A Brief History of Medical Marijuana

By Patrick Stack, with Claire Suddath Wednesday, Oct. 21, 2009

On Oct. 19, the U.S. Justice Department announced that federal prosecutors would not pursue medical-marijuana users and distributors who comply with state laws, formalizing a policy at which the Obama Administration hinted earlier this year. Currently, 13 states allow doctors to prescribe medical marijuana to patients suffering from ailments ranging from AIDS to glaucoma, and in Maryland a prescription can soften punishment if a user faces prosecution. But until now those laws didn't provide any protection from federal authorities. (Read "Can Marijuana Help Rescue California's Economy?")

Should Professors Cheech and Chong ever receive university tenure teaching the medical history of their favorite subject, the course pack would be surprisingly thick. As early as 2737 B.C., the mystical Emperor Shen Neng of China was prescribing marijuana tea for the treatment of gout, rheumatism, malaria and, oddly enough, poor memory. The drug's popularity as a medicine spread throughout Asia, the Middle East and down the eastern coast of Africa, and certain Hindu sects in India used marijuana for religious purposes and stress relief. Ancient physicians prescribed marijuana for everything from pain relief to earache to childbirth. Doctors also warned against overuse of marijuana, believing that too much consumption caused impotence, blindness and "seeing devils."

By the late 18th century, early editions of American medical journals recommend hemp seeds and roots for the treatment of inflamed skin, incontinence and venereal disease. Irish doctor William O'Shaughnessy first popularized marijuana's medical use in England and America. As a physician with the British East India Company, he found marijuana eased the pain of rheumatism and was helpful against discomfort and nausea in cases of rabies, cholera and tetanus.

The sea change in American attitudes toward pot came at the end of the 19th century, when between 2% and 5% of the U.S. population was unknowingly addicted to morphine, a popular secret ingredient in patent medicines with colorful names like "The People's Healing Liniment for Man or Beast" and "Dr. Fenner's Golden Relief." To prevent more of the country from being washed over with a morphine-induced golden relief, the government introduced the Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906, creating the Food and Drug Administration. While it didn't apply to marijuana and merely brought the distribution of opium and morphine under doctors' control, the regulation of chemical substances was a major shift in American drug policy. (See pictures of cannabis culture.)

(continued at TIME…)

U.S. Support for Legalizing Marijuana Reaches New High

 

Majority in the West favors taxing marijuana sales to boost state revenues

by Lydia Saad

PRINCETON, NJ -- Gallup's October Crime poll finds 44% of Americans in favor of making marijuana legal and 54% opposed. U.S. public support for legalizing marijuana was fixed in the 25% range from the late 1970s to the mid-1990s, but acceptance jumped to 31% in 2000 and has continued to grow throughout this decade.

"The highest level of support for decriminalizing the use of marijuana today is seen with self-described liberals, among whom 78% are in favor."

Public opinion is virtually the same on a question that relates to a public policy debate brewing in California -- whether marijuana should be legalized and taxed as a way of raising revenue for state governments. Just over 4 in 10 Americans (42%) say they would favor this in their own state; 56% are opposed. Support is markedly higher among residents of the West -- where an outright majority favor the proposal -- than in the South and Midwest. The views of Eastern residents fall about in the middle.

The new findings come as the U.S. Justice Department has reportedly decided to loosen its enforcement of federal anti-marijuana laws by not pursuing individuals who buy or sell small amounts of the drug in conformity with their own states' medical marijuana laws. This seems likely to meet with U.S. public approval, as previous Gallup polling has found Americans generally sympathetic to legalizing marijuana for medical purposes. In 2003, 75% of Americans favored allowing doctors to legally prescribe marijuana to patients in order to reduce pain and suffering.

Basic Support for Legalization Highest Among Liberals

The highest level of support for decriminalizing the use of marijuana today is seen with self-described liberals, among whom 78% are in favor. In contrast, 72% of conservatives are opposed. Moderates are about evenly divided on whether the use of marijuana should be legal, although they tilt against it (51% vs. 46%).

Somewhat milder differences are seen according to political party, mainly because of the tempered support of Democrats relative to that of liberals. However, a solid 70% of Republicans -- similar to the rate seen among conservatives -- are opposed.

