cannabisnews.com: 'Smokeless' Medicinal Pot Has Its Advocates 





'Smokeless' Medicinal Pot Has Its Advocates 
Posted by CN Staff on June 19, 2005 at 23:21:10 PT
By Joe Garofoli, Chronicle Staff Writer
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
California -- The future of medicinal marijuana is floating in a plastic, 2-foot-long turkey roasting bag, being sucked into the lungs of grandmas and AIDS patients at cannabis dispensaries and homes across the country. The allure to the sick -- and the health-conscious looking for a cleaner high -- is that the toke is nearly smokeless.
The device that generates the smokeless drag is called a marijuana vaporizer. Medical cannabis advocates hope these devices -- which stand slightly larger than a blender and can cost close to $500 -- will help legitimize marijuana's medicinal use and take a swipe at its reputation as the devil's weed. By heating cannabis to a point where vapors are formed but before the herb combusts, a vaporizer creates a clear substance that, advocates say, is practically free of many of the toxins found in marijuana smoke. Becoming smoke-free, they hope, will make marijuana more palatable as a medicine to federal officials, scientists and regulators who are dubious about the health value of a smoked drug. "The smoke aspect is a real problem in making the case for medicinal marijuana," said Dale Gieringer, a Berkeley resident who is executive director of the California branch of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws and one of the early evangelists of vaporizing technology. The Bay Area has become the intellectual hub of vaporization -- from a just-completed UCSF study on the technology's effectiveness to Alameda County health officials' plans to allow the devices in new cannabis dispensaries. In the past two years, more than a dozen manufacturers have sprung up as vaporizers have wafted to the surface of the culture. Which explains the bumper sticker in an Oakland cannabis cooperative: "Got vape?" But federal officials and scientists involved in cannabis research aren't ready to OK firing up the devices. Snipped:Complete Article: http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/smokeless.htmSource: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)Author: Joe Garofoli, Chronicle Staff WriterPublished: Monday, June 20, 2005 - Page A - 1Copyright: 2005 San Francisco Chronicle Contact: letters sfchronicle.comWebsite: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/ California NORMLhttp://www.canorml.org/CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #41 posted by jose melendez on June 22, 2005 at 15:51:01 PT
wow max, thanks!
I've been meaning to try one for years, thanks for the review!Cannabis Vaporizer Combines Efficient Delivery of THC with Effective Suppression of Pyrolytic Compounds http://www.canorml.org/healthfacts/jcantgieringervapor.pdf http://vaporizer.overgrow.com/ http://www.TheVolcanoVaporizer.comhttp://www.vaporbrothers.com/
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Comment #40 posted by Max Flowers on June 22, 2005 at 12:12:03 PT
Vaporizers - convection is the only way
Just wanted to chime again on vaporizers since I use one every day, many times a day, and have tried basically every kind that exists. From my experience, only a convection type one works well. This means you absolutely need the hot air to be drawn through the herb. The BC vaporizer (which is not convection) is a vastly inferior design. All it is is an auto engine freeze plug wired to AC power and a glass bowl that fits on top. jfrolang, if you are satisifed with one of those, I can only conclude you have not tried any other type. No need to go to a $500 Volcano---just try a Vapor Brothers or similar and you will see, it's like night/day.I don't mean to pick on the BC type (okay maybe I do), but if there are people out there reading this and trying to decide what type to try, I don't want them to see the positive comment posted here, unrefuted, and think that they work well. They don't. They're terrible. So is the "Vapir", by the way (that one will steal $200-300 from the unwary).
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Comment #39 posted by hempologydotorg on June 21, 2005 at 12:48:47 PT:
cnn article
mastercy said: "I am just surprised they called it a Cannabis-based painkiller instead of Marijuana-based." Well, I'm surprised they didn't call it a "pot-based psychosis inducing pseudo-drug." The words pot and mj are really hard to deal with. Paul Harvey uses the word pot all the time and it really upsets me!!
