In an interview with National Journal, Gil Kerlikowske didn't have much to say about medical pot:

NJ: Do you have plans to review potential changes to the country's medical marijuana policies?

Kerlikowske: I have not had my meeting with the attorney general, who had made some statements, but I plan on following up with that pretty closely.

NJ: Will you at least be conducting a study on the topic?

Kerlikowske: I don't know. I think it is a little premature, and frankly, looking at the overdose deaths -- there is such a huge increase in people dying from prescription drug overdoses -- is a little higher on my priorities right now than the medical marijuana issue....

Well that makes sense, but considering that there's a raging controversy in America right now over the federal government's war on medical marijuana, maybe the drug czar should at least be able to provide a little insight instead of changing the subject. Of course, it's likely that Kerlikowske's attempts to downplay the issue are actually intended to dismiss potential controversy surrounding the new administration's positive statements on the issue, i.e. medical marijuana isn't a top concern, so don't give us a hard time for not raiding dispensaries.

This 'medical marijuana isn't a priority' stuff is fine for now if it means they won't be interfering with state laws, but it's a pretty weak cop-out in the long run. Eventually, Washington will have to come to terms with the deep unpopularity of the war on medical marijuana. That means declaring an end to federal raids based on firm moral and scientific grounds, rather than vague policy statements.

They seem to understand that public opinion requires a new direction with regards to medical marijuana policy, but if that much is understood, why tiptoe around it? If the goal is to avoid controversy, then tell us exactly what we want to hear, follow through on it, and the matter will be closed.

For starters, why not look into rescheduling marijuana so it isn't any more illegal than these FDA-approved pharmaceuticals that are killing so many people?

NY Daily News reports that incoming CDC Chief Thomas Freidman is "in favor of developing a synthetic marijuana spray to be used for medicinal purposes." That's good news, I suppose, but what really caught my attention about the story was its repetition of the bizarre and wildly false assertion that synthetic THC doesn’t get you high:

Marinol is prescribed for treating vomiting in chemotherapy patients and other uses. It provides relief, not a high.

Says who? The first thing anyone who's ever taken Marinol will tell you is that the stuff gets you blasted for several hours. In fact, that's one of the primary reason patients prefer the herbal alternative. With marijuana, you can control your dose more effectively to achieve the desired effect. The spray was developed for the exact same reason, thus by suggesting that Marinol doesn’t get you high, the NY Daily News completely misses the point of why a spray even exists. It's ridiculous.

We've heard this crap before and I just don’t understand why anyone would struggle with the concept that a pure THC pill would make you high as hell. I suppose it's a convenient claim for pharmaceutical execs trying to separate their product from its controversial context and it's certainly convenient for drug warriors desperately endeavoring to explain why one is medicine and the other is poison. But it's bullshit and it shouldn’t take a scientist to deduce that you will not remain sober after swallowing concentrated THC. That's like saying heroin gets you high but synthetic opiates don't.

Hilariously, there's a side column of "relevant articles" on the page with the top item titled Marijuana Potency Higher Than Ever. We're actually supposed to be intrigued and perhaps alarmed by the fact that domestic marijuana potency now averages 10% THC, meanwhile the FDA has long approved a 100% THC pill that's proven to be completely safe in every way, except that some people think it's a little too strong and want weed instead.

It's amazing the lengths some people will take to rationalize the mindless paradox of arresting medical marijuana patients while simultaneously trying to sell them potent THC pills.