why cant people accept that pot does not have medicinal values?

"Jumby" wrote in message
...
http://www.drugwatch.org/Marijuana%2...passionate.htm
Drug Watch International
Position Statement

IT IS NEITHER LEGAL NOR COMPASSIONATE TO PROVIDE A
HARMFUL, ADDICTIVE DRUG WITH NO SCIENTIFICALLY PROVEN MEDICINAL EFFICACY

1. We strongly support scientific research on pure cannabinoids and THC
derivatives as well as on any drug. We note that synthetic THC, one of
the
chemicals found in crude marijuana marketed as Marinol, has been approved
by
the FDA for therapeutic use in the treatment of chemotherapy-induced
nausea
and the AIDS Wasting Syndrome. We oppose any form of non-FDA-approved
crude
marijuana for medical use.

2. Marijuana has never been scientifically shown to be safe or effective
as
medicine as required by federal consumer protection laws. Congress
enacted
these laws to protect patients from uninformed physicians who were
prescribing drugs which did more harm than good.

3. Under Federal law, marijuana remains a Schedule 1 controlled
substance,
defined as having no currently accepted medical use and lacking accepted
safety for use under medical supervision. Article VI, Clause 2, of the
United States Constitution states that Federal law is the supreme law of
the
land, so marijuana use is still illegal under federal law regardless of
any
changes in state law.

4. Efforts to legalize marijuana "for therapeutic purposes" are being
promoted around the country and funded by the powerful and wealthy
pro-marijuana lobby, which has stated that they are pushing
"medicalization"
of marijuana as a "red herring," as part of their strategy to legalize
marijuana.

5. The use of marijuana is rising in youth, as they see it being falsely
promoted as a "safe medicine." Just as the tobacco lobby has denied that
tobacco is addictive or causes cancer, the powerful marijuana lobby
downplays marijuana's harmful effects in an effort to legalize the drug.

6. Marijuana has many harmful effects: it is psychotoxic, addictive,
cancer-causing, immunosuppressive, harmful to the lungs, reproductive
system
and the developing fetus. A British study confirmed that HIV positive
persons who smoke progress to full-blown AIDS almost twice as fast as
non-smokers. How much worse with marijuana? A 1994 study indicates that
both marijuana and cigarettes have a detrimental effect on vitamin E
status
of HIV-1 infected individuals. These findings are of particular concern
in
light of the important role of vitamin E. in the immune processes.
Scientific experiments show marijuana-smoking impairs motor coordination
and
stability in multiple sclerosis, causing gait disturbance. There is no
evidence that marijuana improves or slows the progression of glaucoma.
Smoking marijuana induces asthma attacks. Marijuana is a major cause of
crashes and trauma. Since it is fat-soluble, marijuana's intoxicating
effect lasts longer than that due to alcohol. Studies have shown that
children born to mothers who smoked marijuana while pregnant tend to have
lower performance on intelligence testing and more behavioral problems.

7. There is no scientific evidence that marijuana, which contains over
450
chemicals, many with harmful effects, is safe or effective for any medical
condition. Synthetic THC, dronabinol, has been approved by the FDA for
limited use as an anti-emetic agent for chemotherapy patients who fail to
respond to other drugs, and as an appetite stimulant in low dosages for
patients with AIDS wasting syndrome. This pharmaceutical is available by
prescription (Marinol) and differs from crude marijuana in that it is a
single, pure substance in stable, quantified dose.

8. In 1991 the US Public Health Service ordered a study by NIH scientists
of the purported "medicinal" use of marijuana. Their 1992 report stated
that for all conditions for which marijuana is touted, there are already
many safe and highly effective FDA approved pharmaceuticals available,
negating any need to use inferior and dangerous plant material. Thus,
both
the Bush and Clinton administrations have determined that the federal
government should not support programs which provide marijuana to
patients.
It is not compassionate to provide a harmful, addictive drug which has no
proven efficacy.

9. In February, 1994, the US Court of Appeals (DC Circuit) ruled that
marijuana should stay classified as a Schedule 1 drug, i.e. highly
addictive, no medicinal use. Pro-drug groups such as NORML had been
petitioning DEA to reclassify marijuana as a medicine since the early
seventies. The Court noted that whereas the pro- marijuana parties, which
included physicians connected to NORML, relied on anecdotes, numerous
highly
credentialed experts testified that marijuana had not been scientifically
shown to be safe or effective as a medicine. At these hearings, many
organizations, including FDA, AMA, American Cancer Society, American
Academy
of Ophthalmology, and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society went on
record
as stating that marijuana has never been shown to be safe or effective as
medicine.

10. Anecdotal evidence does not qualify as science, because a sick
patient
may believe a drug is helping him when it really is not. This is
especially
true of a mind-altering, addictive substance like marijuana. The THC in
smoked marijuana is absorbed more quickly than oral THC, with a more rapid
onset of the corresponding high. Thus, a person who is already a regular
marijuana user may claim to prefer it to other drugs, even prescription
THC,
although scientific controlled experiments have disproved claims for the
efficacy of smoked crude marijuana.

Bush smokes Pot

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q...ijuana&spell=1



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