When Did Liberty Lose Her Way?

     ‎When did liberty become an anachronism? Is it not meant for our time as well as the time of our nation's forefathers? I speak to those who presume the paths of modern Conservatism and Liberalism are in some way the right paths - yea, the only paths for the future of this nation. I dare say that our freedoms were not taken from us, though it is the easy acknowledgement to claim they were. I say that our freedoms were handed over willingly. We, the people, are in the midst of the greatest experiment of freedom this world has ever seen and yet, at the slightest shake of fear, accept the infringement of our rights, one freedom at a time. Today's Conservatism and Liberalism have bred a willingness to swallow a deadly poison by the name of "Statism". The antidote, my friends, is the education of liberty, a time-lost responsibility gone by the wayside.

     Are you doing your part to see that freedom is regained and retained?  Please - if not for your sake, for mine - share this blog with folks who do not understand.  We need to educate the masses, even if it may hurt our public perception.  Faithful are the wounds of a friend.  It may hurt, but we still have an obligation for the truth...

"Aren't the Medical Marijuana Bills and Initiatives Full of Loopholes Which Basically Legalize it for Anyone?"

     I have never been asked this question before.  Nope.  Opponents of medical cannabis don't ask this... they state it.  It typically sounds like this: "I voted against that marijuana initiative because you know anybody will be able to smoke it 'legally'."  We can't have that, can we?  Truth be told, people are going to eat, drink, and smoke what they want for the most part.  If a federal bill banning the consumption of fried starchy foods (like potato chips) - because of the cancer risks associated with acrylamide found in the foods - were to pass, people would still find a way to consume them.  Let's not kid ourselves.  The rate of cannabis usage doesn't go up merely because of state MMJ initiatives. How do I know?  Well, I personally can't vouch for that.  I enlist the help of studies!  In "Marijuana Use and the Response to Proposition 215 Among California Youth, a Special Study From the California Student Substance Use Survey (Grades 7, 9, and 11) 1997-1998", the researchers found NO increase in youth cannabis use despite the enactment of Proposition 215, the loosest of all the state initiatives.  Other state studies have comparable findings.
     Increase in legal patients can be contributed to an increase in public awareness and education concerning medical marijuana.  That is how I was introduced to it and I had never used it before it was made available medically.  Just because a state like Michigan has about 100.000 registered voters doesn't mean that there are too many people getting MMJ cards too easily.  Many people if given the opportunity would prefer to use a natural substance to treat ailments and chronic conditions without the harmful side effects of prescription drugs.  Sure, many patients were using prior to the passing of state bills.  That should attest to the fact that cannabis has worked for them and they are now wanting to take the legal route in getting their medication.
     In addition, it is just irresponsible to say that state initiatives have created an "open market" for cannabis use.  A person mast have an ailment that a licensed medical doctor believes is best treated with marijuana.  The General Accounting Office (the investigative arm of Congress, recently renamed the Government Accountability Office) interviewed officials from 37 law enforcement agencies in four states with medical marijuana laws. The key issue they examined was whether medical marijuana laws had interfered with enforcement of laws regarding non-medical use.  According to the GAO's findings, the majority of these officials "indicated that medical marijuana laws had had little impact on their law enforcement activities."  In California, the number of marijuana arrests has increased since passage of Prop. 215, totaling over 65,000 in 2004.  That hardly sounds like legalization, does it?
     If the state bills and initiatives are not perfect, they are still the best attempt to protect patients and physicians from punishment for using and recommending cannabis for medicine.  Currently in the U.S., about 99% of all cannabis arrests are on the state and local levels.  The remaining 1% of arrests (DEA, FBI, and Border Patrol) are manly focused on drug trafficking and large-scale operations.  Once federal law changes, we may see less of a need or no need at all for these state MMJ laws.

"Don't Medical Marijuana Laws Subvert the FDA Drug Approval Process?"

