Reefer Madness and the Election

For the first time since 1988, both major parties' nominees -- Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump -- say that they have never smoked or experimented with marijuana (without inhaling).

President Obama has been open about having used marijuana and other drugs in his youth, yet his administration has taken insufficient steps to inject some sanity into the federal government's approach to marijuana policy. In 2008, the Obama campaign talked about keeping federal prosecutors from going after medical marijuana dispensaries in states that have legalized medical use such as California. To the contrary, in his first term especially, Obama's Department of Justice was merciless on medical marijuana providers, as well as users. If you hoped for big change, get over it. Wednesday, the Drug Enforcement Administration announced it would not change marijuana's classification from the Schedule I drug status it has held since 1970.

Drug Enforcement Administration acting head Chuck Rosenberg explained in a letter that the administration will expand research into marijuana's medicinal benefits, but marijuana will remain a Schedule I drug because it "has no currently accepted medical use in treatment" in the United States, is not safe for use under medical supervision and has a high abuse potential.

Rosenberg understands it makes little sense to many Americans that marijuana should share the same schedule as heroin. (And, I would add, there have been no known human lethal overdoses from marijuana. The harm from marijuana is less dramatic, but real; chronic usage among teens and young adults can reduce the chances that they will marry, have children or graduate from college.) "It is best not to think of drug scheduling as an escalating 'danger' scale," Rosenberg wrote, and better to focus on medical and scientific evidence.

Here's the problem: There is no evidence that the DEA recognizes. For decades, the government effectively prohibited large-scale studies of marijuana's medicinal properties. That hasn't stopped Americans from finding out for themselves. "Talk to some patients," countered Marijuana Majority founder Tom Angell. "My mom has MS. It has medical value, believe me."

Californians legalized medical marijuana in 1996. Since then, many of us have seen friends with cancer overcome nausea and diminished appetite because they had access to marijuana. Acquaintances credit marijuana with controlling their epileptic seizures. I've heard from many medical marijuana users who believe weed enabled them to use fewer opioids and other potentially lethal pain medications. It's amazing the DEA can argue that marijuana is not safe under medical supervision when there have been no marijuana lethal overdoses, but opioid overdoses are the leading cause of accidental deaths in America.

Three years ago, CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta reported on marijuana's efficacy in controlling neuropathic pain for some patients and helping children who suffered from constant seizures. If Washington politicians truly cared about helping people in need, then the Democrat in the White House and the Republicans in Congress would have enacted legislation like the Compassionate Access, Research Expansion and Respect States Act right then and there.

In saying he has to follow the legal criteria for Schedule I, Rosenberg is ignoring the gulf between legal requirements and reality. He says there is no currently accepted medical use in treatment, yet the government has barely researched medical use. Nobody believes what the DEA says, said Angell.

I don't think prohibition works, and I expect to vote for the California ballot measure to legalize recreational adult use in November. Still, I readily acknowledge that people of goodwill can stand on either side of this issue.

When it comes to medical use, however, the federal government should get out of the way and let people decide what works for them and the people they love. And, really, how can drug warriors who want to make it harder to prescribe opioids also want to make pain-alleviating medical marijuana off-limits? There is only one reason to cling to the status quo -- willful institutional blindness. The worst part is, Obama knows better.

Prohibition is not working, never did never will. Medicinal use has become more acceptable in recent years, but the government needs to open up the research and approve large scale studies.

Many people also need to stop spreading the propaganda I’ve been hearing. It is not addicting. If it were I would have had a serious problem 40 years ago. It was proven in the 60’s it was not physically addicting.

Very little evidence exists to indicate it might be a “gateway drug”. The majority of heroin users have never touched it. IN recent times, heroin use has increased due to the decrease in availability and increase in prices of high strength pain killers. When it costs $150 or more for prescription pain killers and 1/10 of that for street drugs, guess what many people choose. This is very bad, but true.

It does not reduce a persons IQ. If it did I’d be a total imbecile by now. I educated myself to at least 6 years college level, studied far more topics than college ever does, and last time I checked, my IQ was still over 145. It does take longer to assimilate information, but concentration on one topic prevails, and learning is still very possible. One caveat, at younger ages it also does inhibit the learning process. You have to train yourself to learn, and make that a habit, before experimenting with anything, including alcohol. My one main goal has been to learn all I can since I learned to read at age 4. Some of the most brilliant men I’ve ever known have been pot smokers, including a college professor or two. Carl Sagan, instrumental in putting a man on the moon, said in an interview if NASA had been drug testing in 1964 they wouldn’t have let him anywhere near the space program. He and Arthur C Clarke were the ones who came up with freeze dried foods, an ink pen that would write in zero gravity, and many other innovations that made space travel possible.

