US CA: OPED: Medical Marijuana: The Science Behind the Smoke and Fears

San Diego Union Tribune, 22 Oct 2010 – The debate over Proposition 19 — the Nov. 2 initiative to legalize marijuana in California — proves once again that where there’s smoke, there’s ire. But lost perhaps in the overheated haze of political rhetoric and culture clash is an ongoing scientific effort to elucidate marijuana’s potential as a powerful pain killer for people with HIV, diabetes, spinal cord injuries and other life-altering conditions. That effort, I fear, may go up in smoke.