What Is The Best Strain Of Medical Marijuana For Helping Nausea?

Posted by Ninja Smoker

The use of medical marijuana to relieve nausea is well established, both anecdotally and from research papers. Both THC and cannabinoids are known to mitigate nausea, and smoking weed gives better relief from vomiting that taking THC orally.

A two studies undertaken in 2007 revealed that THC improves appetite and reduced weight loss in AIDS patients and smoking medical marijuana led to an increased intake of cannabis and weight gain.

As nausea and vomiting are side-effects of many treatments and symptoms of many illnesses, marijuana is a powerful drug to have in the medical armory and a synthetic form of THC to be taken in oral form was created for this very reason. However, the majority of patients prefer to smoke or vaporize ‘real’ cannabis instead of taking the artificial form.

What is most exciting about the link between weed and nausea is the fact that in cases where standard anti-emetics have failed to provide any relief, medical marijuana did the job. A recent study published in the New York State Journal of Medicine reported on 56 patients who were given marijuana following the failure of traditional anti-emetic drugs to relieve their sickness. The astounding result was a 78% success rate in this group of patients after smoking medical marijuana.

How to I use Medical Marijuana for my Nausea
Your very first action, if you are thinking about treating your nausea with medical marijuana, is to check out the medical marijuana state laws where you live. Despite the evidence of its usefulness in this situation, nausea doesn’t appear on the qualifying medical conditions of every state.

Having said that, you may well find that your primary condition – the illness which is causing you to feel sick and/or vomit – does appear on the approved list. Cancer, for instance, is pretty universal as far as state laws go.

If you discover that you can legally use marijuana to ease your nausea, you will need to find a medical marijuana doctor.

Are there any Particular Medical Marijuana Strains that are Good for Nausea
The Indica dominant Chemo strain of marijuana was reputedly developed by Dr David Suzuki back in the 1970s for the specific role of treating the nausea and pain that is associated with chemotherapy treatment.

Users report a pleasant aroma – a very important factor when dealing with nausea. As far as flavor is concerned, when allowed to linger in the mouth, there is a distinctly sweet and sugary taste.

Chemo makes an excellent night time medicine as it helps with pain as well as nausea – it’s particularly good for relieving stomach pain. Because of its indica dominance (almost 100%) it does not leave behind any feelings of anxiety or paranoia.

If you live in a state where cultivation of medical marijuana is allowed, then Chemo is quick to flower and gives high yields – around 500 grams per square meter. Seeds are widely available.

Lots of good quality research together with pretty powerful anecdotal stories make it very difficult to ignore the fact that medical marijuana does help ease the symptoms of nausea.

Courtesy of the Medical Marijuana Blog

http://www.theweedblog.com/what-is-the-best-strain-of-medical-marijuana-for-helping-nausea/

Medical Marijuana food truck hits Lakers’ victory parade in LA

Marijuana lollipops for sale on Lakers parade route

June 21, 2010 | 10:52 am

• 

Lakers’ fans cheered Monday during the victory parade in downtown… (Vogel/AP)

In addition to the sales of Lakers paraphernalia and water, some surprising entrepreneurs took to the parade route to sell their wares.

Among them was a mobile truck, Weed World Candies.com, selling marijuana lollipops in hues of orange and blue. (The truck itself is green with a photo mural of young women in bikinis sorting marijuana leaves.)

The assortment included brands of marijuana such as OG Kush and Grand Daddy Perp. The truck’s owner, Bilal Muhammad, said he was recently forced to shut down his store in West Hollywood and had taken his business on the road.

Customers approaching his truck were asked if they had a prescription card allowing them to purchase marijuana and then were handed a free lollipop.

“It’s been working out very well,” he said of business before driving away as police became visible in the distance.

So far, Muhammad was able to work without interruption from police.

– Gale Holland http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/06/marijuana-lollipops-for-sale-on-lakers-parade-route.html

Tobacco Company Sues Over Rolling Papers Ban in D.C.

KY Tobacco Company Sues Over Rolling Papers Ban in D.C.

What’s good homies, this story is coming from my favorite, and maybe your favorite maker of rolling papers. The company that produces Zig Zag rolling papers are sueing D.C. over they’re unconstitutional ban over rolling papers in D.C. Full story here.

