Marijuana is not a hard pill to swallow

STEVE SMITH

The last thing that Newport Beach or Costa Mesa needs is another

legalized drug. But the exception to this is to allow medical

marijuana to be dispensed in either town.

The issue of a medical marijuana dispensary came up recently and

even made it to the May 24 agenda of the Newport Beach City Council

meeting. The proposal was to allow 45 days for an examination of the

ramifications of such a facility.

There are several sides to this issue, one that is undoubtedly

going to be unfairly painted as a backdoor attempt to legalize pot.

Expect that assertion but don’t let it interfere with your

examination of the facts.

One of the most important facts is that marijuana is a proven,

legitimate medical remedy. Marijuana has proven to be effective in

reducing nausea caused by cancer chemotherapy, in reducing internal

eye pressure that progressively leads to blindness in glaucoma, in

increasing the appetite for AIDS patients suffering from the wasting

syndrome, and in reducing muscle spasms for people with epilepsy and

multiple sclerosis.

A few years ago, two Harvard professors, psychiatrist Lester

Grinspoon and lawyer James Bakalar, recommended medicinal marijuana

in a commentary in the Journal of the American Medical Assn.

Other organizations including the California Nursing Assn., the

California Academy of Family Physicians and the Chicago Tribune --

the flagship of the media company that owns this newspaper -- came

out several years ago in support of the state’s medical marijuana

legislation, known as Proposition 215.

That initiative, which passed, did not legalize marijuana. It

changed how certain people -- medical patients and their primary

caregivers -- will be treated by the State of California’s court

system.

But some folks look at anything having to do with marijuana, and

all they can see through their 60s-colored glasses are long-haired

hippies in tie-dye shirts. It is sad but true that one of the great

negatives of medical marijuana’s advancement is that it has to be

smoked to be effective. If this discussion were about a pill, there

would be no discussion.

All of the hand wringing over a local dispensary is at once

comical and hypocritical. I find it funny that medical marijuana has

scared so many otherwise intelligent people into believing that our

children are going to be exposed to pot on every street corner if we

allow a local dispensary.

Uh, sorry folks, but regular pot can be found on every high school

campus. Kids have no trouble getting it. Does that alone make the

dispensary OK? No, I mention it only for the comic effect.

The hypocrisy comes into play when I see a liquor license granted

to a new restaurant, but we deny a few people the opportunity to ease

their pain with medical marijuana. Just because alcohol is legal

doesn’t make it better. Alcohol, in my opinion, has done far greater

damage to society than the same usage of marijuana ever could. Yet,

Newport Beach and Costa Mesa support hundreds of places to get

alcohol, a highly dangerous drug. If I had to choose, marijuana would

be legal and alcohol would not.

Even the belief that alcohol is more dangerous than marijuana is

not enough support for a dispensary. What makes the dispensary

legitimate is that it offers relief to people who are sick. That is

enough of a reason.

But on the flip side, I’m still questioning the whole concept of a

dispensary with the specific purpose of providing marijuana. After

all, if the typical dispensary customer needs a doctor’s permission

to get the marijuana, why can’t the doctor issue it? Why the need to

draw attention to this particular remedy? Doctors routinely write

prescriptions, which are filled at local drug stores, for drugs that

are far more potent. That, it seems to me, should work for medical

marijuana as well.

Regular readers of this column who have assumed my conservative

stance on every issue will be surprised today. But important issues

should not be decided on liberal or conservative lines or by the

allegiance to a particular political party. Some issues, such as this

one, must be decided simply on what is just and fair.

Medical marijuana is not going to destroy our culture. In fact,

allowing it to be issued will be a sign of great compassion,

something that will make us even stronger.

* STEVE SMITH is a Costa Mesa resident and a freelance writer.

Readers may leave a message for him on the Daily Pilot hotline at

(714) 966-4664 or send story ideas to [email protected].