Gallup also finds a generational rift on the issue, as 50% of those under 50 and 45% of those 50 to 64 say it should be legal, compared with 28% of seniors.

(continued…)

U.S. Support for Legalizing Marijuana Reaches New High

U.S. to end war on medical marijuana in legal states

 

By James Vicini and Dan Whitcomb

WASHINGTON/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - In a sharp policy shift, the Obama administration told federal attorneys not to prosecute patients who use marijuana for medical reasons or dispensaries in states where it has been legalized.

A Justice Department official said the formal guidelines were issued Monday to reflect President Barack Obama's views. The Bush administration had said it could enforce the federal law against marijuana and that it trumped state laws.

The decision was praised by activists in California, the first state to legalize medical marijuana in 1996. But concern remains among some medical and law enforcement authorities about hundreds of clinics said to be selling pot under the protection of state law and without regard to health.

A spokesman for California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger issued a brief statement in which Schwarzenegger appeared to support the policy change:

"The governor believes it is appropriate for the federal government to focus their resources on criminal activity and securing the border," the statement said.

As a candidate during his presidential bid last year, Obama said he intended to halt raids of medical marijuana facilities operating legally under state laws.

After he took office in January, a Drug Enforcement Administration raid on a dispensary in Lake Tahoe, California, raised questions about whether he would follow that pledge.

A White House spokesman repeated Obama's view that "federal resources should not be used to circumvent state laws."

Stephen Gutwillig, California head of the Drug Policy Alliance, called the move a good first step.

"There is a fundamental need of patients to access marijuana as medicine right now," he said. "While it's great to see the Obama administration radically de-escalate the Bush and Clinton administrations' war on medical marijuana patients, more needs to be done to protect sick people and their caregivers."

(continued…)

U.S. to end war on medical marijuana in legal states | U.S. | Reuters

Possible Major Speed Bump on the Way to Legal Marijuana | AlterNet

By Stephen Webster, Raw Story. Posted October 11, 2009.

In spite of a law on California books for over a decade allowing sales of pot, L.A. DA Steve Cooley suddenly announces, "The time is right to deal with this problem."

In spite of a law on California books for over a decade which allows the sale of medical cannabis to properly licensed patients, the district attorney in Los Angeles County is preparing an all-out legal assault against the "vast majority" of dispensaries.

"Hundreds of dispensaries operate under a 1996 voter initiative that allowed medical marijuana use, and a state law that allows for collective growing of marijuana," NBC Los Angeles reported. "But based on a state Supreme Court decision last year, [LA County District Attorney Steve] Cooley has concluded that over-the-counter sales are illegal. Most if not all of the dispensaries in the state operate on that basis."

"The vast, vast, vast majority, about 100%, of dispensaries in Los Angeles County and the city are operating illegally, they are dealing marijuana illegally, according to our theory," Cooley said, according to The Los Angeles Times. "The time is right to deal with this problem."

That "problem" -- over the counter sales of marijuana to licensed patients -- accounted for some $18 million in tax revenue for the state last year, reported The Christian Science-Monitor, during a time when California is facing the greatest budgetary challenges in its history.

However, those with prescriptions for marijuana account for roughly 10 percent of the state's marijuana users, according to a California NORML report (PDF link) prepared for the Oakland Civil Liberties Alliance.

"In a radio interview on KABC-AM (790), Cooley reiterated his plan to close down many of the 800 to 900 medical marijuana shops believed to be operating in the city of Los Angeles," noted the Contra-Costa Times.

"We will give them fair notice and, hopefully, they will see the light and voluntarily close down," Cooley reportedly said. "We are going to uphold the laws of California."

The Marijuana Policy Project (MPP), a group which advocates the nation-wide legalization of cannabis for adults, strongly disagrees.

"In a radio interview on KABC-AM (790), Cooley reiterated his plan to close down many of the 800 to 900 medical marijuana shops believed to be operating in the city of Los Angeles," noted the Contra-Costa Times.

(Click the link below to read the entire story.)

