March 04, 2010
Too hot for Wisconsin's two largest newspapers: Medical marijuana really about personal freedom
Posted by Gary storck
Thursday, March 4, 2010
Some days it seems as if the entire establishment in Wisconsin has united to suppress AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. Little news about the bill has made state news outlets since the public hearing in December.
The following letter was submitted to both the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and the Wisconsin State Journal. Neither paper accepted it for publication.
Here is the letter TOO HOT for the state's two largest papers!
Medical marijuana really about personal freedom
At the December medical marijuana hearing, Dr. Michael Miller, on behalf of the State Medical Society, obsessed on the dangers of "smoked marijuana", even likening it to smoking crack cocaine, while conveniently claiming to know little about vaporization, a smoke free alternative.
A 24-page report issued last week to the California State Legislature by California's Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research (CMCR) discussed a series of randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials assessing the efficacy of inhaled marijuana which consistently found that cannabis holds therapeutic value comparable to conventional medications.
Several studies found benefit for neuropathic pain from "smoked marijuana". One concluded that "a significantly greater proportion of patients who smoked cannabis (52%) had a greater than 30% reduction in pain intensity compared to only 24% in the placebo group". CMCR noted "the threshold of a 30% reduction in pain intensity is associated with meaningful improvement in quality of life in other research on pain outcomes".
Regarding non-smoked alternatives for administration, UCSF Dr. Donald Abrams' study, "Vaporization as a 'Smokeless' Cannabis Delivery System," found that vaporization was a safe and effective mode of delivery. Two CMCR clinical trials are now in progress utilizing vaporization.
In a nation that prides itself as a beacon of freedom and liberty as well as having the best healthcare, shouldn't patients and doctors have the freedom to utilize cannabis as they now have the freedom to utilize treatments including chemotherapy, radiation, electroshock, morphine, Demerol, oxycontin, neurontin, Paxil, Prozac, Viagra, Ambien, steroids, Haldol, etc.?
Politicians love to get all misty-eyed talking about freedom when the cameras start rolling, but when it's about the freedom of the patient and doctor to be able to have cannabis as an option, many begin foaming at the mouth and speaking in tongues.
Medical cannabis is health care. Wisconsin's legislature needs to pull together and pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act at this moment in history. Decades have passed while Wisconsin's sick, disabled, dying, seniors and vets twisted in the wind while the issue has been stonewalled, and the result is only more pain and suffering. Wisconsin will pass a medical marijuana bill someday. Legislators need to listen to the people they profess to represent and get it done now, rather than cause their constituents more pain.
Posted by Gary at 11:53 AM | Comments (0)
March 03, 2010
Five years of the Madison NORML Blog!
Posted by Gary Storck
March 3, 2010
When I first began publishing this blog in March 2005, on the fledgling Madison NORML website, the chapter itself was a mere 6 months old.
The chapter, this blog and the Cannabis Movement in Wisconsin have all taken great strides forward. I've put the news out there with a little analysis, and have examined a lot of cannabis developments, from the tragic to the comic to the absurd.
And what indeed is more absurd than banning a plant that has compounds that bind to receptors in our bodies?
Like many of my life's cannabis milestone anniversaries, my earlier 2005 self truly believed that medical cannabis legislation would not still be spinning its wheels in 2010 in our legislature, awaiting profiles in courage by state legislators too accustomed to saying no.
I spent today lobbying with a young ex-Marine afflicted with PTSD after 3 tours in Iraq. How can any "elected representative" think twice about letting those who sacrificed so much not have the medicine that works best instead of pharmaceutical slavery to organ damaging toxic side effect ridden chemicals?
This blog has documented real progress in Wisconsin cannabis laws, despite the continuing legislative stalemate. Marijuana decriminalization has spread to many more locales in the state since 2005. Even staid Waukesha County, where overzealous prosecution had led to the suicide of a couple accused of medical marijuana cultivation a few years back, has initiated decriminalization for small amounts of cannabis and paraphernalia.
