PTSD: Oregon and the Cruelest, Most Dangerous Woman in the State With Her Drug War Against Veterans

(PORTLAND, OR) - Sometimes I just can's believe what I am reading. The Oregon Legislature recently had hearings about including Combat PTSD for medical marijuana permits. Senator Betsy Close was quoted as saying, "(I) am against expanding the medical marijuana program," and, "Marijuana does damage the body and especially the brain," and, "All drugs have side effects. This drug has documented brain damage and sex damage." She was quoting U.S. government studies from 1979, the dark ages about marijuana as medicine.

Whether her stance is based on morality or religion is not well taken. Marijuana was, for many years before 1937, the most prescribed and used medicine in the U.S. and the world and it was also used in Biblical times, and is mentioned in the Bible as 'Kanehbosum' (In Hebrew Bibles, but misnamed in English translations as 'cane' or 'calamas'. There is no substantiation in any modern medical or scientific literature that it damages the brain or sex organs. In fact, mothers who used marijuana had healthier babies than cigarette smokers or total non-users.

If she compared marijuana to ANY of the commonly prescribed or used medications, it is even safer than aspirin. By contrast, in regard to Combat Veterans and others with PTSD, the standard drugs such as morphine, Valium, antidepressants and anti-epiliptic drugs, all of them have severe adverse side effects and many are used by PTSD victims to commit serious illegal actions and even suicide. The same can not be said for marijuana.

Arrests for marijuana use are a crime itself. Most Combat Veterans of recent wars and many others in stressful occupations, use marijuana safely and effectively.

In addition, almost every state has a PTSD Veterans organization advocating for medical marijuana use because it really works. Though some are physiologically and/or psychologically disabled, those who can work at whatever occupation do so and there are hundreds of thousands of them who do use marijuana medically, safely, without adverse effects mentally or sexually.

In fact, many use marijuana to counter the adverse sex effects caused by the drugs mentioned above. I was confounded by a comment to the Senator Close article, which stated, "There were no peer reviewed medical articles that marijuana was helpful for Combat PTSD." There are Israeli and Canadian medical journals, and rare ones in American journals about this subject. He mentioned group therapy which was a failure along with VA prescribed drugs.

PTSD Veterans and active Army personnel, have very high suicide rates caused by their medications.

I hope Senator Close never has a friend or relative destroyed by PTSD or the medications prescribed by the Army and the VA.

MARIJUANA IS STILL BEST FOR PTSD

More information on the history of Dr. Leveque can be found in his book, General Patton's Dogface Soldier of WWII about his own experiences "from a foxhole".
Order the book by mail by following this link: Dogface Soldier

Watch for more streaming video question and answer segments about medical marijuana with Bonnie King and Dr. Phil Leveque.

Click on this link for other articles and video segments about PTSD and medical marijuana on Salem-News.com:
Dr. Leveque INTERVIEWS & ARTICLES

Salem-News.com Marijuana Coverage

Where and How to Smoke Legal Marijuana without Fear of Arrest in the U.S.

Eulogy of a Great Warrior: Hoss Plourde

The Ripple Effect How Marijuana Laws Are Impacting Society

Audit the Audit

Welcome Home, Tom

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Malcolm Kyle April 14, 2013 5:15 am (Pacific time)

To see socially-regressive, sanctimonious neanderthals—while falsely touting church, God or patriotism—denigrate, bully, threaten, and even murder the ill and dying for choosing to exercise their God-given right to self-medicate with one of Earth’s most medically efficacious plants. To see our prisons filled to budget-busting capacity on the false pretense of protecting people from themselves. To see the selective targeting and destruction of African-American families and African-American communities. To see the lives and livelihoods of tens of millions of Americans destroyed or severely disrupted. To see our Federal government's role in the international drug trade, funding their despicable black-operations throughout the entire globe. To see the huge market in narcotics gifted to ruthless criminals, foreign terrorists, and corrupt law enforcement. To see our society spiral downwards into a dark abyss, while shady corporate entities exponentially enrich themselves. These are the dimensions of prohibition; which are terrifying and unconscionable; which are morally repugnant. Prohibition is about violence. Prohibition is about suffering. Prohibition is a very nasty business.

Thinking Clearly April 12, 2013 4:31 am (Pacific time)

I would like to point out that the white suit worn by Senator Betsy Close is not indicative of a good education in any medical profession.

DJ: Reminds me of the 1950s and 60s when cigarettes were advertised by men in white lab coats with stethoscopes around their necks.

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