cannabisnews.com: Patient Praises Marijuana Patient Praises Marijuana Posted by CN Staff on March 24, 2004 at 09:15:17 PT By Naseem Sowti Source: Central Florida Future At first glace, Irvin Rosenfeld, a man of small stature and delicate features, seems as healthy as the young college students attending his speech Wednesday at the Student Union Key West Ballroom. The 51-year-old stockbroker is dressed in a sharp gray suit and speaks with such enthusiasm that it feels contagious.But a small pin on the left lapel of his suit invites curiosity; it displays a marijuana leaf sitting on a red cross. Even more interesting is what lies beneath that pin, in the inside pocket of his jacket - a dozen nicely rolled marijuana cigarettes in a plastic bag. As Rosenfeld pulls out the bag and holds it in his hand, some envious - almost hungry - students stare with their mouths half open, wondering if they will ever have such freedom. Rosenfeld is no law enforcement agent, and the cigarettes do not come from the streets. He is a legal medical marijuana patient, and the federal government sends him the cigarettes. He receives a tin can of almost 300 marijuana cigarettes per month and smokes up to 12 per day. Moreover, he has permission to smoke marijuana anywhere he pleases.Rosenfeld was born with a rare bone disorder called multiple congenital cartilaginous exostoses, which is characterized by bony protrusions (tumors), often occurring on the long bones of the body. One of these tumors has joined the tibia and fibula - the long bones of the lower leg - of his right leg, causing him to walk with a slight limp. Pointing to another protrusion at his wrist, Rosenfeld explains that the pressure these tumors exert against the surrounding muscles and veins makes his condition very painful. The tumors can also rupture nearby veins, causing internal bleeding, which could dislodge in the form of blood clots and become fatal.No cure for this condition exists and patients are usually prescribed pain medication. Rosenfeld, on the other hand, stopped using those painkillers more than 21 years ago and has been using marijuana instead. Marijuana acts as a muscle relaxant and an anti-inflammatory agent in his body, alleviating the pain and pressure caused by the tumors. "Because of this medicine, I am a working member of society and a tax payer," Rosenfeld said.Rosenfeld is one of only seven medical marijuana patients left in the United States. The medical marijuana movement started in 1976 when Robert Randall persuaded a federal court in Washington that his use of marijuana to treat his glaucoma was a medical necessity. At the same time, he petitioned the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for permission to use marijuana legally. In November of 1976, Randall became the first person in modern U.S. history to obtain legal and medical access to marijuana. In 1983, Rosenfeld became the second.Rosenfeld's embrace of marijuana represents a turnaround. He was an advocate against marijuana in high school. He stood strong by his position for the first few semesters of college at the University of Miami until he realized that he would have a hard time finding "buddies" unless he succumbed to smoking a joint. "I never got a 'high' from the stuff though," Rosenfeld said. "I kept thinking, 'This is junk!'"However, he observed a change in his body after smoking marijuana. Due to his condition, he could not sit or stand for long periods of time and had to switch between the two positions every 10 minutes. After smoking a marijuana cigarette, he found he could sit for long periods without feeling any stiffness or pain, and he could stand for longer periods as well.After his discovery, he immediately contacted his physician and started doing extensive research on the positive effects of marijuana. They finally sent the results of their research to the FDA and at the same time met with Randall. After years of legal battles, Rosenfeld won the right to smoke marijuana for the benefits it offered his health.By the early '90s, a few others had gained legal access to marijuana as medicine, and Randall had established the Marijuana AIDS Research Service to help AIDS patients gain access to medical marijuana. However, the federal government abruptly shut the medical marijuana programs down. Only Randall and seven other early patients were grandfathered in and continued to receive legal medical marijuana. Randall succumbed to AIDS in 2001, leaving Rosenfeld the oldest patient of this program.There has been much debate about medicinal marijuana. Marijuana is not a single drug. Rather, it is a mixture of the dried flowering tops and leaves from the plant cannabis sativa and is a variable and complex mixture of biologically active compounds. However, Cannabis sativa is a very adaptive plant, so its characteristics are more variable than most plants. This feature is one of the leading causes of inconsistency and uncertainty in scientific reports and research done with marijuana.Marijuana contains more than 400 chemicals, 60 of which are called cannabinoids. THC is the main psychoactive cannabinoid in marijuana and is also the most thoroughly researched compound in this plant. In 1985, the FDA