Pubdate: Sat, 03 Apr 1999
Date: 04/03/1999
Source: Sacramento Bee (CA)
Author: Heather Mackintosh

Re "Science belies the political puffing against marijuana," Op- Ed,
March  24: After undergoing abdominal surgery several years ago, I was
given morphine  for postoperative pain during my one-night stay in the
hospital. I began to  understand how one might become dependent on
such a strong opiate. But to  classify morphine as a Schedule II drug
while marijuana is considered by policy  to be a Schedule I defies
logic.

The real issue here is not the danger of marijuana, but the fear of
the policy-makers that, in the wake of decades of warnings regarding
the use of illicit drugs, they would lose credibility to concur that
marijuana might have  value. They've already lost credibility with
many voters who know that the  risks of marijuana don't even come
close to the dangers associated with hard  drug use.

We've already approved the medical use of marijuana, and our
government needs to reflect the desires of the people.

Heather Mackintosh
Elk Grove