Sunday - March 26, 2006

Up In Smoke

Before anyone gets the wrong idea let me state up front: (1) I do not use marijuana nor do I condone its use, (2) I do not believe it is within the powers granted to the US government by the people to criminalize the cultivation or possession of marijuana. The stupidest argument I have ever heard is from the US attorney below.

Mankind has a fundamental right to grow crops and every plant has its uses. Even the poppy plant can contribute to mankind’s suffering by providing morphine in addition to the bad things it can be made into like heroin. Even the miserable coca plant has its uses in producing a pleasant soft drink and we all know things go better with Coke.

So why do we have these Draconian drug laws? All they do is fill our prisons with people who just wanted a little mental relief from the stress of everyday life. Is there a medical downside to marijuana use? Probably, as it is inhaled smoke just like a cigarette which has well documented dangers. But do marijuana smokers light up one after the other like cigarette smokers do? I doubt it.

Based on my one experience with marijuana in the late 60’s, we would toke a joint until we were mellow then it was a fight over the twinkies and chips as the “munchies” set in. I don’t recall anyone in the campus “drug culture” that toked more than two or three joints a day, at most. I guess that’s what I hate about the current drug laws. The government is robbing us of personal choice in a matter that involves no one but the individual.

I believe the government has some right to protect us from ourselves by prohibiting murder, robbery and other acts that impact society as a whole but where do we draw the line and say to the government, “back off!” We tried this once before by prohibiting alcohol. All that produced was a nation of criminals and an entire crime industry.

Today alcohol is legal and societal rules manage its consumption. The same needs to happen to marijuana. Think about it: (1) alcohol is taxed and produces millions of dollars in revenue for government, (2) penalties are provided for criminal use of alcohol such as drunk driving, (3) alcohol is prohibited to underage minors who simply cannot handle it in a mature manner, (4) employers and other institutions you interact with on a daily basis have rules in place punishing you for alcohol use where it is inappropriate like the workplace.

Do you notice a pattern in all the above. Use of alcohol is punished - but only if it is misused. Government and society rely on you to make good personal choices. Why is marijuana use different? That is a question I have never heard a reasonable answer to yet. Someone enlighten me. What say you?

Medical Marijuana Issue Returns to Court
_{March 26, 2006, 11:46 AM EST}

SAN FRANCISCO (AP)—Each time the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on medical marijuana, the justices have come down against allowing the sick and dying to use the drug to ease their symptoms and possibly prolong life.

However, the door has never been fully closed, and now a federal appeals court is set to hear arguments in the latest round of legal wrangling over the issue. The case to be argued Monday before the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco narrows the matter to the so-called right to life theory: that marijuana should be allowed if it is the only viable option to keep a patient alive or free of excruciating pain.

It would apply only to the sickest patients and their suppliers, regardless of whether they live in one of the 11 mostly Western states that allow medical marijuana. “A victory would affect people who are very seriously ill, facing death or great physical suffering,” said Randy Barnett, a Boston University law school professor working on the case.

The case was brought by Angel Raich, a 40-year-old mother of two from Oakland who suffers from scoliosis, a brain tumor, chronic nausea and other ailments. She uses marijuana every couple of hours to ease her pain and bolster her appetite. “She’d probably be dead without marijuana,” said her doctor, Frank Lucido, who has recommended marijuana for some 3,000 patients. “Nothing else works.”

The Bush administration says the lawsuit is without merit. ”There is no fundamental right to distribute, cultivate or possess marijuana,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Quinlivan, the government’s lead medical marijuana attorney, wrote to the appeals court.

- More government legislation insanity here ...

Posted by The Skipper     on 03/26/2006 at 05:20 PM   
Filed Under: • Health-Medicine • Judges-Courts-Lawyers •  
• Comments (17) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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Not that very many people ever read this far down, but this blog was the creation of Allan Kelly and his friend Vilmar. Vilmar moved on to his own blog some time ago, and Allan ran this place alone until his sudden and unexpected death partway through 2006. We all miss him. A lot. Even though he is gone this site will always still be more than a little bit his. We who are left to carry on the BMEWS tradition owe him a great debt of gratitude, and we hope to be able to pay that back by following his last advice to us all:

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It's been a long strange trip without you Skipper, but thanks for pointing us in the right direction and giving us a swift kick in the behind to get us going. Keep lookin' down on us, will ya? Thanks.

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