MARIJUANA REFORM GROUP WINS BOOTH

The annual 3 Rivers Musical Festival, a four day outdoor event boasting the
slogan "Bringing out the BEST in Columbia!" is bringing more to the State's
capitol than just musicians this year.

Controversy has been rampant ever since festival organizers initially
denied the Columbia chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of
Marijuana Laws (NORML) a booth at the festival. Following the original
rejection of NORML's booth, organizers received complaint letters from the
South Carolina American Civil Liberties Union, demanding that NORML be
allowed to attend.

3 Rivers organizers have since agreed to give NORML a booth, but the issue
of marijuana is still a hot topic in the capitol. According to festival
directors, several people complained last year when NORML members tried to
hand them literature.

NORML is a non-profit, public interest lobby group that has been in
existence for more than 30 years.

They claim to "represent the interests of the tens of millions of Americans
who smoke marijuana responsibly and believe the recreational and medical
use of marijuana should no longer be a crime."

NORML supports the removal of all criminal penalties for the private
possession and responsible use of marijuana by adults, including the
cultivation for personal use, and the casual nonprofit transfers of small
amounts -- known as "decriminalization."

According to the 2001 National Household Survey on Drug Abuse, more than 83
million Americans -- 37 percent -- aged 12 and older admit to trying
marijuana at least once in their lives.

Using statistics such as these for rationale, NORML's argument centers
around the idea that penalties against drug use should not be more damaging
to an individual than the use of the drug itself.

Despite NORML's efforts, little progress has been made domestically to
legalize the drug.

In South Carolina alone, more than 14,000 adults on average are arrested
yearly, according to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Division (SLED).
Nationally there were almost 1 million marijuana arrests in the year 2000
- -- more than an eighty percent increase since the 1970s.

This "War on Drugs," a term coined by President Nixon in 1972, is another
aspect advocates for the decriminalization of marijuana commonly cite in
their arguments.

According to the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the United States
Federal Government spent $19.179 billion dollars in 2003 on the War on
Drugs, and State and local governments spent at least another 20 billion.
NORML believes these funds -- $40 billion a year -- could be spent more
effectively elsewhere.

Critics of the War on Drugs advocate the partial or complete
decriminalization of marijuana, combined with a system of regulation, as
happens with alcohol and prescription drugs. They believe that by providing
legal supplies of currently illegal drugs the price will fall, leading to a
collapse in the illegal drug industry and a reduction in crimes committed
by both drug suppliers and users. They also argue that the reduction in the
price will lead to little, if any, growth in drug addiction, due to the
inelasticity of demand.

Some even state that in a strictly regulated market, drug use may fall
overall, by removing the marketing activities of the illegal drug industry.

On the other hand, proponents of the War on Drugs claim that the system is
indeed effective.

For example, The Partnership for a Drug-Free America reported that drug use
among teens leveled off between 1998 and 1999, and that marijuana use among
teenagers declined to 41 percent in 1999, down from 44 percent in 1997.

Supporters claim that widespread developments like these do not receive the
same amount of publicity as do arguments for decriminalization.

Recently, much controversy has surfaced surrounding the legalization of
marijuana for medicinal use in the United States.

To date, ten states have legalized the use of medical marijuana -- Alaska,
Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Maryland, Nevada, Oregon and
Washington -- while many others are actively debating similar bills. The
medical uses of marijuana for a variety of conditions are currently being
investigated.

Marijuana has been proven to reduce fluid pressure in the eyes associated
with glaucoma and numerous studies have shown that it can help reduce the
pain and tremors of multiple sclerosis and suppress epileptic seizures.

Additionally, evidence reports that it has beneficial effects, including
the relief of nausea of chemotherapy patients and an appetite stimulant for
AIDS patients. Even though these findings may be true and some states have
even allowed medicinal use, a large portion of Americans still do not
support medical use.

Medicinal uses of THC (the active component in marijuana) are the principal
emphasis in the research of Dr. John Huffman, a chemistry professor here at
Clemson. The goals of his research include the potential development of new
pharmaceutical products and an exploration of the geometry of THC receptors
in the body.

"We are trying to develop new compounds, which will give insight into the
manner in which THC interacts with mammalian organisms," Huffman said of
his research. "We want to know how it interacts with the receptors, so you
can pick apart the effects of THC -- be able to have something (a drug)
that doesn't affect the spontaneous activity but still has the desirable
benefits of THC."

In essence, the drug would not produce the "bad" effects associated with
marijuana, such as impairment of motor skills and memory loss, while at the
same time providing beneficial effects like inflammatory suppression and
pain relief -- a feat that has yet to be accomplished in the pharmaceutical
industry.

The American Medical Association says in its policy statement, in part,
"The AMA believes that cannabis is a dangerous drug and as such is a public
health concern."

There have been no statements released by the AMA that reflect a change in
their policy -- even in light of such research findings.