cannabisnews.com: Real Goal is Legal Marijuana for All


cannabisnews.com: Real Goal is Legal Marijuana for All





Real Goal is Legal Marijuana for All
Posted by FoM on October 31, 1999 at 07:01:18 PT
Column: Michael J. Chitwood 
Source: Press Herald
On Nov. 2, Maine voters will be asked to answer the ballot question: "Do you want to allow patients with specific illnesses to grow and use small amounts of marijuana for treatment, as long as such use is approved by a doctor?"
My answer is a resounding "no." My decision to vote "no" is based on 35 years in law enforcement, my experience as a narcotics investigator and my firm belief that any legalization of drugs is a threat to our children, families and communities. This initiative is a thinly disguised first step toward the legalization of marijuana and other drugs. It is intentionally vague and requires little in the way of medical oversight or regulation. No physician's prescription is required to possess the drug and the bill places no restrictions on the types of illnesses or treatment that qualify for marijuana use.Pro-legalization groups have stated publicly that their effort to legalize drugs begins with the legalization of marijuana for medical purposes. Medical access to marijuana is regarded as the "chink in the armor" that will eventually lead to complete legalization.Proponents of drug legalization cloak themselves in the appearance of compassion by relying on anec- dotal evidence from cancer patients, HIV sufferers and anguished family members of the terminally ill regarding the relief patients have received from the use of marijuana. In fact, not one major medical or health organization has accepted marijuana as a safe or effective medicine. Organizations such as the American Medical Association, American Cancer Society, National Cancer Institute, American Glau- coma Association and the American Academy of Ophthalmology have not endorsed the use of marijuana.A report re- leased in March 1999 by the Institute of Medicine concluded "there is little future in smoked marijuana as a medically approved medication." Cannabis in plant form contains a mixture of chemical compounds and, therefore, is ill suited to provide a precisely defined medical effect.In addition, the harmful effects of smoking marijuana far outweigh the moderate beneficial effects on pain and nausea. The risks associated with marijuana use include premature cancer, addiction, impairment of perception and coordination, memory loss, harm to the immune system, airway injuries and depression.The push to legalize the use of medical marijuana has contributed to a changing attitude in America that marijuana is safe and harmless. The passage of medical use initiatives in Arizona and California has sent our teens the message that marijuana is, in fact, a cure. This message is confusing and dangerous.Recent drug use statistics indicate that teen drug use has risen in the past five years, after 13 years of steady decline. At present, 36 percent of high school seniors report using marijuana in the last year.Maine has a higher rate of marijuana use among the 18- to 24-year-old age group than the rest of New England or the nation as a whole. Marijuana use among Maine high school students exceeds the national rate by 13 percent. As we struggle to address the use and abuse of drugs by our children, we must avoid sending the message that drug use is OK. Experience has shown that drug use increases dramatically when we as a society reinforce its acceptability. We should not allow the advocates of drug legalization to treat marijuana as "medicine" as a means of gaining its widespread acceptance.Imagine going to your family doctor for migraine headaches or persistent nausea. He tells you to use a "medicine" that is not FDA-approved, is not subject to any product liability or quality control standards, is of unknown strength, is made up of hundreds of different chemicals, has no controlled daily dose and is ingested by smoking.There is little scientific proof that the drug will work and its known harmful effects include apathy, memory loss, mental disorders, reproductive disabilities and immune system deficiencies. Would you take it? Would you allow your child to take it?Michael J. Chitwood is Portland's chief of police. Saturday, October 30, 1999 Copyright © 1999 Blethen Maine Newspapers Inc. Related Articles & Web Site:Mainers For Medical Rightshttp://www.mainers.org/Hotly Contested or One-Sided - 10/30/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3488.shtmlMedical Marijuana Retains Strong Support - 10/28/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3469.shtmlMedical Marijuana Stance Has Sheriff Under Fire - 10/27/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3450.shtmlSheriff Backs Ballot Question To Legalize Some MJ - 10/21/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3366.shtml Marijuana Vote Sparks Little Controversy - 10/16/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3312.shtmlReefer Referendum - 10/08/99http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread3203.shtml 
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Comment #11 posted by RYAN on April 30, 2001 at 18:10:00 PT:
Hemp Power
MARIJUANA HAS CHANGED MY LIFE, LAST YEAR I WAS A CRAZY KID WHO WAS GOING TO SHOOT UP MY HIGH SCHOOL, I HAD BOMBS, GUNS, ALL SORTS OF STUFF. BUT I WAS INTRODUCED TO THE NICEIST GUY IN THE WORLD A HIPPIE OF COURSE, HE LET ME TRY POT AND IT CHANGED MY WHOLE PERSONALITY, I DONT HAVE ANY STRESS, I STILL DO THE SAME IN SCHOOL WHEN IT COMES TO GRADES, I DONT CARE ABOUT MONEY LIKE I USED TO, ALL MY ANGER IS SUCKED OUT OF ME, I LOVE LIFE. AND NOW I AM A BABTIST WHO LOVES JESUS CHRIST, AND WHO LOVES TO GET HIGH. IF I DID NOT SMOKE POT WHO KNOWS WHAT WOULD OF HAPPEND!!!
