cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana





Medical Marijuana
Posted by CN Staff on October 19, 2003 at 21:24:11 PT
Editorial
Source: Gainesville Sun
Does marijuana have a real medicinal value? It depends on who's giving the testimony.Advocates of using marijuana to moderate the after-effects of chemotherapy, among other strong medical treatments, are passionate in arguing that it serves a real purpose. Opponents, including most of the law-enforcement establishment, say it's worthless. They say the move to legalize "medical marijuana" is just a back-door attempt to legalize marijuana generally.
Most people expected that the U.S. Supreme Court would come down on the law-enforcement side when the subject arrived on its doorstep. The court had plenty of partisan cover: Both the Clinton and second Bush administrations agreed that doctors advising patients to use marijuana were subject to investigation and punishment by federal regulators.Surprise! This week, the Supreme Court, without comment, rejected an appeal of a ruling by a federal appellate panel that declared that threatening doctors with punishment violated their free speech and was in conflict with "principles of federalism." The case originated in California where voters approved an initiative in 1996 authorizing the use of marijuana for medical purposes.Supporters of medical marijuana had expected an opposite result. An adverse Supreme Court ruling, they said, would have stopped the movement in its tracks. Now, other states are expected to go along with California, Oregon, Washington, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Alaska, Hawaii, Maine and Maryland in approving it under some circumstances. Most of those states also approved the idea by voter referendum.Is such a law feasible in Florida? Certainly not through the Legislature, which has shown no sympathy for the idea. But advocates began a petition campaign a couple of years ago, and they're likely to be encouraged by the success of the California law.It's a serious subject. If it's on the 2004 ballot, let's hope it's decided after a serious debate.Note: The victory for medical marijuana in California may result in more voter initiatives around the country, even in Florida.Source: Gainesville Sun, The (FL)Published: October 18, 2003 Copyright: 2003 The Gainesville SunContact: voice gvillesun.comWebsite: http://www.gainesvillesun.com/CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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