Pubdate: Tue, 22 May 2012
Source: New York Times (NY)
Copyright: 2012 The New York Times Company
Contact: http://www.nytimes.com/ref/membercenter/help/lettertoeditor.html
Website: http://www.nytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Jesse Allen
Referenced: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v12/n281/a11.html

LEGALIZING THE USE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

To the Editor:

Like Justice Gustin L. Reichbach, I, too, suffered the depredations 
of cancer treatment and obtained no relief from synthetic marijuana 
substitutes. Though I lived in Washington, a state in which medical 
marijuana "possession" was legal, it was difficult to legally obtain it.

So, like Justice Reichbach, I was provided the real thing by friends. 
The relief was immediate, requiring no more than one or two puffs, 
making my treatment-racked body immeasurably more comfortable.

Because marijuana is illegal under federal law, state dispensing of 
the substance is a rat's nest of conflicting laws and ordinances, 
rife with potential for abuse. That marijuana remains a Schedule I 
drug, along with heroin and LSD, is beyond absurd.

It's time for the medical community to demand action on patients' behalf.

JESSE ALLEN

Santa Fe, N.M., May 17, 2012

The writer is co-author of "Breast Cancer - Getting Through It as a Couple."
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MAP posted-by: Jay Bergstrom