Uncle Sam's Medical Marijuana Program

In a recent letter, House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers (D-Mich.) asked Michele Leonhart, acting head of the Drug Enforcement Administration, to explain her agency's use of "paramilitary-style enforcement raids" and threats of property forfeiture to suppress the medical use of marijuana in California. "Do you think the DEA's limited resources are best utilized conducting enforcement raids on individuals and their caregivers who are conducting themselves legally under California law?" he asked. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that "agency spokeswoman Rogene Waite declined to comment on the questions Wednesday, saying only that 'the federal government does not recognize medical marijuana….The DEA, of course, would be part of the federal government.'"

If the federal government does not recognize medical marijuana, why does it send pot to patients? As the Marijuana Policy Project notes, tomorrow marks the 30th anniversary of the federal government's own medical marijuana program, under which four patients regularly receive joints from Uncle Sam. Theoretically, they are experimental subjects in a Compassionate Investigational New Drug (IND) Program, but the government has never bothered to publish any research based on their experiences. At its peak, the IND program for marijuana covered no more than a dozen or so patients, and in 1992 the George H.W. Bush admistration closed it to new applicants after receiving a flood of requests from AIDS patients. But the existing enrollees were grandfathered in, and those who are still alive continue to get a supply of marijuana grown by University of Mississipi scientists under contract with the U.S. government. "Most Americans would be shocked to know that the federal government supplies medical marijuana to patients while claiming that marijuana is a harmful drug with no medical value," says MPP's Rob Kampia. "If federal officials believe their own statements, they're knowingly poisoning four innocent people."

[Chronicle story via The Freedom Files]

Comments

[Warren]

"agency spokeswoman Rogene Waite declined to comment on the questions Wednesday, saying only that 'the federal government does not recognize medical marijuana....The DEA, of course, would be part of the federal government.'"

Uh Huh But the question was, Doesn't the DEA have anything better to do than break down the front door and shove guns in the face of dying people?
fucktard

[Guy Montag]

Wonder if I can get them to send me Winstons & Skoal?

[Rimfax]

Right Hand: Hey, Lefty! Whatcha doin' over there?

[GG]

The War on Sick People continues.

In related news, from the UK:

Cannabis classification to be tightened

LONDON (Reuters) - Cannabis will be raised to a class B drug with a maximum five year jail term for users, the government said on Wednesday, rejecting a recommendation from its own drugs advisers to leave the classification unchanged.

Home Secretary Jacqui Smith said the decision had been made because of concern, particularly amongst the public, about the "alarming" use of skunk, a stronger strain of the narcotic which now dominates the market.

Her announcement followed the publication of a report by the independent Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) which said there was insufficient evidence to regrade cannabis to the more serious class B.

[Christopher Monnier]

Cannabis/Marijuana is not a narcotic.

[Episiarch]

Penn & Teller covered the US Medical MJ program on their episode on the WOD. They even interviewed one of the guys in it, and filmed him smoking a legal joint provided to him by Uncle Sam in front of Congress. Fucking great. I would love to see footage of some cop hassling him; he must have some crazy permit or something.

[J sub D]

C'mon Conyers. You and I both know your corpse can win re-election in a landslide. Get after the goddam DEA who is really good at locking up black urban males your constituents.

I'm talking cajones here, John. Show 'em if you got 'em. Give me some evidence the Dems are better on civil liberties. Please?

[Matthew]

I'm not sure that federal officials believing their own statements has ever been an issue. Knowing what's true and saying the opposite is pretty much a prerequisite for employment at a government agency.

[Warren]

"If federal officials believe their own statements, they're knowingly poisoning four innocent people."

The think the tragedy might be even greater. On the episode of P&Ts Bullshit. The patient said he smoked like ten cigarettes a day (IIRC). And we're talking regulation Camel nonfilter sized jays. Now I've known some Olympic league stoners that could smoke just rediculous amounts of pot. But even so, smoking ten fatties of mid-grade dope is gonna keep your ass glued to the sofa, not enable you to work your six figure job. I think the government is giving them ditch weed shake, thus forcing them to smoke far more than they should have to to get the required effects.

