THE SCOOP, MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Those Who Cannot Remember The Past Are Condemned To... Uh... Something

Never mind what his own study says; Drug Czar Barry McCaffrey insists
that medical marijuana is gonna stay illegal -- because it impairs
memory, interferes with motor skills, and it impairs memory.

As you already know, voters in seven states have approved the use of
marijuana strictly for medical purposes. However, the will of the
people notwithstanding, the federal government still thinks letting a
cancer patient in chemotherapy relieve their pain this way is a crime
worthy of imprisonment.

Gee, thank God somebody's trying get these troublemakers off the
streets.

Let's not confuse medical use of marijuana with recreational toking.
Casual marijuana abuse can cause serious problems for some people. But
that's not the subject here. And it impairs memory.

Here's the thing: an independent report commissioned by McCaffrey's
own Office of National Drug Control Policy has strongly recommended
legalization for medical reasons only.

McCaffrey's own investigators say that

a) marijuana's not particularly addictive b) it's not a gateway to
harder drugs c) medical use wouldn't increase casual abuse d) and for
people in grave condition and real pain, like AIDS patients suffering
from wasting syndrome, the medical benefits far outweigh the risks,
which are less than you get even with many well-known prescription
drugs.

Never mind all that. Never mind the insanity of outlawing a substance
tried by roughly one-quarter of the U.S. population. Never mind the
ongoing, ludicrous failure of drug prohibition. And never mind the
obvious historical example of alcohol prohibition.

The Drug Czar still insists that anyone putting into practice his own
office's findings will still be subject to arrest.

But suppose for a second the study had determined that marijuana was a
major public-health menace. Do you imagine General McCaffrey would
discard it so easily, or would he be waving it proudly as further
rationalization for the militarization of drug enforcement?

Dude, why spend our tax dollars on a study if you're just going to
ignore it if it doesn't find what you want?

I guess because except for cigarettes, alcohol, caffeine, and
prescription narcotics, drugs are destroying America.

And they impair memory.