The debate over legalizing medical marijuana is not a new one, but it is going to be front and center in Raleigh Thursday. The House Health Committee will hold a public hearing on a bill that's been introduced to legalize marijuana for medical purposes. One Oak Island man is in full support of House Bill 1380, based on his own first-hand experience.
"It's time we come out of the dark ages and look at marijuana as it is, a medicine, and not a hard core drug," said David Warren.
David Warren is pushing for pot to be legalized in North Carolina, as an option for people suffering from debilitating medical conditions. It is already legal in 13 states. "Marijuana is not addictive. It's a drug that causes little side effects. I think people should have a choice in medicine," Warren said.
Warren is in full support of House Bill 1380, which would protect seriously ill patients from getting arrested and going to jail for smoking marijuana if recommended by a doctor. Warren said, "Those who are sick don't belong in jail. They need to be treated with care, love, and respect."
Warren uses his own experience to back up his case. He was arrested in 2005 for growing marijuana to smoke while being treated for Hepatitis C. He said he also suffers from post traumatic stress disorder and a seizure disorder. "I looked at the data, I looked at the studies, and I decided that rather than take narcotics, I would rather have something non-addictive."
Warren said the law would tax those who grow marijuana for themselves or others, bringing those tax dollars into the Tar Heel state. He is happy to see the issue reach Raleigh, and said there is plenty of room for an open and fair debate. "I believe that God made the marijuana. I've never seen an Oxycodone bush," said Warren.
The House Health Committee's public hearing is at noon Thursday in Raleigh.
my theory is that it should
my theory is that it should be legalized!! i think that it is up to the person to decide if it will help them with their problems. not every person suffers the same symptoms, and what is good for one person may not be the right solution for another. doctors are now realizing the benefits of marijuana!! our government says it is ok for someone with AIDS to have this outlet to make them more comfortable. i agree that people with AIDS should be comfortable. but, it is very bias of our government to think that other diseases should not be "comforted", that is just wrong. there are many other diseases that there is no cure for, it is just not fair that those people can not be comfortable as well. we all need to take another look at this issue!! IF IT WAS YOU OR A MEMBER OF YOUR FAMILY OR EVEN A CLOSE FRIEND--YOU WOULD FEEL COMPLETELY DIFFERENT!!!! i wish for one moment in EVERY person's life they should have to take a look at what their lives would be living in chronic pain 24/7!!! we need to stand up for what's right and make the government change their outlook!!!! they will never change if we the people do not make them realize they are WRONG!!!! anyone that does not have to deal with pain/sickness themselves or have a person close to them going through it, do not think that the pain is UNBEARABLE!!! LET'S MAKE A CHANGE NOW!!!!
MEDICAL MARIJUANA
I WORKED MOST OF MY LIFE IN THE MEDICAL FIELD(34) YEARS. AS A PARAMEDIC ANSWERING THOUSANDS OF AMBULANCE CALLS, I NEVER RESPONDED TO A CALL WHERE MARIJUANA CAUSED A FIGHT,INJURY,ACCIDENT ECT..UNLIKE THE NUMEROUS CALLS RECEIVED FOR ALCOHOL.BE COMPASSIONATE AND LEGALIZE IT! IF YOU OR YOUR PARENTS NEEDED IT,WHAT WOULD YOU DO?? IT IS PROVEN TO RELIEVE NAUSEA,INCREASE APPETITE,CALM PEOPLE,DIMINISH PAIN.WE ALL KNOW THAT IT IS SAFE. DONT BE IGNORANT. EVEN A TAX ON THIS PRODUCT COULD REDUCE THE DEFICIT,IMPROVE HEALTH CARE,INCREASE JOBS IN N.C. IT IS TIME FOR A CHANGE IN HEALTH CARE TO HELP INPROVE THE QUALITY OF LIFE IN SICK PATIENTS.
caps lock--- gets the point
caps lock--- gets the point across
legally available in the United States until 1937
For all it's misunderstanding, one poster correctly stated that it was legal until 1937.
At that time, the only reason that it was singled out was as a means to remove the Mexicans who had immigrated into the southern border states.( I know this sounds racist, but it's true the Governors wanted to purge "undesirables" from their states.)
