This seems to be a pretty emotional topic of discussion here and I have comments regarding both sides:
1: There are many patients who do have medical conditions that mj provides relief for which are bullshitedly (my own word) excluded from the language of the law (insomnia, depression, anxiety, etc...). Is it inappropriate to deprive these patients of a natural medicine that provides them relief? Morally, no. Legally yes. See how right doesn't always mean legal and legal doesn't always mean right? I do believe these patients have a right to a natural plant instead of man-made (mostly poisonous & addictive) pharmaceuticals....the law just isn't quite there yet.
and my thoughts on the opposite side of the issue:
2: I don't feel the law should be abused by anybody who doesn't qualify but the list of qualifying conditions is workable in many ways. If you are truly suffering from a condition which mj provides relief for, then there may be a way to get yourself legal legitimately. If you're just some individual with no medical need for mj & looking for a buzz (not against that btw but read further)....don't hurt the legitimate cause and instead just keep going through your buddy down the road as this law wasn't meant for you.
(2) A chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition or its treatment that produces 1 or more of the following: cachexia or wasting syndrome; severe and chronic pain; severe nausea; seizures, including but not limited to those characteristic of epilepsy; or severe and persistent muscle spasms, including but not limited to those characteristic of multiple sclerosis.
For instance: I've taken a sleep medication for 7 years which is on the brink of being recalled due patients coming up with type 1 diabetes, uncontrollable muscle spasms / twitching, and a myriad of other unpleasant side effects. For 7 years I've dealt with severe muscle spasms as a result of my sleep medication and the only drugs the docs could give me were highly addictive and I couldn't tolerate them any longer (soma / valium andybody?). MJ takes my spasms away, stimulates my appetite, and allows me to sleep a full nights rest...not to mention keeping my severe bi-polar disorder under control. At first glance though, you'd say I don't qualify but under further examination of my medical history, I do indeed qualify.
If your anxiety issues are so severe that it causes severe and constant nausea, you qualify; if your depression so severe that you can't eat and maintain a healthy weight, you qualify; if you have severe and chronic pain, you qualify. Some people who are trying to be legitimate patients just don't know how they may qualify so we shouldn't be so judgmental in assuming that an individual is just trying to 'skirt the law' because they have questions to ask. Perhaps some people just need guidance to determine if they can become legal if mj does indeed help one or many of their conditions. If not...there's always that dude down the street
