Of course cannabis has medical value; the FDA has approved pure THC as a pharmaceutical, and the cannabidiol in whole cannabis has its own therapeutic applications and also protects against some side effects of THC. So denying that natural cannabis has medical value is nonsensical.
But equally of course, the variation in natural cannabis means that “marijuana” isn’t the name of a medicine; a medicine is a material of known chemical composition that has been shown in clinical trials to be safe and effective in the management of some condition in some group of patients.
Some sick people get relief from whole cannabis, but “medical marijuana” is a political fraud, and the “medical marijuana” business is mostly a sham, with most of the volume going to non-medical users - many of them with diagnosable cannabis use disorder - and resellers.
Footnote In a Twitter exchange, MPP lobbyist Dan Riffle doesn’t deny the facts, but seems to prefer that I use some euphemism for “fraud.”
A very strong range artice considering the govt of Israel has a comprehensive medical MJ policy in place as we speak.
Let’s hear what our experts, the DEA had to say;
In 1988, DEA Administrative Judge Francis Young wrote in his ruling;
“Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man. By any measure of rational analysis marijuana can be safely used within a supervised routine of medical care.”
ccguide.Org/young88.php
Could it be that "medical marijuana" is the phenomenon you get when the pharmaceuticals are hard to get, or even impossible to get? If you need some hydrocodone, for example, that's not hard to get. I think you're over-simplifying.
you seem not to have noticed that hydrocodone, at least in my vicinity, has become impossible to get unless one is being treated by a pain management specialist or has recently had surgery. all of the walk-in clinics now have signs saying that hydrocodone is no longer prescribed, my orthopedist has told me that he will only prescribe it for patients immediately following surgery, my dentist has informed me that he will no longer prescribe it, and the only person in his practice who will is the oral surgeon, and my primary care physician has told me that he will only prescribe hydrocodone if a patient has a had a recent and severe injury. none of this information was gained by asking for the medication but is instead being given to all patients to make clear the changes wrought by the new classification of hydrocodone. i suspect that in ten years or so articles will once again be written about the epidemic of undertreated pain. in the meantime, it is hardly possible for me to take seriously the statement that hydrocodone is not hard to get.
The fact that most "medical marijuana" goes to non-medical users does not mean that the legislators' purpose in legalizing marijuana only for medical purposes was insincere. And, even if it was insincere, insincerity is a lesser evil than imprisoning people for using marijuana for non-medical purposes. If insincerity was the only politically feasible way to de facto legalize marijuana for non-medical purposes, then let's hear it for insincerity!
My physician and I would be give a lot to have a true medicine to treat my chronic severe myalgia. A few years ago, after smoking a small amount of marijuana, I experienced the first real pain relief in years. (Opioids didn't work very well and the side effects were awful.) My doctor preferred that I not smoke, but instead prescribed Marinol, so the dosage would be precise and monitored. The resulting paranoia and panic attacks were worse than the pain. So I reverted to marijuana — but it's uneven potency makes that a very rock road, too. I hate getting high, and "too" high is even worse. What I wouldn't give for a precisely dosed medicine with sufficient THC *and* CBD — and no smoke!
If you live in California, you can buy edibles made in precise doses. They take 45 minutes to kick in, but they last a long time and are quite inexpensive.
"Medicine: A compound or preparation used for the treatment or prevention of disease, especially a drug or drugs taken by mouth." - Oxford English Dictionary.
Since when did substances and compounds need to be shown in clinical trials to be safe and effective before being considered medicinal?
Many drugs on the market today are not "safe and effective," despite having gone through clinical trials.
What you are calling "non-medical" use is usually self-medication of psychological and emotional problems such as ADHD, PTSD and anxiety.
In the U.S., therapeutic herbs like cannabis are classified as "dietary supplements." Is it your opinion that all therapeutic herbs under the DSHEA with variation in active ingredients, such as ginseng, valerian and St. John's Wort are fraudulent?
MK seems to be arguing that herbal medicines can only be effective if they are subjected to processing that produces a uniform product.
IMO this is wrong on two fronts. First, it assumes that minor or trace constituents removed during processing are not integral to the overall effect of the herbal medicine. Second, this is NOT how herbal drugs are dispensed in the traditional societies which have successfully employed these remedies for centuries.
THC isn’t the only active principle in marijuana and as far as I know doesn’t account for all the putative medical benefits. That said, there’s no reason you couldn’t establish a standard for cannabis; you can do it for tuna fish and cat food.
Fraud?
Relax you out of touch scold!
How about "fig leaf" - much more appropriate as we social engineer our way out of drug war hysteria hitching a ride on the medical side.
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I had a friend who was able to get a prescription for medical marijuana when she really didn't need it. She thought that getting the medical grade marijuana was going to be better than the one she got off of the street, but it wasn't. As it turns out, she started using harder drugs after the marijuana wasn't satisfying her desire for the high. She was not doing as much when she didn't have a prescription to do it. Luckily she got help after I recommended https://aidinrecovery.com/ and is doing much better today.
I had a friend who was able to get a prescription for medical marijuana when she really didn't need it. She thought that getting the medical grade marijuana was going to be better than the one she got off of the street, but it wasn't. As it turns out, she started using harder drugs after the marijuana wasn't satisfying her desire for the high. She was not doing as much when she didn't have a prescription to do it. Luckily she got help after I recommended https://aidinrecovery.com/ and is doing much better today.