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Comment #38 posted by siege on June 21, 2005 at 06:52:19 PT
 Being non-committal on drugs: it's a nasty habit
The AFL's website maintains the league has zero tolerance to performance-enhancing drugs but when it comes to illicit ones the primary focus is the "education, rehabilitation and welfare of the players".http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,15676948%255E12270,00.html
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Comment #37 posted by jose melendez on June 20, 2005 at 23:22:13 PT
NO MORE COLLATERAL DAMAGE
Indeed, the term 'marihuana' is a propaganda tool designed to demonize users of Cannabis, restrain our trade and restrict our freedoms.DSM is having the effect of dissolving (as in DMSO?) the high crimes of today's tyrannous, oppressive and corrupt leaders. I believe Joe Wilson and his wife along with Cynthia McKinney and others deserve Congressional medals of honor for standing up to MASS MURDERERS DynCorp et al. that work with the same companies that fund the Partnership for a Drug Free America in violation of antitrust laws.Even in the manual the State Department sent me to prepare for the Civil Foreign Service Exam contains evidence that energy interests were the real reason behind this latest war, just as they did in the 1930s to wage war on US over a weed by calling it the assassin of youth, when in reality more young people smoke pot than ever before such frivolous and counterproductive efforts. We should demand restitution, apologies, cleared records and free vaporizers, and settle for nothing less. Asa means hemp. Ja Guides! - - -re: http://www.kvbc.com/Global/story.asp?S=3487528&nav=15MVbAviRead on, wage peace:Begin forwarded message:From: Jose Melendez 
Date: June 21, 2005 1:58:10 AM EDT
To: njweedman yahoo.com
Subject: pierre w is freeI am still half asleep and it is nearly 2AM but I thought you would like to hear that:1. Pierre Werner is free, has not been charged federally and is confident he will beat state charges.2. I secured an attorney on retainer for the CCCCP.3. the Reverend Jonathan Adler is sending me a religious exemption for marijuanamission4. the microbrewery guy has another friend with a license to distribute beer for brandbeer.comPlease call at your convenience, I will gladly forward the packet Werner sends me, and I've now recorded two officials on the record receiving my affidavits alleging false claims act violations.I'm going back to sleep now . . .Be RastaJose Melendez
Communications Director
Concerned Citizens Coalition to Criminalize
Prohibition
http://www.CCCCP.org
888 247-8183
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Comment #36 posted by mastercy on June 20, 2005 at 22:58:35 PT
cnn article
I am just surprised they called it a Cannabis-based painkiller instead of Marijuana-based. I think that is a good thing, there is so much negative connotation associated with the word marijuana. Cannabis sounds cleaner. I think if we can get everyone to call it cannabis instead of marijuana we can end this war. Ever since its been called marijuana, (uneducated) people have feared it.And not to get too political but anyone care to share his or her comments regarding the Downing Street Memo.
peaceFamous Quote: "The runaway bride is not news."
           -anonymous-
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Comment #35 posted by jose melendez on June 20, 2005 at 22:37:07 PT
PIERRE IS FREE
 . . . and so shall Cannabis be.
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Comment #34 posted by E_Johnson on June 20, 2005 at 21:34:57 PT
Sam it's not the same
India and Pakistan had female rulers because in those societies, upper class women from powerful families can get power through their family connections. I think in India and Pakistan people will value family connections ahead of gender politically because those are more tribal-based societies than America. Benazir Bhutto is a Bhutto, and being a Bhutto is (or was) important in Pakistan, so the fact that she's a woman, it's not so important, even though in Pakistan the rights situation for women is dire overall.That being said, season 3 of the Apprentice ended up a contest between two women. I have a feeling the 2008 election could end up that way too.Otherwise it's just going to be too boring. I think people hate being bored nowadays a lot more than they hate seeing a woman President.
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Comment #33 posted by E_Johnson on June 20, 2005 at 21:19:49 PT
Vapor Genie rocks
The Vapor Genie works like a pipe, you use a lighter as the heat source, but it has a ceramic filter over the bowl that heats up and vaporizes the stuff in the bowl as you draw air through the pipe.It works amazingly well once you get used to holding the lighter in exactly the right position over the filter and drawing air at exactly the right rate.It's only around $50.It's good for situations without electricity, or when you don't want the loud noise created by a Volcano.