Possible Major Speed Bump on the Way to Legal Marijuana | Rights and Liberties | AlterNet

Advancing Marines test new Afghan war doctrine

 

By Golnar Motevalli

BARCHA, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Winning ground is one thing. Convincing Afghan villagers you will not leave, abandoning them to a vengeful Taliban, is a bigger challenge for U.S. Marines advancing deep into southern Helmand province.

The Marines, part of a 10,000-strong force sent to Afghanistan this year, have pushed south into hostile terrain, winning ground and pledging to build the long-term trust and security needed to prevent insurgents from returning.

A day after taking over the former home of a local doctor which had been used as a post by the Taliban, the Marines were building it into a base and trying to win over local people.

"You have to make a decision, please. You want to work with us or you want to work with the Taliban?" the clean-shaven young Marine Captain Junwei Sun asked a wizened and bearded village elder at the first "shura" -- or meeting -- with local people.

The base is a sprawling, dry mud compound of rooms and a large courtyard, topped by a watch room which gives a panoramic view of the surrounding cornfields and villages.

"I'm good at fighting people like this (the Taliban). If you help me, I guarantee, over time we'll get security here," First Lieutenant Samuel Oliver said.

It took 200 men from the 2nd battalion 8th Marines two days to advance just 4km (2.5 miles) to Barcha in the face of insurgent attacks and a string of roadside explosive traps.

The eight-year-old war is at its most intense, with more than 400 NATO troops dead this year. U.S. Afghan commander Stanley McChrystal has told President Barack Obama he needs 40,000 troops to push back a resurgent Taliban and convince the population insurgents will not win.

(Read the rest of the story by clicking the link below)

Advancing Marines test new Afghan war doctrine | U.S. | Reuters

The Wild, Wild West Remake - Video

a great quote on apathy by George Carlin

I loved George Carlin.  His comedy is timeless. 

“Scientists announced today that they have discovered a cure for apathy. However, they claim no one has shown the slightest interest in it.”

-George Carlin

U.S. businesses at risk of becoming targets of Mexican drug cartels

This another great reason to legalize drugs just like we did with alcohol. During the first prohibition there blood baths and corruption was a big problem.  Just as it is now.  If we legalize drugs then the Taliban and the drug cartels would be out of business…not the US.

By ALEJANDRA LABANCA

American interests could become targets of Mexico's drug cartels as Washington deepens its involvement in the war against drugs south of the border, according to a leading global intelligence and security corporation.

In a report by Miami-based Kroll Associates issued by one of its executives at the Americas Conference in Coral Gables, the company cautions that ``the more the U.S. government gets involved... it is not unlikely that U.S. companies may be faced with extortion, that local managers are kidnapped for ransom, and that truck high-jacking increases.''

Under former President George W. Bush, Congress passed a law to provide $1.4 billion worth of equipment, training and intelligence in the span of three years to help Mexico fight drug cartels.

On Wednesday, Dan Restrepo, special assistant to President Barack Obama and senior director for Western Hemisphere Affairs at the National Security Council, pointed out that the current administration is committed to continue cooperating with Mexico. He said Washington has increased resources for drug programs and beefed up security along the southwest border to try to constrain the rampant smuggling of assault weapons heading into Mexico.

It is believed that 90 percent of smuggled weapons go to Mexico's four national drug cartels -- Sinaloa, Gulf, Tijuana and Juarez. As a result, these are better armed and more technologically advanced than the law enforcement agencies, said David Robillard, head of Kroll operations in Mexico.

Drug violence is also spilling across the border, with numerous cases of kidnappings for ransom and extortion reported in U.S. border states.

Kroll expects that the escalating war will also impose high costs for foreign companies operating in Mexico, who will have to invest additional resources to protect personnel and infrastructure.

``Virtually everybody today in Mexico is being directly or indirectly affected by security issues,'' said Robillard. ``More than 6,000 lives have been lost to cartel violence last year.''

Mexico's drug trafficking problem dates back to the 1980s but became more apparent after President Felipe Calderón took over in 2006 and declared a war on drugs. Since then, Mexico looks dangerously like Colombia's a decade ago, said Robillard.

