Medical Marijuana

According to an AARP poll:

Nearly three-fourths of older Americans support legalizing marijuana for medical use, according to a poll done for the nation's largest advocacy group for seniors.

And

Overall, 72 percent of respondents agreed "adults should be allowed to legally use marijuana for medical purposes if a physician recommends it." Those in the Northeast (79 percent) and West (82 percent) were more receptive to the idea than in the Midwest (67 percent) and Southwest (65 percent). In Southern states, 70 percent agreed with the statement.

Though 69 percent of those age 70 and older said they support legal medical marijuana use, less than half agreed it has medical benefits. Seventy percent of respondents age 45-49 said they believe in the medical benefits of pot, as did 59 percent of those in the 50-69 age group.

This poll surprised me a lot. I always imagined that older Americans would be strongly opposed to medical marijuana.

I've never been a huge advocate of complete legalization of most drugs, although I feel that marijuana is not where we should be focusing our enforcement efforts. I feel that it should probably be treated as a ticketable offense, if it's illegal at all. It just doesn't seem that harmful.

I see medical marijuana as a completely separate issue. The benefits of marijuana for cancer and glaucoma patients seem fairly indisputable, and it has always bothered me that a relatively safe, effective and natural alternative is not available for these patients primarily for political reasons.

This seems especially salient as COX-2 inhibitors (Vioxx, Bextra, etc.) are increasingly shown to have major side effects. Honestly, who appointed the people who greenlighted these drugs? Oh. Right.