"Illegal Drugs and how they got that way" program on the History channel.
Its a very interesting program that shows the hysteria around weed. It also shows how a bureaucrat with a lust for power used the print media of the Hearst Newspapers to terrorize readers into believing that weed was akin to the govt propaganda film "reefer madness".
The tactics the government used was to require that you have a tax stamp if you were in possession of weed.
The only problem was that you had to have the weed before they would issue a tax stamp, which made you guilty of POSSESSION WITHOUT A TAX STAMP. Similar to the previous machine gun tax stamp.
Only very few stamps were issued due to the government control of the programs.
Since then we've seen the war on drugs drag on and on with no end in sight. Otherwise law abiding people have gotten stains on their spotless records for simple possession of a pipe with only pot residue.
It's time to wake up and have an honest debate about the pros and cons of the evil weed.
But, it should be done with facts, and not govt hype and hysteria.
This is Perfect!!
I agree fully marijuana has so many benefits to help the sick and dying, it can also enhance everybodies well being, there is nothing wrong with marijuana!!!! I am so happy to hear that the argument is being brought to the east side!!!!
Awesomme!!
Save the Planet
Hemp can save the planet. Through, fuel, fibers, food and medicine. The war on drugs (marijuna) has caused more lives then saved. Just like the one officer dtated below. He has never gone to an accident scene where marijuana was a cause or a fight where the suspect was stoned. doesn't hapen. But there are so many in jail or probtion for marijuana. I don't get it. Legalize it and save the planet.
For decades this argument
For decades this argument has gone on and on with no end.
If possession of heroin and killing someone by a vehicle gets you 5 months in the can......what in the world is all the hype about pot?????!
SMOKED MARIJUANA IS NOT MEDICINE
There is no consensus of medical evidence that smoking marijuana helps patients. Congress enacted laws against marijuana in 1970 based in part on its conclusion that marijuana has no scientifically proven medical value. The Food and Drug Administration is the federal agency responsible for approving drugs as safe and effective medicine based on valid scientific data. FDA has not approved smoked marijuana for any condition or disease. The FDA noted that "there is currently sound evidence that smoked marijuana is harmful," and "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."
In 2001, the Supreme Court affirmed Congress’s 1970 judgment about marijuana in United States v. Oakland Cannabis Buyers’ Cooperative et al., 532 U.S. 438 (2001), which held that, given the absence of medical usefulness, medical necessity is not a defense to marijuana prosecution. Furthermore, in Gonzales v. Raich, 125 S.Ct. 2195 (2005), the Supreme Court reaffirmed that the authority of Congress to regulate the use of potentially harmful substances through the federal Controlled Substances Act includes the authority to regulate marijuana of a purely intrastate character, regardless of a state law purporting to authorize "medical" use of marijuana.
The federal government is not alone in viewing smoked marijuana as having no documented medical value. Voices in the medical community likewise do not accept smoked marijuana as medicine:
• The American Medical Association has rejected pleas to endorse marijuana as medicine, and instead has urged that marijuana remain a prohibited, Schedule I controlled substance, at least until more research is done.
• The American Cancer Society "does not advocate inhaling smoke, nor the legalization of marijuana," although the organization does support carefully controlled clinical studies for alternative delivery methods, specifically a THC skin patch.
• The American Academy of Pediatrics believes that "any change in the legal status of marijuana, even if limited to adults, could affect the prevalence of use among adolescents." While it supports scientific research on the possible medical use of cannabinoids as opposed to smoked marijuana, it opposes the legalization of marijuana.
• The National Multiple Sclerosis Society states that studies done to date "have not provided convincing evidence that marijuana benefits people with MS," and thus marijuana is not a recommended treatment. Furthermore, the NMSS warns that the "long-term use of marijuana may be associated with significant serious side effects."
• The British Medical Association (BMA) voiced extreme concern that down-grading the criminal status of marijuana would "mislead" the public into believing that the drug is safe. The BMA maintains that marijuana "has been linked to greater risk of heart disease, lung cancer, bronchitis and emphysema."7 The 2004 Deputy Chairman of the BMA’s Board of Science said that " the public must be made aware of the harmful effects we know result from smoking this drug."
