ATTACKING MEDICAL MARIJUANA USERS DOESN'T MAKE SENSE

It's difficult to see what good could come from federal prosecution of
an emaciated cancer patient who needs a pot brownie to keep her dinner
down.

It's equally difficult to see why the U.S. House of Representatives is
seeking to limit states' rights by overriding laws that allow the use
of medical marijuana.

A 268-148 House vote July 7 approved a measure to allow the federal
government to continue prosecuting people who use medical marijuana
where it is allowed by state law.

Washington state voters approved a citizen initiative allowing for the
use of medical marijuana by more than a 2-to-1 margin percent in 1998.

It gave people with serious medical conditions like HIV, cancer and
multiple sclerosis the right to possess and use marijuana with a
doctor's approval. It does not allow for the sale of the drug.

Our system of government clearly allows federal laws to take
precedence over state laws; however, this crusade led by Republicans,
the party dedicated to limited government and states' rights, seems
both hypocritical and out of step with the people's larger concerns.

At a time when the Bush administration should be focused on its
cornerstone issue of national security and Congress should be giving
as much attention as possible to the American public's concerns about
the economy, whether or not a few people with AIDS are lighting joints
is a minor concern at best.

Critics of medical marijuana laws argue that they encourage drug use,
yet they cannot offer proof of the claim.

Representatives on both sides of the issue have argued that medical
marijuana prosecution should not be a national priority.

Last year, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco
ruled that the federal law outlawing marijuana should not apply to
people using it on a doctor's recommendation. The Bush administration
appealed and the U.S. Supreme Court agreed last week to hear the case.

The high court refused to hear a case brought by the Justice
Department that would have punished doctors who discussed with their
patients the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.

This is not only a matter of states' rights, it's a matter of national
priorities and personal freedom.