The country is facing many of the same challenges Bogotá faced in 2000, he said, but it has good chances of succeeding in quashing the violence and defeating the powerful cartels, which generate between $25 and $40 billion a year and use part of it to corrupt law enforcement officials and government institutions.

Luis Enrique Mercado, a congressman for Calderón's PAN party agreed with Robillard that Mexico is looking more and more like Colombia at the peak of its fight against drug trafficking and that the challenges facing the government will take time to resolve.

``Yes, Mexico is getting `Colombianized'. Let's expect that we'll have the same capacity as Colombia to defeat the problem,'' he said.

Robillard cited the pervasiveness of extortion and kidnapping, the high level of sophistication of the weapons acquired by the cartels, and the impressive monetary power of the Mexican cartels as similarities with Colombia's war at the beginning of this decade.

``One thing in Mexico's favor, however, is that we don't have guerrillas. ... That makes the job easier,'' he said in an interview with The Miami Herald after his presentation.

A survey by the American Chamber of Commerce of Mexico among its members showed that 75 percent of respondents felt that the insecurity had already had an impact on their businesses -- especially in the northwest region of the country. Fifty-seven percent said their companies planned to increase their security budget within the next two years.

U.S. businesses at risk of becoming targets of Mexican drug cartels - Americas - MiamiHerald.com

5 Crazy Right-Wing Freak-Outs in Just One Glorious Week

By Brad Reed, AlterNet. Posted October 5, 2009.

For reasons that I don’t understand -- perhaps it’s subconscious karmic payback for murdering children in a past life -- I feel compelled to read a lot of right-wing blogs.

The wonderful thing about them is the window they offer into the pulsing id of the conservative movement -- up close and personal and without the filters of focus groups or dog whistles. For instance, do you think that Glenn Beck is insane? Oh puh-lease. Beck has precisely nothing on your typical Red State diarist or NewsMax columnist, each of whom is likely to support abolishing women’s suffrage or launching a military coup against Obama at any given time.

To give you an idea of the level of madness we’re looking at here, I’ve decided to share with you the five stupidest, craziest and most inflammatory things that right-wingers said over the span of a single week. When you read these things, keep in mind that these are the sorts of people Republican officials have to interact with on a regular basis. Indeed, the following five crazed tirades are almost enough to make you feel a little sorry for those staffers. Most of them came to Washington to act as soulless money funnels for corporate interests. Instead, they end up spending much of their time taking angry calls from some screamer who wants to privatize his local police force.

Number 5: John Derbyshire takes a bold stand against women’s suffrage

Last week, John Derbyshire, the National Review’s resident British crank, outlined a bold strategy to help Republicans return to power: by denying women the right to vote. The Derb explained that the trouble with women is that “they want someone to nurture, they want someone to help raise their kids, and if men aren’t inclined to do it… then they’d like the state to do it for them.” In other words, uterus-afflicted individuals should be barred from voting because they’re more likely to vote for people who disagree with John Derbyshire. Democracy in action!

Derb tried to show that he wasn’t completely out to lunch, however, by acknowledging that it’s highly unlikely that women will ever give up their right to vote.  Of course, if women ever did find their right to vote repealed someday, Derb also said that he “wouldn’t lose a minute’s sleep” over it.

What is refreshing about Derbyshire is that he doesn’t try to hide his bigotry or to disguise it with code words – he just has it right out there. Derbyshire has been known to openly game-plan future race wars, to declare that blacks and Latinos are too stupid to educate and to write entire columns declaring his hatred for Chelsea Clinton back when she was just 20 years old. So in this respect, it’s not shocking that Derbyshire opposes women’s suffrage. What’s shocking is that it took him this long to say it.

Number 4: Erick Erickson threatens to dissolve his own town’s police department

Erick Erickson, the founder and managing editor of RedState.com, has a second gig as a city councilor in his hometown of Macon, Georgia. And apparently, the police force in that town is upset by low pay and long hours and they want to form a union. Erickson’s response? He threatens to simply abolish the entire department!

Writing at the PeachPundit blog, Erickson said that he actually asked the city attorney about the possibility of dissolving the police department. The attorney replied that police unions in the state of Georgia cannot strike or collectively bargain, meaning that any union the police formed would be essentially worthless. This didn’t deter Erickson entirely, however, as he said he’d still rather “contract out to the sheriff’s office than see a union come in” because unions “breed inefficiency, corruption, and taint.”