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Comment #32 posted by Hope on June 20, 2005 at 20:54:57 PT
The anti prohibition candidate
is the only one that would ever be assured of my vote.Enough with the dreaming...back to business.
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Comment #31 posted by Hope on June 20, 2005 at 20:51:17 PT
If every woman
that had ever had a cheating husband voted for Hilary out of nothing more than sympathy, she might win on those votes alone.No need for Hilary to get sympathy votes, though. She's obviously very competent. It irks me that she's mostly "despised" for chauvinistic reasons, if not for only chauvinistic reasons.
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Comment #30 posted by jfrolang on June 20, 2005 at 20:37:04 PT
BC Vaporizer
I know it's not the very best, but it works. Condensation is usually not a problem if you let it warm up first.. Plug it in, break up your bud into manageable servings, and by then it's ready to go.
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Comment #29 posted by whig on June 20, 2005 at 20:29:50 PT
vaporizer
The inavap was the best I found so far.
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Comment #28 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 17:23:01 PT
AP: Cannabis-Based Painkiller Available in Canada
Multiple sclerosis patients eligible for prescriptionMonday, June 20, 2005 
 TORONTO, Ontario (AP) -- A cannabis-based painkiller for multiple sclerosis patients went on sale Monday in Canada, the first country to approve the spray derived from the marijuana plant.Sativex can now be obtained by prescription through Canadian pharmacies, Bayer HealthCare announced Monday. Bayer markets the drug in Canada for British drug company GW Pharmaceuticals, which developed the drug.Health Canada, the federal agency that oversees medical care for Canadians, announced in April it had approved Sativex, made from components derived from the cannabis plant that have been shown to ease pain.http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/americas/06/20/canada.cannabis.ap/
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Comment #27 posted by charmed quark on June 20, 2005 at 16:34:06 PT
Vaporizers
Yes - it's very nice. But I understand that glass globes are not a good idea as the vapor hits the cold walls and condense. That's why the turkey roasting bag - it's thin and plastic and so doesn't cool the vapor.Do you find that this one works? If so, I'd prefer it for looks alone.
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Comment #26 posted by jfrolang on June 20, 2005 at 16:18:43 PT
vaporizers
I like the BC Vaporizer. It's compact, inexpensive and attractive!http://www.bcvaporizer.com/
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Comment #25 posted by charmed quark on June 20, 2005 at 15:12:19 PT
vaporizers
Vaproization gets out all of the active cannabinoids but may change the ratio somewhat. But they are highly recommended for frequent users. I've seen the one mentioned in the article. It apparently works very well, in fact is probably one of the best out there, but I find the design somewhat ugly. The large roaster bag used to catch the vapor is just wrong!I've yet to see a really beautiful looking design that works really well and isn't too expensive.-CQ
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Comment #24 posted by Druid on June 20, 2005 at 14:45:52 PT
 hempologydotorg
Short answer? Yes.Check out some of the testimonials for vaporizing by med patients on the OverGrow medical forum...http://www.overgrow.com/edge/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=8
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Comment #23 posted by Dankhank on June 20, 2005 at 14:42:52 PT
Vapes .
The vaporisers strip the chemicals out of the leaf and propel them into a receptacle without burning.Have heard nothing at all about anything being left behind. 
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Comment #22 posted by hempologydotorg on June 20, 2005 at 12:57:19 PT:
Do vapes really work to alleviate symptoms?
I'm not that familiar with vaporizers and was wondering if they provide all of the relief that smoked mj does. Or, does the vape take out some of the "good" stuff. Thanks! jd
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Comment #21 posted by potpal on June 20, 2005 at 12:56:23 PT
Heads up...
Cannabis drug on sale in Canadahttp://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4110948.stm The world's first cannabis-based drug has gone on sale in Canada...This century!
