DON'T DISMISS MARIJUANA AS MEDICINE

I cannot ignore the letter by Joe Canzoneri regarding his opposition
to what he calls "medical marijuana." The legalization of medicinal
marijuana is long overdue.

My big brother was diagnosed with cancer at the age of 16 and died two
months after his high school graduation. This was long before the time
of marijuana dispensaries, so my conservative and law-abiding parents
gave my brother money to buy marijuana from the local dealer without
any qualms.

Why? Marijuana helped lessen the nausea my brother had after radiation
treatments. He also suffered from insomnia, which was not so bad on
weekends when I could stay up with him and watch late night
television. We loved those "Planet of the Apes" movies. Weekday nights
were more difficult for him and marijuana helped him to get at least a
few hours of sleep before dawn. Near the end, he was in constant pain
and again, marijuana eased his discomfort.

I am not arguing that doctor's prescriptions for marijuana may be too
readily available, but I cannot and will not ever condemn medicinal
marijuana, pot, grass, weed, or whatever you want to call it. It
helped alleviate the suffering of someone whom I loved and adored. It
is high time that medicinal marijuana is formally legalized.

Jane Liljedahl

Chico