Dad says he'll go to jail if it means saving his son's life

Cash

CashA Montana family says that medical marijuana is saving their young son's life, and the father says that he will continue to use the illegal substance to save his 3-year-old boy's life, even if it means he has to go to jail.

Cash, who has suffered brain cancer, is considered the youngest patient in medial marijuana history.  He takes  hydrocortisone and cannabis oil, which is illegal in Montana, twice a day as medication.  "I've had to break state and federal laws just to keep Cashie alive," his father told Fox News.  "I know that I'm not a criminal and I know that I saved my son's life, and if that means I have to sit in jail for that, that's way better than a pediatric oncology floor."

Cash is a second time remission cancer patient.  His parents keep hoping and praying, taking it one day at a time.


{video link}

D. Beeksma

One of the growing crowd of American "nones" herself, Deborah is a prolific writer who finds religion, spirituality and the impact of belief (and non-belief) on culture inspiring, fascinating and at times, disturbing. She hosts the God Discussion show and handles the site's technical work. Her education and background is in business, ecommerce and law.

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  • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

    OK, I'm not too keen on drugs as a recreation, but it seems to me that if drs give Rx for marijuana, there might be some benefits to it, esp if one has cancer.  Even if it is just in experimental stages, to see if it has some medical benefits, it would seem to me that best people to test it on are patients with cancer (voluntarily of course).  They give cancer patients morphine for pain, why not marijuana too, esp if they feel there is some possibility in helping?  I really think this War on Drugs is not only costing tax payers a lot of money, but is also getting ridiculous, esp when it concerns potential medication.  It's not like a dr is not supervising the child's treatment and progress.  Now if a dr wasn't involved, then I'd have issues with it, but that doesn't seem like the case.  That, and marijuana is far less addictive, if it all, than morphine.  I see medical marijuana the "lesser of two evils" in this case, esp if it helps the child and helps future cancer patients.

    • Cleanhippie

      Mriana, are you anti-ALL drugs for recreation, or just those you don't personally agree with?  Tobacco, alcohol, caffine, etc, are all drugs that are used recreationally everyday by billions of people.  Why are THOSE drugs ok, but Cannabis is not?

      • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

        It's mostly a question of legality and whether or not a person has a problem or not.

        • LEGALIZE

          Alcohol, cigarettes and caffeine have been scientifically proven to be far more harmful than cannabis. There has never been a recorded death that was directly from ingesting it. Can you say that about cigarettes? No. Alcohol? No. Caffeine? No.

          Fuck legality.

          • her

            On top of that though a lot of those things are chemically fucked with where as cannabis is grown naturally. Although it can be tinkered with, though that's not something I agree with.

            • Deborah_B

               What gets me is those people with their high and almighty 'morals' who are opposed to medical marijuana but claim that they are "pro life."  Here's a reminder of what GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney said to a man on medical marijuana:

              http://www.goddiscussion.com/94433/dad-says-hell-go-to-jail-if-it-means-saving-his-sons-life/

              As much as I disagree with evangelist Pat Robertson most of the time, he at least had the decency to say that marijuana should be made legal:

              http://www.goddiscussion.com/93613/pat-robertson-hero-of-the-hippy-culture/

              • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

                 I agree, Deborah, including, oddly enough, Pat Robertson.

                • Deborah_B

                   A lot are new to the site — maybe you should clarify?  I don't want to put the words in your mouth.

                • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

                   Maybe I should, but it might take a whole page.  The sad truth is, those who are in trouble for non-violent crimes, due to their addictions/habits, end up in more trouble and because of probation and parole, they do things to avoid getting into trouble with UAs so they can get high.  Even if it were legal, like alcohol, those on probation could not use marijuana, getting themselves in trouble with chemicals like K2 because they have a drug addiction/habit.

                  Thus, if marijuana were legal in the first place, my younger son might not be in as much trouble as he is now and even if he still had a drug problem, he might get the help he really needs, sort of like those who are alcoholics, instead of prison.  Sort of like the Netherlands or whatever country that legalized drugs.

                  I hope that helps to clarify some.

            • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

               Yeah, like f-ing K2 and alike.  Again, unless you've been around here long enough, you aren't going to comprehend what I mean. BTW, it's not you I am mad at, per se, but the truth is, you don't understand because I assume you just arrived.

          • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

            You all are preaching as though you think you understood what I meant, but you don't have a clue.  Since you seem like you are new to God Discussion, I can forgive you, but unless you poke around and read, you aren't going to understand where I'm coming from or what I mean.

            • Mikelly3195

              Mriana, I'd like to apologize for my fellow tokers attitudes. It's just that most people on a God website aren't as liberal as you are (at least that's the perception). The fact that I can go to jail or pay huge fines for doing something that is hurting no one but me is quite upsetting. Actually, the only way someone else gets hurt is if I do get arrested,then my family suffers. I work 50hrs a week plus 10hrs driving. When I get home from work I can drink 10 bottles of vodka if I want to (which I don't because it makes me violent), or I can take my legally owned gun and shoot myself in the head. There are plenty of legal ways to hurt myself or others. But if I want to smoke a joint on my couch I can be arrested? And whether it's your stance or not, most religious people are against it. In fact I've never met someone that wasn't religious that was against legalization. And to the whole gateway drug thing here's my opinion – It is a gateway drug. The reason I say that is because my 16 yr old daughter wanted to buy some weed but the only person that sells it also sells the harder stuff, so she was introduced to other way more dangerous things. So if I'm wrong about you religious types (who are also wrongly persecuted) than maybe you should use your prayer chains and get the word out that you feel this way. Then we can join together and stop ruining family's over victimless crimes!

              • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

                lol  I'm a humanist.  I'm not religious at all, unless you want to insist that my love of other animals is religious.

                Like your daughter, my younger son started with marijuana, as well as other adults providing him alcohol when he was 13 or 14 y.o.  He then shoplifted alcohol, getting drunk as much as he could and becoming violent.  Then he went for the harder drugs.  Eventually, he got into a ton of legal crap (non-violent felonies, save one) due to his drug and alcohol problems.  If marijuana were legal, maybe just maybe, as I mentioned before, there would be less people in prison for drug abuse, including my younger son, who is now 20, almost 21.  Not a good thing to have your first felony at 18 because of drugs and alcohol.  I'm not against alcohol (I have a glass of wine on special occasions with dinner), tobacco (I smoke), and I'm not actually against marijuana (I don't smoke it though, because I'm one of the few allergic to it), etc.  It's just the legality of it gets people in trouble and more so if they have substance abuse issues.  They end up in prison, instead of getting the help they need.  That's what the War on Drugs has done to my family- caused one not to get the help he really needs, which is painful and maddening.  If we lived in the Netherlands, it might not have gotten as bad or if it did, he probably wouldn't be in and out of jail and prison for it.

                BTW, to avoid getting caught with drugs n his system while on probation, he did K2 and put himself in the hospital. He got out and went back to trying to get drugs again. He's sitting in jail, facing 8 years in prison, for probation violations and forgery (of which they assume it for getting drugs) again. It's screwed up, but if not for the laws, he might not have put himself in the hospital with K2.

                • Mikelly3195

                  Yeah these people are our family members and we spend billions on incarceration instead of on rehabilitation.

                • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

                  I rather see the taxes we pay go for rehab than to house them, without treatment.  If they were alcoholics, then the story might be a little different, but because of the War on Drugs, they are incarcerated and get worse, which is not right.

                • joe paterno

                  I agree.

                • joe paterno

                  The incarceration in this country is awful.

                • joe paterno

                  So sorry to hear about your son and I wish him all the best.

                  BTW, I really didn't read you as a tobacco user.

              • Slare56

                i am religious and i use cannabis every day. 

    • MarleyInMe

      Marijuana is not in experimental stages anymore. They are researching it as a treatment for various illness but in the case of cancer it has, without a doubt, been proven effective in controlling the symptoms of cancer as well as controlling the side effects of other treatments… AND is now known to reduce tumor growth by half! http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/04/070417193338.htm To say that Marijuana is the lesser of two evils only shows your ignorance. It's perpetuating an unfounded stereotype that has been attached to this plant for decades. The only evil attached to this plant is the money that's made from it via drug cartels and government prohibition. That has nothing to do with the a single person that just wants to feel better.

      • TheTangerineMan

        How right you are, sir/ma'am.  The prohibition on marijuana has caused so much irreparable damage at this point that it doesn't make sense to do anything BUT legalize it.  It doesn't matter how people stand on it personally; it's about life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.  And not having teenagers' lives destroyed by a plant.

