The canard of FDA approval is nothing but a sniggling argument in favor of form over substance.

Every single FDA approved medicine on the shelves at the pharmacy was not FDA approved before it was. It is absurd to claim that the same substance was not just as medically efficacious

Considering how many people die every year from taking FDA approved medicines as directed certainly offers little support to the assertion of their approval being gospel like.

Between 1/1/1997 and 6/30/1995 2,254 people died from taking Viagra prescribed by their doctors. That's 2,254 more people than cannabis has killed in the recorded history of the human race.

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000145#drugdeathchart

Has Maryland issued a "stamp of approval" for cigarettes and liquour? The State seems happy enough to collect the tax revenue from both, and both are legal for adult consumption.

This does not put a "stamp of approval" on medical cannabis. It does however put the stamp of approval on medical decisions being made by licensed doctors and accredited scientists, and that these decisions should not be made by Know Nothing prohibitionists, and certainly not by hack politicians promoting a self serving political agenda.

It is beyond arrogant to propose that the legislature should be involved in people's medical decisions. It is going from the sublime to the ridiculous to believe that anyone who is sick would consult a politician in the matter, not even for a second opinion.

Ok, so let me see if understand this: We are going to trust that marijuana is going to be dispensed legally and used with NO risk that minors might possibly get their hands on it somehow. BUT we wont allow out-of-state wineries to ship to Maryland? The passage of the new in-state shipping not withstanding, this seems a little ironic to me...Progressive state my patoot!

It would be interesting to do a bit of research and see how many of these legislators have received contributions from the pharmaceutical industry, or any other business or person that benefits from the pharmaceutical industry.

It would directly cut into profits if there was documented proof that marijuana worked as well if not better than many of the high money-making drugs that these companies count on to make their outlandish profits each year.

But surely I am just being cynical, right?

So we've got CRMINAL aliens getting our tax dollars to illegally go to school. Now our tax dollars will be used to support the potheads of Baltimore who will all, magically, develop medical problems that require them to smoke the garbage that screwed up their lives in the first place. "Liberalism Is A Mental Disorder" - Michael Savage

Harlan, for someone who doesn't smoke "dope" you sure are stupid. How are tax dollars being used to "support potheads" buy passing this bill? The stupid prohibition laws, that morons like you support, is what is wasting taxpayers dollars--billions in law enforcement and judicial costs each year, not to mention ruining lives--just to preserve the sanctimonious prudishness of rightwingnut fanatics like you! Anybody who isn't a brainwashed tool understands that. Offer some facts to bolster your assertions! Oh I forgot, neoconservatism is a delusional psychosis where the afflicted create the "truth" inside their steeply sloped foreheads, them shout their delusion garbage at us at 120 dB all day every day... Get a life tool.

legalize it already!
we already did so with a much more toxic substance, alcohol..

I get to watch my aunt slowly starve because chemo has destroyed her wish to eat. She has lost 40 pounds.
Both her son and I said, smoke some marijuana, it will make you hungry.
Their reply"but its illegal" breaks my heart.
Being a goody two shoes may kill that lady.

Decriminalize it. Convictions ruin more lives than the weed itself.

Here in China, the characters for Cannabis translate as "Big Medicine"

Debating whether a particular drug is harmless or not is missing the whole point. Are drugs like Heroin, Meth or Alcohol dangerous? It simply doesn't matter, because if we prohibit them then we sure as hell know that it makes a bad situation far worse. If someone wants to attempt to enhance or destroy their lives with particular medicines or poisons, that should be their business, not anybody else's. Their lives aren't ours to direct. And, anyway, who wants to give criminals a huge un-taxed, endless revenue stream?

