did you choose mice as your research animals?Mice are available in large numbers and are inexpensive. They are also very, very reproductive. You can look at generational effects in a fairly short time compared to what it would require of humans and monkeys or any other species which require years before you get one generation and an additional set of years before you get further generations.Why did you choose to go into marijuana research?At the time I began the research, there were reports coming out suggesting that there maybe some sexual and reproductive problems in young heavy users. I thought it important to determine if these effects are related to a drug life-style or nutrition or the marijuana itself.Describe the type of procedure that you use.I never use material directly from the marijuana plant itself. I use purified cannabinoids, the chemicals contained in marijuana, which have separated by the U.S. Government from the plant material that it grows under supervised conditions. I put the purified cannabinoids in sesame oil and place drops of the oil on the mice’s tongues. They readily take the cannabinoids without suffering stress from injections or the like.I’ve looked at the effect of exposing mice to these cannabinoids on a single-dose basis in females during pregnancy or during the nursing period, and on a multiple dose basis in males. I’ve looked at the consequences on the adults and also on their offspring.How do the animal doses compare to human doses?It’s always difficult describing how doses are determined. You don’t just multiply or divide a human’s dose according to the relative weight of the animal. Because mice are little they metabolise or break down the drugs very rapidly. Their heartbeat is about 400 hundred beats per minute compared to 70 for humans. Thus the behavioural effects of marijuana on mice are gone within hours. Our doses are most closely equivalent to those taken by average/heavy marijuana users.Compare the effects of marijuana that has been smoked and marijuana that has been injected or taken orally? Marijuana taken orally is almost one third as potent as when it is smoked. This is one reason why the doses aren’t quite equivalent, but it eds up that the long-term effects on the reproductive system are about the same. Human beings do consume marijuana in some places by eating it. So it is not unrealistic for us to do so with these studies in animals.In a typical case in your laboratory, do you give the cannabinoids to both the mother and father?No, I haven’t in any yet given it to both the mother and father. I’ve always elected to give it to one or the other, because until you know what marijuana does to each other separately, there’s really no easy way to evaluate the contribution of each parent to the outcome of the offspring.What effects do you see on the next generation when cabbaninoids are administered to the pregnant mother? Fetuses are exposed to the various cannabinoids through the placenta, the organ that connects the fetal sac to the mother and through which nutrients flow to the fetus. We found two major effects of marijuana during mid-pregnancy. For one thing THC, the psycho-active or intoxicating agent in marijuana caused an abnormal number of fetal losses to the mother. There is evidence of a toxic effect on the fetus. The other thing is that both THC and CBN, a non-intoxicating chemical, reduce the amount of testosterone, the major male sex hormone, in male fetuses in the early period of development, when testosterone is critically important in all mammalian species during the prenatal period of time just as it is after puberty.Do you know the reason for this effect?It’s difficult when you are dealing with fetal development to pinpoint exactly what causes a critical effect. We’re still trying to find out what marijuana does, and then we will pick an effect and study it until we understand how it is produced. This is very difficult to do during the pregnancy phase.Why did you choose to study THC and CBN?All marijuana researchers have looked at THC first because that is the psycho-active or intoxicating part of marijuana. Without THC, marijuana would be of interest to no one.What happens to offspring of THC exposed mice mothers?I followed up through adulthood the pups I had given these drugs the day before they were delivered. The pups looked pretty normal in appearance and size when thy were born. It wasn’t until puberty that it was evident that they were underweight. We started to find hormonal imbalances that decreased testes weights, which started just before puberty but persisted up into the adult period of these animals who had only been exposed through their mother on the last day of her pregnancy or her through her milk the first six days of the nursing period.Is THC through milk in purer form?If the mother was given THC, it comes through the milk 90% pure. Milk is so very fatty that it’s a storage depot fro unmetabolised cannabinoids. It has been shown in monkeys, rats, sheep and mice that THC definitely gets through milk in largely unchanged form.When giving the THC to the father, what effect does it have on conception or on the process of pregnancy? When we treated the males with cannabinoids, some of them had significant problems in making the females pregnant.And if those animals did make a pregnancy, many of the pups died as fetuses before