Medical Marijuana

This is what I know:
The people of Colorado voted to allow medical marijuana.
Except for chronic pain, most of the other diagnoses are not nebulous.
I personally know 4 people who have applied for or who have their card.
Of those 4, only one is above the age of 30 and this person is the only one in my mind that needs a card.
Of the remaining 3, all of them said they have chronic pain...and they are under 21.
In my mind, these 3 are "gaming" the system so they can get high legally.

I do not deny there are medical uses for marijuana. I doubt though, that the majority of the patients are truly needing or using it as medicine.

I don't care one way or t'other if it is completely legalized. I don't believe it is as bad as prescribed drugs nor do I believe it as harmless as a lot of people tell me. Everything is harmful if used or done too much...even reading.

Personally, my whole issue is that I am a retired veteran and the Federal Government has made it illegal, period. So, because I frequent military bases as part of my benefits, I trust very few people in my vehicle and of those I allow the only one I don't search or require to wash every ounce of their clothing before we go on base, is my Mom! I will not lose my military benefits for anyone.

Darn, I always wanted to visit a military base. I guess there is no need to ask if you would take me along?

As for this prejudice against individuals under 30. One of my patients is under twenty five, came back from Iraq, but unfortunately left parts of his face behind. Now, does he deserve to fall into this category? Marijuana is recommended to many for migraine headaches, so please, all of you that criticize how some of us try to alleviate pain. Go stand by the pharmacy and make sure to harass anyone buying some extra strength Tylenol, because they don't fit your version of "in pain".

flowergirl wrote: Darn, I always wanted to visit a military base. I guess there is no need to ask if you would take me along?

As for this prejudice against individuals under 30. One of my patients is under twenty five, came back from Iraq, but unfortunately left parts of his face behind. Now, does he deserve to fall into this category? Marijuana is recommended to many for migraine headaches, so please, all of you that criticize how some of us try to alleviate pain. Go stand by the pharmacy and make sure to harass anyone buying some extra strength Tylenol, because they don't fit your version of "in pain".

Flowergirl: I'd take you on base...but you have to wear clean, just washed clothing. All military bases are Federal property, and so the Federales have jurisdiction...even for speeding tickets! And if someone gets convicted in Federal Court, that really isn't a good thing.

The 3 youngsters I was talking about are 18, 19, and barely 20. I am intimately familiar with 2 of them...neither has been injured seriously nor have either had any kind of disease to warrant chronic pain. Neither have been diagnosed as depressed (or Dysthymic, as chronic long-term depression is called). Neither have ever had a bad bone-break that causes chronic pain. These 2 kids want to get high legally. And I told one of them that I would prefer them to be honest and illegal than dishonest and legal...but it fell on deaf ears.

I am not ever going to deny helpful medication to anyone, regardless of age IF it is truly warranted. Had these youngsters gone to a doctor and asked to be prescribed pain medication, they would have been turned down flat. And, as with most medication, it is not recommended to use it constantly to stay high all the time...it is recommended to use when necessary. This does cause people to overuse and/or abuse it, which leads to addiction.

My point...I know 4 people who have their cards and 75% of them "gamed" the system to get legally high. That is my personal experience and not statistics or averages garnered from others.

flowergirl wrote: As for this prejudice against individuals under 30. One of my patients is under twenty five, came back from Iraq, but unfortunately left parts of his face behind. Now, does he deserve to fall into this category? Marijuana is recommended to many for migraine headaches, so please, all of you that criticize how some of us try to alleviate pain. Go stand by the pharmacy and make sure to harass anyone buying some extra strength Tylenol, because they don't fit your version of "in pain".

And I'm sure that your anecdotal experience with one of your patients explains why some people under the median age of cardholders qualify for that card within the bounds of what the voters of Colorado approved when they voted to allow to allow those who suffered from "debilitating" conditions access to marijuana for medicinal purposes. I don't think, however, that your young patient represents the "debilitating" conditions in the number of people necessary for the median age of cardholders to be a scant 32 years of age. And please, don't insult our intelligence by asking us to accept that all of the people who possess a medical marijuana card because they suffer from migraines limit their intake of the "medicine" to when they are experiencing a migraine or feel the onset of the migraine. That would be akin to asking others to believe that people addicted to prescription opiate pain relief only take their prescription in accordance with the instructions provided by their physician.

Median is not the same as average flowergirl. Average is the sum of the elements divided by the total number of elements. Median means that half of the total number falls above that figure and half of the total number below it. This means that 50% of the people who hold cards are younger than 32 and half of them are older than 32. Are we to believe that our young people account for 50% of all debilitating conditions present in our population? To believe that requires a larger leap of faith than belief in the Tooth Fairy.