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Comment #20 posted by Sam Adams on June 20, 2005 at 12:45:07 PT
Condi
Condi? oooh, that sends a shiver down my spine. She almost seems even more evil than Cheney to me! Ok, just kidding, no one is more evil than Cheney.....You know, this whole one person thing as president is over-rated, why not just bring in a executive management team from Exxon/Mobil or Chevron and have them run the corporation, I mean country, by committee?A few years back, Ann Richards from Texas was considering running, I thought she would have been great. Don't underestimate how backward the US is though, I doubt we'll have a woman president anytime soon. We're lagging behind the rest of the West in the percentage of women as business execs and elected officials by a wide margin.There was also that woman from Colorado, who was being considered until she was caught on camera crying at some point, that ruined it, too soft for this "hard-on" crime country. What a pathetic state of affairs we're in right now, even Pakistan and India had female leaders, for crying out loud!
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Comment #19 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 12:44:49 PT
Oh My EJ
One thing I know is if it isn't a democrat it will be a republican and I don't know of anyone in either party that is good but heck we got Bush so what can I say.
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Comment #18 posted by E_Johnson on June 20, 2005 at 12:44:11 PT
Hilary is on our side I believe
Did anyone notice that she supported the Rockefeller Reform and has become pals with Russell Simmons?Hilary vs. Condi -- how could the public resist a matchup like that?Condi would be be the drug war's last line of defense.
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Comment #17 posted by E_Johnson on June 20, 2005 at 12:40:14 PT
What if....
What if 2008 ends up Hillary vs. Condi?Both parties are fresh out of men the public finds interesting.
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Comment #16 posted by kaptinemo on June 20, 2005 at 12:19:24 PT:
Unrelated: Big Pharma's long reach
Regulars here might recall the Prez's mental health 'initiative' (having a Freudian moment, Mr. Bush?) to identify children in 'need' of drugging; here's some more about it:'Bush: No child left undrugged'
http://www.smirkingchimp.com/article.php?sid=21601&mode=thread&order=1It's the comments about what Big Pharma was up to in Pennsylvania that are of special note.
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Comment #15 posted by Sam Adams on June 20, 2005 at 12:18:26 PT
cloud7
Thanks for the link, there are some great articles on that website. The Libertarians are riled up over the Raich case! It's good to see SOMEONE is riled up - it sure as hell isn't Al Gore or Hilary Clinton.Just as an aside - Can anyone really believe that Dems are hoping to run Hilary in 2008? What are they thinking? How many of the people that voted for Bush last year are going to switch over and vote for her? Are they nuts? I'm not saying anything bad about her, I'm just saying that Republicans think she's the anti-christ.It looks like another Repub in '08, right now I'm hoping it's McCain, although people tell me he's decided he's too old. I'm not even that familiar with him, but he seems to be willing to challenge some of sacred cows of government.
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 11:22:44 PT
BGreen 
That's so darn funny! Thanks!
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Comment #13 posted by BGreen on June 20, 2005 at 11:17:01 PT
FoM re: post #9
I told you it was impossible to try and listen to bush without that new "idiot to english" translator box you have to hook up to your TV.I had to have one implanted just because of all of the "w" bumper sticker people that live around me.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #12 posted by cloud7 on June 20, 2005 at 10:57:58 PT
Smoke for Jesus
http://www.ncc-1776.com/tle2005/tle324-20050619-02.html
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 10:55:16 PT
Thanks Sam
I really try hard to understand what our leaders are saying. GWs normal answer is we are spreading democracy around. I think how about spreading some democracy right here in the good ole USA!
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Comment #10 posted by Sam Adams on June 20, 2005 at 10:49:56 PT
Bush
FOM that's good, if everything he says sounds clear & makes perfect sense, you know you're in trouble.
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 10:29:14 PT
Off Topic: Oh My My My
I am listening to Bush on tv and he makes me feel so scatter brained because I don't understand one thing he is saying!
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 09:36:56 PT
Thanks Hope
That makes sense.
