Dear Friend,
On Monday,
April 2, my school -- Oaksterdam University in Oakland -- was raided by
the DEA, IRS, and US Marshals. Oaksterdam provides training to the
medical cannabis industry, and is fully compliant with state and local
law.
President Obama promised at the beginning of his administration to
respect state medical marijuana laws. He has broken this promise time
and time again -- and the consequences have been devastating.
This
was a senseless act of intimidation. But I've been an activist far too
long to become intimidated -- and with the majority of Americans and
common sense on our side, I know this is a fight we can win.
With our government trillions in debt, why is our government using
taxpayer dollars to come after me, Oaksterdam, and the thousands of
patients who need medical marijuana just to get through the day?
Tell
President Obama and the DEA: Enough is enough. Keep your campaign
promise, and stop the raids on the medical cannabis industry!
Thanks for your support,
Richard Lee
National Cannabis Industry Association
Six National Drug Policy Organizations Call on President Obama to End Unnecessary Assault on Medical Marijuana Providers
Coalition to President Obama: “It is time for a new approach on marijuana policy.”
Contact: Aaron Smith, NCIA executive director, (707) 291-0076,
This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- In
the wake of recent attacks on medical marijuana providers and patients
by multiple branches of the federal government, including Monday's raids
on Oaksterdam University in Oakland, CA, a coalition of six national
drug policy reform organizations is appealing to President Obama and his
administration to follow its own previously stated policies respecting
state medical marijuana laws. In the letter, posted in full below, the
organizations call on the Obama administration to bring an end to the
federal government’s ongoing campaign to undermine state efforts to
regulate safe and legal access to medical marijuana for those patients
who rely on it.
Oaksterdam Get Down Slideshow
|
|
|
|
|
Oaksterdam Get Down
Come join the fun!
Last Sunday of every month.
|
Every last Sunday of the month means the totally peaceful, completely awesome Oaksterdam Get Down hosted by our friends at OaksterdamNews.Com. Visit 375 15th Street in downtown Oakland between noon and 6 p.m. every last Sunday of the month, for the event that cures racism: namely, a police-sanctioned, marijuana-friendly block party. Any bad bones in your body will be cured by cannabis-infused hamburgers and barbecue sauce, and the good bones will be nothing but magnified. Come early for the live music, and stay late for the love.
|
Oakland riots after verdict in police shooting of Oscar Grant
Officer who shot dead unarmed African American cleared of murder but
found guilty of involuntary manslaughter
|
|
Second Largest Doctors Group Supports Medical Marijuana |
|
|
|
|
Written by odamnews
|
|
Tuesday, 07 April 2009 |
124,000-Member American College of Physicians Urges Review of
Marijuana’s Legal Status, End to Federal Prosecutions CONTACT: Bruce
Mirken, MPP director of communications, 202-215-4205 or 415-668-6403
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- The American College of Physicians, the largest
medical specialty organization and the second largest physician group
in the United States, today issued a strong statement urging a
fundamental rethinking of U.S. government policy on medical marijuana,
stating, “ACP strongly urges protection from criminal or civil
penalties for patients who use medical marijuana as permitted by state
laws.” ACP’s position paper specifically criticized the federal
classification of marijuana as a Schedule I drug, deemed by the
government as not having accepted medical uses or safety for use under
medical supervision. “ACP urges review of marijuana’s status as a
Schedule I controlled substance and reclassification into a more
appropriate schedule, given the scientific evidence regarding
marijuana’s safety and effi cacy in some clinical conditions,” the
statement declared. Founded in 1915, ACP publishes Annals of Internal
Medicine, the most widely cited medical specialty journal in the world.
“This is a historic statement by one of the world’s most respected
physician groups, and shows the growing scientific consensus that
marijuana is a safe, effective medicine for some patients, including
many battling life-threatening illnesses like cancer and AIDS,” said
former U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Joycelyn Elders. “Large medical
associations move cautiously, and for the American College of
Physicians to note ‘a clear discord’ between scientific opinion and
government policy on medical marijuana is a stinging rebuke to our
government. It’s time for politicians and bureaucrats to get out of the
way of good medicine and solid research.” “This statement by the
American College of Physicians recognizes what clinicians and
researchers have been seeing for years, that for some patients medical
marijuana works when conventional drugs fail,” said Dr. Michael Saag,
director of the Center for AIDS Research at the University of Alabama
Birmingham. “One of the challenges in HIV/AIDS treatment is helping
patients to adhere to drug regimens that may cause nausea and other
noxious side effects. The relief of these side effects that marijuana
provides can help patients stay on life-extending therapies.” “This
statement by America’s second largest doctors’ group demolishes the
myth that the medical community doesn’t support medical marijuana,”
said Rob Kampia, executive director of the Marijuana Policy Project in
Washington, D.C. “The ACP’s statement smashes a number of other myths,
including the claims that adequate substitutes are available or that
marijuana is unsafe for medical use. 124,000 doctors have just said
what our government refuses to hear, that it makes no medical or moral
sense to arrest the sick and suffering for using medical marijuana.”
The full ACP statement on medical marijuana, titled, “Supporting
Research into the Therapeutic
|
Odamnews |
| About the author: |
| |
|
|
Last Updated ( Friday, 15 May 2009 )
|
The Men's Wearhouse George Zimmer
