Medicinal marijuana should be legalized

In a six to three vote on Monday, the Supreme Court ruled that state laws legalizing the use and protection of marijuana could not protect citizens from federal prosecution on charges of possession and distribution.

The ruling reversed the court's recent trend of curtailing federal authority, such as its overturning of the Gun-Free School Zones Act and the Violence Against Women Act. However, the ruling seems consistent with previous rulings regarding the federal government's powers under the Commerce Clause, and, although I feel that the case law overstates the constitutional powers of the federal government, Monday's decision is perfectly justifiable.

That being said, it would be morally wrong for the federal government to harass and prosecute individuals for prescribing and consuming marijuana for medicinal purposes. The administration's argument that the use of medicinal marijuana would lead to interstate drug trafficking is absurd; a few personal Cannabis plants could not meaningfully contribute to the country's overall drug market.

There should clearly be regulation of medicinal marijuana, just as there is of all prescription drugs. It would have to be prescribed by a doctor, grown with a license, and recreational use should still be criminalized. It would be much more controlled than alcohol, which is a much more dangerous substance.

It is clear that such legalization could lead to problems, but in similar situations we have always erred on the side of medicine. For example, we have legalized heroin; it's called Oxycontin. There are problems with illegal distribution and drug abuse, but we overlook these problems so that people can be relieved of their pain. Besides, medicinal marijuana is much less addicting than Oxycontin, and would not significantly affect the underground drug market, as Oxycontin has.

Still, the Bush administration resists. John P. Walters, the administration's drug czar, called the use of marijuana "[un]civilized" and referred to initiatives to legalize it as "pro-drug politics that are being promoted in America under the guise of medicine." He should tell that to Mrs. Raich, a plaintiff in Monday's case, who would be unable to eat and would die from a wasting syndrome if she did not use marijuana. It would be barbaric to call her a criminal, and she, and all those like her, should be helped and protected by the government, not abused.