approved dronabinol (Marinol) - a synthetic form of THC - for treatment of nausea and vomiting associated with cancer chemotherapy. However, there is still debate regarding the differences between the effects of the crude plant and the pure constituents like THC. Controlled studies also have been conducted to further understand the positive effects of marijuana on appetite stimulation, neurological and movement disorders, pain relief and glaucoma, but none have been done using the crude plant.Extensive research also has been done on the negative effects of smoked marijuana. According to the FDA, National Institute of Health and the National Institute of Drug Abuse, marijuana can have adverse affects on the brain, heart, lungs, immune system and unborn fetuses. Rosenfeld still opposes social use of marijuana. "It is my tax money that is wasted arresting someone with possession charges," he said. On the other hand, he is on a mission to bring awareness of its medicinal use to people; his visit to UCF was sponsored by the campus chapter of NORML, the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws. "The problem is that the government has not done any studies for marijuana," Rosenfeld said. "If we can change the laws, marijuana can be used medicinally."About 3.1 million Americans use marijuana on a daily or almost daily basis over a 12-month period, a recent survey by National Institute of Drug Abuse estimated; however, since 1992 no one has been allowed to prescribe it as medicine. Source: Central Florida Future (Orlando, FL Edu)Author: Naseem SowtiPublished: Monday, March 22, 2004 Copyright: 2004 Central Florida FutureWebsite: http://www.ucffuture.com/Contact: http://www.ucffuture.com/main.cfm?include=submitRelated Articles & Web Site:UCF NORMLhttp://www.normlucf.org/Rosenfeld Receives Marijuana from Governmenthttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17947.shtmlMan Travels With Pot, His Medicinehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread15895.shtmlStockbroker Using Uncle Sam's MMJ for 20 Yearshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14794.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #14 posted by Richard Paul Zuckerm on March 26, 2004 at 17:41:10 PT: A CAUSE OF ACTION FOR RETALIATION. A cause of action in the United States known as RETALIATION, means that the government punishes somebody for exercising protected constitutional rights. It is more common than Americans believe!! Some courts have upheld a lawsuit against the government for Retaliation EVEN WHEN THE GOVERNMENT HAD PROBABLE CAUSE FOR ARREST!! I am suing cops, in Middlesex County, New Jersey; After I refused to produce identification, Highland Park policemen arrested me and fabricated a "disorderly conduct" charge. A couple of weeks ago, Judge Stroumtsos, (Telephone number)(732) 981-3102, ordered the lawyer representing the cops to deliver the police personnel files and police department rules and regulations to his judge's chambers for an in camera hearing to determine what I am entitled to receive in pre-trial discovery. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by kaptinemo on March 26, 2004 at 04:54:08 PT: Sorry it's not a straight link But if you copy-and-paste it into the browser address block, you'll go straight to it.Otherwise, just go to this page: http://c-span.org/search/basic.asp?ResultStart=1&ResultCount=10&BasicQueryText=Souderand click on the top link. It leads to the same place. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by kaptinemo on March 26, 2004 at 04:50:10 PT: Souder on C-SPAN Here's the link: rtsp://video.c-span.org/15days/wj032404_souder.rm [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by billos on March 25, 2004 at 13:02:32 PT: Yes, these quotes are..... almost verbatim. I was typing as he spoke. Some of the quotes may be interpreted differently because the gist of the subject is elusive. But it is damn close to what he said. [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by fearfull on March 25, 2004 at 12:40:36 PT billos Take a step back and look at a couple of these quotes...it makes me wonder ..did he really say "We will never win the WoD." or "Alcohol and cigarettes are the gateway drugs to marijuana." If so then just maybe there is hope yet. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by billos on March 25, 2004 at 09:59:04 PT: Some of Souders quotes from yesterday,............ “Most marijuana comes from Columbia and Mexico. We need aggressive programs in schools. If we can win the WoD there will be less violence, 80% of all crime is alcohol or drug related. We will never win the WoD. Constant effort will keep the problem at a minimum, then we clean up by treating the users. War on Terrorism includes the WoD. We have made great strides in Bolivia and Peru. 463 million for the DEA..3 mil for eradication, 150 for institutional training, and a chunk for interdiction. Equador is the next target of WoD Alcohol and cigarettes are the gateway drugs to marijuana. Marijuana is very dangerous when over used. It is a very inaccurate statistic when they say drug use is up. Marijuana is the #1 gateway drug.And when asked how they can justify the new DUID laws when MJ stays in one’s sytem longer but doesn’t mean the person is impaired, “Marijuana impacts your system much longer than alcohol.The man is an idiot... [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by The GCW on March 24, 2004 at 14:53:33 PT POLL http://www.ucffuture.com/main.cfm?include=submitShould the U.S. government legalize medicinal marijuana? Yes No No opinion [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by BigDawg on March 24, 2004 at 14:09:39 PT E_J Wise words indeed. Interesting comparisons... and spot on IMHO.Thanks for sharing. