One question for the DEA's recent decision to not remove cannabis from schedule 1 status is;
Did DEA scientists make it past 3rd grade science classes? Or do they have a third grader making their drug scheduling decisions? Maybe cannabis looks too much like broccoli and meth looks more like sugar sprinkled on a donut? That could motivate a third grader to say that cannabis is worse than meth, because cannabis looks like broccoli and we all know how third graders hate broccoli and love sugar sprinkled donuts! ; )
The reason for these smart aleck questions is that DEA has methamphetamine as schedule 2 while cannabis is still on schedule 1 status. Meaning no recognized medical value and potential for addiction. The ranking improves with increasing numbers, so according to DEA logic schedule 1 drugs have less medical value and more potential for addiction than schedule 2 and so on. By having meth as schedule 2 they are literally telling people that meth has more medical value than cannabis and less potential for addiction than cannabis. Have they even looked at how rapidly meth users age and lose their teeth? Are these DEA scientists mad or what?
Or is there a method to their madness, perhaps pharma profiteering plays a role in the DEA's obliviousness to science. What doctor would recommend meth over cannabis to a sick person? Dr. Mengele?
So the end result is DEA mad scientists will be seen as crazy clowns and not be taken seriously by most people of reasonable intelligence. Other nations like Spain already have research (Dr. Christina Sanchez, Complutense University, Madrid) showing THC from cannabis killing cancer cells while leaving healthy cells intact. That beats chemo because too much chemo kills the cancer yet also kills the patient in the process. Cannabis can be given in unlimited dosages to kill cancer cells as needed without causing any damage to the patient. That means cannabis beats chemo hands down and the pharma cartel is scared of losing profits. The DEA decision not to reschedule cannabis could be tied to the pharma corporations putting pressure on them to not remove it from schedule 1.
Just wondering if in their zeal to protect people from accidental exposure to cannabis the DEA aren't making more people die premature deaths from cancer as Benton Mackenzie of Iowa. Benton Mackenzie was successfully treating his angiosarcoma skin cancer with homemade THC oil from his own plants until he was stopped from doing so by local police. Benton soon died during the trial after the interruption of THC oil caused his cancer to rapidly regrow. Judge Henry Latham did not even allow Benton to declare his cancer to the jury under threat of returned to jail. So the jury never even knew the real reason why Benton had all those cannabis plants that he was being charged for possessing and growing. If the "war on drugs" is "for our own good", why is it killing so many people while denying them a fair trail and giving honest testimony?
"DAVENPORT, Iowa — An eastern Iowa man who was convicted late last year of growing marijuana that he used to treat his rare form of cancer has died.
Benton Mackenzie, 49, died Monday at his home in Long Grove, near Davenport, his mother Dottie Mackenzie confirmed Tuesday.
He had been growing marijuana to create cannabis oil that he consumed and applied to tumors caused by his angiosarcoma, a rare cancer of the blood vessels that he was diagnosed with seven years ago.
Mackenzie said his self-treatment from the oil had prolonged his life and made some of the skin lesions disappear. Little research has been conducted on the effect of cannabis oil on this form of cancer, though doctors don’t discredit Mackenzie’s claims. But Iowa only allows medical marijuana to be used to treat intractable epilepsy, meaning further research of the drug’s benefits is obstructed in the state.
“He didn’t ask for this fight,” Dottie Mackenzie said. “It came to him.”
http://www.thecannabist.co/2015/01/14/iowa-man-fought-use-cannabis-oil-treat-cancer-dies/27296/
There are other reasons besides science to view a reaction to the DEA decision. According to this article, moving cannabis to Schedule 2 would be bad for the cannabis businesses because then they would be subjected to more FDA regulations and forced to compete with big pharma on the same playing field.
"The real concern among those in the industry is what happens if the FDA and DEA reschedule marijuana as a Schedule II drug. FDA regulation experts say if pot is placed in the same category as legal pharmaceutical formulations of opioids like oxycodone and stimulants like amphetamine the burden of keeping up with regulatory compliance might be too costly for many of today's small marijuana companies.
"Schedule II would be a nightmare for the cannabis industry," says Andrew Ittleman, a lawyer and partner at Fuerst Ittleman David & Joseph in Miami. His firm helps companies navigate FDA's laws and regulations.
Right now, since marijuana is classified as an illegal drug with no medical benefits, the drug's prohibition is policed by the Drug Enforcement Administration and other law enforcement agencies. But if it is reclassified as a drug with medical benefits, the FDA would lead the charge in regulating its manufacture, distribution, sale, and use.
What's more, under the Schedule II classification, every cannabis-derived product would be subject to the kind of scrutiny typically reserved for drugs like Adderall and OxyContin. If, for instance, a brand says its Cannabidiol (CBD) oil cures seizures or Tetrahydrocannabinol edibles (THC) relieve pain, the products will be targeted for testing. If the claims turn out to be unproven, that company could be charged with criminal misbranding, says Ittleman. So rather than just going back to the drawing board, a company's operators might face prison time or fines.
Further, if a company's manufacturing facilities aren't up to FDA standards, the products made in those facilities would be considered an "adulterated drug," or impure and unfit for consumption, under federal law, says Ittleman.
http://www.inc.com/will-yakowicz/nightmare-of-schedule-ii-cannabis.html So maybe those third grader scientists at the DEA may not be so bad after all. At least we won't have the FDA shutting down local cannabis dispensaries for a while. Just remember that meth is 100x worse than cannabis no matter what any third grader in a DEA uniform tells you.