It would be unfair to say Joe Biden, the former vice president whose legacy bid for the Democratic presidential nomination is wheezing in stasis, a worthless and retrograde reanimated mummy with ideas staler than decades-old Corn Pops. Even very old cereal still has caloric value.<\/p>\n
At a campaign event in Las Vegas over the weekend, Biden \u2014 who, at least before\u00a0Deval Patrick<\/a>\u00a0threw his anodyne-but-bespoke silk top hat in the impossibly crowded ring, was the lone Democrat in the pre-primaries to not fully endorse cannabis legalization \u2014 attempted an explanation as to why he is still a weed holdout. Biden being Biden, he committed an unforced error by uttering the cursed and triggering phrase \u201cgateway drug.\u201d Twice!<\/p>\n That was all anyone appeared to hear, and more than any opponent needed to hear. The result was an\u00a0internet dogpile<\/a>, in which\u00a0literally everyone<\/a>\u00a0rushed to post,\u00a0in their own breathless words<\/a>, what a complete idiot Joe Biden is and how he should go away forever. Riding to Biden\u2019s defense\u00a0was Nate Silver<\/a>\u00a0(of all people<\/a>), who appears to have been one of the only pundits who listened to Biden\u2019s whole quote.<\/p>\n Silver declares Biden\u2019s stance \u201cquite a bit further to the left than you\u2019d assume from the headlines.\u201d And though you might have to ask the likes of\u00a0Matt Gaetz<\/a>\u00a0what\u00a0partisan shading<\/a>\u00a0has to do with anything, it does seem that Biden, drug war architect and legalization skeptic, is onto something. Biden wants to know more about cannabis \u2014 and the knowledge isn\u2019t here yet.<\/p>\n Everyone\u2019s doing \u201cOK boomer\u201d dunks on Biden for this but if you actually watch the clip (and\/or do some research), his position on marijuana is quite a bit further to the left than you\u2019d assume from the headlines. https:\/\/t.co\/NUWH2pvcyp<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Nate Silver (@NateSilver538) November 18, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Above you can see the two-minute clip for yourself. Biden does stumble into nonsense territory by calling \u201cgateway theory\u201d a \u201cdebate\u201d \u2014 it is not \u2014 but recovers in time to make a solid case for more scientific research before he makes a key decision. Notice not once does he say he opposes legalization.<\/p>\n \u201cI think states should be able to make a judgment to legalize marijuana, I agree, I think that\u2019s okay, but let me tell you,\u201d he begins. \u201cThe truth of the matter is, there\u2019s been not nearly enough evidence that\u2019s been acquired, as to whether or not it\u2019s a gateway drug.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a debate and I want a lot more. Before I legalize it nationally, I want to make sure we know a lot more about the science behind it,\u201d he continues. \u201cThere\u2019s not \u2014 that\u2019s why I want to move it to a Schedule II drug, a Schedule I drug, to Schedule III, so you can in fact do this.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI support using medical marijuana but here\u2019s the deal. Ladies and gentlemen, anyone who\u2019s been convicted, it should not be a crime. It should be, to the extent that it exists, that anyone ever been convicted of the use of marijuana and put in jail, they should be immediately released, their record immediately expunged, immediately and, and, and here\u2019s the deal,\u201d he says, gaining steam.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is not irrational to do more scientific investigation to determine, which we have not done, significantly enough, whether or not there are any things that relate to whether it\u2019s a gateway drug or not.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIt should not be a crime, it should be a civil penalty, to the extent that it exists, the states that don\u2019t choose to legalize,\u201d said Biden, who wrapped up with the coda that \u201cI need more data to make that judgment,\u201d drawing applause.<\/p>\n The gateway theory is, of course, an exploded myth and a relic of a bygone era for which Biden is the avatar. Most people who use cannabis never \u201cgo on\u201d to use other drugs. The National Institutes on Health\u00a0says this<\/a>.<\/p>\n What\u2019s not a myth is what cannabis does to the developing brain, or a developing fetus, or a teenager, or someone under 25, or a geriatric with Alzheimer\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n In those instances what happens are all theories. In some cases, there are theories (most doctors will tell a pregnant woman not to smoke weed, same with a teenager) based on abundant data. Such a theory is almost but not quite a fact. For many other claims of cannabis\u2019s value, or dangers, Biden is right: There just isn\u2019t enough data. If you listen to medical professionals and research scientists \u2014 and if we are to live in a fact-based society where we acknowledge things like climate change are real, we really should \u2014 this is exactly what they say and have been saying.