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Comment #10 posted by Jeremy on September 21, 2000 at 08:29:19 PT:
arguements for keeping marijuana illegal
I got into an arguement about the legalization of marijuana. I thought it should remain an illegal substance and she disagrees. She has read numerous amounts of information on the subject and most of it advocates the legalization of it. If anyone knows where to find more information on keeping it an illegal substance please email me.Thank You
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Comment #9 posted by Anonymous on June 27, 2000 at 14:52:22 PT:
ATTN
FOR THE PROHIBITIONISTS:WE REFUSE TO JOIN YOUR PARADE OF IGNORANCE THAT MARCHES TOWARDS TYRANNY.
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Comment #8 posted by Roman on March 14, 2000 at 09:21:39 PT:
Marijuana " goddes " 
First of all i would like to thank our mother earth for this great plant. THANK YOU !!! . I believe marijuana has its downfalls to it, if its abused of course. but then anything is harmfull if you abuse it. I have been smoking pot for about 5 years now, and i must admit that i have lost some memory and I have been depressed. Then i finally learned how to use it and now it does more good than bad.......\One hit a day of some denked out nugz and Im fine, i feel happy not over tired, just perfect.... The only reason our " goddes " isn'tlegalized is because we don't know how to use it....so learn people!!!!!!THANX ONCE AGAIN !!! 
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Comment #7 posted by Jessica on March 11, 2000 at 00:10:43 PT:
"The Green Herb"
I would just like to comment by saying the use of marijuana does not cause depression and I'm speaking from experience.All the drug does is takes you away from your current situation be it pain, misery, ect. The use of marijuana should be legalized for all whom choose to use it. It's not harmful like cocaine or heroin. Morphine is a form of heroin and you can get it with a perscription. I would much rather toke up than to take any of the pills and medicine doctors describe with their harsh side effects. I don't know where you got your facts from but your source is wrong. People like you just want to believe that a drug like marijuana is bad because you need something to complain about. Regardless whether you legalize it or not people are going to do what they want to do. YOU HAVE NO CONTROL OVER THAT!!!!!!!!!Why don't you lighten up and smoke a little cannibis yourself than maybe your opinion will change.
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Comment #6 posted by Jeaneous on November 01, 1999 at 12:11:36 PT:
Really!!
Gosh this is really starting to make me crazy. All this crap about legalizing a dangerous drug is flat stupid. Just how many legal drugs are there that can kill you. Gosh, just about all of them!! Even tylonol can do more damage than marijuana. I am currently taking eight different medications to make up for the lack of using medicinal marijuana. Each and every one of the medications they have me on I could very easily kill myself with. And I wouldn't even have to take all of them. But since the government has a vested interest in them... they are perfectly fine. AAAAHHHHHHH....... frustration!!!!
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Comment #5 posted by observer on October 31, 1999 at 16:49:50 PT
Jailing For 'OUR CHILDREN', says Chief of Police
What? No mention of prison? jail? ... Maybe he just accidently forgot to say anything about that. He's a busy man, what, making all those property 'seizures', and all. No one, after all, could ever accuse the Chief of Police of having a vested interest in maintaining and racheting up the drug war!Chitwood, Chief of Police: "any legalization of drugs is a threat to OUR CHILDREN, families and communities."Chitwood, Chief of Police: "we struggle to address the use and abuse of drugs by OUR CHILDREN, we must avoid sending the message that drug use is OK.Chitwood, Chief of Police: "Would you allow YOUR CHILD to take it?"Hmmm. Now, the good chief of police woudln't be using OUR CHILDREN as a device to keep stealing from `their parents', would he?(from "Propaganda & The War On Drugs", http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v99.n711.a10.html )''A LESSON IN PROPAGANDA ANALYSIS Imagine putting a sign on your gate post that says "warning extreme danger ahead". Everyone that came to your driveway would imagine what the 'extreme danger' was - a vicious dog, a farmer with a shotgun, a rockslide, an electric fence - because the warning is obscure and implies some kind of hazard, people would imagine what the danger might be based on their own fears, insecurities and experiences. An extreme danger may not even exist, yet we would all imagine one. Vague and emotive words conjure up different meanings to different people. Words like "democracy", "peace", "right", "drug", "health", 'violence' "love", "crime", "medicine", "science" - mean different things to each individual as they can be used in different ways. Propagandists take advantage of the fact that there are some words, which are common and emotive to most people. Just like the sign on the gate post, everyone has their own idea of what a drug is and what the effects of drugs are. We all have our own beliefs about violence, crime and so on. Our views on these subjects are often shaped by the media: "a crime plague", "violence on the rise", "drug deaths surge"; or by what we see at the movies, or even from an unpleasant personal experience. The result is that whenever propagandists talk of 'drugs', for example, everyone immediately conjures up their own personal idea of what a drug is and the consequences of using drugs. This way, propagandists can reach the hearts and minds of us all. . .''''The statement also appeals to our emotions - many of us have CHILDREN ... Nobody likes to think that "young people are dying", or that they are "failing to achieve their potential". And , just like [a "Danger!"] sign on the gate post, we all imagine (or even know from first hand experience) how drugs are "devastating" our communities. [The propagandist] has effectively reached the hearts and minds of us all.''
