(Bad news like this is never easy to hear. Nick’s just going to have a minor freakout and then he’ll be with you in a moment.)
As any California resident with ADD and a desire to make jam bands seem worth listening to already knows, getting a prescription for medical marijuana in the Golden State is really no problem. Fighting for a living after smoking said medical marijuana, however, that’s a trickier issue.
Nick Diaz has the state’s consent to smoke his little heart out, but he doesn’t have the CSAC’s permission to fight with it in his system. His ability to beat a drug test with sufficient notice is well documented, but so is his inability to even show up for the test when he doesn’t get that notice. Just to make sure their position on medical marijuana use by licensed athletes is clear, the CSAC went ahead and made their case for coming down hard on the Nick Diaz’s of the sporting world, issuing a statement that draws upon state supreme court precedent to arrive at this conclusion:
Because the Compassionate Use Act only provides a defense to criminal charges, any argument that the Act would allow an athlete to use the drug without consequences to his or her license must fail. If the Court were to take up a similar challenge to discipline of a licensee, it would likely find that the Commission has a legitimate interest in whether or not an athlete uses the drug because marijuana could slow a fighter’s reflexes and endanger his or her health and safety in the ring or the cage.
Therefore, given the limited reach of the Compassionate Use Act and the rationale of the Supreme Court in Ross v. RagingWire Telcomm, the Commission may safely discipline an athlete without running afoul of any law or court decision.
In other words, it’s your right to get high and play Xbox to soothe your anxiety disorder, but that doesn’t mean the CSAC can’t fine or suspend you if pop positive.
Diaz’s method of beating drug tests may work just fine for teenagers trying to get a job at a store in the mall. As long as you know when you’re going to pee and there are no surprises, it’s not all that difficult for a veteran from the 209. But when the CSAC can call him up and tell him to submit to a pre-licensing test without more than a week’s notice, he’s going to be screwed every single time. For a guy who hopes to continue fighting in Strikeforce, which loves to hold events in California, it might be almost enough to make him consider some life changes. Or at least it might be if he went through the same rational decision-making process as normal people.
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Comments
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:16
"marijuana could slow a fighter’s reflexes and endanger his or her health and safety in the ring or the cage." I thought it made you numb to punches allowing you to gogo Takanori Gomi? I'm confused, what does this 'marijuana' actually do?
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:32
@diazbros209 i was thinking the same thing. At least the CSAC got it right this time, the marijuana helping you win fights argument was just ridiculous. This is a much safer stance for them to take even if it's pretty much bull shit. Band substances should be limited to performance enhancing drugs. Pain killers are still a little different where as they will numb you more then weed, I think they would enhibit your ability to fight to your full potential (Karo). Even then I don't really care as long as you're not taking up part of my paid for portion of the card (Karo, you piece of shit). Either way this sucks Diaz is a fucking bad ass and entertaining fighter. I hope he can figure a way to make this work so we can see him fight in the near future.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:36
Nick Diaz, for all his talent, is a joke.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:41
With all the recent news I am announcing the first ever Viva Hate Fight Challenge #1: Screw Ups An open weight tournament feauturing Nick Diaz, Karo Parisyan, Junie Browning, "Jon "Porn Machine" Koppenhaver. Do not miss it!
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:43
What are they afraid Nick Bomb is gonna try n bite a motherfucker's ear off after a case of the munchies? They're gonna give that boy an anxiety attack if they take away that sweet nectar of his. Smoke fucking DOPE!!!!!
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:44
Yeah, and it's been a while, but I'm back STINKY NUTZ!!!!!!
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:44
Skeletor, stick to words you know and maybe your arguments might be taken a little more seriously. "banned substances" are going to be what they are because the CSAC is liable for who they let fight, and what happens. If they in any way can be proven to "inhibit" performance, that leaves CSAC liable for injury. I'm sure the commission would prefer to do as little as possible, but they serve a purpose, and in a litigious state like California, they've got to be more careful. Seriously though, if you can't put down the bong in order to do your job, you need to find another job that lets you smoke up. The decision is his, it's not up to the commission to make sure Diaz gets to smoke and fight.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:51
I said I hope he can figure a way to make this work not the commission. And I'm terribly sorry if my lack of spelling offended you. It must be a rough and stressful life you live trolling internet comment sections in search of poor spelling and grammar. For your never ending vigilance in this capacity I and everyone on cage potato salute you sir.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 09:54
I bet all the CSAC decided on this rule while passing a fat brown Bazooka in Armando Garcia's memory...
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:02
CSAC should worry more about the clowns they get to judge fights and less about their legal justification for penalizing pot smokers. If Diaz has to test for marijuana, so should Cecil Peoples. You know that motherfucker's high.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:04
CSAC are a bunch of fucking bozo's.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:06
lmao@" while passing a fat brown Bazooka in Armando Garcia's memory..."
