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Medical Marijuana

D.C.'s Medical Marijuana Law Needs Your Support Now

If you live in D.C. or know anyone who does, we need your help to ensure that the D.C. Council passes sensible medical marijuana regulations. The current bill is a good effort, but we need to educate the Council about a few issues before the vote next Tuesday. Here are a few of the problems we hope to address:

1. The bill prohibits patients from cultivating their own medicine. Personal cultivation is essential to ensuring that patients have affordable and reliable access to their medicine.

2. The bill invades patient privacy by requiring detailed records of every purchase. This information puts patients at risk under federal law. Purchase records must be kept anonymous.

3. The bill states that patients may only medicate at their own residence or in a hospice. No other medicine is treated this way, and such a rule will create constant hardship for sick people. Patients should be allowed to medicate in any appropriate private residence if they have permission to do so.

4. The bill establishes a monthly purchase/possession limit of 2 ounces. Some patients will need more medicine than this. The limit should be 4-8 ounces, which has worked well in other states.

5. The bill only allows doctors in D.C. to issue valid recommendations. Patients with doctors outside the District should not have to change their medical care to qualify for the program.

Please contact your Council Member as well as the At-Large Members this week to make sure our concerns are addressed in the final bill. Click here for more info, including contact information for the Council. It only takes a few minutes and every call makes a difference. Thanks!

Will Medical Marijuana Lead to Full Legalization?

Robert Dupont is a liar and drug war profiteer who'll say anything to protect his racket. So there was nothing surprising about this Washington Post editorial, except the accidental admission that medical marijuana is awesome and everyone loves it:

Medical marijuana is a stalking-horse for legalization. This can be seen in California, where medical marijuana advocates have had great success and are pushing for full legalization.

Why have medical marijuana advocates been so successful? Because after more than a decade, the predictions of numbskulls like Robert Dupont never came true. Public support for marijuana reform has increased steadily following the emergence of dispensaries. Everyone can plainly see that nothing bad happened, and our current political climate now stands as a powerful testament to how wrong Robert Dupont has been about everything for many years.

If Robert Dupont thinks it serves his agenda to point out the success of medical marijuana, I'll be the last to complain about a major news outlet giving him space to do so.

Will DEA Help States Implement Medical Marijuana Laws?

I like the way Eric Sterling frames his concerns about Michele Leonhart's nomination to head the DEA:

Aside from the Mexican drug trafficking organizations, the big challenge for the next DEA administrator is to help the states and D.C. implement their medical marijuana laws. President Obama’s nominee, Michele M. Leonhart, has been at the top of DEA for seven years as deputy and acting administrator. Previously she was DEA special agent-in-charge in both San Francisco and Los Angeles. Since 1997, she has led DEA in resisting state medical marijuana laws. She lacks an essential qualification: a commitment to working with the states to implement these compassionate laws. The Senate Judiciary Committee should look closely at her record and her willingness to carry out that mission. [Washington Post]

Medical marijuana is indeed the most volatile political issue the DEA deals with. Any questionable move on their part is guaranteed to ignite an immediate firestorm of protests and bad press. But Eric isn't just asking DEA not to attack people for medical marijuana activities. He's suggesting that DEA could actually help with the implementation of new laws, for example by providing regulators at the state level with a realistic assessment of what their enforcement priorities will be.  

It's an idea so crazy it just might work. But in order for it to happen, the White House will have to improve on its position that medical marijuana raids are a poor use of resources and acknowledge instead that the government actually has a responsibility for making this medicine readily and safely available to the people who need it.

Happy 4/20

As support for marijuana prohibition continues to hemorage and calls for legalization reverberate louder than ever before, the 4/20 marijuana holiday has become much more than the official day to get stoned. Recent years have brought frenzied media coverage and cable TV specials, in addition to the famed improptu pot parties that just seem to escalate each year. It's a phenomenon, the very existence of which perfectly humiliates the great drug war army. Today we celebrate the culture that thrives despite decades of persecution and renew our commitment to the fight for freedom. A few links:

*Norm Stamper wants all you 4/20 revelers to Put Down That Joint and Pick Up a Pen, although maybe I should have mentioned this to you earlier in the day. Do not, I repeat, do not send letters to the editor if you're stoned off your ass.

