British Scientists Warn Gov’t: We’re Turning into the U.S.
British scientists warn increasing hostility toward scientific evidence that contradicts political agendas could hinder the collaborative relationship policy and science enjoys in Britain, the Guardian reported yesterday.
Last November, the British government ignored the advice of its Scientific Advisory Board and moved marijuana into a more dangerous class of drugs, a move described by top scientists at the time as “a sad departure from the welcome trend … of public policy following expert scientific advice.”
Of course, here in the United States, government has been ignoring its scientific advisors on marijuana policy for decades, at least since Nixon first lined his bird cage with the two-year study he commissioned recommending marijuana’s decriminalization.
And that unwelcome trend continues to this very day here, as evidenced by drug czar Gil Kerlikowske’s recent lie that marijuana “has no medicinal benefit.” Not sure who Kerlikowske’s scientific advisors are, but the one we taxpayers use, the National Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Medicine, says: “Nausea, appetite loss, pain, and anxiety … all can be mitigated by marijuana.”
Then again, it doesn’t take a scientist to know that it’s wrong to deny sick people medicine that eases their pain, or to arrest responsible adults because they prefer a drug that’s safer than alcohol or tobacco.
Tagged with: alcohol and Britain and decriminalization and drug czar and Institute of Medicine and kerlikowske and ONDCP and pain and patients and science and Shafer Commission and tobacco by the author
37 comments
Ouch. I hope more people in the USA realize this and push even harder for change. Otherwise other countries will turn into the monster that the USA has become in terms of their drug policies and corrupt justice system.
Dan… from my understanding there is currently a rescheduling petition at the Department of HHS that should be decisioned this year… Does MPP have any plans of being on the offensive and taking their media opportunities to call on Kathleen Sebilius to make the correct decision and agree with their own patent?
Yes she can recognize that there are alternative therapies and that smoking marijuana does have it’s downsides (that can be mitigated with proper education) but that the evidence is clear that there are therapeudic uses for the drug and that it should be rescheduled. The decision to prescribe should be made between the doctor and the patient after full education on the pros and cons are discussed and weighed out.
Be on the offensive and let’s not have to react to her decision. Let’s force the issue in the media so that she has no choice but to make the recomendation that agreeswith the patent her office holds. We have to voice this as most people I talk to don’t know or understand the hypocracy that this patent portrays.
o man, other countries should not follow us…. it will ruin there country even more. NO Other country should follow wut the US does. Our country is turning into a faild Country =(, i dont think that should happen to other countries.
The USA controls world drug policy via the “embargo card”.
It’s a major embarassmentto America that Portugal and The Netherlands – 2 countries no larger than New Jersey (the most corrupt state in the USA, BTW) are light years ahead of America on drug policy.
SHAME ON AMERICA. It’s the equivilant to Nolan Ryan giving up a home run to a 5 year old.
Good Gawd NO! Dont turn to the policies The USA has! We know the damage it has done just as you brits know the damage government health care and gun ban has done to your country. Let science and common sense rule!
Its a crap statement for the government to produce cannabis for a few patience, made marinol and other THC based synth drugs, hold Patents, then turn around and tell us its dangerous,we cant have it ,follow the law or go to jail! How bout this, either our leaders legalize it for all or go to jail themselves.. These laws were made for ALL weren’t they?
I find it quite interesting that the British government is very possibly caving in to political pressure from somewhere in our government. The feds must be very concerned to put pressure on the lacky Brits again.
I think changing pot from a schedul 1 to a 2 or 3 whould put us ahead of the curv but then what do you do with the prision industrel complex
#5 Government run health care and a ban on guns is why britian has a higher life expectancy then the US. Science and common sense won that battle there.
Hey friend, I don’t know how many of you play online poker, but if you do, there are chat boxes where you can talk about anything. I talk about cannabis extensively and you would be amazed at how mamy Europeans are appalled at our drug policy.
If you play poker on line, USE THE CHAT BOX to help get our message across!!!
Britain is a problem child to Amsterdam. It was one of the first things we heard about when we went there. The British feel that just because they’ve come there to TOKE that they should be treated like gods. Maybe this is one of the reasons.
And couldn’t agree more with ROE #5.
Any country that continues to snuggle up to the U.S.of A’s policies on “drugs” is as dumb as the day is long.
Mr. Bernath
I applaud your enlayed links. The real dope on this whole anti-drug trip have been the common people. Lied to, as always, by those who seek power.
Chris @3 8 remeber that when your granparents cant get the treatments they need because they are too old. Also remember that when a thief is in your house and shoots you cause they know you have no gun and he does. Remmber that when your freedom is gone because government took it from you cause you dont have a gun to fight with. Open your eyes and listen to people who have been there. Read our history. If you dont think it cant happen…lol well sad for you and the world you live in.
The British have always referred to Americans as, “Not so smart,” for many reasons. This is just another example of why the world views us as a blessed nation above all others to their amazement. Obviously intelligence is not our strong point as a nation.
If commenting was prohibited at the state and federal level…it would never get legalized.
