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MEDICAL MARIJUANA DEBATE COMES TO UT'S CAMPUS

Medical cannabis was the topic of discussion on Oct.  11 when the University of Toledo hosted a free lecture in Nitschke Auditorium.

Cheryl Shuman and a panel of physicians, patients and other professionals discussed their experiences with medical marijuana and explained why they felt it should be legalized.

Shuman, also called the "Martha Stewart of Marijuana," developed cancer in 2006 and, through her use of cannabis treatments, she is now an international advocate for the legalization of medical cannabis.  She stopped at UT as a part of a speaking circuit through the state to encourage the passing of the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment.

"We are putting a face to the movement," Shuman said during the lecture.  "As goes Ohio, so goes the nation."

Shuman, who is working with the Ohio Rights Group to pass the state petition, also spoke about the different strains of marijuana, all of which produce different results.

Specifically, she talked about CBD, or cannabidiol, a strain with little or no THC, making it non psycho-active -- meaning it doesn't produce a "high" or "stoned" feeling.  She recommended that this type of marijuana was effective for the medical treatment of children, as it has analgesic, anti-inflammatory and anti-anxiety properties.

"It works for me," she said in a personal interview.  "It works as a medicine.  As I said in my speech, it was legal for thousands of years, and then prohibition came along and ruined it for everybody.  This is about a re-education and a re-legalization campaign."

During the lecture, Heather Carone, a doctor at Mercy St.  Vincent Medical Center, denounced the government's decision to label marijuana a "schedule one drug" -- meaning it has a high risk for addiction and no health benefits.

She said medical marijuana serves as a safer and less-addicting alternative to many of the prescription drugs she prescribes her patients for illnesses such as Multiple Sclerosis, Glaucoma, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, chronic pain, Fibromyalgia, and depression.

Patients and users of medical marijuana, Tanya Davis and Steve Green, talked about their healing experiences with marijuana.

Green's seizures began in 2006, but after taking only one cannabis oil pill every morning and evening, he didn't have a seizure for two years straight.

Davis, a cannabis user in a state where medical cannabis is illegal, said that "to deny sick people a plant that can be used for medicine is just wrong."

The event was sponsored by the Northwest Ohio National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws ( NORML ) and the UT Libertarian Party student organization.  NORML works to reform marijuana laws by convincing the public to legalize medical marijuana for the responsible use of adults and serves as an advocate for medical marijuana consumers.

Mary Smith, director of public relations for the Toledo NORML chapter, said the primary goal of the organization is to educate.

Smith estimated that the Toledo chapter of NORML has turned in at least one-third of the signatures that are currently on hand, which they've done in only three months.  Smith said although they need 400,000 signatures to get on the ballot for the Ohio Cannabis Rights Amendment, they already have a rough estimate of about 35,000 to 40,000 signatures.

Ryan Cohen, a UT seventh-year finance and information systems major and vice president of Northwest Ohio NORML, said he wishes he could warn students about the negative stereotypes of marijuana.  Cohen said he was actually against marijuana his whole life until he started getting educated.

"Don't believe everything you see and hear on mainstream media about marijuana and the effects of it," Cohen said.  "It's public knowledge now that even the federal government and the international laws about marijuana don't any longer reflect the overall medical community's opinion of what the role of marijuana should be."

On a financial level, Cohen feels that legalizing marijuana would be beneficial and provide an opportunity for the government to both make and save money.

"Currently we spend about, I think it's like $13 point something billion dollars a year on drug enforcement in the United States -- half of that is on marijuana," Cohen said.  "If it were legal, it would be an $18 billion a year net gain people approximate.  But you got to think, that's $18 billion a year that we would make, but that's also half the money we're spending on drug enforcement now we wouldn't spend."

After the lecture, Smith said she believes the current college student generation will "explode economically" if medical marijuana and industrial hemp are legalized.

Smith urged students to get involved and fight for medical legalization.

"People older than me have been told the wrong thing for so long and sadly enough, those are the people who need the medication -- that are being raped for pharmaceutical drugs on a weekly basis -- and could easily fix 80 percent of their ailments with this tiny little plant."

Smith advises students to sign petitions available through the NWO NORML-Toledo Facebook page, which posts events they petition at and allows people to get a taste for what the group is doing.

To students who are against legalizing medical marijuana, Smith said she would tell them "the facts are out there and they're countless."

However, some UT students who did not attend the lecture disagree with legalizing medical marijuana and have strong opinions regarding the matter.

Brittany Jurczyk, a second-year nursing major, said she hasn't really researched the topic, but said she would lean against legalizing it.  She fears that people will take advantage of it and get prescriptions when they really don't medically need it.

"With knowing how frequently and freely doctors administer ADHD medication, I could see marijuana turning into something like that where they prescribe it without thoroughly investigating," Jurczyk said.

Larry Williams, a fourth-year film and video major, as well as a member of the U.S.  Air Force, believes that no recreational use of marijuana should be allowed and that the only medical uses should be for those with life-threatening diseases or those with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Joel Breininger, a second-year civil engineering major, said he feels the only conditions where medical marijuana should be used are when the dangers of using prescription drugs outweigh the dangers of marijuana.  He does not support the complete legalization of marijuana whatsoever.

"If marijuana is completely legalized, it won't fix our drug problem," he said.  "It would make it worse because other more dangerous drugs will be made or imported because there wouldn't be a market for marijuana.  Also, if it's legalized, teenagers will be able to get marijuana easier and may be more likely to get addicted to more dangerous drugs."

On the flip side, some UT students have no concerns about legalizing medical marijuana and even say they are in support of legalizing marijuana for recreational use.

Melanie Krouse, a third-year English major, said she feels both medical and recreational use of marijuana should be legalized because the government could tax it and have more control over its distribution.  Although she said she has not personally tried marijuana, she knows "dozens" of people who smoke it on a regular basis and some who have medical marijuana cards in Michigan.

"I don't have a negative view of marijuana, probably because I know so many who use it and I feel it's comparable to alcohol," she said.  "I have not done any research, but I can't imagine the health risks are any worse than that of alcohol or nicotine in cigarettes."

Brian Work, a second-year business major, said that no matter what the government does, people will always smoke marijuana, so legalizing it won't make a difference.  Regarding medical purposes, he thinks legalization would be a good idea.

"I believe that it should be legal, not because I do it or want to do it, but because I have friends that do smoke and I haven't seen anything negative about it except that they spend all their money on it," Work said.  "My friends show positive effects in that they deal with stress better when they smoke."

Regardless of people who differ with her views, Smith stands firm in her activism to legalize medical marijuana.

Smith said that when family and friends are watching the sick people they care about "suffer in pain on a daily basis," action needs to be taken.

"You want to do something for them," Smith said.  "When literally the only thing you can do is go buy them a bag, and pack that pipe for them or roll them a joint -- well, if it makes them feel better, if it gives them a chance to have a quality of life, even a little bit of a quality of life, then I think that's worth it."