the pregnancy went full term. In pups that survived birth, there was a significant increase in the number who died before they could eat on their own.Once the THC-treated males impregnated the untreated females, the females had more difficulty maintaining the pregnancy and raising those pups to adulthood. We presume that the THC caused some defect in the father’s sperm, since that was the only way that these pups were exposed.When we looked at the sons that did survive and grow up, they were as there fathers had been - less fertile and producing more losses in pregnancies which did occur. When we looked at chromosomes in the testes of both fathers and sons, we found abnormal chromosomes and birth defects in the third generation.You are convinced that marijuana had an effect on testes and the production on male sperm which brings about abnormal chromosome development?Yes, we certainly have evidence that the chromosomes are no longer normal, that there is a higher frequency of clumping of chromosomes so that when the cell divides, two equal cells are not produced. We know that in some condition in humans and in animals this is associated with severe defects, such as mongolism, in which an extra chromosome is present. I’m not saying that mongolism is related to marijuana use, but it is certainly known that if the chromosomes are not splitting properly, you get severe consequences. We know that in the testes of treated mice and of their untreated sons we are getting abnormalities.What are the effects on the third generation?I’m not going to say at this point that we have any kind of conclusive evidence of this, but we are speculating - based on the evidence - that there is some mutagenic effect - a change in genetic structure and sperm which is capable of being transmitted from generation to generations.There are some other possibilities, such as the sons have an endocrine abnormality, which then affects their sperm. This is not genetic, but the interpretation is almost as serious either way. There is a transmissible defect which affects another generation, either directly (genetically) or indirectly (through endocrine hormonal imbalance).You are convinced, then, that as far as your experimentation is concerned, marijuana does have a perceptible negative effect on pregnancy, from the standpoint of both the mother and father?Yes. I think it is very clear that many drugs, marijuana included, can affect pregnancy. I think what is very important is that we’ve shown a reasonable amount of evidence to urge strongly that the father’s input be considered in terms of drug exposure. It may be that the consequences of the father’s drug involvement are even more serious than those of the mother’s. What about applying these conclusions to humans?Some of the research that we’ve already done in mice , some of the effects of marijuana on adult hormone levels, were actually found first in human users ten years ago. We know that some of the things that we find in mice have been found consistently in human users. It’s a problem when you talk about offspring, because we don’t yet have any human third-generation offspring of marijuana users. But it’s very unlikely that we would be spared from what we consistently find in animals. Saying what will happen to the offspring of humans is a bit of a question, but having something similar to what we found in mice is very likely. This will finally be proved when we have third-generation offspring of marijuana users to test. Do you feel your project is pretty well completed?In some ways I wish it were completed; then I could say that I have the answers. But there are still two aspects of the issue that must be dealt with - 1) we have some questions about reversibility. How long and in how many generations will these results persist? And 2) which organs and in what order does marijuana hit to produce these effects? This might seem less relevant to the lay person, but it is extremely important when discussing therapeutic interventions. This may then be relevant to a number of other drugs and environmental hazards.Do you have questions about reversibility?The younger you are when you suffer damage, and that includes the fetus, the more likely the damage will be difficult to reverse. That is always a problem when young people ask why adults can use with less obvious effect some things that they can’t, including alcohol. It’s because once things are formed, it takes more to mess them up. But while they are forming, it takes relatively little to mess them up. The sensitivity to a variety of agents is very different in an adolescent from what it would be in a forty year old.Susan L. Dalterio, Ph.D. 9114 Welles Way, San Antonio, TX 78240 (512) 692-9139Here are her studies:  Dalterio, S.L. (1980). Prenatal or adult exposure to cannabinoids alters male reproductive functions in mice. Phamacol., Biochem, Behav. 12, 143-153.
   Dalterio, S., and Bartke A. (1981). Fetal testosterone in mice: effects of gestational age and cannabinoid exposure, J. Endocrinol. 91, 509-514.
   Dalterio, S., Bartke, A., and Mayfield, D. (1981). Delta-9tetrahydrocannabinol increases plasma testosterone levels in mice. Science (Washington, D.C.) 231, 581-583.
   Dalterio, S., Badr, F., Bartke, A., and Mayfield, D. (1982). Cannabinoids inn mice: effects on fertility and spermatogenesis. Science (Washington, D.C.) 216. 315-316.
