Right now we really need much more science to allow us to advise on usage. In the meantime the news is all good.
I became an advocate back in 2007 after i had read the literature. It was obvious what the right path was. After that it is merely a matter of waiting for everyone else to catch up and that is certainly well underway. I remain no fan of recreational use and that applies to alcohol as well. I would consider trying it in beverage form in a measured way.
All mind affecting products need to be controlled substances simply to block avaricious promotion. It has worked well for alcohol and tobacco. It will work as well for Marijuana and ultimately all other drugs.
Morgan Freeman Destroys The Argument Against Marijuana Legalization
by Sam P.K. Collins
Posted on
"Morgan Freeman Destroys The Argument Against Marijuana Legalization"
CREDIT: Photo by Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP
Since a 2008 car accident
that shattered bones in his left arm, shoulder, and elbow, marijuana
has served as an effective pain reliever for award-winning actor Morgan
Freeman.
Freeman, an unabashed supporter of marijuana legalization, recently told the Daily Beast that there were too many medical benefits for lawmakers to ignore the issue, and public opinion, any longer.
“Marijuana has many useful uses. I have fibromyalgia pain in this
arm, and the only thing that offers any relief is marijuana,” Freeman said.
“They’re talking about kids who have grand mal seizures, and they’ve
discovered that marijuana eases that down to where these children can
have a life. That right there, to me, says, ‘Legalize it across the
board!’”
Freeman counts among a growing chorus of celebrities who have
expressed their support of marijuana legalization. Whoopi Goldberg,
former comedian and co-host of daytime talk show The View, defended
marijuana legalization before more than 3 million viewers, even
inviting her co-hosts on a marijuana farm to learn more about the plant.
Veteran actress Susan Sarandon, a member of the Marijuana Policy Project’s advisory board, admitted to sparking up before every award show. Even his holiness the Dalai Lama surprised Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike when he said that marijuana should be used for medical purposes.
These public figures have echoed a growing sentiment and shift in
thinking about marijuana in the United States that has been in motion
since California legalized medical marijuana in 1996. Since then, four states have legalized it and 12 have passed legislation for its medical use and decriminalization. Doctors prescribe marijuana for a host of ailments
including muscle spasms caused by multiple sclerosis, nausea from
cancer chemotherapy, seizure disorders, poor appetite and weight loss
caused by HIV, and nerve pain. Studies have also shown marijuana to be a
less addictive alternative to prescription painkillers.
The debate has even crossed into veteran affairs. If a bipartisan
coalition of lawmakers have their way, doctors in states that have
legalized medical marijuana will be able to prescribe it to veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorders. This week, Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam signed a bill for limited medical use of cannabis oil, a product that some medical professionals say treats seizures.
Even with the headway made in marijuana policy reform, the plant maintains its designation as a Schedule 1 substance,
along with other drugs that the federal government says have a high
potential for abuse and are without medical benefits. In his comments to
the Daily Beast, Freeman also derided what he described as archaic
logic.
“They used to say, ‘You smoke that stuff, boy, you get hooked!’” Freeman said.
“My first wife got me into it many years ago. How do I take it? However
it comes! I’ll eat it, drink it, smoke it, snort it! This movement is
really a long time coming, and it’s getting legs – longer legs. Now, the
thrust is understanding that alcohol has no real medicinal use. Maybe
if you have one drink it’ll quiet you down, but two or three and you’re
fucked.”
The government’s rationale for not legalizing marijuana, however, may no longer stand with the release of a study
that confirmed the plant’s potential to reduce aggressive types of
brain tumors when combined with radiation treatment. In April, the
National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA)issued a revised report
acknowledging the St. George University of London study and findings
summarized in a research report last November. “The U.S. Food and Drug
Administration (FDA) has not recognized or approved the marijuana plant
as medicine,” the statement read.
“However, scientific study of the chemicals in marijuana, called
cannabinoids, has led to two FDA-approved medications that contain
cannabinoid chemicals in pill form. Continued research may lead to more
medications.”
For now, conducting further study will be easier said than done.
Federal barriers to research mean that scientists often have to jump
through hoops to secure samples legally through the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services and NIDA, a process that delays research by
months, and oftentimes years.
That’s why there’s been some pressure to reclassify marijuana. Earlier this year, the American Academy of Pediatrics urged the federal government to downgrade marijuana to a Schedule II drug, which would allow for more research into its potential uses to treat sick children suffering from seizures.
“A Schedule I listing means there’s no medical use or helpful
indications, but we know that’s not true,” Seth Ammerman, a clinical
professor in pediatrics at Stanford University who co-authored the
group’s policy statement on the subject, said at the time.
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