Source: Olympian, The (WA) Contact: Wed, 19 Aug 1998 Author: Walt Bowen (pro) and David Boze (con) PRO-CON DEBATE ON I-692 PRO: Initiative 692 goes beyond partisan politics * HUMANE: The key point is that the initiative would help decrease suffering. In about 60 days, the voters of the state of Washington can do something to relieve pain and suffering - they can vote yes in support of the medical marijuana Initiative 692. This should not be a left or right issue. The pain and suffering from glaucoma, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, AIDS, cancer and other illnesses is shared, by all Democrats, Republicans and Independents. Initiative 692 gathered more than 260,000 signatures and is the work of Dr... Rob Killian, who runs a health clinic in Tacoma. He sponsored a similar initiative last year, and only Island County voted for it. That initiative was overly broad and would have decriminalized some drugs and freed some criminals from prison. The state Senate worked briefly on the issue this spring, but SB 6271 died, so sponsors had to use the initiative to get action. Narrower Focus The flaws in the last initiative have been corrected. The new initiative is modeled after SB 6271 which was sponsored by 6271, which was sponsored by Sens. Jeanne Kohl, D-Seattle, and Bob McCaslin, R-Spokane. Initiative 692 is limited and focuses on medical needs. It allows the medical use of marijuana for a limited number of specific medical conditions for which there is. scientific evidence that marijuana works. Physicians must advise patients that medical marijuana could be beneficial. Other safeguards are built in. Limits are placed on the amount of marijuana that a patient can possess. Parental consent is required for patients under 18. It cannot be used at work or while driving. Other drugs are not impacted nor are laws covering the nonmedical use of marijuana. Patients with terminal or debilitating illnesses who grow and use marijuana with the consent of a physician would be protected from prosecution. Protections also apply to physicians who recommend marijuana and to the people who act as primary caregivers for patients. It appears that the use of marijuana as a painkiller has been around for centuries, but the doctors of 1998 cannot prescribe it. This is in spite of more than 75 studies and research articles published in peer-reviewed medical journals that have demonstrated the therapeutic value of marijuana. High Level Of Support In 1995, the oldest and largest association of public health professionals in the world, the American Public Health Association, urged lawmakers to make marijuana legally available as a therapeutic agent. In 1990, more than half of the cancer specialists surveyed said they favor the controlled medical availability of marijuana. Forty-four percent said they had suggested obtaining marijuana illegally for a patient at least once. Polling data show a high level of public support. Thirty-six states have passed legislation supporting the therapeutic potential of marijuana. Speaking in support of the marijuana legislation, Sens. Kohl and McCaslin said, "As one of us is a Seattle Democrat and the other is a Spokane Republican, we frequently differ on legislation before the Senate. However, illness and suffering are not partisan issues. We are united...." We should be united in support of this humanitarian Initiative 692. Walt Bowen is a longtime Thurston County political advocate and former chairman of the Thurston County Democratic Party. - -*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-*-* CON - 'War on drugs' should not include medicinal pot use * 1-692: The Washington initiative would allow use of marijuana by prescription only. Early this year, as I approached the entryway of a local grocery store, two scruffy-looking youngsters stopped me on my way in. At first I thought for sure that the two were down on their luck and needed money for food and soap for a thorough (and badly needed) washing. Instead, however, the catatonic pair asked if I would sign Initiative 692, the "medicinal marijuana" initiative. Perhaps I'm a bit cynical, but judging from the appearance of the signature gatherers for I-692, medicinal purposes were not what they had in mind. Nevertheless, 1-692 would legalize marijuana only for patients suffering from a terminal illness or certain other debilitating conditions. Prescription Required Patients would have to get a prescription from their doctor to use the drug, and possession amounts would be limited to 60 doses. Patient caregivers would be permitted to assist patients with the administration of the drug. All other laws against the recreational use and distribution of the drug would remain in force. And these are precisely the points I-692 advocates are hoping you'll remember. Proponents are emphasizing the limited scope of this initiative. They eagerly point out that it does not reform (loosen) drug laws the way the last "medicinal marijuana" initiative would have. Advocates of marijuana legalization have learned that their ultimate goals of loosening societal mores against drug use and liberalizing drug laws do not sit well with the majority of voters in Washington state. Just because some of those supporting the legalization of marijuana as a painkiller for the severely afflicted also support the legalization of recreational drug use, however, does not necessarily mean I-692 should be opposed. Authorizing the use of a drug in specific circumstances does not necessarily start society, down the slippery slope toward libertarian drug laws. For example, although morphine is legal for doctors to prescribe, its recreational use is prohibited. Also, steroids can be legally prescribed by a doctor but are illegal for recreational abuse. At Doctor's Discretion Doctors disagree as to whether marijuana can be used effectively as medicine; the majority of doctors, it seems, dismiss the "medicinal" value of marijuana. Yet, in the case of I-692 where use is legalized only for patients in specific conditions, it seems reasonable to permit doctors to use their discretion as to which drug would best alleviate their patient's pain. If experience proves that doctors' prescriptions for the drug are too readily abused, we could reverse the law through our legislature or the initiative process. The major forces behind 1-692, such as billionaire socialist (anyone else see the irony there?) George Soros, are not likely to be satisfied with the legalization of marijuana for medicinal purposes. But voters should be wary of any future attempts to legalize recreational drug use. Society already has a great deal of difficulty dealing with the effects of one legal, mind-altering drug (alcohol). More to contend with may prove too costly. The "War on Drugs" is not waged on prescriptions for aspirin, penicillin or morphine. Neither should it be waged on marijuana used for medicinal purposes. David Boze is a research analyst with the Evergreen Freedom Foundation. - -*-*-*-* - ---