cannabisnews.com: Relieving Pain and Suffering Must Be Priority Relieving Pain and Suffering Must Be Priority Posted by FoM on December 07, 2000 at 14:14:07 PT Editorial Source: Alameda Times-Star When the U.S. Supreme Court decided to hear the U.S. Department of Justice appeal regarding the Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative, the people who run the cooperative were disappointed. They would have preferred that the court had declined to hear the appeal, letting stand a lower court's ruling allowing the club to distribute medicinal marijuana. We regret the delay for the very sick people who get relief from their symptoms from using medicinal marijuana. But we believe it is a good idea for the highest court in the nation to weigh in on the issue. We hope the justices recognize the medical benefits of the substance and reject the anti-drug hysteria that has clouded the issue. The case dates from 1996 when Californians passed Proposition 215, which allowed seriously ill patients to obtain marijuana for medical purposes. Seven other states have passed similar laws. Cancer and AIDS patients have used marijuana to counter nausea and boost their appetites. Patients suffering from a range of illnesses, including arthritis, migraines and glaucoma, find it reduces their symptoms. People with chronic pain also have found relief from using marijuana. The Oakland Cannabis Buyers Cooperative was established to distribute medicinal marijuana and ensure it was not abused. A U.S. District Court judge issued a temporary injunction that closed the cooperative in 1998, saying federal law banning marijuana distribution supersedes state law. However, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeal ordered the judge to reconsider the law considering the medical benefits. After a hearing, the district court judge found the government's case had not addressed the medical benefit issue and he withdrew the injunction. Although California Attorney General Bill Lockyer asked U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno not to appeal the ruling, the Justice Department took it to the U.S. Supreme Court. The court ordered the cooperative to stop dispensing the substance until it decided whether to hear the case. Last week it decided to take the case and decide whether the cooperative can use medical necessity as a defense against the federal ban on marijuana distribution. The injunction against distribution will remain, pending the court's decision. It seems unnecessarily unfeeling to prevent patients from getting the substance while the justices take a look at the issue. We would have preferred they let stand the lower court's decision to lift the injunction while they decided the law. For some terminal patients, the injunction means they will live their last months with a level of pain and discomfort that could have been lessened. While many of the high court's justices have a distinctly conservative bent, their perspective also includes a deference for state's rights. We hope they acknowledge the rights of Californians to have passed this compassionate law. We are encouraged that legal experts note that in past deliberations of assisted suicide cases, some of the justices have hinted that the denial of relief of great pain could be a violation of a person's constitutional rights. We hope the nine justices are able to see the medicinal marijuana issue for what it is and is not. It is not about stoned hippies in the 1960s passing around joints at a party. It is about providing relief of pain and debilitating symptoms to seriously ill patients. Source: Alameda Times-Star (CA) Published: December 7, 2000 Address: 66 Jack London Sq. Oakland, CA 94607 Copyright: 2000 MediaNews Group, Inc. and ANG Newspapers Contact: triblet angnewspapers.com Website: http://www.timesstar-ang.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Oakland Cannabis Buyer's Cooperativehttp://www.rxcbc.org/Why Won't Government Let Us Use Marijuana As Medicine?http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread7925.shtmlMedical Marijuana Fight Goes To The Supreme Court http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread7865.shtmlCannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtmlCannabisNews Articles - Oaklandhttp://cannabisnews.com/thcgi/search.pl?K=oakland Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #1 posted by defenderoffreeworld on December 08, 2000 at 08:48:13 PT: common sense alone will make anyone realize... that relieving pain and suffering for the ill is more important than the will of a few old, fat, and ridiculously wealthy congressman that want to maintain their own interests as the major priority. oh, and whatever happened to state's rights? whatever happened to maintaining the size and power of the federal government under control? its funny to hear bush say that he advocates a smaller government, yet he will illegalize abortion. is that not just another example of the federal government running people's lives? will that not create a black market for abortion, in which operations will be performed under precarious conditions, disregarding hygene regulations? will this not only cause more controversy and problems? its funny when politicians repeatedly contradict themselves in their public speeches and their actions, while the ignorant majority holds the "go bush" "go gore" signs. did anyone else here vote for nader? 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