C A N N A B I S:

 

MEDICAL REALITY

 

VERSUS

 

AUTHORITARIAN BRUTALITY

 

by Ian Williams Goddard

 

Of all governmental outrages, perhaps none is as

illogical, tyrannical, inhumane and fallacy founded

as is the prohibition of the god-given herb cannabis,

also know as "marijuana."

 

With a referendum for medical cannabis access on the

ballot in California, politicians are back in the news

claiming once again that cannabis has NO medical value

and thus access to it must be barred by force. The fol-

lowing freely flowing fountain of facts lays this gov-

ernment funded pharmacological fraud to rest forever.

 

CANNABIS: THE MEDICAL REALITY

 

Classified by the DEA as a "Schedule One" drug, can-

nabis is defined as extremely dangerous possessing

NO MEDICAL VALUE. This classification stands in

sharp contradiction to the medical reality.

 

A Brief History of Medical Cannabis

 

For thousands of years prior to its prohibition in

the 20th century, cannabis was used as a medicine

throughout the world [1]. During the 19th century,

sold by major drug companies such as Eli Lilly,

Squibb, Parke-Davis, Smith Brothers, and Tildens,

the potent extract of cannabis was one of the

top three most prescribed medical agents in the

United States [2] [3].

 

Until the 1937 Marijuana Tax Act, cannabis, being a

powerful topical analgesic, muscle relaxant, anti-

inflammatory, and anti-spasmodic agent, was found

in virtually all fistulas, corn and mustard plasters,

muscle ointments, and fibrosis poultices [3].

 

UNITED STATES PHARMACOPEIA listed cannabis until

1942 [4], after which it was removed under political

pressure. The U.S. PHARMACOPEIA recommended cannabis

for the treatment of over 100 illnesses, such as:

fatigue, fits of coughing, rheumatism, asthma,

delirium tremens, migraine headaches, and the cramps

and depression associated with menstruation [3].

 

UNITED STATES DISPENSATORY [5] also listed cannabis

as a useful medicine. The 1851 edition states:

 

The complaints in which it [cannabis] has

been specially recommended are neuralgia,

gout, rheumatism, tetanus, hyrdophobia,

epidemic cholera, convulsions, chorea,

hysteria, mental depression, delirium

tremens, insanity and uterine hemorrhage.

 

In 1890, Dr. J. Russell Reynolds, Fellow of the Royal

Society and the Physician in Order to Her Majesty's

Household, stated in the journal LANCET that cannabis

is ``one of the most valuable medicines we possess [4].''

He prescribed cannabis to Queen Victoria for PMS [3].

 

In 1898 Sir William Osler, Professor of Medicine at the

University of Oxford, stated that for migraine headaches,

cannabis ``is probably the most satisfactory remedy [6].''

 

The 1931 medical text, A MODERN HERBAL [7], states:

 

The principal use of Hemp in medicine is

for easing pain and inducing sleep, and for

soothing influences in nervous disorders.

It is useful in neuralgia, gout, rheumatism,

delirium tremens, insanity, infantile

convulsions, insomnia, etc.

 

The tincture helps parturition, and is used

in senile catarrh, gonorrhea, menorrhagia,

chronic cystitis and painful urinary

affections. An infusion of the seed is useful

in after pains and prolapsus uteri. The resin

may be combined with ointments [ to remedy ]

inflammatory and neuralgic complaints.

 

The "no known medical value" claim looks like yet

another govt Big Lie. However, as the text continues,

we can see that cannabis does have an "evil" downside:

 

It can produce an exhilarating intoxication...

hence its names ... 'increaser of pleasure,'

'cementer of friendship,' etc. [ god forbid ]

 

Medical Cannabis: the 20th Century

 

During the 20th century cannabis has been discovered

to be an effective treatment for many more ailments.

For example, based on major research, Dr. Van Sim

concluded that ``marijuana ... is probably the most

potent anti-epileptic known to medicine today [8].''

More powerful than standard anti-epileptic drugs,

cannabis totally eliminated epileptic seizures in

children not responding to legal drug therapies [9].

 

But of course, as our benevolent Drug Czars remind us,

healing the sick and aiding those who suffer could

"send the wrong message to children." Let the children

suffer and seizure in silence, just don't kill our

prison proliferating pot prohibition pogrom.