   Dalterio, S., Bartke, A., Brodie, A., and Mayfield, D. (1983a). Effects of testosterone. estradiol, aromatase inhibitor, gonadotropin and prolactin on the response of mouse testes to gonadotropin stimulation. Steroid Biochem. 18, 391-396.
   Dalterio, S., Bartke. A., and Mayfield, D. (1983b).  Cannabinoids stimulate and inhibit testosterone production in vitro and in vivo. Life. Sci. 32, 605-612.From this link:
http://www.hoboes.com/pub/Prohibition/Drug%20Information/Marijuana/Health%20and%20Medicine/Marijuana%20Health%20Developments" The reality is that while there are some effects to the offspring of both humans and animals from cannabis use - generally from cannabis use - generally from PURE THC - the changes are not very dramatic. Saraseth, Carol Grace Smith, Susan Dalterio and Peter Fried, among others, have
found unhealthy changes in offspring of lab animals exposed to THC, but most of these involved short-term nervous disorders, aberrant visual attention spans, lighter birth weights and shorter gestation periods. Radical doses of THC have had greater effects, but only in
lab animals and these did not correspond with human test results. Of the above mentioned researchers, all but Dalterio agreed that offspring whose mothers were exposed to cannabis or THC caught up with non- exposed offspring within thirty days after birth. Dalterio's work deals with second generation mice, and her early results - roundly disputed - suggest that fertility and hormonal production can be affected in those second generational lab mice.
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Comment #16 posted by darwin on September 25, 2003 at 10:41:10 PT
MPP
I am very pleased with the work of the MPP, Money I previously doneated to NORML is now going exclusively to the MPP, as they are actually making progress. I encourage everyone to support the MPP, as they are pretty much the only active voice we have in Washington.As for this article, I would not be suprised if the Billings newspaper receives money or "new ad sponsers" as a result of publishing this drivel. Just like the TV networks were selling ad space to ONDCP in exchange for tailoting the content of their shows to please them.
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Comment #15 posted by Trekkie on September 25, 2003 at 10:39:37 PT
P.S.
I'm also very suprised that I was not the one that submitted both of these Billings Gazette stories. I was about to, but saw that they were here, already.
Also, let's not forget that Billings was the FIRST place to improperly use the RAVE ACT as a threatening measure (I say first, because it will happen again, despite assurances from the guvmint that it will not - hell, the thing was drafted with assurances that it would never be used in the manner that it immediately was).
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Comment #14 posted by billos on September 25, 2003 at 10:29:27 PT:
Dr Susan
Who says medical degrees cannot be bought? Here's proof. Aren't very many doctors to meet that are morons, but here is one.
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Comment #13 posted by Dark Star on September 25, 2003 at 10:27:20 PT
Simply Stated
I am too tired to refute this alleged expert point by point, except to state that nothing she says is true.She should have to debate a real expert. Too bad she did not have to appear with George McMahon and convince him that he smokes for fun.
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Comment #12 posted by Trekkie on September 25, 2003 at 10:22:23 PT
Ironic...
It's very ironic that both this prohibitionist propoganda drivel appeared in the same paper, the same say, with another article, by the same author, on George McMahon and how marijuana has not only benifitted his quality of life, but has GIVEN HIM life.That pretty much sums up the prohibitionist/anti political landscape; uplifting human-interest reports on the benefits of MJ, and the goose-stepping polit-beaurau spitting lies and obfuscations.
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Comment #11 posted by WolfgangWylde on September 25, 2003 at 10:03:59 PT
Jesus...
...she just repeats one lie after another, all of which have been thoroughly discredited by unbiased sources. Don't journalists ask questions anymore?
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Comment #10 posted by BigDawg on September 25, 2003 at 09:27:20 PT
I Love This Part
>Marijuana is addictive, she said. But this is harder to see than with other drugs because the withdrawal effects are subtleSo what they are saying is there are no real symptoms involved in MJ withdrawls, but believe us... it really is addictive.GGGGGGG, caffiene has been shown to be more addictive with worse symptoms of withdrawls, but I bet prohibs would flip if we outlawed their coffee.
