Pubdate: Sat, 5 Apr 2008 Source: North County Times (Escondido, CA) Copyright: 2008 North County Times Contact: http://www.nctimes.com Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/1080 Note: Gives LTE priority to North San Diego County and Southwest Riverside County residents Author: Tony Klabunde STOP THE INSANITY ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA I live in Encinitas, and my congressman is Brian Bilbray, who has voted in favor of continuing to waste our valuable tax dollars in rounding up and incarcerating patients for following the advice of their doctors: that medical marijuana could ease their ailments. Just last month, the American College of Physicians ... released a position paper urging the federal government to stop arresting medical marijuana patients. Other prestigious medical organizations that have gone on the record in support of medical marijuana include the Institute of Medicine, American Public Health Association, Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, American Nurses Association, American Academy of HIV Medicine and The New England Journal of Medicine. A 2005 Gallup Poll established that 78 percent of American citizens support medical marijuana legislation, and it has never been defeated on a state ballot. Rep. Bilbray will have an opportunity to amend his mistake during 2008 budgets hearings by voting in favor of the Hinchey-Rohrabacher Amendment, which would protect patients and doctors from senseless imprisonment. Rep. Bilbray, if you won't listen to the people's will, then please listen to the strong consensus within the medical community and stop the politics of insanity. We have better things to spend our money on. Tony Klabunde Encinitas - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake