POLICE UNDERSELL VALUE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

Regarding Naperville Police Chief David Dial's March 15 column: While
there have been studies showing that marijuana can shrink cancerous
tumors, medical marijuana is essentially a palliative drug. If a
doctor recommends marijuana to a cancer patient undergoing
chemotherapy and it helps them feel better, then it's working. In the
end, medical marijuana is a quality of life decision best left to
patients and their doctors.

Drug warriors waging war on non-corporate drugs contend that organic
marijuana is not an effective health intervention. Their prescribed
intervention for medical marijuana patients is handcuffs, jail cells
and criminal records. This heavy-handed approach suggests that drug
warriors should not be dictating health care decisions. It's long past
time to let doctors decide what is right for their patients; sick
patients should not be jailed for daring to seek relief from medical
marijuana.

Robert Sharpe

Arlington, Va.