Now, they aren’t exactly fighting for our right to party. Although most of the consumers that purchase rolling papers only use them to smoke weed (which is why they are banned) The National Tobacco Company is fighting for just what they stand for, tobacco. They say that this ban has caused “direct injury” to the company.

When the city’s lawmakers passed this ban, which wasn’t enforced, they said the only purpose of these products where for illegal drug use. Lawmakers said they were concerned teens were using these to smoke marijuana. Damn straight they are.

Since National Tobacco only wants papers to be legal so people can smoke tobacco and get cancer, it’s hard to root for them to be victorious. But just because many companies are motivated by greed doesn’t make D.C.’s paper ban right.

“Since National Tobacco only wants papers to be legal so people can smoke tobacco and get cancer, it’s hard to root for them to be victorious. But just because many companies are motivated by greed doesn’t make D.C.’s paper ban right.”

To be honest with you all, I believe it is total bullshit that they “attempted” to ban papers in that area. Even further I think its stupid that other cities are following this. Hopefully soon this ban can be lifted, amongst other laws, and we can all puff in peace. Until then, stay up greenies.

La Crosse, Wisconsin Passes Marijuana Decriminalization Ordinance

By Martha Boehm

With a new City of La Crosse marijuana ordinance that takes effect July 24, people who are caught with seven grams of marijuana or less for the first time, could receive a ticket instead of being arrested.

“We think it sends a wrong message that it could soften attitudes about marijuana and we know when attitudes are softened, use increases,” said La Crosse Police Chief Ed Kondracki.

Chief Kondracki says juvenile arrests for marijuana use are up 50% this year. With the new ordinance, Kondracki says police officers will determine whether a ticket or arrest is appropriate on a case- to-case basis.

City council member Chris Olson, who introduced the ordinance, says getting a ticket gives people a change to change their ways.

“For a DUI, basically, they get a second chance and I think marijuana should be the same situation,” Olson said.

“I don’t think that it will change habits,” said City of La Crosse resident Jana Carter. “I think that it will kinda give the mentality that there’s more of a sense of a freedom to do it and that’s dangerous.”

But Charles Gittens says, “It’s the right thing to do because our courts are clogged up a little bit too much the way it is.”

Chief Kondracki says he just wants it to be clear that even with the new ordinance, marijuana is illegal not only in the city, but in the state.

“It is a dangerous drug and we have to be careful that we still engage in our prevention efforts,” Chief Kondracki said.

The chief says there is no set dollar amount to a ticket for possession of small amounts of marijuana yet. He says the city council will work with the municipal court judge to determine an appropriate fine.

Article From WEAU13 News

Seattle Committee Passes Bill to License Cannabis Dispensaries

Thursday, July 14, 2011, at 9:42 am

Photo: Steve Elliott ~alapoet~

​A Seattle City Council panel on Wednesday unanimously passed a measure licensing and regulating medical marijuana dispensaries in the city.

The ordinance now moves to the full City Council for consideration on Monday, July 18, reports Chris Grygiel at the Seattle P.I. But prior to the vote by the Housing, Human Services, Health and Culture Committee, one attorney told the council members that the ordinance won’t stand up in court.

“I want to applaud the City Council for taking a look at this matter … unfortunately I must urge you to reconsider your proposal,” said activist/attorney Douglas Hiatt, who said he represents medical marijuana patients. “Go back to the drawing board. I do not believe there is any way you can pass your ordinance will stand under the law. The state’s controlled substances act pre-empts the field … Marijuana is still illegal … It’s illegal for all purposes, you cannot regulate an illegal business without a specific authority.”

Photo: Douglas Hiatt

Attorney Douglas Hiatt: “If you pass this, I will take you to court and do my very best to knock it out”

​ When Gov. Chris Gregoire line-item vetoed a bill earlier this year which would have allowed medical marijuana dispensaries statewide, she nixed language that would have allowed the Council to pass its own regulations, according to Hiatt.

“If you pass this, I will take you to court and do my very best to knock it out,” Hiatt told the Council.

Earlier this year, the Washington Legislature passed a medical marijuana bill, but Gregoire vetoed most of it, claiming she was worried the law would put state workers at risk of federal prosecution, even though that’s never happened in any medical marijuana state.

Washington has allowed patients with qualifying conditions to use medical marijuana since voters approved it in 1998, but the federal government doesn’t recognize any medicinal use for cannabis. The bill that passed in the Legislature was intended to set clearer regulations on dispensaries, establish a licensing system, and institute a patient registry with arrest protection.

