Medical Marijuana

CALIFORNIA'S BAN ON POT SELLING IS A PLUS

Walk down the seediest blocks in the country's worst inner cities, and it's
hard not to find a bar open early in the day. Enter one, and it's likely
that a patron will explain the drink in his hand by saying he feels "sick"
if he doesn't start the day with a shot of rye or vodka.

The supporters of California's medical marijuana movement say the sickness
they wish to alleviate goes way beyond satisfying a craving for cannabis.
In the wake of a recent state judicial ruling banning the sale of pot by
so-called cannabis clubs, the mayors of West Hollywood, San Francisco,
Oakland and Santa Cruz wrote President Clinton to see if there is any way
to allow marijuana sales for medical purposes only. Mayor Willie Brown of
San Francisco is especially adamant about opposing recreational drug use
but argues there is a compelling medical need.

The problem arose when the state Supreme Court agreed with an appellate
court that cannabis buyers' clubs are not primary caregivers. That means
they cannot legally sell or dispense marijuana, even under the medical
marijuana initiative approved by state voters in 1996. According to
California Attorney General Dan Lungren, the clubs have been under an
injunction requiring them to close down as of two weeks ago.

Some cancer patients believe, for example, that smoking marijuana helps
them overcome the nausea associated with chemotherapy. Other patients
insist that smoking the weed relieves the pain associated with cataracts.
But science is still divided, and large studies about the effectiveness of
marijuana for medicinal purposes are still under way. It also bears noting
that the main chemical in marijuana can be ingested in pill form with
similar medical results, but without adverse effects on a patient's lungs.

The strict regulation of marijuana as recognized by the California Supreme
Court is imperative. Even if medical science validates the claims of those
who desire to smoke the drug for medicinal purposes, that should not be
allowed to serve as a pretext for outright legalization.