Pot for Kids

FoxNews.com is reporting that a doctor in California is campaigning to be allowed to prescribe marijuana for ADD. On the surface it seems ludicrous, crazy even, that anyone would want to give their kids pot.

But think about it for a second...

1. There are some controlled substances that have been used in legitimate medical experiments and have been proven effective. Using LSD to treat severe autism in children and to treat schizophrenics comes to mind.
2. The types of drugs that we DO prescribe for ADD and ADHD have not been proven to be effective in many circumstances, are expensive, and often have debilitating effects, like addiction, that are hard to manage.

I understand that pot abuse can have it's own detrimental effects, and I don't buy the argument that just because it's natural it's better. (Cyanide is all-natural and occurs in apple seeds, for example, but you're not going to catch me pushing for the widespread use of it. Same with Ricin, which occurs in castor beans)

But what I think is important here is that we do two things.

1. We not shut the door on this possibility and give doctors and scientists the ability to test the efficacy of using pot to treat ADD. The more tools in our medical toolbox, the better.
2. We not get in the way of the States to determine their own policies towards these types of things. Part of what makes us great as a nation is the ability of individual states to chart their own course. States often have more political will to tackle tough societal issues which the nation as a whole will not. But as States make changes in laws and attitudes and can demonstrate that it is not the end of the world, the laws of the nation generally follow.
   
   An example would be gambling. I know that many people have problems with gambling, but Nevada and New Jersey have both shown that gambling has not destroyed them. Now, more states are willing to consider gambling. If pot is indeed a problem, and California discovers, it, then we have not lost anything. If it indeed proves to be worth the effort and helps people, and eases people's suffering, and have few side-effects, then we all gain.

Let's not shut the door on this possibility, and give pot a chance.