Journal Sentinel Editorial Source: Journal Sentinel America has a serious drug addiction. But the federal government will not make a dent in that formidable problem by burying its head in the sand and refusing to acknowledge that in some limited cases, marijuana has legitimate medicinal benefits. The evidence doesn't come from some fuzzy-headed band of pot smokers in the mountains of California but from no less an authority than the Institute of Medicine. In a 1999 report, the institute, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, reported that scientific research and anecdotal evidence demonstrated that the active ingredient in marijuana appeared useful in treating pain, nausea and other symptoms associated with cancer and AIDS in some patients. What's more, the institute found no evidence that making marijuana available to sick patients by doctor's orders would increase its recreational use. Unfortunately, the U.S. Supreme Court recently took a decidedly narrow and rigid view and dealt a serious setback to the continued rational evaluation of marijuana for medical purposes. In a unanimous ruling, the high court determined that federal law bars the distribution of marijuana even to people who say they need it to alleviate symptoms of their illness. Federal law, according to an opinion written by Justice Clarence Thomas, "reflects a determination that marijuana has no medical benefits worthy of an exception." The ruling doesn't invalidate laws that permit medicinal use of marijuana in nine states, but it could have a chilling effect on other states even exploring such laws. It could also spell doom for large public distribution centers of medicinal marijuana cigarettes, making it more difficult for the sick to relieve their misery, according to officials of the Marijuana Policy Project, which lobbies for medicinal marijuana laws. While it's true, as opponents point out, that there are legal alternatives to medical marijuana, including a synthetic form of the active ingredient, evidence strongly suggests marijuana cigarettes are more effective in some cases in relieving nausea, which is associated with chemotherapy and wasting diseases, and neuromuscular pain. We are not advocating recreational use of marijuana. But the national drug scourge has nothing to do with the medicinal use of this drug. The medicinal use of marijuana has everything to do with relieving suffering. The federal government should stop its political posturing and wake up to that fact. Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (WI) Published: June 1, 2001 Copyright: 2001 Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Contact: jsedit@onwis.com Website: http://www.jsonline.com/ Marijuana Policy Project http://www.mpp.org/ OCBC Verus US Government http://www.freedomtoexhale.com/mj.htm