NSW parliamentary inquiry into medical cannabis - due Feb 15

[mjbarratt]

I thought contributors to this part of OZStoners would be very interested in this inquiry. Here is a quote from NSW parliament media release:

 

On 22 November 2012, the NSW Legislative Council referred an Inquiry into the medical use of cannabis to General Purpose Standing Committee No. 4. The Committee, chaired by the Hon Sarah Mitchell MLC of The Nationals, includes representatives of the Australian Labor Party, the Greens and the Liberal Party.

 

The motion to refer the Inquiry to General Purpose Standing Committee No. 4 was put forward by Labor member the Hon Luke Foley MLC, and was agreed to without opposition from Council members.

 

The Committee Chair, Mrs Mitchell said, 'The Committee will be examining the safety and efficacy of cannabis for medical purposes as well as considering if and how cannabis should be supplied for medical use. In addition, the Inquiry will investigate the legal implications of cannabis use for medical purposes, as well as any other related issues.'

 

'There is a diverse collection of views held on this issue by the community, and the Committee wishes to hear from the widest possible range of stakeholders.'

 

Submissions are now being called for by the Committee from interested organisations and individuals. The closing date for submissions in Friday 15 February 2013.

 

The Committee will to hold two Sydney hearings, in March 2013. Detailed information about the dates and times of these hearings will be advertised on the Committee website following the closing date for submissions. The Committee is scheduled to report to the House by 14 May 2013.

 

For further information about the Inquiry, including its terms of reference, and for more on how to make a submission, please visit the Committee's website at: www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/gpsc4, or call the Committee Secretariat on (02) 9230 3081

 

Click here to lodge your submission - before 15 Feb 2013!

 

And if you haven't already, you can also complete our anonymous study of Australian cannabis growers. We will be using this information to make an official submission to the inquiry so this is another way you can have your voice heard.

[Naycha]

Thanks for posting that.

 

A pretty sad response from the government.

 

Naycha

[brick]

A typical response from another useless government. As usual Australia will keep it's head firmly stuck in the sand while other countries with foresight change/relax their laws. Another reason why some really brilliant minds have left this once great country to pursue their goals in a more open minded, receptive country.

 

IT AINT VOTE GETTING!!

[mrgoodcat]

What a fucking disgrace. What a bunch of dogs.

 

They write:

 

"The NSW Government is compassionate about the suffering of patients with a terminal illness, chronic pain, or AIDS. The Government supports the use of prescription pharmaceutical cannabis products that are approved and regulated by the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) as these drugs have been assessed for quality, safety, and clinical efficacy".

 

Well actually, none of that is true.

 

First, the NSW Government doesn't give a single shit about those patients, because they are denying those patients access to a medicine by threat of police force, at the point of a gun.

 

Second, the NSW Government cannot support the use of cannabis products that are approved and regulated by the TGA, because there are no prescription cannabis products approved and regulated by the TGA.

 

Third, the NSW cannot support the prescription of cannabis products, because any doctor prescribing them will be deregistered as a licensed medical practitioner.

 

Fourth, the TGA is not a government department at all, and is in fact funded by private companies who are themselves drug sellers, which is a collossal conflict of interest. Any government that accepts the advice of a body that is paid by the companies that they are supposed to regulate is either grossly incompetent, or massively corrupt.

 

This is an outrage beyond all measure. The government has just admitted in its own writings that the dangerous cannabis with no medical purpose, that has been used to convict and jail countless Australians, not only has a definite medical use which exonerates every conviced cannabis user, but that the government is willing to accept evidence of medical safety and efficacy from a privately owned drug company, but not from an Australian citizen.

 

The government is literally saying to our faces that the cannabis grown by a regular citizen is a dangerous drug, while the cannabis grown by a private company is a safe medicine, when it is the same god damned cannabis.

 

They are deciding who is and isn't criminal by decree, like they used to in the middle ages.

 

The NSW Government is a crime syndicate. Arrest and jail all of them, immediately. The statement is evidence.

[Sir PsychoHashy]

Yep, thanks for posting that. 

 

Pretty much as expected in our current political environment from a Liberal government. 

 

A few classic comments in there.  liked - "can be a harmful drug with a number of known negative mental and physical health impacts, particularly when inhaled via smoking.  It is important the government does not undermine other initiatives being undertaken to reduce the incidence of tobacco smoking"  So apparently a legal drug which causes the most health problems in our country is a reason to not allow medicinal use of cannabis???????

 

And - "there are safe and effective medications currently available for the symptoms and conditions that medical cannabis is purported to be effective in treating".  Well, yeah there is, but how the fuck did they miss that for at least some patients these meds are either not as effective, or have side effects bad enough to make them unviable, or in some cases that cannabis brings about outcomes that these existing pharma drugs can't even hold a candle to.

 

I don't pay much attention to the Libs, but I've heard them dribble on with stuff along the lines of believing that governments should not interfere in peoples abilities to make their own decisions, right or wrong, through legislation.  This is obviously just bullshit to make them sound good when they make comments like the above.

 

The one thing I have to agree with though is - "The NSW government strongly believes pharmaceutical cannabis products should only be approved for patient use based on robust peer reviewed scientific evidence, including clinical trials".  This is a proper position to take, but seems to me it's just a cop out being used as an excuse to avoid doing something they have an idealogical issue with, and probably trying to keep the yanks and their pharma companies happy as well.  The obvious question in response to this statement is - based on the report, what research and trials will the government be financing and supporting in order to investigate/facillitate safe and effective medical cannabis?

 

End result, if you want to do something right, do it yourself.  Grow hard medical canna patients, and don't bother waiting for the government to give a shit about your wellbeing.

[DoctorWho]

Honestly that was better than I expected.  Not only are they finally acknowledging that cannabis has medicinal value they actually recommend that its made available to the people who need it.  Its bullshit how they say that only preparations made by pharmaceutical companies and the like will be allowed but considering all the legal hurdles its actually a great first step in the right direction.

 

With any luck they'll bring in medicinal cannabis within the next year or two and shortly after we'll see a bunch of patients kicking up a huge stink about the pharmaceutical crap they've been prescribed because raw cannabis works better.  If that happens we can gang up on every politician who opposes change for wanting people to suffer and claim that they don't want to give patients a fair go which is about as un-Australian as it gets for forcing them to buy overpriced and ineffective medication when they could easily and cheaply grow it at home.  Considering the government ignored the recommendation to decriminalise cultivation for medicinal purposes we can even rightly claim that they have also wanted to throw sick people in prison for using medicine for years now and that since cannabis extracts can be legally prescribed its insanity to prevent access to the raw form which has been proven to be more effective.  We can even say things like Australia has the best medical care in the world because we only use the best equipment, practices and medication available so denying patients a proven medication is un-Australian.  We can hammer any politician into submission using guilt and national pride as weapons and I for one wouldn't feel the slightest bit bad about it considering they've waged a very literal war on us for generations.

[bitterman]

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2013-11-16/nsw-rules-out-medical-marijuana-for-terminal-patients/5096476

[hashwizard]

Well said mrgoodcat  [is your name an intended oxymoron?]

 

I'm glad that some can see some positives, I can't.

 

"The NSW  government is compassionate towards..."  Yeah yeah yeah, blah blah blah. My own pain specialists don't seem to give a crap. I am a registered patient with untreatable severe nerve pain for the last twelve years [the Dr's warned before I left hospital that I'd have to "live with chronic pain" for the foreseeable future] so why do I not have an exemption to grow my medicine? According to one medical text book, 100% of patients with my disease are dead within 3 years of diagnosis. I've out-lived the death sentence by 10 years. One would expect that one in my position would be given some consideration, compassion & leniency.If I'm caught with my modest efforts there will be no-one in my corner. If my own Dr's are unsympathetic then I can't see any compassion from the judicial system.

