cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana -- an Oxymoron





Medical Marijuana -- an Oxymoron
Posted by CN Staff on October 12, 2005 at 17:02:30 PT
By Denver Nelson 
Source: Times-Standard 
California -- Humboldt State University President Rollin Richmond’s recent marijuana speech before the Arcata City Council prompted me to submit this opinion, which I first expressed in the November 2000 Humboldt-Del Norte Medical Society Bulletin. Marijuana is not a medicine. Marijuana is a recreational drug used by many people to get high. Alcohol is also a recreational drug; no better and no worse than marijuana in its good or bad effects. But alcohol is legal to produce, possess and consume. Alcohol is not a medicine.
Heroin, cocaine and amphetamines are hard drugs and are damaging to all illegal users who come in contact with them, be they users, suppliers or innocent victims. Heroin (morphine), cocaine and amphetamines are useful drugs when prescribed by a physician to treat specific diseases or symptoms. When used as prescribed, they are medicines. Marijuana is grown illegally in Humboldt County and in spite of millions of dollars spent on the Rambo-style efforts of CAMP it remains the No. 1 income producer, either legal or illegal, in Humboldt County. This annual infusion of large amounts of illegal cash in this county converts many otherwise law-abiding citizens into criminals and lowers the morals of the entire county. The active ingredients in marijuana have been available as a prescription medicine in pill form for years. Any physician can prescribe marijuana under its trade name Marinol. Patients do not like Marinol because it does not work as well as other drugs for all the “diseases” marijuana is supposed to help. The marijuana law is a total hypocrisy. The “physicians” who prescribe marijuana get $200 cash for few-second encounter. Growers use the law as a cover to grow commercial quantities of dope. “Clinics” are commercial dope sellers preying on the sick or the allegedly sick. “Patients” often have bogus diseases and many are smoking dope to get high. Those Humboldt County residents who are truly ill (terminal cancer patients, for example) should be able to get free marijuana from our abundant local supply. Legalize marijuana, smoke it to get high -- but don’t call it a medicine. It’s not. Calling marijuana a medicine is a hypocrisy and will only delay its legalization as a recreational drug. Denver Nelson is a retired neurosurgeon. He lives in Eureka. The opinions expressed in this My Word piece do not necessarily reflect the editorial viewpoint of the Times-Standard. Source: Times-Standard (CA)Author: Denver Nelson Published: Wednesday, October 12, 2005 Copyright: 2005 MediaNews Group, Inc.Contact: editor times-standard.comWebsite: http://www.times-standard.com/CannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml
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Comment #11 posted by afterburner on October 14, 2005 at 06:51:19 PT
Denver Nelson -- an Oxymoron
{Marijuana is not a medicine.} {The active ingredients in marijuana have been available as a prescription medicine in pill form for years. Any physician can prescribe marijuana under its trade name Marinol. Patients do not like Marinol because it does not work as well as other drugs for all the “diseases” marijuana is supposed to help.} How can marijuana have an "active ingredient," "prescription medicine in a pill," if "marijuana is not a medicine"? How can a plant which is not a medicine yield an ingredient which *is* medicine?Besides, Marinol gets you "high." Read the label!
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Comment #10 posted by runderwo on October 13, 2005 at 17:30:43 PT
CorvallisEric
I agree that on its face medical properties is a poor reason for legalization for general use. I think what most people mean is that legal medical use will inevitably take down the wall of lies that has been built up around the cannabis plant. Once those lies have been destroyed and the general population's ignorance lifted, they ought to be more receptive to the idea of letting people just do what they want if they want to use cannabis for whatever reason.A usual ad hominem that is used is that "legalizers" are the ones "pushing" medical marijuana. But that doesn't mean much of anything. If medical marijuana makes sense on its face, then it should be available. Why does anyone's agenda matter? Furthermore, it just so happens that the people who have spent their lives studying cannabis and thus are the most knowledgeable on the subject happen to almost uniformly support legalization. Just because they support legalization, we should ignore their opinion and instead listen to less qualified people on the subject of medical marijuana? Please.
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Comment #9 posted by Max Flowers on October 13, 2005 at 17:01:11 PT
Yank this lying chump's degree away from him
Alcohol is also a recreational drug; no better and no worse than marijuana in its good or bad effects.This statement is so wrong, such a LIE, it's incredible. He knows damn well that alcohol (a dangerous CNS depressant) causes THOUSANDS of deaths per year. Cannabis causes none, and never has.The idea that a neurosurgeon would say something so patently scientifically false is pretty frightening to me. I always believed doctors were men of science, and when I see them say things that are so obviously wrong, it makes me wonder A) who's paying them to say it, or B) how many people don't realize that the "doctor" is totally unqualified to be called doctor. It's one or the other!
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Comment #8 posted by schmeff on October 13, 2005 at 12:37:14 PT
Dr. Denver Knows...