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:10
If you want to play the game, you have to play by the rules. Its as simple as that. Standing outside the ring on a soapbox professing your god given right to do whatever the fuck you want is great, but dont expect the people in the ring that make the rules to give a shit. I've got no problem with smoking weed, or people that smoke weed. Shit I live in British Columbia, we have the best weed in the world. But yeah, its not on the CSAC to find a way for Nick Diaz to smoke weed and fight, its up to Nick Diaz to find a way to do it. Probably by smoking less weed. Shit all he would have to do, even with these surprise licensing tests is give up the ganja for a few months at a time. They aren't gonna test him a year in advance, he just needs to give himself more of a safety buffer instead of leaving it to the last minute.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:10
DiazBros209- It doesn't make you numb, but it allows you to ‘temporally’ mentally escape from MINOR pain. In regards to a fight, it won't help at all. You are not going to be able to walk through punches because you are 'high". I will have to agree that it could possibly slow you down. It all depends on your tolerance. If you are new to smoking pot, you probably don't want to fight 'high'. But if you have been smoking most of your life, go to work high every day, get high on breaks, before you eat, after you eat, when you go to sleep, when you wake-up and any occasion you can think of...... then getting high before a fight probably won't affect you much. I know plenty of athletes that smoke before they compete and do perfectly fine.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:18
skeletor Says: Band substances should be limited to performance enhancing drugs. ========== But weed really IS a performance enhancing drug for most bands.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:21
@Agent smith Sorry you are correct
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:47
Yo 831, let ya boy smoke some of that good shit wit ya. I got some decent "reggie miller" right now, but I know you got the bomb!!!
Mon, 11/30/09 - 10:51
Fighters know the rules, if they can't play by them, they don't deserve to fight. Diaz could always go to Japan where there are no drug testing. If he wants to fight in California, he knows what he's got to do. It's not like the StarCaps thing with the NFL where it was in a supplement.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 11:01
lmao @ hamma fist elbow bam-bam "If Diaz has to test for marijuana, so should Cecil Peoples. You know that motherfucker's high." Throw Mazagatti in for testing too... gotta be high to be that obviously wrong with every decision you make. Its a good thing for ole Steve that refs wear all black or he might showcase his bad decisions with a pale blue tuxedo with a matching cumberbund.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 11:21
Damn, well it looks like they can pencil Nick in on New Years Eve with Dream vs. Sengoku...
Mon, 11/30/09 - 11:50
Smoking weed makes me feel like Neo....I have sparred many times after smoking pot and it seems that my reaction time and speed were faster.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 12:15
I still don't quite get it. There seem to be two main issues: 1 - fighter safety 2 - fairness Weed use would only effect the first. I don't think anybody thinks a stoned fighter is a better fighter, only more likely to get hurt. If that's the case, making sure he's not high when he fights is a good idea, but probably one Nick and other reefer madmen already recognize and observe. Random testing for a (marginally) legal substance at any time, regardless of the fighter in question's schedule seems to be based more on the idea that pro athletes need to be held to a higher level of conduct. I'm not sure that the CSAC should be getting into that, personally.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 12:44
Go figure, the csac is doing something shitty again. Yawn.... And this used to be a pretty good state. A long time ago.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 12:45
Haha when I got my medical marijuana card I went to a doctor that pretty much does only that. I was there for about 5 minutes, the majority of the time just filling out paperwork. After that, he asked for 130 dollars and sent me on my way. No questions asked. Its a bitch to renew it every year though.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 12:52
^^Still pretty good state. Especially when compared to the majority of the other states in the country... But when Arnold motherfucking Schwarzenegger (or however you spell it) is governor of the state, you know shit is getting fucked up. @Smitty-- Hell yeah I got some Grand Daddy right now. I dont buy from the club that much though because they charge like 60 bucks an eighth. I mainly got the card so I can grow in my front yard legally without the cops giving me shit. Oh and so I can smoke wherever the fuck I go without worrying. Still cant carry Hash or hash oil though. Cops classify that shit as a Felony!! I know, fucking dumb asses.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 01:32
"If Diaz has to test for marijuana, so should Cecil Peoples. You know that motherfucker's high." LOL Give that man a shirt, that's hilariously true :D
Mon, 11/30/09 - 02:36
High everyone....I have a few things to say here: 1. Cecil peoples is on crack, not weed. I watch most fights high(makes me feel like Eddie Bravo), and never, not one damn time have I saw a single fight the way Peoples sees them. 2. Mike Tyson was high when he bit Holyfield's ear off, I'm most certain. 3. It's almost 2010, and weed isn't legal yet?!?!?!?! Let's get our shit together, seriously.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 02:39
and mazagatti is only high cuz he's ego trippin on that badass 70's porn stache he has going
Mon, 11/30/09 - 02:59
^^ You never know, he might have a stash in that stache. Perpetual tokage.
Mon, 11/30/09 - 05:13
City of Japan! Or maybe he can work something out with Eddie Bravo so he can toke and roll full time.
Tue, 12/01/09 - 03:15
It's also hard to imagine that anyone who smokes regularly is getting the most out of thier training prior to a pro fight. Getting high and going to the movies is one thing. But getting zooted and then rolling with Jake Shields and Gilbert Melendez is something entirely different.
Tue, 12/01/09 - 04:24
@jerseyfighter Well, kinda. Highs wear off pretty fast, much faster than the thc is flushed from the user's system. Working on the assumption that Nick (or whoever) doesn't train with his head up since he's not going to be competing under the influence I still don't see the problem with him using a legal medication as long as he's still not feeling its effects when he's in the cage.
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