.floatimg-left-hort { float:left; } .floatimg-left-caption-hort { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:300px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatimg-left-vert { float:left; margin-top:10px; margin-right:15px; width:200px;} .floatimg-left-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; font-size: 12px; width:200px;} .floatimg-right-hort { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px;} .floatimg-right-caption-hort { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 300px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimg-right-vert { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px;} .floatimg-right-caption-vert { float:left; margin-right:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; font-size: 12px; } .floatimgright-sidebar { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 200px; border-top-style: double; border-top-color: black; border-bottom-style: double; border-bottom-color: black;} .floatimgright-sidebar p { line-height: 115%; text-indent: 10px; } .floatimgright-sidebar h4 { font-variant:small-caps; } .pullquote { float:right; margin-top:10px; margin-left:10px; margin-bottom:10px; width: 150px; background: url(http://www.dmbusinessdaily.com/DAILY/editorial/extras/closequote.gif) no-repeat bottom right !important ; line-height: 150%; font-size: 125%; border-top: 1px solid; border-bottom: 1px solid;} .floatvidleft { float:left; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;} .floatvidright { float:right; margin-bottom:10px; width:325px; margin-right:10px; clear:left;}
Seriously, why is anyone opposed to medical marijuana?

The Iowa Legislature is dodging the topic again this session, with people on both sides of the issue saying the latest bill on the matter needs fine-tuning.

That leaves us to wonder why no one has been able to come up with the right wording in the past five, 10 or 20 years. Rather than language, it may be that not enough people can be found in the Statehouse willing to get involved.

Society has a thirst for alcohol, but a horror of anything that can be labeled as a drug. A “street” drug, that is. Other drugs, we don’t mind so much. If you’re depressed, go get some pills. If you’re overweight, go get some pills.

However, if you’re suffering from glaucoma or nauseated by the treatment for cancer or AIDS – conditions that can be relieved by the compounds within marijuana – hey, tough it out, pal. Better that than the end of civilization.

You can fill your shopping cart with beer, whiskey and wine at the supermarket. It’s not too difficult to procure other kinds of painkillers, either. Brett Favre, meet Vicodin. Rush Limbaugh, here’s your OxyContin.

When you’re hospitalized, doctors have an array of powerful and fairly scary drugs at their disposal. Nobody is taking a stand against morphine.

So it’s hard to comprehend why marijuana is discussed but dismissed. We treat it as a monster too terrible to be released from its dungeon, even though millions of Americans smoke the stuff just for fun.

It’s not an ideal treatment, especially when smoked. But there are other delivery methods that are effective and look more like health care than partying.

If you’re curious about those methods or would like to read both sides of the debate, visit medical- marijuana.procon.org on the Web.

Legislators should take a look at that Web site before the subject comes up again. We think the evidence in favor outweighs the arguments against.