Pesticides: Just Another Way Prohibition Puts People in Danger
Toodling through a recent issue of Bloomberg when, like the muzzle blast of a .357 Magnum, Bam! Bam! goes the headline:
In a 120-point font!
With a pulsating PURPLE banner over CLOSE-UPS of blade-like cannabis leaves!
Reminds us of when folks used to whisper about cannabis being sprayed with paraquat. (Seems we were right to be scared.) But how about these grimace-inducing chemicals that have been found on cannabis by testing labs:
These not-for-human-consumption (especially by people with compromised immune systems, such as very young or very old patients, or those who have chronic pain or AIDS) pesticides are, to quote the Bloomberg story,
And are states not stepping in to protect their sick and vulnerable citizens? Yes, they are.
"Colorado last year found that 49 percent of cannabis samples tested in response to complaints had residue of unapproved pesticides, according to state Department of Agriculture data. The failure rate so far this year is 13 percent, demonstrating how testing improves the safety of marijuana, said Jan Stapleman, a spokeswoman for Colorado’s Department of Public Health and Environment"
So the Federal Government is also involved, right?
Wrong - BECAUSE THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO - CANNABIS IS A SCHEDULE 1 DRUG.
"Regulating pesticides for marijuana plants is a state issue because the federal government still classifies pot as an illegal drug. That’s prevented the Environmental Protection Agency from evaluating the safe use of cannabis pesticides, as it does for all other crop chemicals."
"The long prohibition and current quasi-legal status has politicized marijuana, making states hesitant to step into the federal government’s regulatory role" said Natalie Darves, who runs Cougar Acres Consulting.
"When they do step in, states struggle with implementing a pot-testing program, said Julianne Nassif, director of environmental health at the Association of Public Health Laboratories. Lacking federal guidance, they must develop regulations, license private labs if they aren’t going to test samples in state facilities and determine what types of pesticides, pathogens, fungal toxins and heavy metals to monitor. And funding is always an issue, she said."
And who suffers? Sick people who need medicine. How morally corrupt are the structures of Prohibition now?
Just asking for a friend (with cancer).