cannabisnews.com: Seeds of U.S. Pot Debate Were Sown in State Seeds of U.S. Pot Debate Were Sown in State Posted by CN Staff on July 20, 2005 at 05:14:42 PT By Eric Bailey, Times Staff Writer Source: Los Angeles Times California has long been at the center of the medical marijuana debate. In June, the state drew attention after a U.S. Supreme Court decision denied two California women protection against federal prosecution for using medicinal cannabis.Fallout from the court case has been widespread. Some dispensaries shut down growing operations, and supporters held protests. Question: When did the controversy over medical marijuana begin?Answer: For years an accepted part of Western medicine, cannabis has been out of the mainstream since the 1930s. But in recent decades, marijuana reemerged as an alternative therapy, particularly among AIDS patients, who said it helped stem the wasting effects of the disease.The biggest shift toward public acceptance came in 1996, when California voters approved Proposition 215 with 56% of the vote. The measure made it legal for doctors to recommend marijuana to patients with serious illnesses. But the measure conflicted with federal law, which prohibits the use of cannabis for any purpose other than scientific research.Opponents said the measure would invite abuse of a drug that had not been proved medically effective and would create confusion for law enforcement.But the state's voters decided otherwise, igniting a trend. Nine other states have also legalized medical marijuana. Q: What did the Supreme Court do?Snipped:Complete Article: http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/seeds.htmSource: Los Angeles Times (CA) Author: Eric Bailey, Times Staff WriterPublished: July 20, 2005Copyright: 2005 Los Angeles TimesContact: letters latimes.comWebsite: http://www.latimes.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Angel Raich v. Ashcroft Newshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/raich.htmState Resumes Medical Marijuana ID Programhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20974.shtmlCalifornia Resumes Medical Marijuana Programhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20972.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #10 posted by Hope on July 20, 2005 at 16:00:45 PT Post 7 Actually, hemp fed cows might produce something more akin to natural human milk. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by FoM on July 20, 2005 at 15:28:02 PT DPA Press Release California Patient Program Resumes After ACLU and Alliance Threaten LawsuitWednesday, July 20, 2005On July 17, 2005, California's Department of Health Services declared that it would promptly restart and expand its medical marijuana registration card program after suspending it on July 8, 2005. In the wake of the suspension, the American Civil Liberties Union and the Alliance sent a letter to the Governor and the Department demanding that the Schwarzenegger administration reinstate the program in compliance with state law. The Alliance and ACLU threatened to take the Governor to court as early as July 19 for violating the state constitution unless his administration restarted the program. The Department claimed that the program was halted in response to the Raich Supreme Court decision last month which reaffirmed the federal government's authority to prosecute medical marijuana patients. California Health Director Sandra Shewry expressed concern about possible risk of arrest for state employees who administered the medical marijuana ID program. The state Attorney General's office responded to the health department's concerns with an opinion explaining that the issuance of state ID cards could not be considered a violation of federal law. "California's reinstatement of the card program puts to rest any lingering doubts about the continued validity of state medical marijuana laws," said Allen Hopper, an attorney with the ACLU. The identification card program started in May in three counties, and is scheduled to expand to the entire state in August. The registration program, which is voluntary, provides cards to help patients more easily demonstrate that they possess marijuana legally if they are stopped by state or local law enforcement. Hawai'i, Oregon and Alaska all reaffirmed their commitments to their medical marijuana programs in the wake of the Raich decision, and with the card program reinstatement California has joined them. The Alliance's Director of Legal Affairs, Dan Abrahamson, said, "The Department of Health Services made the right decision and did so quickly. I commend the Department for its commitment to protect patients, and its decision to expand the ID program statewide. The Department's program could soon become a model for other states and even the entire nation." http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/072005mmjidcards.cfm [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by FoM on July 20, 2005 at 15:26:33 PT DPA Press Release Mourning for Activist Brings Attention to Government's War on PatientsWednesday, July 20, 2005Carrying a coffin draped in black around Capitol Hill, protesters joined groups across the nation on Tuesday in mourning the loss of medical marijuana advocate Steve McWilliams. McWilliams took his own life on his fifty-first birthday, July 12, 2005. He overdosed on pain medication while awaiting sentencing to federal prison for running a small marijuana cooperative, Shelter from the Storm, for patients suffering from terminal and highly painful medical conditions. McWilliams was well known in the San Diego area as one of the primary proponents of the city’s officially recognized system of marijuana distribution to patients with a doctor’s prescription.The march was “to honor the life and activism of medical marijuana warrior, Steve McWilliams,” said Caren Woodson of Americans for Safe Access. “He spent his life getting people to realize they have the power to change and improve their lives if they join together and speak.”In addition to using the coffin to draw attention to McWilliams’ death, protestors carried banners and placards in front of the Department of Health and Human Services, the House of Representatives office buildings, the Supreme Court and the Senate office buildings.At each stage of the journey protestors observed a 30-second moment of silence and then read passages from McWilliams’ suicide note. In it, he stated that the pain he suffered was too overpowering, but that he hoped his death would call attention to the federal government’s campaign against patients in states that have approved physician-prescribed marijuana. “Direct-action protests such as this march and vigil on Capitol Hill are critical to raising the level of confrontation our movement needs,” said participant Eric Sterling, President of the Criminal Justice Policy Foundation and drug policy reform advocate. http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/072005mcwilliams.cfm [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by jose melendez on July 20, 2005 at 14:52:13 PT seeds of discontent contented cows denied cannabisfrom: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/4699945.stmLiechtenstein milk farmers have been stirred up by a government ban on their feeding hemp to their cattle.They are the most chilled-out, laid-back, carefree cattle in the world, and happy cows produce better milk.What is it that keeps the cash cows calm? Hemp, which is related to cannabis. And that's why Liechtenstein has banned its use.This has in turn enraged the country's dairy farmers, who say that the hemp relaxes those jangly bovine nerves.Hemp farmers are less then mellow about the new law."Hemp is good for cows because it is serves as a very small tranquiliser," says hemp farmer Jean-Pierre Egger."Many of the cows are stressed nowadays. If they eat hemp, they calm down. Now, a milk cow which is calm produces better milk. That is a fact."No highIn neighbouring Switzerland, hemp is grown legally for industrial purposes but farmers are also banned from feeding it to cattle.The authorities there say the trouble is that a chemical called THC - the chemical that helps give the "high" associated with cannabis use - can get into the milk. The only thing which gets high is the quality of milk and the quality and general health of the cow Jean-Pierre Egger Hemp farmerPeter Malin, of the Liechtenstein Department of Agriculture, has similar concerns."We don't want to have to contaminants such as THC which doesn't occur naturally in milk," he said. "And we don't want it to be consumed by people, especially by children." - - -Of course, this claim is FALSE:from: http://www.hempology.com/archives/2002_08.htmlWhen it comes to the cannabinoids, we are already growing our own -- inside the body. How do we regulate that?The same substance in cannabis that can help people with multiple sclerosis deal with muscle spasms, or cancer patients deal with nausea, is also present in human breast milk. Endogeneous cannabinoids, as they're known, are part of the body's own pain-killing resources -- cousins to more familiar ones, such as endorphins. Receptors for cannabinoids, in the brain, spine and peripheral nerves, have just been discovered in the past decade.This is the science end of things. But we have a tendency to think about drugs superstitiously, dividing them into "natural" versus "synthetic," or heroic (anticancer drugs) versus sinister (narcotics and cannabis). The fact is that most drugs, regardless of the reassuring bubble packs we buy them in, are synthesized from plants or pods or pretty flowers. Drugs are not alien invaders; they often mimic or amplify perfectly natural mechanisms in the body. And the reason that opiates and marijuana work against pain (in quite distinct ways) is that they match substances that the body already creates. Strictly speaking, we all use dope. see also: http://lansbury.bwh.harvard.edu/da_reviews_2001.htmand from: http://www.nel.edu/pdf_/25_12/NEL251204R01_Grotenhermen_.pdfCannabinoid agonists inhibited human breast cancer cell proliferation in vitro [94, 95], and, directly applied at the tumor site, showed antineoplas- tic activity against malignant gliomas in rats [96]. [114]. HU-211 is completely devoid of psychoactivity. It is also called dexanabinol, an NMDA antagonist with neuroprotective properties in hypoxia and isch- [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by jose melendez on July 20, 2005 at 10:21:04 PT oh! Long story: Life is short. Read on, and have tissues ready:http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n1145/a09.html?397 [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on July 20, 2005 at 06:52:01 PT The GCW Thanks for understanding where I'm coming from. I have always said when I see a religious scholar, and what I mean is a person who translates Greek and or Hebrew for the Bible, and is accepted by organized religion say that the translation is wrong I will pay more attention. I have what I call a healthy fear of God so I back away from what might not be correct and stick to what I know is correct in the Bible. [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by The GCW on July 20, 2005 at 06:40:58 PT FoM, I understand Your viewpoint on this issue.For sure. (& as a credible host, You must remain hostly... )That cannabis is part of an annointing oil in Christian history is no longer part of a belief; it is pretty much proven fact.The part some people may have trouble believing is if kaneh bosm / cannabis, helps inhance Our spiritual understandings / relationship with God. THCUReaders might keep in mind, cannabis is the single common denominator of the major world religions. Atheists using cannabis change their minds.(I used to be one.) The Green Collar Worker [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by FoM on July 20, 2005 at 05:46:19 PT The GCW I understand that some people believe that Cannabis is an annointing oil but I don't. I have a strong faith in a Supreme Being as you know but I know that we have people here who are Atheists but believe the laws are wrong and need to be changed. Most people understand that Cannabis has medicinal properties but when religion enters into the debate it separates some people who do not believe in God. That's why I can't look at Cannabis in a religious way. I hope you understand. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by mayan on July 20, 2005 at 05:42:22 PT relative... Medical marijuana supporters memorialize one of their own: http://tinyurl.com/c864uTime for a marijuana sales tax: http://www.sfexaminer.com/articles/2005/07/20//opinion//20050720_op03_viewpoint.txtIf all else fails, let patients use marijuana to ease pain, nausea: http://www.democratandchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050720/OPINION02/507200341/1039/OPINIONTHE WAY OUT...D.C. Emergency Truth Convergence - July 22-24: http://www.truthemergency.us/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by The GCW on July 20, 2005 at 05:25:01 PT This is where We should be at: Ferre, posted this at THC Ministry...Quote: New Film Confirms Cannabis in the Holy Anointing Oil, and Makes the link to this oil within early Christianity as part of the Fire Baptism of Jesus Christ. This Shocking New Film Documentary brings together the worlds foremost researchers on Cannabis in the Holy Anointing Oil as described in Exodus 30:23. The Holy Oil includes an ingredient translated as calamus. This translation is incorrect. Calamus contains a poison called asarone. The term Calamus was mistranslated in the earliest Greek Bible the Septuagint. The Hebrew in this case is Kaneh Bosem. The shocking outline of the film is available below. Go to: Fire Baptism and the Lost Sacraments Here it is: http://pot.tv/ram/pottvshowse3775.ram An important clip (I can not say this engough). ( http://www.thc-ministry.net/forum/viewtopic.php?p=33167#33167 ) [ Post Comment ] Post Comment