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opinion:
our view
Pot ruling leaves
us nauseous
After scant deliberation,
the Supreme Court this week struck down the legality of California's
cannabis clubs, which were established by the state's voters
through a ballot initiative in 1996.
The unanimous decision,
written by the chatterbox Clarence Thomas, focused on the
federal Controlled Substances Act, which states marijuana
has "no currently acceptable medical use."
The only currently
acceptable use for marijuana, however, is for medical research
purposes. As such, the Supreme Court's ruling will only affect
the cannabis clubs, which grow and administer marijuana in
large quantities.
Whether or not
marijuana has any medicinal value is up to debate, as numerous
studies have shown its value. It just depends on whose science
you agree with. According to some scientists, nicotine is
not addictive.
This decision does
not nullify the California initiative, but rather just shuts
down the large-scale cannabis clubs. Numerous lawsuits concerning
what is actually a large club are sure to be next on the dockets.
We still maintain
that marijuana would stand a much better chance of legalization
if it had a better public relations campaign. Just because
the alcohol and cigarette industries line all the pockets
in Congress, they get all the good legislation.
Another curious
aspect of the case is the question of state's rights versus
the federal government. The ballot initiative, approved by
a majority of California voters, was found to be in violation
of federal law.
The conservative
Supreme Court would normally be loath to trump a state law
with a federal mandate, but then again, they had no trouble
writing Florida election law.
Another dark cloud
on the horizon of marijuana legalization is President Bush's
choice of John P. Walters as the next Drug Czar. Walters has
long been an opponent of treatment programs for drug offenders,
another initiative favored by California voters, rather than
simply ratcheting up the pointless War on Drugs.
This is not an
argument about whether marijuana should be legalized for everyone
(though we favor that also) but whether patients with cancer,
AIDS or glaucoma have convenient access to a drug that has
been medically shown to alleviate their sufferings.
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