Gregoire vetoed provisions which would have licensed and regulated marijuana dispensaries. She also vetoed the provision which would have created a patient registry under the Department of Health.

Seattle Mayor Mike McGinn, along with the city attorney and King County’s executive and prosecutor had all supported establishing a legal framework for medical marijuana.

The ordinance before the Seattle City Council, sponsored by Councilman Nick Licata, would require medical marijuana dispensaries to get business licenses, pay taxes and fees and meet city land use codes. The shops would also be subject to the city’s Chronic Nuisance Property Law, which means if there were repeated complaints about their activity, they could be fined or shut down.

The “open use and display of cannabis” would be prohibited at the dispensaries.

Not all people testifying before the Council on Wednesday thought the effort was in vain. A University District resident urged the Council to come up with zoning rules so that neighborhoods like his aren’t “overrun” with dispensaries.

To read medical marijuana documents presented to the Council, click here and here.

Marijuana Decrim Headed To The Ballot In Miami Beach

Graphic: CSMP

​Miami Beach, Florida voters may get a chance to vote on decriminalizing marijuana this fall, making it the first city in South Florida to reduce the penalty for pot to a $100 fine instead of criminal charges.

Sensible Florida (Committee for Sensible Marijuana Policy), a group which works to legalize cannabis, said it has collected more than double the number of signatures needed to put the measure on the ballot, reports Tim Elfrink at Miami New Times; normally, doubling the required number all-but-ensures that enough valid names are present to qualify.

The group said it will present 9,000 signatures at Miami Beach City Hall on Wednesday, July 13.

Photo: The Lead Miami Beach

Ford Banister, Sensible Florida: “It’s a great day for the marijuana legalization movement in Florida”

​ “It’s a great day for the marijuana legalization movement in Florida,” said the group’s Chairman Ford Banister. “For the first time, Florida voters will soon decide a marijuana related question.”

Billy Corben and Alfred Spellman, the director and producer of Cocaine Cowboys and Square Grouper – a film about the South Florida marijuana trade in the 1970s and ’80s — has contributed thousands of dollars and publically backed the efforts of Sensible Florida, reports Perry Stein at The Miami Herald.

Spellman said the vote will be a chance for Miami Beach residents to decide if they want to stop pursuing a “failed war on drugs.”

“Is it in the public interest to arrest, detain and process somebody in the system for small amounts of marijuana?” asked Spellman. ”Is that what we want cops, prosecutors and investigators to be focusing on?”

Victory Rally Planned for 4:20 Wednesday, July 13, Miami Beach City Hall

If at least 4,300 of the group’s 9,000 signatures are valid, a citywide vote on the issue will take place in November.

The group is staging a victory rally at Miami Beach City Hall at 4:20 p.m. on Wednesday.

“We are working to generate a huge crowd for this historic event,” said campaign organizer Eric Stevens of Sensible Florida. “We need to get as many people as possible at the rally.”

“One of our plans is to have planes with banners flying all around Miami Beach to let people know that this is happening,” Stevens said. “Imagine how cool it would be to see a plane flying overhead announcing a marijuana rally at City Hall on Miami Beach as we work to present the voices of thousands of people who signed the petition to change the marijuana laws!”

Florida NORML, People United For Medical Marijuana (PUFMM), Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), Sensible Florida Miami Beach, and others have all worked hard for more than a year to make this event happen, activist/Black Tuna Diaries author Robert Platshorn, one of the 1970s marijuana smugglers featured in the film Square Grouper, told Toke of the Town on Monday.

What: Rally to support petition submission to decriminalize marijuana on Miami Beach

When: July 13, 4:20 p.m.

Where: Miami Beach City Hall, 1700 Convention Center Drive (on the corner of 17th Street & Convention Center Drive)

Documentary Planned for Cancer Patient Cured by MMJ

Documentary Planned For Critical Cancer Patient Cured By Medical Marijuana

Cannabis Science Inc. (nasd otcbb:CBIS) a pioneering US biotech company developing pharmaceutical cannabis products, is pleased to announce that it has been contacted by Lynnice Wedewer, Ph.D. who is a 34 year multiple cancer patient survivor who has been cured of 7 of her 8 cancers in a major part because of medical cannabis. Dr. Wedewer wishes to share her story through Cannabis Science and help our case and education towards general acceptance of medical cannabis as a natural and viable treatment for cancer.