  • http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1675627995 Jason Kersten

    Good thing God gave us cannabis that can help this boy.

    Thank you Jesus for your sacrifice and making this day possible along with so many other unmentioned things. Thank you for keeping your sick and suffering safe Lord. Thank You, Thank You, Thank YOU!  Amen!

    • lolollort

      Good thing cannabis is illegal everywhere so he's going to die.

      God is good!

      • her

        Yeah, thats why God killed more folks than Satan.

        • kush kash kill

          more people have killed in Gods name then Satins.

          • Abob

             Who would want to kill in satin's name, anyways? That shit is fuckin' comfy.

            • Brawl 145

              Satin's comfortable, I suppose that if someone loved it so much and it was suddenly taken away… If i were that person, I might kill in the name of Satin… xD

          • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

             Satins?  I don't think very many people kill in the name of sheets or alike, but then again, Satin does feel good against the skin.  lol  I think the spelling you wanted was Satan.  :)

        • Deborah_B

           And as Steve at Skeptics Annotated points out, the BibleGod killed at least 25 million according to biblical accounts:

          http://dwindlinginunbelief.blogspot.com/2006/08/how-many-has-god-killed.html

      • r trees

        marijuana is legal in 16 of the 50 states and over 10 countries have decriminalized it or tolerate it heavily

        • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

           It's not legal in Missouri, which causes a lot of problems.

      • Taylor Vastine

        If Satan punishes sinners isn't he the hero? 

        • Butterfinger

          Don't try to make sense of things that are impossible.  You will only become stressed when they throw more illogical arguments at you to disprove your facts that you just used to disprove their belief.

    • http://twitter.com/InsurgentMedia Insurgent Media

      Good thing Harry Potter gave us cannabis that can help this boy.

      Thank you Sirius Black for your  sacrifice and making this day possible along with so many other unmentioned things. Thank you for keeping your sick and suffering safe Dumbledore . Thank You, Thank You, Thank YOU!  Avada Kedavra!

      See? I can sound crazy too!!

      • http://twitter.com/The_Sonic_Youth Mike Hayes

        No, you just sound like a douchebag.

        • Giovannivulpi

          Don't persecute him for his beliefs! Stop your "war on religion", just because you don't believe in the wizarding world and how we were saved by the almighty Sirius Black does not mean you have the right to attack him. Avada Kedavra. 

          • Brawl 145

            you realize that Avada Kedavra's a Death Spell right? perhaps Piertotum Locomotor would be a more suitable usage of magic… or perhaps Vulnera Sanentur…

        • Eric

           No, pretty sure that's what you sound like.

        • Esy3

          What would Jesus do… yup call people douchebags

        • Toofarjimmyjimmy

           People who insult people for making clever analogies are douchebags

          • Probate

            You found that clever? I am guessing that you both attend the same middle school. 

      • Flavortang

        Good thing Cthulhu gave us cannabis that can help this boy.
        Thank you HP Lovecraft for your  sacrifice and making this day possible along with so many other unmentioned things. Thank you for keeping your sick and suffering safe Cthulhu . Thank You, Thank You, Thank YOU!  Blessed be the Old Gods!

        • mike

          Pah-lease, Cthulu is only a bishop in the Lovecraft mythos, the real person we should thank is Azatoth for not waking up from his eternal sleep and destroying the universe.

        • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

           Humm…  I thought Hanuman brought us herb when he picked up that mountain and dropped it on Muhammad's head.

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ender-Wiggin/100000885624281 Ender Wiggin

        i love that on a website called god discussion your comment got 41 likes, and the one above you has 7. :thumbsup:  good show.

        • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

           lol  You have no idea that the title "God Discussion" is deceptive.

          • Deborah_B

             I'm not sure if it's deceptive, but I see where you are going with that and some folks might think it's deceptive.  What's interesting to me is that when people see that title, they automatically think that it is religious because the word 'god' is used. Yet, it is our contention that anyone can talk about god(s) whether they believe in them or not, particularly since everywhere we look in America, we see "God" used on coinage, on buildings, invoked in public meetings. 

            In our about page …

            God Discussion is a site for people exploring religion and sometimes
            controversial views about belief and gods.  It's for people who enjoy
            freedom of conscience.

            Every day, we deliver news about religion, belief (or non-belief) and
            events that have religious implications. We also offer opinions,
            stories and reviews.

            The views expressed on God Discussion are not explicitly Christian. 
            They are not explicitly Muslim.  They are not explicitly Deist.  They
            are not explicitly atheist.  But we do honor all of these points of
            views — and many others — in our discussion about God and how belief
            impacts our families, government and culture.

            About the only thing that most of us uniformly believe in here at God Discussion is harmony
            and respect for others, regardless of their beliefs.  As an editorial
            policy, we also support the separation of church and state.  Government
            has no business interfering with religious faith (unless that faith is a
            cult that harms people, such as Jim Jones' Peoples Temple), nor does a
            particular religious faith have the right to use public funding or law to impose its beliefs on those who do not embrace those beliefs.

            In short, we're the proverbial melting pot.

            Some of our contributors are trained in theology, some are not.  We
            welcome all points of view here, conservative or liberal, theistic or
            non-theistic.

            • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

               This is true, but what I meant by deceptive, is that they think it's an Xian site.

              • Deborah_B

                 Agreed.

    • Flavortang

      Hmm… apparently God also gave him the brain cancer. Nice going, God.

  • Niggabob

    Oh praise Allah that this child can live. May Allah and his bro Muhammed bask in the glory of cannabis oil.

    • Dan Klinge

      Cannabis is also referenced in the bible..   It is therein referred to as "Kaneh Bosm."

  • Sheldon

    Now that this story is public news, I'll be very interested to see how it plays out. I hope the local authorities keep their collective nose out of it. Which they probably will unless or until some scum-bag politician decides that obedience is more important than the life of a child. I hope it doesn't come to that but, considering the abysmal track record of authorities where child protection is concerned, I really can't look on the bright side and, wishing for a thing does not make it so.

    Weed needs to be flat-out de-criminalized. Of course, then you have the idiots who come out of the wood-works claiming that it is a mistake to do that because it opens the door to de-criminalizing harder drugs. Bullshit. There is already state and federal sanctioned production of all manner of incredibly powerful and addictive drugs. They call them pharmaceuticals. In fact, I think I will do a little research and see just how many people die every year from mis-prescribed legal drugs as opposed to marijuana. 

    I do remember a paper back in '99 – '00 re: leading causes of death. I believe it was about modifiable behaviours leading to death but that doesn't make it less pertinent to this discussion. I don't remember the actual numbers however, it was something along the lines of +400,000 deaths from tobacco and -20,000 deaths from illicit drugs. This was in the U.S. alone. That's a massive difference. Clearly, one should be illegal where the other might not be so important as to create a "war on drugs".

    • joe paterno

      Why mis-prescribed?  Why not research into the number of deaths that occur each year from prescribed drugs?

      • Sheldon

        I suspect the number of deaths for prescribed drugs would be easy enough to find, but what about deaths occurring from drugs that should never have been prescribed in the first place. Not malpractice, rather, straight up bad medicine. The point being, marijuana can not be mis-prescribed, as such. It works for your pain or it doesn't but smoking a joint won't kill you.

        I know it wouldn't be easy to find the numbers I'm looking for. Drugs is big business, and not just for South American cartels. So, I begin by asking myself, what do I consider 'drugs that should never have been prescribed in the first place.' 

        Did you read anything regarding Chantix when it was first introduced as a quit smoking therapy? Some very scary stuff was happening to people who used it as (mis)prescribed by doctor.

        http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Varenicline

        • joe paterno

          "I suspect the number of deaths for prescribed drugs would be easy enough to find" 

          Here is a link for you: 

          http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2003/01/15/doctors-drugs-part-two.aspx   

          Frankly, I believe the majority of prescribed drugs are mis-prescribed.  As you know, pharma treats symptoms, not causes.

          • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

            Mercola is not a reliable source of info.  It spews hype of so-called Natural Remedies and while some aren't bad, many have little to no affect.  It is Alternative [no] Medicine at its finest.  Don't get me wrong, I do use vitamin C, Echinacea-Golden Seal, but I do not neglect seeing a dr when I need to see one.  Mercola is not so keen on seeing medical drs, thus I would take what they have to say with a grain of salt, esp the articles that sound like BS, because it probably is.  BTW, I caught them in a couple of misinformation.  They quoted John Hopkins and in further research, John Hopkins never said what Mercola quoted them as saying.  Again, I would not take that site as gospel for anything medical.