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by afterburner on March 24, 2004 at 13:57:38 PT: Wise Words, E_J Fear of hippie, fear of being a hippie, demeans the spiritual blessings, the social blessings, the nutritional blessings, and the medical blessings of cannabis. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by E_Johnson on March 24, 2004 at 13:14:35 PT Think about it 1970s feminists struggling to prove they aren't lesbians.MPP struggling to prove they aren't hippies.Irv Rosenfeld struggling to prove he's not a pothead sympathizer.It's all about fear and internalized abuse.In reality, people can't grow beyond oppression without facing these fears and rejecting this internalization.It is the hatred of the hippie that keeps us in chains.If we encourage that hatred by refusing to confront it openly, we are only the losers in that transaction. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by E_Johnson on March 24, 2004 at 13:09:24 PT More thoughts on the hippie subject too The "Lavender Purge" as it is referred to by some today did not help the women's movement at all.It only hurt the movement, and it created some very bitter feelings that lasted well into the 90s.What the women were really doing was internalizing abuse from society. They purged lesbians because they were afraid of feminists looking unfeminine. They themselves were afraid to step out of their own mindset because of the possibility of social abuse, and they projected the fear on the women they believed aroused those fears in society -- the lesbians.A similar thing is going on in this movement over the wearing of suits and the not wanting to look like a hippie.Hippies didn't cause marijuana prohibition any more than lesbians caused discimrination against women.But both groups are socially attacked groups -- and those attacks arouse fear.The easiet way around fear is to cave into it.It's not the best way but it is the easiest.If I were Keith Stroup and the MPP I would deliberately hire long haired hippies to lobby Congress.Neatly dressed of course. Even hippies can dress up.But I don't expect those men to be anything other than cautious, given the amount of violence being thrown at our community and given the amount of fear we do have to deal with. [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by E_Johnson on March 24, 2004 at 12:59:14 PT BigDawg Back int he 1970s when the women's movement first started up, feminists thought they had to get credibility by proving they were not far outside the mainstream.One thing they did that was really despicable was to go on a witch hunt for lesbians in the movement and purge them from women's rights organizations.Nowadays nobody would do that, because gay human rights are an accepted idea in the mainstream.But back in the 1970s, to prove your credibility in the issue of rights for women, you had to prove you weren't a lesbian, and prove you supported the idea of discriminating against lesbians, by discriminating against them in the movement.Rosenfeld has to prove he's not a "drug legalizer".It's called bowing to social pressure, it happens in every social movement in the early stages.I suppose he is still living in the early stages of this one. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by ekim on March 24, 2004 at 10:14:55 PT Rep Souder was on C-Span mis informing the people For 30 minutes today. It was painfull to watch as he said every country that had had cannabis laws were backing away from them. He never mentioned Canada, Berlin, Brazil, UK, Aust,ect ect. I wish that when someone who has such Power over life and death of us citizens is on C-Span that it is mandtory that a counter view point must be given. Irvin Rosenfeld must respond to the Porter bill. How long has Irvin been driving. A close friend just got fired as the Matrix picked up on the fact that 8 years ago the person had been stopped and a roach was in the car. The employer just changed there regs. as to anyone that has been arrested for illegal drugs. It was a misdemeanor but the employer does not make any distinctions.How many millions have been arrested http://www.mmdetroit.org [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by BigDawg on March 24, 2004 at 09:39:27 PT I'm not sure what I think about this artical It is good that it gets the medical cannabis message out in a strong way, but at the end he says he is against social use.Does he, as an experienced smoker, think that his tax dollars are being wisely spent locking up recreational users? He MUST know how relatively benign cannabis is compared to other rec drugs like alcohol and cigs.I don't get it.... [ Post Comment ] Post Comment