This is freaking brilliant.

tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18609857.post-1147810758272046512006-05-16T16:02:00.000-04:002006-05-16T16:19:18.346-04:00This is freaking brilliant.Yet another example of how screwed up our government and society are. Check this out: WASHINGTON - Seventeen years after it was withdrawn from U.S. markets, a synthetic version of the active ingredient in marijuana is going back on sale as a prescription treatment for the vomiting and nausea that often accompanies chemotherapy, its manufacturer said Tuesday. Valeant Pharmaceuticals International hopes to begin selling Cesamet in the next two to three weeks, company president Wes Wheeler said. The Costa Mesa, Calif. company received approval Monday to resume sales of the drug, which it bought from Eli Lilly and Co. in 2004. Valeant currently sells the drug, also called nabilone, in Canada. Lilly originally received FDA approval for nabilone in 1985 but withdrew it from the market in 1989 for commercial reasons, Wheeler said. Valeant, since purchasing the drug, has revised its label and updated its manufacturing process, he added. The drug will compete with Marinol, made by Belgium-based Solvay SA. Marinol, another synthetic version of tetrahydrocannabinol, the active ingredient in marijuana that's more commonly known as THC. It also received FDA approval in 1985. Synthetic THC acts on the brain like the THC in smoked marijuana, but eliminates having to inhale the otherwise harmful smoke contained in the illegal drug, Valeant said. Cesamet is a Schedule II drug, meaning it has a high potential for abuse. The 1-milligram tablets are meant to be taken twice daily before cancer patients undergo chemotherapy and up to 48 hours following treatment. Side effects include euphoria, drowsiness, vertigo and dry mouth. The FDA last month said it does not support the use of marijuana for medical purposes. Let me just make sure I have this straight. Marijuana is less toxic than potatoes and is not addictive, it helps a myriad of ailments, and it's a natural antidepressant that doesn't cause any of the freaky side effects the pharmeceutical antidepressants do. Marijuana does not cause cancer. People are far less likely to have an automobile accident while they're high than when they're drunk. The FDA recognizes that THC is a good thing, but they will only approve a version of it that is made by a drug company, because the smoke that would normally carry it into your blood stream is harmful. And yet, despite the millions of people who are killed and made sick by cigarette smoking (including children and other people affected by the second-hand smoke), cigarettes are still perfectly legal. Alcohol is available at every corner store. Now explain this: doctors can go on TV, in medical journals, wherever, and tout the benefits of alcohol in moderation-the same alcohol that can cause people to lose their jobs, homes, lives. But we can't have legal access to marijuana which has far more benefits than alcohol and far fewer negative side effects. Does anyone else see how ridiculous this is?? I'm not saying cigarettes and beer should be illegal. I'm just saying it doesn't make sense and it drives me crazy, and this latest thing is just further proof that our country is run by big money and that the people in charge don't care about anything but whose pockets they can get their greedy hands into. Rant over; you may now resume your governmentally approved activities.<div class="blogger-post-footer"><script type="text/javascript"></script> <script type="text/javascript" src="http://pagead2.googlesyndication.com/pagead/show_ads.js"> </script></div>Aprilhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06698327981868775041noreply@blogger.com