Jeff Sessions has promised to stick to his hardline against recreational cannibas. So far, however, he has refused to commit to enforcing federal drug legislation over state regulations.
Image: Getty Images/AFP/J. Samad
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US Attorney General Jeff Sessions promised to pursue his tough stance on cannabis in a statement to the press on Monday, though he stopped short of saying he would enforce federal law over state laws where recreational use has been legalized.
"Most of you probably know I don't think America is going to be a better place when more people of all ages and particularly young people start smoking pot," he told reporters, according to Politico.
Italian Army grow cannabis for medical purposes
Cannabis cures: Italy launches a pilot project for domestic production of cannabis to become independent from Dutch imports and meet the demand for medical cannabis.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
Cannabis-based medicine
Cannabis-based medicine is produced by the Italian Army at Stabilimento Chimico Farmaceutico Militare in Florence.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
Military project
The production of cannabis is just one of the activities of the military's 164-year-old chemical and pharmaceutical institute. The body prides itself on the fact that its cannabis was registered as a pharmaceutical product by Italy's medicines agency in September 2015. The end product is very different from most of the cannabis consumed around the world.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
Less THC, more CBD
The component that gets recreational users high - tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) - is less useful to doctors than another active ingredient, the anti-inflammatory cannabidiol (CBD). An estimated 2,000 -3,000 Italians currently use medical cannabis for instance to relieve multiple sclerosis pain and spasticity or combat nausea after chemotherapy.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
"I have never tried it!"
"No, I have never tried it, and I don't have any intention of trying it either," says Antonio Medica, the colonel in charge of the Italian military's cannabis laboratory in Florence. He laughs that one of his colleagues joked the other day, saying they spent 40 years trying to stop the troops smoking it in the barracks and "now we are producing it ourselves'."
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
Suiting up for the growing room
Production in a sterile, sealed environment is very important. "That is the only way you can ensure a consistent product and one free from the toxic materials, particularly heavy metals like mercury, that the plants can easily absorb when grown in fields," Medica explains.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
Relief for cancer patients
The German parliament In January 2017 voted unanimously in a landmark bill to legalize the use of medical marijuana, for instance ot help cancer patients feeling nauseaous after chemotherapy. The drug is also said to help fight a lack of appetite and weight loss in tumor patients, and can alleviate symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
Made in Italy
Above, a pharmacist prepares a prescription of marijuana in the laboratories. The first batches of made-in-Italy pot have just arrived in pharmacies.
Image: Getty images/AFP/F. Monteforte
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Under the Obama administration, the Justice Department decided not to prosecute states like Washington and Colorado for legalizing recreational consumption of cannabis in violation of federal law. Sessions said that under his leadership, the department would be reviewing this policy.
"Experts are telling me there's more violence around marijuana than one would think," Sessions said, despite a vast body of studies that have found no like between cannabis legalization and violent crime.
"States, they can pass the laws they chose," he said, but "it does remain a violation of federal law to distribute marijuana."
Eight states and the District of Colombia have laws allowing the possession of small amounts of cannabis for recreational purposes. Although there has not been an increase in violent crime, some states that neighbor Colorado have complained that cannabis cultivated there is being illegally brought outside of its borders. Nebraska unsuccessfully tried to sue Colorado over the matter, but the case was dismissed by the US Supreme Court.