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Comment #7 posted by Hope on June 20, 2005 at 09:35:48 PT
FoM....Kap's Threads
He's talking about the threads in the fabric of the curtain of lies the anti's hide behind. Not internet threads.
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Comment #6 posted by Sam Adams on June 20, 2005 at 08:57:42 PT
This is how they do it
Great article:http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2005/06/20/fewer_places_where_everybody_knows_your_name/Just like the anti-union governments in Great Britain that closed pubs on weekends to keep laborers from organizing in the early 1900's, today's US governments are exploting the growing intolerance in this country to achieve their ends. They want everyone at home, alone, watching televsion that will program them to lust after material goods only. When there's no community, it's much easier to stigmatize one class of people. When all you see is network television, you'll believe that their are evil potheads out there, every one of them slowly turning into violent crackheads. You'll actually believe that high school parking lots are full of lurking men in trenchcoats, luring the vulnerable kids into smoking the devil weed. Bob said, "let's get together and everything will be alright" and that's exactly what the government doesn't want. 
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Comment #5 posted by Sam Adams on June 20, 2005 at 08:53:25 PT
the State
I'm so glad all these "experts" are wringing their hands & worrying whether there are enough studies to "allow" us to vaporize. Idiots! Did they forget that every man and woman can think for themselves? How many of the people quoted in the article make their salary directly off US taxpayers, or on federal research funds that come from US tax dollars?  Their system has clearly broken down. Their belief that withholding common-sense herbal medicine from hundreds of thousands of sick people for decades is fair and good science is a disgusting perversion of mankind's innate intelligence and self-determination, the gifts that enabled us to walk forth out of the jungle, leaving rest of monkeys behind in the trees.I'm not sure what's worse, a brute thug that handcuffs a sick person, or these people. I can understand the thug, with his puny intellect, he's not good for many other types of work. These people claim to make a living off their superior brainpower. What a disgrace.I'd like to address a statement to the Establishment and the State that rules us, quoting Charlton Heston, I hold my vaporizer aloft: "Out of my cold, dead HANDS!"The sad thing about the police state is that even though we're still able to vaporize the herb, we're still forced to pay the taxes that fund these parasites. They've got us by the balls, and most people don't even realize it.
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on June 20, 2005 at 07:59:12 PT
kaptinemo
Just a question. Where do threads get pulled?
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Comment #3 posted by kaptinemo on June 20, 2005 at 04:37:06 PT:
The media is 'getting it' , again
When the antis changed their tack from "No such thing as medical marijuana!" to "No such things as SMOKED medical marijuana!" they thought they were being clever. They cleverd themselves right into another trap. Vaporization. We told them about it. They ignored it. But now the media is waking up to this 'latest' (been around for at least a decade) means of safe usage of an equally safe medicine. How many more threads get pulled before the holes we see in their curtain of lies become visible to the public? Right here, we have a good idea. A big one has just opened.
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Comment #2 posted by WolfgangWylde on June 20, 2005 at 03:18:44 PT
Sativex presents an interesting...
...case. Because it is, in essence, a liquid bong hit (even gets the user high like the "bud" equivalent) it will be almost impossible to get it approved in the U.S. Of course, with one of the Drug Czar's minions lobbying for it, they might have a chance. But then how does the Gov't argue that liquid pot IS mediicine, but the home-grown variety is not?
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on June 19, 2005 at 23:38:04 PT
Press Release from Canada NewsWire
Sativex - Novel Cannabis Derived Treatment for MS Pain Now Available in Canada by Prescription  
Monday - June 20, 2005
 
 TORONTO, June 20 /CNW/ - Sativex(R) (Cannabis sativa L. extract), the only adjunctive treatment for symptomatic relief of neuropathic pain in adults with multiple sclerosis (MS), is now available in Canada. The novel treatment can now be obtained by prescription through Canadian pharmacies. In April 2005, Canada became the first country in the world to approve Sativex, an effective and safe cannabis derived prescription medicine.
 http://press.arrivenet.com/bus/article.php/655896.html
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