     Cannabis is NOT medicine. At least that is what the FDA would have you to believe from a *statement* released in April 2006.  The provided link in the previous sentence takes you right to the FDA website's archived copy of this said statement.  Let me pull a quote from it: "A past evaluation by several Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) agencies, including the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) and National Institute for Drug Abuse (NIDA), concluded that no sound scientific studies supported medical use of marijuana for treatment in the United States, and no animal or human data supported the safety or efficacy of marijuana for general medical use."  Here is another quote: "FDA is the sole Federal agency that approves drug products as safe and effective for intended indications. The Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic (FD&C) Act requires that new drugs be shown to be safe and effective for their intended use before being marketed in this country."  Let me show you why the FDA either (1) has no clue, (2) has a political agenda, or (3) a conflation of the two.  
     The FDA failed to use or cite any scientific studies that contradicted federal policy, such as the 1999 Institute of Medicine report.  That’s why IOM co-author Dr. John A. Benson told The New York Times that the government “loves to ignore our report ... They would rather it never happened."  The FDA statement was immediately denounced by health experts and newspaper editorial boards around the country as being political and unscientific.
     State medical marijuana laws do not have anything to do with the FDA in the slightest.  Those laws are in place to protect patients and caregivers from state and local criminal prosecution - not to decide for the public if cannabis is safe or recommended for medicine.  Besides, many Americans are already using substances that claim some sort of medicinal benefit in spite of the fact that they are labeled with this statement: "This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease."  The FDA does not bar Americans from growing, using, and possessing a wide variety of medical herbs that it has not approved as prescription drugs, including echinacea, ginseng, St. John’s Wort, and many others.
     There is already substantial evidence that marijuana is safe and effective for some patients, including new studies published after the FDA’s statement.  However, the federal government has blocked researchers from doing the specific types of studies that would be required for licensing, labeling, and marketing marijuana as a prescription drug. They've created a perfect Catch-22: Federal officials say “Marijuana isn't a medicine because the FDA hasn't approved it,” while making sure that the studies needed for FDA approval never happen.
     Marijuana was already on the market (in some two dozen preparations -such as tinctures and lozenges- many marketed by well-known pharmaceutical companies) before the 1938 Food, Drug, and Cosmetics Act was passed, creating the FDA. Under the terms of the Act, marijuana should not be considered a “new” drug, subject to the FDA drug-approval requirements that new drugs must meet. Many older drugs, including aspirin and morphine, were “grandfathered in” under this provision, without ever being submitted for new-drug approval by the FDA.  Marijuana didn't get a "fair shake" because it was all but outlawed by The Marijuana Tax Act of 1937.  I have other articles on my blog that go into more detail about that!
     Half of current prescriptions have never been declared safe and effective by the FDA. Between 40-60% of all drug prescriptions in this country are for drugs not approved by the FDA for the condition they’re being prescribed for - also known as "off-label". We know much more about marijuana’s safety and efficacy in cancer, AIDS, MS, and many other conditions than we know about most off-label prescriptions.
     The FDA is not infallible.  For instance, FDA-approved Vioxx is estimated to have caused between 26,000 and 55,000 needless deaths before it was taken off the market. And David Graham, associate director of the FDA’s Office of Drug Safety, has told Congress that the FDA is “virtually defenseless” against another Vioxx-type disaster. In contrast, 5,000 years of real world experience with marijuana show that it is safe and effective for many patients.  Are we not grown-up enough to make wise decisions for our own health and well-being -whether that be through using prescription drugs available on the market or self-medicating with an herb like echinacea or cannabis- or must we depend on the "guidance" of a select few who may not have our best interests in mind?

Hemp Seeds... For Your Health!

     Cannabis sativa, also known as hemp or simply "cannabis", is one of the most nutritionally balanced foods known to man.  In a day when health foods and supplements are billion-dollar industries,  it is crazy to think that society has not caught on to health benefits of this amazing seed.
     Hemp seeds have been used as a source of food throughout history.  It has been given to livestock and birds as a cheap, balanced food source.  Even today, many natural food advocates praise hemp seed for its high protein and high essential fatty acid (EFA) content.  The protein found in hemp seeds is close to two-thirds edestin and one-third albumin.  These two types of globulin proteins together contain all eight essential amino acids.  About 44% of the weight of the seed consists of healthy oils, which 80% of are EFAs like alpha and gamma-linolenic acids and linoleic acid.

     Medicinally, the oil from the seed has been used to treat skin disorders such as eczema, psoriasis, and acne.  The high "good fat" content of the oil promotes cardiovascular and joint health.  EFAs found in hemp seed oil are also essential for immune health as well as proper nervous system function.
     Currently, it is illegal for farmers to grow cannabis in the United States.  Hemp seed and its oil has to be imported into the country, which at that point can be sold or used as an additive in healthcare products and foods.  Hemp grows in a variety of climates and needs little or no herbicides and pesticides.  Hopefully in the near future, cannabis will be able to be freely grown for its many uses, such as for food, medicine, and industry.

