HARSH LAWS ONLY ADD TO THESE PATIENTS' SUFFERING

I am very disappointed that Rep. Gene Taylor voted against the
Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment to the Commerce-Justice-State Appropriations
bill. I wish he had made an effort to stop the Department of Justice's
raids, arrests and prosecutions of medical marijuana patients.

This amendment would have prevented the federal government from targeting
people who use marijuana to treat serious illnesses with their doctors'
recommendations and in accordance with state laws.

By casting this vote, Rep. Taylor has aligned himself with a small and
diminishing segment of society. According to a Time/CNN poll taken in
October of last year, 80 percent of the American people "think adults
should be able to use marijuana legally for medical purposes."

The vote also directly contradicts the position of the 2.6 million-member
American Nurses Association, which recently passed a resolution supporting
"legislation to remove criminal penalties including arrest and imprisonment
for bona fide [medical marijuana] patients."

I wish Rep. Taylor had voted to take patients out of the state-federal
conflict over laws regulating marijuana's medical use. Patients should not
bear the burden of this conflict.

I hope Rep. Taylor will reconsider his position in the future so that
patients do not have to fear the federal government when they use a state
and doctor-approved medicine that relieves their suffering and extends
their lives.

RENICK TAYLOR Biloxi