PROPOSAL 1: CLOSE TO A WARRIOR'S HEART

Student Leader, Group Urges Voters to Check 'Yes' On Legalizing
Medical Marijuana

A group of Wayne State students seeks to educate others about medical
marijuana and to encourage voters on Nov. 4 to pass the Proposal 1
initiative, which would legalize marijuana for patients.

Jane Stewart, a 50-year-old patient and WSU senior, is in the process
of starting the group Warriors for Medical Marijuana, in the hopes of
encouraging those registered to vote to do so for Proposal 1 on Election Day.

Ten years ago, Stewart was diagnosed with common variable
immunodeficiency, a disease similar to AIDS and lupus, in that it
gives a person an increased susceptibility to infections. It is not
contagious and is incurable.

"The best thing that I could do is live like 'The Boy in the
Bubble,'" she said. "But I did that for many years, I sat at home and
I didn't go anywhere. But sitting at home waiting to die is not any
way to live."

Under Proposal 1, terminally ill patients could use marijuana with
their doctor's approval. It also would permit them, or their
caregivers, to harvest marijuana plants for medical use and to
possess 2.5 ounces of the substance at any time.

The proposal would also protect patients by requiring them to
register as patients and carry identification cards that would allow
police to distinguish them from abusers.

Stewart said she was inspired to get involved with the medical
marijuana movement when she saw other students around Wayne State
petitioning to get the initiative on the ballot.

From there, she decided to intern with the Michigan Coalition for
Compassionate Care, a state-wide organization committed to obtaining
medical marijuana for patients.

Stewart said starting the group was a part of the internship. Similar
groups have already been instated at Michigan State, Central Michigan
and the University of Michigan.

An Alternative for the Pain

At the suggestion of a friend, Stewart started smoking marijuana a
couple of years ago to help with nausea caused by her treatment and
general pain caused by her disease.

Since then, she said that she has since been able to reduce by half
the amount of prescribed opiates, such as Vicodin, fentanyl and
morphine, that she was taking before.

Previously, the drugs had caused her concentration and memory
problems that prevented her from doing well in school, where she is
pursuing dual bachelor's degrees in sociology and psychology.

She has also taken the prescribed marijuana substitute Marinol, a
synthetic THC liquid capsule, for two years. Although the medication
helps with the nausea and vomiting she may experience, she said the
problem is that it takes too long to take effect, while the marijuana
is more immediate.

Aside from the quick relief, Stewart said using marijuana could help
reduce her medical bills which she said are "astronomical." Every
month, her insurance is billed $1,500 for the Marinol capsules alone.

Stewart said she is honest with her doctors and tells them that she
smokes. While they would prefer that she only take the pills, she
said they also told her to do what she feels would be best for her.

Signs of Change ... Maybe

Stewart thinks medical marijuana has made it on the ballot this year
because of the seemingly new, more liberal mindset in politics, as
reflected in having the first black presidential candidate and female
vice presidential candidate in this year's election.

However, both Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain and
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama oppose the
legalization of marijuana.

Desiree Kelly, president of WSU's Anti-Drug Wayne student group, said
that marijuana legalization is a "terrible idea" because, once it's
made legal, people will take advantage of it.

Kelly said that sometimes doctors write prescriptions for symptoms as
small as a headache or a sore throat.

"I know it's medically proven to help with cancer patients, asthma
and glaucoma, but people are not ready to handle this
responsibility," she said. "More laws should be put in place."

Stewart said she understands the potential for abuse if the proposal
becomes law, but said there are pros and cons to every decision and
the only reasons that prevent marijuana legalization are "politics and money."

"I found a happy medium that works for me," Stewart said. "If I have
to smoke a joint so I can get out and not be in a bubble any more,
then that's what I'm going to do."

If the proposal passes, Michigan would become the 13th state to
sanction the use of marijuana for medicinal reasons.

In Michigan, the growing and using of marijuana for medical purposes
is legal under local ordinance in Detroit, Ann Arbor, Ferndale and
Traverse City, when authorized by a physician. But state law trumps local law.

States that have legalized medical marijuana are Alaska, California,
Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode
Island, Vermont and Washington.