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Cannabis can make diseases more bearable. Sometimes, it can even fight them successfully. There are people who claim that cannabis is the best pain relief that they have ever tried, better than, for example, Ibuprofen, and better than paracetamol because it has no side effects. And the best part about it: everybody could easily grow cannabis in the garden. For free.

However, the self-cultivation of cannabis is — with a few exceptions — illegal.

The German pharma lobby would probably like to keep it that way. A drug that costs no money but has great benefits is a pretty strong competitor for established drugs that cost a lot and perhaps fight the original symptoms but bring with them new pain.

Why should German pharmaceutical companies think differently from those in the United States?

In the U.S., some states have gradually legalized cannabis for medicinal purposes. Several painkiller manufacturers oppose the liberalization, however, and are demanding strict rules for private consumption. Officially, they claim that cannabis should not be legalized because it might be dangerous. In reality, they do not want legalization because it would make them poor.

A not quite new but hitherto neglected confidential document of Partnership for Drug-Free Kids showed that several pharmaceutical companies financed anti-legislation campaigns, among them Purdue Pharma and Abbott Laboratories. Accordingly, Purdue is one of the donors to the Community Anti-Drug Coalition of America.

These companies all produce strong painkillers from opium, all of which are addictive (which is at least disputed in the case of cannabis) and have led a number of Americans into addiction. Sixteen thousand a year die from an overdose.

An acceptable evil?

Since 1996 Purdue earned more than $27 billion in sales from its painkillers. That would not be possible with cannabis.

It is therefore hardly surprising that pharmaceutical companies in Germany have little interest in the study of this alternative medication.

This article originally appeared on The Huffington Post Germany and was translated from German.

Cords. Everywhere you look, there are cords. We were promised this cord-free utopia long ago, but it’s not arrived. We’re left to manage our tethered, tangled existence all alone. there is good news, though — we’ve found products that can help. Rather than suffer the indignity of tangled headphones and chargers everywhere, we’ve compiled a list of some products that … Continue reading

Stanford’s Linear Accelerator Laboratory operates the longest particle accelerator of its kind—it’s produced groundbreaking work in particle physics over the decades, as well as several Nobel prizes. But surprisingly, it also played a major role in the early web: By hosting the first web site in the US. It wasn’t much to look at, but that’s not important.

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When it comes to speakers, there are simply way too many models to choose from. After all, there is a slew of manufacturers out there in the market, and each of them also have their very own market as well as individual range of speakers that they would love to cater to different folks out there. However, one thing that most, if not all, speakers do not come with is this – magical lights that enhance the audio which beckons from the tweeters and woofers within. Well, this unique Light Show Fountain Speaker set is slightly different from the rest of the pack, as you can tell from its name, since it not only pumps out all of your favorite tunes with aplomb, but it also boasts of a light show fountain.

All that you need to do to get a light show fountain of your own going would be to plug in the Light Show Fountain Speakers into any compatible music playback device, and you’re good to go. Whenever you play back your favorite tunes, the water within the speakers will start to “dance” according to the beat, and there will be a quartet of LEDs in different colors that will light up, ensuring that you end up with a very unique show. It looks and works great in the dark, and it also adds an awesome reflection on the ceiling while at “work”. As long as it can plug in via USB, it will work just nice!
[ Light Show Fountain Speakers add some spark to your boring desk copyright by Coolest Gadgets ]

NEW YORK (AP) — Hospital officials say the condition of a New York doctor who became infected with Ebola while treating patients in Guinea has been upgraded from serious but stable condition to stable condition.

The New York City Health and Hospitals Corporation issued the upgrade for Dr. Craig Spencer on Saturday morning. The agency runs Bellevue Hospital Center, where Spencer has been undergoing treatment since he was brought there nine days ago.

The HHC has said Spencer is receiving therapies that have been effective in treating Ebola patients at Emory University Hospital in Atlanta and at the Nebraska Medical Center.

Spencer is the only confirmed Ebola patient in New York.

His case led governors in New York and New Jersey to declare a mandatory quarantine for travelers exposed to Ebola in West Africa.