When you digest the information I’ve provided within “Marijuana Addiction “Lay Your Bet! Part 1,” See MAE HealthBlog, www.mirrorathlete.org.  One can only assume, the government is more concerned about retaining control and power over the people.  Let me provide you some interesting information with regard to Marinol (HMO Legal cannabis oil prescription).  A month supply costs the patient, or your HMO health provider $300-500 per month.  Also, the 13 states that allow medical marijuana scripts with a state approved medicinal marijuana card allow patients to grow a specified number of plants per year for harvest and personal use.  If you do not want to grow your own script, you can purchase the THC in food products, or purchase cannabis by the ounce for a fraction of HMO legal Marinol through state sanctioned medical marijuana distribution centers.  Currently, our federal government does not recognize “voter approved” states rights to distribute medical marijuana.  I believe this is because the federal government has not figured out how to control the revenues, which not done correctly will have a diminishing impact on their power and control base.  Or is it our government is concerned about our children’s potential addiction through access of our parents legalized medical marijuana scripts, or recreational health risks, or is it more in line to say, “It’s all about the money!”  Let’s continue the money, control and power assessment of what’s really going on here.

Marijuana consumption does not appear to be dwindling in use, per “The Street and journal reviews.”   I’ve talked with many parents about this issue, received mixed reviews, but on the whole parents accept the notion that legalization of marijuana for use by chronic pain patients should be a voter approved statewide mandate recognized by the federal government as intended by congress passing of the Compassionate Use Act, 1996 and revisions thereafter (see MAE Marijuana Use, Pain Benefits, Part 1).  Aside from state legal medical marijuana use many believe marijuana should be legalized for recreational use, much like alcohol (a social drug with NO medicinal property and HUGE health risks).   Then those that did become addicts could receive help and support much like an alcoholic and prescription addict receives state and health insurance covered rehabilitation and cessation services.

Alcohol and cigarettes have caused more damage to families and societies overall health than our government will ever admit.  To allow a drug to enter the market legally without full government control would begin “a shrinking” of the federal power base by giving too much control back to the people, such as we see in the struggle to bring medical marijuana to market.  Be patient, I will explain this concept very soon.   Please do take a little time and do your due diligence to see what’s going on in the world around you with regard to the legalization of marijuana.  Don’t take my word or insight as gospel with what you are about to read, instead use this insight to “incite” your curiosity and further educate yourself on these matters.  If marijuana was legalized as a recreational drug much like alcohol, I fear much crime, unnecessary deaths, overcrowded jails, addiction, etc., to include tax payer burden for rehabilitative support programs would still occur, “but I believe significantly less than if the drug was fully legalized!”  Yes, you heard me right.  My educated insight tells me if marijuana was legal and regulated much like alcohol many problems in our country would be significantly reduced.  And if you are wondering, as I stated in my medical marijuana MAE video, “I have not requested a medical marijuana card from my Oregon physician as part of my pain management program, although I could; I see no reason at this time to do so.

You see if an individual is bent on self destruction, or is predisposed to become addicted to a drug… This will occur regardless of whether cannabis is widely accepted and legalized as a recreational drug, or solely legalized and distributed as medical marijuana.  This is because children and adults will find a legal or illegal drug when they need to find relief from their stress realities and justify bad behavior through intoxication.  The biggest problem in self medication with recreational drugs (legal, or not), we don’t know whom among us is genetically wired to become addicted to any specific substance, “including prescription medications, tobacco or alcohol!”

Let’s not mince words here, although I’m speaking from a pain patient perspective where I see benefits based on science, the fact is cannabis medicinal properties have been known for thousands of years.  However,   have the potential for addiction, much like our prescription pain killers, alcohol, or tobacco.  Why our federal government released prohibition of alcohol in the early twentieth century as a social recreational drug as opposed to cannabis, which has medicinal properties, one can only speculate the interest in one legalized social, or prescribed drug versus the other, which I feel I know the answer to my own question.  Quite the opposite health effect is true of alcohol; it causes much illness, disease and destruction within our minds, bodies, employment, family and society at large where much statistical information proves this fact.  Marijuana use statistics on the other hand are literally unknown since this is not a general population “legal” consumption drug.  Recreational Marijuana negative impact on society and personal health can only be statistically known once legalized for the general population.

I believe alcohol like cigarettes and marijuana can be very addicting, very profitable and can be easily controlled by our state and federal agencies, “with the exception of cannabis.”  “With all the scientific evidence regarding alcohol and cigarette use health risks, addiction, societal and family harm, why are they not banned from public consumption?” “Or better yet, why not controlled like our legal pharmaceuticals if there is a health benefit-risk aspect?”  After all, when you pick up drug prescriptions at a pharmacy, why are they so concerned about how much you take, while consulting the risks and symptoms to watch out for if you experience a negative reaction?  Since you are not asked specific health questions before you purchase alcohol and cigarettes, does this mean there is no immediate health risk?

