Letters from the issue of February 28, 2008

A year ago, prompted by a sympathetic Child Protective Services worker, my children and I reluctantly fled our home in Kansas City, Missouri, and headed for the sanctuary of California and its Compassionate Use Act. As Eric Barton wrote in "High Above the Law," his 2006 story about me, I was born with cerebral palsy and discovered early in adolescence that cannabis mitigated the most painful physical and emotional manifestations of my disorder. I then learned that cannabis has been used for more than 300 years to help stutterers speak more clearly and that decades ago, doctors documented the herb's ability to alleviate muscle spasms. Yet the 12 states that have enacted medical cannabis laws still struggle to defend patients against federal meddlers, and patients in the remaining 33 states risk losing their careers, their freedom and even their families because they have found that a nontoxic medicine remedies their diseases and disorders better than dangerous pharmaceutical drugs. Patients in Missouri do not deserve to be criminalized for being crippled or for using a plant that allows them to effectively navigate their obstacles. A comprehensive bill to legalize medical cannabis in Missouri was introduced at the end of January by a record-setting number of Missouri representatives, and patients all over the state are anxiously awaiting the assignment of House Bill 1830 to the Health and Public Policy Committee. Please contact House Speaker Rod Jetton and ask him to open his heart to the Missouri patients living in pain, fear and misery.

Jacqueline Patterson, Bolinas, California

Music: "The Pitch Ultra Music DJ Contest finalists," February 7

I was unable to attend the contest at NV on February 22, but from what I hear on the DJ grapevine, winner Nomathmatics' set was prerecorded, with no live mixing. If that's true, Nomathmatics should have been disqualified and everyone at The Pitch should know that no local DJs will participate in future Pitch-sponsored events.

Travis Coker, Kansas City, Missouri

Music Editor Jason Harper responds:

Through the DJ grapevine, we've heard lots of complaining since we declared Nomathmatics the winner. For its part, the duo denies accusations of using a prerecorded set. For our part: The competition that night was intense, and the judges were divided, so in my capacity as music editor, I broke the tie that declared Nomathmatics the champ. The fact is, there's only one rule for this event: We want to send someone to Miami who can put on a sharp DJ set. We'll keep putting on this contest and allowing it to accommodate trends in DJing and changes in the local scene so that the city's best DJs — whether it's one guy on vinyl turntables or a three-headed mutant with a laptop — will have a chance to compete.