Congress To Holder: Let UMASS Grow Pot

A bipartisan group of sixteen members of Congress sent a letter Thursday to Attorney General Eric Holder urging him to allow the University of Massachusetts to grow its own marijuana for medical research.

Marijuana used for research, and that distributed to patients in a closed federal program, is currently grown exclusively by the University of Mississippi. Patients who have smoked it and researchers who have tried to work with it say it's total swag (very low quality).

For eight years, UMASS Professor Lyle Craker has been fighting with the Drug Enforcement Administration to get a license to cultivate his own medical pot.

In February 2007 Craker looked to have won, when DEA Administrative Law Judge Mary Ellen Bittner ruled that his request was "in the public interest" and called on the agency to license him.

In a last-minute Bush Administration order, however, the DEA reversed Bittner's ruling and refused Craker the license, citing evidence that hadn't been presented during the initial hearing.

The letter from members of Congress encourages Holder "swiftly to amend or withdraw"
the decision and allow Craker to rebut the new DEA evidence.

Forty-five members of the House, along with Massachusetts Sens. Ted Kennedy and John Kerry, as well as the Lymphoma Foundation of America, the National Association for Public Health Policy, and the Multiple Sclerosis Foundation have all written the DEA in support of Craker's efforts.

Craker's advocates say that granting the license to do research would place science ahead of politics.

Meanwhile, the Washington Times reported Thursday that raids on medical marijuana clubs in California ordered by Bush administration holdovers have continued, despite President Obama's campaign pledge to end them.

"The president believes that federal resources should not be used to circumvent state laws, and as he continues to appoint senior leadership to fill out the ranks of the federal government, he expects them to review their policies with that in mind," White House spokesman Nick Shapiro told the Times.

During the campaign, Obama said that the "basic concept of using medical marijuana for the same purposes and with the same controls as other drugs prescribed by doctors, I think that's entirely appropriate."

Medical marijuana research advocates are optimistic. "Given President Obama's commitment to end federal enforcement in medical marijuana states, it stands to reason that he would be in favor of expanded research into this important medication," said Caren Woodson, director of government affairs with Americans for Safe Access, which lobbies on behalf of medical marijuana.

Comments

[scallywag]

Part 2 continued.­.. Quite frankly, I see no downside to legalizing drugs. It will not lead to greater drug addiction. You could put a ton of heroin in my reach forever and I would never touch it. Those who want to do drugs do them already—both legally and illegally. Most stop substantial drug usage as they take on greater responsibilities in life. And for those who do become addicted..­. I mean, really, why kick a person when they’re down? Nobody incarcerates people for the many other kinds of addiction people fall prey too.

So wake up people. Show a little tenderness. Abolish laws that restrict your rights to live your life as you see fit, laws that cannot possibly do good or make the world a better place. Give up your alcohol and grow a little pot—legally, of course. Nobody ever died from smoking that. Recreational drug use just might free your mind.

[scallywag]

The drug war is a farce. It is evident there is no way to win a war on drugs, yet we continue to pour money into it. Drug laws were originally passed under false pretenses, and today it has turned out to be one of the biggest money rackets in existence. The government makes money from it on both sides. Do you really think that 5 tons of cocaine are destroyed once it is confiscated?

Government has no right to protect you from yourself, only from others. When will the public demand that government respect our rights? We are a republic, not a democracy—a fine but crucial distinction. The public would be far better served if drugs were made legal but controlled. There would be hardly any accidental overdoses or toxic side effects from poor quality control. Crime would be reduced substantially (if they were sold for fair value which most cost but a pittance to make). Built into the price could be taxes that would pay for those who did become addicted but wanted to turn their lives around. Continued as part 2...

[omeo2013]

Praise Jesus! I seriously didn't expect to see anyone in Congress doing anything this rational for a LONG time. I didn't think we'd get to this issue at least until after we'd finally put an end to the dispensary raids. Obama hasn't even cleaned house in the DEA and appointed a new Drug Czar and we've already got Congressmen calling for more research. I must be dreaming. Are we really moving up from a tip-toe to a casual saunter toward progress? Where am I? What year is this? Who's the president? I'm so confused. I thought Americans were allergic to good ideas; especially Congressmen. This is good news. We'll see how it plays out, but this is good news. Wow.