In 1979, Iowa passed a medical marijuana law which impacted five children suffering from cancer and who were placed into a cancer treatment program using medical cannabis under the supervision of the University of Iowa. Dr. Wedewer was one of those children and only 1 1/2 years ago did the law in Iowa finally change to allow these patients to finally speak out about their treatment and success stories in battling cancer with medical cannabis.

The Company is excited to feature Dr. Lynnice Wedewer’s cancer success story and testimonial in its upcoming documentary, along with other cancer survivors who were cured through the use of medical cannabis.

Dr. Wedewer runs a website http://www.lynnicewedewer.com where she provides her testimony, speeches, educational material, marijuana facts, interviews and documentaries, and other informational links regarding marijuana.

Dr. Robert Melamede, Ph. D., Cannabis Science Inc., President & CEO said, “These are exciting times to be part of a burgeoning medical marijuana movement and shedding light on patients who are telling their stories and opening up medical files to demonstrate the cancer curing power of medical cannabis. We are enthusiastic and hopefully that Dr. Lynnice Wedewer’s testimonial and cancer success along with other patient success stories, including profound medical evidence, will help to educate and finally open up the eyes of federal regulators to decriminalize medical cannabis; so more people’s lives can be saved by this natural herbal remedy and stop killing people with man-made pharmaceuticals.”

About Cannabis Science, Inc.

Cannabis Science, Inc. is at the forefront of pharmaceutical grade medical marijuana research and development. The Company works with world authorities on phytocannabinoid science targeting critical illnesses, and adheres to scientific methodologies to develop, produce and commercialize phytocannabinoid-based pharmaceutical products. In sum, we are dedicated to the creation of cannabis-based medicines, both with and without psychoactive properties, to treat disease and the symptoms of disease, as well as for general health maintenance.

Federal government says marijuana has no accepted medical use

LA-Marijuana has been approved by California, many other states and the nation’s capital to treat a range of illnesses, but in a decision announced Friday the federal government ruled that it has no accepted medical use and should remain classified as a dangerous drug like heroin.

The decision comes almost nine years after medical marijuana supporters asked the government to reclassify cannabis to take into account a growing body of worldwide research that shows its effectiveness in treating certain diseases, such as glaucoma and multiple sclerosis.

Advocates for the medical use of the drug criticized the ruling but were elated that the Obama administration had finally acted, which allows them to appeal to the federal courts, where they believe they can get a fairer hearing. The decision to deny the request was made by the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration and comes less than two months after advocates asked the U.S. Court of Appeals to force the administration to respond to their petition.

“We have foiled the government’s strategy of delay, and we can now go head-to-head on the merits, that marijuana really does have therapeutic value,” said Joe Elford, the chief counsel for Americans for Safe Access and the lead counsel on the recently filed lawsuit. Elford said he was not surprised by the decision, which comes just after the Obama administration announced it would not tolerate large-scale commercial marijuana cultivation. “It is clearly motivated by a political decision that is anti-marijuana,” he said. He noted that studies demonstrate pot has beneficial effects, including appetite stimulation for people undergoing chemotherapy. “One of the things people say about marijuana is that it gives you the munchies and the truth is that it does, and for some people that’s a very positive thing.”

DEA Administrator Michele M. Leonhart sent a letter dated June 21 to the organizations that filed a petition for the change. The letter and the documentation that she used to back up her decision were published Friday in the Federal Register. Leonhart said she rejected the request because marijuana “has a high potential for abuse,” “has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States” and “lacks accepted safety for use under medical supervision.”

This is the third time that petitions to reclassify marijuana have been spurned. The first was filed in 1972 and denied 17 years later. The second was filed in 1995 and denied in 2001. Both decisions were appealed, but the courts sided with the federal government.

Voters deserve facts, not fiction

CO- In his Coloradoan July 2 Soapbox, Ray Martinez made many disparaging claims about medical marijuana centers in order to bolster his attempt to ban MMCs from Fort Collins. Too bad that none of his assertions are supported by facts.

Acting police Chief Jerry Schiager reported no medical marijuana business “surge in crime,” and no increase in 911 calls (1). The ordinance regulating MMCs, passed by Fort Collins’ City Council, is stricter than the state requires (2) In fact, state regulators track every gram of medicine produced by MMCs “from seed to sale” preventing any diversion to “the new black market” (3) as Martinez claims.

