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Federal official urges state to keep marijuana use illegal
11-28-06|Detroit Free Press|Dawson Bell

A top federal anti-drug official, testifying about legislation to approve the use of marijuana in Michigan for medical purposes, told lawmakers Tuesday the move would be bad both for patients and society.

Scott Burns, deputy director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, said a thorough scientific review of the subject by U.S. drug agencies has determined that smoked marijuana is not a safe or effective medicine.

Burns urged the House Government Operations Committee to reject legislation sponsored by Rep. Lamar Lemmons III, D-Detroit, to authorize patients with debilitating physical ailments to possess and use small amounts of marijuana.

Burns said that illicit drug use, including marijuana, has declined in recent years. But approving the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes, as has been done in 11 states, would undermine that progress, he said.

Proponents of the legislation vigorously disputed Burns claims, however.
Don Murphy, a former Republican legislator from Maryland and national advocate for medical marijuana, said recreational use of marijuana has declined more rapidly in states where medical marijuana is legal than in states with a blanket prohibition.

Murphy also said smoked marijuana can provide relief for some patients that is not available from any legally prescribed medications.

Committee Chairman Rep. Leon Drolet, R-Clinton Township, a co-sponsor of the bill, had announced before the hearing Tuesday that he did not expect it to win approval in the closing days of the 2005-06 legislative session, and did not order a committee vote Tuesday.

 

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Some drugs bein legally prescribed by doctors has actually killed people, pot has killed zero amount of people. I don't think people dying or suffering from different medical conditions care about the effects from smoking marijuana. People have needed a new liver or had massive heart attacks over legal prescription drugs that the FDA approves no matter what the side effects are because it's about money.

For the people that are able to hold their food down, they could cook the marijuana in foods and eat it. Some people can't hold down food so how the hell are they supposed to hold down pills that the doctors give them? Smoking marijuana helps the people hold down their food keeping them from starving.

I like how some articles from the drug czars say marijuana is the most widely used illegal drug and the pot today is more addictive and more people are smoking it. Then in this article for medical use someone else that's against marijuana use is claiming that marijuana use has declined. When it comes to recreational use legalization they argue that more people are using marijuana and it's more potent and addictive so it's not a good idea. When it comes to legalization for medical reasons they say the opposite for the arguement and that less people are using marijuana so don't allow it for medical use or recreational use will increase again.

It doesn't matter if something is illegal or not. Oxycontin and other prescription drugs get used by people who don't have prescriptions either. The point is that people are using marijuana wheather it's legal or not, it doesn't matter if it can be used for medical purposes or recreational purposes, people are going to use it no matter what the government says. At this point i will say that the people who are suffering illnesses need the legal right to smoke pot for medical reasons more than the people that want it for recreational use. They shouldn't be deprived of the medicine because people choose to use marijuana for recreation.

They call marijuana a danger to society when people that use it don't become violent.

Scott Burns is director of drug control policy, that's exactly what hes doing, bein controlling and defending the drug companies from the medical use of marijuana. The drug companies wouldn't have control over marijuana which would mean no profit. The cannabis clubs would be in control of supplying marijuana. If a lot of people decided to use medical marijuana instead of certain pharamaceuitcal prescriptions they would be making less money.