MARIJUANA DECISION IS WORSE THAN YOU THINK

If a substance can provide a therapeutic benefit to a patient, then
his or her physician should be permitted to prescribe
it. Amphetamines have been shown to aid adrenal gland problems, yet
they are all but impossible to obtain legally. The British use a
"cocktail" that includes heroin to control extreme pain while
allowing the patient to remain lucid and functional, yet this
cocktail is not available in this country. And the list goes on.

That these drugs are also used illegally has no place in any
discussion concerning their medicinal use. Prescription drug abuse
is fast becoming the leading cause of addiction in this country. If
the Supreme Court's "logic" in the marijuana case is carried to its
logical conclusion then all of the currently legal pain killers,
psychoactive drugs, etc., need to be outlawed. I don't think even
the DEA would suggest that. If a doctor is found to be prescribing
drugs for non-therapeutic reasons then there are laws already on the
books to prosecute them and their "patients."

Let's not tie the hands of the overwhelming majority of medical
professionals who are only trying to do the best for their patients.

Chris Daly

Yucaipa, Calif.