This issue begins with Alice O’Leary’s profile of Bob Randall, who won legal access to medical cannabis in 1976 and fought for the rights of other patients for the rest of his life. Many of the issues Randall addressed as both patient and advocate remain challenges today
Keith Stroup provides his recollections about working with Randall and the relationship between the issues of medical access and those related to widespread personal use of marijuana.
A critical look at contemporary drug policies in the age of Islamic terror is provided by Arnold Trebach in an excerpt from his new book on the subject.
Paul Armentano reviews recent research findings that significantly reduce concern about marijuana use and lung cancer.
This issue of the Bulletin also takes a close look at the recent congressional vote on the Hinchey-Rorhabacher amendment to protect medical cannabis patients, authorized by state law, from federal law enforcement. The reference materials from this congressional vote provide rich detail about the national debate on state and federal medical cannabis issues. In addition to a detailed analysis of the congressional vote the Bulletin of Cannabis Reform (BCR) provides access to the full text of the floor debates and the Roll Call votes for this amendment for 2003 through 2006, along with national and regional maps of the 2006 voting and party affiliation by congressional district. These resources provide important tools for policy analysts and reform strategists as well as introduce the medical cannabis issue as a case study in political science and as a topic for college research papers.
Finally, this issue of the Bulletin features the BCR Guide to State Legislative and Congressional District Maps, along with an introduction. This guide is a valuable supplement to any review of the voting on the Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment, and a valuable resource for anyone interested or involved in politics – knowledge about legislative districts is fundamental to successful political organization and essential to the reform of cannabis policies throughout the United States.