I have to respectfully disagree with you on this issue - Yes you can do something about it!!! Call, write or email your senator, your representative, letters to the editor - heck, why stop there - write a letter to the President! Never forget that these people work for us!!! One of the things that makes our country so great is that as citizens, we have the right to voice our dissatisfaction and complaints, to protest any injustice we perceive, and work to make changes. Sure, it takes time and lots of effort, but change can - and does - happen! And granted, our system is not without flaws, but... in my opinion - it's the best in the world.

As citizens of the US, we not only have the right to speak up about what we don't like, we are free to do something about it. And don't forget that these rights come with responsibilities - do you vote? While it sometimes may not seem like it, the ballot box is a powerful voice, and shame on those who don't use it! Like the old saying goes, "Those who don't vote, can't complain."

In my very humble opinion, 99% of the so-called "drug problems" in the US could be solved - or made considerably better - by taking control out of the hands of the judicial system, and putting it back where it belongs - in the medical system. The justice department has no business practicing medicine, and we are all suffering because they are doing just that.

Please don't mistake my post as a personal insult - I certainly don't intend it that way. There is another thread on this board about a "Pain March" in Washington, D.C. As Chronic Pain sufferers, we need to stand up for ourselves and let everyone know our plight. To sit back, remain silent and invisible is allowing only one side of the story to be heard. Politicians, the DEA and it's "War on Drugs" along with lawyers like those who are bringing class action suits about Oxycontin (and many others) have convinced the general public - and our judicial system - that anyone taking pain medication is a "druggie," weak in character, and pretty near downright immoral! WE know it's not true, but if we don't speak up for ourselves, who will? And how will any of this ever change???

Just my 2 cents worth. Thanks for allowing me to vent.