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on September 25, 2003 at 09:07:42 PT
Here's an Article The GCW
http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread17393.shtml
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Comment #8 posted by The GCW on September 25, 2003 at 09:06:01 PT
more news
DEADLINE FOR THE "PATRIOT ACT"
Congressman Dennis Kucinich continued his leadership today
on Capitol Hill today by introducing the first comprehensive
bill to repeal offensive sections of the misnamed "USA PATRIOT
Act." The Kucinich bill -- called the "Benjamin Franklin True
Patriot Act" -- is already supported by the ACLU, NAACP, a
Jewish group, an Islamic group, and 20 members of Congress.Kucinich's bill would repeal sections of the original "PATRIOT
Act," that authorize 'sneak and peak' searches; warrantless
library, medical, educational, and financial record searches;
and the detention and deportation of non-citizens without
meaningful judicial review. Passage would be the final deadline
-- or death -- for the "PATRIOT Act."Rep. Kucinich is the only presidential candidate who voted
against the "PATRIOT Act" in October, 2001. The other Democrats
in Congress currently running for president all voted for it --
and Howard Dean has said, "I never criticize them for that" in
view of the post-9/11 pressure. Congressman Kucinich stood up
to the pressure then...and now.At a news conference today, Kucinich invoked the words of Ben
Franklin, "Those who would give up essential liberty to purchase
a little temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety."Kucinich added: "Will we stand by as the Administration formulates
a second more dangerous "PATRIOT Act" because, in the President's
words, 'the first bill didn't go far enough'? Or will we step
back from this atmosphere of fear and work to restore our basic
freedoms and rights? With the introduction of the True Patriot
Act, I say we take back our Constitution."DEADLINE FOR DOLLARS
Sept 30 presents another deadline -- the quarterly fundraising
deadline for presidential candidates. This is the time for true
Patriots to support this unique candidate who is taking his battle
against the "PATRIOT Act" nationwide Many of you have already donated. If so, please send this
email to every civil libertarian or Libertarian or Green or lover
of privacy and individual rights you know and ask them to
support a man who (whether you agree with him on all issues) is
standing up for your basic freedoms on the campaign trail and on
Capitol Hill. It's quick and easy to donate:
https://www.kucinich.us/contribute.phpFor more on Kucinich: http://www.kucinich.us
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Comment #7 posted by The GCW on September 25, 2003 at 09:04:13 PT
news
Dear Friend:The Marijuana Policy Project's campaign to influence Democratic
presidential candidates on the medical marijuana issue in
New Hampshire enjoyed tremendous success this past weekend.Two of the leading candidates -- former Vermont Gov. Howard Dean and
U.S. Sen. John Kerry (MA) -- markedly improved their respective
positions on medical marijuana. Dean agreed to impose a moratorium on
the DEA's raids on medical marijuana patients and providers in states
that have reduced or eliminated criminal penalties for the medical use
of marijuana. And Kerry said he would stop the raids entirely.Kerry's and Dean's evolution on this issue didn't happen in a vacuum.
This is the result of a carefully coordinated plan by MPP to influence
the candidates through a mixture of grassroots and direct activism. We
have commissioned a poll and provided the campaigns with the results,
provided them with documentation on the medical benefits of marijuana,
asked the candidates for their positions at every available
opportunity, and even protested against candidates who would rather
have patients arrested than show a little compassion.(U.S. Sen. John Edwards from North Carolina has been the primary
target of our protests. He seems almost proud to have adopted the
position that seriously ill people should be put in prison for
following the advice of their physicians.)All of our hard work paid a huge dividend at a town hall meeting in
Henniker on Saturday, September 20. MPP's New Hampshire project,
Granite Staters for Medical Marijuana (GSMM), asked John Kerry, "Would
you stop the raids, as president?" Kerry responded by saying simply,
"Yes." This came one day after Howard Dean, in response to a GSMM
question, pledged, "Will I do what [Attorney General] Ashcroft is
doing? No, absolutely not." GSMM then specifically asked, "You would
stop the raids?" and Dean responded, "Yeah, I'm not going to do that,
anyway." To read about these encounters in greater detail, please see
our press release: http://www.mpp.org/releases/nr092203gsmm.htmlMore good news: The candidates are not the only people taking note of
our activism. We're generating a substantial amount of press as well.