With decriminalization, possession of small amounts of cannabis is punishable by a fine, and is a civil citation and not a criminal matter. Patients using small amounts of cannabis in the safety of their homes are less likely to face major consequences, offering a little peace of mind to those who are extremely tired of looking over their shoulders.
I will keep pounding away at this blog as long as I am able. Hopefully, we'll soon see better news for patients than we've seen in the past.
Posted by Gary at 08:43 PM | Comments (0)
March 02, 2010
IMMLY Announce Bulletin: Act now to help pass Jacki Rickert MMJ Act
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Below is an alert put out by IMMLY today.
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
IMMLY Announce Bulletin: Act now to help pass Jacki Rickert MMJ Act
AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act remains in committee as sponsors attempt to assemble the votes to pass the bill. At the current time, while many Democratic Assembly representatives and Senators are ready to vote for the JRMMA, the problem is, so far, no Republican members have formally said they would vote for the bill.
As Democratic majorities in both houses are slim, the JRMMA needs supporters of both parties to pass the Legislature this session. We need to get the word out that the JRMMA is about compassion and that Wisconsinites deserve the same freedom to legally access medical cannabis as Americans in the 14 states that now allow this option.
As of today, we have 51 days until April 22, 2010, at which point the JRMMA's chance of passage will likely expire.
We need to act with urgency now:
* Contact your Legislators
* Send pre-written, editable letter to Legislators:
http://capwiz.com/norml2/issues/alert/?alertid=14115736 or
http://bit.ly/JRMMA
* Find out Who Represents you:
http://www.legis.wisconsin.gov/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx
* Call your Legislators: Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 1-800-362-9472
* Send a Letter to the Editor of your local paper:
http://www.mapinc.org/resource/how2lte.htm
* Call local Media and ask them to support the bill
* Ask your local place of worship to join our Statewide Day of Prayer
for Compassion, Date TBA
* Attend our events
* Attend Madison NORML meetings: 2nd and 4th Mondays at 7pm see:
MadisonNORML.org or WINORML.org for more info on location.
* Wisconsin Residents for Assembly Bill 554 "Wisconsin Residents for
Assembly Bill 554 http://bit.ly/cmd4eI
* Print your own fliers: http://www.madisonnorml.org/PYOcenter.html
More information to follow.
Posted by Gary at 10:48 AM | Comments (0)
February 18, 2010
UW: Platteville Exponent: Column: Medical marijuana offers relief
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, February 18, 2010
A very nice column out of UW: Platteville!
Source: Exponent (UW-Platteville EDU)
Pubdate: February 18, 2010
Author: Ryan Broege
COLUMN: MEDICAL MARIJUANA OFFERS RELIEF
Gary Storck endures pain on a daily basis. Storck was born with Noonan's syndrome and has had multiple open-heart surgeries to address the heart problems that come with that condition. Storck also suffers from glaucoma, and his intraocular pressure often reaches 40, twice the highest limit of the normal range. In addition, he battles post-traumatic stress disorder. After only a brief inventory of Storck's medical background, one might expect him to curse the hand he was dealt.
But that is not how Storck views himself. "I consider myself a medical miracle," he said. "I can find relief for my glaucoma, heart conditions and anxiety all in one medication. I am living research."
The medication that Storck is speaking of is marijuana. And despite the relief that it offers him, Storck is technically committing a criminal act whenever he self-medicates with cannabis. That has the potential to change, however. Wisconsin Assembly bill 554 and Senate bill 368 are both pending in committee; the bills, identical in wording, would enable residents of the state suffering from serious medical conditions, including cancer, AIDS, Lou Gehrig's disease, glaucoma and other medical conditions that cause severe pain, seizures, wasting away and muscle spasms to possess and use marijuana for relief. People with these conditions would obtain a registry card with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, entitling them to possess up to three ounces for personal use.
A unique set of circumstances in Madison means that this bill has a slightly higher chance of passing into law. Democrats, who generally support medicinal marijuana use, have a majority in both the senate and assembly. Supporters of medicinal marijuana also have an ally in Governor Doyle, who has vowed to sign the bill into law if he is given the opportunity.
