Poll says 70% of Floridians favor Medical Marijuana

In a poll taken for "People United for Medical Marijuana" (PUFMM)  regarding an amendment to legalize the use of  medical marijuana in Florida 70% of Floridians back the amendment, while 24% are opposed.   PUFMM would like to put the amendment on the 2014 ballot.   It is going to be an uphill battle.  It will take 683,149 valid signatures from Florida voters.   They currently have about 100,000 signatures all of which are not valid.   In the meantime Florida State Senator Jeff Clemens has  introduced a medical marijuana bill.  He has a co-sponsor for the bill in the Florida House.   Under his bill patients with medical need would be allow to possess 4 ounces of  marijuana and grow up to 8 plants. Senator Clemens first introduced a medical marijuana bill in 2010 which was quickly defeated.  Will he be more sucessful this time?  He anticipates a 6-8 year struggle.   The state of California  has legal medical marijuana for some time, however Prosposition 19  to legalize recreational use was narrowly defeated receiving 46.2% of the vote despite widespread support.  

Currently 12 states have medical marijuana laws:  Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington.  Maryland has a law authorizing medical marijuana use, but does not allow patients to grow the plants.

Well, I thought about that  .......... and I think that medical marijuana may very well be an idea whose time has come.   We are not in virgin territory here.  Twelve states have already allowed medical marijuana.   The fabric of our society has not disintegrated.  Opponents will tell you that we have medicines that  can do the same things as marijuana.  Yet there are patients  who will tell their doctors that they do not get the same relief from pills as from marijuana.

Under the federal Controlled Substance Act marijuana is considered a Schedule 1 drug, along with heroin, LSD, and Ecstacy.  They hold that marijuana has a high potential for abuse, has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the U.S. , and has a lack of acceepted safety for use under medical supervision.    You can decide whether you  agree with that assessment.

The body of research concerning the medicinal use of marijuana is extensive.   Research has shown that the cannabinoids in marijuana help reduce anxiety and slow the development of certain cancers.   Marijuana has been shown to decrease nausea and increase appetite.  For glaucoma patients marijuana helps lower intraocular pressure.  Some types of  pain such as peripheral neuropathy respond better to marijuana than conventional  pain relievers.

I think we should carefully consider whether to allow the use of this substance that may help to relieve pain and suffering.  If not,  we may want to ban alcohol  for the pain and destruction it creates, although we tried that once before.  How about banning sugar.  Maybe we can stamp out obesity and diabetes.  What do you think?