Sorry for my typos in advance, i sliced off a bit of my finger. I find it very interesting that they wanted to leave cannabis as Class C in Britian while admitting that alcohol, I believe currently a class C, should have been raised to Class A or B. (They being the science advisory board.) Again sorry, hard to type!
Tennessee should take a much closer look at the hemp industry, anyone intelligent would. Oregon!, Congrats to the farmers on the West Coast, I couldn’t be more happier for you.
Copy of first paragraph:
Oregon Hemp Farming Bill Becomes Law
New State Program for Hemp Farmers to be Established
SALEM, OR (August 4, 2009) – Vote Hemp, the leading grassroots advocacy organization working to give back farmers the right to grow industrial hemp (the oilseed and fiber varieties of Cannabis), enthusiastically supports the decision of Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski to sign SB 676 into law today. The bill, which passed the House by a vote of 46 to 11 and the Senate by a vote of 27 to 2, permits the production, trade and possession of industrial hemp commodities and products. With the Governor’s signature, it now makes a politically bold commitment to develop hemp in a state whose slogan is “Oregon – We Love Dreamers.”
End
In Australia, we have followed almost to the letter, American Drug policy, we even have a DEA office her. Unfortunately, our politicaians aren’t very smart, they can’t be, to ignore the warning signs from the US and the science in regards to cannabis. My feeling is that we may have to wait 30 years until the last politician of this era is dead and the internet generation take the power positions in government.
James! G-Day and have hope, according to Rob Kampia it should only take a few year to legalize pot in the State of California. So we are making some darn good progress here and if your right about countries like Australia being a copy of the United States, then it should be legal for you also in about the same time frame. It’s a dead horse of an issue in the very near future for all of us but it does take patience. Just a little longer my dear friend Down Under, just a little longer!
We’re the big, bad U.S. of A.
Incarceration and slavery is our business.
James # 17:
America controls world drug policy with the “embargo card”
If we can’t change policy on our own soil, then the 2nd American Revolution is less than 10 years away. TAKE IT TO THE BANK!
Hi guys, Just wantd to Post this Doc. Its Calld, Magic Weed: The Truth.
http://www.wisevid.com/view_video.php?viewkey=791992c064eefe4a1c94#
Enjoy =)
Rick, I am following the progress in the states very closely, as soon as the US legalises, we will follow, i have no doubt. It is just so frustrating hearing lies from politicians. Either way, there is no prohibition in my backyard and my medicine and recreational drug of choice is free and organic. If politicians think lying to people in the internet age is possible, they might want to consider a change in profession.
James you are right. In the internet age, information to the masses cant be ingored. The only way to stop it is for governments to shut it down(Which I wouldnt put passed some). There is change coming down the road because of the free exchange of information and Ideas. and above all, truth to be known. I wonder if there is a world wide revolution on the way due to this.
Yes, there is a change coming. Unfortunatly it has and will come to late. The powers that be are still arresting and proseecuting cannibis users. without these arrests and convictions they would loose billions of dollers. For example, every bust allows this to happen, ” They take all the momey. They take any property they want. They take all the cannibis. They get govt. funding to do these raids. they get to keep and auction all property siezed. They get dollers for every cannibis user that can be crammed into a cell. They get dollers for every cannibis user that is on probation.” Seems to me that without people like me and those already in the system this country would be a lot poorer. I will keep everyone posted on what and how much Cannibis cost me.
O.K. One more time…who has the power to control the President, Congress, every branch of federal government, and the United Nations, in essence the world. Doesn’t that at all seem strange. This is not a fleeting thought…because…
this power controls you. How’s that for terror!
R.O.E 23 Hey! you’re up. Early bird catches the worm.
Ya!…and they’re trying to shut down conservative talk radio…take away their voice. They’re working on the internet too. Hey! We can still beat the jungle drums, send up smoke signals, and go underground. I don’t think they learned a damned thing from the 60′s and 70′s. That’s their problem…”They don’t learn a damed thing…they’re bone heads. Their skulls are 6 inches thick, and nothing penetrates that massive brain tumor .”
Ya Manford #26,
I love my freedom of hours.
Ya they can shut it down but they can’t shut us up short of bullets in the back. Its time for these bone heads to own up and pay the piper.
This is insane….Seems like the dark cloud of the US Govt. casts itself all the way to Britain……… Human kind must push forward to take back our God given rights!!!
28 Medical Cannabis Institute
I was under the impression that we had won our independence from good old England. How does what they do have any reflection on what we do. Oh! that’s right! Rothschild is a share holder in “our” federal reserve.
“Give me control of the nation’s currency, and it matters not who makes the laws.”
A public service announcement from me:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r6qn508BfY8
[...] British Scientists Warn Gov’t: We’re Turning into the U.S. Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic.Powered by WP Greet Boxby Dan Bernath of MPP original article [...]
The following is short section from a report entitled “Informing America’s Policy on Illegal Drugs: What We Don’t Know Keeps Hurting Us.” In this section they talk about the need for scientific independence, and they quote from the “National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse,” the famous Shafer Report. The last paragraph on the quote from the Shafer Report where they talk about how government funded research projects on illegal drugs that document the “wrong results were quietly buried and not released” is priceless. Nixon tried to bury that report because they recommended that marijuana be decriminalized.
“Scientific Independence
In its final report in 1973, the National Commission on Marihuana and Drug Abuse applauded a 400 percent increase in the federal investment in research from 1969–1973, urged intensification of the investment in research, and emphasized the importance of free scientific inquiry in what had been a highly politicized domain (NCMA, 1973:368–370):
‘This commitment to research…reflects a significant change in official policy. For many years, research into the effects of prohibited drugs and into the behavior of users was viewed as an attempt to question and subvert government policy. In addition, the aura of criminality surrounding drug-using behavior and the overly rigid protocol requirements often made this area unattractive to researchers. When…researchers became [interested], they were often hindered by the law enforcement community….
At last, this has begun to change. With the significant increase in drug use during the 1960’s the government recognized the need for information which could come only from expanded research efforts. Prohibited drugs have been made available for legitimate research; confidentiality has been extended to research subjects; and now, public resources are being devoted to this important area….
In urging [increased] research, the Commission cautions against research that points in only one direction. In the past, government agencies have sometimes used drug research to support policy rather than shape it. Studies that produced the answers they wanted were promoted and publicized; projects which appeared to document the “wrong” results were quietly buried and not released. [New research] should specifically include studies that examine without bias alternate hypotheses and approaches.’”
The commission that did the report in 2001 quoted the above section from the Safer Commission’s report because the same thing complained of in that report goes on today. Government uses drug research “to support policy rather than shape it.” They fund research reasonably calculated to make marijuana look bad. They won’t fund research likely to reach the “wrong results.” They won’t provide marijuana to researchers doing research likely to reach the “wrong results.” Most all of this research is government funded and researchers are pressured to play the game and provide government with “evidence” useful for propaganda. From the above article it looks like the same thing is going on in the U.K. now. And if you’ve been reading stories talking about marijuana studies done in the U.K. in the past several years it looks a whole lot of this has been going on. They’ve been in major reefer madness mode for several years now and I bet government money and pressure on government funded reaserchers has had a lot to do with this.
Note to self: do not emigrate to the UK.
MPP i have smoked marijuana for about 22 years ..i grew up in texas and that was the things we did down there ..we could not buy beer so we went to my freinds-friend you know..it was cheap and i got more high for the money…beer always made me sick any ways …this war mongering about marijauna is a waste of time and dont feel that it should be a part of my life so as i have always done i will keep buying it illegaly and smoking my pain and thouts of trying to change a system that is not worth saving …the best way to end these situations is to legalize our marijuana….
it’s hard to say why our government is so scared of marijuana. I have been smoking for twenty years and haven’t had any argues to harm anyone or commit random crimes. I have a friend who is a alcoholic ,nice guy tell he drinks than you wouldn’t want to be near him[valance]. He has been sober for 5 years living by AA . my point is they think pot is so dangers but its nothing compared to what’s already being pedaled legally on every corner. Maybe it’s because by enlarge the people voting on the subject today are the same ones that voted against it in the seventies[ after watching reefer madness and being dumb enough to believe it. Bottom line is they (the government) don’t give a dam about us (Americans) and what we want.
James you are so right. As long as the polititions are involved we will never get the law overturned. I to have been smoking for 33 years and am just fine. I have two friends doing time right now for alcahol. I have many more who have been through the system for grass. I to am now in the system for cannibis. I would not ever change my stance on med. marijuana, even tho it may lead to jail. I know that I made the right choice. I work when there is work. My bills are paid. I am raising three kids by my self.and I am an ex “drug” abuser. I am almost 48 and was busted for cannibis because I refuse to get back on “drugs”. If I have to move back to Wa. in the spring, so be it. But I will not ever put another needle in my arm. To bad for the big Rx companies and the drug pushing Goverenment.
It’s hard enough to get the average non marijuana user on the streets of America to believe they are being duped by government propaganda about the drug war as it is to get them to acknowledge the truth about American government drug policy.
I have been saying for several years that THC deficiency is a medical condition and this concept is extremely difficult for the THC deficient to comprehend.
THC deficiency causes the brain to be in an un-natural state and some connections are not being fully made within their heads.
A lot of people who are THC deficient who have caused accidents have often stated that they must have blanked out and that caused their accident.
Well I think they experienced a mental blank because their brains weren’t processing THC as it needed.
A THC deficient mind accepts propaganda as fact because it believes it to be fact by its presentation despite the lack of proof.
THC deficiency allows for easier subliminal message manipulation and is convenient for mass persuasion and other tactics of social control.
God provided man with THC that feels good because God wants man to consume it to function as God had intended man to be.
No policy or ignoring the facts is going to change that.
The leaders of America and their cohorts in THC deficiency that support them are guilty of being the most violent and distrustful beings on the face of the Earth.
If thats what it means to be drug free then I don’t want to be drug free.
Leave a Comment