 

Dr. Robert Hepler, neuro-opthalmologist with the Jules

Stein Eye Institute at UCLA, published a major study

in the JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION

in 1971 demonstrating that cannabis lowers intraocular

pressure in the eyes [10]. Glaucoma, a leading cause

of blindness, is a condition in which intraocular

pressures build up causing optical damage. Cannabis

has been proven to reduce these pressures far better

than legal drugs, allowing glaucoma patients to keep

their vision so long as they use cannabis regularly.

 

Several of the eight patients who legally receive

cannabis from the govt under the compassionate IND

program do so for the treatment of glaucoma. Yet,

thanks to cannabis prohibition and the fact that no

more patients will be allowed into the compassionate

IND program, most glaucoma patients will be forced by

law to slowly go blind, all in the name of keeping

peaceful and productive people in prison.

 

Research at the Harvard Medical School published in

the NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE [11] demonstrated

conclusively that cannabis is the most effective anti-

emetic, or anti-nausea, agent available. It has been

used in this regard to eliminate the violent nausea

and vomiting experienced by cancer patents undergoing

chemotherapy. Cancer ward workers have been known to

turn a blind-eye on cannabis smoking in the hospital.

 

Based on extensive anecdotal evidence, cannabis, with

its known appetite-stimulating effects -- described by

users as "getting the munchies" -- is known to counter

the "wasting syndrome" of full-blown AIDS. During this

syndrome an AIDS patient, loosing all appetite, quickly

loses weight in a free-fall to death. In case after

case, AIDS patients have totally reversed their weight

loss with the use of cannabis, snatching them from the

quickly closing jaws of death, giving them a powerful

fighting edge over this devastating disease.

 

Yet the Department of Health and Human Services, which

oversees the compassionate IND program, chose to slam

the door on hope by ending this program after receiving

a flood of cannabis-access requests from AIDS patients.

 

The DEA and other agencies funded studies at the

Medical College of Virginia looking for evidence that

cannabis causes health problems. Instead of finding

problems, the researchers made a breakthrough when

they discovered in 1975 that cannabis showed powerful

anti-tumor activity against both benign and malignant

tumors. The DEA and NIH quickly defunded the studies

and prohibited any future cannabis/tumor research [3].

 

In 1988 the DEA's own conservative judge, Francis

Young, after hearing medical testimony for 15 days

and reviewing hundreds of DEA and NIDA documents that

argued against medical cannabis, concluded that [3]:

 

``Marijuana is one of the safest therapeutically

active substances know to man.''

 

Nevertheless, even in light of the overwhelming body

of evidence proving beyond doubt that cannabis is

medically safe and effective, DEA Director John Lawn

ignored Judge Young's advice and decreed that cannabis

remain classified as a Schedule One drug -- extremely

harmful and useless. This official classification is

a pharmacological fraud fodded off by govt force.

 

The medical wisdom of the ages and hope for the future

crushed under the brute-force of tyrannical govt power.

That is the face of tyranny. Let the sick and blind

suffer and slowly die that the police state, its

bloated bureaucrats and people-pulverizing prisons

might prosper and proliferate like a plague. Such

is the victory of evil over good.

 

************************************************************************

IAN GODDARD (igoddard@erols.com) Q U E S T I O N A U T H O R I T Y

------------------------------------------------------------------------

VISIT Ian Goddard's Universe -----> http://www.erols.com/igoddard ________________________________________________________________________

--------REFERENCES-------------------------------------------------

 

[1] Marijuana: The First 12,000 Years, Plenum Press, 1980.

[2] Marijuana: Medical Papers, Medi-Comp Press, 1973.

[3] The Emperor Wears No Cloths, Queen of Clubs Pub, 1991.

[4] The Consumers Union Report: Licit Illicit Drugs,

p. 405. Consumers Union, Mt Vernon, New York, 1971.

[5] United States Depensitory. 9th ed., 1851, p. 310-311.

[6] Principles and Practice of Medicine, D. Appleton, 1916.

[7] A Modern Herbal, Dover Publications, 1931, reprinted 1971.

[8] The Great Drug War, Macmillan Publishing, 1987.

[9] FEDERATION PROCEEDINGS, "Antiepileptic Action

of Marijuana-Active Substances," 1949, 8: 284-5.

[10] JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION, "Marijuana

Smoking and Intraocular Pressure," 1971 Sep 6;217(10):1392.

[11] NEW ENGLAND JOURNAL OF MEDICINE, "Antiemetic Effects

of Delta-9-Tetrohydrocannabinol in Patients Receiving

Cancer Chemotherapy," 1975, 293:795-7.

 

For more info on medical uses of cannabis visit:

 

http://www.natlnorml.org/medical/medmj.studies.shtml