I know it's a major problem. But that doesn't change the fact that there are people out there who couldn't function without painkillers. My dad went through three rounds of chemotherapy and he confided in me that he contemplated suicide because the pain. That's what I'm arguing. It's silly to put a big snarky blanket over every case where someone is on painkillers, even if it's sometimes true that painkillers and anti depressants medications are pushed onto people.
And as far as medical marijuana goes, I think there have been enough studies on the matter to show a definite potential benefits. Smoking isn't exactly healthy, but the painkilling and antiemetic effects of MM have been well documented. I just find it ridiculous that there are five (IIRC) people in the U.S. who receive pre-rolled marijuana cigarettes as part of a now-defunct medical marijuana study, and they'll keep getting them until they die. But the government has steadfastly denied that medical marijuana has any benefit. People who oppose MM have been brainwashed by anti-drug propaganda (or have seen Reefer Madness one too many times), deny all the evidence that it helps people, and claim that it would lead to the further degradation of our society.
I have the same issue with the self-righteous among us who say that someone whose illness has gone terminal and is in so much pain that it's past the point where medicine can help have no right to end their own suffering.
so I rely on oxycontin instead. 