 

The head of the day to day running of the pain clinic I attend said something very odd at the end of my appointment after giving me a hard time for treating my pain with mmj. She said that her attitude would be different if I was having "the occasional puff on a joint at a party."  Oh I see, it's 'hip & cool' to bum suck on a joint at a party to blend in & be one of the crowd but it's unacceptable to seek pain relief with the same substance? Entrenched willful ignorance.

 

There'd be no positive difference had Labor been in power. Most pollies are self-serving parasites unwilling to make hard but correct decisions for those they represent.

Hasn't anyone else noticed that the more corrupt a government is the harder they try to portray themselves as being conservative hardliners who are 'tough on crime'?

Until the last state & federal elections I usually voted for Labor, never for the coalition.

 

Compared to the coalition, Labor has been known as the more compassionate party. It is for this reason that I believe we have a better chance of having the coalition introduce a relaxation of the mj laws simply because they have a need to prove the 'less compassionate' perception wrong, to prove how progressive & 'in touch' they really are. Politics is a fucking game. Abbott was initially involved in left leaning politics & as a catholic it was assumed he'd join the Labor party.

Labor or Liberal? Same shit, similar smell.

 

I'm still at square one. The coppers can come like a thief in the night & kick my door in & treat me like a criminal, my health care professionals will continue to condemn my medicine & look down their noses at me, all because I refuse to end my days in pain & distress.

 

I will not believe that parliament as a whole has any compassion for anyone apart from themselves & their own, until I can grow my medicine legally. 'Compassion' in parliamentary lexicon means 'photo op' or an exercise to improve their approval ratings.

 

I will not accept any mj product from Big Pharma. I guarantee that if a product is introduced I WILL be asked to take part in a trial. Bwahaha haha ha Wouldn't that be ironic? Dr's choosing the very medicine they gave me such a hard time for taking. Knowing my luck, I'd get the placebo. 

I actually think that it might be in our favour the longer this issue drags out. When they eventually allow mmj it'll be in the form of a Big Pharma product no-doubt. [i have no doubt what-so-ever that all of the BP co's either have 'product' ready for testing & approval, or at the very least, are scrambling to manufacture 'acceptable' product.] The simple argument that we've been self medicating successfully for years with natural mj, so why would/should we accept unknown adulterated rubbish that's been produced for profit, should be argument enough I should think. It is us, the mj community, who've brought the medical benefits of mj to light & when a BP product is released, they'll have the fucking hide to pretend that they're instant authorities on mmj. 

 

  I for one DrWho will raise my voice against anything other than being able to grow my own medicinal strains.

 

I've been an mj consumer, on & off, for over 35 years. For most of those years I was unaware that mj was so helpful for so many complaints, that different strains can even help conditions like bi-polar, epilepsy, depression & anxiety to name a few, conditions that I would've thought in my ignorance, unsuitable &/or dangerous for these patients whose BP medications ALL cause negative side-effects to varying degrees, even leading to premature death. Why all ailments weren't considered is beyond me. Pain is pain is pain, the only difference between ones suffering to anothers is only by degree & the capacity to cope. Being classed [& documented] as a patient under consideration is of small satisfaction to me. Apart from my fellow brothers & sisters excluded from consideration, how does one seek relief for say depression on one hand, & nerve pain on the other, with just the one medication? I get the best relief for my nerve pain from hash/oil or most 'couchlock' strains [ I suspect because of high CBD] but I can't consume either during the day because it'd put me to sleep. I can't use my day time medicine at night because it would keep me awake. I suspect other patients use two or more different type strains for full & adequate effect.

 

But I guess that although it's a disappointing result, it is a start in the right direction.

Excuse the rant & if I've repeated myself, [just realised how long it is ] I'm becoming increasingly frustrated [ to which I've self prescribed with some lovely White Widow.  Note to self; 3 cones is one too many ] that in 21st century we are still living in an ignorant greedy & unevolved society.

[bitterman]

Did anyone notice the final response is addressed to the clerk of parliament, whose name is Mr Blunt?

[mrgoodcat]

Well said mrgoodcat  [is your name an intended oxymoron?]

