There is another, rarely mentioned reason why sick citizens should be allowed to use cannabis (marijuana) ("Rally supports use of pot to help ease medical pain," May 8): because it's biblically correct. Christ indicates he created all the seed-bearing plants, saying they are all good, on literally the very first page (Genesis 1:11-12 and 29-30).

The only biblical restriction placed on cannabis is that it is to be accepted with thankfulness (see 1 Timothy 4:1-5). And "But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (See 1 John 3:17).

Many people know of cannabis as the tree of life, and the very last page of the Bible indicates the leaves of the tree of life are for the healing of the nations.

Jesus risked jail to heal the sick.

Stan White

Dillon, Colo

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Another reason to allow sick citizens to use cannabis (marijuana) that doesn't get mentioned is because it's Biblically correct since Christ God Our Father, the Ecologician, indicates He created all the seed-bearing plants, saying they are all good, on literally the very first page (Genesis 1:11-12 and 29-30).

The only Biblical restriction placed on cannabis is that it is to be accepted with thankfulness (see 1 Timothy 4:1-5). And "But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (see 1 John 3:17).

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The debate over legalizing medical marijuana continues to heat up locally.

Critics of medical marijuana have planned a rally for Wednesday to voice opposition to two bills in the state legislature that would allow people to buy and smoke marijuana to treat approved medical conditions.

"Medical marijuana would grant legitimacy and cultural acceptance of this drug. We don't think that's a good thing," said Susan Mizenko, prevention education supervisor for Wyoming Valley Alcohol and Drug Services.

Mizenko's organization will join with area law enforcement, members of the medical community and other area anti-drug coalitions for a press conference Wednesday at 3 p.m. in the rotunda of the Luzerne County Courthouse.

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The Ex-D.A.'S Drug Demagoguery Made for Bad Policy.

In recent testimony before a U.S. Senate subcommittee, former Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham displayed dangerous ignorance about America's marijuana market, engaged in bombastic Reefer Madness rhetoric, and made demeaning generalizations about marijuana users.

The truth is that countless area residents choose cannabis for medical therapy or as a form of recreation that's safer than drinking. They are otherwise law-abiding citizens who represent every neighborhood, class, ethnicity, and walk of life.

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I'm writing about the article titled "Rally supports use of pot to help ease medical pain" (May 8).

One of the medications prescribed by my personal physician for my arthritis pain and inflammation has the rare potential side effect of death. In other words, if I take this medication as prescribed, I can die.

On the other hand, marijuana has never been documented to kill a single person in the 5,000-year history of its use.

For me, marijuana is the more effective medication. Right now, if adult citizens opt for the safer and more effective medication, they are subject to arrest and being sent to jail with violent criminals.

Is something wrong with this situation? I think so.

Shouldn't adult citizens have the freedom to choose what goes into their bodies in the privacy of their own homes?

Kirk Muse

Mesa, Ariz.

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WILKES-BARRE - Kenny Brown understands the issue of legalizing medical marijuana might be a non-starter in Pennsylvania, but he spent Friday trying to change a few minds.

Along with 70 supporters, the 21-year-old spent the afternoon rallying on Public Square to share stories, information and a petition for sanctioning the drug for medicinal use. While supporters understood residents' hesitation to the idea, they said the movement's goal isn't solely to legalize the substance outright and is grounded in giving patients another treatment option.

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State Rep. Phyllis Mundy Has a Bill Which Allows the Use of Marijuana in Treatment.

WILKES-BARRE - Thomas Chewey is eager to discuss challenges of his four-year battle with cancer, bi-polar disorder and hypertension.

Chewey, 48, of Larksville, was on Public Square on Friday in support of the rally to reform marijuana laws so the drug can be used in medical treatment.

Chewey said he has undergone radiation and chemo-therapy and has taken strong medications such as Vicodin and OxyContin to take away the constant pain. Using marijuana, he said, gives him more relief, and it's non-toxic.

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Prevention Point Pittsburgh will celebrate 15 years Saturday with a fundraiser to promote its mission -- to prevent the spread of HIV and hepatitis and overdose fatalities as the sole provider of clean needles to intravenous drug users.

Put the Needle on the Record (II), named as a sequel to last year's fundraiser, is at the Shadow Lounge, 5972 Baum Blvd., East Liberty, from 6 to 9 p.m., with a Viper's Soul Club dance party to follow. Donations in the range of $5 to $20 will be requested at the door to benefit Prevention Point Pittsburgh.

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The city's new district attorney and the state Supreme Court are moving to all but decriminalize the possession of small amounts of marijuana for personal use in an effort to unclog Philadelphia's crowded court dockets.

Under a policy to take effect later this month, prosecutors will charge such cases as summary offenses rather than as misdemeanors. People arrested with up to 30 grams of the drug - slightly more than an ounce - may have to pay a fine but face no risk of a criminal record.

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The voters of trendsetting California may well decide this November to legalize marijuana - there's a ballot referendum, and 56 percent of Californians are in favor - and no doubt this would be great news for the munchie industry, the bootleggers of Grateful Dead music, and the millions of stoners who have long yearned for an era of reefer gladness.

