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MEDICAL CANNABIS JOURNAL

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Medical Marijuana Laws

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on a state, national, &
international level!
MEET DR. BOB

ACTIVIST INTERVIEWS
Dr. Robert J.
Interviews with Melamede
Endocannabinoid
Marijuana Activists Specialist
Todd McCormick, Mark
Pedersen, & more!

Michelle Rainey. Photo By: Jef Tek

A Conversation with
Michelle Rainey
STRAIN REVIEWS

Geo Inspects
The Harvest The Hostess with the Mostess
Compassionate Patients
Association & Dakini
Collective

www.medicalcannabisjournal.net
3
 62 COLUMNS
40 A Cannabis Patient
By Mark Pedersen

70 Lessons from the Road

By Barbara Mackenzie

77 Cannabis & Glaucoma

By Norman Lepoff, M.D.

78 Letter to the
Board of Iowa 54
By Mark Pedersen

84 Diagnosis Rap Sheet Assessment

By William L. Johnson

FEATURES 85 Can Marijuana Prevent Cancer?

12 The Prince of Pot Deals with the D.E.A By Lanny Swerdlow, RN
By Ron Niehouse
88 U.S. War on Marijuana
18 Interview with Todd McCormick By Steve VanWormer
By Joshua Lewis
94 What Happens Here In Nevada…
26 Is Rick Simpson’s Hemp Oil Stays Unimplemented Years Later
Really a Cure? By James Parsons
By Joshua Lewis

28 Meet Dr. Bob

DEPARTMENTS
By Joshua Lewis 18 Meet the Team
Meet the creators of Medical Cannabis Journal
36 Compassionate Patients Association
By Joshua Lewis 54 Strain Reviews
By Geo
44 Meeting Mark Pedersen
By Joshua Lewis 18 Collective Directory
Currently Featuring the California Area

52 Does the Medical Cannabis Program

in Hawaii Need an Update?
By Ron Niehouse

62 A Conversation with
Michelle Rainey
By Joshua Lewis

26

Medical Cannabis Journal (MCJ) is a monthly magazine featuring news articles, reports, interviews, editorials, commentary and an mmj patient forum. Our staff consists of profes-
sional journalists as well as free lance writers, activists and patients. Although the information hereunto is valid and fact based Medical Cannabis Journal does not hold respon-
sibility for any statements or claims made by its writers or sources; however, we strictly adhere to the ethical-guidelines of professional journalism and guarantee a libelous and
seditious free publication complete with retractions and corrections when the need arises. MCJ also does not claim that its content or purpose is to give legal medical advice. To
determine if cannabis can be an effective treatment is solely between you and your physician. If you would like to submit a correction or request retractions please contact: Joshua
J. Lewis, Editor In Chief: jjl@medicalcannabisjournal. -Or- USPS: POB 431, Lake Elsinore, CA 92531. USA
5

State Updates
California—The California state Senate’s 23-15
California—The
vote comes in the wake of recent federal enforce
enforce-
ment activity in the state, including multiple
raids and the arrests of five individuals. The Cal
Cal-
ifornia Assembly will take up Senate Joint Reso
Reso-
lution 14, which was introduced by State Senator
Mark Leno (D-San Francisco), when it returns for
Mari-
a January session. A.B. 2254, California’s Mari
juana Control, Regulation and Education Act:
Will be voted on in late November Session and if
passed would remove criminal penalties for per per-
sonal marijuana possession and cultivation for
adults over the age of 21. Adults 21 and up could
use marijuana at home or at a home with the
consent of a resident 21 years of age or older. For
more information pertaining to this bill please
go to: http://www.leginfo.ca.gov/pub/09-10/bill/
asm/ab_2251-2300/ab_2254_bill_20100218_intro-
duced.pdf
Colorado— the Colorado Board of Health re-
jected a proposal that would have sharply re-
stricted the ability of the state’s citizens to access
medical marijuana, in favor of allowing patients
to obtain their medicine through retail dispensa-
ries. The proposal the board rejected would have
limited caregivers to assisting no more than five
patients.
Maryland— Maryland’s medical marijuana law
worked as intended in two cases this month, but
activists say the cases expose the law’s limita-
tions and have vowed to press for changes.
Rhode Island— Overriding their governor’s
veto with a near-unanimous vote, Rhode Island
legislators have expanded their state’s medical
marijuana law to ensure safe access for qualified
patients. By a vote of 102 to 3, members of the
state General Assembly again passed the 2009
4 5
Medical Marijuana Laws
Medical Marijuana Act, which establishes licens-
licens
es and regulations for dispensaries to distribute
medical marijuana to citizens who have been au-
au
thorized by their physicians to use it.
International Updates
From exactly two authorized medical
Israel—From
cannabis patients in 2000, the number in Israel
has now grown to about 700, with the number
expected to surpass 1,000 by the end of the year.
Under Health Ministry rules, only patients with
extreme symptoms qualify. Today cannabis is
prescribed by Baruch for a broad array of diseas
diseas--
es, among them multiple sclerosis, chronic pain,
Tourette’s syndrome and cancer.
Until 2005, just ten patients were enrolled in the
medical cannabis program. The program allows
patients to grow up to ten plants and possess up
to 200 grams of cannabis. Alternatively, Israeli
patients can get free cannabis provided by an
anonymous cultivator and delivered by volun-
teers.
Croatia—A Croatian veteran has successfully es-
tablished a right to use cannabis to treat his post-
traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). The high court
of Croatia overturned his conviction for growing
cannabis in his backyard and threw out the one-
year prison sentence a lower court imposed.
In Croatia, an estimated 18,000 veterans suffer
from stress disorders as a result of serving in the
country’s five-year war with Yugoslavia. Nearly
1,700 Croatian veterans have committed suicide
since the end of the war.
Resources:
1. www.safeaccessnow.org

GEO
2010 is becoming a monumental year
for Medical Marijuana Legislation and
Decriminalization. We are at the cre-
scendo of a new Era filled with hope
and revolutionary ideals. If everyone
would do their part in this fight against
the so-called, Drug-War then we could
really make a change and possibly see a
Society where what we put in our own
bodies is a personal choice instead of
the governments’. After all there are
better ways to manage Federal resourc-
es then by raiding dispensaries and ar-
resting first-time cannabis users.
It has been thirteen years since Proposi-
tion 215 was passed by California Law-
Makers and codified as ‘The Compas-
sionate Use Act of 1996.” It has been
approximately five years since the Cali-
fornia Senate Passed Senate Bill 420 and
was codified as Health & Safety Code
Section 11362.77.
Other states to follow California in
fighting prohibition include: Alaska,
Colorado, Maine, Maryland, Montana,
Michigan, Rhode Island, Vermont, Or-
egon, Washington, Hawaii, Nevada,
New Mexico, and recently Iowans are
trying to get on the Magic Bus of Free-
dom, as I’d like to call it. It is amazing
that there are actually thirteen states on
board, and according to the state-wide
field poll; taken April 2009, 56% of Cali-
6 7
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
JOSHUA J. LEWIS
fornians expressed support for legaliz-
ing and taxing marijuana similar to al-
cohol and tobacco.
Early 2009, Assembly member Tom
Ammiano (D-SF) introduced legislation
that would tax and regulate marijuana
in a similar way as alcohol. Coined as
‘The Marijuana Control, Regulation
and Education Act (AB 390).’ Right
now California is in the midst of full
economic collapse and I believe that
there is no better time to set an example
for the rest of the nation then by taxing
a very viable and stable resource.
Recently Congressman Barney Frank
(D-MA) Introduced, the ‘Personal Use
of Marijuana by Responsible Adults
Act of 2009.’ This act which has bipar-
tisan support, is co-sponsored by: Ron
Paul (R-TX) ; Maurice Hinchey (D-NY);
Dana Rohrabacher (R-CA); and Tammy
Baldwin (D-WI). If this Act gets ap-
proval It’ll remove Federal Penalties for
possession of up to 100 grams (over 3
1/2 oz.’s), and would allow a non-profit
transfer of 1 oz.; whereas, prosecution
for these offenses would be entirely a
matter for state law makers.
Currently under Federal Law: Personal
Use of a small amount of pot can get
you up to one year in the Big House
and an unjust $1000 fine to boot. Thir-
teen States have enacted laws decrimi-
nalizing the possession of marijuana by
adults which means that minor offenses
face a citation and small fine in lieu of
criminal arrest or time in jail.
According to CBS and Nationwide polls
3 out of 4 voters believe that adults who
possess marijuana should not face ar-
rest or jail. One out of two now say that
cannabis should be regulated like alco-
hol and tobacco. More and more peo-
ple are realizing that using marijuana
should not be a crime and attitudes are
shifting towards full legalization in the
midst of a National economic crisis.
Barney Frank (D-MA), and Ron Paul
(R-TX) also recently introduced HR
2835, The Medical Marijuana Patient’s
Protection Act of 2009. This Act halts
federal interference in states that have
enacted medical marijuana laws. This
Bill for patients was reintroduced just
days after Rep. Mark Kirk (R-IL) called
for Federal Legislation to sentence first
time marijuana offenders to 25 years in
prison.
July 16th, 2009 The Marijuana Policy
Project (MPP) has an alliance in the
House of Representatives and they
took a monumental step toward pro-
tecting medical marijuana patients in
the District of Columbia. For A Decade
The D.C. Spending Bill has included an
amendment that prevents the city from
implementing a voter-approved medi-
cal marijuana initiative. The House
passed the 2010 version of the bill abol-
ishing the provision which blocked
Medical Marijuana Laws
medical marijuana. This spending bill
will move throughout the remainder of
legislation and must be signed by Presi-
dent Obama for any changes to take ef-
fect. According to NORML, “ a revised
budgetary analysis by the California
State Board of Equalization (BOE) es-
timates that taxing, and regulating the
retail sale of cannabis by adults would
raise and estimate $1.4 Billion in annual
new State revenue.”
AB 390 Would raise an estimate $900
Million from the proposed $50 per
oz. levy in addition to $392 Million in
yearly sales tax revenues. In case you
are unaware AB 390: The Marijuana
Control Regulating and Education Act
seeks to license and tax the commercial
production, packaging, and retail sale
of marijuana to persons 21 years of age
or older. Obviously we are in for major
changes in the near future. Please take
the time to write your representatives
and your elected government officials.
Take part in a national or state-wide
survey or be like Ron and Myself and
start your very own publication with a
mission to inform, educate and make a
difference. Our generation has more in-
centive to bring about change and a bet-
ter quality of life. Let us not reproduce
the apathy which saturated us during
the Baby Boomer generation. There
were 74, 000 Californians charged with
marijuana offenses in the last year, and
over 20% of the U.S. population is be-
hind bars. I urge you all to help change
this by doing your part and make the
effort to change the world.

WAR STORIES
BY EUGENE DAVIDOVICH
I have lived in San Diego
for over 20 years, four of
which I was in the Navy.
My service included 2
gulf deployments and
numerous campaigns
for which I was award-
ed medals and letters of
commendation from my superiors. After
being honorably discharged, I completed
my education earning an MBA. In ad-
dition for the last five years I have been
building a successful career in software
development.
After the service, I developed several con-
ditions. The symptoms I experienced as a
result were unbearable and prevented me
from being able to function day-to-day.
My ability to work, live a productive life,
and complete my education, was seri-
ously affected. I first turned to my regular
doctors, who prescribed multiple phar-
maceutical drugs, from which the side
effects overpowered the benefits. With
the use of medical cannabis I was able to
find relief from my symptoms, maintain
a normal life, and stay off the doctor pre-
scribed drugs. I used cannabis to relieve
the symptoms and was able to complete
a Bachelors Degree in Business Manage-
ment, a Masters in Business Administra-
tion, all while working full time on my
career as a Software Development Project
8 9
Editorial
and provided the success of operation Endless Summer.
seven grams of They proclaimed that they cleaned up the
medical canna- streets of Navy Housing from dangerous
bis to him at his drug dealers and seized a large amount of
house in Pacific heroin, meth, marijuana, as well as other
Beach, a suburb illegal drugs off the streets of navy hous-
of San Diego. ing. During the press conference, there
Manager for an IT company here in town.
was no mention of medical marijuana or
When I began to seek access to medical
When I arrived at Operation Green Rx.
cannabis in San Diego, I first found out
the house, I first veri-
that I had to either cultivate it myself, or
fied that all the information he had pro- The evening news quickly picked up the
go to one of three collectives/dispensa-
vided to me over the phone matched his story and that night showed video of me
ries that I found locally. At first I had no
CA Drivers License by physically inspect- at the arraignment hearing, painting me
knowledge or the ability to cultivate, so I
ing his Driver’s License. I then checked as the poster child of this operation both
joined one of the collectives and obtained
that the same information matched his mentioning my name and showing my
medication from there. In August of 2008,
Recommendation Letter and that the let- picture following the description of the to-
all of the collectives that dispensed med-
ter appeared to be authentic, and it did. tal number of illegal drugs seized during
ication in San Diego were shut down by
Once I was certain all the information was Operation Endless Summer.
Local Law Enforcement. This left Orange
correct, and that this was the same person
County as the closest place for safe access.
who joined the collective over the phone, I am not a dangerous drug dealer, I did
The August 2008 raids effectively elimi-
I went back to my car, got the medicine, not possess any illegal drugs and I was
nated all safe access in San Diego County.
went into the house and gave him 7 grams operating the collective under what I truly
At this point I decided to form a collective,
(1/4 of an ounce) of medical cannabis. Af- believed was the guidance of California
cultivate, and collectively distribute medi-
ter a brief conversation I left the house State Law. As a result of this press confer-
cal cannabis to other members of the col-
and did not hear from him again. ence and charges, my personal and profes-
lective at no profit.
sional life has been permanently damaged.
Three months later, on a Tuesday morning
In November of last year, I received a call
at 7 am as I was getting ready for work, my The preliminary hearing in my case lasted
from a patient referring to himself as Jamie
house was raided by an armed narcotics from 8:15 in the morning until almost 4:30
Conlan asking to join the collective in order
team from the San Diego Police Depart- in the afternoon. After trying to navigate
to obtain medical cannabis. He said he suf-
ment. After being detained in handcuffs the “Serpentine Roadmap” that makes up
fered from multiple conditions for which
at my house in front of my wife, child, our medical marijuana laws with my attor-
his doctor recommended the use of canna-
and neighbors for about seven hours, I ney in court, it appears to be more confus-
bis. After calling his doctor, and verifying
was hauled off to jail, slapped with four ing then ever.
that he was in fact a real patient, as well
felony charges and $65,000 bail related to
as verifying that his doctor was legally li-
the distribution, sales, and possession of The day started with the prosecutor fight-
censed to practice medicine in CA, I called
marijuana. ing tooth and nail to not allow the rec-
this patient back and explained how the
ommendation from my physician to be
collective works. He joined my collective,
The day of my arraignment, the DA’s office admitted into the court records proving
and I agreed to meet with him and provide
held a press conference where they touted that I am a qualified patient even though
him with medication. I met this patient

we had subpoenaed the documentation
from the doctor’s office, and had a sworn
affidavit to support that from the doctor’s
custodian of record. My recommendation
was admitted although it took a lot of ef-
fort from my attorney.
The expert witness Chris Conrad, did get
to testify and testified that the collective
and the way that it was operating was in
fact legal and sanctioned under state law.
Even though the expert witness who was
originally involved in an advisory and
consulting capacity in drafting Prop 215
testified to what a collective is and that
what I was doing did in fact fall under
that definition as intended by the law, the
judge did not agree he saw ‘no evidence
of a collective” even though the detectives
themselves said that I cultivated marijua-
na based on the equipment they found in
my storage unit.
We also found out from Detective Conra-
do Decastro that this Operation Green Rx
10
was in fact targeting Medical Marijuana
Patients and the whole point with Opera-
tion Green Rx was to bring down everyone
listing their collectives on NORML only
later was the name changed to Operation
Endless Summer. We also found out that
Conrado Decastro is in charge and is the
‘mastermind’ behind “Operation Green
Rx”.
On a side note: In February when I was ar-
rested, Conrado Decastro interrogated me
at the police station. During the interroga-
tion he pulled out two large 3 inch black
binders that had a large red cross and
marijuana leaf on them. The two binders
contained a large number of tabs with last
names of people. As he pulled out the two
binders, he told me that I was not alone,
and that “we are gonna bring all you med-
ical pot people down”.
Detective Scott Henderson (Jamie Con-
lan), conveniently ‘could not recall’ the
details of the two phone conversations we
had where I explained to him that this was
a collective cultivation effort, and that he
was not to divert the medicine to the illicit
market. It was also very convenient that
the detectives recorded everything except
for the phone conversations even though
he testified that the equipment for such re-
cordings was readily available.
It was unbelievable to see this much re-
sources from the practically bankrupt
county of San Diego being spent on this
effort. There were for example at least five
bailiffs in the courtroom, the DA had at
least five other people from the DA’s office
advising her on how to properly prosecute
this case, and they brought out three de-
tectives to testify. All this during a Prelimi-
nary Hearing for a case where both people
are qualified medical cannabis patients
and one requested to join the other collec-
tive.
It seems that the San Diego Narcotics Di-
vision TOP priority has been made to in-
vestigate and shut down medical cannabis
collectives in San Diego.
Here is another example from my Prelimi-
nary Hearing this Monday:
Conrado Decastro, the Investigative Offi-
cer in my case, was identified by his col-
league Scott Henderson as the officer in
charge of Operation Green Rx.
Conrado Decastro testified that he based
his opinion of collectives and medical
marijuana on training he received during
his career. When questioned further about
who conducted this training, he referenced
a privately funded lobby group called
California Narcotic Officers Association
(CNOA). He also testified that during his
training he received a handout which he
used to base his expert testimony on, as to
what a medical marijuana collective is and
what constitutes qualified patient use.
Here is a brief sample from that handout:
USE OF MARIJUANA AS “MEDICINE”
Quick Facts:
•Marijuana, a plant from the cannabis
family, is illegal and highly psychoactive.
•Marijuana and its associated compounds
that can seriously affect the human body.
Editorial
•Marijuana is NOT medicine.
Handout can be downloaded here from the
CNOA California Narcotic Officers Asso-
ciation: www.cnoa.org/N-09.pdf
The expert testimony of Chris Conrad in
my case is based on his involvement in
working with the drafters of the actual
Prop 215 and the law, with which the judge
did not agree. However, this handout
which is clearly designed to sway people
into thinking that cannabis is not medicine
is a valid document to base Conrado De-
castro’s opinion on, which with the judge
did agree.
In San Diego our Narcotics Officers are
instructed that Marijuana is NOT Medi-
cine and is highly addictive, our judges
refer to medical cannabis as “dope”, and
the prosecutors fight with all their might
to not allow legitimate patients to present
subpoenaed physician records as evidence
of their patient status.
The undercover footage of the actual de-
livery of medication to Scott Henderson (a
qualified patient) can be viewed online at
www.eugenedavidovich.com
Regards,
Eugene Davidovich
eugene.davidovich@gmail.com
* Eugene was acquitted on all charges and his medical
cannabis was returned after it was processed as evidence.
This fight continues beyond this story and any contribu-
tions or donations made will go to assist other individu-
als like Eugene Davidodich.
11

The Prince of Pot Deals With the D.E.A.
Vancouver, British Columbia— Some
know him as the Prince of Pot. To some he
is simply Marc. Marc Emery is possibly the
most famous person on an international lev-
el who has chosen to dedicate their life and
hard-earned money on the fight to reform
marijuana laws. He is considered a threat by
the Canadian and U.S. Government. Marc
has made it no secret what his motive is to,
“Overgrow the Government.” Emery’s way to
accomplish that goal was to sell and spread as
many quality-seeds as possible to every coun-
ty, city and town that requested them.
Marc Emery, like a true leader, waited for his team
to get their legal problems in order. After accom-
plishing this, Marc turned himself into Canadian
Authority’s on Monday September 28th, 2009. He
remains in custody at a correctional facility in Vancou-
ver, British Columbia. The problem is being that most of
the cannabis seeds Marc sold were destined for the United
States. The Prince of Pot has been a thorn in the side of law
enforcement on both sides of the border for more than a decade.
Marc spoke, loud and clear, “that he had funds and a commitment
that enabled him to become one of the most famous voices in the world
for ending cannabis prohibition.”
While Marc is in custody, his friends and supporters are mobilizing. The objectives are
threefold: 1) To urge the Justice Minister not so sign the extradition order. 2) To urge the
12
Editorial
United States sentencing judge to grant
a short non-custodial sentence. 3) If he
does have to serve time in the United
States to urge the Canadian Safety Min-
ister to approve his transfer to Canada.
Supporters have now set up a link from
cannabisculture.com, click on no extra-
dition or free marc and you will find in-
structions on ways to contact the proper
officials. Vigils have been offered for
Marc everyday by his supporters while
he still remains in Vancouver, British Co-
lumbia. Supporters in the United States
including Vivian McPeak who is the ex-
ecutive director of Hempfest in Seattle
Marc and Jodie Emery
Washington said, “they are planning a very
large rally if Marc is to arrive in Seattle.” Not
having an exact date makes it much more diffi-
cult; however, “we are trying and we are almost
at the point where we can set out when necessary,”
according to McPeak.
Jeremiah Vandamere, the Editor at Cannabis Culture Maga-
zine which is now only available in electronic format exclaimed
that, “this is terrible, if he committed a crime in Canada that is
where he should have to do the time. “
The Canadian Justice Minister’s office claims that the extradition papers will in
fact be signed and Marc will be sent to the United States to serve his sentence. The
Minister was even willing to tell the press that these the papers would be signed by No-
13

vember of 2009. Keep in mind Marc does
not have any violent offenses on public
record. Marc will be placed in shackles
before authorities transported him to the
United States/Canadian Border. Upon
meeting United States Authorities at an
undisclosed location he will be moved to
The U.S. Detention Center in the State of
Washington.
The Prince of Pot, is expected to plead
guilty to a single count of Cannabis dis-
tribution, with the War on Drugs being
sponsored by the U.S. government, the
DEA has found the perfect man to make
an example out of. There is an epidemic
of organized crime and an abundance of
synthetic hard-drug operations through-
out Canada. They have formed several
drug task-forces and crime-prevention
programs even though they have the sup-
posed largest drug-kingpin in the country,
in custody. Marc was number 31 on the
DEA’s list of the largest drug dealers in the
world. It is very strange and yet appar-
ent that this is an all out assault on can-
nabis-users and medical cannabis patients
in Canada. Although the movement Marc
has helped to ignite has shown no loss of
momentum in fact this is likely to give fod-
der to his cause. He and his wife, Jodie,
will continue their overgrow the govern-
ment revolution no matter where Marc is
imprisoned. Jodie will be taking Marc’s
place at Cannabis Culture Magazine, Marc
Emery Seeds and all of the other things
that would be on marc’s daily calendar.
Jodie recently pioneered a support group
14
for women whom have loved ones in
prison for non-violent offenses. There are
a significant amount of cannabis-related
incarcerations. This seems like a heavy-
load for someone suffering from the loss
of a husband to an unjust system herself.
Jodie stated a few hours after Marc’s fare-
well that, “this has motivated me to begin
speaking for the families of prisoners.”
She continued to say there are, “hundreds
of thousands of non-violent drug-offend-
ers incarcerated right now. Nameless and
faceless except to their loved ones. I want
to put faces and names to the people suf-
fering year after year!”
Marc urges supporters to continue the
campaign to lobby the Canadian Jus-
tice Minister to not sign the papers that
will send The Prince of Pot to the United
States. In the likely event that Marc is ex-
tradited (before this issue of Medical Can-
nabis Journal is released) Marc and all of
his friends, family, employees and sup-
porters will continue to demand that he be
returned to Canada to serve the remainder
of his sentence. Marc stated “If I am to
serve my time in Canada I could be back in
as little as one year that is something I can
imagine”. Remember Marc is not a violent
offender.
When the dreaded time came for Marc to
say goodbye, he was not happy yet he was
in no way remorseful. In fact he stated, “I
am proud of everything I’ve done; I only
regret that I was unable to do more.” Marc
continued, “I did sell those seeds so people
could and would overgrow the govern-
ment and I gave away over four million
dollars to help educate and donated to or-
ganizations in Canada and abroad,” being
this was the kick-start of the medical mari-
juana movement as well as legalization ef-
forts. The prince of Pot has made a point
by telling supporters that, “parliament
should pay at the polls when it comes time
to vote” and to “remember, there are no
victims here and there are no dead people
in this revolution; I am the Prince of Pot for
a good reason.”
After Marc said goodbye publicly to all of
his supporters, advocates and family he
was escorted by sheriffs to a Vancouver jail
to await extradition. Marc may be around
real drug dealers and organized criminals
while he is in jail. Marc will be among less
than ten Canadians. The majority of these
offenders are South American and Mexi-
can drug-cartel / mafia. There are times
when the Canadians are locked down for
months at a time for their own protec-
tion. These are the very same people from
whom Marc was working so very hard to
protect his fellow Canadians. He removed
millions of dollars from the greedy tax-
15.2641 in free organized crime operations in Cana-
da. Since he started to profit on his seed
business and give it back to tax-deductible
organizations like NORML, MPP, (ASA)
among others, all benefiting from Marc’s
work. The country of Canada accepted
gracious amounts of tax revenue thanks
to his seed sales. The Drug Enforcement
Agency to the south interrupted this per-
Editorial
fect relationship Marc had with the people
he wished to serve. We also can’t leave
out the fact that he created the Canadian
Marijuana Party along with Michelle Rain-
ey. On a political level, Marc had, and I
am sure still has, great plans and ideas; He
certainly has much more clarity than the
most politicians.
Marc has a lot of which to be proud. If
there was any hint of remorse, it would
have most likely been sadness for his wife
Jodie as she said, “I will be alone every
night, it’s not so bad during the day when
I am surrounded by our supporters and a
team of friends when I go home and I am
alone it is most difficult.”
History will show that Marc Emery knew
how to wage a campaign of agitation.
Marc new how to strategically stand up
and fight against the tragic war on drugs.
Now the question is whether or not they
can use these skills to raise awareness, not
just for Marc’s injustice but for all of the
rest suffering for being a victim, of the war
on drugs.
* Marc Emery is currently awaiting extradition
to the United States. Support the Canadian ac-
tivist, Marc Emery, by visiting http://www.can-
nabisculture.com/noextradition.
Resources:
1) www.stopthedrugwar.com
2) www.youtube.com
3) Cannabis Culture Magazine
4) Wikipedia
5) www.myspace.com /prince of pot
15

Letter to the Editor
Joshua Lewis, MCJ Editor-in-Chief
Dear Medical Cannabis Journal,
I am an mmj patient in downtown
Los Angeles. Over the recent months
there has been an increase in the num-
ber of medical marijuana dispensaries
popping up all over the county and
city as well. What my concern with
this is how do I go about choosing a
dispensary that is operating legiti-
mately? Because I know that there is a
percentage that is operating illegally?
Sincerely,
Concerned Patient L.A.
Dear Concerned Patient,
You are correct in your assessment
of the abundance of dispensaries in
L.A.; however if you are concerned
about going to a legitimate opera-
tion, my best advice to you is to go to
www.norml.org (NORML’s website)
or visit www.americansforsafeaccess.
org (ASA’s website) and look for the
list of dipensaries that they deem safe.
Also keep in mind that in Los Angeles
dispensaries that display the Green
Cross are affiliating themselves with
GLACA which stands for Greater Los
Angeles Collective Alliance. GLACA
is associated with providing safe ac-
16
cess to medical cannabis patients and
their website is: www.cargiversal-
liance.org
I always encourage my readers to
grow your own, overgrow the gov-
ernment or if you can’t cultivate in
your present situation consider look-
ing into growing co-op’s like CPA.
Best,
Joshua J. Lewis
Dear Medical Cannabis Journal,
I have suffered from migraine-head-
aches for years now, It seems that I
am at a standstill. Do you think that
medical marijuana could help with
them?
Sincerely,
Migraine Headache Sufferer
Dear Migraine Headache Sufferer,
Being a patient who suffers from mi-
graine headaches I can definitely say
that yes cannabis helps tremendously.
What cannabis does is it brings down
the swelling in your inflamed blood-
vessels which are the main cause for
light and sound sensitivity. Cannabis
Editorial
also helps to curb the nausea often as-
sociated with migraine.
Take Care,
Joshua J. Lewis
Dear Medical Cannabis Journal,
Is there an organization that you
know of that can provide me with the
names of dispensaries that conform to
a higher standard of product while I
travel?
Thanks,
The Wonderer
Dear Wanderer,
Yes in fact there is such an organiza-
tion and they are called NORML. You
can go to there website: http://www.
NORML.org and browse through
their comprehensive dispensary di-
rectory; however, if you are really con-
cerned with quality and safe access
then I personally recommend going
to our website: http://www.Medical-
CannabisJournal.net where we have
a daily-updated dispensary, collective
and clinical directory with organiza-
tions and affiliates pre-approved by
the higher standards of MCJ’s mar-
keting and networking staff. Also be
sure to check out: http://www.ameri-
cansforsafeaccessnow.org. Good luck!
Keep on truckin’,
Joshua J. Lewis
17

Interview with
Todd McCormick
by Joshua Lewis
MCJ: Could you please tell us a little about
yourself? How you got to where you are
now with your magazine and the THC
EXPO?
TM: I got thrust into this movement as a
child dealing with a combination of radia-
tion and chemotherapy sessions when I was
only nine years old, I was suffering through
what was my ninth time of having cancer in
eight years and my mother was at her wits
end, she read in Good Housekeeping that
cannabis was good for cancer chemothera-
py and decided to give it a try. So I started
using medical marijuana when I was only
nine years old.
The immediate reaction to the cannabis
while I was sick was nothing short of amaz-
ing, in many respects, I owe my sanity to
cannabis for keeping my head on straight
during some very difficult times. Although
I stopped smoking cannabis between the
ages of 9 and 12, I started up again because
I was having a lot of neck pain at the area
18
in which I have a spinal fusion, C 1 through
5 are fused which causes me a lot of pain
and is the main reason why I continue to
use cannabis as a analgesic.
Around the age of 13 I got my hands on my
first grow book and immediately wanted to
see if it worked. So I started growing my
own Cannabis when I was only 13 years
old. It was ironically an old Mel Frank
book, and I’m proud to say his company is
one of the companies that was part of the
THC Expo and now a close personal friend.
After I started growing, I bumped into the
book by Ernest Abel: Marijuana, the first
12,000 years, which I highly recommend to
everybody. It was there I learned about the
history of cannabis, and that started my fas-
cination into the subject.
It was not until 1992 when I moved out to
California that I read “The Emperor Wears
No Clothes,” I was so enthralled by this
book that I met Jack Herer and ended up
becoming very close personal friends with
him. I started off my activism by coordinat-
ing the signatures for the 1994 Cannabis
Hemp and Health Initiative in San Diego,
after the Initiative I toured with Jack and
got a real good education from one of the
best activists in the movement. I went on
to become one of Jack’s many editors, and
know the book inside and out, literally line
by line. I actually grew the leaf that is on
the cover of the book, it is Black Domina
from Sensi Seeds, I grew it in 1997 in the
garden that was the “Marijuana Mansion”
as the press dubbed it at my home in Bel
Air. In 1997 I became the first federal arrest
after the voters passed proposition 215 for
medical marijuana.
In 1994 I was one of the first of 10 people to
get a doctor’s prescription from my Dutch
Physician in Rotterdam; I actually brought
back my medical Cannabis through cus-
toms and declared it in 1995; back then, I
was the only person that we knew who had
a doctor’s note from an international physi-
cian prescribing cannabis in America. I ar-
gued that it made me legal under a single
treaty Geneva Convention and the 1979
psychotropic substances commission, Elvy
Musikka and I actually debated the DEA at
the University of Miami over the subject in
February of 1995, I actually challenged him
to arrest me if I went and got my prescrip-
tion medication and he said that he would
not. So I jumped on a plane, unbelievably
Martinair allowed me to smoke cannabis
in flight in both directions because I had a
Dutch Physician’s prescription! At the time
you were allowed to smoke tobacco on in-
ternational flights there were over nine
hours, so they made me sit in the tobacco
Editorial
Entrance to THC Expo 2009
section, which I was glad to do. Upon arriv-
al, I declared the cannabis as medicine and
they let me in. I did it again in 1997, and
they took it away from me and I sued them
for its return, I did not get it, but of course
they dropped the case.
Shortly after that in 1995, I was still living
in San Diego and I opened the first Can-
nabis Compassion Club in San Diego and
distributed medication to people that were
seriously ill for free; back in 1995, San Diego
had a very different city council and they
were actually cannabis friendly.
Shortly after opening the cannabis club in
San Diego I was arrested in Ohio, with over
30 pounds of cannabis marked “not for
sale, medical use only”, and ultimately beat
the case after spending 52 days in jail, the
judge in the case considered letting me use
my medical Cannabis while I was incarcer-
ated because of my Dutch Physician’s pre-
scription, they decided to let me out before
that happened and told me in no uncertain
terms to get the hell out of their state.
After getting out of jail, I decided to go to
19

Amsterdam and ended up staying there
over a year and a half, I got the opportuni-
ty to work with Serious Seeds, Positronics,
and Highlife Magazine, I was their English
editor of a magazine called ‘Hemp Life’ that
only ran one issue, I got into a disagreement
with the publisher over the sale of seeds
to America and decided not to work with
him. I returned home to California and met
a famous author and publisher Peter Mc-
Williams. He and I teamed up, and I wrote
the book ‘How to Grow Medical Marijuana’
in 1998, I started the website growmedi-
cine.org and started working on numerous
projects documenting the growing of the
various strains of cannabis in a controlled
environment; sadly, I was arrested only six
months into the project.
To say my life completely changed after
getting arrested would be a complete un-
derstatement, I fortunately had some really
good friends who stood by my side; Woody
Harrelson famously bailed me out of jail,
and I was represented by Larry Flynt’s at-
torneys for three years while we fought
the federal government. Consequently, I
became one of the first people denied a
medical necessity defense at trial, the New
York Times dedicated an entire page to the
Judge’s ruling. Left without a defense and
facing incarceration on a ten-year manda-
tory minimum with no ability for bond on
appeal, I was given three choices; go to trial
and spent almost $125,000 to lose. Only so
the higher courts could decide whether or
not, I was allowed to present a medical ne-
cessity defense, during which time of ap-
peal I would most definitely be incarcerat-
ed serving a ten-year mandatory minimum,
20
because I admitted to growing the Canna-
bis which in itself was the “crime”. Option
two was take a five-year mandatory mini-
mum, but retain my right to appeal (at the
time, I still believed in the court system), I
would be able to retain free on bond on ap-
peal and if I lost the appeal I would have to
go to prison and do five years. The third op-
tion was to take 0 to 5 years and waved my
right to appeal basically begged the court
for mercy. I can be pretty stubborn and I
just was not in the headspace to basically
renounce everything I had worked for and
taken the government’s point that what I
was doing was wrong.
So, on January 3, 2000 I surrendered to the
federal government for a five-year sen-
tence, I subsequently lost my appeal, as all
of us have, and served my time. I was re-
leased in May of 2004 after serving 87% of
a five-year sentence. I returned to living in
Los Angeles and in 2007 I was asked to help
coproduced the Playboy parties for MPP,
I really enjoyed it and ended up working
with them three years in a row, which led to
the THC Expo.
I actually had the idea of doing a business-
to-business event for the Marijuana Policy
Project at the Playboy mansion, but the or-
ganization did not want to try to throw two
parties up there a year. It was around that
time that I was re-introduced to my now
business partner and best friend; Brian Rob-
erts, he and I shared an interest in doing a
magazine, an expo, a museum, a school,
and an on-line community.
Brian is an exceptional businessman with
a wonderful reputation and immediately
secured the Los Angeles Convention Cen-
ter for our first Expo. Like myself, Brian
had lived in Amsterdam, and we have a lot
of the same friends, we simply put our re-
sources together and because a lot of peo-
ple knew us and trusted us they jumped
on board to try to help us bring our vision
together. Arjan from Greenhouse Seeds, im-
mediately stepped up and made the com-
mitment to come 9000 miles from home and
do the show with us, this is from a guy who
has never stepped foot in America, it was
that was the kind of support that we found
we had a lot of from a lot of our friends,
and a majority of the exhibitors are really
our friends, they are people who we have
met in the movement over the many years
that we’ve been it, many of which got into
the commerce of Cannabis business so that
they could further the movement through
conscious capitalism involving Cannabis.
MCJ: The THC EXPO was a huge success
and never has the city of Los Angeles host-
ed an event of its kind. How do you feel
about the outcome of the first annual Expo?
TM: We thought it was a phenomenal suc-
cess, the decorating company called Free-
man estimated that we had over 50,000 peo-
ple there on Saturday alone! Sadly, because
we did not have good counters at the gates
we don’t know what the exact number was
Saturday, but we’re pretty certain that over
the two days we easily saw over 40,000 peo-
ple who are all interested in the furtherance
of cannabis.
MCJ: So what’s up with the movie “The
Editorial
Union- The business behind getting high?
What is that about? When is it going to be
available etc.?
TM: I am really proud to have been in that
movie, I think the filmmakers Adam and
Brett did a marvelous job, I really think it
is a must-see for anybody interested in this
topic. Both those guys are non-smokers and
they took a really honest approach to the
topic without any bias, and they walked
away telling the history in a way that some
matter-of-factly proves the point that Can-
nabis prohibition should have ended a long
time ago.
The DVD is available at Amazon.com and
last time I checked was number three on the
political DVD top 10 sales list. I also think
people can watch it on Google video, and I
would recommend it to anybody.
MCJ: The 2nd Annual THC EXPO is sched-
uled for April 23rd to 25th, 2010 at The Los
Angeles Convention Center. How do you
feel this next expo will compare to this last
year’s where 40,000 showed up over the
course of one weekend?
THC Expo Banner
21

TM: We have already secured over 150,000
ft.², which is a third larger than the 96,000
ft.² we had in June, last year was a lot harder
to sell an idea than this year it will be to be
able to point to what we did and ask people
if they want to participate. Already we are
getting hit with requests, and I believe that
this year is going to be bigger and more
positive as support is already pouring in.
MCJ: As an activist what would you say is
the ultimate goal that you would like to
achieve?
TM: Complete re-legalization and imple-
mentation of cannabis back into our com-
modities market, I want to see cannabis
freely grown in America and all other na-
tions for food, fuel, fiber and medicine. I
believe that the real reason that marijuana
is prohibited is because of cannabis and
hemp’s ability to compete in so many mar-
kets; I think over the years, big industry
has been influencing politicians to keep the
status quo, which was of course cannabis
prohibition. While they could develop new
markets of nylon and forest paper and off-
shore oil and a plethora of other daily com-
modities that historically cannabis provid-
ed us with.
I believe in adult use of Cannabis, and I be-
lieve that we have to start arguing for equal
rights of plants to give us the gifts that na-
ture intended and to not let our politics get
in the way of a natural solution to our ev-
eryday problems.
This is not a war on drugs. It’s a war on
some drugs, and it has to end.
22
Editorial
MCJ: Is there anything else that you would
like to add?
TM: I would like to invite everybody who
can’t get their hands on a printed copy to
download a copy of my new magazine
‘HEMPIRE/ T.H.C.’ and to come join our
community at www.hempiremedia.net, I
think it’s really worth your read and I hope
you really like the photographs; the maga-
zine contains some brand-new techniques
in multi-layered focus photography that I
did which really shows off the trichomes
like you have never seen before.
I am also starting classes at our downtown
location teaching grow courses, anybody
interested in learning how to grow medi-
cine can go to www.growmedicine.org for
more information.
MCJ: Alright thank you so much Todd for
speaking with us here at Medical Cannabis
Journal. Take care and we will see you in
April at the next THC EXPO.
Resources:
1. www.thcexpo.com
2. www.hempiremedia.net
23
 Did Your Realize...? A few things to think about regarding Medical Cannabis
By Ron Niehouse

...that every newborn who breast feeds will receive cannabinoids thru breast milk? This helps to
stimulate the baby’s appetite?

...law enforcement makes an average of over 700,000 marijuana-related arrests yearly?

...87% of marijuana-related arrests are for an insignificant amount? Often being less than one ounce.
Penalties and there severity vary from state to state.

...if you are in the State of California and you have less than one ounce of marijuana, without a doc-
tor’s recommendation, you can be issued a fine of $100?

...the United States of America spends somewhere between $10 and $15 billion dollars annually to
hunt down and arrest recreational and medicinal marijuana users?

...in Alabama, three marijuana-related convictions can be very serious? On your third marijuana-
related conviction you could face 15 years to life in prison. Often for an insignificant amount of
cannabis.

...marijuana can be used as a reason for the government to force your children into the state’s foster
care system? Fighting for the custody of your children, coupled with the legal-fees associated with
a marijuana-related arrest, can ultimately destroy economic-stability and sound family structures.

...according to the DEA’s Controlled Substance Act, marijuana is a schedule I drug and is wrongfully
considered more dangerous than heroin, morphine, Percocet, methamphetamine and cocaine?

...according to U.S. history there have never been a majority of citizens who claim to support the le-
galization of marijuana? The California Field Poll shows that 56% of Californians support taxation
and regulation. They would also like cannabis to have similar availability as alcohol and cigarettes.

...THC is not completely harmless yet it is safer than water. Although a person can overdose on H2O
there is no evidence supporting the possibility of an overdose on THC?

Please see drugpolicy.org

Resources:
1. National Review, www.nationalreview.com
June 12, 2004 titled “Going to Pot”. By Ethan A. Nadelmann
The Growing movement toward ending America’s irrational marijuana prohibition.

24 25

Is Rick Simpson’s
Hemp-Oil
Really A Cure?
By Joshua Lewis
Nova Scotia, Canada--Recently on the web you
may have noticed that there is an awful lot of
hype surrounding a possible cure-all known
as Rick Simpson’s Concentrated Hemp-Oil. A
gentlemen from Amherst, Nova Scotia by the
name of Ricky Logan Simpson has come up with
what he claims to be a cure for many ailments
such as cancer, glaucoma, A.I.D.S., wasting syn-
drome among other serious diseases that do not
respond well to the conventional treatment or
the medicines typically prescribed.
Simpson has been producing his very own
medicine for years now. It is not unusual for
Rick to make his Hemp-oil and distribute it to
people whom suffer from various diseases and
symptoms. His motivation comes from the
genuine compassion that he feels for sick peo-
ple and their needs rather than making a profit.
Residing in the Maccan area where marijuana
and hemp are still illegal and considered a
Schedule II Drug, Rick Logan Simpson has
been convicted twice for drug charges and both
times released as a free man the same day as
his sentencing. Mr. Simpson, who believes
that he has discovered a cure for a variety of
ailments such as cancer and wasting syndrome
with his miracle hemp-oil, entered a guilty plea
to one charge of trafficking, a charge that was
laid while he awaited sentencing on other simi-
lar, drug-charges. Simpson was sentenced to
eight days in custody, time which was deemed
served during his remand time, and sentenced
to a lifetime firearms prohibition.
26
On Nov. 30, 2008 Simpson was arrested as he
left the courthouse where he appeared for a
sentencing hearing, on one count each of pos-
session of less than 30 grams of cannabis, and
possession of less than three kilograms of THC
for the purpose of trafficking and unlawful pro-
duction of marijuana. According to McQueen,
“The Crown acknowledges that the motivation
was not a profit-minded motivation. At the time
of the sentencing, Mr. Simpson was in the posi-
tion of a first time drug offender, but this has
very different circumstances - this is his second
offense.”
How can someone in this day and age still be ar-
rested for doing something that is morally and
ethically sound? Persecuting people for doing
the right thing has to stop both in Canada and
the United States of America. If you visit Simp-
son’s website: www.phoenixtears.ca, you can
scan through several testimonials of hemp-oil’s
success. According to Simpson, He has physi-
cal proof that his hemp-oil actually works and
has been successful at significantly reducing
tumor-growths, putting cancer into remission,
relieving symptoms of neuropathy, chronic-
pain and other serious ailments.
Remember that Rick Logan Simpson is current-
ly a fugitive of the Canadian Government and
is currently on the run living in exile in Europe
and abroad. If you would like to help support
this freedom fighter through these rough times,
your financial contributions are much appreci-
ated be sure to visit Simpson’s website: www.
Editorial
phoenixtears.ca for more infor-
mation and how to send him your
donations.
If you would like to learn more about
how cannabinoids work together with the
endocannabinoidal system to help fight in-
flammation and terminal diseases like cancer,
then be sure to check out these links:
1. www.cannabinoidsociety.org
2. www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
3. www.phoenixtears.ca/videos_run-from-the-cure.php
4. www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2JyhO79po8
Amsterdam, Holland--In November 2009 while celebrating at the High
Times Cannabis Cup Mr. Rick Logan Simpson received the esteemed
‘Freedom Fighter’ of The Year Award; however, this momentous occasion
was coupled simultaneously by another less fortunate event: the raiding of
his home and property by The Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
As a result of this useless and lawless attack by the RCMP Mr. Simpson has
been forced to live his life in exile throughout Europe avoiding arrest and
imprisonment.
Rick is in need of financial help and your contributions to his fund are much
appreciated please visit www.phoenixtears.ca for more information.
On behalf of Rick Simpson, Medical Cannabis Journal and Phoenixtears...
Thank you so much!
Resources:
1. www.phoenixtears.ca
2. “Run From The Cure,” The Movie.
3. http://www.phoenixtears.ca/melamede_webcast.php
4. www.youtube.com
5. http://www.cannabinoidsociety.org/
6. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I2JyhO79po8
27

Meet
Dr. Bob
Dr. Robert J. Melamede
On The Endocannabinoidal System
& Far From Equilibrium Thermodynamics
by Joshua Lewis
I can honestly say that he is one of the most
compelling, interesting, and significant
people with whom I have had the honor of
speaking. Fortunately, Medical Cannabis
Journal (your source for medical marijuana
patient information) has recently had the
privilege of hosting an MCJ exclusive in-
terview with Dr. Bob. You may know him
from cannabuzz.net, Cannabis Science Inc.
(CBIS), or from his plethora of uber-infor-
mative videos available on Google Video
and YouTube. Dr. Bob is the President and
C.E.O. of Cannabis Science Inc. (CBIS), he
has a Ph.D. in molecular biology from the
City University of New York. Honorably
retired from the position of Chairman of
the Biology Department at the University
of Colorado Springs in the year 2005. Com-
monly known as the leading authority on the
therapeutic and medicinal uses of cannabis.
Dr. Bob has authored and coauthored many
papers on science-related subject matter.
Currently serving on the advisory board of
the Journal of International Association For
Cannabis as medicine, the scientific advi-
28
sory board of the Sensible Colorado (Sen-
siCo) and, and the scientific advisory board
of Americans for Safe Access (ASA). Today
Dr. Bob is here with us on the telephone to
talk about far from equilibrium thermody-
namics, the Endocannabinoid System and
how cannabis can help provide people with
the ability to achieve a homeostatic-balance.
Without further ado , here is Dr. Robert J.
Melamede!
MCJ: Hello Dr. Bob how are you today?
DB: I am doing fine today, great to be talking
with you. What can I do for you?
MCJ: Great, could you give us a brief expla-
nation of far from equilibrium thermody-
namics?
DB: I surely can. Lets just dissect the term.
Far from equilibrium means something that
is not at equilibrium and thermodynam-
ics refers to thermo (heat) and dynamics is
movement (flow). So what we are really
looking at is how does energy and mass
flow when you have a system that is far
from equilibrium. Basically this means that
if you had a battery; for example, that was
fully discharged, the chemicals in that bat-
tery would be at equilibrium. They can’t
do anything. When the battery is charged,
its far from equilibrium and can do things.
There is really profound magic essentially
in the large collection of the molecules that
exist on equilibrium. What happens then
is that those molecules will have a natural
tendency to organize themselves so that
energy and mass can blow through that
collection more rapidly. Essentially, in a
very down to Earth, none scientific way of
putting it, what happens is the collection of
molecules gets smarter; whereas, the uni-
verse around them gets stupider quicker.
In more technical terms you would say
that the entropy of the system decreased;
whereas, the entropy of the surroundings
increased. It is essentially a far from equi-
librium system and we constantly have to
have energy and mass flowing through us,
in order for us to maintain that distance of
equilibrium. Essentially health is distance
from equilibrium; whereas, death is return
to equilibrium. Our illnesses are all part of
that return to equilibrium process, illness
and aging.
MCJ: Please explain the difference between
BLP’s & FLP’s and how they are associated
with independent structures and flow de-
pendent structures?
DB: Yeah BLP’s and FLP’s o.k., so backward
looking people and forward looking people
Editorial
that is what it stands for there. Let me relate
it to the endocannabinoid system specifi-
cally. First of all, far from equilibrium ther-
modynamics is genuinely responsible for
pre-biotic life and lead to the formation of
life and if you look at life’s progression, its
evolutionary- progression. You see that we
have a greater level of complexity; for ex-
ample, the complexity of man and his mind
as opposed to say a cockroach. It’s pro-
foundly different. They don’t have the same
needs and they don’t do all of the things
that we do. They’re complex but nothing
compared to our complexity. So where we
are going with this is that as evolution pro-
ceeded and as things got more complex
their endocannabinoid system evolved and
plays a very unique roll in the evolution of
mankind and really from my perspective,
our entire lineage from when a unique bi-
Dr. Robert J. Melamede Ph.D.,
Former Chairman of the Biology
Department of the University
of Colorado
Conducting scientific research
on Cannabinoids
Phone: 719-262-3135
University of Colorado
1420 Austin Bluffs Parkway, Room
232
PO Box 7150
Colorado Springs, CO 80933-7150
rmelamed@uccs.edu
29

furcation occurred hundreds of millions of
years ago. So without elaborating too much
on all that and attempting to answer your
question more, the complexity of evolution
proceeded and increased as we went form
reptiles to amphibians, to mammals from
a direct mammal-lineage to man. One of
the things that are characteristic of life is
that you always have a balance of opposing
forces. Kind of like in politics, liberals and
conservatives. The reality is that balance is
held taught by those opposing groups. Well
that is the way our biology works as well.
For example, remembering and forget-
ting. Those are opposing forces and there
are consequences to being essentially out
of balance. For example, if you couldn’t re-
member anything you would have a hard
time functioning and on the other hand if
you remembered everything that you do all
the time especially, for example, unpleas-
ant memories then you would also have
a hard time functioning. We call that Post
Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). Well it
turns out its that thermostat essentially of
remembering and forgetting that is very
much regulated by our endocannabinoid
activity (cannabis from within). So it turns
out that there are natural consequences to
being able to forget the past, so to speak.
And it has to do with our ability to relearn
something new. Let me give you an exam-
ple; you know you learn right from early
age that marijuana is the worst thing in the
world and that our federal government or
White House drug-policy people actually
have the incredible audacity or stupidity to
say that marijuana is as bad or worse than
heroin.
30
MCJ: Yeah it’s at the top of the list. A sched-
ule I drug is considered dangerous and to
have absolutely no medicinal value (sar-
casm). We have President Nixon and the
DEA’s Controlled Substance Act to blame!
DB: Whether that is true or not look at all the
incredible science that is coming out, now
that we have discovered that we all make
marijuana-like compounds that literally
regulate everything in our body. In order
to be able to reorganize our brain we have
to forget the old information to replace it
with the new information. Marijuana is
good, it’s healthy for you. Its essentially
nutrients and that is why it is effective. It
is essential you have the ability to forget
because if you’re cannabinoid-deficient
you can’t replace old information with the
new information. There are nice models to
confirm this especially in mice that shows
that proof. So are there consequences to
not being able to forget? The answer is yes.
It is very important to us. So you can al-
ways look at the other side of it to be able
to forget in order to eliminate old informa-
tion and replace it with better information.
You got to have that cannabinoid-endowed
capacity to forget. Think about your own
life and your existence. You have basically
three choices of how you spend your exis-
tence. You could be looking backwards in
time, you could be looking forward in time
or you could be experiencing the now. It
turns out that they are very much related to
endocannabinoid activity that is regulating
your ability to forget for the following rea-
sons: If you are cannabinoid deficient like
the BLP’s or the Backwards Looking People
or the primitive people o.k., you can’t take
in new information and you can’t rewire so
easily; therefore, the future to you is threat-
ening under those circumstances because it
is a stressor. You know it’s demanding as
humans, to encounter novelty that makes
you readjust your thinking so that you
have to replace your old ideas with your
new ideas but you can’t do that because
you don’t have the biochemistry that al-
lows for that to happen. So this becomes
a stress. Those people are going to tend to
look backwards in time more than they are
going to tend to look forward in time. The
future is an unknown and that will demand
of them what they can’t do. Now look at the
contrast, one of the known characteristics of
marijuana-users are that they tend to be op-
timistic. Well how is that? What does that
really mean? Well it means that they don’t
know what the future holds, but because
they have the capacity to rewire in order to
relearn and replace faulty information with
new information. You know they tend to
be optimistic so they are going to be able
to meet the unknown challenges of the fu-
ture; furthermore, there are additional con-
sequences that are profoundly important.
Backward Looking People they want the
future to be the past, to serve them essen-
tially and in doing so their vision is one that
already happened so they have consensus
and by having consensus they intrinsically
gain power. There also less mellow, they
also have a lack in cannabinoid-activity so
the problem, I believe is that the govern-
ment is overpopulated with cannabinoid-
defective people.
MCJ: I agree with you.
Editorial
DB: Future Looking People, cannabinoid en-
dowed FLP’s, as opposed to the BLP’s they
ten to agree to disagree because they don’t
know what the future holds. They are more
cooperative in nature and less-aggressive
and have different opinions. Well the prob-
lem with that is that even if they are cooper-
ating and saying yeah, and you believe that
there is a viable solution to this, how do you
get things done? How do you gain power
when its the backwards looking people who
are unified in thinking and therefore gain
power. So there are profound consequenc-
es when the world is run by BLP’s. We see
that evolution uses the endocannabinoid as
a source of newness when developing sys-
tems such as immune system, the cardio-
vascular system, the digestive system, and
skeletal system. The cannabinoid system is
always involved in homeostatic-regulation.
Essentially it protects us from free radical
induced damages.
Well you have a world now where we are
trying to move into the future and to cre-
ate a world where we are more at harmony
with our environment so that we can sustain
humanity as a species because remember
most species that have existed on the planet
have gone extinct. So as a species, in order
to survive we have to be able to take in the
information from our surroundings (our en-
vironment) and deal with it appropriately.
Mankind, by virtue of our population, our
production and our energy use are polluting
everything. You can’t go anywhere and get
clean water or clean anything! Everything
is polluted everywhere! So a forward look-
ing person would say, if I want to survive
31

as a species we have got to fix these prob-
lems. Even though we do not have absolute
answers, we have to deal with these issues.
Now a backward person, they don’t look
into those issues because they are looking
backwards and its not their problem which
is, of course, ridiculous. So I believe that for
the future of mankind’s survival we have to
increase the endocannabinoid activity on
the planet. You know some people are re-
ally defective, they are like these knock-out
mice, they don’t have cannabinoid-activity
and they can’t be supplemented. They are
just stuck looking backwards.
Then you have these other people who are
really very loosely-wired, they look into the
future and they are very much naturally de-
viated in that direction. Then you have the
bulk of the people in the middle, they can
go either way. By having more cannabinoid
activity we can shift that population that is
deemed more open-minded, more able to
evaluate data that is coming in and to act on
it in a way that will allow for the survival of
mankind.
MCJ: Do you subscribe to the idea of re-
verse-prohibition? It sounds like a great
idea to me.
DB: Yeah, I think we need to end prohibi-
tion. We need to reverse it. That is some-
thing that I have coined.
MCJ: Exactly, it seems that the idea would
help propel us into a forward looking mo-
mentum.
DB: Yeah I know. We spent 60 years with
32
prohibition and ending prohibition isn’t
sufficient at this point. We need to reverse
it. We need to have a government where
you have to piss-test dirty for cannabis so
that a policy-maker will be open-minded
and able to analyze data realistically.
Lets look at it from another perspective: In-
stead of looking at it as a survival of the spe-
cies, look at the survival of us as individu-
als. Now our cannabis thermostat was set
in the evolutionary past when there was a
benefit to having higher levels of inflamma-
tion and aggressiveness. I mean logically,
higher levels for inflammation and neuro-
logically, higher levels for aggression. That
is how we functioned socially and pre-so-
cially in order to survive the saber-toothed
tiger, you had to be more aggressive.
These people didn’t live very long. So they
where not exposed for long to the biologi-
cal-friction caused by free radicals that are
essentially degrading the biological mol-
ecules that tends their capacity to the most
efficiently function in the hierarchy of the
complexity of the flow that is responsible
for our existence. So what we need now
is we have got to re-tune that thermostat
and increase our endocannabinoid activity
to decrease our free radical... the negative
consequences of free radicals and inflam-
mation because unlike in the past, we are
predominantly dying of age-related illness-
es. As a matter of fact, if you eliminate the
specific gene that gets you high (CB1 Re-
ceptor) which you can do in mice; essential-
ly, what you get is a knockout-mouse which
is completely missing that gene’s activity.
CB1 knockout mice die prematurely. We all
Editorial
need to have a certain amount of endocan-
nabinoid activity. That thermostat is set in
the past; inappropriately, for the future. We
need to increase our endocannabinoid ac-
tivity and minimize the onset of age-related
illness like auto-immune diseases, neuro-
logical disorders, cardiovascular disorders
and cancers that are suspected to be what
is killing us. We need more cannabinoid
activity. We can’t get it genetically. We
can’t evolve fast enough but we need more
Dr. Robert J. Melamede
cannabis. If you go look up the definition
of “nutrient” and “essential nutrient”, can-
the height of his influential development
nabis is an essential nutrient for mankind’s
back then even though he was very bril-
survival.
liant to begin with. Equilibrium thermody-
namics basically tells you that life is so im-
MCJ: How did you come to discover this
probable that it can’t exist. Now what’s the
form of Physics and how did you become
probability of taking all the molecules that
involved with the work of Nobel Prize Lau-
compose you, putting them into a big die
reate Illya Prigogine?
tumbler and throwing them out and hav-
ing you appear? It is essentially zero!
DB: Well my whole life I have been...you
know...my Mom, when I was a kid we
MCJ: I see...
used to ask what is God? And she used
say mother nature and that’s how we we’re
DB: Yet we are all here? So you are con-
brought up. Science, nature and in natural
fronted with then that the basic laws which
phenomenon. In the 1960’s when I was at
determine the physics of and chemistry of
undergraduate school, that is when the ge-
the world we live in as taught: says that
netic-code was discovered and the field of
life is impossible. And then with what
molecular biology began and we now have
Prigogine evolved was the far from equi-
this idea that there is a commonality that all
librium thermodynamics where the exact
life had DNA, and discovered genes, genes
opposite is true; that life is just a natural
make proteins and these proteins where act-
unfolding of the increase in complexity
ing as enzymes and facilitated reactions to
generated on this planet by the fact that we
occur and eventually to generate life. What
are taking in sunlight at a high frequency
you didn’t know is how could that all hap-
and we are re-irradiating lower frequency
pen? What made all that happen? So I took
light. Essentially, we capture that poten-
a course on equilibrium thermodynamics
tial and use it to thrive the movement of the
because that is 99% of what is taught, espe-
chemistry on the planet from the equilib-
cially back then. Prigogine had not reached
rium; in other words, to power evolution.
33

The endocannabinoid system
MCJ: That is absolutely amazing to me; it
makes so much sense.
DB: That thinking is my life constantly, its
my religion and my world view is totally
filtered by my knowledge of far from equi-
librium thermodynamics. Think about it...
If there is an underlying creative force that
creates life and is responsible for health,
then don’t we want to understand those
principals and apply them to our lives so
that we, our families, our communities, our
nations and our biosphere because they are
all totally connected by the same issues?
Don’t we want to apply those and wouldn’t
we be idiots not to?
MCJ: Yes it would appear so.
DB: Well that is what I am trying to do.
MCJ: Can you explain to our readers out
there about the product you are designing
and trying to get approved by the FDA?
34
DB: Well whether or not it actually turns
out to be a lozenge or not, it definitely is an
oral medication and we have a number of
them, you know, a number of targets that
we are going to be going after. And essen-
tially what we are doing, if you think about
what we are trying to do is to spread the
herb. With respect to the lozenge; what we
are doing is we want to spread the herb. We
want to promote the creation, the evolution
and development of a healthier society. One
that is a big change from the aggression and
the greed that has characterized our devel-
opment to this point. In fact it was proba-
bly necessary for our development to get us
close to this point. Now those models are
no longer acceptable if we want to survive
as a species. So you know what we have
with our company Cannabis Science, our
symbol is CBIS on the bulletin board and
we are a fully reporting company. What
we are doing is essentially using capitalism
to spread activism. What we want to do is
have available to anyone, anywhere in the
country to be able to go to a pharmacy with
a prescription from their doctor and get an
FDA approved medicine; a cannabis-based
oral extract. What we are targeting initially,
is going to be Post Traumatic Stress Disor-
der (PTSD) and chronic pain in veterans.
We feel that it is just totally outrageous that
people who go out, fight for freedom and
then get injured; are then further harmed
by our health care system and by the drugs
that are being given very freely by the FDA.
In terms of, you need more narcotics? Then
here! Then of course their constipated and
depressed because that is what narcotics do
and you know... they make you an addict
and they give them antidepressants and of
course the consequences and side effects of
a lot of these antidepressants is suicide! So
this is what we are seeing; we are making
drug addicts of our soldiers who have done
so much to promote freedom and then you
know, we promote them being suicidal as
well? It is just totally outrageous and in-
sane! So they are going to be our very first
target. The other thing, that is kind of a no-
brainer in my mind, and I have had person-
al experience with it so I know that its true,
at least for me and a few other people is that
there has been pure scientific reviews and
documentation that THC inhibits what is
known as Adult Respiratory Distress Syn-
drome in mice. Initially certain pro-inflam-
matory, very hyper-inflammatory strains of
influenza such as the Bird Flu and to a mi-
nor extent; however, not minor if your one
of the 5% that died from, the swine flu. In
both of those cases it is not the virus that
kills, but rather it is your immune-response
that kills you. So what we are urging is that
people who are cannabis-users that if they
come down with the flu that they should
not smoke but rather, eat it. Eating it will
turn down that excessive inflammatory
response in there lungs. With smoking,
even though there going to be delivering
the same pharmacological activity, except
they are going to be doing it with hot gases
and particulate matter that is intrinsically
inflammatory as to what you want to do if
your are in danger from dying from it or an
illness/condition rather that precipitated by
the inflammatory response to the virus. We
firmly believe that lives can be saved! It is
not going to prevent you from getting the
flu, its going to make you feel better while
you have the flu because depending on
Editorial
strains it could be a profound decongestant,
dry mouth and dry nose right? (Laughs in
the background)... I certainly would want
to be alive with more viruses then dead
with fewer viruses.
MCJ: Yeah, I’d have to agree with you on
that. Are there any final thoughts that you
would like to add or anything you would
like to plug. You have actually answered
several of my questions without my in-
quiring. I will make sure to include your
related-links and websites as footer to this
interview.
DB: Truthfully, I would hope that people
would get out and get active, which is so
critical! You know, join NORML! Join MPP,
and SSDP! Get out there and do things be-
cause this is our future that is at stake at this
point and I would certainly love it if people
checked out our company: cannabisscience.
com and got involved with what we are try-
ing to do because we feel that we are similar
to those other companies, in the means of
what we are trying to accomplish.
MCJ: Thank you so much Dr. Bob for giv-
ing us your time. The world needs more
people like you. Have a great afternoon
DB: It was my pleasure, thank you!
Resources:
1. Cannabis Science Inc. - http://www.cannabisscience. com
2. http://www.cannabuzz.net
3. http://www.pr.cannazine.co.uk
4. http://order.ph.utexas.edu/Prigogine.htm
5. http://www.uccs.edu/~rmelamed/
6. http://www.safeaccessnow.org/article.php?id=3194
7. http://www.thc-ministry.net/cannabisinfo.htm
35
Alternative Health Care Options for the
Riverside & Lake Elsinore Areas
by Joshua Lewis
Lake Elsinore, CA -- On Monday February
1st, 2010 Compassionate Patients Associa-
tion (CPA) opened its door to the public in
the midst of a climate clouded by prohibi-
tion, propaganda, and reefer madness.
Just months after Fallbrook resident Bob
Riedel applied for a local business license
requesting to open a facility for growing,
manufacturing and distribution of medical
cannabis. CPA has opened its doors despite
the recent 10 month moratorium. CPA’s
President exclaimed, “he was well within
his right to do so because he not only had
all of the legal paperwork to prove the legit-
imacy of his business but he is also a medi-
36
“...some of the best quality
medicine I have ever had the
cal cannabis patient and a State of Califor-
nia registered caregiver as well.” opportunity to use.”
CPA’s mission statement is as follows: - Joshua Lewis, MCJ
Compassionate Patients Association (CPA) is a
legal medical marijuana association specifically
for patient members who live in the Inland Em-
pire. Based out of Lake Elsinore, California CPA
strives to provide safe-access, compassion and
a higher-quality of medical cannabis for its patient
members. We are in full-compliance with The
Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and S.B. 420.
CPA provides medical cannabis for patient mem-
bers who have a medical-condition, valid Califor-
nia I.D. and pre-verified doctor recommendation.
37
 Editorial

Candy Kush, by CPA Our cannabis is strictly for medical-use only and
is not intended for any other purpose, illegal or
otherwise.