Proponents of the ban would also like us to believe, based on anecdotal “evidence,” that marijuana use is up among teens and MMCs are the cause.

Wrong again.

Two studies released this week show the opposite. The National Center for Addiction and Substance Abuse reports that from 1999 to 2010, teen marijuana use dropped 22 percent (4). And a separate nationwide study shows that there is no causal relationship between medical marijuana and an increase in teen marijuana use (5).

MMCs are clearly not the boogey man that Martinez and company would have us believe.

Instead of fear-mongering and fantasy, we need a discussion based on reality.

The people of this state voted to make medical marijuana legal in 2000. Lacking any regulatory framework, Colorado’s state Legislature passed HB1284 in 2010. As a result, Colorado’s licensed MMCs are the most heavily regulated and taxed among all 16 states that allow for medical marijuana use.

Criminals are out. Standards are in place. Taxes are collected. And law enforcement keeps a 24/7 watch to ensure compliance. While this is tedious and expensive for center owners, we know that our customers and community members feel more secure because of the tight restrictions and security.

Reality check:

More than 8,500 people hold valid licenses to purchase medical marijuana in Larimer County. That averages out to more than 16,000 transactions a month, or 200,000 every year.

Let’s imagine for a moment that Martinez gets his way and MMCs disappear. What then?

Patients will lose out. Treatment protocols will be interrupted when the products, services and specialists patients rely upon and trust disappear. This will result in negative health outcomes for patients.

Our economy will suffer. One half-million dollars in sales taxes will go uncollected every year. More than 200 people will lose their jobs. Dozens of commercial leases will be abandoned. Millions of dollars in business investments will be lost. Bankruptcies will soar.

Our neighborhoods will become less safe. Currently, medical marijuana businesses are licensed, regulated, secured, and taxed. If we ban these businesses, medical marijuana sales will be pushed into our neighborhoods where they will be unlicensed, unregulated, unsecured, and untaxed, and increase the risk of illegal sales, fires, and home invasions.

Assuming home growers follow the rules and serve only five patients each, 1,500 homes are needed to serve Larimer County’s 8,500 registered patients. That’s 200,000 sales taking place in 1,500 private homes! Home invasions, electrical fires and chemicals dumped unmonitored into our sewers will become common.

This will be a disaster.

medical marijuana centers are the safest way to ensure that legal patients have access while protecting our community.

Please act to keep MMCs legal in Fort Collins.

Steve Ackerman is a longtime Fort Collins resident and business owner. He is president of the Fort Collins Medical Cannabis Association (FCMCA) and owner of Organic Alternatives. He may be reached at 214-1152. Sources: 1: Schiager, Jerry. Statement to Council. City Council Adjourned Meeting & Work Session, Feb. 22. 2: Agenda Item Summary Feb. 22, Item 3. (n.d.). Agenda Item Summary, Issues Relating to Medical marijuana Businesses, (p. 2). Fort Collins.Fort Collins; 3: (2011). Colorado Medical Marijuana Enforcement Division Rules. Denver: State of Colorado Department of Revenue; 4: National Center for Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University, (June 29, 2011). Adolescent Substance Use: America’s #1 Public Health Problem (pg. 28). New York: CASA Columbia; 5: O’Keefe, K. E. a. (June 2011). Marijuana Use by Young People: The Impact of State Laws. Washington D.C.: Marijuana Policy Project.

Crackdown on medical marijuana ahead?

Why drug reformers are worried about a new pot policy issued by the Obama administration

CRACKDOWN-Drug-policy reformers are worried about a new Obama administration memo instructing federal prosecutors on how to deal with the growing number of medical marijuana dispensaries.

The Justice Department memo, sent to U.S. attorneys around the nation, addresses a central problem with the growing number of states that have legalized medical marijuana: The drug remains illegal under federal law, whether used for medical purposes or not. The new guidance memo reiterates the illegality of medical marijuana and appears to encourage prosecutors to go after some marijuana dispensaries, particularly the large operations.

President Obama suggested during the campaign in 2007-08 that his Justice Department would not prioritize going after medical marijuana. To find out more about the new medical marijuana memo, and for an update on the broader drug war, I spoke to Ethan Nadelmann, executive director of the Drug Policy Alliance, which lobbies for alternatives to the drug war.

