Change of Heart

I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying, “Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.” Here’s a new one: Sometimes your worst enemies can end up your best friends. Or at least a staunch ally. That’s the case with Melvin McDonald, a Mormon Republican and former U.S. Attorney whose job during the ’80s was being one of Reagan’s War on Drugs foot soldiers. You know those raids, indictments and prosecutions that we hear about all the time? Chances are, the guys handing out these marching orders are people just like McDonald: federal prosecutors who have made it a point to go after people like us: those of us who provide or utilize a god-given plant to benefit our health and the quality of our lives.

It seems that McDonald is no longer wearing the jackboots. He had a change of heart. Not surprisingly, it was because a close family member, McDonald’s son, suffered a catastrophic traffic accident . . . and it turned out that medical cannabis was the only thing that could help him recuperate. The accident, which caused brain damage to his son, happened in 1996. By 1997 the son had developed seizures, seizures that spanned the past 14 years. This condition made it difficult for McDonald’s son to eat because of nausea and complications from prescription meds.

“Without marijuana he cannot eat and he cannot hold the food down,” he told The Huffington Post. “So I’ve come full circle from being on the crime-fighting end, to seeing it within my own home, having my wife have to go and obtain marijuana illegally to . . . keep him alive.”

How often have we heard these stories, these experiences; everyday Americans who never cross paths with medical cannabis—until it strikes close to home. The father diagnosed with cancer who later discovers that cannabis can keep him from wasting away. The Crohn’s disease sufferer who realizes a plant can help keep his condition in check. The veteran stricken by neuropathic pain who learns that the dried flowers he enjoyed for kicks as a teenager can deliver analgesic relief.

McDonald has made the same journey. He’s become a believer. Talk about a change of heart.

“There are people out there that have legitimate, genuine medical needs,” he said. “Marijuana is the one plant out there that solves enormous problems for people with—not only seizures like my son—but also cancer and other ailments.”

Wild stuff, eh? Never would I have guessed that such earnest words of advocacy would come from someone whose 9-to-5 was busting purported pot perps.

Now, I’ve got some concluding remarks . . . but I think I’ll use McDonald’s words speak for themselves about why medical cannabis is so important and why all levels of governments (Hey, Congress—I’m talking to you!) need to address the politics of prohibition.

“This is a critical need for sick people. It is like taking away diabetic drugs from diabetics because of some policy decision. We’ve got to set up priorities in this country so that people that need marijuana for these medical needs—legitimate needs—can get it.”

Well said, Mel.