[Taktix?]

I think the government is giving them ditch weed shake, thus forcing them to smoke far more than they should have to to get the required effects.

I actually met the guy (Ervin Rosenfeld) from the P&T episode at a MMJ benefit my band played in March. He said the bud was stemmy and seedy and not very good.

I have a picture with him, but can't find it online right now...

[JD]

I am so waiting for one of these legislators to respond to a DEA comment like that with, "Well, it's a good thing we're in the state of California then, and not on federal territory, the only place the DEA actually has authority over", but I'm not going to hold my breath waiting for anybody to understand federalism again.

[B.D.]

Well, the farm that it's grown on is not exactly a quality facility. I happened upon it in 1993, taking a detour, getting lost, and then seeing the large sign by the side of the road. When I stopped to take pictures of the sign a car swung out of a gated fence and I was told to move on or lose the camera.

[Episiarch]

Where was that, B.D.?

[Guy Montag]

B.D.,

They are nicer than that around NSA and CIA HQs!

[ChrisO]

Well, the farm that it's grown on is not exactly a quality facility. I happened upon it in 1993, taking a detour, getting lost, and then seeing the large sign by the side of the road. When I stopped to take pictures of the sign a car swung out of a gated fence and I was told to move on or lose the camera.

I'd say this calls for an episode of "24" with Sean Penn reprising his role of Jeff Spiccoli.

"The X Files" would have worked better, but I don't see them bringing that back in order to champion medical pot.

[B.D.]

It was in northwestern Missouri. I had spent a few days in Lawerence, Kansas. I was heading to Denver, but didn't want to pay the tolls for the highway, so my plan was to head north and take a parallel state road with no tolls. Instead, I got lost and crossed back into Missouri. I gassed up at an old station, ran across the farm (big pot leaf on the sign that I could see from a half mile away), before finding my way back into Kansas.

[Taktix?]

B.D.,

Wow, in Ashcroft's backyard, no less...

[Brandybuck]

hen I stopped to take pictures of the sign a car swung out of a gated fence and I was told to move on or lose the camera.

Back where I came from, that used to happen all the time when someone wanted to take a picture of those odd plants growing on the Sheriffs ranch.

[R C Dean]

When I stopped to take pictures of the sign a car swung out of a gated fence and I was told to move on or lose the camera.

And the legal authority for these threats is . . .?

[Isaac Bartram]

And the legal authority for these threats is . . .?

'Legal authority? We ain't got no legal authority. We don't need no legal authority! I don't have to show you any stinkin' legal authority!'

[Andy]

Just when you think the drug war can't get any stupider...

I hadn't heard of this "program" before, maybe because they haven't done anything with it. I actually expect this crap from government, but the media should be there to call it out. That they don't is downright scary.

[Sam]

B.D.,

The government has a contract with University of Mississippi to grow this marijuana. The farm is on the outskirts of the Miss campus. So I'm not sure what you found in Missouri, but it wasn't the government's marijuana plantation.

[DEATHUGS RULE!]

The biggest problem is this "I have a right to live and a right to non-fatal medicine" attitude coming from these brain-addled, entitled weed fiends, trying to rationalize their daily blood lust for the insanity, criminality, and death that come with each puff of the Devil's Weed.

If the DEA feels strongly that the sick and dying should be caged, suffer, and die; then, the patients should be caged, suffer, and die. More often than not, us small folk don't have the brain power to understand the DEA's wisdom.

We must "trust" our leaders.

All the Science, History, and other Secular, Satanic forked-tongue speech won't change the DEA's mind, because they "know" what is right. All the morally compromised researchers and doctors trying to kill babies with Beelzebub's favorite plant will definitely not change the DEA's minds.

The DEA is right in stealing and withholding medicine & terrorizing patients, because their work is God's work. And God told them this is so.

To say otherwise is undemocratic and unpatriotic. No stoner, dying folk will keep the DEA from their true mission of torturing, caging, and killing the dying folk.

