Pubdate: Tue, 20 Mar 2001
Source: Battalion, The (TX)
Copyright: 2001 The Battalion
Contact:  013 Reed McDonald Building, Texas A&M University, College Station 
TX 77843-1111
Fax: (409) 845-2647
Website: http://www.thebatt.com/
Forum: http://venus.beseen.com/boardroom/g/49212/
Author: George Deutsch
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)

MEDICINAL MARIJUANA?

(U-WIRE) COLLEGE STATION, Texas -- Last month, a bill that would lessen the 
penalties on chronically ill patients using marijuana as a pain reliever 
was introduced to the Criminal Jurisprudence Committee of the Texas House 
of Representatives. A bill that partially decriminalizes the medical use of 
marijuana in Texas is long overdue.

The medicinal use of marijuana has been proven to sufficiently combat the 
effects of terminal illnesses while reducing side effects and requiring 
fewer prescriptions.

"Under current law, patients may not be acquitted for marijuana possession 
in Texas courts even if they can show they have cancer, marijuana reduces 
their nausea and vomiting, and they are using marijuana with their doctors' 
approval," said Chuck Thomas of the Marijuana Policy Project, a group that 
helps states form practical medical marijuana laws.

"If enacted, this bill will allow Texas courts to make a distinction 
between the medical use of marijuana and the recreational use of marijuana."

The idea behind this bill is that no one has the right to deny the 
chronically ill any type of effective medication, regardless of the social 
stigma surrounding it.

Similar laws have already proven beneficial in California and Oregon, 
states traditionally more liberal than Texas.

Marijuana has been written off for too long as the drug of choice for 
stoners. When assessing its worth, critics often fail to acknowledge its 
many positive, pain-relieving qualities.

The new bill would not officially legalize possession or consumption of 
marijuana. Instead, it would provide a legitimate defense in court for 
those using the drug under a doctor's recommendation.

Although this is a step in the right direction, the bill would not fully 
shield the ill Texans from their own government. Unlike current laws in 
eight other states, the new bill would not protect doctor-approved 
marijuana users from arrest if discovered.

"If this bill passes, seriously ill people will still be arrested in Texas 
for using medical marijuana, but they would then at least have a fighting 
chance in court to explain their medical need," Thomas said.

Currently, state legislation is the only way to legalize the medical use of 
marijuana; federal law still prohibits it.

If the bill fails to pass, the terminally ill of Texas who rely on 
marijuana for medical treatment must continue to do so in secret.

Ideally, the new bill will lead to further legislation to loosen 
restrictions on marijuana's use in Texas, a state whose drug policy is 
generally very conservative. "People have long dismissed Texas as a 
wasteland of ignorance and intolerance," said Rick Day, the Texas state 
coordinator of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana 
Legislation. "With this bill, the Legislature shows great clarity, 
compassion and maturity in addressing this medical issue."

Day vows to rally support for the bill.

"Texas NORML ... supports this first step in ending the 80-year war against 
responsible Texas consumers of cannabis. We ... urge fence-sitting 
legislators to ask themselves one question: 'Am I for, or against, cancer 
patients?'"
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MAP posted-by: Terry F