The Inevitable Discussion Surrounding Marijuana

May as well get the controversial issues brought forth...

What is the controversy surrounding the medicinal uses of marijuana, and how does this compare to how other countries are handling the "issue"? It is an odd set of statutes that the United States has, wherein legislation at the state level (e.g. California) can be at direct odds with the federal statutes. In addition to the question of whether state sovereignty is a real concept, it raises the larger question of defining a substance as harmful.

Alcohol, for example, is mostly handled by the state governments, with only certain instances where the federal government is involved (think ATF). However, alcohol is a harmful substance - we know this, and there are hundreds of thousands of pieces of literature to support this claim. From causing fatty liver to encephalopathy, among numerous other conditions (and drug interactions), ethanol consumption, in excess, can, and does really kill. There is a LD50 associated with ethanol.

When discussing marijuana, the picture is different. As intoxicated on marijuana as some individuals have been, there have been no fatalities associated with its use. We do understand the biochemistry and pharmacology of the cannabinoids, and specifically, the system in the brain that facilitates its activity, the endocannabinoid system. As it implies, there is receptors and ligands that mimic the pharmacology of marijuana, and are crucial for certain physiology. There is no found LD50.

The question that is before us is how the statues came to be the way they are. Very simply, there are lawmakers making the decisions left best to scientists. Early on in the twenties, the Harrison Narcotic tax made banning of very many drugs - heroin, marijuana, etc. - prohibitively expensive. What is more, part of the ideology surrounding marijuana usage came from xenophobia of Mexican culture, who had been smoking marijuana for a very long time. The story that the United States government has used since has been that now marijuana is a "gateway" drug, wherein more "hard" drugs will be used after exposure to marijuana.

Despite the papers and research that has been published regarding the safety and therapeutic potential of marijuana, it is still a schedule-1 narcotic, prohibited from being used in any medical context. All that is permitted by the United States is an extract from marijuana - a single alkaloid of hundreds if not thousands - called Marinol (dronabinol). It has found scrutiny in the medical profession due to its unpredictable pharmacokinetics and half-life in the body. Marijuana that is smoked does not cause the same problems and is more effective in treating certain conditions than the orally ingested Marinol.

Canada has gotten wise to the situation and has allowed the entry of Sativex, an oral spray, of marijuana extracts. Without doubt, the country knows the value in palliating the very serious conditions that cancer patients and HIV infected individuals who have progressed into AIDS face. The condition is not too dissimilar in the European Union, and notoriously, the Netherlands.

Without baiting you all too much, consider this: a country that decriminalizes a certain substance may see a brief spike in usage, but after that initial enamor wears off, humans recognize when it is appropriate to use said substance, and when not. Rampant underage drinking is not as much a problem in Canada and the United Kingdom as it is here in the United States. Why? There is no social stigma associated with it, and there is no need to creep around, in secrecy, for fear of getting caught by law enforcement. Another kibble to nibble on: consider the right for humans to ingest what they wish. If I really wanted to, the gasoline in the garage could be a great compliment to my filet mignon before me at dinner time. However, I choose not to ingest it, and moreover, law enforcement would not be able to stop me from doing so. I will supply a link for a movie on Google Videos regarding the etiology of marijuana fear and obsession by the United States later on this week.