How many people are killed every year by cigarettes? Alcohol? I looked up the CDC causes of death list a couple of years ago, it said at the bottom in a footnote they had not been able to find one instance in which pot definitely caused a death. Almost all of the car wrecks involving pot also involved alcohol, so it can’t be proven that pot was a primary cause. It is not possible to smoke enough to be fatal, you’ll pass out long before that. I never even managed to smoke enough to even pass out...and I tried...

Medically, I’m sure smoking anything is not healthy, but an article I read not long ago surprisingly said pot not only has not been proven to be related to causing cancer, but may even help prevent it. That has not been proven either, but a link is suspected. I was very surprised, I figured it was contributing to cancer.

That’s why we need more intensive research, too many myths and not enough facts, and way too much propaganda being spread, which people believe without doing any fact checking.

Almost left this part out...I’ve very rarely seen anyone smoke weed and act like something out of a Cheech and Chong movie, what they developed was a parody of pot users, and based on 60’s hippies who were often also using LSD. I’ve done job interviews high and got the jobs, passed written and driving test to get my driver’s license, scored 146 on an online IQ test, learned to fix small engines and several other jobs, all while smoking daily. I’m talking first thing when I got up. At one time I was such a nervous wreck it was the only thing that kept me halfway normal...

Stop spreading the propaganda. I’m not sure if outright legalization is the best thing, decriminalization is certainly needed. Kids under about 20 should not start if they don’t already, get your education first, let your body and brain mature. I know they won’t listen, but they should wait a while before trying it, and avoid it while still in school. It does tend to inhibit the learning process at younger ages.

But most of all, government needs to approve more wide range testing and research. Medicinal uses have been proven even with the limited research possible now, and more will be if they simply open it up.

Some extracts have been developed that have no psychotropic properties, and help with certain specific medical problems, especially seizures. As already noted, many people undergoing chemotherapy can benefit from both its minor pain relieving properties and the ability to alleviate nausea. It is not a great pain reliever, but does help in a small way. If ind if I have a headache, which is very rare, it helps me ignore it and let it simply go away, more than actually reducing pain. But much more wide range research is needed. And removing it from schedule 1. It’s not even in the ball park with the rest of schedule 1 substances.

I’ve quit many times, either because I couldn’t find anything or couldn’t afford it. NO withdrawal symptoms whatsoever. Nothing. Oh well, have to go straight till I can find some..that’s it. Life goes on and I barely even notice.

Right now I think it’s been several months, I don’t know anyone around here who is into that and I won’t even think about looking on the street, bad idea. Didn’t bother me at all to run out and have to quit, and I only had a little then, a friend gave me half of one he had already started. I had to play that night, I never touch it onstage. That inch long piece of one lasted a week. When it was gone, same as usual, oh well gotta do without. That’s it.

I’ve never known anyone who said any different, and have known at least a dozen people who would quit intentionally a couple of times a year to dry out for a few days. No physical withdrawal at all. As I already said more than once, it is NOT physically addictive, that was proven a long time ago. If you think otherwise, you’ve been fed propaganda. I’ve smoked daily for several years at a time, had to quit, and no problem at all. Nothing. Oh well, I’m out. That’s it. No physical symptoms whatsoever. The idea that it’s addicting is propaganda, plain and simple.

Smoking dope denies your humanity.

“I just need to chill....to take the edge off.”

Have you ever considered that you are supposed to have that edge?

Maybe that edge serves a purpose?

Look to the stars and wonder.

In this vast expanse.....in this huge universe.....we humans have feelings.

Animals have instincts.

Humans have emotions.

The rocks have no emotions.

To try to coverup or deaden ourselves to our emotions is to deny our humanity.

The world can be an exasperating and troubling place.

Yes, it can be.

How does smoking dope make the world better?

Getting off your dead donkey and doing something makes the world better.

There will be people on this thread comparing smoking dope to drinking alcohol. They will tell you that smoking dope is all about freedom.

They make money by having you smoke dope and deny your humanity.

Too many people are sitting around wanting to be marijuana.

They want to sit and have someone shine light on them and feed them and take care of them and take away all their worries and shame.

They want to be plants.

We have emotions for a reason.

Smoking dope to escape the reality of the universe and our emotions is to deny our humanity.

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