PrintSmith wrote:

flowergirl wrote: As for this prejudice against individuals under 30. One of my patients is under twenty five, came back from Iraq, but unfortunately left parts of his face behind. Now, does he deserve to fall into this category? Marijuana is recommended to many for migraine headaches, so please, all of you that criticize how some of us try to alleviate pain. Go stand by the pharmacy and make sure to harass anyone buying some extra strength Tylenol, because they don't fit your version of "in pain".

And I'm sure that your anecdotal experience with one of your patients explains why some people under the median age of cardholders qualify for that card within the bounds of what the voters of Colorado approved when they voted to allow to allow those who suffered from "debilitating" conditions access to marijuana for medicinal purposes. I don't think, however, that your young patient represents the "debilitating" conditions in the number of people necessary for the median age of cardholders to be a scant 32 years of age. And please, don't insult our intelligence by asking us to accept that all of the people who possess a medical marijuana card because they suffer from migraines limit their intake of the "medicine" to when they are experiencing a migraine or feel the onset of the migraine. That would be akin to asking others to believe that people addicted to prescription opiate pain relief only take their prescription in accordance with the instructions provided by their physician.

Median is not the same as average flowergirl. Average is the sum of the elements divided by the total number of elements. Median means that half of the total number falls above that figure and half of the total number below it. This means that 50% of the people who hold cards are younger than 32 and half of them are older than 32. Are we to believe that our young people account for 50% of all debilitating conditions present in our population? To believe that requires a larger leap of faith than belief in the Tooth Fairy.

So you don't use it. You don't think it should be illegal. So who made you the judge of who's condition is appropriate? They decide to get their license in order to not be prosecuted for using a herb that even you agree should not be illegal.

If you try to use the argument that it ruined it for the legitimate patients, forget it. All of my patients, that even you would qualify for a license, agree that the spike in popularity of medical marijuana has not impacted their situation negatively. In fact, all of them appreciate the fact that it has made access to their medicine a whole lot easier. When my wife and I first got our licenses in 06 we would have to meet a caregiver in the Barnes and Noble parking lot at Den West. Bring $350 cash and get in a car with someone you have not met before. I believe anyone will appreciate the current model much more.

I've watched your criticism on this subject on more than this one site and can not for the life of me figure out which is your horse in this race?

My horse in this race is the illegitimate use of the law for illegal recreational purposes. That's pretty evident, isn't it? We are, after all, a nation of laws - or at least we are supposed to be. That one doesn't agree with a law in no way makes it appropriate to violate the law, or the spirit of the law, by taking an end around it. There are a lot of instances in the financial arena where those that know the law have found a way to do an end around it for their personal benefit or desires. If we are to condemn those actions, then consistency demands that we also condemn other instances of the same behavior outside of that particular segment of our society. You'd agree with that, wouldn't you? That behavior which violates the law should be punished in every instance regardless of whether or not one agrees with the law that was violated?

I don't fault MLK, for instance, because he chose to violate the existing laws openly to protest them in a nonviolent manner. He was willing to be arrested and spend his time in jail as part of the price that needed to be paid to bring attention to laws which needed changing. If I saw similar courage in those that felt the marijuana laws need to be changed, I could have similar respect for them. But they don't have the courage of their convictions, do they MM. No, they slither in the darkness hoping that their disobedience will go unchallenged and unnoticed. Cowardice describes their behavior, and cowardice should not ever be respected.

In some ways, I am with PrintSmith on this one. Regardless of what proponents of the MMJ law say, there are people out there that are getting their prescriptions solely to get high. They find someone to prescribe them MMJ, not because they have a legitimate medical "need", but because they want it. Unfortunately, it is human nature to try to get what we want the easiest, cheapest way possible and to try to get around laws.

The 18-year old youth I mentioned in an earlier post went on a road trip with a friend to a different state and was caught with MMJ...the explanation to the cop? I have a medical marijuana card from Colorado...isn't it good here? This youth didn't understand that the laws change depending on jurisdiction...nor was a care given... The explanation to me when I asked...this individual told me it was OK to be caught 'cuz Colorado gave him a card. This person thinks they have a blanket get-out-of-jail free card and they aren't interested in the laws...they just want to get high. And to hell with anyone that is thwarting this effort.

Does MMJ help people? Absolutely, my brother is one of them. Am I against it? The same way I am against alcohol or prescription drugs (narcotics, opiates, amphetamines, etc.): don't use them and drive, don't overuse or abuse them, and don't even think about getting in my vehicle with anything on you.

And, please do not insult my intelligence by telling me that all of the MMJ users are legitimately using because they have a medical issue that warrants use. I did not fall off the turnip truck yesterday.