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News (Media Awareness Project) - Canada: Canada Takes Bold Step On Marijuana
Title:Canada: Canada Takes Bold Step On Marijuana
Published On:2005-04-24
Source:Plainview Daily Herald (TX)
Fetched On:2008-01-16 14:57:51
CANADA TAKES BOLD STEP ON MARIJUANA

In another stinging blow to the reprehensible prohibition of medical
marijuana, the Canadian government has just authorized the use of
cannabis for the treatment of pain and a number of debilitating
conditions, including multiple sclerosis.

Last Tuesday, Canada approved the prescription sale of a natural
marijuana compound produced by GW Pharmaceuticals of Britain called
Sativex -- a whole-plant extract nicknamed "liquid marijuana."

"It is nothing like Marinol, the synthetic THC sold in the U.S. and
sometimes falsely touted as an adequate substitute for marijuana," the
national Marijuana Policy Project said in a recent press release. "In
short, the Canadian government has just certified that virtually
everything our own government has been telling us about marijuana is
wrong.

"Sativex is to marijuana as a cup of coffee is to coffee beans. If
Sativex is safe and effective (as evidenced by more than) 600
patient-years of research, marijuana is safe and effective. Now that
we know beyond doubt that marijuana is a safe, effective medicine, how
long will the government continue to arrest patients who use it?"

As a caveat, the MPP notes that the government's mindless hostility
toward a simple, effective treatment for a host of ailments may yet
"take years," and that Sativex won't be a godsend for every patient
because different strains of marijuana "work better for some
conditions and less well for others."

It will also cost a bundle, forcing patients to pay international drug
cartels for something they can grow themselves for next to nothing in
their own homes and backyards.

Still, Canada has taken a step in the right direction that will no
doubt encourage others to rethink a mindset shaped by "Reefer Madness"
- -- the 1930s government-produced-and-directed movie that has the star
jock taking one hit and running over an elderly pedestrian, with the
girl-next-door cheerleader type getting pregnant and committing
suicide. The "pusher man" was a shifty-eyed slug with slicked-back
hair who goes insane from smoking pot.

Kids who see it today think it's satire.

As ridiculous as the "Reefer" scenario is, it's all our parents and
grandparents knew about marijuana at the time. And it helped shape the
country's attitude toward a "drug" that doesn't cause the death
and serious health problems alcohol and tobacco inflict on mankind
daily.

With a growing (no pun intended) number of people who have tried
marijuana or who use it frequently, all the law generates are
disrespect for authority (If they're wrong about grass, what else
are they wrong about?) and prisons jammed to the hilt with inmates who
did nothing more than commit non-violent transactions among consenting
adults. Nearly 50 percent of the drug arrests in this country are for
marijuana alone.

Despite the government's mailed fist, the groundswell favoring
medical marijuana is growing by the day. Legislatures in Texas,
Minnesota, Rhode Island, Alaska, Maine, Illinois, New Mexico,
Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Alabama, Connecticut, Ohio, Tennessee and
a host of others are wrestling with the issue.

The U.S. Supreme Court heard a case last November that attempts to
prohibit the government from imposing federal marijuana laws on states
like California where it's legal. A decision is expected shortly.

Meanwhile, notes the MPP, the U.S House will soon consider
broadly-supported legislation that would "end the government's attacks
on medical marijuana patients and give states full authority to enact
and implement their own medical marijuana laws without federal
interference."

For its part, Texas -- which may have to launch another massive prison
construction project when it can't even come up with enough money to
fund its schools -- is considering a bi-partisan bill that would afford
marijuana defendants the right to use medical-need as a defense to
prosecution.

It's not likely to pass, but like Canada, it's one more step toward the
compassion and sanity that are sorely lacking in the marijuana laws of this
country.

Stay tuned.
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