 

I'm glad that some can see some positives, I can't.

 

I also don't see anything good in it. All I see is a glowing neon sign saying "we the Government of NSW are corrupt and will drag this out until we find a way to shut the sick people up with the option to buy inferior marijuana from a drug company at a high price, while still demonstrating to the parents and prohibitionists that we care about the children so that we can stay elected and collect our high salaries/pensions"

 

It is a game of pretending to give a shit, while making political donors rich. That's all it is. No courage, no decency, no common sense, just political prostitution.

 

The doctors do care about your pain, but they care about themselves/their reputation/their ego more than they care about you. That's all it is.

 

There is one good thing about your pain though - it only hurts you. And if you die, well, that's you too - just die quickly.

 

The cops - easy to see through them. cannabis busts are the easiest ones, with the least violent people. Easy arrests, easy justifications for higher salaries, easy justification for stealing your hard earned assets. Cops are in it for themselves, same as the politicians. They do not care about you or the community. They care about themselves.

 

You really think cops want all the cannabis users and people speeding or blowing a 0.06 DUI left alone, so that the only ones left to chase are violent criminals? No way. If that happened, people would say "hey, police - we gave you a hundred and fifty million, and you only caught 5 guys...you need to work a bit harder, and be more agressive". No way - they like pointing to a chart of the thousands of drug users they caught, and say "we are run off our feet! we work harder than anyone! Pay us more, and we can finally get round to those hard criminals" but of course, they never do - they'd just start busting people on this forum for a crappy little home grow with a 7 million dollar chopper, and buy more bulletproof vests to play out their SWAT team fantasy while kicking in some grandmas door, then suing her when they trip over her walking frame.

 

What this boils down to is that the political, legal, and medical apparatus have been taken over by people who are so selfish that they are sociopaths and psychopaths. Our government is captured by the worst in our society - the kinds of people willing to subvert the system for their private benefit and betraying all the people in society that gave them their trust.

 

The whole point of having a government is giving up some of your money and some of your rights in order for everyone to live better through cooperation. It is obvious that this is not true anymore, and so I sincerely believe taht we need a complete cleanout and restructuring of government, law, and the medical system. We are still paying for it, but it is not serving us. It's a rotten deal, end of story.

Edited November 16, 2013 by mrgoodcat

[hashwizard]

To keep things in perspective, our governments do SOME good & there is such a thing as a decent honest copper. Just wish there were a few more of them.

When it comes to the over all scheme of things, politicians are just puppets for those who hold the real power - the very few with or who control over 90% of the worlds wealth. JFK was murdered by the CIA mainly because he wouldn't pick a blue with the commies. Who gave the orders? Certainly not a politician. A good example at the religious level of who controls what, is the death of Pope John Paul. The medicine he had on his bedside table was spiked with poison the night before he planned to sweep a broom through the Vatican bank & replace those in control. Bedroom was sanitised, body embalmed, no evidence. It was obviously an inside job so who gave the orders if the Pope himself is supposed to be the head honcho?

 

I've lost a couple of good family Dr's over the last twelve years. I've had to look for a good Dr more than once.  I know when I've found a good one when they tell me to continue my mmj use if it's effective. The pain specialists themselves will tell you how difficult it is to treat nerve pain. I'm lucky that my pain is intermittent & can go days without pain & that mj has been a brilliant remedy. Many with similar conditions have no relief at all, poor buggers are in constant torment. I've sat in the waiting room at the pain clinic & there's patients with tears streaming down their faces in agony. I think it would be safe to say that I can't be the only patient who has found relief with mj. In the Dr's shoes I'd be delighted that my patients are finding relief from a safe natural herb, to hell with the politics. I can't understand why they themselves don't agitate for mj to be included in their arsenal of drugs. After all, they're happy to prescribe dangerous shit with nasty side-effects that'll shorten their patients lives. That's my point of frustration, they know it fucking works so why the loud objection to something so effective & yet so benign? Their job is to care for their patients, not play politics with peoples suffering & quality of life. It's beyond my comprehension.