• The American Academy of Pediatrics asserted that with regard to marijuana use, "from a public health perspective, even a small increase in use, whether attributable to increased availability or decreased perception of risk, would have significant ramifications."
In 1999, The Institute of Medicine released a landmark study reviewing the supposed medical properties of marijuana. The study is frequently cited by "medical" marijuana advocates, but in fact severely undermines their arguments.
• After release of the IOM study, the principal investigators cautioned that the active compounds in marijuana may have medicinal potential and therefore should be researched further. However, the study concluded that "there is little future in smoked marijuana as a medically approved medication."
• For some ailments, the IOM found "...potential therapeutic value of cannabinoid drugs, primarily THC, for pain relief, control of nausea and vomiting, and appetite stimulation." However, it pointed out that " the effects of cannabinoids on the symptoms studied are generally modest, and in most cases there are more effective medications than smoked marijuana."
• The study concluded that, at best, there is only anecdotal information on the medical benefits of smoked marijuana for some ailments, such as muscle spasticity. For other ailments, such as epilepsy and glaucoma, the study found no evidence of medical value and did not endorse further research.
• The IOM study explained that "smoked marijuana . . . is a crude THC delivery system that also delivers harmful substances." In addition, "plants contain a variable mixture of biologically active compounds and cannot be expected to provide a precisely defined drug effect." Therefore, the study concluded that "there is little future in smoked marijuana as a medically approved medication."
• The principal investigators explicitly stated that using smoked marijuana in clinical trials "should not be designed to develop it as a licensed drug, but should be a stepping stone to the development of new, safe delivery systems of cannabinoids."
Thus, even scientists and researchers who believe that certain active ingredients in marijuana may have potential medicinal value openly discount the notion that smoked marijuana is or can become "medicine."
The federal government has approved research into whether THC has any medicinal use. As of May 8, 2006, the federal government had registered every one of the 163 researchers who requested to use marijuana in studies and who met Department of Health and Human Services standards. One of those researchers, The Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research (CMCR), conducts studies "to ascertain the general medical safety and efficacy of cannabis and cannabis products and examine alternative forms of cannabis administration." The CMCR currently has 11 on-going studies involving marijuana and the efficacy of cannabis and cannabis compounds as they relate to medical conditions such as HIV, cancer pain, MS, and nausea.
At present, however, the clear weight of the evidence is that smoked marijuana is harmful. No matter what medical condition has been studied, other drugs already approved by the FDA, such as Marinol – a pill form of synthetic THC – have been proven to be safer and more effective than smoked marijuana
You sir have never seen a dying relative
If you dont think there are benefits to a cancer patient using this drug to help then you have never seen your dying mother suffer in pain in front of your eyes. It helped my mother and I have seen many chemo patients who cant go through it without it.
Its funny how until it happens to you, you feel it doesnt concern you or you can make judgement.
Other means of administration
Inhaling any type of smoke has negative health effects. In other states that passed laws protecting medical users of cannabis, doctors employ patients to use other means of administation of the drug, either by ingestion or the use of a device that vaporizes the herb (releasing only the active cannabinoids, namely THC, as a harmless water vapor).
Think for your self.
Fact is you support our FDA and pharmaceutical industry, so you point of view is a little bias. Every one on your bullet points can be torn a part with the so called evidence. First it should NOT be regulated as a medicine but rather tobacco or alcohol. Now is someone who is sick says there symptoms are better for what ever disease ummm like MS or some other "noncurable" but pharmaceutical managed disease. Which I personally know three and even Montel Williams say it helps with his MS. WHO are you to tell them otherwise. Guess who the major supporters of the MS society is, it is not people with MS, how about the pharmaceutical industry. Every one of your points is linked to the pharmaceutical industry, meaning profits lost if legalized. How about the cancer treatment with canabanoids? You forgot to list the new research from the Journals of Thoracic Surgey which they found LESS lung cancer in pot smokers then even the normal population. Now if we can patent a alkaloid extract and sell it to those in need for "medicinal use" then that is okay, Marinol.
If smoking is your problem, then guess what the plant itself can be cooked or vaporized, so the smoking argument, just went up in smoke. If people decide to keep smoking even when there are big labels on your package of marijuana that says SMOKING WILL KILL YOU, then that is their choice! Please put down your glass of wine, and lets really look at this "drug" that we have to stop putting people in jail with, thanks for trying to understand.
AS A STUDENT and the YOUNGER GENERATION
Im posting this as a student
PILLS are easier to get than marijuana.
you can call any of your friends and they can just rumble through mom or grandmas medicine cabinet and BAMMMM we can be messed up for the next week straight.
Smoking a joint or a cigar rolled blunt-
we just get a little hungry!!!
LEGALIZE IT so my friends will stop overdosing on medications
RIP Reid Perry
RIP Michael Underwood
RIP Josh Irelan
RIP Jeremy Beardsley
for my guys that coulda smoked and got a little high if marijuana were legal
This is should be framed and
This is should be framed and put all over the world
I'm right there brother!
You are right..and being
You are right..and being under the influence of alcohol is more dangerous than being high. There are more people killed by drunk drivers than by driver's who've smoked a little pot.
yes
If the state is going to tax income from sales on the Internet (just got an e-mail this morning from Amazon telling me that I won't be eligible to get commissions on sales from them and I'll be out of an income stream if the current NC budget bill passes), and they're going to slap a yearly tax/registration fee on all minibikes and ATVs then they also need to look at the additional tax revenue from medical marijuana.
The savings from not having to arrest, prosecute, and jail people for such a minor offense would be huge.
I'm a cop and I support the
I'm a cop and I support the legalization ad taxation of marijuana. I do not, nor have I ever smoked it, but in my years of law enforcement, I have been to many overdose calls, and not one of them had overdosed on marijuana. I have had to fight many drunks, but I have never had to fight a pothead. I've been to many DWI wrecks, but none of them were due to marijuana use. I would rather have people smoke pot and get high than drink alcohol and get drunk.
- Not addictive
- Can't overdose on it
- Alcohol, which is far worse, is legal and taxed.
If you legalize pot, then
If you legalize pot, then everyone with a little ache or pain will be trying to get a prescription so they can get stoned.
Pot is addictive. I know a woman who keeps joints rolled and in a cigarette case on her coffee table and stays stoned all of the time. Another woman I used to work with couldn't get to work in the morning without a joint.
The difference between meeting a drunk or a stoner coming the wrong way on the highway is that the stoner will laugh at you and eat a bag of chips while you lay bleeding, waiting on the ambulance.
There is a big difference between addiction & dependence
Humans are creatures of habit, having a daily routine makes people feel safe and in control of their lives. So the woman who smokes everyday before work is simply stuck in a bad routine (going to work high is bad kids, don't do it). Now let me ask you, while you smugly sip on your $5 cup of Starbucks coffee which by the way contains one of the most addictive substances in the world, caffine, how many reported traffic fatalities in the US included a driver who was only high on marijuana? If you said zero, then you were right. Now lets take that interesting statistic and compare it to drunk driving fatalities. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration there have been well over half a million drunk driving fatalities in America since 1982. Now lets think about alcohol prohibition, it lasted roughly 14 years during which the consumption rate of alcohol skyrocketed to record numbers and spawned The Mob in America. The War on Drugs has lasted some 30 years and has resulted in loss of trillions of potential tax dollars, created multi-national drug cartels which use excessive violence and force to move their products which causes a lot of collateral damage in the form of dead people, and stuffed our prisons to the breaking point with mostly non-violent drug users. So before you go making false assumptions about something, do your homework first. By the way, I am a 20 year old psychology major who has recently began using marijuana to relieve the stresses of college and have experienced fantastic results. I too fell victim to gov propaganda in the form of the DARE program, it was only after I researched marijuana myself that I discovered the truth and I encourage everyone to do the same.
you my friend...are ignorant
you my friend...are ignorant
What a silly comment.... you
What a silly comment.... you sound like a liberal.
Please cite your studies showing addictiveness of marijuana
Otherwise, you are just spouting your opinion - and one not at all based on fact!
Of course, the rampant abuse/overuse of opiates is perfectly OK with you?