[esquire07]

The Pharmacutical Industry will not allow it. Keeping pot illegal ensures the drug dealers in the pharmacutical industry hold their monopoly.

Keeping pot illegal is also a good way for the corrupt US Governement to lock up those that question.

[CyrusBeaucephus]

Keeping pot illegal gives good high paying jobs to storm troopers and thugs and lets us waste billions of Tax dollars harrassing hippies. Why do you ythink its such a popular idea with right wing kooks?

[Checquoline]

Unleaa, of course the pharmacutical industry is allowed to be the ones to sell it. THEN it will be available to everyone and the doctors will prescribe it so they can get the perks from the drug compamies that they now get for lipidor.

[balickistan]

legalize it. slap the super sin taxes on it. this coupled with a a tax on each stock transaction, will generate cash to help end the deficit. think outside the box people. plus it may act as a stimulus to the economy by the increased business at taco bell. finally when has a stoner been violent, outside of a bag of doritos.

[seasun]

We have to stop the hypocrisy. It's time to legalize marijuana.

Go to change.org and sign the petition:

http://www.change.org/ideas/116/view_blog/legalize_the_medicinal_and_recreational_use_of_marijuana

[Kaviraj]

and why so may i ask, was my previous post about the dutch legal issues with pot deleted and my post on Autralia remained??????

[Kaviraj]

In Australia, where i also lived for 10 years, some states have laws that allow growing 5 plants. they are larger than in Holland, so it is still enough.
S Australia, N Territory growing is legal too, New South Wales it is tolerated. Nimbin is the growers capital of Australia.
Smart Govt. legalises it, silly ones don't.

[b-rad-81]

that was a s.tupid comment

[CyrusBeaucephus]

s t f u littl sock puppet. Youv'e never been stoned or laid and you stil live with your mommy. Why the F should we listen a what you have to say, lil Doosh?

[breakfast]

Let us all grow pot. Problem solved.

[esquire07]

Agreed. And lets outlaw the DEA and the corrupt officials that run it.

[sueno]

This country needs to legalize it, tax it and profit from it-
Considering all the stress a lot of Americans are going through
due to Bush and his congress's bad decisions,
legalizing it will make a lot of money-

[zest]

Where do the progressives live; Massachusetts.

[MsRy]

I live in MA, and it's not so much "progressive" as it is self-interested sto-ner.

[owlsocks]

I lived most of my life in Massachusetts and I must admit that your view seems a bit narrow. It's like saying that all the mafia thugs like in New York or all the Gay people live in California.

[blueskybigstar]

Tax it.

[blueskybigstar]

Even though this was not a huge issue in the campaign and his stand on this not what brought people his support, I would venture to say that half of the people who have been with Obama from the beginning are regular smokers. How do you think so many people were able to survive the Bush years? Never forget your base. Until this article, I did not know his stand. I knew that Eric Holder has a past of being very against this plant.

[owlsocks]

I took a Medicinal Herbs class with Professor Craker back in 1998. He is an engaging and deeply inspiring teacher and I hope that they allow his research to go forward. With someone of that much passion and integrity running their research, any true medicinal benefits of cannabis will certainly be uncovered. Go Lyle, go!

[blueskybigstar]

I hope that he will study all the different varieties of it from around the world. I hear that each one is different.

[djgonebad]

I'll gladly participate in that study.

[nightslider]

When Obama does and should apporve this measure it will kill the Harry Anslingers lingering presence in our nations drug laws, killing reefer madness is a good thing, and putting the DEA on a leash is a very good thing.And abolishing the so called war on drugs, legalize Marijuana and watch the Drug Cartels lose their greatest money maker.

[ObjectiveRealist]

Heh, shrinking government to a size we can drown in a toilet should begin with the DEA.

[Dystopic]

the DEA was formed to make sure that cannabis will never be legal. their own studies proved that it was benign

[NoSillyName]

Yep. Nixon's big study proved it is a benign substance. So instead of listening to the findings of the study he commissioned, he shelved the results and left the status quo.