*D.C.'s medical marijuana law takes another big forward step. This was a bit of a 4/20 surprise from the D.C. Council. We actually would have preferred that they wait a couple more weeks, so we'd have more time to push for amendments. If the law ultimately takes effect under the current regulations, we'll have some annoying problems. Nevertheless, the inevitable emergence of medical marijuana in the Nation's Capital is something to celebrate.

*A new AP-CNBC poll completely pukes all over our pot party. I'd like to know how they phrased the legalization question to come up with only 33% support. Every other recent poll is in the 40's. I call bullshit on this. A new CBS poll says 44%. That's more like it.

*You can download the book Marijuana is Safer today only. Click here.

*Los Angeles District Attorney Steve Cooley is doing his best to interfere with California's legalization initiative. Someone give him a hug.

*Finally, since marijuana isn't truly legal yet anywhere in America, please take a few minutes to educate yourself about dealing with police. Click the link, dude. You'll love it. I swear.

Jack Herer Has Died

Jack Herer, author of "The Emperor Wears No Clothes," died this morning in Eugene, Oregon. He had been in ill health since suffering a heart attack at the Portland Hempstock Festival last Fall. Here's the report from the Salem News:
The Hemperor, Jack Herer has Died (SALEM, Ore.) - The sad news has been confirmed. Jack Herer, author of Emperor Wears No Clothes and renowned around the world for hemp activism, has died at 11:17 a.m. today, in Eugene, Oregon. Jack Herer suffered a heart attack last September just after speaking on stage at the Portland HempStalk festival. The last seven months have proven to be a huge challenge to the man, with several health issues making his recovery complicated. Jack Herer's health has been poor lately, this last week there have been reports of the severity, and an outpouring of prayers on his behalf. "It's shocking news, even after these last seven, trying months," said Paul Stanford, THCF Executive Director. "Jack Herer has been a good friend and associate of mine for over 30 years. I was there when he had the heart attack at our Hempstalk festival and I know he wouldn’t appreciate the quality of life he's endured these last months. Still he will be greatly missed. I honor his memory." "No other single person has done more to educate people all across the world about industrial hemp and marijuana as Jack Herer. His book is translated into a dozen different languages, it's a bestseller in Germany," added Stanford. "The Hempstalk stage will forever be the Jack Herer Memorial stage. And, a Memorial is planned to be built where he fell that day," Stanford said. "His legacy will continue to inspire and encourage for generations to come."

The Government is Still Trying (and Failing) to Prove That Marijuana is Dangerous

Ever heard someone argue against medical marijuana on the grounds that there hasn’t been enough research to prove that it works? There's been plenty, of course, but there would be even more if the government weren't spending all its grant money trying to prove that marijuana is poisonous instead of therapeutic:

The Medical College of Wisconsin will investigate the effects of chemicals in marijuana on the development of psychiatric disorders thanks to $1.7 million grant from the National Institute of Health's National Institute on Drug Abuse.
…
Using lab research and mouse models, this study will test the hypothesis that the primary psychoactive chemical in marijuana produces an over-activation of an enzyme in the brain and that this is responsible for the increased incidence of psychiatric disorders in marijuana users.

Last I checked, the "primary psychoactive chemical in marijuana" is widely available in an FDA-approved pill that the National Institute on Drug Abuse has never lobbied to take off the shelves. How concerned could they possibly be about the dangers of THC if they let doctors prescribe it to people?

The sick truth here is that their only agenda is to create negative headlines about marijuana, not to discover anything of actual scientific significance. That's why they spend their money dosing rats with powerful synthetic chemicals instead of studying the massive population of real medical marijuana patients who are using it successfully to treat a variety of illnesses.

Has Jay Leno Ever Heard of Medical Marijuana Dispensaries?

Here's Jay Leno and Bill Maher discussing the effort to legalize marijuana in California:


Of course, it's a win just to have these kinds of conversations on The Tonight Show, and you can't look for perfect messaging from entertainers. But seriously, what the hell was Leno talking about with this:

Leno: Well, here's my thing, here's my thing. California, they spend all this money trying to get things on ballots. But federal law trumps state law.

Maher: Oh, Jay you're such a buzzkill.

Leno: Well, it's true. No matter what the state says, the federal government goes "sorry, it's a federal law. You lose."