Read all about our efforts: http://GraniteStaters.com/news/press.htmlAnd there will be more news coverage over the next few days. On
Friday, we expect to have an opportunity to appeal to retired
Gen. Wesley Clark -- the tenth and most recent Democratic candidate to
enter the fray. And a reporter from a major New Hampshire newspaper is
planning to do a major story about our efforts.If you support our New Hampshire plan, I would very much appreciate
your financial support -- see http://GraniteStaters.com/donate -- so
that MPP does not run a deficit because of this campaign. Thank you in
advance for anything you can do to help.Sincerely,Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.P.S. Please visit http://GraniteStaters.com/donate to make a financial
   donation to MPP's New Hampshire campaign, or mail a check to MPP
   at P.O. Box 77492, Washington, D.C. 20013. Thanks again for
   considering this request.
======================================================================
To completely unsubscribe from MPP's lists, simply reply with the word
REMOVE in the subject line. Removal may take up to 48 hours. Thank you.
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Comment #6 posted by JR Bob Dobbs on September 25, 2003 at 09:02:33 PT
LTE
Sirs,  No matter what reasons the "experts" in your article may give for not smoking marijuana, millions of Americans still do. What your experts fail to address is the logic behind criminalizing marijuana sale and usage. We don't want people to become alcoholics, yet it only took a dozen years for the nation to see that alcohol prohibition only made the situation worse. It's the same all over again with the drug war.  Here's a perfect example from your article: "1960s and 1970s [...] most people didn't take their first toke until they were 19 years old, Dalterio said. Now, however, many 12-year-olds are getting high." Why? Because criminals don't check I.D. Kids often report that marijuana is easier to obtain than alcohol. If marijuana were sold like alcohol, perhaps 12-year-old kids would have a harder time getting their hands on it.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on September 25, 2003 at 09:01:28 PT
Someone Who Doesn't Get Money 
Are there any activists on the anti's side that don't receive money for their beliefs? I know I don't receive any money so I'm not doing what I do for financial gain. I really do want to know the answer to this question. Remember money is a drug for some people.
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Comment #4 posted by darwin on September 25, 2003 at 08:56:51 PT
Another paid schill
This "doctor" makes her money producing "research" for the anti-drug abuse Education fund and the eagle forum education & legal defense fund. Biased funding = biased results.
http://www.eagleforum.org/educate/drug_ed/Potflier2.pdfCheck out this site with her name mentioned alongside Robert Dupont and Barry McCaffrey: http://www.ourdrugfreekids.org/before_you_vote.htmIn fact, pretty much everything this woman has worked on is funded by right wing prohibitionists and is related to Marijuana. Most of her work just recycles already debunked research from years back. Shame on the Billings Gazette for publishing propaganda and calling it news.
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Comment #3 posted by goneposthole on September 25, 2003 at 08:55:03 PT
you have to say no
"If you're a patriotic American or a parent or a teacher, you have to keep saying no and no and no." So much for freedom of choice. I'm so glad I'm a flagwaving, patriotic, freedom loving Amerikkkan.No, No, No, No... I can't take it no more. uff da.
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Comment #2 posted by 420toker on September 25, 2003 at 08:51:21 PT
Why is she taking shots at my town
Austin is also one of the most intelligent cities in the USA today. let me elaborate
The November 1999 issue of Money magazine named Austin one of its top six cities in its "Best Places to Live" national survey. 
» According to the July/August 1997 issue of Swing magazine, a publication about life for those in their 20s, Austin is one of the top 10 best places in the country to live if you are younger than 30. 
» In June of 1999, The Wall Street Journal ranked Austin No. 4 in the top 10 American cities for livability — a term referring to those qualities that cause people to CHOOSE to live in a particular place.
» In 1998, Fortune magazine named Austin the No. 1 best city for business in North America. 
» Austin's thriving high-tech sector has become one of the most prominent in the nation, with global players such as Dell Computer Corporation, Motorola, IBM, 3M and Advanced Micro Devices headquartered here. 
» A 1999 study conducted by CyberDialogue reveals that Austin leads the nation in the percentage of wired residents, with 59 percent of Austin‘s population using the Internet. BTW San Antonio has far more drugs than Austin considering San Antonio is a main drop off point from Mexico.
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Comment #1 posted by E_Johnson on September 25, 2003 at 08:30:44 PT
We should start calling them prison rape pimps
These anti-pot crusaders, we should start calling them prison rape pimps because they're the ones who provide so much fresh young male meat to the rapists in prison.
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