Pubdate: Wed, 16 Mar 2016
Source: Goldstream Gazette (Victoria, CN BC)
Copyright: 2016 Black Press
Contact:  http://www.vicnews.com/eeditions/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1291
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v16/n139/a08.html
Author: Keith Sketchley

MEDICINAL MARIJUANA TRACK RECORD NOT PROVEN BY HISTORY

Re: Medical marijuana consistency proven (Letters, Gazette, March 9)

It's amazing that Stan White has access to 5,000 years of medical 
history, from which he claims there has not been a single death from 
use of cannabis.

He does flop the word "medically" around in the sentence, but I don't 
see how anyone can know all medical history for the last 5,000 years.

During that time the ability to figure out what someone was cured by 
or died from has improved from rudimentary to very knowledgeable - 
even sanitation was not understood two centuries ago. Note that many 
societies that may have used cannabis did not keep detailed records.

White should define what he means by medical use. A few months ago in 
Vancouver, 64 people were taken to hospital in one day after 
over-consuming cannabis in some form. Would those people have been 
cured of their problem with the state of medical knowledge five millennia ago?

White hurts his own cause with sweeping statements he cannot prove. 
Any substance has to be used sensibly, including alcoholic beverages 
and cannabis, especially intoxicants as those are. The history of use 
of intoxicants is littered with the corpses of those who 
over-indulge. Personally, I want to stay in control of my body.

Keith Sketchley

Saanich
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