LEGAL DRUGS ARE ABUSED TOO

Medical marijuana opponents often cite the possibility that legalized
marijuana could be diverted and abused, but when it comes to highly
addictive narcotics like OxyContin, the same concerns apparently do not apply.

In a story on Friday, "Alleged Child Abuser Faces Drug Charges," a woman
was able to secure prescriptions for large quantities of a highly addictive
schedule 2 narcotic and resell them at a huge profit. This is not an
isolated incident; similar stories have been reported nationwide. One has
to wonder why the possibility of diversion is used to deny legal access to
cannabis, not OxyContin. Both substances, when used as directed by a
health-care professional, can help patients regain some control over their
lives and improve its quality. Cannabis, can help patients use less
medication or eliminate those drugs altogether.

If society can tolerate the diversion of legal controlled substances like
OxyContin, we should be able to tolerate patients having legal access to
medical cannabis, a gentle herbal therapy with thousands of years of safe
use by humans.

Gary Storck

Madison