Can you give an overview of the legal status of medical marijuana around the country?

Sixteen states and the District of Columbia have legalized medical marijuana either through the ballot initiative process or a state legislative process. The federal law remains that it is all illegal. Strictly speaking, marijuana remains a Schedule 1 substance. The DEA just issued an announcement Friday confirming that it still regards marijuana as a Schedule 1 substance with no legitimate medical uses and no margin of safety in its use — which is sort of an absurdity on its face. Marijuana remains entirely illegal under federal law.

And “Schedule 1″ means what?

Well, back in 1970, when Congress unified all the drug laws in the Controlled Substances Act, they divided drugs into a variety of schedules. Schedule 1 refers to drugs that supposedly have no legitimate medical use and have no margin of safety in their use. So heroin, LSD, and marijuana are in that category. Schedule 2 are drugs that have some substantial risk but also have some legitimate medical uses. So for example cocaine, opiates and stimulant drugs are in that category.

So medical marijuana is illegal in the eyes of the federal government. But what has the actual enforcement policy of the Obama administration been up till this week?

During the presidential campaign in 2008, Obama made a number of commitments, one of which was that federal law enforcement would not prioritize prosecution of medical marijuana facilities operating legally under state law. Then in summer 2009, the Justice Department issued a memo called the Ogden memo, which basically affirmed much of Obama’s promise. It affirmed the idea that marijuana is illegal under federal law, but then said that federal prosecutors should not prioritize the prosecution of medical marijuana facilities operating legally under state law. Drug policy reform advovates felt quite optimistic about that 2009 memo, even though it was a qualified statement. What followed was a proliferation of dispensaries in places like Colorado, and California, and Montana. There were growing concerns that this was going too far. I think the Justice Department was hearing from local federal prosecutors and others who did not like these developments.

So what does the new memo sent out to U.S. attorneys say?

It’s called the Cole memo. It reiterates that all marijuana is illegal under federal law. They say that clearly federal resources should not be used to go after patients and their caregivers. They also say that any very large-scale operations — multimillion-dollar operations — will be prosecuted even if they are operating legally under state law. So that represents a modest change in policy. What they are not clear on is what will happen with the midlevel dispensaries. They’re not multimillion-dollar operations, they’re operating legally under state law, and they seem to be serving a population that has medical marijuana recommendations from their physicians. With those operations we’re in a kind of wait-and-see mode as to what prosecutors will do state by state.

The language of the Cole memo is quite aggressive in saying to everybody, “You better watch out, because any one of you could be prosecuted.” On the other hand there are some other messages being sent saying, “Watch what we do, not what we say.” So the real test cases will be whether or not the feds decide to go after medical marijuana dispensaries that are operating legally under state law and are being responsibly regulated by state authorities. If they do that, then we’ll know they really seriously backtracked on the president’s commitment.

So from the beginning of the administration to the present, have they actually gone after dispensaries?

There was a proliferation of dispensaries in states like Colorado and California. So there have in fact been more raids under the Obama administration than there were under the Bush administration. It’s hard to say whether that’s a reflection of the proliferation of dispensaries or whether that’s a real change in policy. What’s also not clear is whether the feds are only targeting those facilities that are not clearly operating legally under state law. So the feds have really created a growing sense of confusion in the medical marijuana community about where the line is between what will be permitted and what won’t.

Stepping back from medical marijuana, has there been much of a shift from the Bush to Obama administrations with “drug war” policy more broadly?

I was pleasantly surprised by the first 18 months of the administration. Obama made three explicit promises during the campaign. He said the feds would not go after medical marijuana facilities operating legally under state law, and he appeared to make good on that. He said the crack-powder laws needed to be rolled back, and they got a major reform of that law last year. Third, he said he would support federal funding for needle exchange, and they did support the efforts in Congress on that. Since that time, it looks more and more like the drug czar’s office has been captured by the drug warriors and the anti-drug fanatics who dominated policy-making in the Clinton and Bush administrations. The rhetoric coming out of the drug czar’s office is almost indistinguishable from the rhetoric of past administrations. The personnel they’ve been hiring, and the people they talk to, are overwhelmingly those who have been associated with the failed drug war policies of the past. And meanwhile the Justice Department seems to be getting more and more engaged in enforcement of marijuana laws in ways that really make no sense as a matter of [the] responsible [use] of resources.