How about the ones who really suffer???
You people make me sick! Conservative or Liberal, you are all mean! There are a small group of us with cancer, nervous system disorders, intestinal diseases, etc. that are in constant severe pain. These diseases have NO cure. We suffer in pain 24/7 for months at a time. Our doctors will not prescribe pains meds because they are addicting and have negative side affects. I was diagnosed with an incurable chronic disease 5 years ago. It wasn't until I was throwing up from the pain that I even considered pot. Let me explain what the pain does. When it comes, it lasts for about a minute at a time. I completely go blank. I try and think about anything I can to get my mind off the pain. It feels like it lasts forever. After it subsides, I get a nasty taste in my mouth. My mouth begins to water excessively, and then I get a nasty taste. After this I feel whatever is in my stomach start to come up. I puke. Then I puke again and again and again. This repeats every couple days...The typical pain I would gauge as a 5 to 7 that lasts ALL DAY AND NIGHT! Throughout the day I get the pleasure of experiencing pain I would say is between a 2 and 4. I have been like this since February. Luckily the pain and my disease is starting to subside into remission. I went through this last year from October through the middle of December. I am anemic and dehydrated because of my disease. It is VERY hard to drink the 100+ ounces of water a day I should to stay hydrated. Most the time I use the bathroom, the toilet is filled with blood. I have no energy and can not eat solid food at the moment. I life off those boost and ensure drinks. I weigh 140 lbs. I am 5'9", 32 and am male. I use to weigh 200lbs, which was my average since high school. I lost all that weight in 2 years...without exercising. I actually do the opposite of exercise. When I come home from work, I rest, watch TV, play video games. I sleep at least 10 hours a night because I can not get the right nutrients from food....because I can't eat!
So, recap, I cant eat, anemic, dehydrated, no energy, constant pain.
Amazing enough, I can eat when I get stoned. My pain subsides and I feel human again. If it wasnt for smoking pot, I would probably weigh less and there would have probably been a bullet in my head months ago because of NOT BEING HUMAN!
I don't care if some crack head makes his doctor believe he is in pain to get pot. I care if I can get it. I care that I can be out of pain. I care if others who go through what I go through can get the same pain relief that I can through pot.
Pot IS NOT addictive. If you want to say a crack head is addicted to pot, go ahead. IM NOT A CRACK HEAD! I am in pain, WE are in pain.
You people are so stupid to deny people who suffer in pain and misery a relief that WILL NOT AFFECT YOUR pathetic, indifferent, ignorant lives.
The drugs i am on, which are not working that well, and WILL NOT cure my disease, will cause lymphoma. You think I care if pot turns out to screw up my DNA? You probably drink bottled water because you feel your local water is bad for you. It might be something to learn that your local tap water has higher regulations that bottled water does. I wonder what is in that bottled water that can cause DNA damage?
It is heinous to allow something so innocent like pot to NOT help people with their maladies. We suffer daily and you people do your best to keep something away from us that may not fix our problem, but sure will help make us feel a little better. We don't smoke pot when we drive, work, use machines or do anything else that could cause harm to others.
You are being irresponsible to your fellow humans from keeping this plant from us.
Are you kidding??? If the
Are you kidding??? If the same regulations are in place that are for other Pain Killers then Medical Marijuana can be contolled the same as any other prescription. It should be a decision between a patient and a Doctor, the Government should not Disallow it because there are man made products out there. The chance of addiction and Overdose from pain killers is a lot higher than for Marijuana.
You work with a woman that can't get to work without a Joint. I can't get to work without my Perscribed Pain killers, how is that different? At least she is making it to work!
Now the difference between a stoner and a drunk is the Stoner still has thier inhibitions where a Drunk feels invinsible... As a recovering Drunk I know this! I have been completely off my pain killers for 2 months now just from one half a Marijuana brownie in the morning and 2 hits from a joint at night. A lot better than 10mg of Vicodin 4 times a day, right?
marijuina
NO,we don't need another way to get high.Their is medicine on the market to help those in need. But North Carolina with these Democrates will legalize anything for TAX DOLLARS, SO THEY CAN SPEND ON THEIR PET PROJECTS.It isn't going to help us in any way you look at it.Wake up America, we are about to loose it!! BL
are you serious? this isnt a
are you serious? this isnt a way to get people high. this is a way to keep seriously sick people from getting prosecuted. They dont want to be on drugs that can possible cause more harm to an already sick body. They want a natural substance that has absolutely no bad side effects. Grow up and realize that our government has been lying to us for 72 years.
