Pubdate: Sun, 28 Nov 2010
Source: Oakland Tribune, The (CA)
Copyright: 2010 Bay Area News Group
Contact: http://www.insidebayarea.com/feedback/tribune
Website: http://www.insidebayarea.com/oaklandtribune
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/314
Author: Dave Newhouse
Note: Dave Newhouse's columns appear Monday, Thursday and Sunday,
usually on the Local page.
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

EAST BAY DOCTOR FEARS LEGALIZING POT

Though California voters rejected the legalization of marijuana, the 
debate rages on. The pros and cons of this controversial subject will 
continue butting heads.

Dr. Bob Albo, 78, retired as an Oakland general and oncology surgeon 
in 2006, but he remains a consultant for the Raiders and Warriors 
sports franchises, and he's a professor of surgery at UC San Francisco.

As for legalizing marijuana, which is a federal offense even though 
smoking pot occurs in all 50 states, you can basically count Albo 
among the cons.

"There is plenty of evidence," he said Tuesday, "that the use of 
marijuana is a drug that will cause immense complications if you open 
it up to the public and let a 21-year-old go to a store and buy it at 
his convenience, and then pass it around to people who are younger.

"One of the studies done said that the use of marijuana is clear down 
to junior high schools. You're talking about the smoking of marijuana 
at the junior high school level? And having it legalized? It would be 
an atrocity."

Marijuana has become more toxic over time, but Albo said its 
immediate impact isn't any worse than consuming alcohol. He does see 
one distinct difference.

"A lot of people have a glass of wine and aren't impaired," he said. 
"A person who smokes one joint is impaired, and it hangs around in 
your bloodstream anywhere from several days to several weeks. A glass 
of wine or a martini, in comparison, has zero effect by the end of 
the evening or the next morning."

One frightening aspect of legalizing marijuana is the highway. It's 
crazy enough out there with daredevils cutting in and out of the 
slimmest openings. But if potheads are out there with the drunks, 
with both stimulants now legal, look out!

"One marijuana cigarette can cause drowsiness and poor reaction 
time," said Albo, "and it will last longer than having one glass of 
alcohol. There's distortion with both (pot and booze), but it depends 
on the amount (of either)."

Comparing those addictions, Albo said there is no liver disease or 
liver failure from abusing marijuana, as is the case with alcohol. 
And, he added, there are no medical studies showing long-term effects 
from using marijuana.

He refuted one line of thinking, however, for legalizing marijuana -- 
that those who sold it or used it would then be taxed, and the tax 
money would alleviate California's financial burdens. He pointed out 
that there can be no taxation because the federal government hasn't 
legalized marijuana.

"So their reasoning is totally out in left field," he said of those 
marijuana proponents. "They couldn't do it if they wanted to, and 
even if it passed in this state, it wouldn't be accepted (nationally)."

Smoking pot won't cause lung cancer, Albo observed, but it does lead 
to bronchitis and respiratory symptoms.

"There are three advantages of cannabis," he said. "People with 
chronic diseases in which pain is the major complaint. People who are 
on chemotherapy; marijuana, in some instances, can stop the nausea 
better than medication. And for people with HIV, marijuana has been 
shown to elevate their mood and make their terminal days more comfortable."

Albo supports medical subscriptions of marijuana in those instances, 
but he is "100 percent against" marijuana being grown and sold 
without any restrictions.

Besides his highly regarded medical reputation, Albo, a Berkeley 
native and Piedmont resident, is among the world's leading experts on 
magic. He has written 13 volumes on magic, but can't make his current 
illness disappear.

He suffers from a "progressive, downhill" autoimmune disease that has 
destroyed the covering of his motor sensory nerves, which means this 
UC Berkeley Athletic Hall of Fame member is losing control of his 
limbs. Because he isn't in constant pain, marijuana cannot benefit him.

"Would I take medical marijuana if I were in pain?" he asked. "I 
doubt it. I have strong feelings against smoking of any kind, but the 
sweet smell of marijuana permeates a room. It's a dirty, terrible addiction."
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