As a local member of CPA I can assure you

that they have some of the best quality
medicine I have ever had the opportunity
to use. They have many strains and all are
top-shelf without the top-shelf price. If you
have ever heard of O.G. Kush these guys
have the real deal with a D9-THC content
between 28% and 32% on CBN/ CBN ap-
prox. 9%. I also recommend their Candy
Kush which is my personal favorite.

Check out their website:

www.cannabiscpa.org

If you are looking for quality meds, com-

passion and even a delivery service then
I suggest applying to become a member
of Compassionate Patients Association in
Lake Elsinore. They look out for their pa-
tient’s best interests so if you are a hardship
case and you need medicine these guys
won’t deny you provided that you are le-
gitimately sick and literally cannot afford to
treat yourself. They understand the hoops
patients have had to jump through just to
obtain safe access and I can honestly say
that CPA is my one stop for compassion,
quality and O.G. Kush.

With all the recent raids going on in Los

Angeles, Orange County and San Diego
commuting to Lake Elsinore for your meds
is a great idea, and I assure the cannabis is
worth the trip. Also check out their amaz-
ing edibles.

38 39

A Cannabis Patient
By Mark Pedersen
History and Illness
I have worked with not-for-profits since the
80’s, having co-founded Victory Storehouse,
Inc., a benevolence ministry that strived to
meet the needs of our county’s poor. Dur-
ing that time, I also founded a food pantry
association that coordinated the efforts of
pantries over a three county area.
I currently live in St. Louis, though that has
not always been my home. I was born and
raised in Herculaneum, Missouri. The Doe
Run Lead Smelting plant, its smoke stack
and constant noxious discharge were an
ever-present reminder of the toxic chemi-
cals that my friends, family, and of course,
myself, were ingesting every hour of every
day.
It was there in Herculaneum, while re-
modeling our home, that I was exposed to
very high levels of lead, cadmium, and ar-
senic, bi-products of lead smelting. Dust,
scattered and airborne by company trucks
passing on the street, contaminated the
40
yards, then tracked and blown into the old
house over decades, harbored in the walls
and carpet until I disturbed it. Soon after I
became very ill.
After an exhaustive line of expensive medi-
cal tests at the hands of the best physicians
and specialists St. Louis had to offer, my
condition was labeled “Fibromyalgia with
severe migraines”. Hardly a suitable de-
scription for the agony I suffered daily.
Most weeks, I experienced two to three
moderate to severe migraines. Each mi-
graine was like a mini seizure, with a little
more of my long term memory disappear-
ing with each episode.
Pharmaceuticals did little to control the
headaches. Consequently, my migraine
specialist injected me with experimental
medications, with horrific results.
My stomach was constantly upset; from
the illness and the continually changing
regiments of prescription drugs. The pain,
weakness, and confusion made it impos-
sible for me to work. I had to leave my cer-
tified welder and pipefitter position with
Ameren, our local electric utility, my com-
puter consulting business, and close our
much needed benevolence ministry and
food pantry.
Later, we lost our cars, our home, and even-
tually our marriage. In 2001, my eldest
daughter passed away unexpectedly from
the illness that has affected my whole fam-
ily, including my two surviving children,
my now, ex-wife, and just about everyone
we knew there, in our home town.
During that time, Herculaneum was on local
and national television regarding the large
number of varied illnesses due to the pollu-
tion that the local industry had created. My
ex-wife and I, along with other residents,
were featured on local news programs and
on the CBS News Program 20/20.
In 1997, I went on full disability. It was also
that year that I discovered information re-
garding cannabis and its treatment for Fi-
bromyalgia. What followed was anything
short of miraculous. After just a few weeks
of dosing with cannabis, my long term
memory began to return – a bonus I didn’t
expect. The pain from the Fibromyalgia
lessened substantially. After a few months,
my migraines became largely non-existent.
I have now been a medical cannabis patient
for over fourteen years. My memory has
continued to sharpen with the years. The
only difficulties that I have encountered
Editorial
with my health have occurred when my
medicine was not available. A year ago,
while rationing my meds, I had my first full
blown seizure.
Activism
Up until 2006, my involvement in the medi-
cal cannabis movement was limited to writ-
ing on the web and contacts with state Rep-
resentatives and Senators. In April of 2006
I left Charleston, South Carolina bound
for San Francisco, California with a group
called Journey for Justice 7. I drove a sup-
port truck and was the on-road coordina-
tor for the project, which featured three
bicyclers. The lead biker, Ken Locke, who
founded this project, is also a medical can-
nabis patient. Our purpose was to educate
people across the country about the benefits
of cannabis for the treatment of the chroni-
cally ill. That was also when I began col-
lecting the testimonies of medical cannabis
patients, their family members, and physi-
cians on video. Following 4 1/2 months on
the road, I spent another two months in
North Carolina collecting additional inter-
views, returning the following two years
to continue the work. I have also collected
patient testimonies from all over my home
state of Missouri and surrounding states.
I contributed to the writing of Missouri’s
medical cannabis Bill and also organized
and lead patient delegations to our state
capital to lobby for its passage. Our Medical
Cannabis Compassion Bill will be re-intro-
duced this December.
My Work
Currently, I have conducted over 150 inter-
views. Many of my video can be viewed
41

Mark Pedersen interviewing medical cannabis patient
on my YouTube channel, (www.youtube.
com/cannabispatientnet). Many, many
more wait. Daily, I am contacted by the
chronically and terminally ill from every
state, indeed, even around the world. My
interviews can be seen embedded on web
pages all over the country, most particular-
ly, the new Patients Out of Time website. I
also use these testimonies in my writing on
my Blog, (www.cannabispatientpatientnet-
work.com) and will be featured on the new
CPN website that I hope to introduce soon.
Most recently, I have made a number of
trips to neighboring Nebraska where I have
worked with Patients Out of Time’s Ralph
Smith and my brother, Ervin Dargan to
help the Monson family. Dana, who suffers
from cancer and DeJay who is plagued by
epilepsy, have been devastated by the drug
war. Along with their five children, on their
rural Nebraska farm, they have persevered
in the face of persecution on the part of a
corrupt Sheriff’s department.
42
Editorial
In Iowa, I have interviewed two of the re- What Works? cer, brain aneurism, stuttering, PTSD,
maining four Federal cannabis patients, The vast majority of the chronically ill don’t Crohn’s, lupus, chronic-depression and
participants in the Investigative New Drug know that cannabis is real medicine and anxiety, other mental issues, Neuropa-
Program. Barbara Douglass and George that this God given plant could give them thy of the feet, Neurological pain due
McMahon are two special heroes of the a better quality of life. That’s where we, the to paralysis, and many more that I don’t
medical cannabis movement. As a corre- cannabis patients, come in. Its so simple venture to try to spell or pronounce.
spondent for Patients Out of Time, I cov- that most activists can’t fathom it. All we
ered two of the four Iowa Pharmaceutical have to do is tell the truth. Our own, per- The truth is in the telling. We are real
Board hearings on the rescheduling of can- sonal story. That’s all. The world wants to people. We are a portion of the mid-
nabis. During the final hearing in Coun- hear it. They know that the drug compa- dle class that affects 100% of America,
cil Bluffs, I testified on behalf of Cannabis nies are killing us. What they don’t know because every family has at least one
Patient Network and presented the board is that cannabis could very well save their member who is chronically ill. No one
with twelve of my interviews on DVD. lives, or at least, make them more tolerable. escapes it. And when that time comes
to you, chances are, cannabis could be a
My association with Patients Out of Time I have interviewed patients with multiple vital part of your treatment. - Mark D. Ped-
affords me access to their wealth of science sclerosis, muscular dystrophy, fibromy- ersen | www.cannabispatientnetwork.com
and medical research, an obvious compli- algia, epilepsy, chronic-pain, migraines,
ment to my interviews with the chronically breast cancer, lung cancer, testicular cancer,
ill. Likewise, I support their efforts toward lymphoma, acoustic neuroma, skin can-
a common goal, educating our nation about
the medical benefits of cannabis. They have
inspired me to research the illnesses and
injuries of those I interview; the pharma-
ceuticals that the patients have or continue
to take, and results of their regular dosing
with cannabis.
I currently have multimedia presentations
in the works to show in the communities
where I travel and DVD’s that will be avail-
able for general distribution as tools for ed-
ucational and lobbying efforts.
I have the curious ability to gain the trust of
otherwise reluctant chronically ill individu-
als. I’m constantly looking for more of the
chronically ill who would be willing to sit
for an interview. I’m convinced that most
people don’t realize the power they have in
their personal testimony.
43

Meeting Mark Pedersen
By Joshua Lewis
MCJ: How are you doing today?
MP: I am doing pretty well.
MCJ: Can you tell us a little about Cannabis
Patients Network? What is your mission,
so to speak?
MP: Sure. Cannabis Patient Network’s pri-
mary purpose is to give a voice to cannabis
patients; basically to the chronically-ill, ex-
cuse me... which is a bit broader. I used to
always say, “a voice to the medical canna-
bis patient” but now I realize that the vast-
majority of the people are chronically-ill
and far exceeds those people who already
found a use in cannabis. What a lot of peo-
ple don’t realize is that cannabis can be an
alternative to pharmaceutical medicines;
therefore, I had to change my verbiage a
little bit there. I travel around the coun-
try and I interview people who have found
that cannabis is effective in treating their
chronic illness. I have interviewed peo-
ple with Multiple Sclerosis, Lou Gehrig’s
Disease - my brother in North Carolina,
Ervin Dargan interviewed a person with
Lou Gehrig’s Disease, Cathy Jordan, ...let’s
see...epilepsy, Hepatitis C, Fibromyalgia,
cancer - acoustic neuroma, brain cancer,
lung cancer, breast cancer, testicular can-
cer, skin cancer, Ethlers-Danlos Syndrome
44
and a vast number of different mental-con-
ditions, PTSD, Muscular Dystrophy and I
already mentioned Multiple Sclerosis and
there are quite a few others that I can’t think
of right offhand. I have conducted over
150 interviews to date. Probably, again
there is a least half that many still waiting
to be interviewed. There are patients with
neuropathy, neurological-diseases, and pa-
ralysis. The list goes on. I have been doing
this for the past few years now.
MCJ: What was your first video Testimo-
nial?
MP: I believe it was a person with Muscular
Dystrophy. A gentleman from South Caro-
lina. The husband had Muscular Dystro-
phy and the wife had Multiple Sclerosis
and they had found that cannabis helped
them with their pain, and as far as the
spasticity and the other different problems
associated with their illnesses. The unfor-
tunate thing about that was that once they
found relief through using cannabis, Fam-
ily Services found out and took away their
children. The last time I touched base with
them, which was sometime last year, they
still did not have custody of their kids.
They could only visit there children under
structured and supervised visitation. That
is an incident that I have encountered with
other people in the country as well. The
powers that be seem to find cannabis use
as an excuse to remove your children.
MCJ: That is unfortunate. I am currently
reporting on the Case of Drew Hayes in
Lakewood, California; it’s a similar situa-
tion, where the powers that be deemed it
necessary to take his children away from
him despite his total compliance with the
Compassionate Use Act of 1996.
What was the most affected you have ever
been by a patient testimonial? Or rather
which patient testimonial affected you the
most?
MP: There were a number of them but one
in particular was a gentleman by the name
of Buddy Talley. When I interviewed Bud-
dy, he was 86 years old in North Carolina
and Buddy had suffered for a number of
years with neuropathy of the feet, which
basically meant that he had extreme pain
in his feet after walking a very short-dis-
tance. He also suffered from a number
of other different illnesses as well. When
I interviewed him, (I interviewed him in
his home where he and his adult son both
had suffered from chronic illness for an ex-
tended amount of time. The scenario while
I was interviewing him - while I was sitting
next to him and I realized that the camera
couldn’t capture what I was seeing. Bud-
dy was bald and he had different types of
skin cancer across the top of his head - I
realized that the camera could not pick it
up the different colors - red, brown and
such. He looked up at me with tears in his
eyes and said, “if I have to live like this,
I would just rather be dead!” He added,
Editorial
“why is the Federal Government trying to
keep us from being able to use this,” refer-
ring to cannabis. “What’s the harm in it,
when there is harm caused from all kinds
of pharmaceuticals - toxic and dangerous
drugs that are prescribed by doctors?”
MCJ: I know that you are a patient yourself,
do you feel comfortable with describing
some of your symptoms and does canna-
bis help?
MP: I have been a medical cannabis patient
for over fourteen years now. In the early
1990’s I was exposed to heavy levels of
lead, cadmium and arsenic which are the
by-products of the lead smelting industry.
Where I lived in Herculaneum, Missouri
lead-smelting was the primary industry.
Virtually everyone in the town where I
lived was sick from being exposed to high
levels of carcinogens.
Basically I worked 80 plus hours a week. I
was a certified-wielder and pipe-fitter for
Recommended Websites
Cannabis Patient Network
www.canncabispatientnetwork.org
Sensible Missouri
www,sensiblemissouri.org
Patients Out of Time
www.patientsoutoftime.org
45

the local electric-utility. I also had a com-
puter consulting business. I also Headed
Victory Storehouse, Inc., and a benevo-
lence ministry that I founded and ran for
a number of years. When I got sick, I went
from working 80 plus hours a week down
to zero. I lost my cars, my home, my mar-
riage, my career, my ministry; everything!
I was suffering from extreme migraines.
At one point, I was even being given ex-
perimental drugs for my migraines, quite
often with very horrific side effects. My
diagnosis was Fibromyalgia with severe
migraines. The migraines I had were like
mini-seizures with short and long term
memory-loss. A great deal of pain! In 1997,
that was the year that I went on disabili-
ty. It was also the year that I heard about
cannabis through a Fibromyalgia news-
group. It was just a little snippet posted
that said cannabis could be effective in the
treatment of Fibromyalgia. So I thought,
well what have I got to lose; I had virtu-
ally been on every kind of pharmaceutical
known to man. Actually, all of the drugs
devastated my stomach. After dosing with
cannabis for three weeks, not only was my
Fibromyalgia pain dramatically lessened
but I was far more mobile. The migraines
significantly reduced, I went from having
at times upwards to two or three moder-
ate-to-severe migraines a week down to
having very negligible headaches and,
significantly, my long-term memory be-
gan to return. The interesting thing about
memory is of course, you don’t realize how
much you have lost until you start to gain
it back again. Memories of my three chil-
dren, when they were born and things like
that were rather significant, as you could
imagine. My headaches continued but less
46
and less. I have no headaches today! My
memory continued to improve over the
years that followed. My ex-wife and I joke
about the fact that I basically have a tech-
nicolor-memory, and a better long-term
memory than she does.
MCJ: What are your thoughts on the I.N.D.
program?
MP: The Investigational New Drug Pro-
gram? I have interviewed on camera two
of the remaining four patients that have
survived up to today. Barb Douglass and
George McMahn. George is a close per-
sonal friend of mine. We became friends
following my interview with him. I don’t
know if you are familiar with the Missoula
Study? They documented the health of
these patients through the years. George
has been a patient since 1990. They closed
the program, I believe, in 1991 that is one
of the fine (sarcasm) things we can blame
George Bush Senior for doing! It’s fascinat-
ing, when I interviewed George McMahn
in 2008, we talked about the program and
about the kind of medicine he receives.
The interesting fact is that the 300 cannabis
cigarettes that he receives in a candy drum
are devoid of the tops (flowers) they are
not involved in any of that. They literally
cut the tops off; they grind the leaf along
with the stems and seeds to produce what
they actually roll the cigarettes from.
MCJ: That is horrendous!
MP: Even though he doesn’t get the major-
ity of the medicine from the cannabis he
still manages to get benefit from it which
further exemplifies the benefits that we see
with the work of people like Rick Simpson:
who works with whole plant extracts.
MCJ: It would be nice for the Federal Gov-
ernment to re-vamp the IND program and
get the IND patients some fresh and safer
medicine. On the tin containing the medi-
cine it has a manufacture date of some-
thing like April of 1996? That does not
seem healthy to me especially considering
the fact that THC’s properties become inert
after 3 years? It just doesn’t seem healthy
to me? With molds and mildew, etc.?
MP: Oh, definitely not! As George speaks
through the course of the interview, he
makes a statement that, by their own defi-
nition, that the cannabis he is receiving
should have absolutely no medicinal val-
ue because of how old it is. In Mississip-
pi, where they are growing it...You got to
ask yourself the question, where is all this
medicine going, and not only that where
are all the tops going?
MCJ: That is very bizarre. Do you feel that
the Department of Justice Memorandum
released by the Obama administration is a
step in the right direction?
MP: Yes I do. Its interesting because if
you read the report you find that it is defi-
nitely - well, by reading it - there is really
not that significant amount of information
there. There is not much for teeth in that
memorandum but the fact that the press
and the public at large has really run with
that story which has given it a whole lot
more value. And the fact that more people
understand or rather realize the validity of
cannabis as medicine because our govern-
Editorial
ment is finally come out and is admitting
that cannabis is medicine. Our Federal
Government, in 2003, actually took out a
patent on cannabinoids that publically
stated that cannabis is in fact medicine for
the treatment of Alzheimer’s’ disease, Par-
kinson’s disease, for the prevention stroke
and for the treatment of patient following
a stroke. Even in light of those statements
the same Federal Government was still ar-
resting and prosecuting innocent patients
for using it. The same government at the
same time is providing cannabis to a select
group of patients; the patients from the
IND program?
MCJ: Are you for legalizing all drugs or just
marijuana? And are you for responsible
adult use or just for medicinal use?
MP: Well this is kind of a loaded question...?
MCJ: Yes, I apologize!
MP: Medicine of any kind should be moni-
tored to some degree but you know its a
thing where we are our own best physi-
cian first and foremost. The statements
and prognosis of physicians is something
of consultation, they are not God! So there
should be medical supervision, particular-
ly when dealing with chronic-illness? Of
course there should be! We should monitor
our children regarding any kind of medi-
cine. In the same light we need to have the
understanding, too, that cannabis is safer
than cough-medicine. We also have to un-
derstand that cannabis is effective in treat-
ing auto-immune disease. Auto-immune
disease is a very broad line. There are a
lot of diseases that can be treated. The vast
47

