Posted on 04/24/2018 4:07:27 AM PDT by Magnatron
Dear Honorable Jeff Sessions,
I feel obligated to share the results of my five-year-long investigation into the medical benefits of the cannabis plant. Before I started this worldwide, in-depth investigation, I was not particularly impressed by the results of medical marijuana research, but a few years later, as I started to dedicate time with patients and scientists in various countries, I came to a different conclusion.
Not only can cannabis work for a variety of conditions such as epilepsy, multiple sclerosis and pain, sometimes, it is the only thing that works. I changed my mind, and I am certain you can, as well. It is time for safe and regulated medical marijuana to be made available nationally. I realize this is an unconventional way to reach you, but your office declined numerous requests for an interview, and as a journalist, a doctor and a citizen, I felt it imperative to make sure you had access to our findings.
Mr. Sessions, there is an added urgency, as we are in the middle of a deadly opioid epidemic that has been described as the worst self-inflicted epidemic in the history of our country.
The drug overdose scourge claimed about 68,000 US lives in 2017, just over 45,000 of them from opioids alone. Every day, 115 Americans die from opioid overdoses. It has fueled a decline in an entire country's life expectancy and will be remembered as a sad and tragic chapter in our collective history.
These are desperate times, and while some may consider making medical marijuana widely available to be a desperate measure, the evidence has become increasingly clear of the important role cannabis can have.
(Excerpt) Read more at cnn.com ...
Link between Adolescent Pot Smoking and Psychosis Strengthens
https://www.aan.com/Guidelines/home/GetGuidelineContent/650
The American Academy of Neurology’s position paper on medical marijuana.
This systematic review was endorsed by the American Autonomic Society, the American Epilepsy Society, the Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers, the International Organization of Multiple Sclerosis Nurses, and the
International Rett Syndrome Foundation.
Researchers have found that squirrels forced to smoke 10 joints a day tended to play with their nuts rather than storing them.
Not physically, Dr Mom.
I knew people addicted to marijuana. It can be nasty, agreed. Cigarettes are more physically addictive. Psychological addictions can be as hard and nasty.
Other people I knew who had been regular users stopped marijuana immediately because of the psychotic effect it can give some people.
Nothing is black and white.
Most substance abuse can be bad.
I have seen people with physical withdrawal symptoms. I respectfully disagree with you.
Yet according to the article the suggested mental disorder has been stable if not declined in the general public despite increased use by that public....
[[ “Corelation is not causation, or are you new here?” ]]
No, not new! Does the word “connection” mean cause to you? If so, that’s not what I meant.
Garbage. Opiate abuse increased as pot became more acceptable.
“There is a connection between schizophrenia (triggering psychosis) and marijuana usage. If one is prone, read up!”
Cigarette smokers are 300-400% more likely to be schizophrenic than average nonsmokers. MUCH more of a “connection” than for pot smokers.
Why don’t we say cigarettes cause schizophrenia? Because it is merely a correlation and nothing has shown a direct cause.
Crazy, stupid and lazy people are simply more likely to abuse pot/cigs. Nothing shows that pot/cigs are the direct cause of any of these assumptions.
Issues to consider regarding weed:
Marinol (THC) was approved in 1985 by the FDA and has been available on RX (Schedule 3)for 30 years.
http://marinol.com/
This was done by the Feds for multiple reasons, one of which was to short-circuit “medical weed” in plant form, under the Controlled Substances Act.
There is an inherent conflict between the Federal CSA, and the actions by various States since weed was first ‘legalized’ in some States.
Historically— It required an Amendment to the Constitution to outlaw a substance (alcohol) and it took another one to repeal the status of alcohol.
—Now, under the CSA, the Feds can ban, control, restrict, or outlaw any substance on earth by Administrative action.
ALL psychoactive substances are “addicting” by definition. THC is no different, although withdrawal symptoms may be uncomfortable, they are generally not life-threatening.
(Benzodiazepine [generally schedule 4] dependence however, is a particularly nasty withdrawal and is life-threatening.)
All Controlled Substances are subject to production quota’s set by the DEA. If you want to synthesie and sell controlled-substances (legally) you need permission from the DEA
The high water mark for hydrocodone {Vicodin et al]dispensing occurred in roughly 2013. The yearly production quota has been cut by roughly 30% since that time.
(https://www.managedcaremag.com/news/dea-proposes-20-reduction-opioid-production-2018)
—We do not have a ‘legally prescribed opiate problem,’ we have an imported synthetic opiate problem, i.e., illicit Fentanyl, which is extremely powerful. (75-150 micro-grams is a common dose.)
Obama intentionally ‘drugged up’ millions of Medicaid recipients with opiates. Medicaid paid for north of 400 million dosage-units of opiates during the past administration.
(Amphetamines for ADD are another matter entirely and that problem will make opiates look mild in comparison.)
To be clear from my end— I want all “drugs” legalized yesterday.
And Alcohol IS NOT the Model we want. And we shouldn’t want the State to collect taxes on it.
“Legal medical & recreational weed” sales, only serve to place a floor on the illicit price. And the “legal” variant directly competes with “cartel weed.”
[In Michigan, “medicinal” costs $200-300 an ounce (with 6% added tax) while street-weed goes for $120 and up.
The “medical weed” people, while extremely well intentioned for the most part, are incredibly disingenuous.
People want to get HIGH and the only way to slip in legalization is to appeal to “medical uses,” despite the fact that THC has been available since 1985 by RX.
As Jordan Peterson so brilliantly opines:
The REAL question is not why some people misuse substances, the deeper question is why EVERYONE doesn’t misuse substances.
(Which is why I would rather there are zero “controls,” and I’m prepared to accept the small percentage of people who fall into “addiction,” and just treat the natural background rate
[I do “drug abuse” Treatment. I’ve seen it all. Another War of Drugs isn’t going to help. And inserting “politics” into ‘drug misuse,’ will only lead to some dark places, based on incorrect assumptions and an utter lack of knowledge as to what “drug misuse” actually is.)
No, but "triggering psychosis," does.
How ridiculous.
From grass, and grass alone?
Bravo sierra.
“Marijuana can be psychologically addicting. But it is not physically addictive.”
Additive is addictive.
I have to say I thought the same thing as exDemMom. The media has a strange front page obsession with the Opioid narrative.
Exactly.
(yearly production quota for all opiates is substantially less than in 2013)
What "additive?"
[[ “Crazy, stupid and lazy people are simply more likely to abuse pot/cigs. Nothing shows that pot/cigs are the direct cause of any of these assumptions.” ]]
It’s the chicken/egg question, and has been addressed by many a professional much smarter and wiser than me. I only pass along the info for those interested.
Such as...?
I’m an actual drug misuse clinician.
Early onset schizophrenia, for those who are prone to that,(a tiny percentage of the population) can and is manifested sooner, with people who use psychoactive substances.(any of them ‘legal’ or not.)
(And it’s more often the case, that folks are self-medicating, rather than pushing themselves over the edge.)
tangent— if you can make it through your 20’s without developing schizophrenia, you are generally safe, until you get to be substantially older, and dementia starts popping up.)
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