Does Cannabis Make You Stupid?

     I came across this article this week and knew that I had to share it on my blog.  I normally try to write my own articles on here but couldn't improve on what Jonah Lehrer says in his blog.  *Click here for a direct link to the article in reference.*  His article sheds some light on the myth that "marijuana use = stupidity".  I will say this: I have come across people who tell me "all the people I know who use marijuana are unproductive in their lives."  I feel like telling them that they don't get out much.  Should I mention to them that I know plenty of people personally who do not use cannabis and in my own opinion are unproductive as well?  Since we are judging other people's successes and failures, did smoking cannabis in office affect the productivity of Abraham Lincoln?  Let me guess... he wouldn't have been assassinated, right? (I'm being facetious, people!)  Who decides what is unproductive for another man?  Also, why assume that cannabis is the reason for the "lack of production" in their lives?
     When everything is taken into perspective, one can see that the prohibition of cannabis has been the biggest danger of its use.  Prior to the Marijuana Tax Act of 1937, cannabis was used on all levels of society - recreationally, medicinally, and industrially (is "industrially" a word?).  Once it was prohibited, use was restricted to only those willing to break the law - which is why prohibition never works!  Prohibition of cannabis created a subculture of "pot smokers" that became a bane to society in the minds of most who did not know the suppressed history of the plant.  It certainly didn't help that cannabis was given a bad name by government-sponsored media outlets (think "Reefer Madness").
     With the advent of state-sanctioned medical marijuana we are beginning to see a return to normalcy when it comes to society's acceptance of cannabis.  I say "beginning" because cannabis still has a long way to go before it becomes mainstream.  That is precisely why I created this blog.  Those that know the truth have an obligation to stand for it.  Please join with me by sharing this blog with people who do not understand the history, the cover-ups, the scientific discoveries, and the medical benefits of cannabis.

Being on the Right Side of History

     Is the picture big enough?  I was having some trouble trying to find the best picture for today's blog entry.  This one seemed fitting, as it sends a clear and concise message.  I believe that if one seeks truth sincerely, they will find it.  In many cases, it doesn't take much seeking - the truth is right under our noses. 

"I'm just glad it'll be Clark Gable who's falling on his face and not Gary Cooper." 

--Gary Cooper on his decision not to take the leading role in "Gone With The Wind."  

     "Hindsight is 20/20"... We have all heard that before.  However, I would prefer NOT to wait for truth to be in my rearveiw mirror before I recognize it as such.  Unfortunately, that is how many of us operate.  What is worse is when we realize we were wrong on some issue for so long and yet still refuse to change our stance. It may be fears or peer pressures. Maybe something darker...  

     If one is (1) willing to do a little homework, and (2) ready to be intellectually honest, he or she would discover that our own nation - the tall and proud U.S. of A. - has been on the wrong side of issues throughout  its existence.  Even when the truth smacks this nation in the face, we as citizens fight it as if truth is yanking our teeth out with pliers!  We round Japanese Americans in concentration camps out of fear. It wasn't until 1988 that our nation publicly declared it "wrong".  How about slavery?  Enough said.  We had discovered that Prohibition was not the answer.  Trail of Tears.  The Gulf of Tonkin incident.  Must I continue? 

     In previous blog entries, I had discussed the outright travesties by our own nation in regards to cannabis. I urge you to read my articles entitled "DuPont hates Cannabis" Parts 1-3.  I believe that if you and I are willing to educate ourselves and those in our circles of influence, we will see America get on the right side of history in regards to cannabis.  I mean, it certainly wouldn't be the first time America has been wrong.  I challenge you with this: 

1. Share this blog.  I mention this blog in discussions I have with people all the time. Certainly it helps when it's MY blog, but I am passionate about the truth.  Please join me in that passion.

2. Do your homework.  Challenge what you have been taught.  The Internet can be a great tool in discovering truth. Cross-reference sources - do not rely on only one source, even if I am that one source.

3. Be prepared to stand when confronted with opposition.  If you are new to the "world of cannabis", do not feel overwhelmed - take it one bite at a time.  If someone challenges you with their own "facts", don't let the pressure force you into a quick, sloppy answer. Let them know that you will come back to them and resort back to my second point.