Seriously, this is a story about how desperate times require desperate measures. Legalization advocates, including many ex-cops and ex-prosecutors, have long contended that it's nuts to keep criminalizing otherwise law-abiding citizens while wasting $8 billion a year in law enforcement costs. That argument has never worked. But the new argument, cleverly synced to the recession mind-set, may well herald a new chapter in the history of pot prohibition.

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The Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana (MMJ) Act is a small but promising start for Pennsylvania. There are currently 14 states where MMJ has been legalized; laws regarding the amount of usable marijuana and number of plants varies from state to state. Two other states have passed laws that decriminalize MMJ. The federal government has made clear that there will be no action to change the status of marijuana on a national level. Therefore, changes regarding marijuana laws must be made at a state level.

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It is nearly impossible to have a rational discussion about reforming drug policy in this country. To question the logic of our current set of punitive laws is to question the morality of the War on Drugs itself.

Don't hold your breath waiting for anything that resembles a comprehensive rethinking of our antiquated and racially biased drug laws. A status quo steeped in brutality, arbitrariness and moral obtuseness beats laws grounded in justice every time.

When something sane unexpectedly happens, as it did this week when the Senate voted to reduce the disparity in sentencing for crack and powdered cocaine possession, there's a temptation to believe grown-ups have finally slipped into the room.

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As states across the country legalize the use of medical marijuana, Pennsylvania faces its own decision.

Some students at Lehigh have recreationally used marijuana, but they have not realized the reality of its legalization, especially for those with severe illnesses.

Pennsylvania may become one more state to legalize the use of medical marijuana.

In April 2009, State Representative Mark Cohen, along with six other co-sponsors, presented the House Bill 1393, or the "Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act," to the general assembly of Pennsylvania.

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To much of official Washington, the portrait of substance abuse in the United States is grim:

More than 22 million Americans abuse drugs or alcohol.

Just 10 percent of them get treated - and an alarming number relapse.

At treatment centers designed to help them, half the counselors quit each year. Worse, the newest research-based therapies often do not reach clinics at all.

In the dysfunction, A. Thomas McLellan sees opportunity.

"We've got to put scientific information into policies that make sense and will deliver for Americans," said McLellan, who left Philadelphia six months ago to become the nation's No. 2 drug-policy official.

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Federal agents are cracking down on imports of a synthetic marijuana that has started appearing in the Philadelphia area.

It is not illegal in any state to possess the substance, but Food and Drug Administration regulations bar its import and sale because it is not a tested and approved drug.

Eighty-five parcels arriving from Amsterdam at a UPS facility at Philadelphia International Airport were detained and then seized after tests proved positive for the drug, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.

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With No State Funding For DARE Programs This Year, Alternatives Are Being Considered For The Future

When news broke last year that the state was pulling all funding for the DARE anti-drug education program, Mechanicsburg and Carlisle school districts and the associated police departments said they were interested in continuing the program anyway.

And so they did, with the departments reporting that they taught DARE classes through this school year on the strength of community donors and then absorbed the remainder of the cost.

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In 1994, Phillipe Bourgois started hanging out with the homeless heroin users and crack smokers who lived in an encampment six blocks from his home.

Then an anthropology professor at San Francisco State University, Bourgois wanted to answer a basic question: "Should I be giving them a quarter every time I see them?"

Introduced by a needle-exchange activist, Bourgois immediately was welcomed in.

"I told them I was an anthropology professor interested in writing about their lives and, boom, they loved that idea," said Bourgois, who teaches at the University of Pennsylvania and is now studying the Puerto Rican community in a drug-ravaged neighborhood in North Philadelphia.

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The father of a Hempfield Area High School student told a newly formed drug task force Monday of the ease with which his daughter was able to acquire drugs at school.

"My daughter's telling me how easy it is to go into a classroom and crush up a pill," the parent said during the first meeting of the district's Drug Awareness and Prevention Committee, which drew two dozen parents and community members.

After the meeting, the man said that his oldest daughter is in a drug rehabilitation program after a year of using OxyContin that she purchased at school.

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Regarding Sam Contakos' column, "New year brings new round in fight to keep marijuana illegal," Jan. 17. The drug war is largely a war on marijuana smokers.

In 2008, there were 847,863 marijuana arrests in the U.S., almost 90 percent for simple possession. At a time when state and local governments are laying off police officers, firefighters and teachers, this country continues to spend enormous public resources criminalizing Americans who prefer marijuana to martinis. The end result of this ongoing culture war is not necessarily lower rates of use.

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Legislators in neighboring New Jersey recently passed a bill to legalize medical marijuana, and Gov. Jon Corzine signed the bill into law in one of his last acts before completing his term this week. That adds the Garden State to the more than a dozen states that have legalized medicinal marijuana.

Cynics will say this is the proverbial foot in the door for outright legalization of marijuana.

Maybe true. Meanwhile, it should serve as an reminder to Pennsylvania legislators that marijuana ought to be treated the same way as other, legal prescription drugs as a palliative for those suffering from AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis and other diseases.

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