WHY STATES SHOULD NOT LEGALIZE MARIJUANA FOR MEDICAL OR RECREATIONAL USE

                                                                                    By Roger Morgan

Legal Ramifications

Article VI of the United States Constitution states “…This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States which shall be made in Pursuance thereof; and all Treaties made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land; and the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing in the Constitution of Laws of any State to the Contrary notwithstanding.  The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirmation, to support this Constitution.”  (Form and spelling as originally stated in Article VI, United States Constitution, adopted Sept. 17, 1787). 

• States that already have passed laws authorizing the possession and distribution of marijuana for medical purposes are in conflict with federal law that prohibits such possession and distribution of this controlled substance. 

• State legislators, having taken an Oath or Affirmation to support the U.S. Constitution, should carefully consider the ethical and legal considerations for enacting a statue in conflict with the U.S. Constitution.

Marijuana As a Medicine

The Federal Drug Administration (FDA) is the clearing house for drugs in the United States.  They employ scientifically validated methods to ascertain the medical efficacy and safety of all new drugs and medical devices submitted for approval.  They have not approved smoked marijuana for medical use, but they have approved at least two pharmaceutical forms of cannabinoids, Dronabinol and Nabilone, synthetic versions of the active therapeutic agent, THC, found naturally in botanical marijuana.  Both have been approved for a decade or more.

In 1999, at the request of the federal government, the prestigious Institute of Medicine (IOM) conducted a review of medical marijuana.  The IOM review concluded that, although marijuana contains substances that appear to provide therapeutic benefits, the risks imposed by the toxic delivery system i.e., smoking, outweigh the benefits.  They concluded also that additional research should be undertaken to develop safer and more effective methods for delivering the therapeutic benefits of cannabinoids, such as in pill form.  This is fully consistent with the evolution of most drugs which had their humble beginning in a plant or animal species. 

No elected official or public servant can ignore the enormous social and health consequences that marijuana use imposes on the people of this country, particularly children, who are much more vulnerable to harm and addiction.  Marijuana ranks third, after alcohol-in combination with cocaine, in numbers of persons admitted to hospitals each year as a result of drug-induced acute emergency episodes.  Nearly 88,000 of the over 195,000 people in treatment for marijuana are children, and more young people are in treatment for marijuana that any other drug.  (2001 CASA study, Shoveling Up, Columbia University).

• Smoked marijuana has no medicinal value.  Those who promote it to assist desperately ill people reveal their true intent to legalize marijuana for recreational use by opposing the further development of safe and effective cannabinoids-based, laboratory engineered medicines, that would reduce or eliminate the dangerous hallucinogenic side effects of crude marijuana. 

There are medicines already on the market that are FDA approved that are considered safe and more effective.

• Legislators and public opinion are ill equipped to circumvent medical science.  The Pure Food and Drug Act, passed by legislative action in the year 1906, was established as a result of bogus medicines or nostrums purporting to cure just about every illness. Many of these so called medicines contained large amounts of opium, morphine, coca, and/or alcohol.  Unregulated testimonials by patients, phony doctors and professors provided spurious claims of cures and false hopes based on the intoxicating effects of these mixtures, and not on their medical efficacy.  The same holds true today for those who claim smoked marijuana is a medicine, offering no scientific evidence to support the claim.  The FDA has served our country well, evaluating drugs with the best known science, to determine what is and is not an acceptable drug.   Legislators and/or public opinion should not circumvent the experts. 

• Because marijuana is not an FDA-approved drug, it carries no authorized labeling.  States that have passed these unconstitutional acts often are unable to prevent physicians from recommending the drug for certain off label uses, such as stress, that are little more than subterfuges for sanctioned recreational use.

• Suggesting marijuana has medicinal value sends the wrong message to young people.  Perception of harm is a big reason why children do not use drugs.  Suggesting marijuana is a medicine implies to young people that it is good, not bad, and therefore encourages its use. 

Who Is Pushing For Legalization Anyway?

In all probability, it isn’t people from within the states where the legalization effort is being pushed.  The billionaires, which we refer to as the domestic Axis Of Evil, George Soros, Peter Lewis and John Sperling are behind the effort to legalize drugs in this country.  The provide a major part of the funding for the Medical Marijuana Project, The Drug Policy Alliance and other organizations whose sole aim is to legalize drugs.  Referring to marijuana cigarettes as medicine is a cruel hoax, as it has does not have any medicinal value and causes more harm than good.   Promoting smoked marijuana to relieve the pain and suffering of the chronically ill, when there are FDA approved alternatives that don’t cause harm, is a marketing ploy that appeals to the compassion of Americans.   In almost all states where medical marijuana has been approved, it has been because of substantial financial investments by the Axis and because of political contributions to legislators.  Be careful it doesn’t happen in your state.

The Harmful Effects of Marijuana

Marijuana stifles motivation; retards the maturation process; adversely affects short term memory and one’s ability to learn; enhances the onset of mental illness; is very high in cancer causing agents; adversely affects reproductive organs and has a multitude of other negative physiological effects.  The scientific explanations for the effect of marijuana include the following:

• Marijuana causes changes in brain chemistry, by hindering the neurotransmitter chemical that triggers various signals throughout the nervous system. 

• Marijuana alters mood and behavior.  It leads to difficulty in concentration, attention to detail and learning.  It also impairs true perception as well as short term memory.  Recent studies suggest that what people learn while they are using marijuana is forgotten when the person is not using marijuana. 

• Marijuana increases the work of the heart.  The changes in heart rate and blood pressure are the same as those found in a person under high stress.

• Marijuana is much higher in tar and carcinogens, and is much more detrimental to the lungs, than tobacco.  It has a much more adverse affect on the upper airways (i.e. sinuses and larynx) and can cause lung, head and neck cancer.

• Marijuana decreases blood flow to the limbs, which in extreme cases may require amputation.

• Marijuana reduces the number and quality of sperm and may damage their mobility, thus adversely affecting fertility.

• Marijuana is a carcinogen and adversely affects the immune system.  (Which should be of concern to an AIDS patient.)

• Marijuana stays in one’s system for up to thirty days, and is a contributing factor to many vehicular accidents caused by drugged driving.

The level of marijuana use by children and adolescents is very alarming, and certainly a barrier to academic achievement in our middle and high schools.  

Responsibility To Protect; To Manage Tax Dollars

The federal government has the primary responsibility to protect its citizens from harm, but governments at all levels share that responsibility. 

Currently, over 24,000 people die per annum from drug-induced causes, and an approximately 60,000 die from drug-induced and drug related causes.  9.4% of the adult population is drug or alcohol dependent; over 5 million Americans are raising their grandchildren; approximately one-third of high school students use alcohol and drugs regularly; and on the average,  states spent $81.3 billion on substance abuse, 99% of which was spent on the aftermath of substance abuse in justice, health care, education, welfare, child/family care and mental health (CASA 2001 Shoveling Up Study), and only 1% on prevention.  This is horrible economic policy and leaves the role of States to protect its people unfulfilled. 

Almost all problems of substance abuse originate with children and adolescents, 11 to 17 years old, starting with alcohol, tobacco and marijuana.  All three are considered gateway drugs, and all three are extremely dangerous in their own right.   Approving marijuana for any use will escalate its use by young people, which in turn will escalate the down stream levels of death, destruction and economic.

Smoked marijuana is a dangerous drug, has no medical value, and should not be approved for any use.

Roger D. Morgan

Californians For Drug-Free Schools

(619) 475 9941/475 9942 Fax