PASS IT!!! then exhale
First of all this guy is nuts. Mary Jane has had many years and years of testing through government means, and military means, they both have deemed it non addicting, and basically harmless. For medical reasons it has been proven over and over again to help with many many diffrent ailments from cancer, to katarax, glacoma to hernia, bi-polar to epilepsy. The government and military did YEARS of tests and trials on people, and now the government grows it, well it can't be that bad! Not to mention all the jails with people in there for petty marijuina charges, costing us millions of tax dollars for them being in there. This is just the start, they can market it just like cigarettes, tax it just like beer, and I still believe the death rate on the highways will still decrease, b/c some people will choose that over beer, and Not wreck their car. It was once leagal and some day it will be again. It is too popular for them to ignore, an untapped resource. A CASH CROP!!! As for marketing it someone said "it's too easy to grow so they can't regulate it." Somewhat true. Almost antone with a green thumb can grow it with knowledge, but the gov. has been doing it for years in Seattle and they know how to make the good kind! so on that note, would you rather have some leafy homegrown, or some government greatness??? The choice is yours! VOTE YES!!!!
NRG
Uhum..
do you even REALIZE the amount of tax dollars WASTED on a drug war that will NEVER be won? I mean...SERIOUSLY you are going to throw someone in jail for having a joint on them...yet allow people to still get drunk and smoke their lungs to pudding...LEGALIZE it and stop wasting tax dollars trying to stop it. Marijuana REALLY isn't that big of a deal..I know people from ALL walks of life that do it from DOCTORS AND LAWYERS to teachers...HECK we had a president that did it. ALL OF THIS coming from someone who hasn't even smoked pot!
Awake Washingtin and Smell the Bud......
With each state that passes medical marijuana laws is one step closer too getting marijuana legalized.
However, if everyone that posts a comment on these news articles would send a email to president Obama, and our elected officials in congress, and anyone else that they can think of, maybe the people in Washington would relize that legalizing, regulating and taxing marijuana is the right thing to do.
Also, it is our responsibility too, investigate who we vote for. We as Americans have the right to put anyone we choose in office and we also have the right too fire our representives. So, what we need to do is get our act together and join forces and investigate who we vote for, and get those who oppose marijuana legalization out of office and put those who are in favor of it! The United States Government is out of control, they think they can run our day to day lives and impose the will of the few on the many....I don't know about you people but I see our country turning into another Russia! We need to stop this before its too late, our rights and freedon are in jeapordy!
Legalize Marijuana!!!
I absolutley agree with legalizing marijuana.I have HepC and a Hematoma in my right groin area that hurts constantly.I also suffer from being Bi-Polar.Marijuana helps with the pain and my mood swings tremendously!!!I think that it should be legalized everywhere though,to those of the LEGAL AGE!!How many stoned people do you see picking fights with others,murdering people,going out and causing a 5 car pile-up on the highway??!! Not many!!
Just legalize it already so that we can live in a more harmonious society together!!
I am all for the
I am all for the legalization i have constant lower back pain due to an out of line spine. It helps amazingly to the pain.
But???
But Rush Limbaugh said drug users should be arrested and deported from the country. Is the great Rush wrong??? How could that be?
legal drugs
Would that be the same Rush Limbaugh who went through rehab for addiction to drugs?
WHY NOT...PEOPLE ARE DOING IT ANYWAY
I see no problem with the legalization of marajuana.Of my friends, I would say that 1 in 3 are using it anyway. Most people are. There is nothing to say that it is addictive or that it leads to other drugs. And it is true that it comes from a plant,naturally,nothing added. What's the big deal....
