Legalizing marijuana. (What if Marijuana Could Cure Cancer?)

It is time for real changes and progression into the future - OH, YES WE CAN

The marijuana fiasco - a complete failure: It is unbelievable to me that this is still such a hot issue. "Pot" has been around from the beginning of time, and will never be eradicated. I for one, would be horrified if it ever were.

This is a plant created by God and Good old Mother Nature. It has the power to soothe, calm the spirit, provide clothing, paper goods, medicine, oil in abundance, (both for cooking and to replace the environmentally destructive petroleum oils now in use, and most importantly-medicinal). So just who demonized this wonderful creation? I think we all know the answer to that question.

If the truth be told, its use is more prevalent than any government agency knows. There have been no relevant studies done that prove that its use promotes progression to "harder" drugs. This is only a great scare tactic used by those who would continue banning its use for their own agendas. We tried banning alcohol for all the same reasons that pot is now banned. It does not matter how many laws are made to stop its use, that ain't ever gonna happen. People want to use it, and will, regardless of how many inane laws they make. Just as alcohol was used during the prohibition era.

Legalizing marijuana would increase tax revenues (i am sure by billions, or more, per year), decrease drug trafficking, and create jobs. A win-win situation. Not to mention how much it would lessen the burden on our justice/court system, as well as our jail/prison system, and stop creating felons. Another win-win situation. The other countries that have legalized the use of this plant, have already proven that these things are in fact, fact.

Marijuana, (otherwise known as hemp) grows faster, makes better oil products for cooking and commercial use (and unlike petroleum base oils are environmentally friendly and renewable), makes better quality clothing, makes better quality paper products, and saves trees (in case the politicians have forgotten what those are: they are the providers of our life giving oxygen supply, take years to grow to maturity, and provide safe harbors and homes for thousands of living creatures). Another win-win situation.

The only losers? Big greedy industries that want to continue to exploit and destroy our planet's rain forests, destroy the natural habitats of thousands of living creatures, just to feed their greed. Another win-win situation.

Can Marijuana Cure Cancer?

• Believe it or not - a Harvard study released in April 2007, showed that the active ingredient in marijuana (THC = tetrahydrocannabinol) cuts tumor growth in common lung cancer in half and significantly reduces the ability of the cancer to spread !!! (more detail can be found via the link i provided below regarding this study).
• A British pilot study testing THC as a treatment against cancer growth showed that , after 3 weeks of standard injections of THC into mice with implanted human lung cancer cells, the tumors were reduced in size and weight by about 50%. There was also about a 60% reduction in cancer lesions on the lungs, as well as a significant reduction in protein markers associated with cancer progression.
• The NCI (national Cancer Institute) scientists feel that THC was more effective than synthetic pharmaceuticals were, as a "first-line therapy" against nausea and vomiting caused by the use of anticancer drugs.
• The IOM (Institute of Medicine)(part of the National Academy of Sciences) has published a report assessing the scientific knowledge of health effects and possible medical uses of marijuana. The IOM project was funded by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. The IOM released its report on March 17, 1999. (more detail can be found through the link i provided below on this study).

Researchers say this is the first set of experiments to show that the compound (THC) inhibits EGF (induced growth factor) and EGFR (epidermal growth factor receptor), expressing non-small cell lung cancer cell lines. Lung cancers that over express EDGF are usually highly aggressive and resistant to chemotherapy. These researcher results go on to explain the chemical details of how and why THC works, but they are irrelevant for the purpose of this hub.

Throughout man's history, marijuana (a member of the hemp family of plants) has always been known as the most medicinal plant in the world. Even with this knowledge, hemp as always been used as a political and religious football.

The current restrictions against hemp were put in place and maintained, not because hemp is evil, or harmful, but for big business to make more more big money profits, while millions of people who could possible be saved, suffer and die at their greedy hands. If individuals were allowed to grow hemp in our back yards for personal use and treatment of illness, what do you think the pharmaceutical industry would stand to lose? A huge chunk of their precious "profits".

Hemp had to be made illegal. Back in the 1800's and early 1900's the large pharmaceutical companies; many of which, that still exist today, were selling hemp based medications. When they realized (the information above) and its implications of hemp oil being a cure-all that they could not patent, the next logical step was to get rid of it all together. Hence the current laws banning marijuana were born. All the propaganda against its use, citing the harmful effects, its being a stepping stone to harder drugs, and supposed religious implications of it being "Satan's tool" , were just a bunch of malarkey to support their stance against its use.

CNN and Pew surveys purportedly found that those who had a more advanced educational level were most likely to support legalization than those who have not. Their findings go on to further breakdown correlations between: white vs black populations and higher income vs lower income, etc. These results are also irrelevant to this article. They are mentioned only in the context of the questionable validity of such polls in the first place. (see my link below to my hub entitled: Let's take a Poll.

There is enough material for another article on why corporate America will never permit hemp to be legalized, so the only comment that i will make on that subject at this time is this.

The current laws against the use of hemp (marijuana) are comically absurd as are all other things deemed "sinful" in this corrupt society of greed and irreverent religious beliefs.

But, do remember this: that the control of distribution of goods, plus religion, are the sum total of the basis of our current legal system regarding ALL the choices adults are allowed to make today!!!!

So, lets put America first in progressive change for once (oops too late for that) we can only hope to 'catch up' to the other progressive countries. We must stop wallowing in stale "conservatism". Lets create a government we can be proud of and set an example for the rest of the world by practicing what we preach: Freedom and equality for everyone!! OH, YES WE CAN !!!

disclaimer: I do not choose the ads that are put on my hubs. I do not agree with the content of those ads, nor condemn them. Their efficacy is the sole discretion of the reader.

d.william 10/03/10