THE GOAL OF THIS PETITION...is to raise as much awareness as possible, about the hypocrisy of the US government's "position" regarding cannabis as a viable medicine (amongst its infinite other uses). Additionally, this petition will raise awareness regarding the US government's continued prohibition of a plant that they STILL have yet to justify their Schedule I classification of: they cannot continue probiting this plant's cultivation and use, if they do not have proof of the "so-called" dangers it presents. IF YOU DO NOT BELIEVE Cannabis is safe, effective in many important ways, and if you DO believe our government has "justified" their position regarding cannabis: THEN READ THIS PETITION. See if I do not raise some doubt...

This petition will: raise awareness, bring in signatures, and once that has been accomplished...we will take our cause and this letter TO THE US SUPREME COURT, to the DEA, to the FDA, and a cherry on top...with a letter to the President. THIS IS A REAL PETITION...so please, treat it as such; because I will be taking this to THE HIGHEST AUTHORITES in this country, requesting they end prohibition by 2013!

 

                               Continued Cannabis Prohibition...Really??

“In 1976, a federal judge ruled that the FDA must provide Robert Randall of Washington, D.C. with cannabis, because of his glaucoma. (He) became the nation's first legal pot smoker since the drug's prohibition in 1937.” [1] Almost 40 years after cannabis prohibition began, the Federal Drug Administration broke the 4 decade streak with their “Investigational New Drug Program,” which has since been closed by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (in 1992).

Almost 40 years since Robert Randall became the nation’s first legal cannabis user, the American legal system continues to criminalize cannabis use, regardless of the extraordinary amount of fact-based research proving the plant’s medicinal and therapeutic value. The US government and politically charged interest groups behind cannabis prohibition are coming to a cross-road, where they must decide whether they will continue ignoring facts and fostering lies, or; allow the American public to decide what they should be allowed to do with their bodies. It was the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 that completely prohibited all medicinal use of cannabis, by placing it in the most restrictive category of Schedule I, whereby drugs must meet three criteria for placement in this category, as outlined below:

1) The US Government Claims Cannabis Has No Therapeutic Value

If that were true…the following would NOT be: “Cannabis has been reported to be effective in: a) reducing intraocular pressure in glaucoma, b) reducing nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy, c) stimulating the appetite for patients living with AIDS, d) controlling spasticity associated with spinal cord injury and multiple sclerosis, e) decreasing the suffering from chronic pain, and f) controlling seizures associated with seizure disorders.” As of 1995, 36 states passed legislation recognizing cannabis’ therapeutic value. [2] “The active ingredient in cannabis cuts tumor growth in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of the cancer to spread, (according to) researchers at Harvard University who tested the chemical in both lab and mouse studies.” [3]

2) The US Government Claims Cannabis is Not Safe for Medical Use.

If that were true…the following would NOT be: “The Drug Enforcement Administration's own administrative law judge ruled in 1988 that marijuana must be removed from Schedule I and made available for physicians to prescribe. Cannabis seems to work differently from many conventional medications, making it a possible option for persons resistant to (those meds). Patients not helped by conventional medications and treatments may find relief from their suffering with the use of cannabis if their primary care providers were able to prescribe this medicine.” [2]

3) The US Government Claims Cannabis has a high abuse potential.

If that were true…the following would NOT be: “Cannabis has an extremely wide acute margin of safety for use under medical supervision and cannot cause lethal reactions. Greater harm is caused by the legal consequences of its prohibition than possible risks of medicinal use.” [2] Cannabis is far less dangerous than alcohol or tobacco. (Est. 50,000 people die/year from alcohol poisoning and 400,000+ deaths/year attributed to tobacco smoking) Cannabis is (nontoxic) and cannot cause death by overdose. According to the prestigious European medical journal, The Lancet, “The smoking of cannabis, even long-term, is not harmful to health. ... It would be reasonable to judge cannabis as less of a threat ... than alcohol or tobacco." [4]

 

A system that fully supports the legal use of alcohol and tobacco (the top two most widely used recreational drugs in the US, followed by cannabis @ #3), but refuses to acknowledge both substances are more dangerous to human health than cannabis…is a system of hypocrisy and irrational laws/rules.

WILL YOU MAKE THE DECISION TODAY, to SUPPORT THIS CAUSE?