Regardless of how this ultimately turns out, you have to seriously question the intelligence of a man who talks openly of canning his entire police department. It’s almost as if he’s begging to be pulled over and subjected to multiple anal cavity searches.

Click on the link below to read the entire story.

5 Crazy Right-Wing Freak-Outs in Just One Glorious Week | | AlterNet

Dogs sniff out wrong suspect; scent lineups questioned - CNN.com

cnn.com — The story of how a veteran law enforcement officer became a murder suspect is at the heart of a controversy over an investigative forensic tool called dog-scent lineups. The Innocence Project of Texas calls the practice "junk science that's being used by prosecutors and judges to convict people."

Dogs sniff out wrong suspect; scent lineups questioned - CNN.com

Marijuana law has had little effect on schools - Framingham, MA

By John Hilliard/Daily News staff

In the first year since voters decided to decriminalize possession of small amounts of pot, school officials said districts aren't seeing escalating drug problems, though they worry the law may encourage marijuana use among students.

At Framingham High School, Principal Michael Welch said six kids in the past month have been found with marijuana or came to school high in three separate incidents.

Each is facing expulsion proceedings.

Because of the legislative change, some kids don't believe it's a problem, Welch said.

"I think there's a general feeling (of) 'What's the big deal?"' said Welch.

Despite "the change in legislation, we can still expel kids for this," he said.

Last fall, Massachusetts voters approved Question 2, which made possession of an ounce or less of marijuana a civil offense punishable by no more than a $100 fine for those 18 and older. Younger offenders would also be required to undergo a drug awareness program and perform some form of community service.

"From our standpoint, (the law is) sending a terrible message to kids," said Welch.

Southborough's Town Meeting recently passed a local bylaw increasing the civil penalty for pot possession to $400, which interim Police Chief Jane Moran said would deter some young people from smoking and driving while high.

Overall, however, there hasn't been a serious problem with pot in schools.

"I thought I'd see more issues. But we haven't," said Milford High School Principal John Brucato.

Brucato said he thinks it's because of the "hard-line" stance the district took with drugs and alcohol years ago, which involves police, school policies and rules set down by the Massachusetts Interscholastic Athletic Association that penalize athletes for using drugs and alcohol.

He wasn't certain if the law allowed districts to expel students who had less than an ounce of pot, as students have to be charged with a felony to be kicked out of school. Though decriminalized, possession of small amounts of marijuana remains illegal, he noted.

Click the link below to read the entire article.

Marijuana law has had little effect on schools - Framingham, MA - The MetroWest Daily News

Texas governor accused of covering up innocent man’s execution | Raw Story

By Daniel Tencer
Saturday, October 3rd, 2009 -- 7:02 pm

The head of a Texas anti-death penalty group has accused that state's governor of scuttling an investigation into a possible wrongful execution for political reasons.

"[Texas Governor Rick] Perry saw the writing on the wall," Scott Cobb, president of the Texas Moratorium Network, told CNN. "He moved to cover that up."

The "writing on the wall" Cobb was referring to was the investigation by the Texas Forensic Science Commission into the execution of Cameron Todd Willingham, who was put to death in 2004 for the 1991 arson deaths of his three daughters.

Forensic investigations done since Willingham's conviction have found no evidence of arson. Nonetheless, Perry refused to grant Willingham a stay of execution in 2004, even though credible questions had already been raised about Willingham's guilt.

On Wednesday, Gov. Perry ordered the removal of three members of the forensics commission, and instituted a "political ally," as CNN described him, to head the committee. That ally is reported to have ordered the investigation into Willingham's execution delayed indefinitely, saying he "couldn't begin to guess" when the commission would reconvene.

Read the rest of the story by clicking link below.

Texas governor accused of covering up innocent man’s execution | Raw Story

a quotation on success

"To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children...to leave the world a better place...to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is to have succeeded."

Ralph Waldo Emerson quotes (American Poet, Lecturer and Essayist, 1803-1882)