Do you get these kinds of questions when you walk into a liquor store to pick up your products… Or when you’re in a bar, does the bar tender ask you if you have a heart, diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol condition, etc., before he/she pours your drink?  Is it just me, or is this all fickle?  And why is it so easy for our children to become alcoholics, or pot heads?  I believe this is an easy question to answer. Alcohol in general is accepted as the gold standard recreational drug while marijuana is tolerated as a recreational closet drug.  Remember, there’s big potential money here for our government if they can figure out how to control recreational use marijuana, much like what’s happening with medical marijuana.  Why do you think marijuana possession and confiscation of miniscule amounts have very low conviction and mostly civil penalties?  Or do you honestly believe just because one drug is accepted by our government for sale to the general population it’s better for you? 

Many of our high school and college students are allowed by many adults to party hardy to relieve stress.  Don’t parental and societal role model actions speak louder than words?  What do most American adults and teenagers consume in one form or another as a recreational drug of choice (prescription drugs, alcohol, cigarettes and marijuana).  Since this appears to be the case, it is very important to understand marijuana will eventually receive full regulation and control by our state and federal governments as they are drooling over a potential multi-billion dollar industry to fatten their coffers, much like alcohol and tobacco has done to grow government services (jobs).  Does it not sound like a money thing to you yet?  “If it doesn’t, it soon will.”  Does it not sound like a nice budgetary balance sheet and debt reducer catering to thousands of government jobs and/or more tax revenues that are controlled by our legislators leading to bigger government?  Examples, FDA (Food & Drug Administration), DEA (Drug Enforcement Agency), FTC (Federal Trade Commission), ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms & Explosives) to name a few and countless other government organizations in existence that want a piece of the action.  Or better yet, new jobs yet to be created by the government.

Come on, let’s be real and smell the money trail.   If cannabis was legalized “wholly” many government jobs would disappear and new ones would appear, hence government control and power shift.  Does it appear our government cares about our children’s marijuana addiction and health probabilities?  No, unfortunately it appears our government is concerned about programs to fatten coffers, grow government jobs, control, regulate and provide penal and other tax-based industrial services while lining pockets of our politicians and special interest groups!  How else am I supposed to see our government’s activities and behaviors regarding any government sponsored, or controlled program, or service?  Think about it, if we become addicted to any drug, legal or not, we pay a price through our societal government controlled systems.  Who pays for the addiction, criminal and penal services?  We the tax payer!

Reviewing addiction studies, predictable behavioral patterns are statistically derived in part from alcohol, tobacco, prescription drug sales, DUI arrests and fatalities, AA support group attendance, incarceration, cessation programs, depression medications, battery drug related arrests, etc., we “the consumer” unknowingly provide the government annual data to forecast a budget.  Many state and federal appropriated dollars are used and paid by the tax payer for these governments owned and controlled services.  This is not so easy to accomplish with cannabis as statistics cannot forecast and justify government tax paid marijuana services to regulate and control recreational marijuana.   In part, this is true because medical marijuana users can grow their own prescription taking away the government’s ability to control and regulate the proceeds of a multi-billion dollar industry.  And if they cannot figure out how to capture and control the revenues, they will not fully legalize marijuana because some government tax payer services may become unnecessary, may be reduced in scope, political power shift wars within government, or shift a balance of power back to the people!

If voters and legislation fail to pass other tax increases to keep government growing and states out of debt, the marijuana lobbyists will continue to capture the attention of politicians, the tax payer and voter.  California is now considering the legalization of marijuana as it nears bankruptcy.  So you can’t honestly tell me you still believe our government restricts recreational marijuana because it is concerned about our children’s health and addiction possibilities!  Or medical marijuana has no medicinal benefit and pain patients should be thrown into jail.  This is ridiculous!  If you believe this, then you should believe anyone in the possession of alcohol should be incarcerated as well!  Remember, in the early 20^th century both were used as recreational drugs.  The biggest reason alcohol made the recreational drug use cut is because our government figured out how to control and regulate the money while growing government (Legal history of cannabis in the United States, “Prohibition of cannabis arose in many states from 1906 and onward,” www.wikipedia.org ).

A multi-billion dollar cannabis industry will create less need for “status quo” government services (e.g., fewer incarcerated jail services, policing,  border drug trafficking-smuggling activity, reduced deaths & investigation related to drug trafficking; including less government cash cow industry sales: Alcohol, tobacco and pharmaceuticals, less DEA & ATF services etc.).  These shifts are certain to happen as our government is slowly losing power and control over states rights.  I believe the cannabis industry and Universal health care must be controlled by the federal government in order to maintain its power base due to an inevitable global power base shift.  The legalization of recreational marijuana without federal control would definitely create a downsizing of federal services; while increasing the size of state power and control back to the people!

 

I believe the governments interest to control and gain power over the cannabis industry has nothing to do with concern for any child that may become addicted, or suffer from any illness, or disease caused by marijuana, “this I’d lay a bet I’m right.”  Instead the governments concern is “how can we control and regulate a product that can be grown on the resident’s property?”  If this is the case how will the government fully legalize recreational marijuana when it understands this means reduced government taxed based dollars, fewer required federal government services, hence power control shift back to the people and state?

 

Author:  Marc T. Woodard, MBA, BS Exercise Science, USA Medical Services Officer, CPT, RET.  2009 Copyright, All rights reserved.  Mirror Athlete Enterprises Publishing @: www.mirrorathlete.org, Sign up for your free eNewsletter.