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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (March 23, 1999)
EDITOR Erin Gibson OPINION EDITOR Cliff Hicks EDITORIAL BOARD Nancy Christensen Brad Davis Sam McKewon Jeff Randall Bret Schulte Our VIEW Just say stop ! War on drugs needs to come to an end Through decades including the “Reefer Madness” scare, the government loudly claimed marijuana had no medical benefit. Politicos leading the nation’s drug war claimed it was a “gateway drug” that lead to using harder drugs such as heroin and cocaine. Crushing marijuana use was essen tial to winning the war on drugs. Then, last week, the Independent Institute of Medicine released a study that found marijuana has legitimate medical uses, and it’s one of the best treatments for some symptoms of people suffering from cancer, AIDS and other debilitating dis eases. It relieves pain, prevents nausea and increases appetite, which can prevent or slow wasting in terminally ill patients. Then, the claim that marijuana was a gateway drug drifted away. The study reject ed that claim and didn’t find the drug to be particularly addictive. Even in smoked form, the study found the drug’s medical benefits for terminally ill patients can out weigh the side effects of inhaling toxins. The sounds of chins dropping in Washington echoed. This study wasn’t car ried out by the Jerry Garcia society; the IOM is a respected medical group, and its findings couldn’t be summarily dismissed. IOM also suggested developing an inhalant containing THC, the active chemi cal in marijuana. It’s an idea that could allow us to sidestep the base issue: Should smok ing marijuana be nationally legalized for medical treatment? We think so. But marijuana’s social stig ma prevents the nation from seriously eval uating this question. As politicians hit us again and again with the necessity of The War On Drugs, we hear that marijuana is a bad drug for everyone - even people in pain. Their message still sticks, even now that their entire war on drugs seems to be a los ing one. Studies show crime rises after major drug busts, because addicts have to steal more to support their habit when prices spike because of low supply. Last week, allegations arose that the U.S. government pulled out of drug investigations in Mexico when it appeared a Mexican government officer could be leading the drug ring. And don’t forget the millions of minority men and women dumped into prisons, rotting with taxpayer dollars under mandatory sen tencing laws for drug possession. The IOM study, coupled with the cur rent state of the drug war, points to one fact: America must take a long, hard look at its war on drugs and reevaluate its purpose, leadership and effectiveness. Federal legal ization of prescription marijuana should be a first step in any overhaul. Instead, we have federal drug gurus, in typical form, sitting on their hands, saying, ‘^Interesting study. We’ll look into it,” while their agents keep fighting a losing war on the streets and dying people wait in pain. Editorial Policy Unsigned editorials are the opinions of the Spring 1999 Daily Nebraskan. They do not necessarily reflect the views of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, its employees, its student body or the University of Nebraska Board of Regents. A column is solely the opinion of its author. The Board of Regents serves as publisher of the Daily Nebraskan; policy is set by the Daily Nebraskan Editorial Board. Trie * UNL Publications Board, established by the regents, supervises the production of the paper. According to policy set by the regents, responsibility for the editorial content of the newspaper lies solely in the hands of its student employees. » m mm m m. m -am. a* m m m m ** Letter Psllcy The Daily Nebraskan welcomes brief letters to the editor and guest columns, but does not guarantee their publication. The Daily Nebraskan retains the right to edit or reject any material submitted. Submitted material becomes property of the Daily Nebraskan and cannot be returned. Anonymous submissions will not be published. Those who submit letters must identify themselves by name, year in school, major and/or group affiliation, if any. Submit material to: Daily Nebraskan, 34 Nebraska Union, 1400 R St. Lincoln, NE. 68588-0448. E-mail: letters@unlinfo.unl.edu. Horsey’s VIEW ■ - ^ Flight lesson Columnist learns much from game of tic-tac-toe A.L. FORKNER is a junior news-editorial major and a Daily Nebraskan columnist. I hadn’t planned on writing about Spring Break. Heck, I figured, every one else will and besides, who cares? Then I got to Las Vegas. / Bear in mind, I’m a gambler at heart, but I could spend a year in that city without ever gambling a cent. No, I’d eat, shop and show myself into the poor house. So, I decided I could write