            • joe paterno

              Mriana, I don't agree with all that is posted at mercola.com.  I don't buy his products and I sift through the info and I follow the links and I try to do my own research. I find the site informative.
              Still, pharma treats symptoms, not causes.

              • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

                This is true, but sometimes, like in the case of migraines, for example, all they can do is treat the symptoms.  I wish they could do more, but they can't always.

                • joe paterno

                  I hear you.

        • joe paterno

          By the way, thanks for the link to the article on Varenicline.  No, I wasn't aware of this drug or its history.  I was, however, reading just this week on someone who had taken diabetic medication, developed side effects for which he was prescribed other medication, to which he developed other side effects, on and on, with the end result being cancer.  I was trying to locate the article.  

      • Brawl 145

        HOW DANGEROUS IS
        MARIJUANA
        COMPARED WITH OTHER
        SUBSTANCES?
        Number of American deaths per year that result directly or primarily from the
        following selected causes nationwide, according to World Almanacs, Life
        Insurance Actuarial (death) Rates, and the last 20 years of U.S. Surgeon
        Generals' reports.
        TOBACCO 340,000 to 450,000

        ALCOHOL (Not including 50% of all highway deaths and 65% of all murders) 150,000+

        ASPIRIN (Including deliberate overdose) 180 to 1,000+

        CAFFEINE (From stress, ulcers, and triggering irregular heartbeats, etc.)
        1,000 to
        10,000

        "LEGAL" DRUG OVERDOSE (Deliberate or accidental)
        from legal, prescribed or patent medicines and/or mixing
        with alcohol – e.g. Valium/alcohol
        14,000 to
        27,000

        ILLICIT DRUG OVERDOSE (Deliberate or accidental)
        from all illegal drugs. 3,800 to 5,200

        MARIJUANA 0
        (Marijuana users also have the same or lower incidence of murders and
        highway deaths and accidents than the general non-marijuana using
        population as a whole. Crancer Study, UCLA; U.S. Funded ($6 million),
        First & Second Jamaican Studies, 1968 to 1974; Costa Rican Studies, 1980
        to 1982; et al. LOWEST TOXICITY 100% of the studies done at dozens of
        American universities and research facilities show pot toxicity does not exist.
        Medical history does not record anyone dying from an overdose of marijuana
        (UCLA, Harvard, Temple, etc.).

        Cited from "The Emperor Wears No Clothes" by Jack Herer

  • Cady

    How can you even oppose? I would absolutely do the same thing!

    • Deborah_B

      Cady, Mitt Romney told a a very ill man straight to his face that he did not approve the medical marijuana, even though that's what was keeping him alive.  There are politicians out there, particularly of the 'social conservative' bent, who have no heart or compassion.

      http://www.goddiscussion.com/88815/romneys-conservative-values-medical-marijuana-should-be-denied-to-sick-people/

      • mike

        Deborah, Chris Christie one ups Romney, Christie went as far as to say that a man who was using MMJ did not have MS, despite the petitioning of his doctors.

        • Deborah_B

           Good tip, Mike — Thank you!  Why is it that ReBiblicans these days feel that they know more than medical doctors?  It is sickening.

          • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

             That's what I'd like to know, because they don't.

          • Extra5031

            Ron Paul 2012. A republican who is a doctor…. And wants marijuana legalized.

            Want to know why it remains illegal, despite medical journals praising its benefits, long time cops laughing at the claims of it being "dangerous," and Obama's campaign lies?….. Research the private prison industry and the actual funding the DEA and other government agencies would lose with its legalization. FOLLOW THE MONEY. IT WILL ALWAYS LEAD YOU TO THE MAN (MEN) BEHIND THE CURTAIN.

            • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

              Maybe so, but he has problems with women's issues.

              • Morgan

                Ron Paul doesn't have any women's issues. He has issues with special interest groups. He believe's feminist groups should be abolished, because they make one group(women) more important that the other(men), and he happens to be right about that.

                Ron Paul believes there should be ZERO special interest groups, and everyone should be EQUAL in the eyes of the law. 

                RESEARCH, or at the very least READ, before posting such a ridiculous comment.