....which side of his bread is buttered!"Heroin, cocaine and amphetamines are hard drugs and are damaging to all illegal users who come in contact with them, be they users, suppliers or innocent victims. Heroin (morphine), cocaine and amphetamines are useful drugs when prescribed by a physician to treat specific diseases or symptoms. When used as prescribed, they are medicines."Black market drugs: damaging to all who come in contact with them. Corporate drugs: medicine.Same substances...different realities. 
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Comment #7 posted by Toker00 on October 13, 2005 at 09:34:18 PT
Not medicine, huh?
He's trying to say we should legalize, so we can "get high", and that cannabis is not medicine. So now the argument that patients are just wanting to get high, (Ask Montel Williams about getting high with his medicinal cannabis.) like everyone else who tokes, and that there is no evidence that cannabis is medicine. No one, who wants to smoke cannabis to treat symptoms or cure illnesses, has a valid argument anymore. I'll just have to stop smoking cannabis and go back to drinking that "get high" alcohol again since it's legal, and cannabis wasn't TREATING that disease (alcoholism). I guess I'll just have to start taking chemical compounds (real medicine) to TREAT my depression again, and lose all initiative and self confidence and motivation and focus. Again. But, hey, if I ever want to get high, I should be able to, right? So let's DO legalize. OK?This guy is just offering his best apology at being part of prohibition, and being unable to admit he's worried about his financial portfolio. He knows cannabis is medicine. So do we. But money is money, and that is his main thing. Wage peace on war. END CANNABIS PROHIBITION NOW! 
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Comment #6 posted by billos on October 13, 2005 at 04:34:31 PT
.......Another reason to prohibit.......
""This annual infusion of large amounts of illegal cash in this county converts many otherwise law-abiding citizens into criminals and lowers the morals of the entire county.""Another disadvantage of that Damned Pot.Did they mention that this guy retired because too many patients had turned into babbling idiots in post-op? 
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Comment #5 posted by CorvallisEric on October 13, 2005 at 00:51:55 PT
Semi-agreement
Of all the arguments for legalizing marijuana, the medical one is my least favorite. I just don't know if it helps many more than those who are pre-disposed to using it. On the other hand, I am certain that the current prohibition regime is both a practical disaster in many ways and a human rights travesty.So, naturally, I find Dr. Nelson's attitude very interesting. I'm afraid his points about the Humboldt scene and hypocrisy may be PARTIALLY valid. If only he could find a way to get us to where he wants (legalization), he would be a hero.
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Comment #4 posted by runderwo on October 12, 2005 at 18:42:48 PT
wow
Note the complete lack of science or objectivity in this article. This guy, unlike most others, even chooses to attack medical users themselves instead of so-called 'legalizers' that are the usual target." This annual infusion of large amounts of illegal cash in this county converts many otherwise law-abiding citizens into criminals"Right, it's not prohibition that converts them into criminals.And you would think a doctor would know that Marinol is not marijuana. Now if he made the claim that Sativex - a marijuana extract delivered by lung - was somehow not good enough for a user (independent of its expense), yet smoked marijuana somehow was, that could cast doubt on the credibility of the user unless a reasonable explanation was provided.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on October 12, 2005 at 18:04:09 PT
I Don't Think I've Not Been High Since I Was 12
The Doctor said: Legalize marijuana, smoke it to get high -- but don’t call it a medicine. It’s not. Calling marijuana a medicine is a hypocrisy and will only delay its legalization as a recreational drug. ***I say I have been drinking coffee since I was 12 and have never missed a day so I guess I'm always High. How do we measure being High with all the substances that people consume?
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Comment #2 posted by mayan on October 12, 2005 at 17:58:30 PT
Not Medicine?
Those Humboldt County residents who are truly ill (terminal cancer patients, for example) should be able to get free marijuana from our abundant local supply. Legalize marijuana, smoke it to get high -- but don’t call it a medicine. It’s not. Calling marijuana a medicine is a hypocrisy and will only delay its legalization as a recreational drug.Why would Humboldt County Residents who are truly ill even need to get free marijuana from Denver Nelson's abundant local supply if marijuana is not medicine? Mr. Nelson just contradicted himself. Mr. Nelson is pretty ignorant for a retired neurosurgeon. I wonder how much stock he owns in pharmaceutical companies?THE WAY OUT...Orwell and the 9/11 “Intelligence Triumph”:
http://www.mujca.com/orwell.htmAnother 9/11 Smoking Gun? 
http://georgewashington.blogspot.com/2005/10/another-911-smoking-gun.htmlA Christian Theologian Speaks Out: Dr. David Ray Griffin to speak in NYC!
http://ny911truth.org/events/DRG_events_in_nyc.htm 9/11 Was an Inside Job - A Call to All True Patriots:
http://www.911sharethetruth.com/
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Comment #1 posted by runruff on October 12, 2005 at 17:48:08 PT:
E-gad. Here we go again.
Give a guy who is educated beyond his own intellegence
hand him a sheepskin and suddenly he has more wisdom than the ages. Without any so called "test" or hands on expieence Dr. Nervo Egghead now knows it all. We've heard it all before doc only this time I think it's more up to you to prove that cannabis does not help those who say it does
than for a med-cannabis patient to prove to you that it does.
We all are the worlds greatest authority on how we feel.
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