Medicinal Marijuana

            
             Kassiner's article, Federal Foolishness and Marijuana, the point is argued that marijuana should be legalized for medicinal purposes. He case for this begins by stating that marijuana has been shown to relieve pain and nausea caused by terminal illnesses such as AIDS and cancer. Then, after showing that citizens of various states have actually approved proposals legalizing the drug for medicinal use, he gives the case against legalization; that many believe that the drug is dangerous and could have long-term effects. Yet, he argues that these patients have nothing to fear, at least as far as long-term effects, as their illnesses do not provide that long-term future for them. He believes that because of this and the well known fact that the drug provides relief for these patients, the government is wrong in preventing the treatment from being available; as he puts it "a federal policy that prohibits physicians from alleviating suffering by prescribing marijuana for seriously ill patients is misguided, heavy handed and inhumane" (670). .
             In the essay the author makes a clear point of addressing the counter-argument, which significantly improves the credibility of the essay. As stated above, he retorts the statement that long-term effects have any significance in this argument. Kassiner then proceeds to take on the notion that if marijuana were legalized, that it would give the youth of our country the sense that smoking marijuana was perfectly fine. It is here that Kassiner's case takes a big leap backwards; as his only defense to this charge is that he simply does not believe it. Due to the length constraints of his essay he does not build up enough credibility to be able to simply state something like this without providing proper evidence to support his rationale. Yet, Kassiner makes another valid point which out weighs this minor flaw in his case, as he mentions that it is a common belief that legalization would result in a tremendous increase in recreational use of marijuana, yet then goes on to provide his own solution.