Marijuana use? Legalize it?

[Mugg Mann]

Guess who's back?

I have a simple challenge for the pro-psychotropical substance mob.

Quote a source that isn't a book. Make it a hospital or psychiatric institution with a good name, such as the Priory, the Maudsley or Bedlam. In fact, make it one of those since they are the best institutions in the world (by reputation.)

If you fail to find supporting evidence, contact one of the doctors, say, Professor Robin Murray and talk it over.

You could learn a lot.

(Who wants to bet no-one will post matter from the sources mentioned?)


What you will find is that for about 9 in ten people, Cannabis is not too harmful. It increases the risk of schizophrenia, but only by about 3 times. For one in ten (the susceptible group), Cannabis is one of the worst drugs you can take.

But don't take it from me - call one of the centres. I DARE YOU.



Rich::

I'll take that challenge. Here's the results of the most expensive study undertaken to date by an official government institution. (I'll assume that our government counts as a valid source since they've been steadfast against marijuana for decades now.) The study was undertaken at the request of General Barry McCaffrey, who was then the nation's drug czar.


After the passage of the medical marijuana legislation proposition 215 in California the American "drug czar" and retired General Barry McCaffrey declared that there was "not one shred of evidence" that marijuana had medical uses and denounced it as "Cheech and Chong medicine", after a marijuana-using team of comedians.
General McCaffrey then made the fatal mistake of ordering a study from the Institute of Medicine (IOM) of the Academy of Sciences. For about $900,000 it was to determine the facts by review existing literature and talking to patients and doctors to determine what is known about marijuana as a medicine. The study was finally released on March 17, 1999. It confirmed that:

marijuana has some well established medical uses,
it does not lead to harder drugs (gateway or stepping stone theory)
it's addiction potential is not very serious and
it's side effects are within the range tolerated for other legal medicines.
This study has basically destroyed any justification for classifying marijuana with other drugs that are addictive or without established medical use. See mpp(dot)\(dot)org/science.=(dot)html for some quotes for details.
The report can be ordered at the National Academy Press website or you can read an HTML version at the NAP site.

My apologies for using the word dot in the link. DIS will not allow me to post links with so few posts in this particular name.