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An article in this morning’s Washington Post details a recent study about a drug that can greatly reduce pain in AIDS patients. There were no side effects Great, huh? It’s not a panacea, but anything to make the lives of very sick people better is an advancement.
The Bush Administration’s reaction to the study was to, of course, cheer and urge the FDA to approve this drug as soon as possible. Ha ha! Just kidding. Instead the administration attacked the researchers who did the study, insinuating (quoting the WaPo here) “it is likely that those who received the real pot were aware of that, introducing a bias of expected efficacy” and vowed to block the drug from ever reaching the market.
The drug, of course, is marijuana. (So I guess it’s not exactly new.) And it can make chronically ill patients feel better. And marijuana is arguably less dangerous than alcohol, tobacco, Vioxx, that acne drug that fucks up your liver, aspirin, Tylenol, etc. And, as you may have read 17 times, smoking it helps chronically ill patients to feel much better.
But the White House’s message, Republican or Democrat, has been: “Just say no.” David Murray, chief scientist at the ONDCP lied: “We’re very much supportive of any effort to ameliorate the suffering of AIDS patients,” unless apparently it’s some sort of relatively safe drug that the AMA opposed the criminalization of.
Prohibition is one of the most harmful policies our country has toward its own citizens. But prohibition isn’t going to end anytime soon, if ever. But to deny chronically ill patients medical marijuana and to attack the authors of the study without cause just means you’re a human being who doesn’t care about other people.
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.
Research Supports Medicinal Marijuana [Washington Post]
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