majority of our country could benefit from
cannabis in one way or another. Cannabis
can treat a wide-range of auto-immune dis-
ease. So cannabis alone, do I feel that there
should be far less of a restriction on it? Of
course I do! Its safer than Tylenol. Tyle-
nol you can buy over the counter! A lot of
medications you can by over the counter.
But with cannabis you cannot overdose on
it! You cannot die from it! You can die from
nicotine, you can die from caffeine!
MCJ: Did you know that you can overdose
on water?
MP: Yes you can! As a matter of fact, my ex-
wife works with the adult mentally handi-
capped. She has people who she cares for
that you have to monitor them because
they will literally overdose on water.
MCJ: Wow!
MP: Yes it’s interesting that you mentioned
that.
MCJ: That is interesting!
MP: As far as the legalization of all drugs,
my statement in regard to that is that I have
never been a firm believer in prosecution
as a means to curb people’s bad judgment.
You cannot legislate, you cannot police
bad judgment. People are going to harm
themselves and you know you cannot keep
them from doing that if that is their wish.
I am also a very firm believer in education
as an alternative to incarceration. It would
cost our society a fraction of what they are
currently paying to arrest and incarcerate.
48
MCJ: Is there anything that you would like
to mention before we go ahead and con-
clude?
MP: One of the things that I am working on
currently is I am in the process of “unioniz-
ing” the patients of Missouri. What I mean
by that is I have founded a statewide-or-
ganization for Missouri. It is very impor-
tant that its statewide because there are
so many patients in the state of Missouri
and it is important that all parts of the state
be represented in this. Its sole purpose is
to be a bargaining body, I guess you can
say; for the purpose of lobbying and the
purpose of education in every part of the
state. Early on, I was lobbying in our state
capitol. I had one hard-nosed politician tell
me that he would not back cannabis legis-
lation in any way. Now this is following
bringing a delegation of patients down
there to talk to him and to talk to different
people about our legislation. The problem
we have in our state is we have a Republi-
can House and a Republican Senate. The
last two Speakers-of-the-Houses for our
state blocked our medical cannabis bill;
blocking it from committee, which in turn
kept it from being heard by the House, our
Senate, as well as the people of Missouri -
from ever having the opportunity to make
that decision, one way or the other! I said,
“I will do whatever is necessary; interview
every citizen in the whole state if I have
to. I asked them, “how many interviews
would I need to do...?” and you know, of
course he wouldn’t answer that.
MCJ: Of course!
MP: The most important thing that you can
do is educate the general-public.
MCJ: It sounds like that Senator already
had his mind made up before you ever
even spoke to them?
MP: Well he said, “…this was a career kill-
er!” Those were his words and he said that
he, “could sympathize with your illness
but if I were to vote for that it would be a
career killer!” to repeat his words.
MCJ: That sounds typical of our govern-
ment officials!
MP: I have quoted many people saying that
it had prevented unnecessary pain, suf-
fering and even death! I have had people
snicker before when I use the term death,
yet when you talk to some of these people -
with Progressive MS, AIDS, or any of a host
of other illnesses - that is why the found-
ing of this statewide organization was so
important; because you can throw any
measure of statistics at people in regards
to the benefits of cannabis but the fact is
that those are just statistics. When you see
someone with a chronic illness, when you
talk to an actual patient, you hear their per-
sonal story. Every patient can say that they
are an expert regarding their own experi-
ence.
MCJ: The statewide union that you have
founded in Missouri, does it have a name?
MP: Not yet. As a matter of fact, I am allow-
ing the patients of Missouri to determine
a name for the organization. We are in the
process formulating that now. I am com-
municating across the state. I have had 54
Editorial
people who have already signed up and I
probably got another 20 or so on my list at
home that I haven’t added just yet, and a
great deal more in southern Missouri and
some other places that are waiting for me
to get out and see them.
The thing is that everyone in this country
can and will experience chronic illness. Ev-
eryone in this world, at some point in their
life. It’s a fact of life, part of living; at some
point, we all deal with chronic illness. If
you have chronic illness, chances are that
cannabis can benefit you in some fashion.
That is something that people need to un-
derstand - that we are not just talking about
people who currently benefit: we are talk-
ing about a tremendous number of people!
For each patient I put on camera there a
100 that I talked to off camera who were
too fearful to go on video. They did not
want to jeopardize their disability benefits,
or their college scholarships. They fear be-
ing arrested, on top of having to deal with
and suffer with a chronic illness behind
bars.
MCJ: Thank you so much Mark for taking
the time to speak with us today, I am look-
ing forward to working with you in the fu-
ture. Have a great day!
MP: Thank you!
49
 Meet the Team

MEET THE TEAM medical cannabisJOURNAL

Joshua J. Lewis, Editor In Chief for Medical Cannabis
Journal (MCJ) is a medical marijuana patient, ASA
Ambassador and activist with over a decade of experience
in journalism and free lance writing. As a published writer
Mr. Lewis has had several poems and works of prose
published by the National Poetry Society and are archived
for viewing at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.
Aside from publishing poems and prose he has written a
number of political and philosophical essays, commentaries,
short stories and ramblings that have appeared in many
independent fanzine publications internationally over the
past 15 years. Mr. Lewis’ history and long journey with
journalism began when he was just 16 years old and already
the Assistant Editor for his high school newspaper. Aside
from being Editor In Chief at MCJ and an activist, Mr. Lewis
is also a contributing member to OC NORML, ASA, OC-
ASA, and MAPS. To contact Joshua, send an email to:
ABOUT MCJ
Garret Overstreet, Art Director / Webmaster for Medical
Cannabis Journal (MCJ) is a law reform activist assisting
several national and sub-regional organizations working to
ensure patients’ rights including NORML, SSDP, DPEG, and
several decriminalization initiatives coast-to-coast. Garret
is currently the President of Tulsa NORML and a Marketing
/ Business Consultant in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
To contact Garret, send an email to:
garret@medicalcannabisjournal.net.
Ron S. Niehouse, Executive Director for Medical Canabis
Journal (MCJ) and Americans for Safe Access Ambassador.
Long before being an activist, Ron spent many years working
as a veterinary technician. The duties he performed took him
into a diverse array of clinical and medical environments;

jjl@medicalcannabisjournal.net.
from the laboratory, surgery, orthopedics, radiology and
pharmacology. Afterward, Ron spent several years as a
professional marketing agent for a large insurance company.

Megan Wright, Marketing Contact and Writer for MCJ, as

At the age of sixteen, he met Mr. Jack Herer on the boardwalk
well as serving on the Advisory Board, Megan has spent
in Venice Beach. Ron read the now and then world famous
most of the last 10 years working in the medical field from
book “The Emperor Wears no Clothes” and learned the
medical assistant and laboratory technician to licensed
extremely important value and the crucial role of hemp and
pharmacy technician.
cannabis. As an adult, he became an activist for medical
cannabis as well as a father.
Since 2005 when cannabis medicine first improved her
medical condition, she began her search for understanding
Being one of two founders of MCJ, his duties do not stop
the use of cannabinoids as medicine to treat a variety of
with Executive Director. He is also a writer for MCJ, as well
human illnesses. In 2009 Megan began work as an activist,
as head of marketing. To contact Ron, send an e-mail to:
donating her time to local patient groups, and then joined
ron@medicalcannabisjournal.net.
MCJ in 2010. To contact Megan, send an email to:
megan@medicalcannabisjournal.net.

50 51

Need An Update?
DOES THE MEDICAL CANNABIS PROGRAM IN HAWAII
by Ron Niehouse
Hawaii -- Medical cannabis patients in the
state of Hawaii are asking for safe access to get
their medication. The group that is evaluat-
ing the medical cannabis program in Hawaii
is preparing to make recommendations to
the state legislature. The name of this group
is The Medical Cannabis Working Group.
Nine years ago, Hawaii became the
first state in the country to legislatively
approve a medical marijuana program.
Most patients, doctors, and caregivers be-
lieve this nine-year old law is outdated.
Currently, there are close to 5,000 pa-
tients in Hawaii who are legally able to
use medical cannabis for their treatment.
Many of whom are having a very difficult
time acquiring the cannabis they need.
There is a movement in Hawaii now just
gaining traction for people like this who
cannot find a legal means to get the medica-
tion they are recommended to have. If a pa-
tient purchases medication it is most likely
from the black market. This has sparked
52
a movement to get the state of Hawaii on
board. Distribution Centers are something
medical cannabis patients in Hawaii seem
to all agree is a great step. Although Ha-
waii is considered an agricultural state,
there is a driving momentum to ask the
state to include within their crops, medical
cannabis for the few patients in Hawaii that
require it. It would take very little effort on
their part and it seems it would be a bet-
ter alternative than having patients resort
to the illegal-operations which the authori-
ties are responsible for preventing. Right
now those same people are making a profit
strengthening the cartel and illegal-activity
that Hawaiian law-enforcement with which
will eventually have to face and deal; how-
ever, I do not think anyone in their right
mind would consider this a good policy.
The Medical Cannabis Working group
was developed for the Hawaii medical
marijuana program. They have been gather-
ing input from the community on this nine-
year old bill. The recommendation could be
a model of what the Department of Justice’s
Editorial
(DOJ) new
guidelines are rep-
resenting. The DOJ’s guide-
lines are very clear: that this
country will not spend taxpayers ‘
money and precious time tracking
down legitimate cannabis patients when
there are real criminals out there with whom
need to be dealt. For immediate release: on Octo-
ber 19th, 2009, the Obama administration chose to de-
viate from their guidelines to benefit state medical cannabis
programs. It has been a long time, yet this was always President
Obama’s position on the matter. There is also video footage of him
stating that this would be his decision long before he was ever elected pres-
ident. This latter footage can be viewed or streamed on Google Video or YouTube.
Again, “Hawaii’s medical cannabis law is in need of an reform” according to
Hawaii’s Medical Cannabis Working Group. Many have stated that the laws are
just not properly defined. One thing I feel patients would agree on is that there
is no need to involve the Public Safety Department’s Narcotics Enforcement Divi-
sion, which is an invasion of basic doctor/patient confidentiality. Medical cannabis
law in Hawaii must be reassessed, updated and reformed. Given the gravity of the
situation this issue will be taken very serious and there may even be state sanctioned
medical cannabis growing operation in the flower state of Hawaii relatively soon.
Resources:
1. http//: www.mpp.org
2. http://www.dpfhi.org
3. http://www.mjmaui.org
53
 Strain Review

DAKINI COLLECTIVE
PURPLE PINEAPPLE KUSH
INSPECTED BY GEO

Grade: A
Type: Indica
Color: Dark Purple and Deep Green
Smell: Like pine needles and pineapples exploding together in a potent medication
Taste: Fruity Kush-aftertaste, awesome Indica overtones
Suggested Donation: $55 / 1/8th oz
Texture: Dense and sticky, nicely cured
FX: Creeper, heavy medication, couch-lock
AM/PM: PM
Duration: 3 hours. Do not drive or operate heavy machine.
Suggested For: Pain, insomia, relaxtation
Review: Dakini is a collective based out of Costa Mesa, CA. They are in compliance with
The Compassionate Use Act of 1996 as well as S.B. 420. Dakini is all about compassion
which becomes immediately obvious when you see that they are capped at $55 an 1/8th
for Top-Shelf Meds with a wide variety of amazing strains available at the $45 donation
level as well. After sampling several of their quality strains I found myself completely in
love with the Purple Pineapple Kush which is grown by the collectives’ growers with lots
of TLC. If you are a patient in orange county and you want to be guaranteed kind medi-
cine then MCJ says be sure to check out the Dakini Collective. Register on their website:
www.dakinicollective.com or call: 1(714)421-0679. PATIENTS MUST BE VERIFIED! NO
EXEMPTIONS!

54 55 55
 Strain Review

COMPASSIONATE PATIENTS ASSOCIATION

BLUEBERRY
INSPECTED BY GEO

Grade: A-
Type: Indica
Color: Blue and light green, lots of trichomes.
Smell: Fruity, earthy, blueberry aroma
Taste: Amazing. Like blueberries
Suggested Donation: $65 / 1/8th oz
Texture: Frosted tight nugs
FX: Heavy body high, couch-lock
AM/PM: PM
Duration: 2 hours. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery.
Suggested For: Pain, insomia, relaxtation
Review: Great Blueberry. This is not DJ short, but its one of the best blueberry strains

Notes: Compassionate Patients Association (CPA) is a legal medical marijuana association

specifically for patient members who live in the Inland Empire. Based out of Lake Elsinore,
California CPA strive to provide safe-access, compassion and a higher-quality of medical cannabis
for its patient members. We are in full-compliance with The Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and
S.B. 420.

CPA provide medical cannabis for patient members who have a medical-condition, valid
California I.D. and pre-verified doctor recommendation. Our cannabis is strictly for medical-use
only and is not intended for any other purpose, illegal or otherwise.

www.cannabiscpa.org

56 57 57
 Strain Review

COMPASSIONATE PATIENTS ASSOCIATION

O.G. KUSH
INSPECTED BY GEO

Grade: A+++
Type: Sativa Dominant Hybrid (California Chemdawg Mother)
Color: Bright Green, with florescent red hairs and rainbow trichomes. Prism-like!
Smell: Like Flintstones vitamins mixed with lemons and orange Tic-Tac’s
Taste: Like orange-flavored Tic-Tac’s
Suggested Donation: $65 / 1/8th oz
Texture: Dense, lots of trichomes
FX: Instant Boost of insane energy which lasts for hours, resolves into a warm body high
AM/PM: AM or PM (Heavy Smokers)
Duration: 4 hours. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery.
Suggested For: Pain, depression, relaxtation
Review: Some of the best medicine I have ever smoked in my life! There is no burnout.
This is so potent it works well for many things!

Notes: Compassionate Patients Association (CPA) is a legal medical marijuana association

specifically for patient members who live in the Inland Empire. Based out of Lake Elsinore,
California CPA strive to provide safe-access, compassion and a higher-quality of medical cannabis
for its patient members. We are in full-compliance with The Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and
S.B. 420.

CPA provide medical cannabis for patient members who have a medical-condition, valid
California I.D. and pre-verified doctor recommendation. Our cannabis is strictly for medical-use
only and is not intended for any other purpose, illegal or otherwise.

www.cannabiscpa.org

58 59 59
 Strain Review

COMPASSIONATE PATIENTS ASSOCIATION

CANDY KUSH
INSPECTED BY GEO

Grade: A+
Type: Indica
Color: Colorful as a Rainbow
Smell: Like Kush and hard candy mixed in a jar
Taste: Like a beautiful bouquet of citrus fruit and mist from the Afghan Kush Mountains
Suggested Donation: $65 / 1/8th oz
Texture: Huge fluffy nugs. Well cured.
FX: Heavy body high that happens immediately. Try to stay awake on this strain.
AM/PM: PM
Duration: 2-3 hours. Do not drive or operate heavy machinery.
Suggested For: Sleep, deep-relaxation, pain management and appetite stimulant
Review: The most beautiful flowers I have ever seen. Preferrable Indica

Notes: Compassionate Patients Association (CPA) is a legal medical marijuana association

specifically for patient members who live in the Inland Empire. Based out of Lake Elsinore,
California CPA strive to provide safe-access, compassion and a higher-quality of medical cannabis
for its patient members. We are in full-compliance with The Compassionate Use Act of 1996 and
S.B. 420.

CPA provide medical cannabis for patient members who have a medical-condition, valid
California I.D. and pre-verified doctor recommendation. Our cannabis is strictly for medical-use
only and is not intended for any other purpose, illegal or otherwise.

www.cannabiscpa.org

60 61 61

A CONVERSATION WITH
Michelle Rainey
BY JOSHUA LEWIS
They call her the Hostess with the Mo-
stess. She is The Financial Agent for
the B.C. Marijuana Party, The Direc-
tor of Sales and Marketing for Treat-
ing Yourself (a Canadian/U.S. based
medical marijuana journal), and she is
a truly compassionate Patient-Advo-
cate. Wanted by the DEA on trumped
up changes of manufacturing marijua-
na, conspiracy, seed sales and money
laundering. Her name is Michelle
Rainey and she has managed to bal-
ance all of this on her plate while sur-
viving Crohn’s Disease and Cancer.
MCJ: Hello Michelle, this is Josh with
Medical Cannabis Journal. How are
you doing this afternoon?
MR: I am fantastic, thank you very
much.
MCJ: Awesome. I Just wanted to start
off by saying thank you for taking the
time to do this interview. Could you
please provide our readers out there
with a little bit of background leading
up to your trial and recent sentencing?
MR: In the year 2000 I started to work
for Marc Emery and we both formed
the British Columbia Marijuana Party.
From there we did quite a few other
projects which were of course funded
by Marc Emery’s Emery Direct Seed
62
Business which I actually ran for a pe-
riod of time up until 2005 when the
U.S. Government and the DEA came
up to Canada. They decided to arrest
Marc, myself and another fellow by
the name Greg Williams. They charged
us with three different counts one was
conspiracy, the other was money laun-
dering and another charge of manu-
facturing. On April 20th of this Year
I pleaded Guilty to 1 count of manu-
facturing and I took a Plea- Agreement
on July 17th, 2009 for two years of pro-
bation. Marc has not pled guilty yet.
He will be doing that; apparently from
what I’m told, September 21st. I have
been told that he is also facing, not the
same sentencing but rather the same
charge of one count of manufactur-
ing marijuana and that was due to all
of my good diligence and hard work
in negotiating for the past few years
for myself. Once I was able to negoti-
ate for myself then Greg Williams was
allowed to have the same sentence as
me. Marc will not get the same sen-
tence, but Marc will be... I’m sure and
I’m praying that Marc will not have to
spend to much time in Jail.
MCJ: Yes we are all praying for that
as well. I really hope that he does not
have to spend to much time in a U.S.
prison. That would be terrible. Hope-
fully he can get out and back home to
Canada as soon as possible if he pleads
guilty. How do you feel about your
particular sentence being reduced to
two years of probation? I’m sure you
must be satisfied with your sentence
because you were looking at hard time
in a foreign country and I know that
you have said before a prison sentence
would actually be a Death Sentence.
MR: Josh, I can’t even begin to tell you
how grateful I am that the District At-
torney Todd Greenburg was very com-
passionate in regards to my situation
and he completely understood that I
had quit a ten-year professional bank-
ing career in Canada to advocate mari-
juana legalization for medicinal rea-
sons. I do believe in recreational but
responsible recreational use. Just like
with anything, whether it be alcohol
or pharmaceuticals it has to be respon-
sible use but regardless of that, I am
very grateful that Mr. Greenburg un-
derstood that I have Crohn’s Disease
as well as cancer and took that into ac-
count and at the same time decided to
give me the compassion that I needed
in Healing My situation with this battle
with cancer for the past year.
MCJ: I am so glad that your not serv-
ing time in prison because you are not
a criminal Michelle.
MR: It First started with a thirty-year
sentence and that was four years ago.
I was able to negotiate it down to a six
month sentence for myself, then from
six months to three months and all the
way down to a two-year probation.
Editorial
MCJ: You are very lucky that you got
your sentence reduced to two years
of probation. A thirty year sentence
would be ridiculous.
MR: Its beyond lucky. At the same time
extradition is 99.99% concrete in Can-
ada. Anybody that is up for extradi-
tion... I am now one of the 0.01% that
has not been extradited. I have made
history, not only personally but as a Fe-
male in this Country. Just for that rea-
son alone.
MCJ: Wow that’s wonderful. We will
probably be reading about you in all of
the history books... As a patient and
advocate for medical marijuana, what
would you was the most significant
moment in your life?
MR: Well that is a question that I never
have been asked before actually.
MCJ: I will take that as a compliment.
MR: I guess that is because there have
been so many profound moments, that
I can’t pin-point the very one. For me
putting together seventy-nine candi-
dates and seventy-nine districts for
the British Columbia Marijuana Party
(BCMP) in 2000; being the Financial-
Agent as well as a candidate. That was
a huge moment in my life’s history as
well as for Marc. We worked extreme-
ly hard during that campaign we put
1/2 Million Dollars of the Emery Di-
rect Seed money into that. Made His-
tory because the Province of B.C. Had
63