Propaganda & The War On Drugs (July-August 1999)
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Comment #4 posted by DontArrestMe on October 31, 1999 at 15:56:21 PT
Beg your pardon
"No physician's prescription is required to possess the drug"Would any doctor in his right mind jeopardize his practice by writing a prescription for marijuana, a violation of FEDERAL law regardless of the terms of the Maine initiative? I wouldn't. And I don't expect federal drug laws to change any time soon."the bill places no restrictions on the types of illnesses or treatment that qualify for marijuana use."As long as federal funding is denied to researching the uses and effects of marijuana, no one can say for sure what illnesses are helped and to what extent. It is a useful paradox for those dumb enough to write editorials full of twisted facts and guerilla warfare style prose.If you would not take facts out of context and instead look at them objectively, you might even change your position on medical marijuana.
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Comment #3 posted by Thomas on October 31, 1999 at 11:09:36 PT
Dr. Chitwood
Isn't it great to listen to someone who has no expertise on a subject spew a bunch of lies to protect his own interests?  If they want to put facts in the column, then do it, but don't let a cop masquarade as a medical authority and allow him to put forth a load of misinformation and discredited allegations against cannibis in order to create fear amongst the uninformed sector of the electorate!
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Comment #2 posted by Scott on October 31, 1999 at 08:02:51 PT:
Where does this guy get his facts?
>In addition, the harmful effects of smoking marijuana far >outweigh the moderate beneficial effects on pain and >nausea.I bet he won't be saying that when he's in a wheel chair from multiple sclerosis. >The risks associated with marijuana use include>premature cancer,To what? He said he read the IOM's report on marijuana, I guess he didn't read the whole thing (if it's the report I remember)>addiction,Again, where did he get that fact?>impairment of perception and >coordination,I'm sure someone with full blown AIDs wasting disease is really going to care about his coordination. A lot of other doctor prescribed drugs do the same thing. >memory loss,short-term memory loss in chronic users is more like it.>harm to the immune system,Never heard that one before. >airway injuriesNot tying your shoes can get you injured as well.>and depression.Not for me!>Recent drug use statistics indicate that teen drug use has >risen in the past five years, after 13 years of steady >decline. At present, 36 percent of high school seniors>report using marijuana in the last year.What statistics are these? First McCaffery claims drug use has gone down, then someone says its stayed consistant, now this guys says its gone up, who's numbers are right?>Maine has a higher rate of marijuana use among the 18- to >24-year-old age group than the rest of New England or the >nation as a whole. Marijuana use among>Maine high school students exceeds the national rate by 13 >percent.The thing about stats like this is that they only tell how many people are using it. It doesn't tell how many marijuana problems there are and if there are even any, how they are effecting the state. Since marijuana useage rates have gone up, what are the drop out rates like? How about accidents or crimes commited while stoned? >Imagine going to your family doctor for migraine headaches >or persistent nausea. He tells you to use a "medicine" that >is not FDA-approved,May not be but there is overwhelming evidence of its positive uses and has been around for thousands of years.>is not subject to any>product liability or quality control standards,I doubt you have to worry about quality control standards. >is of >unknown strength,>is made up of hundreds of different >chemicals, has no >controlled daily dose and is ingested by>smoking.There is a controlled daily dose. You take one hit, or you take two hits, you take 4 hits, or you take no hits. I considered that a controlled daily dose. Plus, brocoli has more chemicals then pot, almost twice as many. The only thing about MMJ that is a downside is the fact you have to smoke it, and that's what vaporizers are for.The only reason he wants to see MMJ kept illegal is so he can make more cash arresting them all. Selfishness at work folks.Scott
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Comment #1 posted by Doug A on October 31, 1999 at 07:23:21 PT:
Polly want a Prohibitionist Message?
We read this entire capsule of parroted prohibitionist drivel and lies, then at the bottom:>Michael J. Chitwood is Portland's chief of police.A bell goes off in my head: VE$$$TED INTERE$$$T!!!!If MMJ is legalized, this prohibits his forces from confiscating sick people's medicine, houses and $$$ and throwing them in his beautiful jail cells!>Cannabis in plant form contains a mixture of chemical >compounds and, therefore, is ill suited>to provide a precisely defined medical effectSounds like perfectly legal alcohol and tobacco! Tobacco contains over 4000 compounds, and, unlike pot, is highly addictive. Yet millions of peaceful people are not being thrown in jail for using that herb! Alcohol, unlike pot, contains chemicals which cause hangovers, and induces violent behavior and severely impairs one's driving ability. >a changing attitude in America that marijuana is safe andharmlessNot entirely true, but much closer to the truth than the half-truths and outright BS you and your DARE cohorts are feeding America's youth.I'll bet that if he knew someone with one of the diseases MMJ is known to be helpful in treating the symptoms of, or just went down to the jail and talked to some of the patients his cronies have robbed of their possessions and freedom, he wouldn't be writing this crap.
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