Well
I am slightly right of center....and even I agree that marijuana should be legalized for medicinal use. HECK LEGALIZE IT AND TAX THE LIVING TAR out of it! The excuses that marijuana is some entry drug into other things...the SAME things can be said from drinking and tobacco use...they are used and taxed for revenue. I would MUCH MUCH rather meet a stoned person driving the opposite direction than a drunk person.
Reason it is not Legalize
I have never used it, but I have always felt the reason it is not legalize is the fact that it is to easy to grow and cure and they can not figure a way to tax it..
Hmm
doesn't seem to be a problem with tobacco...which is a drug.
Think outside the box
Actually, tobacco right out of the curing shed is almost unsmokeable. Phillip-Morris and other cigarette manufacturers add about 400 different chemicals to their processed tobacco to make it taste the way it does.
Cannabis buds fresh off of the plant can be used in cooking and after a bit of curing, can be turned into vapor that contains no carcinogens but all of the cannabinoids one would get from burning it.
Also, there is a prescription product available in Canada called Sativex. According to MPP, "Sativex is a natural marijuana extract developed by a British company, GW Pharmaceuticals. It is a liquid that is sprayed into the mouth. Made from marijuana plants bred for specific levels of various active components, called cannabinoids, Sativex is similar to marijuana-based extracts and tinctures that were legally available in the United States until 1937. (Such products were manufactured by major drug companies and sold through pharmacies until the federal government banned marijuana in 1937.)"
So you call spray it, eat it, and inhale it as a vapor without suffering from any of the harmful effects from smoking it. An entire industry built around making products based on those healthy means of ingestion could be regulated and would contribute millions to the economy.
I doubt it will be too much longer before these states that are so deeply in debt consider legalizing, regulating, and taxing cannabis as a means to stay solvent.
Marijuana , just legalize it already!!!
Just decriminilize it altogether. People don't realize the money that could be generated from the controlled sale of marijuana. If citizens were permitted to grow their own marijuana they would have plenty of money to stimulate the economy. How about we take it out of the hands of the dealers. The dealers would be forced to go get real jobs. I struggle with this debate all the time. MORE PEOPLE SMOKE MARIJUANA THAN ANYONE WANTS TO ADMIT. If everyone who smoked came forward to support the cause it would be shocking.
Fully support...
I fully support this bill, though I feel that the State should consider treating marijuana similarly to tobacco and alcohol - have it available to all "of-age" citizen's. There are many, many people who use marijuana behind closed doors, so-to-speak, even those one would not think was a "user". The legalization of this plant could mean big bucks for the State of North Carolina. Legalizing marijuana, and taxing it, would decrease the State's budget deficit.
Legalize it, and I will advertise it...
They are trying to legalize MEDICAL marijuana...
Congratulations on your state taking the reins and stepping up to the citizens’ right. Any human with a heart and knowledge of pain should be in favor of this bill, because one never knows if you will be the one who needs medicinal marijuana. The legislators and doctors in most states still view marijuana as a taboo and fear loss of job over support of marijuana in any way; even after the voters decide that they are willing to accept its therapeutic/medicinal value in society.
What more do these politicians and leaders of the U.S. DEA need to point out the fact that marijuana IS valuable in terms of medical benefits? It has been proven over and over that it is beneficial (first the DEA needs to absolutely remove marijuana’s absurd “Schedule 1 Substance”).
Iowa’s Board of Pharmacy recently neglected to even consider using marijuana for its medicinal properties (sounds like some people want to gain the money from insurance companies from pills rather than someone growing their own medicine). I am an American citizen who has used marijuana before, but do not on a regularly basis in any means. I am also an American citizen who sees that neglecting the freedoms our country is supposed to stand for is unconstitutional. If the voters vote and say yes, respect their choices and listen to them legislators. My state’s legislators, majority of them are democrats, still kill marijuana bills and are too afraid to even hear them once in committee.
Good luck and God bless!
Legalize Medical Marijana
It never ceases to amaze me that something that has little to no side affects and has been proven to help people in pain, is still looked upon as a bad thing. A doctor can prescribe you morphine or oxycontin, which both have serious side effects but they cannot prescribe something that is natural with little known side affect. What sense does that make? Given the choice I would rather take something that is not going to damage my liver, kidneys or other major organs.