                • Deborah_B

                   Ron Paul signed the "Personhood" pledge, which has the potential to criminalize common birth control pills, so there are some women's issues. I am saying this as a former Ron Paul supporter. Gary Johnson, former governor of New Mexico, also believes that the war on drugs should be abolished.  Unfortunately, he got little debate time when he was running on the Republican ticket.  He is now running on the Libertarian ticket and I think he articulates the concepts of freedom, liberty and responsibility better than Ron Paul.

                • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

                  Yes, Ron Paul does and because they do not jive with my views, I cannot and will not vote for him.  (see what Deborah said to prevent repeat) I never could vote for him because he is almost as bad if not as bad as the Repooplicans, IMO, esp and including women's issues.  He's always had problems is this area. IMHO, since people brought it up, Obama, since Bernie Sanders isn't running, needs 4 more years.

                  I like Libertarian views about as much as I like Repooplican views. I'm neither one and thank goodness too, because I wouldn't survive 5 min. with either group with my views. lol

              • joe paterno

                I did not know this.  I find it odd that Naomi Wolf came out in support of him.

        • joe paterno

          Chris Christie is hard to take, to say the least.

      • Chris Medeiros

         For the record not all of us 'social conservatives' are against it. It seems to me a relatively silent majority out there are very much for this. It is simple I want the government out of my life as much as possible. I want low taxes, and few laws at the federal level. The states should get to decide most things for themselves.

        • Deborah_B

           That is good to know, Chris.

  • TrueAtheist

    This is seriously old news. Ah but the religious are always a couple thousand years behind. 

    • Cavion19s

      Like I keep up with the local news from Montana

    • Deborah_B

       The story came out within the past 24 hours … how can that be seriously old? 

      If you're referring to Romney, yes, that is an old story — but the new angle to it is that he refuses to answer about his stance or even attempt to clarify his remarks to the man in the wheelchair, despite questions about it.  He has referred people to his campaign website which still has no statement about medical marijuana.  Check it yourself:

      http://www.mittromney.com/search/apachesolr_search/marijuana

      This is not a religious site.  We offer all points of view here, whether religious or non-religious, theistic or non-theistic.  We are strong supporters of separation of church and state.

      • Sheldon

        Just another troll that thinks because the word god is in the website title, everyone here must be a god person or a bible-thumper or something. I think religion is bullshit… I think I've made myself perfectly clear on that on this site more than once. But I also realize the necessity to stand up to religious zealots and kick them in the ass whenever I can instead of just saying, 'who gives a shit.'

        A true atheist wouldn't have his head up his ass regarding the facts.
        Maybe, TrueAtheist was trying for irony, in which case, keep trying 'cause you sure didn't get it this time.

        • Deborah_B

           I find it amusing.

        • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

           While I agree with you, Sheldon, some of these people posting today are new to the site and probably haven't visited more than this page.  Of course, what I don't understand, is why someone would do "Maryjane" and still be religious, like a couple have said they do and are.  Maybe they are Episcopalians.  lol  Actually, I've found some Episcopalians can be some of the most die-hard anti-drug people, some seem almost as hateful about it as Fundamngelicals are concerning gays, with no middle of the road attitude about it.  My dr is one (an Episcopalian) who seems to want to keep all drugs, including marijuana illegal, thinking that it has no redeeming qualities.  She literally frowned and insisted there is no medical or mental health reason or any other reason to legalize it and my reasons to legalize it were not medically or mental health wise valid.  Thus, I guess those who have drug addictions need to be stigmatized so much that they don't receive help, die and/or spend a while in prison?  Those who don't have such issues also need stigmatized and sent to jail and/or prison for an ounce?  All of this while Joe Schmoe gets to drink all his liver can handle before it gives out and he dies or he decides to get help?  Suzie Q can do tobacco until her lungs quit on her while big tobacco gets rich off her death?  Makes a lot of sense to me.  *rolling eyes*  I think the point a lot us are making here, religious or not, strongly pro-drug or middle of the road, legit or troll, user or not, is that prohibition doesn't work.  That, in itself is old news, even though the article is not.

          • Sheldon

            I am in favour of specific, informed insults rather than insults that are general and ignorant. I didn't see another comment like the one from the uninformed atheist or I might have responded to that too. My words, 'just another troll' were, perhaps, unfortunate. Next time I will say, 'just a troll'.

