Here in Florida, we are being asked to "choose" yes or no as citizens on the legalization of marijuana - but again, as is the case in most things "political" one has to decide on the lesser of two evils. It is certain that the "solution" being presented is designed to provide a huge "advantage" to the promoters of the bill regardless of the marketing hype surrounding this issue.
Keeping marijuana use "illegal" criminalizes a relatively large portion of the population for choosing to put something into their bodies that others deem a "bad choice." Prohibition as public policy has deadly side effects. On the other hand, making it "legal" validates its use and brings the money flow generated by its sale out in the open where it can be taxed, regulated and controlled. Why should the black market get all the spoils!
For me it boils down, at best, to an unrealistic hope medically. And a money making scheme with just another criminal product. One can be sure that the "choice being presented" won't solve the problem. The choice we have before us is not based on individual reason but rather on using the power of "law" to bestow advantage to some group that has a lot to gain.
For that reason alone we should vote NO.
The best thing to do is inform yourself. I am forwarding several pdf files written by Pat Clouden - a very good synopsis which reports what is true for me.
Ray
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MEDICAL MARIJUANA: WHAT'S THE BIG DEAL?
I have learned a lot in the last few months about, of all things, marijuana. Why? Well, you've probably noticed it's been in the news...a lot.
Now, who in their right mind would not feel compassion when hearing about the elderly dying of painful diseases who find release only after smoking a joint, or the children suffering from seizures who are able to stop their seizures only by smoking pot? My first reaction was, okay, I'm not a monster. If it helps these people they should have legal access to it and not have the threat of being thrown in jail just because they are sick and only marijuana seems to help them...
Then, being the businessman that I am, I read how millions have been dumped into campaign to collect signatures to get this issue on the Florida ballot this November. Hmmmm...I thought. A successful businessman will not invest money like that unless they can see a pretty risk-free return on their investment.
So I started to look deeper. What's in it for the investors?
Go to this link if you want to see who is financing the bill.
http://www.tampabay.com/news/politi...juana-holds-high-ground-in-adwar/2169384 These questions lead me to some very interesting people, some surprising answers and some shocking realizations about what's really going on and the level of blindness I had about these activities. As a general population, it is astounding how easily we are misdirected by the media or popular opinion-even those of us who should know better often succumb to the smoke and mirrors and "don't look there, look here" coming from folks who have something to gain from pushing an issue, like legalizing pot for medical use...
I decided to write a series of letters to you, my friends, in the hopes that you will:
- Read these letters yourselves
- Find them informative
- And pass them on to your friends
I don't know of a simpler more effective way to open eyes.
In these letters I will work up to the answer to the question-what's in it for John Morgan? But the first question I want to answer is this:
What's the big deal? It's just pot. It's not as bad as alcohol, isn't addictive and
doesn't kill people...even the President of the United States has sort of shrugged it off....
So boy was I surprised when I found out that today's marijuana is not the pot of the 1960s and 70s.
In case you have forgotten-the psychoactive ingredient in pot (the stuff that gets you high) is called THC-that's short for "tetrahydrocannabinol." From 1960 to 1980 the average level of THC in pot was .2 to 1 percent.
But as things go, we usually find better ways to grow things, modify this or that, and suddenly in 1984 the average THC level went up to nearly 4%. And by 2011 it averaged almost 12%. Today, in 2014, the average THC level is 14% and some strains have been found to be as high as 32%! Now, back when it was under 1% THC,
pot was truly a mild, rather harmless drug that only killed off a few brain cells...
The former Director of the Haight-Ashbury Detoxification, Rehabilitation, and Aftercare Clinic, Darryl Inaba, noted that before the 1980's the clinic never had to treat anyone in the clinic for an addiction to marijuana. By the 1990s the THC level of pot began to surpass 5%. From that time on, people began showing up at the clinic addicted to marijuana! That tells us that somewhere around 5% THC, marijuana becomes addictive and rather problematic with common complains like:
- I want to stop smoking and I can't
- I'm having memory problems
- I'm too spaced out
- I can't function at work
- I can't complete tasks
- I'm sick in the morning and cough a lot
In fact, in 1991 there were 16,251 marijuana related emergency room visits. By 2008 that number had risen to 374,000. 1
Additionally, marijuana has been linked to increased risk of mental illness (2) such as
- Schizophrenia (6 fold)
- Psychosis
- Depression
- Anxiety
So with people turning up at hospitals and doctor's offices with symptoms of schizophrenia, psychosis, depression or anxiety-where do you think they are going to end up? Yes, that's my guess to-right on psyche lines. And don't think that's accidental.
Contrary to public opinion that smoking pot doesn't harm the lungs, marijuana smoke has been found to be an irritant to the lungs and there have been more and more chronic physical conditions associated with smoking marijuana such as:
- Bronchitis
- Cough
- And phlegm production
It actually contains 50-70 percent more carcinogens than tobacco smoke. 3
Smoking one joint today is the equivalent of smoking about 14 of those joints from the 60s.
Smoking three or four marijuana cigarettes is as bad for the lungs as smoking 20 tobacco cigarettes.
Well, so much for the claims that it is harmless, not as bad as alcohol or cigarettes, and not addictive.
And here are a few more things linked to the use of marijuana:
- Persistent and heavy use among adolescents reduces IQ by 6-8 points.
- Low productivity and job performance including dropping out of school,
unemployment, social welfare dependence, and lower self-reported quality
of life. 4
- Employee marijuana use is linked with increased absences, tardiness, accidents,
worker's compensation claims and job turnover. 5
- Drivers who test positive for marijuana or self-report using marijuana are more
than twice as likely as other drivers to be involved in motor vehicle crashes.
Okay, okay, but we're talking about "medical marijuana." It's going to be used to help people in pain, right?
Well, first of all, marijuana does have some medical properties, BUT WE DON'T NEED TO SMOKE OR EAT IT to avail ourselves of the medical properties. BUT WE DON'T NEED TO SMOKE OR EAT IT to avail ourselves of the medical properties! And the medical properties being talked about, relief from pain, are available at LOW levels of THC. In fact at high levels of THC marijuana is shown to increase pain symptoms! So why is marijuana grown with the high, addictive levels of THC we are finding in today's pot?? 7
In states that have already approved medical marijuana there are some interesting things happening. That is the subject of my next letter.
So it's important to note a few things.
Someone is lying to us about the harmlessness of marijuana-WHO and WHY?
And since President Obama chimed in on this with a shrugged answer, I have to ask, WHAT'S IN IT FOR HIM?
These questions and more will be answered in the next few letters. Please pass these on to as many people as you can.
Along with these letters I am also working with some great people to set up more events on this subject-so stay tuned. Thank you for giving me the courtesy of your attention and don't hesitate to reply to this email.
Best,
Pat Clouden
