SUSPICIOUS MINDS

Congressional Probe of Oregon's Medical Marijuana Law Smacks of Federal
Overreaching

We wish we believed the federal government was only doing its job in
investigating Oregon's medical marijuana program. But the track record of
the Bush administration and congressional Republicans suggests otherwise.

Even as the state argued in court last week that the feds had no business
trying to derail Oregon's assisted suicide law, word came that
investigators were checking into the Medical Marijuana Act, which was
approved by Oregon voters in 1998.

The act allows adults in the state to grow and use a limited amount of
marijuana for treating debilitating medical conditions or for relief of
severe pain. A doctor must first verify that the patient needs the relief.

It's true that the medical marijuana exemption creates an opportunity for
abuse. We're concerned that one doctor signed off on more than 40 percent
of the marijuana approvals over a three-year period (although that's no
doubt due in part to other doctors' reluctance to participate). If criminal
activity is being ignored by the state, the feds should step in.

But, while there's no evidence suggesting that's the case, there is plenty
of evidence to suggest that the idea of medical marijuana does not sit
comfortably with those in power in Washington, D.C. And that makes us very
suspicious about the motives of this secret investigation.

We would not be surprised to find some of the same folks opposed to
assisted suicide also pushing for an end to medical marijuana. It just
doesn't match their values.

Whether or not you agree with assisted suicide or medical marijuana, the
issues were decided by the state's voters and it is not the place of the
federal government to interfere in those decisions. No one has proven any
rampant misuse of either law and, if that were proven, the state of Oregon
has its own enforcement abilities.

Officials in the Bush administration say they are proponents of states'
rights. Their actions on assisted suicide suggest that's the case only when
they agree with the state's position. Let's hope they don't follow up on
that by overreaching on the medical marijuana issue as well.

The Right Approach

Southern Oregon University officials deserve praise for scheduling budget
cuts that keep students in mind by refusing to eliminate academic programs
or raise tuition more than the scheduled 3 percent.

A combination of layoffs, unfilled vacancies, fewer class offerings,
service reductions and fewer part-time hires will be used to reach the
budgetary goals.

SOU will cut a total of $3.5 million to $3.7 million. Oregon's budget
crisis accounts for $1.5 million to $1.7 million of that total.

SOU President Elizabeth Zinser said that administrators hope "the impacts
will be seamless or transparent to students." She said that if the cuts go
any deeper the university would reach the "tipping over" point.

We're sure that the university will not reach that point, given the careful
budgeting that is being done at the Ashland campus. Administrators
acknowledge that further reductions could lead to elimination of academic
programs.

Since academic programs are the life blood of any institution of higher
learning, the demise of some of them could do nothing but hurt the
institution by driving away students, which would have a detrimental impact
on state funding.

SOU is taking the right approach to what could have a devastating impact on
the school.