DEA ignores reality, refuses to delist weed
Even people who have never smoked marijuana, people who hate the smell and will likely vote against Proposition 64 to legalize recreational use are wondering about this week’s decision that leaves weed on the list of the most dangerous drugs in America.
Yes, for seven decades our government has demonized and criminalized marijuana. It’s made enormous investments in keeping it out of the hands of children (appropriate) and also out of the hands of adults who use it for health reasons (inappropriate) and fun. It’s hard to change overnight. But that doesn’t justify what millions of Americans – even most of marijuana’s opponents – accept: That there are real medicinal, even humanitarian uses for pot, and using it for those purposes shouldn’t be criminal.
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration decided last week leave marijuana on its Schedule I list, continuing the fiction it is as dangerous as herion but somehow less dangerous than cocaine or the opioid fentanyl, which reside on Schedule 2 despite hundreds of deaths.
Already, 25 states and the District of Columbia have legalized cannabis for medical use, starting with California in 1996. Three more states – Arkansas, Florida and North Dakota – will decide whether to follow suit this November. The U.S. government, in fear of a ferocious backlash, turns a blind eye to those violations.
Yet, the DEA writes, “there is no evidence that there is a consensus among qualified experts that marijuana is safe and effective for use in treating a specific, recognized disorder.”
Most understand there is a big difference in marijuana grown to heighten the THC (pyschotropic) content and marijaua grown to concentrate cannabaloids, the chemicals that studies conducted around the world have shown to have medicinal benefits. It should be noted, none of those studies were conducted in America. Why? Because it’s illegal to study marijuana here, even for the Centers for Disease Control.
Consider what Cancer Research UK has found – a link between marijuana high in THC and reducing the growth of human brain tumors. The same stuff that makes the brain feel goofy also deprives cancer cells of blood. It would be nice if our scientists could get in on such studies and those suffering could, eventually, benefit. The well-recognized therapuetic affects of controling nausea during cancer treatments, in helping blunt the effects of glaucoma and myriad other uses are not only being ignored, but their benefits remain denied to millions (though many find a way around restrictions).
Instead, in its the agency doubled down on decades of illogical policy.
“This decision isn’t based on danger,” DEA chief Chuck Rosenberg told NPR. “This decision is based on whether marijuana, as determined by the FDA, is a safe and effective medicine, and it’s not.”
This dooms law enforcement to the same sort of duplicitous control we’ve seen for generations. Last year the DEA spent $18 million last year destroying marijuana while people in three states were legally using it for fun.
The DEA did remove some obstacles to research. In the past, only the University of Mississippi was licensed to grow pot for research. Now, the DEA will set up strict rules for granting additional research licenses. Guess what: Many of those licenses are expected to go to big pharma companies with deep pockets. They will be trying to develop, patent and sell particular strains as prescription drugs.
We needed clarity on marijuana, which controlled studies would provide. Instead, we got more fuzzy-brained regulatory nonsense.
This story was originally published August 12, 2016 at 11:49 AM with the headline "DEA ignores reality, refuses to delist weed."