Cannabis, aka ‘Marijuana’ or ‘Hemp’ has been at the forefront of many political discussions for decades. It becomes an even larger debate when you put the word ‘Medicinal’ in front of it. Many people believe doctors and scientists are the only ones who should have any real say in whether or not Cannabis is effective as a medicine. Problem is, the only people who have any real say in that area right now, are politicians.
Since 1972, many people have been fighting against the system to get Cannabis reclassified. You see, the US Government has Cannabis listed as a Schedule 1 Narcotic, under the Controlled Substances Act that was implemented under Nixon’s ‘War on Drugs’. Many American politicians claim that all drugs under the Schedule 1 classification have one important thing in common. They have no known medicinal use, whatsoever. These same people claim that Cannabis cannot be used as a medicine and has no business being considered a medicine. How true is that claim?
Well, for starters lets not forget about Marinol, which is approved by the FDA. Marinol is just synthesized THC, the active ingredient in Cannabis that produces the ‘high’.
Millions of people are sitting in jail for using Cannabis raw, but it’s ‘perfectly fine’ to use the plant if the Government and the corporations they support (in lieu of bribes) take most of the medicine out of it and charge you an arm and a leg for it.
Also keep in mind: The US Government also holds a patent on Cannabis and it’s medicinal properties. US Patent 6630507 states unequivocally, that cannabinoids are useful in the prevention and treatment of a wide variety of diseases including: autoimmune disorders, stroke, trauma, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s and HIV dementia. The patent, awarded in 2003, is based on research done by the National Institute of Health, and is assigned to the US Dept. of Health and Human Services.
Do you fully understand how insane that is? How can they hold patents claiming it works as a medicine, while claiming it has no medicinal value? This is the issue. We have mountains of evidence that it works as a medicine for a myriad of health problems.
Added to the list of illnesses, it can also fight cancer, crohn’s disease, MRSA, diabetes, seizures, and many other illnesses. To be perfectly honest, it’s hard to find something it doesn’t help in one way or another.
The internet is filled with countless articles, family videos and even independently made documentaries discussing how Cannabis has saved their life or the life of a loved one. All you have to do is type in a search on Youtube “Cannabis Cured My Cancer” and you find over 87,000 results. The proof isn’t just out there, it’s everywhere.
So, why are they refusing to reclassify it? How could they get away with such a thing? Two words: Corporate lobbyists.
The biggest anti-Cannabis proponents are the prison unions, the big tobacco companies, the alcohol companies and most of all, BIG Pharma. They will stop at absolutely nothing to keep it out of the public’s hands. The Prison unions need the war on drugs to keep prisons full.
(Over HALF the people in our prisons are in there for drugs) but when it comes to tobacco, alcohol and big pharma, it’s all down to blocking the competition. Pharmaceutical companies want to be able to control it and sell it in pill form, but they do not want us to heal ourselves with the raw plant.
A couple months ago there was a brief discussion in congress pertaining to reclassifying Cannabis to allow it to be used by the public as a natural painkiller, as opposed to Opioid painkillers.
According to the CDC: “Overdose deaths involving prescription opioids have quadrupled since 1999, and so have sales of these prescription drugs. From 1999 to 2014, more than 165,000 people have died in the U.S. from overdoses related to prescription opioids. Opioid prescribing continues to fuel the epidemic. Today, at least half of all U.S. opioid overdose deaths involve a prescription opioid.1 In 2014, more than 14,000 people died from overdoses involving prescription opioids.”
We have evidence that humans have been using Cannabis as a medicine for over 13,000 years. In that time, not one person has ever died from Cannabis overdose. That’s because to humans, Cannabis is 100% non-toxic. Overdose is literally impossible for us. And, it has been proven time and time again to be a highly effective pain reliever. In states where we have decriminalized cannabis, we have already seen a 25% reduction in prescription painkiller deaths.
Obviously, knowing all this, Congress should support the transition to a safer and healthier alternative, right? Wrong. Congress doesn’t care. They recently (and very quietly) blocked an initiative that would have brought the reclassification of Cannabis up for a new vote. They stomped the bill before it even got close.
The Young Turks did a great job covering the story. We hope you will take the time to watch the video below, and please share it!
In the age of information, they can no longer keep their lies about Cannabis afloat, but they can still use criminal political tactics to keep the public in the dark and to keep their corporate owners happy. This must change.