Pubdate: Tue, 07 Jun 2005 Source: Republican, The (Springfield, MA) Copyright: 2005 The Republican Contact: http://www.masslive.com/republican/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/3075 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?232 (Chronic Pain) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/topics/Raich (Angel Raich) MEDICAL MARIJUANA NOT REEFER MADNESS In the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, Congress classified marijuana as a dangerous and illegal drug that has no benefits. In 1996, voters in California passed a medical marijuana law allowing people to grow, smoke or obtain marijuana with a doctor's recommendation to ease pain. For a federal government that has been waging a decades-long war on drugs without success, it is difficult to admit that there might be some benefit in marijuana use. As a result, the Bush administration turned the war on drugs into a war on sick people. John Ashcroft, then the attorney general, said the California law "seriously undermines Congress' comprehensive scheme for the regulation of dangerous drugs." In a 6-3 decision on Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the strict federal drug laws prevail over the California law, a decision that will allow federal authorities to prosecute sick people if they use medical marijuana. The Supreme Court usually has the final word in such disputes, but the ruling left the door open for Congress. Justice John Paul Stevens, writing the 6-3 majority, did not endorse the ban on medical marijuana, but instead made it clear that it is a concern of Congress. Congress should amend the drug control act to allow the medical use of marijuana. This problem is homegrown. Congress has failed to amend the drug control act in 25 years, despite studies by the Institute of Medicine, the American Medical Association, the New England Journal of Medicine and others that testify to the benefits of marijuana. It is safer than many of the common medications that doctors prescribe to treat patients. Fears that medical marijuana will lead to an increase in the recreational use of the drug or put young people on a path to a lifetime of drug abuse are silly. As we've noted, the sky will not fall and the nation won't go to pot. Marijuana has been studied as a possible treatment for nearly a dozen conditions or illnesses, including AIDS, multiple sclerosis, chemotherapy-related nausea and glaucoma. When other treatments have failed to provide relief from pain and suffering, patients should be allowed to use marijuana with the approval of a doctor without fear that a federal agent will knock on the door. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake