Next weekend some of the nation's best country music minds will put their heads together to write a theme song for the Australian arm of the medicinal cannabis movement at The Dag's Songwriter's Retreat.

Don't get me wrong, I love the festival, and Kevin Bennett, Shane Nicholson and co. are undoubtedly some of the nation's most talented musicians, but when we need country music to get Australian's fair access to life-changing medication we are officially off the rails.

Almost every other western nation on the planet is years ahead of us, even those we most closely align our values with in New Zealand and Canada, but in Australia, we are reaching out to country music.

In recent weeks we have heard nothing but cries of foul and fair in regards to the Israel Folau saga, but regardless of what side of the tryline you are on, this debate is just one more example of religion dividing the nation to the detriment of the community.

Add it to the exponentially bulging list.

Meanwhile, in the past week both Barnaby Joyce and our fearless Prime Minister have used Folau to highlight the need for a religious freedom bill, while both, and most of their counterparts, have remained deafeningly silent on fair access to medicinal cannabis, because, and I paraphrase 'there is not enough evidence."

I can only speak for myself, but from what I have witnessed the evidence that medicinal cannabis can have multiple benefits to a multitude of suffering Australians far outweighs the evidence I have seen of a greater being.

And yet, here we are.

The country music song is the brainchild of Lucy Haslam, a lady whose self control, patience and passion cannot be questioned.

This is a woman who watched cancer take her son Dan Haslam. A woman who witnessed suffering, and then witnessed the potential of cannabis to relieve that suffering.

So why isn't she believed? Why aren't the hundreds of thousands of patients all over the world swearing by the medication believed, and why aren't the countless global studies believed here in Australia?

I can't imagine how frustrating that would be, and yet here we are.

Mrs Haslam has invited Mr Joyce to a second screening of the High as Mike documentary in Tamworth next month. The movie is being screened just for him to watch with the public, so let's hope he attends, and does so with an open mind.

High as Mike will be screening at the Capitol Theatre on August 8, with tickets available here.

Chris Bath is an ACM journalist.