Dr. Sanjay Gupta is no fan
of drug-policy reform.
CNN's Sanjay Gupta hasn't yet been officially named as Barack Obama's pick for Surgeon General, but the TV talking head and Emory University neurosurgeon has been approached about the job and reportedly is more than a little interested in becoming the nation's chief scold. In that role, he would almost certainly continue the government's tradition of nagging the public about its choice of intoxicants.
You can expect a Surgeon General Gupta to take a relatively hard line on marijuana, for one thing. In Time magazine in 2006, Gupta wrote "Why I would vote no on pot":
Maybe it's because I was born a couple of months after Woodstock and wasn't around when marijuana was as common as iPods are today, but I'm constantly amazed that after all these years--and all the wars on drugs and all the public-service announcements--nearly 15 million Americans still use marijuana at least once a month. ...
The Nevada and Colorado marijuana initiatives have gained support from unlikely places. More than 33 religious leaders in Nevada have endorsed the measure, arguing that permissive legalization, accompanied by stringent regulations and penalties, can cut down on illegal drug trafficking and make communities safer.
Perhaps. But I'm here to tell you, as a doctor, that despite all the talk about the medical benefits of marijuana, smoking the stuff is not going to do your health any good. And if you get high before climbing behind the wheel of a car, you will be putting yourself and those around you in danger.
Gupta's take is certainly less strident than that of some advocates of Prohibition. He's willing to actually discuss the issue, rather than treat the war on drugs as some sort of religious crusade. Ultimately, though, he wants to keep in place laws that threaten people with legal penalties for ingesting substances of which he disapproves.
It's hard to predict whether Dr. Sanjay Gupta would make a good Surgeon General -- it depends on how convincing he is about wagging his finger, which is the job's main responsibility. But Gupta would certainly not represent any new direction for the Obama administration in terms of drug policy.
And by the way ... With television personalities headed to powerful offices in D.C., can we expect Judge Judy to be named to the Supreme Court?
Update: Bruce Mirken of the Marijuana Policy Project rightly admonishes me for passing over the fact that Gupta allows that marijuana may well have some medical use. In the Time piece, Gupta writes:
True, there are health benefits for some patients. Several recent studies, including a new one from the Scripps Research Institute, show that THC, the chemical in marijuana responsible for the high, can help slow the progress of Alzheimer's disease. (In fact, it seems to block the formation of disease-causing plaques better than several mainstream drugs.) Other studies have shown THC to be a very effective antinausea treatment for people--cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy, for example--for whom conventional medications aren't working. And medical cannabis has shown promise relieving pain in patients with multiple sclerosis and reducing intraocular pressure in glaucoma patients.
That marijuana is helpful for Alzheimer's, cancer and glaucoma patients doesn't seem like a major concession at this late date for most of us -- but for a serious contender for a government office, it's almost revolutionary. The federal government has been so hostile to any effort to consider the use of marijuana as medicine that its acceptance in that role by a potential presidential appointee is remarkable. Gupta deserves a nod on that count.
That said, I still want to serious consideration of real drug policy reform that would spare people prison time for mere possession and use.
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Comments
its not about you sanjay gupta. we own you's we the people exlect the goverment. we dont care if you want it legal or not its those 15 million people that smoke once a month you said duh.
Dr. Gupta, for all his education overlooks two major facts in the war on cannabis users. Cannabis prohibition created demand for the 'forbidden fruit'. Ever told someone they can't commit a vice? Prohibition is reverse psychology at it's worst. That's why cannabis use has gone up 4000% since Nixon declared the war on drugs. Plus, prohibition has made it extremely lucrative to meet the demand for cannabis. This is how prohibition (by default) created the drug cartels the prohibitionists claim to want to prevent. Everyone with a brain knows what is really going on here. Prohibition is a scam that protects no one. Our kids can easily get cannabis. It's harder for them to get alcohol and tobacco because they're regulated. Licensed merchants successfully prevent the sale of drugs (alcohol/tobacco) to kids 90% of the time. Drug dealers successfully sell drugs to kids almost 100% of the time. Dr. Gupta, if you're reading this. Please, do a lot of independent research on alcohol prohibition and it's repeal. Then you will know how to proceed with cannabis law reform. L.E.A.P. Law Enforcement Against Prohibition. is a useful site to look at. As for smoking cannabis. Many cannabis users are switching to vaporization, edibles and extracts due to the danger of smoking. It's time to re-legalize cannabis and you can show your enlightened by supporting it.
Here in Massachusetts the police have fought the decriminalization of up to one ounce... The POLICE want POT 2B a CRIME..
Why is that ?? Don't they have enough REAL crime like mugging, theft, drunk driving and rape to police ??
What am I missing here ??
At least there's some admission of medicinal benefits. Taking 2 tablespoons of Nyquil everyday will cause groggyness and make you sluggish and slow in the thinker too, not to mention destroy your liver if you aren't careful, but kids can buy it at the grocery store.
Drugged driving is less dangerous than texting drivers, but that's still legal...
Using a VAPORIZOR instead of smoking a joint has proven medically to eliminate the long term harmful substances in pot. The short term effects only last a few hours, and any other "long term mental effects" have NEVER BEEN PROVEN, and are only suggested to apply to the most intense smokers who smoke 10+ joints per day, every day, and even then, after stopping, what studies have been done suggests the "damage" reverses itself within a matter of months.
I would like a COMPELLING argument against pot legalization, not these "it's not really good for your health so it should be illegal". Double Standard. Few, if any prescription pharmaceuticals OR over the counter drugs are GOOD for your health.
Then you have the "sends the wrong message to children" naysayers. I think the wrong message to children is already sent because despite it being an "illicit drug", pot enjoys the same usage among High Schoolers as Cigarettes!
Anheiser Busch has got to be picking up his tab.
Obviously, health has little to do with why marijuana is illegal. If they cared about your health, would there be thousands of dollars worth of cigarettes and booze (two things that mix poorly with gasoline and driving)at every gas station?...Didn't think so.
And what about the health of border patrol and police officers?
It's not about health. The only good reason I can think of would be to improve productivity; or make criminals of free-thinkers.
P.S. I always thought Sanjay was a joke. I hear hes a good surgeon though.
I'm curious to know what medical studies Dr Gupta has conducted on marijuana.
Better yet, what studies has even read? Where does his knowledge of marijuana come from?
"despite all the talk about the medical benefits of marijuana" - By "talk" I think he's referring to the long term studies conducted on marijuana. You know the ones, he obviously hasn't had a chance to read.
"smoking the stuff is not going to do your health any good." - There are numerous doctors that disagree, even the American Medical Association disagrees. You know the people that have actually done some investigation.
In short, just like most federal puppets, he is misinformed and ignorant on the issue at hand.
X9yfZG I remained happy having visited this site.
oDzqeT I remained happy having visited this site.
Obama nominated Sanjay to be surgeon general, knowing he'd decline so that Obama could then appoint Regina Benjamin whose qualifications, other than her race, are not readily apparent.
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