Why on earth does anyone think it's acceptable to want to control certain behaviors, such as the bedroom habits or choice of poison of fully grown adults? Isn't it high time we evolved enough to get past this crap? Surely we need to accept, that the only way to truly be free, is that you agree, in return, to allow other people to be free, even if it offends your personal sensibilities. What's more; if it's not directly hurting you and you forbid it, then you can be sure that it will create unforeseen circumstances which WILL have an adverse affect on YOUR wellbeing! -- Actually, a large proportion of those arising circumstances may not come as such a surprise to those of us who are capable of paying due attention to historical precedent.

The state doesn't actually do anything under this bill. Marijuana won't be legally sold or dispensed by anyone, and nothing changes for cops in terms of how they respond when they encounter someone with marijuana. This is strictly a trial procedure, and a smart one at that.

If my doctor says marijuana can help, who is Sophocleus or Miller or any other legislator who isn't a doctor to tell me I'm a criminal?

Perhaps some of you folks all up in arms about this need a "prescription" for yourselves. Have a wonderful day. Make sure you inhale.

Finally!! I thought that the House of Delegates was going to drop the ball again this year. This is still only half a loaf but we'll take it. It is far better than what we have under current law. As a patient who has fought long and hard for this I want to personally thank all the senators, delegates, patients and other concerned. informed citizens, without whose support this would not have come to pass.

I went through chemotherapy & radiation when I had cancer, and without Gods' mercy, some great doctors, and some pot I would never have made it through alive. Cavemen like HarlanR & Elijah Cummings who have never been through Chemo have no idea what they're talking about. And how do you "illegally" go to school?

And speaking of psychosis: New study: Young marijuana smokers at higher risk for psychoses
http://articles.cnn.com/2010-03-02/health/teen.marijuana.risks_1_cannabis-marijuana-psychosis?_s=PM:HEALTH

FDA wont to anything without the go ahead from the DEA and NIDA, who both still insist that marijuana has no medical use.

On top of that, this bill needs to provide IMMUNITY to arrest for those who use marijuana medically, or they will still have their lives turned upside down by an arrest that is not justified, even if the conviction doesn't go through, or the case is dropped.

I invite all to visit and review the articles and videos to gain insight to the subject of medical cannabis. The website was created to use it as a tool to inform and educate the public, medical profession, members of congress and others at the state and federal level including the ONDCP, DEA and FDA. Please visit
http://activistcat.com/

Jesus said to do unto others as we would have them to do unto us. None of us would want our child thrown in jail with the sexual predators for using a little marijuana. None of us would want to see our parent's home confiscated and sold by the police for growing a couple of marijuana plants to ease the aches and pains of growing older. It's time to stop putting our own families in jail. It's time to let ordinary Americans grow a little marijuana in their own back yards, and it's nice to see our culture coming to terms with this in a more wholesome fashion. This will go a long way toward putting the criminal drug gangs out of business for good! Also, check out http://www.northpoint.org/ if you’d like to see some more very positive material about Jesus at work in people’s lives.

It's amazing that the Know Nothing prohibitionists have the nerve to trot out the modern reefer madness claim that cannabis causes psychoses. This one is so easy to discredit it makes me wonder if these people have the native intelligence required to master the art of tying their shoelaces. The incidence of psychosis to the general population has been tracked for about a hundred years now, and has held steady to slightly down at about 1% of the population. This includes the 1960s when the incidence of people using cannabis skyrocketed by over 1000%. One simply does not increase the incidence of a causal factor for anything in a population by 1000% without seeing the thing allegedly caused happen.

But then again, no one ever went broke underestimating the intelligence of the American public, and the gullible swallow such nonsense whole and regurgitate it as if it were true.

HarlanR
your marijuana psychosis link has been debunked so many times its not funny. Its just a reiteration of 2 study's done by a heavily religious sponsored study in Australia. the scientists used a lot of phrases in their study, such as "we presume" or "we assume" showing a lack of testing assumptions. Not only that but most of their work was very poor and unscientific. here is a little more on the subject.

http://www.alternet.org/story/151776/debunking_the_myth_of_a_link_between_marijuana_and_mental_illness?page=entire