Just as it should be.

Death to the weak and three cheers for the DEATHUGS!

Conyers should be hanged for treason for questioning the wisdom of our most enlightened leaders!

[eltone]

I've known about this program for years simply because 2 of the surviving patients live in Iowa where I live and I am a MMJ Advocate, even though the patients receive and use the marijuana, no Federal Dr.(s) or Scientist's are studying the results of the use of marijuana on the patients, this is admitted by the patients themselves. Here is how the Federal Government's Medical Marijuana program (IND) will work out, when the 4 surviving patients die the program will be buried and forgotten and declared a failure since all the patient's died (even though it raised their quality of life and perhaps even extended it for the patients.) But the fact that it did not heal the patients ailments is the excuse the Gov't will use. Point is the government, for whatever reason does not want marijuana legalized at all. If they refuse to admit medical and scientific fact in favor of their own political opinion what kind of Gov't have we got? It surely is not a gov't Of the People and By the People and For the people now is it. I thought I lived in America while all the time it is The UNSA, United Nazi States of America.

[ChrisO]

The government can't even grow good pot. Big surprise!

[T]

"If federal officials believe their own statements, they're knowingly poisoning four innocent people."

After Tuskegee, feeding plutonium to the 'tards, and MK/ULTRA, is anybody surprised that the feds would knowingly poison people?

[Bob Goodman]

They use machine harvested and rolled product, which is why it's stemmy and seedy.

[jonvoight]

Really great article, thanks for the info. I had NO IDEA these patients were getting between 320 and 600 joints every single month! Can you believe it? And no one even knows about this! http://www.medicalmarijuanaprocon.org/bin/procon/procon.cgi?database=5-F-Subs-3.db&command=viewone&op=t&id=5&rnd=346.1317607925134

[juris imprudent]

Speaking of the feds and their enduring hatred of the weed...

Feds: Teen use of pot can lead to dependency, mental illness

In which we are treated to more hilarity from John Walters and gang.

I've decided I have a new single criteria on who to vote for President - the person who will put John WATERS in charge of the ONDCP. That's who pops up in my mind every time I see Walters' name.

[Sukoi]

Irvin Rosenfeld and the Compassionate IND -- Medical Marijuana Proof and Government Lies.

http://blogs.salon.com/0002762/stories/2005/02/18/irvRosenbergAndTheCompassi.html

[GOVTLIESABOUTMEDMARIJUANA]

To give you an idea of how poopy the NIDA FEDERAL MEDICAL Marijuana really is, one of the patients, Irv R., smokes 11 OUNCES every 25 days.

The sticky-icky, more potent MEDICAL marijuana evidently gums up the North Carolina tobacco rolling machines and crinkles/rips the paper. NIDA also uses the excuse that potent marijuana has not been researched as much as the schwag.

A LOT of medical marijuana patients know about this program, but the mainstream media does everything they can to keep it under raps, which is terribly irresponsible.

But it seems like the media is finally being forced to examine this issue.

About time!

[Elizabeth Washburn Wright]

Big pharma is about one year to sixteen months from unvailing decannabis, a CB1 version of cannabis without the psychic kick. This will have all the medicinal properties of CB2 without the halluncinations. Inverse CB2 agonists will be used for weight reduction. Decannabis will be a prescription-only drug to start but will probably go OTC because it has no psychoactivity and is expected to have few or no adverse side effects. The arguments over medical pot will cease with decannabis. Marketing experts are prototyping caffeinated versus decaffeinated beverage-type DTC ads for the rollout expected 3Q09.

[meai]

I ecarried aaa handgun for a few years and was faced with situations of being charged by a dog more than once...I always made sure my car was close enough that I could get back in. Never even occured to me to shoot or even hit someone else's dog for defending its property from a stranger. And my way of thinking, if you're on someone else's property, WITHOUT permission, doesn't matter whether you're a police officer or civilian, and you get dog bit, it's your own fault, not the dog's. Just my opinion.
http://www.mirei.com