You Bet

by Mary Oxendine
(SC)

My opinion is that it should be legal because there is enough evidence proving it does help with pain. The same with drugs that are legal in every state..enough evidence.

That doesn't mean that every painkiller on the market fits all sizes. It may not help some.

Aspirin does nothing for my pain. Still, the bottle label says it is a pain reliever. Folks swear by it.

So, if there is enough evidence that marijuana does help with pain and chemotherapy induced nausea and vomiting in only a few people, it should be a crime to withhold that relief from very ill and maybe dying patients.

Ten years ago, the Institure of Medicine found scientific proof that marijuana was effective in treating pain and nausea in cancer patients. It also found proof that it is "not" a gateway to harder drugs.

I have never smoked marijuana or tobacco, but if I was living with severe chronic back pain or any other kind of excruciating pain and found nothing else would help, legal or not legal, I would have someone teach me how to smoke!