We are all used to the federal government offering only limited deference to states when it comes to medical marijuana. And we are certainly used to it refusing to admit that patients have a legal right to use marijuana for medical purposes, or even that marijuana has medical value at all.

Apparently, it also thinks that those who are abiding by state law and using medical marijuana do not have certain constitutional rights, either.

In a memo issued last week by the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives, the federal government asserted that it is a violation of federal law to possess a gun or ammunition if you are a marijuana user. This broad definition also includes individuals who are state-legal medical marijuana patients.

It is important to note that this is only the opinion of the BATFE and is not legally binding. A case dealing with this issue for an individual patient has not been taken up on a federal level, yet many who are charged with federal marijuana violations often find themselves facing additional firearms charges extending from searches of their property. The Department of Justice has so far kept fairly close to its word when it comes to leaving medical marijuana patients alone, but one could easily imagine a situation in which a firearm violation could be used to prosecute a particularly meddlesome patient who may not be doing anything involving marijuana that would warrant investigation.

It is also important to remember that the federal government cannot force state and local law enforcement to enforce federal law. For example, the DEA can’t make the Colorado state police ignore their medical marijuana laws and start arresting patients for violating the Controlled Substances Act. So don’t start worrying that just because you have a medical marijuana card, you are about to be raided because you own a firearm. In fact, a court decision in Oregon ruled that states have every right to allow patients to possess firearms and may even grant them concealed-carry licenses if they wish.

However, federal law enforcement does reserve the right to charge you with firearms violations if you are a patient and own a gun. This should be no more worrisome in practical terms than the Department of Justice asserting that it has the legal right to charge you with marijuana violations if you are a patient and own some medicine.

This is much more troubling in terms of individual rights and human dignity. The Second Amendment clearly states our rights as citizens to possess firearms. The federal government, however, seems to think that people who use marijuana to treat their illnesses can not only face arrest for doing so, but are also not entitled to the same constitutional rights as everyone else. Regardless of the promises to not target medical marijuana users, it is pretty clear that the government views them as second-class citizens. This discrimination cannot be tolerated in a free society.

The full memo can be viewed here.

Special thanks to Ed Docter from the Montana Cannabis Industry Association for the tip.

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The federal government just released the latest ‘Monitoring the Future’ survey of teen drug use, and the results do not bode well for current policies. More high school seniors report smoking marijuana in the past 30 days than smoked cigarettes: 20.6 percent vs. 20.1 percent. And marijuana use is up (albeit in the same general range it’s been in for several years) while teen cigarette smoking continues to decline, and has dropped markedly since the early ‘90s.

Regulation of tobacco, combined with solid educational campaigns, has clearly cut youth access to cigarettes. It’s time for officials to take off their blinders and apply those same proven policies to marijuana.

Oh, and just in case someone tries to blame medical marijuana laws for the rise in teen marijuana use, use by teens has actually gone down in the medical marijuana states.

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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.

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While I was in the green room waiting to debate Calvina Fay on Fox Business News today (we’re working on getting the video posted), former Attorney General Alberto Gonzales sat down next to me to wait for his interview on the sister Fox News Channel.

After exchanging some small talk, he asked me what I was going to be talking about on TV.  After telling him that MPP was the organization that ran those ads in California last week that touted how taxing marijuana could help some of the California government’s budget crisis, he said, “Well, I can’t say I’m supportive of that.  I have a 14-year-old and a 17-year-old to worry about.”  I responded, “Well, I’m not surprised that you’re not supportive.”
[Read more →]

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The question of why some kids start using alcohol, cigarettes, marijuana, and other drugs at a young age remains a source of controversy. How much of a role do genes play? The environment — peers, parents, educational efforts? What about the “gateway theory,” the idea that one drug — marijuana is the most likely to be blamed — leads to use of others?

A new study of twins recently published online by the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence suggests that genes may play a large role, but to some degree every drug is a gateway drug. [Read more →]

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