Ricki Lake's Quest To Legalize Medicinal Marijuana

[Patience]

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/04/medical_marijuana_legislation.html
A legislative panel gave its full backing to legislation Wednesday (April 29) that proposes authorizing legal dispensaries for medical marijuana in Louisiana.


By advancing the bill to the full Senate without objection from any members of the Senate Committee on Health and Welfare, the possibility widened that Louisiana patients suffering from a few, certain diseases could soon obtain a prescription for marijuana in few, certain forms. If the bill becomes law, medical marijuana would not be available in a smokable form, for example. It would also be restricted for use by patients suffering from glaucoma, spastic quadriplegia and for those undergoing chemotherapy treatment for cancer.

 

[Patience]

Marijuana Legalization: President Obama, US Senators Offer Support For Medical Cannabis On CNN's Sanjay Gupta Documentary 'Weed 3'
http://www.ibtimes.com/marijuana-legalization-president-obama-us-senators-offer-support-medical-cannabis-1887783
[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]Gupta asked the president his opinion of the proposed Carers Act of 2015, a Senate bill that would change federal law regarding state-legal, medical-marijuana programs. The bill would allow states to legalize marijuana for medical use without federal interference, increase research into marijuana's medical benefits, and reclassify its status as a dangerous drug. Obama replied: [/FONT]

[FONT=Verdana, Arial, Tahoma, Calibri, Geneva, sans-serif]"You know, I think I'd have to take a look at the details, but I'm on record as saying that not only do I think carefully prescribed medical use of marijuana may in fact be appropriate and we should follow the science as opposed to ideology on this issue, but I'm also on record as saying that the more we treat some of these issues related to drug abuse from a public-health model and not just from an incarceration model, the better off we're going to be."[/FONT]
​

 

[mysteriew]

I love the current merry go round (sarcasm)

Why is medical marijuana illegal? There are no studies showing any medical benefits.

Have studies been done? No

Why not? Marijuana is illegal

 

[MsFacetious]

I can't believe I agree with the President. :thud:
I also can't believe I did not know Rikki did a documentary on this. :facepalm:

I love The Business of Being Born and I can't believe I missed this one. :sigh:

 

[ModMaiden]

History shows that in 1619, King James I ordered every colonist to supply 100 crops to the Virginia Company and ship it back to England for trade. George Washington and Thomas Jefferson grew hemp on their plantations, Washington used it to fund his campaign. What most don't understand is this plant was not another desired crop but that it served big governments as a way to make money. This is where the problem lies. The early regulation provided financial purpose and medical protection for the average consumer but unfortunately due to deep-seated cultural misconceptions is what have resulted in today's archaic marijuana laws.

Hemp stalks produce the one of the strongest natural fibers in the world. The seed of the hemp plant was not only used for consumption by humans and animals for its highly nutritional oil but also used to make lamp oils, soaps and paint. Marjuana users are only using the leaves of this amazing plant. Cotton is one of the most environmentally destructive agricultural crops in the US with 50% of all chemicals used in American agriculture being used to grow cotton. Hemp requires no synthetic chemicals to grow including having very few weed or insect enemies. Mankind and its governments are the worst enemy to this plant.

No way do the governments want to give up their hold on something that makes them money. It is one plant that really gets a bad rap. Not everyone is going to use marjuana, just like not everyone drinks but alcohol is not illegal and look at what it has done to society. Here is a plant that has far more benefits beyond just smoking the leaves and it it stomped upon like its the devil himself.

My issue with the marjuana today is how much chemicals and pesticides are used to grow it. The plant itself is not dangerous but the way it is grown nowadays is. Unless you know who grew it, how it was grown and what was used on it, you are taking a risk by using it. Hemp is grown differently than marjuana. It grows up with the focus on the stalk and marjuana is grown out since the focus is on the leaves.

While hemp is legal to grow, it does require a special license from the DEA that are rarely granted but one of the requirements is that hemp plants must be heavily guarded. Strange because hemp has little to no THC at all but that's big government for you.

 

[mysteriew]

I think one of the biggest detractors for medical marijuana is big pharma. If marijuana is legalized it will really cut down on pain med sales.