<\/p>\n \u201cRecreational use has no demonstrated inherent health benefit,\u201d three Colorado physicians\u00a0recently wrote in an editorial published in the Western Journal of Emergency Medicine<\/a>. \u201cWhile some have suggested that it may increase relaxation and reduce stress, there are no clinical studies to support those claims. One plausible health benefit is the substitution of cannabis for other more dangerous recreational drugs; however, this is also not studied.\u201d<\/p>\n This cuts both ways. Prohibitionists declaring that cannabis is responsible for, say, mass shootings \u2014 as was done on\u00a0Tucker Carlson long ago<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 or making far more modest claims are also untrue.<\/p>\n \u201cWhile it is disingenuous to say that cannabis legalization has not impacted emergency medicine\u2026 it is important to recognize that there are many greater threats to public health and to provide appropriate focus to each of these conditions,\u201d the physicians added. \u201cA legitimate discussion around the health effects of cannabis\u2026 requires a fair assessment of the risks and benefits by advocates and critics alike.\u201d<\/p>\n There isn\u2019t enough data because the drug has been illegal for decades (a colossal mistake to which Biden contributed). Assuming Biden is in earnest, he is absolutely right that the state of cannabis research is something close to appalling. It\u2019s very hard to get cannabis research funded. When it is funded the cannabis available for research is garbage. Limited studies have limited findings, often unclear whether cannabis is a causal agent or merely correlative. Yet limited findings are pressed into service to explain the whole. Thus, much of what we \u201cknow\u201d is a combination of anecdotes, folk knowledge, and (sorry!) \u00a0pernicious untruths. Cannabis might treat cancer; it does not cure it.\u00a0Nobody wants to hear that.<\/a><\/p>\n Biden also deserves something (maybe not credit) for not taking the easy way out, the path chosen by most of his rivals for the nomination, a few of whom opposed legalization when their support meant something. Saying \u201cI support legalization\u201d just means you can read a poll and know what voters say they want. It\u2019s also the opening line in what must be a manifesto. As anyone who has lived in a legal state or glanced at the issue of legalization knows,\u00a0how\u00a0<\/em>you legalize is what\u2019s important. Who benefits? Who gets the jobs? Who\u2019s in charge? What do we test for? Who\u2019s guaranteeing quality? And so on. Without those qualifications, legalization support is either an empty gesture or a misdirection.\u00a0<\/p>\n Well before this point, arguments like this devolve into whataboutism. \u201cCigarettes and alcohol are legal,\u201d you will hear. \u201cMarijuana should be, too!\u201d Of course, cannabis should be legal, given the alternative. Look at the counterfactual, decades of a drug war, and observe the damage; now try to quantify any discernible benefit, but that fact is true independent of any other substance.<\/p>\n And it doesn\u2019t change the truth. We don\u2019t know enough about weed. What\u2019s up with cannabis\u00a0hyperemesis<\/a>? What are all these other cannabinoids, and what do they do?\u00a0 We know enough that nobody should be in jail for it and that it has therapeutic value, but we also \u201cknow,\u201d based on data, that cannabis has a darker side. The best way to silence the skeptics and\u00a0rank opportunists<\/a>\u00a0is to obtain more data. Taking his words at face value, Joe Biden wants to know what he doesn\u2019t know. And so should you.<\/p>\n TELL US,<\/strong> has someone brought up the gateway theory to you?<\/p>\n The post On Cannabis, Drug War Biden is Right About One Thing<\/a> appeared first on Cannabis Now<\/a>.<\/p>\n
It would be unfair to say Joe Biden, the former vice president whose legacy bid for the Democratic presidential nomination is wheezing in stasis, a worthless and retrograde reanimated mummy with ideas staler than decades-old Corn Pops. Even very old cereal still has caloric value. At a campaign event inContinue Reading<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":9,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[12555,50,1386,633,11199,119],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39625"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/9"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=39625"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39625\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":39626,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39625\/revisions\/39626"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=39625"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=39625"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cannabiscultivatornews.com\/home\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=39625"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
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\nRead More: On Cannabis, Drug War Biden is Right About One Thing<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"