An issue of state's rights

I'll be the first to admit that medical marijuana is a touchy subject. And for the most part, I've steered clear of getting tangled up in the whys and why-nots surrounding the issue. Yes, I support it. But I know that a lot of you don't - and you have your reasons.

My purpose in broaching the subject today is not to convince you to make a poster and join the next protest rally. There are bigger issues at stake here. Issues like state rights and government corruption. And the medical marijuana debate happens to land us smack dab in the middle of both.

I'd be willing to bet that most people have no idea that the medicinal use of marijuana is legal in 12 states. But I wouldn't pack my bags just yet. Because regardless of the individual state laws, the Fed Gov still says it's a no-no, which means cultivating it, prescribing it, or using it - even in states where it's supposed to be legal - could land you, well… in the joint.

According to a report I just read on Yahoo News, this is the fifth year in a row lawmakers have been trying to pass legislation that would stop the government from raiding medical marijuana providers in those states that have given it the OK. And for the fifth year in a row, it's been shot down. I'm not surprised. Why would the government pass a law that would limit its own power? There's more to it, though.

Maurice Hinchey, a Democratic representative from New York and the man who sponsored the measure, said, "I understand that there are a lot of people (lawmakers) who, even though they understand that what we're doing is the right thing, also understand how an issue like this can be politically manipulated by the opposition in an election."

What are the chances that a lawmaker - of ANY party affiliation - will ever vote for a law on the merits of the law itself, rather than how it could potentially affect his future career? I'd say slim to none. That fact alone could prevent our paranoid, self-serving elected officials from backing any measure that would support the use of medical marijuana.

Tom Riley, a spokesman for the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy, thinks that the entire medical marijuana push is a con. There's a con going on all right-but I can guarantee you it's not being masterminded by organized potheads trying to outwit Uncle Sam. You know as well as I do that the pharmaceutical giants are holding our crooked politicians by the you-know-what, and for good reason, too. Big Pharma feels just as threatened by marijuana's natural health benefits as it does by every other unpatentable natural medicine out there. They're counting their lucky stars that this one's still illegal - because all of their attempts at coming up with an effective synthetic version (remember THC?) have fallen embarrassingly short.

But legal or not, it's no big secret that anyone who really wants (or needs) the stuff is going find a way to get it. Not that I'm suggesting you do so…