never had a political party that was ca-
pable of putting all the candidates in,
and in one year... So that I will say, is a
Hudge Profound moment in my life. It
just showed the world and brought the
awareness and attention to cannabis
prohibition in a different aspect politi-
cally and the power of politics. We’ve
got 3.5% almost 4% of the vote and that
was a substantial part of the vote. We
also used Former President Ronald Re-
gan’s Tour Bus.
MCJ: That’s great.
MR: Which caused a lot of flak and the
BBC covered it, CNN covered it. It was
just absolutely phenomenal and there
has been other moments. Like when
I was able to get my Possession and
Grow License. I was finally validated
by my physician that medical marijua-
na had saved my life. I had not used
pharmaceuticals in fourteen years
and had been surgery free. That was
of course a profound moment and fi-
nally it was recognized that it worked.
I could actually go on but I will leave
you with those two.
MCJ: No problem, that was a great an-
swer. What does becoming federally
exempt for medical marijuana in Can-
ada entail? How exactly do you go
about doing that in Canada?
MR: Well, in Canada, it’s federally ille-
gal. There is a program and there are
33 pages that Health Canada requires
you to fill out. The information that
you have to give of course is all about
64
your personal life which comes down
to your health, home security issues
and if you are going to grow yourself
or if you’re going to purchase... the
purchasing process is a gray area be-
cause a lot of the pot that Health Can-
ada is offering through the program is
only one strain and it has been grown
for the past ten years in an old mine-
shaft in Manitoba.
MCJ: That doesn’t sound very good, or
safe, for that matter.
MR: No! Because the whole area sur-
rounding the mine shaft has been irra-
diated.
MCJ: Irradiated?
MR: Its called the Film Flam Flop and
there is a lot of history surrounding
that situation, especially to us patients.
Like I said, it’s kind of a gray area. A lot
of people would prefer to grow them-
selves or patients will appoint some-
body to grow it for them. Sometimes
they will get it from compassion clubs
across Canada. Compassion clubs run
in a graynzone in Canada. They are not
legal.
MCJ: Is it similar to the United States
in that it is illegal federally, but legal
within participating states?
MR: No, they are not legal at all. Com-
passion clubs fall under a society. The
police and the communities toler-
ate them as long as they’re run safely
and all the paperwork has been done.
There is an application process when
you go to a compassion club; your
doctor must acknowledge the fact that
you are going, if the compassion club
is run under that gray area, the police
tend to not raid them here in Canada
like they do in the United States. There
seems to be an abundance of problems
when it comes to raids with your dis-
pensaries but here in Canada our raids
are limited.
MCJ: I wasn’t aware of that, I am so
wrapped up with what goes on here in
my home state of California. Do you
think that there will ever be an end to
the drug-war and do you see a light at
the end of the tunnel?
MR: Yes I do actually. I am 38 years old
now. I turned 38 in June, and when I
first started out in marijuana-activism,
after quitting my bank career, it was
very bleak. That was in 1999/ 2000.
There wasn’t as much attention placed
on it. Now after ten years every sin-
gle day there is news about marijuana.
Every single day, politicians and law-
enforcement officials, your neighbors
and business owners are recognizing
the fact that marijuana does not kill
anybody! That cannabis is a somewhat
harmless substance that can help peo-
ple medicinally. It can also help a com-
munity financially if it was legalized.
This has been something that has been
discussed many times now, consider-
ing we have had a global economic cri-
sis and so many countries are failing
economically that if you do decide to
tax or regulate marijuana, that money
Editorial
can be fueled right back into the econ-
omy that it so desperately needs. It can
aid in healthcare reform, education,
and to refinancing people’s homes. It’s
a sad situation when you have a ma-
jority of Americans who have a huge
debt due to healthcare. The surgeries
I’ve had here in Canada for my cancer
recently; I’ve had three of them, for
a very life-threatening cancer. They
would have cost me six figures if I
didn’t have the Health Care that I do
in Canada. I am very fortunate that I
do though. Very fortunate. Sadly, in
your country the U.S., the health -care
system has failed and a lot of people
have been marginalized and the solu-
tion would be ‘Yes to legalize’ and tax
the hell out of the pot.
MCJ: I agree.
MR: There are so many people buying
cigarettes, tobacco and paying tax on
that, they’ll be buying pot and pay-
ing the tax on that; refuel the economy.
Mexico has had a huge problem with
gang warfare: 8000 people died within
a period of a year or less. There is a
lot of ex-presidents and ex-leaders of
countries. Whether its Bolivia, Mexico,
or even Canada and the United States
have all discussed the fact that its time
to look into ending the drug war and
the waste of money involved.
MCJ: It sounds like you are grateful for
Health Canada?
MR: I am, because I married an Ameri-
can man five-years ago and I am very
65

proud of that. My husband was born
and raised in Chicago. He has given
me an education, even though I did do
research before I was ever married to
him. Now I have a better understand-
ing of the system in the United States I
have a better understanding of the in-
frastructure, a better understanding of
how the political-system works. Just
from him alone, and I am grateful for
that. In Canada we take care of our
people and wevfff should be taking
care of them even better then we are.
I am hoping that maybe somehow we
can set an example in the U.S. for that
very reason.
MCJ: I do as well, Michelle. Can you tell
us a little more about your husband,
Jeff Tek?
MR: Well he was born in Chicago
worked for many years in the heating
and air industry. He came to Canada
to be with me five years ago. He’s a
successful journalist now and a suc-
cessful photographer and writes for a
variety of magazines and Jef also helps
me with my garden.
MCJ: I noticed while watching your
YouTube channel that you are always
trimming and harvesting some very
kind-looking Afghani Bullrider. What
is it about that particular strain that
works for you?
MR: It provides a lot of necessary re-
lief for my symptoms of Crohn’s Dis-
ease and Cancer. The Crohn’s I have
had a terrible time with since I was a
Editorial
teenager and I’ve had 2 surgeries for
it. The drugs didn’t work, neither did
the surgeries. I found that my body
was rejecting the necessary pharma-
ceuticals whether it was steroids to Ty-
lenol 3 for pain suppression. None of
it worked, but I started an experiment
using marijuana when I was about 23
or 24 years old. I successfully weaned
myself off of the pharmaceuticals, took
away the nausea, the pain and was able
to function, not to mention work full-
time. I have used a few strains over the
years one was called Williams Wonder
which I found to be phenomenal but I
lost that strain years ago, sadly.
MCJ: I hate it when that happens!
MR: Yes, and then the Afghani Bullrider
came to me 5 years ago and it has been
a strain that has saved my life. I cannot
even begin to describe the necessity of
it as well as what the components are.
It is a cross between Sativa and Indica
so it allows me to function as well as
suppress the pain and that is extremely
important. I have a lot of spasms in my
intestinal track due to Crohn’s Disease.
I don’t take any of the pharmaceuticals.
I have chronic diarrhea and I will have
it the rest of my life. I eat and a couple
hours later, I am in the bathroom. The
nausea is very bad as well. I have never
been pregnant but when I hear women
talk about morning sickness... I have
that feeling 24 hours a day. Seven days
a week. So I am very fortunate that the
marijuana combats that as well.
MCJ: With the Afghani Bullrider is it
67

more of a Sativa or Indica?
MR: Half! Yes the Afghani is Afghani
and the Bullrider is a Shiva Skunk we
figured out.
MCJ: Interesting. Well you have had a
lot of great answers to my questions.
Is there anything that you would like
to add before we conclude?
MR: I’d like to mention that I put to-
gether from the past year and a half
my Medicinal Cannabis Education
Package that which hasn’t been done
yet. You know the pharmaceutical
companies will give you a whole pack-
age with samples as well as pamphlets
concerning there new drug and the af-
fects of it. So there is nothing like that
in the U.S. or here in Canada. Not that
I am allowed to give out any samples
which I cannot do, but what I have
done is I have taken those 33 pages of
the Health Canada Forms. I have also
taken 4 pages of beneficial informa-
tion which are books and websites that
verify cannabis’s therapeutic value and
also a list of other websites that are re-
lated to cannabis as well as the Ameri-
can College of Physicians paper that
they recently published which states,
“That they believe in marijuana’s ther-
apeutic value. There are 124,00 in that
college in America that agree with the
therapeutic value. So it is a package
that I have been sending out to people
who want to either be educated about
the medicinal value of cannabis or who
need help getting a legal exemption in
Canada. I have facilitated over 100 le-
68
Editorial
gal exemptions now and I have sent
out 1000 of these packages. Whether it
was to politicians whether it’s to other
countries that would try to emulate
something similar to that whether its
police officers and neighbors the list
goes on... I wouldn’t mind having
mentioned that seeing how it is an im-
portant part of what I do it voluntarily.
Helping patients get there exemption
as well as advocating.
MCJ: Awesome.
MR: There are so many people that are
doing so many wonderful things. That
is another thing I’d like to say: there are
great activists out there who not only
work full-time, they volunteer full-
time like myself and we are all trying
to make a difference in a very positive
way, I feel we all have a voice and its
important that we are able to defend
ourselves with courage and respect.
MCJ: Most definitely. Michelle, you are
an inspiration to us all here a MCJ. I
personally follow everything that you
do and it is so important for the world
at large to hear your story. On behalf Here are some websites to check if
of, MCJ, our readers and myself thank you would like to learn more about
you for taking the time to do this in- Michelle Rainey:
terview. It was a pleasure talking with
you. www.MichelleRainey.com
www.youtube.com/michellerainey
www.twitter.com/michellerainey
MR: Thank you, I appreciate that so www.myspace.com/michellerainey
much. www.treatingyourself.com
www.pot-tv.com
MCJ: Take care, Michelle. www.cannabisculture.com
MR: All right, you, too. Goodbye, Josh.
69

Lessons from the Road
by Barbara MacKenzie
In 2005, after the 3 year San Diego Federal
medical marijuana court case that ended
with the death of my partner, Steve McWil-
liams, I began the long arduous journey to
restore my health once again with cannabis,
having severely regressed in those 3 years
of not being allowed to use it.
Due to patient concerns regarding cultiva-
tion by 2005, I was unable to resurrect the
collective model Steve & I had worked with
SD’s Medical Cannabis Task Force to ap-
prove in 2003. In early 2006, it became fi-
nancially necessary to put my belongings in
storage and move into my van. I was able
to travel, staying with many friends and
family as well as learning how to sleep on
the streets. I recently was able to relocate
into a home in Colorado.
All who took me in were kind and gener-
ous, often in the midst of their own finan-
cial and physical difficulties. Many were
patients and fellow activists trying to cope
with the challenges of California’s evolving
medical cannabis law and the need for af-
fordable and adequate cannabis. It is the
concern of patients and activists regarding
the continuing problems of implementation
expressed to me during that journey that I
am addressing here.
Much of what I observed and learned
echoed problems, issues and concerns that
we had been dealing with in San Diego for
70
Editorial
from those measures. Availability depends
on locale, financial means and changing
patients ranged from 4 to 10 grams per
day, with leaf needed for ointments and
political conditions which may threaten
access at any given time due in large part
low THC edibles, as well as high THC bud
for inhalation. Generally Indica dominant
to the ignorance of local officials and popu- strains are preferred.
lations as to what the law actually allows
years yet there were differences and chang-
and the resistance to the law by many. The second largest population group, 20%,
es after 2006 that gave hope at the same
was diagnosed with depression either by
time adding new worries including, full ac-
Those that I have spent time with had all itself or as Bipolar Disorder. The dosage
cess at affordable levels and the viability of
been active in medical cannabis on some used by those with depression averaged 2-3
all cultivation methods.
level since 2005, with 33% having been grams per day with edibles added when
involved with Prop 215 since the 90’s. In available. Those with Bipolar Disorder av-
Dispensaries had become a reality, but of-
looking at patients’ concerns, diagnosis is eraged 5-7 grams per day. These dosages are
ten were not able to meet all patients’ needs
the most important aspect of understand- based in large part on what was available
or to maintain a presence due to continual
ing an individual’s needs and anxieties. with many factors affecting that availabil-
issues with local politics and unsupportive
ity. Sativa dominant strains were generally
law enforcement.
40% had more than one qualifying diagno- preferred but that was not as predictable as
sis which can affect the type of cannabis a with chronic-pain and seemed to vary more
The concerns of the patients that came out
patient requires, both in strains and in ap- with Bipolar Disorder. The edible formula
of many discussions during my time on the
plication. The most common combination also varied from the chronic-pain in that
road are presented below and are based
of diagnoses was chronic pain accompa- edibles with higher THC content were pre-
on data from 30 individuals I had contact
nied by depression. Often, as in my case of ferred.
with from February 2006 until May 2009
chronic pain, depression and PTSD can be
living in the following counties: San Diego,
a precipitating factor in accidents. Using The remaining 13% of patients had diagno-
Imperial, Riverside, Los Angeles, Ventura,
cannabis to treat the pain also gives added sis including optical problems, H.I.V. and
Marin, and Mendicino. Patients’ ages vary
benefits to dealing with long-standing psy- cancer. Sativa was preferred by all diag-
from the late-twenties to the late-seventies.
chological trauma. noses, but edibles were preferred with leaf
containing little THC.
The worries of these patients were also
In order to get an overall picture of the core
related to me by many others in my long
needs of patients, I have only used the pri- Of overall riding importance for the major-
travels throughout California. Included in
mary diagnosis for the statistical analysis. ity of patients was to have an adequate, af-
the overall picture are observations from
When working with more than one diag- fordable and reliable cannabis source with-
my own health history as well as from the
nosis, the information related to other di- out fear of law enforcement. 93% of those
many patients Steve and I worked with
agnosis included here can be used to inte- surveyed had previous negative impacts
since 1997.
grate the additional medical requirements. from law enforcement actions. 66% had
been personally raided since the passage of
Despite the passage of The Compassionate
Of the 30 patients interviewed, 67% were Prop. 215 with 77% losing the source of can-
Use Act of 1996 and legislation to add other
being treated for chronic pain. Their ages nabis as a result of these raids
protections, those with knowledge of medi-
ranged from the late 20’s to mid 60’s. The
cal cannabis are fully aware of the long, dif-
cannabis usage among most chronic-pain The loss of medicine due to police activity
ficult fight it has been to be able to benefit
71

was the number one patient concern. Law
enforcement raids not only directly harm
patients’ immediate health, they set up the
fear factor that continues to create further
damage to already weakened health states.
Patients become afraid of growing their own
if they have been doing so, which increases
their costs, limits the plant material they
need for edibles and ointments and if left
without another local source, contributes
to further health damage and early deaths.
For those who have depended on dispen-
saries, the void can not be easily filled and
many have little means to cultivate.
The fact that there is frequently not another
source is too often the situation that a large
portion of California’s population has faced
since the passage of The Compassionate
Use Act of 1996. Even with the possibility
of dispensing collectives and co-ops, the
fact remains that they are found in select ar-
eas with many communities banning them
and in many areas where they have been
available it has become a political challenge
with law enforcement and anti-cannabis
community members uniting to negate the
law in the attempt to provide workable so-
lutions.
The loss of medicine due to police activ-
ity has both immediate and long term con-
sequences for patients. After the raid on
Steve & I in 2002, within less than 6 months,
one of our cancer patients, who had been in
remission and was beginning to start walk-
ing with the help of edibles, died. Another
committed suicide due to loss of medicine.
At the time of that raid we had been down
to less than 10 patients, including ourselves.
72
Those left disappeared, fearing contact with
us and I do not know their fate.
The issue of being able to actually grow
one’s own medicine or to help others to
do likewise was the next biggest stress for
67% of respondents. Cultivation conditions
were also an issue, with 50% expressing
concern for the need to grow outdoors to
achieve the quality, quantity and leaf to bud
ratio of the plant essential for the medical-
applications required.
Patients want to have the highest quality
medicine for all the methods that help with
their health. This was an issue for 80%. It
follows therefore that organic plants as
well as quality-ingredients used in oint-
ments and edibles be of top priority. The
inhalation, ingestion or dermal -application
of plant material can contain contaminants
including, but not limited to, harmful pe-
troleum based chemical fertilizers, mold,
fungus, bacterial, viral and animal pollut-
ants. This is a major issue no matter how
and where it is grown.
Patients are generally dealing with com-
promised immune systems no matter what
their diagnosis and a clean source of medi-
cine is vital. Organic standards can be ad-
hered to and despite the inability to have
the medicine certified organic due to the
federal government’s current position; can-
nabis can be certified as clean green under
the Clean Green Program. A free introduc-
tory video, as well as the process to be certi-
fied as a clean green grower, is available at
http://mccdirectory.com/clean_green_pre-
certification_part1.lasso. A link on that
page leads to the National List of Allowed
and Prohibited Substances, the products
one does not want to use on medicinal can-
nabis.
The cost of medicine was a problem for 63%
of patients in that it did not allow an ade-
quate supply to fully treat their symptoms.
In many cases patients had to add pharma-
ceuticals with harmful side-effects that they
had previously been able to eliminate or
sharply decrease.
Numerous had previously grown there
own and this right had been limited by le-
gal actions to themselves or others result-
ing in a reluctance to claim their right to
grow. Additionally the use of alcohol was
resumed or increased when cannabis avail-
ability was inadequate which also contrib-
uted to decrease functioning. In one of the
thirty, increased alcohol consumption was
a contributing factor in that individual’s
death. The increased use of prescription
medications rose.
83% of patients reported a lack of enough
cannabis to treat their symptoms even
when cost was not a factor.
Inability to grow outdoors contributed to
not enough cannabis as well as increasing
the cost. Prices reported ranged from $640
to $1,200 per quarter pound for outdoor-
cultivation, solar greenhouses or small in-
door grows through collectives.
Dispensary prices ranged from $45 for 3.5
grams of lower-quality medicine to $90 for
3.5 grams for high-grade cannabis with an
Editorial
average of $70 for 3.5 grams at many places.
I have had reports of $120 per 3.5 grams but
not seen it. The range per quarter pound
for patients needing that amount at verified
dispensary prices would be from $1,440 to
$2,880 with the average price of $70 for 3.5
gm per quarter pound being $2240.
I can function with at least 3 ounces of very
good quality Indica, what some would cat-
egorize as A-, per month. My cost at a dis-
pensary averaging $70 per 3.5 grams would
be $1,680 for a 30 day supply. This does not
include leaf for ointment and edibles.
For those who grew there own, cost was
lower, but time and energy required to pro-
duce a good crop was like any other gar-
dening situation with the outcome depen-
dent on knowledge and a wide variety of
environmental conditions. The pleasure of
growing one’s own medicine is a determin-
ing factor in addition to cost for those who
do so.
Edibles are available at dispensaries, but
the ones I visited were making them with
trim that was too high in THC and too low
in the much needed non-psychotropic me-
dicinal cannabinoid compounds. That is
not to say that there are dispensaries oper-
ating differently, but I have yet to visit one
that can fully meet my needs, or the many
other patients I have had contact with.
I found only one dispensary out of the 14
I visited (7%) providing ointment, but that
formula used too little cannabis to be as ef-
fective for pain that one with leaf in larg-
er proportions would provide. All who I
73

taught to make ointment using my formula,
now swear by it and have a new apprecia-
tion for the need to grow plants with a high
ratio of leaf.
I found a large number of patients and care-
givers believed the larger cannabis leaves,
including fan leaves, did not have much
medicinal value. These leaves were usually
thrown away. Most small trim goes into
hash or into edibles with high THC, creating
a product that can leave one high or sleepy
and which can then affect alert functioning.
Edibles with a higher ratio of the other can-
nabinoids which are more predominating
in leaf provide different physiological af-
fects which have big health benefits.
.Those with depression find edibles made
from trim with high THC to be helpful, but
others, including chronic-pain patients,
often find they do not help relieve their
symptoms but leave them unable to main-
tain normal activity due to the psychotropic
properties.
For those who use large amounts of canna-
bis on a daily basis, once the receptors are
filled, one does not get high, but normal
functioning, including mobility, become
a reality. Both Steve & I were able to stay
more focused with increased creativity. I
have noted that with others also. For us
edibles with some THC were not too over-
whelming, but they did not offer as many
positive benefits that those made with leaf
Indoor grows do not produce the large
amount of leaf that is found in outdoor
grows, another reason the patients I worked
74
with were concerned with the need to grow
outdoors.
The compounds that are abundant in leaf,
CBD, CBN, CBG and many others just be-
ginning to be identified, have shown in re-
cent studies to contain many valuable ther-
apeutic properties. The use of the whole
plant is becoming increasingly important
for optimum health.
CBD, cannabinol, is non-psychotropic and
makes up to %40 of the medicinal-com-
pounds in cannabis extracts. Medically
it is indicated for inflammation, anxiety,
nausea, seizures and to inhibit cancer cell
growth. Recent studies indicate effective
treatment with CBD for schizophrenia and
reduce growth of breast cancer cells. It also
reduces intraocular pressure.
CBN, cannabinol, has weak psychotropic
properties. It decreases heart rate, inhibits
platelet aggregation and has anticonvulsive
properties.
CBG is non-psychotropic with sedative ef-
fects, antibiotic properties and reduces in-
traocular pressure. The presence of CBG
in leaf and it’s benefit for glaucoma is why
many glaucoma patients can get by using
leaf when available.
Edibles and ointments made with leaf high
in these cannabinoids help reduce inflam-
mation, edema and pain from arthritis,
fibromyalgia, and a host of other chronic-
pain conditions. Such edibles help one
sleep without feeling groggy in the A.M.
and a few nibbles on cookies throughout
the day to keep one calm, alert and func-
tioning.
When we were growing our own with an
abundance of leaf, I became so healthy I be-
gan to wonder if I had imagined the severe
pain of my condition. As it takes a while
for the cannabis receptors to empty out it
was a few weeks after the Federal action in
2002 before I really noticed that I really was
severely disabled once again. I have yet to
return to that state of health.
Considering the wide spectrum of medical
application for cannabis, it is important to
be aware of the varying needs of individual
patients. Many have more than one diag-
nostic use for cannabis which can affect the
cannabis applications required as well as
the amount and type of cannabis used.
Conditions for which cannabis is therapeu-
tically effective were reported by the late
Todd H. Mikuria M.D in 1999 with an up-
dated accounting in O’Shaughnessy’s Jour-
nal of the California Cannabis Research
Medical Group which included additional
conditions. The issue was released in 2007
but is not available on-line. Earlier issues
of the journal with valuable medical infor-
mation can be accessed at http://ccrmg.org/
journal.html.
The medical diagnoses in the 1999 list
number 155 and range alphabetically from
ADHD to Whiplash divided into six diag-
nostic classifications: 1) Psychotherapeu-
tic-Antidepressant /Anxiolytic, 2) Harm
reduction substitute, 3) Antispasmodic/
Anticonvulsant, 4) Analgesic/ immuno-
Editorial
modulator, 5) Appetite stimulate , and 6)
Hypothernigenic & Other.
With this extensive range of conditions that
are treatable with cannabis, it is under-
standable that meeting these needs is chal-
lenging, especially when having to fight for
the right to do so. The concerns of patients
related here are shared with others who use
medical cannabis to treat conditions not yet
disabling but which allow for improved
functioning with equally positive health
results. All have concerns when it comes
to the ability to access adequate cannabis
and to utilize it to help achieve one’s fullest
health potential.
Restoring health as well as maintaining and
improving health to allow increased func-
tionality is one of cannabis’s greatest gifts.
Its ability to provide pain relief, especially
neurogenic, is beyond par. The freedom
to use cannabis for health is what patients
know to be the most beneficial in achieving
that quality of health.
Understanding the wide variables encom-
passing the divergent needs of the broad
base of patients is paramount to insuring
that the freedom for health through canna-
bis is not only sustained but expanded to
improve the quality of health care that this
unique plant can provide.
75