Cannabis is “illegal” under Federal law, per its placement on the Schedule I list of controlled substances…however…if the US Government TRULY had proof positive that cannabis belongs on Schedule I placement, then 4 American citizens would not be receiving monthly shipments of a half-pound of cannabis rolled into 300 perfectly-wrapped joints; SENT FROM A US GOVERNMENT SUBSIDIZED and CONTROLLED CULTIVATION FACILITY (and separate control lab). [1]

Remember the “Investigational New Drug Program” the FDA provided cannabis to Mr Robert Randall through? That SAME PROGRAM provides cannabis to FOUR patients, remaining in the program to this day. Those patients estimate they have received a total of 584 pounds from the federal government over the years (a street value approximated over $500,000). “All of the cannabis comes from the University of Mississippi; where it is grown, harvested, and stored. Dr. Mahmoud ElSohly, who directs the operation, said the marijuana was a small part of the crop the university has been growing since 1968 for all cannabis research in the U.S.” [1]

If a drug is placed on Schedule I, the US Government “claims” it cannot be scientifically researched. The fact is…cannabis remains one of the most widely researched drugs in the US and worldwide. Then, there's the legal and financial burden of prohibition. Close to 100 cannabis-related arrests are made EVERY HOUR in the US (data current up to 2010), with the enforcement of cannabis prohibition costing taxpayers an estimated $10 billion annually and resulting in the arrest of more than 853,000 individuals per year, far more than the total number of arrestees for all violent crimes combined, including murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. [4] It is time we stopped ignoring the facts about cannabis legalization and start accepting the truth: prohibition is unjustified, unconstitutional, a financial and legal burden on our system, and serves to benefit only those who continue to fight legalization!!

END CANNABIS PROHIBITION IN 2013!!!

Please sign this petition, on behalf of hundreds of thousands of individuals who are sick, dying, and suffering from medical ailments**; you CAN HELP!

 

Resources
[1] 2011 The Associated Press. “4 Americans Get Medical Pot from the Feds.” http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-201_162-20112623.html
[2] 1995 APHA (American Public Health Association). “Resolution on Medical Marijuana” (Resolution 9513: Access to Therapeutic Marijuana/Cannabis). http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/hemp/medical/apha.htm
[3] 2007 American Association for Cancer Research. “Marijuana Cuts Lung Cancer Tumor Growth In Half, Study Shows.” ScienceDaily.
[4] 2012 NORML. “About Marijuana.” http://norml.org/aboutmarijuana

 

**My name is Chef Dave and I am the director of Epsilon New World Apothecaries. I am a cannabis activist, patient advocate, and clinical researcher; dedicated to finding safe and effective means of helping medical cannabis patients (in CA) find quality of life. My clinical trials and continued research have allowed me the opportunity to bring an end to the cancer that was killing 7 different people, since I started my work in 2006. In 2012, my research will turn a new leaf…unveiling truths about cannabis that were not previously confirmed through science/medical studies and completing successful treatment of my 100th clinical trial. I encourage you to visit my websites…feel free to contact me with question or comments as I welcome them with open arms. [facebook.com/EpsilonCo and www.wix.com/djbds2/epsilon].

I can attest to the therapeutic benefit, medical safety, and absolute absence of potential for abuse…of cannabis. I can also attest to the fact that, while the US government continues to allow prohibition to flourish; there ARE some organizations/groups that serve to make huge sums of money from the continuation of prohibition. Every month, I pick up my physician prescribed regimen of Marinol, a pharmaceutical-synthetic form of the most widely known psycho-active therapeutic cannabis compound, THC. My prescription is legal…the drug is legal…the synthetic form of THC is legal AND has a comfortable position on the DEA Schedule of Controlled Substances, @ Schedule #III. Whole plant cannabis is completely illegal and on Schedule I…while the major money maker Marinol, the synthetic form of D-9THC, sits in a position with little to no attention from the government law enforcement, at Schedule III. Ask yourself…how can big pharmaceutical companies produce a substance from a completely prohibited drug and NOT deal with consequences? The answer is not hard to find. SO PLEASE SUPPORT ENDING PROHIBITION TODAY, because it is time we started being honest with one another; it is NOT WORKING!!