 

[Patience]

I think one of the biggest detractors for medical marijuana is big pharma. If marijuana is legalized it will really cut down on pain med sales.

I agree completely Mysteriew. here is an interesting article.
Medical Cannabis is a Threat to the Pharmaceutical Industry
http://healthimpactnews.com/2014/medical-cannabis-is-a-threat-to-the-pharmaceutical-industry/
Medical marijuana, or cannabis, is legal in 20 US states, where it is used for a variety of medical conditions such as mood disorders, pain disorders, multiple sclerosis, and even cancer.


Medical marijuana is not a miracle cure for everyone… but it has been known to prompt some pretty miraculous recoveries. Unfortunately, whether or not you have access to this potentially life-changing natural remedy depends on your zip code – a fact that is raising growing protest in the US.


Despite the fact that 85 percent to 95 percent of Americans are in favor of medical cannabis, and nearly 60 percent are in favor of legalizing marijuana, many people are still unable, legally or otherwise, to get ahold of this natural treatment.


This is perhaps never more upsetting than in the case of children, especially when their parents are desperate to find a safe remedy that might give their child a chance.


Minnesota Governor Dayton Refuses to Legalize Medical Marijuana, Despite Parents’ Pleas


The issue recently came to a head in Minnesota, where parents of children with epilepsy met at a news conference to share their dismay that Governor Mark Dayton refuses to legalize medical marijuana.


Parents took turns describing the seizures their children are suffering, but instead of considering legalization the governor suggested the families consider a $2-million trial on the substance that would allow children to get the “relief they need as quickly as possible.”


This response reminds me of a poignant comment made by Dr. Allan Frankel, a board-certified internist in California, who has treated patients with medical cannabis for the past seven years. When the government wants to get rid of all medical use of marijuana, or refuses to legalize it, it begs the question: Why?


According to Dr. Frankel, the answer is simple. “They want it. This is a huge market,” he said. Medical cannabis is clearly competition to the pharmaceutical industry, but by keeping it restricted to a pharmaceutical trial, they can maintain control and profits.

 

[Patience]

http://blog.sfgate.com/smellthetruth/2014/11/29/marijuana-fights-alzheimers-disease-study-indicates/
Another study is adding evidence to the case for the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease with the compounds in cannabis.


Research published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease this September “strongly suggest that THC [the main active ingredient in marijuana] could be a potential therapeutic treatment option for Alzheimer’s disease through multiple functions and pathways.”


More than five million Americans have Alzheimer’s today. One in three seniors will die with Alzheimer’s or another dementia, and Alzheimer’s is the sixth leading cause of death in the nation, costing America about $203 billion in 2013.


Chuanhai Cao and other researchers at the University of South Florida and Thomas Jefferson University wanted to investigate the “potential therapeutic qualities of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) with respect to slowing or halting the hallmark characteristics of Alzheimer’s disease.”


So they treated Alzheimer’s research cells (N2a-variant amyloid-β protein precursor (AβPP) cells) with THC and examined them for amyloid-β at the 6, 24, and 48-hour time markers. Amyloid-β is a type of protein that is linked to Alzheimer’s symptoms. The researchers found THC “to be effective at lowering Aβ levels … in a dose-dependent manner.”


The main active ingredient in pot “directly interacts” with amyloid-β, “thereby inhibiting aggression”. THC was also effective at lowering other key Alzheimer’s Disease markers. Furthermore “no toxicity” was observed from the THC. The researchers also found THC “enhances” the function of the cell’s energy factories — the mitochondria.

 

[Patience]

http://www.theweedblog.com/louisiana-senate-committee-approves-bill-reform-marijuana-possession-law/
Lawmakers in Louisiana took a major step toward reforming the state’s harsh marijuana possession law when the Senate Judiciary Committee approved a bill to reform the state’s harsh marijuana possession law. If passed, Louisiana would join the growing number of states that have recently reduced penalties for small amounts of marijuana.


“This is a long-sought opportunity to take a more compassionate and commonsense approach to marijuana,” said Yolande Cadore, director of strategic partnerships at the Drug Policy Alliance. “Louisiana’s overdue for a major overhaul of its drug policies and this is a good first step.”