[420 Girl]

I was born and raised in California. I have been a Vacaville resident for seven years. Readers may have seen me around town, with my dog and my cane, or using the mechanical carts in the supermarket. I am a chronic pain patient and a medical cannabis patient.

My brother has inflammatory arthritis; he's a patient too. My 63-year-old mother, with arthritis and IBS and bone spurs, is one too. We're used to being disparaged as "junkies" and "criminals" by our neighbors, and having to drive to Oakland just to get our medicine because Solano County refuses to acknowledge the will of the people and obey state law. We've adjusted to all that. We know a lot of people just don't understand because they've never been where we are. We've just been waiting for science to bear us out.

So I was overjoyed when I read about Dr. D. I. Abrams' study, published in the journal Neurology, which conclusively demonstrates that smoked cannabis (marijuana) effectively reduces chronic neuropathic pain as well as acute pain. This study illustrates that medical cannabis provides much-needed relief from suffering for people living with HIV/AIDS and other disorders that cause neuropathic pain.

I thought, "Finally, they've proved what I've been saying all along from my own experience."

And what changed? Did the federal government stop persecuting medical cannabis patients and providers? Did the federal government stop barring medical cannabis research while hypocritically claiming that there

isn't enough research to prove its medical value? Did Congress even hold oversight hearings to investigate why federal agencies have resisted full implementation of the Institute of Medicine's 1999 recommendations?

No. None of these things happened.

You know a medical cannabis patient. A family member, a friend, perhaps a co-worker. Please help us. At least don't condemn us. It's hard to be disabled in this country these days.

Jack Romero
Vacaville

http://www.420magazine.com/forums/in...uana-laws.html