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76
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Cannabis & Glaucoma
by Norman Lepoff, M.D. (Retired Opthalmologist)
When I prepared for my testing by The
American Board of Ophthalmology in order
to be “Board Certified,” there was a “Board
Question” regarding Cannabis. It specifi-
cally regarded the effects on our eyes. The
question was “What are the ocular effects of
Cannabis?” The answer was “lowering in-
tra-ocular pressure, redness and dryness.”
We Ophthalmologists have known for years
that Cannabis lowers eye pressure, yet this
vital information has been neglected thanks
to our government. Many people are suffer-
ing and needlessly losing their vision from
Glaucoma, despite all “conventional” ther-
apies. They are forced to take dangerous
Ophthalmic drugs, or undergo risky sur-
gery, when they could possibly benefit from
something with the highest safety profile of
them all for treating elevated eye pressure;
Cannabis.
I have asked representatives from the phar-
maceutical companies why they don’t re-
search Cannabis for the treatment of Glau-
coma. The answer was always the same.
“The Federal Government will not allow
that. We would like to. We know it has ben-
efits. We can’t.”
About 50% of patients with Glaucoma will
suffer irreversible vision loss despite all
government approved medical, laser and
surgical therapies. All of the prescription
glaucoma drops and pills are dangerous
and some even have life threatening side
effects. Surgery is always dangerous, and is
best avoided. Cannabis, on the other hand
is safe.
It is sad that our government will not allow
patients access to such a relatively harmless
and safe substance as Cannabis. I think vi-
sion is precious and have dedicated my life
to preventing blindness and restoring peo-
ple’s vision. I wish our government shared
this perspective.
I never hesitated to verbally endorse Can-
nabis when I was practicing medicine, but
I was afraid of the consequences from the
California Medical Board and The Federal
Government. Today, thirteen years after we
passed The Compassionate Use Act, there
are still constant threats against physicians
who recommend Cannabis, collectives that
provide Cannabis, and the patients them-
selves.
The cruelty and hypocrisy of our elected of-
ficials, as well as many members of law en-
forcement regarding Cannabis never ceases
to amaze me.
77

Letter To
Iowa
Board of Pharmacy
by Mark Pedersen, Cannabis Patient Network
My name is Mark Pedersen. My organiza-
tion is Cannabis Patient Network. I also
work closely with Patients Out of Time.
I currently live in St. Louis. I was born and
raised in Herculaneum, Missouri. The pri-
mary industry there is lead smelting. It was
there in Herculaneum that I was exposed to
heavy metals, the by products of this indus-
try. And it was this exposure that caused
my chronic illness. After countless doc-
tor visits and hospitalization; after tens of
thousands of dollars and a myriad of pre-
scription drugs, I was diagnosed with Fi-
bromyalgia with severe migraines.
Many weeks, I experienced two to three
moderate to severe migraines a week. Each
migraine was like a mini seizure, with a lit-
tle more of my short and long term memory
disappearing with each episode.
Pharmaceuticals did little to control the
headaches. Consequently, my migraine
specialist regularly injected me with ex-
perimental medications, often with horrific
results.
My stomach was constantly upset from
78
the illness and the continually changing
regiments of prescription drugs. The pain,
weakness, and confusion made it impos-
sible for me to work. I had to leave my cer-
tified welder and pipefitter position with
Ameren, our local electric utility. I also had
to leave my computer consulting business,
and close my ministry, which provided a
much needed food pantry to our county’s
poor.
My exposure to lead and it’s byproducts
cost me my career, my home, my cars, and
my marriage. In 2001, my eldest daughter
passed away unexpectedly from the illness
that has affected my whole family, includ-
ing my two surviving children, my now,
ex-wife, and just about everyone we knew
there, in our home town.
In 2002, my family, along with others in
Herculaneum, was featured in a story on
the news program 20/20.
For the last fourteen years, I have treated
my illnesses virtually entirely with one
holistic medicine. Cannabis. Apart from
a brief time in Colorado where I was a le-
gal patient, I have been forced to exist as a
criminal. The fact that cannabis took away
the pain of Fibromyalgia, the fact that can-
nabis alleviated my migraines and seizures
entirely and restored my long term memory
completely, and the fact that cannabis even
eased the intense pain of degenerative joint
disease in my shoulders and lower back,
didn’t matter to law enforcement.
It is for that reason that I began the work
that has come to be called Cannabis Patient
Network.
Cannabis Patient Network was founded
with a solitary mission that persists to this
day. We are dedicated to the purpose of
giving a voice to the chronically and termi-
nally ill. CPN is not a membership organi-
zation; There is no voting body – only me,
and those who volunteer to assist me.
Along with Patients Out of Time, we pro-
vide science and medical research to back
up the stories we document. We exten-
sively research the illnesses and injuries,
the pharmaceuticals that the patients have
taken, their side effects, and results of their
regular dosing with cannabis.
I have made a promise to each and every
patient whom I have interviewed to ensure
that their image and voice will be used to
bring about an end to the arrest and perse-
cution of the chronically and terminally ill
whose only crime is choosing a safe, effec-
tive, holistic alternative to dangerous, ad-
dictive pharmaceuticals.
I have interviewed patients with Multiple
Editorial
Sclerosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Fibromy-
algia, Epilepsy, Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome,
chronic pain, migraines, breast cancer, lung
cancer, testicular cancer, Acoustic Neu-
roma, Lymphoma, skin cancer, brain an-
eurism, stuttering, PTSD, Crohn’s, Lupus,
chronic depression and anxiety, other men-
tal issues, chronic, debilitating pain such
as Neuropathy of the feet and neurological
pain due to paralysis, and many more.
Funded by whatever part-time work I can
get and an occasional donation from pa-
tients and advocates, I travel the country
interviewing the chronically and terminal-
ly ill who, like me, have found relief from
their debilitating illnesses with cannabis.
I have currently interviewed somewhere in
the neighborhood of 150 people on camera.
But for each and every testimony that I have
recorded, there have been literally hundred
more patients that have told me their per-
sonal story – those too fearful to be seen on
video; too fearful to risk their Disability or
Veteran’s Benefits; those unwilling to risk
their government funded housing or jobs.
Twelve of my interviews were selected to
be presented to you today.
Cathy Jordon has been living with Lou
Gehrig’s disease for well over twenty years,
now. My good friend, Ervin Dargan, has
spent many hours over the past few years
recording her battle with this extremely
progressive disease. There is no doubt to
her why she has lived so very much lon-
ger than most. Though her disability is
79

evident in her voice and in the fact that she
is confined to a wheelchair, what is not so
obvious is the fact that cannabis halted the
progression of her illness. She persists in
life and in her dedication to others with de-
bilitating disease as she fights for an end to
cannabis prohibition in her state, Florida,
and nationally.
Brenda of Ohio and Catherine of Missouri
are breast cancer survivors. They have
vivid memories of their chemotherapy and
radiation treatments. For those who have
gone through it, most will tell you that it
is as painful and debilitating as the cancer
itself. And yet, they found relief from the
wasting and nausea with cannabis.
Beth Wilkinson lives in Lawrence, Kansas.
She had a horse fall on her during a riding
accident when she was in her late teens.
That’s been many years ago, but the injury
lingers in the way of tonic clonic seizures.
Her epilepsy has in fact gotten so bad that
her doctors have had to resort to implant-
ing a device in her left shoulder. The im-
plant, similar to a pacemaker, sends elec-
trical bursts to her vegus nerve to fend off
each episode. Unfortunately, it does not al-
ways work. A couple of weeks before I re-
corded Beth’s interview, she awoke to find
herself in a familiar place. The emergency
room. The physicians and nurses there
know her by name. She’s been there a lot.
Beth’s only other conventional hope would
be brain surgery. Unfortunately, her chanc-
es of survival are bleak. For Beth, there is
only one alternative. Cannabis. When Beth
medicates with cannabis, she feels a sooth-
80
ing in the sides of her head and the seizure
is avoided. If cannabis would have been
available to her earlier in her life, maybe she
would still be driving and not had all those
car accidents; maybe she wouldn’t have to
be on Disability. Maybe.
Heather was thirty-six years old when I
interviewed her. She has Vascular type
Ethlers-Danlos Syndrome. Her illness con-
fines her to a wheelchair. It also thins the
walls of her vascular system and internal
organs. So much so that a hard cough or
retch could cause a rupture and internal
bleeding. For her, chronic nausea is also
a symptom. Heather takes $2600 worth of
Medicaid Pharmaceuticals per month. One
of her medications, Marinol makes up over
half of that cost. Though legislatures claim
that Marinol is a sufficient substitute for the
natural plant, despite it’s hefty price tag,
Heather still suffers. The oral nature of her
meds and their slow reaction time makes
them of little comfort. Cannabis is not only
the most efficient choice for combating
Heather’s illness, in this time of economic
struggle; it is also the most cost-effective for
the tax payer. Medicare / Medicaid costs af-
fect everyone who pays taxes. If cannabis
were legal for medical purposes, Heather
would not need any other medicine.
If you had never seen anyone come back
from Progressive Multiple Sclerosis, then
you need to meet Jack Chavez. This is the
same illness that killed comedian Richard
Pryor. A Denver resident, Jack has run the
gamete of this illness. At one point in his
struggle, he could only move his eyes and
that with great difficulty. Fortunately for
him, his roommate would place raw canna-
bis under his lip each morning. Whether it
was his sheer will to live, the natural neu-
roprotectant properties of cannabis, or the
combination of the two, Jack slowly made
his way back from the brink of death. Jack,
along with his grown son, now works as a
caregiver in Denver providing safe “legal”
holistic medicine to others who are chroni-
cally ill. The atrophy in his arms is all but
gone. He can do most tasks unassisted. He
knows that in most other states, like Iowa,
he would have been dead long ago.
Buddy Talley is 86 years old. Even at his
advanced age, he has spent most of his life
working. Now, he spends very little time
apart from his recliner or his bed. His son,
also a “shut-in” because of chronic illness,
cares for him. Conventional narcotics don’t
effectively treat the neuropathy he experi-
ences in his feet or his arthritis. The opi-
ates that he is prescribed cause him horrible
intestinal problems and are poorly effective
in treating his kind of intense pain. Buddy
sees little hope for his future, unless the
one medicine that has been documented
to work with his type of ailment was legal-
ized. Cannabis.
Todd is a student at the University of Mis-
souri, Columbia. He has accomplished
much in overcoming his disability. He has
been a paraplegic for several years now,
following an accident that left him perma-
nently paralyzed from the chest down. It’s
tough for Todd to describe the kind of pain
that he deals with every moment of every
Editorial
day. Only someone who has experienced
this type of injury can relate to the constant
burning, stabbing pain that is his constant
companion. The worst part for him comes
at night when he’s trying to sleep. The ma-
jority of “flare-ups”, as he calls them, come
then. No narcotic is effective in relieving
the discomfort that robs him of his rest.
They only dull his senses, making his edu-
cational pursuits virtually impossible. Can-
nabis not only replaces the harmful, addic-
tive prescriptions normally prescribed to
people with his type of injury, it distances
him from his pain so that he can sleep; so
that he can be alert and functional the next
day. And that’s all he wants. To have the
same opportunities that he had prior to his
life-changing tragedy. He’s not asking for
much. Just to be able to legally treat his
condition the safest, most effective way.
You have already heard from Jacqueline,
but her story bears repeating.
As a medical cannabis patient, she has been
forced to make choices not unlike those of
others that I have interviewed; to flee to a
“legal” state or face being incarcerated and/
or lose your children. Some, like the Davis
family of South Carolina (Eddie has Mus-
cular Dystrophy and his wife, Diana, has
Multiple Sclerosis), were not as fortunate.
The state took their children five years ago
when Family Services discovered they were
using cannabis to treat their conditions.
They’re still only allowed structured visits.
The Davis children have been abused in
foster care. Jacqueline has not only strived
to make a new home for herself in Califor-
81

nia where her medicine is relatively legal,
but has returned quite often to the states
where she was persecuted to help others. If
there were anything good to say about pro-
hibition, it would be that it has forced us to
band together. It has made us brothers and
sisters in one cause; to one day ensure that
the pursuit of freedom is not only a right
for the fortunate, but also for those who are
chronically and terminally ill.
Marena Collins suffers from chronic arthri-
tis. Without cannabis, she quite literally
cannot move. Prescriptions have damaged
her stomach and liver. A holistic alterna-
tive is all that is left for her. Fortunately
for Marena and her husband, their children
are grown now, which made the sacrifice of
moving to a “legal” state somewhat easier.
It’s not easy starting over in a strange place,
particularly when you’re on a fixed income,
but for the Collins’, to remain in Missouri
would most certainly mean eventual arrest.
And whether that would mean prison or
being denied the only medicine that brings
an end to Marena’s suffering, that would
equate to no life at all.
Now, the Collins family resides in Colorado
Springs where Marena actively serves her
new found community as a caregiver to
others with debilitating disease.
Joe Cullin lives in rural North Carolina. He
suffers from a condition called Charcot-Ma-
rie-Tooth. It’s similar to Multiple Sclerosis.
He spends most of his waking hours in a
power wheelchair, since his illness robs him
of his balance. Like Multiple Sclerosis, he
82
Mark Pedersen interview Joe Cullin, North Carolina.
experiences pain and spasticity as his auto-
immune disease slowly and defiantly robs
him of his mobility and atrophies his limbs.
Pharmaceuticals, though somewhat effec-
tive in relieving his pain, cause side effects
that are often as bad as the illness they are
meant to treat. Joe has found that canna-
bis, when it’s available; when he can afford
it on his limited income, relaxes his muscles
and provides comfort from the pain, far
more effectively. He can function. Joe won-
ders what medical advances regarding au-
toimmune diseases like his may have been
availed to him if only cannabis were legal.
Linda Yelvington is no stranger to pain.
She has dealt with Scoliosis all her life. A
hip replacement following a car accident
added to her problems, as degenerative
joint disease became an issue for her as she
got older. Linda has also struggled with de-
pression as she has struggled to make a life
for herself despite her debilitating condi-
tion. Along with the many dangerous nar-
cotics that she has been prescribed over the
years, (hydrocodone, darvon, darvocet, vi-
codin) her physicians have prescribed dif-
Editorial
ferent anti-depressants, as well. Linda has are a portion of the middleclass that affects
been able to limit her intake of prescription 100% of America, because every family in
drugs by medicating with cannabis. She America has at least one member who is
finds that quite often she doesn’t even need chronically ill. You can be certain of one
her pain medicines. Cannabis also helps her thing; chronic illness comes to us all at
appetite, which is vitally important for her some point in our lives. I urge you – I beg
since she tends to be anorexic. you, to open your minds and your hearts
to the truth. Iowa and our nation deserve
If these testimonies, or the many you have a safe, holistic alternative for the treatment
heard from every part of your state are not of chronic and terminal illness. Stop the
enough to convince you concerning the ef- persecution of your states’ most vulnerable.
ficacy of cannabis as medicine, I have more. Free the medicine, ease the pain.
Many more. Please visit my website at
www.cannabispatientnetwork.com or my Sincerely,
YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/ Mark D. Pedersen
cannabispatientnet. Still more are coming. www.cannabispatientnetwork.com
I have at least ten currently in edit. I’ll re-
cord another ten or so this weekend. I have
at least thirty more patients throughout the
Midwest that have been waiting for quite
sometime for me to get to them. More are
being added daily to the list.
The vast majority of our countries chroni-
cally ill don’t know that cannabis is real
medicine and that this God given plant
could give them a better quality of life. It’s
such a terrible, terrible shame that anyone
should have to live out their life in needless
pain and suffering. What’s more, as I have
witnessed, the halt and even reversal of au-
toimmune disease can be possible, but not
for those who are denied the knowledge of
this often life-saving medicine. If only it
makes one’s life more tolerable, why does
our government persist in its deception?
The truth is in the telling. We, the chroni-
cally and terminally ill are real people. We
83

DIAGNOSIS RAP SHEET ASSESSMENT
by William L. Johnson (December 13th, 2009)
This is who I am, King of Pain. These are my legions, my
demons; all who attempt to cripple me and my mission:
• Depression – (chronic, bipolar, manic, possibly genetic)
First diagnosed in 1976 at age 21 during service in the US
Navy. Hospitalized one week mostly for rest and on a vol-
untary basis. I took anti-depressants (don’t remember the
brand) in 1985-86 and again in 2008 to present as a condi-
tion required for receiving Hepatitis C treatment.
• Post Traumatic Stress Disorder – (seeds originated in
1970s, victim of two violent crimes in 1981 resulting in
physical, mental, emotional distress) First diagnosed in
2007 just prior to interferon treatment for Hepatitis C.
• Hepatitis C – (Survivor) First diagnosed in 1997,
screened in 1998, treated with Pegasus Interferon and
Copegus (ribavirin) from April 2008 to March 2009 with
positive results, meaning the virus is no longer present, I
am considered healed. However, my arthritis, depression
and eyesight have worsened.
• Stage 4 Liver Disease – (Cirrhosis of the Liver). Di-
agnosed in 2008 after biopsy to determine the course of
treatment for Hep C. Latest tests have continued to show
normal liver function. Conditions could improve now that
the Hep C virus is no longer attacking my liver, but im-
provement and repair depend entirely on a healthy life-
style – eating and exercising.
• Complete deafness, right ear – (Sudden Hearing Loss
Syndrome – stroke to the cochlea of the inner ear, possi-
bly caused by deteriorating conditions of TMJ. First di-
agnosed in 1997 after a road trip over peaks and valleys.
• Tinnitus & associated vertigo – (Constant ringing of
the ears). First diagnosed in 1997, but first noticed several
years sooner). Worsened when deafness struck right ear.
Frequency and volume depend on stress conditions and
noise levels.
• TMJ – (Jaw disease) Diagnosed in 1988 during an infec-
tion in my saliva glands. The doctor had to pry my jaw
bones apart to separate them from their lock position and
to access my glands to drain them. This condition has de-
84
teriorated my teeth and with recent interferon treatment I
lost three teeth, making for worsened depression because
I don’t want anyone to see me, also cause for roadblocks in
seeking gainful employment or opportunity that is fit for
my ability to cope.
• Asthma, Emphysema, COPD – First diagnosed in 1997
and treated with intensity in 2007 with inhalants. Early or-
igins believed to have been early in age as a result of a de-
viated septum, which was cause for chronic sinusitis and
infection in the nasal cavities and cause for sinus surgery
in 1997. I am still taking inhalants – Albuterol and Flovent.
• Carpal Tunnel Disease – First diagnosed in late 1990s or
early 2000s. Pain was constant to both left and right wrists,
as a result of computer work. After leaving newspaper job
in 2003, pain has left right wrist but continues to be a prob-
lem in left wrist.
• Arthritis – I am not sure if I have an actual diagnosis for
this, but it has worsened to the point that I do NOT want
to move for hours on end because of pain. Some of the
pain swirls around my body, covering almost my entire
body from the base of skull all of the way to the hips. Note:
I am double jointed on my left side, but not my right.
• Thyroid Disease – I have low thyroid levels and am be-
ing treated. Diagnosed in or about 2008.
• Cataracts – Diagnosed in 2008 prior to interferon treat-
ment. Then considered small, but I believe they have
grown to the point I cannot read small print (12 points or
less), and even sometimes 14 point is difficult.
I’m sure I could dig up some more demons but these are
the things I face every day. Agitation from outside stimuli
can cause conditions like PTSD and depression to worsen.
One of the worst side effects of the interferon treatment is
depression and in rare cases, patients have been known
to commit suicide. Patients are monitored during treat-
ment but fall off the radar screen after treatment, and that
is where I am today, off radar, in pain, ballistic feelings of
rejection, dejection, sadness, etc., etc., etc. Must I go on?
Who can I lean on for aid and comfort? All questions I
need answered.
Editorial
CAN MARIJUANA PREVENT CANCER?
By Lanny Swerdlow, RN
Dr. Donald Tashkin is a widely published pulmon-
ologist who for three decades has conducted investi-
gations for the National Institute of Drug Abuse and
other government agencies on the adverse effects of
marijuana and other drugs on the human body.
Studies conducted by Dr. Tashkin in 1990 found that
marijuana smoke has almost the exact same carcino-
gens (cancer causing agents) as tobacco smoke and
that the concentration of these carcinogens was ex-
ceedingly higher in marijuana smoke. These studies “We hypothesized that there would be a
are the basis for the government’s warning in thou- positive association between marijuana use
sands of ads that smoking one marijuana joint does and lung cancer, and that the association
would be more positive with heavier use,”
as much damage as smoking four cigarettes.
he said. “What we found instead was no
association at all, and even a suggestion of
Since it is well documented that the carcinogens in some protective effect.”
tobacco smoke are directly responsible for the devel-
opment of lung cancer in tobacco smokers, govern-
ment marijuana prohibitionists reasoned that mari- Donald P. Tashkin, M.D.
juana smoke must also cause lung cancer because it
contains even stronger concentrations of these can- smoker of marijuana was no more likely to devel-
cer causing agents. op lung cancer than the non-smoker - save for one
group in which there was a small, but still statisti-
To document a connection between lung cancer and cally significant difference. This was the group of
marijuana smoking, Dr. Tashkin received a very large people who only smoked marijuana and nothing
grant from the National Institute of Drug Abuse.
else compared to people who did not smoke any-
With over 2,200 subjects, the research was one of the thing at all.
largest case control studies of its kind ever!
In this group of people the smokers of marijuana ac-
The government was horrified at the results and tually had a lower incidence of lung cancer than the
did its best to ignore them as Dr. Tashkin failed to people who did not smoke anything at all.
find any link between smoking marijuana and the
development of lung cancer. In almost every catego- This makes no sense. How can people who are tak-
ry studied, a person was no more likely to develop ing carcinogens directly into their lungs have a low-
lung cancer if they smoked marijuana than if they
er incidence of lung cancer than people who are not?
didn’t smoke marijuana. It makes no sense unless perhaps the cannabinoids
found in cannabis are such powerful anti-cancer
How can that be? The marijuana smokers should be agents that they can prevent the development of can-
developing lung cancer at a significantly higher rate cers even in the presence of cancer causing agents.
than the non-smokers because they are taking carci-
nogenic agents into their lungs and the non-smokers Does Dr. Tashkin’s study prove this? No it does not.
are not. What is going on here? But there is a lot of scientific evidence out there that
appears to show this is exactly what is happening.
Dr. Tashkin’s study offers some evidence of what
might be happening. In all the groups studied, the
85