Really, Jay? I wonder how far you'd have to walk from your studio in Los Angeles to find a dispensary selling marijuana in violation of federal law. Come on, man. We've moved way beyond that nonsense, and you don't have to be constitutional scholar to understand that state-level marijuana policies can be reformed dramatically by popular vote. All you have to do is read the LA Times any day of the week.

If the drug czar doesn’t even know what the hell the feds would do about this, I can't fathom why Jay Leno thinks he's got it figured out.

Medical Marijuana on South Park Tonight

Oh no, something tells me this is going to boil my blood. Or maybe not. From one episode to the next, South Park either speaks directly to my soul, or makes me wanna puke.

In any case, I'll be tuning in tonight to see where they're going with this:

Feel free to come back and discuss the episode in comments.

New Jersey MS Patient Sent to Prison for Five Years for Growing His Medicine

New Jersey Multiple Sclerosis patient John Ray Wilson was sentenced last Friday to five years in prison for growing marijuana plants to ease his symptoms. Wilson, whose case we profiled in December, originally faced up to 20 years in prison, but a jury failed to convict him of the most serious, maintaining a habitation where marijuana is manufactured. He was convicted of manufacturing marijuana (17 plants) and possession of psychedelic mushrooms. Wilson was convicted in December, before New Jersey recognized medical marijuana. Ironically, it became the 14th state to do so between the time Wilson was convicted and his sentencing. But the new New Jersey law would not have protected Wilson's marijuana growing because it only allows for patients to obtain it at state-monitored dispensaries. State Superior Court Judge Robert Reed banned any references to Wilson's medical condition during his trial, finding that personal use was not a defense and that New Jersey had no law protecting medical marijuana use. Wilson was ultimately able to make a brief, one-sentence mention of his medical reasons for growing marijuana, but that wasn't enough to sway the jury. Wilson's attorney, James Wronko, told the Associated Press that the outcome might have been different had the jury been allowed to hear more about his illness. "We're disappointed that he's in state prison for smoking marijuana to treat his multiple sclerosis," Wronko . "I think anytime someone using marijuana for their own medical use goes to state prison, it's clearly a harsh sentence." Wilson's case became a cause célèbre for regional medical marijuana advocates, and also drew attention from the state legislature. Two state senators, Nicholas Scutari, sponsor of the medical marijuana bill, and Ray Lesniak, called in October for Gov. Jon Corzine (D) to pardon Wilson. But Corzine punted, saying he preferred to wait until after Wilson's trial had finished. Now, Wilson has been sentenced to prison, Corzine's term has ended, and new Republican Gov. Chris Christie is not nearly as medical marijuana-friendly. Wronko said an appeal of the sentence was in the works.

It's Official: South Dakota Medical Marijuana Initiative Makes November Ballot

The South Dakota Secretary of State's office Monday certified an initiative legalizing medical marijuana for the November ballot. The initiative, the South Dakota Safe Access Act, is sponsored by the South Dakota Coalition for Compassion, a statewide group of doctors, patients, law enforcement officials, and concerned citizens. It is being backed by the Marijuana Policy Project. South Dakota has the dubious distinction of being the only state where voters rejected an initiative to allow the use of medical marijuana. Amidst concerted opposition from South Dakota law enforcement and the Bush administration Office of National Drug Control Policy, which sent officials to the state to campaign against the measure, voters defeated a 2006 initiative by a margin of 52% to 48%. This year's initiative would allow qualified patients to possess up to an ounce of usable marijuana and would allow patients or their caregiver to grow up to six plants. Patients would register with the state and obtain a state registry ID card upon getting a physician's approval to use marijuana for conditions including some cancers, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, and seizures, as well as specific disabilities, including wasting syndrome, chronic pain, severe nausea, and seizures. "The coalition could not be more proud of this truly grassroots accomplishment," said Emmit Reistroffer, coalition communications director, in a statement. The group collected 32,000 signatures, nearly double the number of valid signatures needed. "Our members are united behind protecting the sick and the dying, and we now aim to educate the public about the various medical applications for cannabis before the election this November." “We are excited that South Dakota voters will have another opportunity to make the medical use of marijuana legal for patients in the state,” said Steve Fox, director of state campaigns for the Marijuana Policy Project. “Given the increasing level of support for medical marijuana across the country over the past few years, we are fully confident that a solid majority of voters in the state will support patients’ rights this November.”
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