            As you may have noticed, you and Deborah seem to be a little more forgiving than I am. Remember, I can be quite a zealot myself.

            Yeah, the general tone here… I get that. Talking about how prohibition doesn't work isn't very effective though. Politicians know prohibition doesn't work. The only reason marijuana hasn't been legalized or de-criminalized is because the politicians who speak out against it are panderers.

            On their war on drugs, they realize that they at least have to appear to be doing something, no matter how ineffectual that something might be. They realize there is a core block of voters who do not understand marijuana, couldn't care less to, and want anyone who uses drugs to be locked up. Certain politicians pander to them for votes and that comes at a price.

            There is more than enough evidence, even if only anecdotal (I will err on the side of caution), that shows how marijuana is not the killer some people like to think it is. What is needed is a much stronger political lobby. Politicians listen to votes and not much else. Which also means, if there is actually a silent majority of smokers out there, then they need to stop being silent about it.

            • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

               These are probably the same politicians who give themselves raises.

          • Tria MacLeod

            Your doctor 'may' be thinking of exactly how much damage alcohol does.  Since the repeal of prohibition the rate of alcoholism has sky rocketed (but nothing happens in a vacuum) and there are people who fear that once the fear of prison is removed, MMJ will become the new alcohol.   

            Personally I feel most people are responsible enough to know when to stop, just as with alcohol.  In fact I think a lot of the laws we have on the books concerning alcohol consumption could easily be applied to pot.  To be honest, mellowing a few people out might be the best thing that could happen in this country.

            • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

               I agree, a lot of the laws could be applied to marijuana and the excuse that the gov. doesn't know how to tax it, like they do tobacco and alcohol, seems to be an excuse to keep it illegal.  I think the same taxation could also be applied to marijuana, just as it is to tobacco and alcohol.  Marijuana can be grown as a crop, just as tobacco is, so what's the difference?  I mean in that respect, not talking about the effects or anything like that.

  • http://www.flawlessri.com/music_videos.html LLaqui

    I cant believe I was brain wash into thinking marijuana was bad when I 1st try it the amount of stress i lost was amazing.. 

  • Flavortang

    Seriously, though, that dad should win an award. I won't say I'm praying for the kid, but I am HOPING he recovers fully. Oh yeah, and fuck the Drug War. Obama, I'm looking at you.

    • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

       Yeah, I'd like to see the Drug War end too, for many reasons.  :(

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ender-Wiggin/100000885624281 Ender Wiggin

    Correction, you say in the first paragraph "will continue to use this illegal substance…"  you are aware that Cashy is an MMJ patient? The youngest in the state i believe, but that it is NOT illegal to use cannabis as medicine in Montana?  (and a whole bunch of other places, more every year)

    • http://www.houseofbetazed.com Mriana

      No, if you listen to the video, no correction needs to be made, because the father is using it AMA, meaning that the dr did not give a Rx for the marijuana, thus the father is getting it illegally.  Without a Rx, it is illegal in Montana, well as many other states.

      • http://www.facebook.com/people/Ender-Wiggin/100000885624281 Ender Wiggin

        cashy's doctors are 100% behind his use of oil, in fact his case is being studied by some of the top childrens cancer experts in the world.  Dunno if that made the story or not, but i've actually been lucky enough to have a chat or two with Mike Hyde at various events

    • Deborah_B

      I think the news story's angle is that they're going against doctor recommendations as required in the state, plus there's the federal crackdown issue.

      http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=1888

      http://cannabisculture.com/v2/content/2012/01/24/Judge-Federal-Law-Trumps-Montanas-Medical-Pot-Law

  • http://www.facebook.com/people/Elroy-Jetson/100003170613819 Elroy Jetson

    So bare with me… take a ½ inch thick piece of steel 1 foot
    sq – how much energy and resources does it take to produce that? How much
    energy and resources does it take to make that same ½ inch 1 ft sq piece out of
    industry hemp fibers, resigns and hardeners? (like Henry Ford was once gearing
    up to do) Better yet, what resources and energy would a 3rd world
    country have to make that steel compared to making it out of industry hemp?

    The 00.1% industrialist wish to keep the raw materials in a
    limited check throughout the planet so the rest of us come out owing from
    cradle to grave. If this country (or any other country) had industry hemp for
    bio fuel to power itself, you would be paying next to nothing for it for the
    surplus this country would build for itself.