In 2003 Dr. Manual Guzman from the University
of Madrid authored a medically astounding report
detailing current research into the ability of the can-
nabinoids in cannabis to control the spread of cancer
including the results of his studies on cannabinoids
injected into the brains of rats with brain tumors.
Published in the peer-reviewed research publication
Nature Reviews Cancer, he wrote:
Cannabinoids inhibit tumour growth in laboratory
animals. They do so by modulating key cell-sig-
nalling pathways, thereby inducing direct growth
arrest and death of tumour cells, as well as by in-
hibiting tumour angiogenesis and metastasis. Can-
nabinoids are selective antitumour compounds, as
they can kill tumour cells without affecting their
non-transformed counterparts.
The cannabinoids found in cannabis can not only
slow the growth of tumors, they can actually selec-
tively kill cancer cells. This is amazing! There are lots
of anti-cancer drugs available that are very good at
killing cancerous cells. The problem with all of them
is that there are also very good at killing all the other
cells around them.
Cannnabis, on the other hand, can selectively kill
only the cancer cells and leave all the unaffected
cells alone and does it without the generalized toxic
effects of conventional chemotherapies.
Dr. Tashkin’s and Dr. Guzman’s investigations are
part of a virtual cascade of recent research docu-
menting the anti-cancer properties of the cannabi-
noids found in cannabis.
In November 2007, researchers at the California Pa-
cific Medical Center Research Institute published a
report showing that the non-psychoactive cannabi-
noid cannabidiol found in cannabis can inhibit the
spread of breast cancer.
Investigators at the University of Wisconsin School
of Medicine and Public Health reported in January
2008 that the administration of cannabinoids halts
the spread of a wide range of cancers, including
brain cancer, prostate cancer, breast cancer, lung can-
cer, skin cancer, pancreatic cancer, and lymphoma.
Like Dr. Guzman’s research, the report noted that
cannabis offer significant advantages over standard
chemotherapy treatments because the cannabinoids
in cannabis are both non-toxic and can uniquely tar-
86
Editorial
get malignant cells while ignoring healthy ones.
Is the evidence incontrovertible that cannabis can
inhibit the spread of cancer, kill cancer cells and pre-
vent the development of cancer? No it is not – but
people are spending billions of dollars and ingest-
ing all kinds of supplements on way less evidence
then there is to support the anti-cancer properties of
cannabis.
When taking any kind of medicine or supplement,
a person needs to decide if the claimed benefits of a
product outweigh the risks. Many times the answer
is no because many medicines and even supple-
ments sold over the counter have significant debili-
tating and even deadly side effects.
Cannabis, however, is not one of these products as
there has never been a single death attributed to
cannabis or any other significant debilitating conse-
quences. Further, the vast majority of cannabis users
report numerous beneficial effects of taking canna-
bis including stress reduction, insomnia relief and a
general feeling of well being.
If cannabis can prevent the development of cancer,
then the appropriate ingestion of cannabis is desir-
able in the same way that the appropriate ingestion
of calcium supplements can prevent or at least delay
the onset of osteoporosis. Since for the vast majority
of people, cannabis has no negative side effects and
only beneficial effects, it would seem that the regu-
lar appropriate ingestion of cannabis as a cancer pre-
ventative agent would be a prudent course of action.
Resources:
1. Tashkin, D.P., Pulmonary Complications of Smoked Sub-
stance Abuse. Western Journal of Medicine 1990 May; 152:525-
530. pg. 525-526.
2. Guzman M., [2003] Cannabinoids: potential anticancer
agents. Nat Rev Cancer. 3(10): 745-55
3. Mia Hashibe, Hal Morgenstern, Yan Cui, Donald P. Tash-
kin, Zuo-Feng Zhang, Wendy Cozen, Thomas M. Mack, and
Sander Greenland, Marijuana Use and the Risk of Lung and
Upper Aerodigestive Tract Cancers: Results of a Population-
Based Case-Control Study
4. Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers Prev. 2006 15: 1829-1834.
5. Sean D. McAllister, Rigel T. Christian, Maxx P. Horowitz,
Amaia Garcia and Pierre-Yves Desprez Cannabidiol as a novel
inhibitor of Id-1 gene expression in aggressive breast cancer
cells, Molecular Cancer Therapeutics, November 1, 2007 6,
2921
6. Cannabinoids As Chemo Treatment, Journal of Cancer Re-
search, Jan. 31, 2008
87

The
U.S. War on Marijuana
by Steve VanWormer
December 5th, 2009
The versatile plant that produces mari-
juana has been used for millennia around
all around the world. The plant and its
byproducts have had historic applications
in social ceremonies, religion, industry
and medicine. The United States is well
known for being the “land of the free”, but
not when it comes to Marijuana. The fed-
eral government, guided by special inter-
est groups, has conducted a rigorous and
systematic campaign of disinformation and
criminalization against marijuana that has
lasted through the majority of the twentieth
century and continues today.
The usefulness of hemp was not lost upon
the founders of our country. In 1619 the
Jamestown colony, the first European col-
ony in the new world, passed a law requir-
ing all farmers of the colony to grow hemp.
Interestingly, hemp was the primary crop
88
grown by our founding father George
Washington at Mount Vernon, and a sec-
ondary crop grown by the author of the
United States Constitution, Thomas Jeffer-
son on his plantation Monticello.
Around the turn of the twentieth century,
the federal government was in an unprec-
edented period of growth and expansion of
regulatory power. In 1906, the Pure Food
and Drug Act was passed to create the Food
and Drug Administration giving the gov-
ernment control of medicine for the first
time.
Over the following decade, the disinforma-
tion was disseminated heavily to the pub-
lic and lawmakers by conservative special
interest groups. In 1913, California passed
the first state anti-marijuana law. 1914 Har-
rison Act passed, outlawing opiates and
cocaine. Other states followed, Utah , Wyo-
“...the primary reason to out-
law marijuana is its effect on
the degenerate races.”
---Harry Jacob Anslinger---
Harry J. Anslinger
ming (1915). The United States ratified the
eighteenth amendment outlawing alcohol
in 1919. Encouraged by the federal, even
more states passed prohibitions against
marijuana, Texas (1919), Iowa (1923), Ne-
vada, Arkansas, Washington, Oregon
(1923), Louisiana (1924), New York (1927)
and Nebraska (1927).
In 1930 Harry J. Anslinger became the first
US drug “Czar” with the title of Commis-
sioner of Narcotics, Bureau of Narcotics,
and United States Department of the Trea-
sury. He took the short path getting there.
Working as a railroad guard, in 1919 he
married Martha Denniston, the niece of An-
drew W. Mellon who later as Secretary of
the US Treasury would appoint Anslinger
to his 32 year post as Commissioner of the
Federal Bureau of Narcotics.
Editorial
Harry Anslinger commanded a fully fund-
ed federal department with equivalent re-
sources to that of the FBI and he fully used
those resources to advance his personal an-
ti-marijuana agenda. He ignored and did
not present any evidence that contradicted
his claims when he testified before con-
gress. I hesitate to call him a liar, he may
have believed what he did tell congress at
the time, but that is universally recognized
today as being incorrect.
Harry J. Anslinger (Circa 1936)
Anslinger may have believed he was act-
ing in the public interest. Incredibly, his
repressive administration of the Bureau of
Narcotics continued for thirty-two years
through the administrations of U.S. Presi-
dents Hoover, Roosevelt, Truman, Eisen-
hower and Kennedy.
Examples of the disinformation Anslinger
created and distributed include the conten-
tion that marijuana had no medical value
and an unscientific notion that marijua-
na if present at all, was the causative fac-
tor in any criminal activity. If anyone did
anything wrong and was in any way re-
motely connected to marijuana, or had ever
smoked marijuana, it would became part of
the negative national statistic. The statistics
that indicated whether there was also alco-
hol or other contributory factors involved
were not presented. Anslinger also made
infamous remarks intended to incite and
alarm the white majority about the negative
effect of marijuana on minority Americans
that he referred to as “degenerate races”.
89

1396 American exploitation film, “Reefer Madness”
Reefer Madness (1937)
In 1936 the Propaganda film “Reefer Mad-
ness” was released. In the modern, educat-
ed eye, Reefer Madness is a comedy of epic
proportions, however in 1936 it and other
similar films were accepted as factual and
achieved their intended effect of generating
almost hysterical fear among the masses,
which helped to justify the implementation
of increasingly draconian measures of en-
forcement and punishment.
Marijuana Tax Act (1937)
In 1937 Cannabis made federally illegal in
the U.S. with the passage of the Marihuana
Tax Act. The 1951 Boggs Amendment to the
Harrison Narcotic Act added mandatory
sentences for offenders. Then the 1956 Nar-
90
cotics Control Act adds more severe penal-
ties.
The 1970 Comprehensive Drug Abuse Pre-
vention and Control Act replaced and up-
dated all previous laws concerning nar-
cotics and other dangerous drugs. This
new act placed full federal emphasis on
law enforcement. In one of the biggest un-
truths ever perpetuated upon the American
people, this the Comprehensive DAPC Act
includes the Controlled Substances Act, in
which marijuana is classified a Schedule one
drug along with the most dangerous drugs
with no recognized medical application. To
reach the conclusions of the act, federally
funded research programs attempting to
determine the medical value of marijuana
were cancelled or scrapped and abundant
independent research that conflicted with
their conclusions was ignored.
The 1972 Nixon-appointed Shafer Com-
mission urged that the use of cannabis be
re-legalized, but their recommendation
was ignored In 1973 Drug Enforcement
Administration (DEA) Changes Bureau of
Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs into the
DEA. Two years later the FDA establishes
Compassionate Use Program for medical
marijuana.
In 1988 DEA administrative law Judge
Francis Young finds after thorough hear-
ings that marijuana has clearly established
medical use and should be reclassified as a
prescriptive drug. The ruling is ignored by
the DEA. At almost the same time, the 1988
Anti-Drug Abuse Act was being passed offi-
cially establishing a National Office of Drug
Control Policy and the modern Drug Czar.
The draconian policies of the flawed and
failed war on marijuana continued through-
out the 1990s and 2000s. The number of
non-violent offenders incarcerated for sim-
ple possession of marijuana is approaching
nine hundred thousand. Feeding, housing
and guarding nearly a Million non-violent
Americans charged with what most Ameri-
cans would agree are minor-offenses places
an unneeded and unreasonable financial
burden on society. The families of these
Americans also pay an incalculable price
economically and emotionally with the loss
of a love one who is often the family bread-
winner. As a result, very often these fami-
lies also become a financial burden on so-
ciety. America never had people or money
to waste. Now, during difficult economic
times is perhaps the best time to reconsid-
er the other options available for all those
people. Nobody can afford to waste more
money on this ill advised war on marijuana.
In the information age, it is increasingly
more difficult for a special interest or other
entity to perpetuate a lie on a grand a scale
as has been done in the past. Reason and
logic is slowly winning out over ignorance
and hysteria. The present generation is no
longer fooled by the anti-marijuana propa-
ganda of a bygone era. The overwhelming
majority of the population of the United
States now supports marijuana for medical
use and Americans that support general le-
galization reportedly have a very close ma-
jority.
The Obama administration has indicated a
change in the right direction by stating re-
Editorial
peatedly that federal resources will not be
used prosecuting medical marijuana pa-
tients in states that have laws to allow med-
ical marijuana.
It will be necessary to continue to watch and
see how it turns out now that several politi-
cal activist groups and some high ranking
politicians have been advancing the cause
of general legalization and the projected tax
revenue that could help counter the current
economic downturn in much the same way
that the repeal of the eighteenth amend-
ment helped to bring the United States out
of the Great Depression of the 1930s.
The current administration is to be com-
mended for moving in the direction guid-
ed by the will of the people, but has very
far yet to go. I find myself encouraged by
the progress that has been made in recent
years, yet still unwilling to hold my breath
while waiting for this latest “Government
of the People” to “Get with the program”.
Resources:
1. Brainz http://brainz.org/420-milestones-history-marijuana/
2. The National Archives. http://www.archives.gov/
3. The Center for Sensible Drug Policy
4. Drug Crazy Gray, Mike, Random House (1998)
5. Reefer Madness (1937)
6. Reefer Madness http://www.reefermadness.org/propaganda/
prop.html
7.Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_history_of_can-
nabis_in_the_United_States http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Can-
nabis_(drug)
8. Marijuana: Costs of Abuse, Costs of Control Kleinman,
Mark (1989)
9. Concept 420 http://www.concept420.com/
10. Schaffer Library http://www.druglibrary.org/Schaffer/
hemp/history/first12000/13.htm
Images courtesy of:
1. The National Archives. http://www.archives.gov/
2. Wordpress http://wordpress.org/
3. Reefer Madness London http://www.reefermadnesslondon.
com
91
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92 93

THE “STATE” OF NEVADA… WHAT HAPPENS HERE IN NEVADA…
STAYS UNIMPLEMENTED YEARS LATER…
by James Parsons (December 5th, 2009)
It is now December 5, 2009 and after having
almost a decade of the medical marijuana
program in Nevada, we are still light years
behind in implementation. Now normally
this is where I would have to take a break
and go medicate due to the sudden urge to
internally scream until my toes hurt, but I
am going to be strong at the moment…I am
going to do my best to explain to you how
difficult it is to help Nevada’s most health
challenged patients when the government
bureaucracy won’t do their jobs.
My name is James Parsons, and I am the
founder and president of the Medical Can-
nabis Consultants of Nevada; a 501(c)(3)
Nevada non-profit corporation striving
to educate and inform Nevadans (and all
Americans for that matter) about the thera-
peutic benefits of cannabis. You see, not only
do I live with chronic pain from my ailments
and injuries sustained but I must also deal
with the pain I feel every time I read the Ne-
vada state constitution. I’m not sure if you
have ever read the Nevada (or any state’s for
that matter) constitution, but you would be
amazed at what you can find. I just choose
to focus on Nevada’s constitution because…
well…that’s my home state now and it’s also
why my toes hurt so much!
Every single day I read Article 4, Section
38, Number 1, Letter (e) of the Nevada state
constitution and I just get this feeling as if I
94
have been slapped in the face with the “Ha-
Ha we tricked you and you will have to suf-
fer” stick! Now before I just give it away
and tell you what that line says, let me give
you a little history about the evolution on
the medical marijuana program in the state
of Nevada as I know it. I’ll keep the story
to the short version so as to save time (and
some material for future writings-smile).
First off, let me start by saying that I have
been in Nevada since August of 2002. The
program was already underway and the leg-
islation had been written by the time I got
here. To be honest, it was the main reason I
moved here to begin with. I already had an
ankle surgery while in the Marine Corps in
2001 and was now coming off a complete ro-
tator cuff shoulder surgery in 2005 when the
stomach just couldn’t take the medications
anymore, and neither could my mind or my
marriage. I decided to look into this medical
marijuana program that I had remembered
reading about when I was sitting at my desk
one day while awaiting my honorable dis-
charge from the Marine Corps. Now I had
used “marijuana” before in my lifetime-
and I use that term loosely when referring
to pre-2002 experiences with the stems and
seeds, but up until moving to Vegas I guess
I just had never really seen cannabis that I
would have considered medicine. But now
that I was in constant pain and the mood
swings made relationships often times un-
bearable with me, and my stomach was fall-
ing apart…well I just had to use cannabis
now to see if it would help me alleviate my
need for the chemicals destroying my body
and spirit milligram by milligram...and like
I said, the cannabis in Las Vegas is on a dif-
ferent level from anything I had seen before.
Well, in August of 2006 I ordered my packet
from the state to get the paperwork for the
program. I was all excited the day I received
my packet; I remember thinking how great
it was going to be…so I thought.
Let’s fast forward through the two years
it took me to find a doctor willing to sign
the form (there are currently only a hand-
ful of known qualifying physicians willing
to sign the form for Nevada’s most health
challenged individuals) and move to July
of 2008 when I received my Nevada medi-
cal marijuana patient registry card. After
the two years of exhausting, frustrating, de-
pressing, exciting, teasing…everything you
can imagine in the spectrum of emotion of
trying to get my patient rights established,
I knew that I needed to streamline this pro-
cess for Nevadans immediately. From my
experience I guess I just “lived into” my pas-
sion without even knowing it. Today I help
qualifying Nevada patients get licensed in
Nevada to use cannabis and that is what
leads me back to that darn line that makes
my toenails hurt when I think about it in our
Nevada state constitution…
Once again keep in mind that each state has
different laws, so while I love California and
the maverick trailblazers of the cannabis cru-
sade there, Nevada is Nevada and well, like
the title of the article says, what happened
here in Nevada in 2000/2001 still hasn’t been
implemented in 2009/2010(yet)….
Now, the line that I am referring to is the one
the states: “The legislature shall provide by
Editorial
law for:...”---sorry but my toes are throbbing
again! I just get so upset because this line
is what literally drives patients like me and
everybody else crazy in the quest for safe
access to our chosen form of therapeutic re-
lief in Nevada…and it is letter (e) that states:
“The legislature shall provide by law for: …
(e) AUTHORIZATION OF APPOPRIATE
METHODS OF SUPPLY OF THE PLANT TO
PATIENTS AUTHORIZED TO USE IT”???
Did I read that right? So if I am licensed to
use it then the state legislature wrote into the
law a method for me to get an “appropriate
method of supply”! That’s awesome!!!
So you are probably wondering if you are
from other cannabis states asking, “what are
Nevada’s appropriate methods of supply?”
The answer will blow you away: do they au-
thorize a way to get seeds? NOPE…Do they
authorize or provide for the purchasing of
clones? NOPE…Do they authorize anybody
to be able to care give to more than one pa-
tient in Nevada? NOPE…Do they authorize
the formation of dispensaries? NOPE…Do
they trudge all over the Equal Protection
Clause of the United States Constitution?
YES…
You see, the problem is…THEY FORGOT
TO IMPLEMENT THAT LINE!!! We don’t
have an appropriate method of supply yet!
My passion is helping to educate and in-
form others so that Nevada patients may too
some day have a safe, respectable and com-
parable place to receive our doctor and state
acknowledged therapeutic choice of treat-
ment. If you truly want to help end the suf-
fering and anxieties of patients being forced
to the illicit drug trade in Nevada by our un-
implemented state law then please consider
aiding me in helping these patients. I am
going to continue to battle against this recur-

ring cause of the pain in my toes by working
tirelessly to educate and inform more so that
we can fight to get the will of the Nevada
voters implemented, FINALLY!!!
In closing, I just want to say thank you and
that I am honored to have been invited to
submit my thoughts from Nevada to the
Medical Cannabis Journal and I hope that
those of you reading will please consider
making a charitable contribution to the
Medical Cannabis Consultants of Nevada,
a Nevada 501(c)(3) charitable organization
to help us continue to educate and inform
others. Donations to the Medical Cannabis
Consultants of Nevada are tax deductible
on your federal income tax, since we have
been approved as a 501(c)(3) by the IRS.
96
Editorial
This means your donations to the MCCNV
will lower the amount of taxable income
you must pay federal taxes on, LOWERING
YOUR TAX BILL and helping the patients
learn and sustain in Nevada...SAFE AC-
CESS NOW!!!
Thanks again Medical Cannabis Journal and
our readership that will make this a premier
medical cannabis resource!!!
Sincerely,
James “Preacher P” Parsons
Founder and President
Medical Cannabis Consultants of Nevada
www.MedicalCannabisConsultantsOfNevada.com