a col umn about the trip after all. How Las Vegas Changed My Life, by A.L. Forkner, was the head line in my mind. How could I pass on this opportu nity? Think about the material. First, there was the airport. Never before have I seen such a collection of people. Somewhere, a trailer park was dark. Then, there were Marlin and Carol. This lovely couple (he’s a fired cabbie, she recently moved to Las Vegas) were ironing out their marital problems at the booth next to ours at the Peppermill. Apparently she suffers from migraines and thinks he talks about people behind others’ backs. He says she should go to a “Head Doctor” and that his therapist charges too much. Of course Las Vegas would make a great column. It’s a city built on hopes and dreams. It’s also a city built on having those hopes and dreams snatched away because that third Wild Cherry wouldn’t drop one more spot. I really could’ve used that BMW too. Let’s look at everything I learned. I realized a small expensive meal can be more satisfying than a cheap buffet I discovered I really do like to shop. Finally, I learned trams and mov ing sidewalks are just what this uni versity needs. I’m lazy. However, the most important les son I learned was on the flight home. I was mad because the only flight I could get left at 7 a.m. I was tired because the only flight I could get was at 7 a.m. I was also alone, because the ... Well, you get the idea. After dealing with the sheep herding methods used by a certain shuttle service to Denver, I was in my seat. I was looking forward to spend ing the entire flight with my compli mentary beverage and my live, acoustic Barenaked Ladies CD. ’Twas not to be. Instead, the flight attendants decided to put a little kid that was flying alone next to me. Poor little guy looked terrified. He was clutching a blue, tattered Doodle Bear and was scrunched down in his seat like he was trying to hide. I knew I had a decision to make. I could continue to stare out the win dow ffom behind my sunglasses and tune out me mgni wim music. Or, I could make a friend. What the heck, I’ve heard that CD lots of times. Dalton is 6 years old and this was his fust flight. At least that he could remember, he was just a baby the first time. H$. lived in Denver and was on his way back after visiting his dad in Las Vegas. Because of scheduling problems, he had to fly alone. Maybe it’s because my first flight ever was also to Denver when I was his age. I remember being a bit over whelmed (but too “grown-up” to say it) and I was with my mom, dad and grandma. Maybe it was his Winnie the Pooh carry-on. No matter, I stowed my CD play er and leaned over to reassure the lit tle dude that he’d have fun on take off. Dalton’s eyes opened wide when the pilot fire-walled the throttles. I pointed out the strip to him as we climbed out. From his center seat he could see the buildings that used to loom over him, now tiny little boxes on the ground. The quiet, scared little guy soon became quite the talker. First, he wanted to get some stuff out of his carry-on. When he couldn’t quite get to it, I helped him with the bag and the zipper. He had to get his Cartoon Network NASCAR hat and a note book out. Seeing the notebook gave me an - idea. At this point I wasn’t quite sure if I wanted to spend my whole flight as a baby-sitter or not. Before I could decide, he had put his notebook away. That made up my mind. If I didn’t do something, I’d spend the whole flight helping him with his bag. So I reached into my briefcase and took out my ever-present reporter’s notebook. I never go any where without a notepad. (I hope you’re reading this, Professor Tuck.) (And his camera, Tuck. I never see the Fork without his camera. - Cliff, helping out any way he can) I then challenged Dalton to a bat tle of wits. Tic-tac-toe. Oh, it was a grand battle. The wizened veteran against the gritty youth. Final score: 18-4 in favor of Dalton. Hey, it was a lot closer than the score indicates. I was really having fun, and so was Dalton. He was so busy concen trating on the game he barely noticed his 7-Up or his cookie. Naturally, I paid close attention to mine. After tic-tac-toe, we tried a made up version of Connect Four. I’m not telling you that score. When we landed at Denver (which he enjoyed) he had to stay in his seat until the flight attendants helped him off the plane. When I stood up to leave, he tugged on my briefcase and gave me my greatest lesson. “You’re pretty good, but let me tell you my trick. First, you put your circle in die top middle box, then you go down. If that doesn’t work, try another trick. That’s how I win.” If that doesn’t work, try another trick. How can you argue with that advice? Dalton Terry, wherever you are in Denver, thank you. Thank you for sharing your lesson with me. If only you had shared your cook* ie_