Locally, the bill has support from Platteville's representative in the Assembly, Democrat Phil Garthwaite. "For me the big issue is how people deal with pain," said Garthwaite. "We let doctors prescribe things far more dangerous than marijuana."
Platteville's representative in the state Senate, Republican Dale Schultz, could not be reached for comment regarding the bill.
In an e-mail correspondence, Thomas Caywood, chair of UW-Platteville's department of criminal justice, expressed his support for the measure. In response to state Attorney General Van Hollen's remarks that the bill would make things difficult for law enforcement trying to enforce current drug law, Caywood wrote, "Other states already have similar laws on the books. There are a number of medical benefits for prescribing marijuana. The most logical route would be to treat it just like other controlled drugs dispensed by a pharmacy only with a doctor's prescription."
And that is exactly what this bill would do. This bill is not a referendum on recreational drug use; this bill is a referendum on compassion for the sick. Every day, there are people who suffer debilitating conditions that make their lives a hellish existence. Who would deny them every available option to relieve their pain? Take a few minutes out of your day and let's make medicinal marijuana a legal and viable option for people suffering in Wisconsin. Call the legislative hot line at 1-800-362-9472 and express your support for the measures.
Posted by Gary at 10:12 AM | Comments (0)
February 14, 2010
Madison NORML Examiner: The name behind Wisconsin’s Medical Marijuana Legislation: Who is Jacki Rickert? Part One
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, February 14, 2010
Here is my latest Madison NORML Examiner article, the first installment of a series about Jacki Rickert.
The name behind Wisconsin’s Medical Marijuana Legislation: Who is Jacki Rickert? Part One
Madison NORML Examiner: The name behind Wisconsin’s Medical Marijuana Legislation: Who is Jacki Rickert? Part One
MADISON: Many people in Wisconsin are aware there is medical marijuana legislation now before the State Legislature. AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act (JRMMA) is sponsored by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee).
But just who is Jacki Rickert?
Jacki Rickert is a 58 year old Wisconsin grandmother and medical cannabis patient/activist and the Founder and Executive Director of Is My Medicine Legal YET? (IMMLY). Jacki discovered that cannabis provided unique relief for symptoms of the Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS) she is afflicted with. EDS is a rare genetic disorder that attacks the body’s connective tissues. Jacki also suffers from another extremely painful condition, Advanced Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy.
Jacki first began experiencing EDS symptoms like joint dislocations as an active teenager involved in gymnastics and training horses. Around 1981 Jacki met Dr. William E. Wright of Mondovi Wisconsin, a compassionate and courageous physician who diligently searched for treatments to alleviate her suffering. After Jacki asked if he would consider cannabis therapy, Dr. Wright consulted experts and immersed himself in the available literature. He concluded that it not only helped but was safer than "anything she was on including baby aspirin".
In 2001, Jacki described how she discovered cannabis helped:
As a result of having a chronic, intractable medical condition (Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome) that causes severe pain, joints that sublux, or dislocate, loss of muscle mass etc., someone suggested I try marijuana (Cannabis) to help lessen the pain, and muscle spasms.
At first, I dismissed such a thought- but later- when I could no longer handle the pain from a dislocated shoulder that the Dr. could not reduce, I tried it - this time it worked!
In 1989, Dr. Wright began filing paperwork with the requisite federal agencies to get Jacki into the federal government's Compassionate Investigative New Drug (IND) Program. Although federal red tape made the process very difficult literally every step of the way, Dr. Wright's persistence and heroic determination to help his patient finally paid off. In 1990 Jacki was approved for not only research but also compassionate use of medical cannabis by federal authorities. She was to receive 300 pre-rolled U.S. government supplied medical cannabis cigarettes, each weighing 0.9 gram every 28-30 days.
Jacki explained it in a 2001 email:
Years later, I was diagnosed with an advanced form of RSD. My weight plummeted to a mere 68 lbs. My body wracked with more problems, more pain, and massive muscle loss. My daughter literally carried me from my bed to the bathroom. No matter how much I tried, my limbs locked up like the tin man without his oil can.
At 68 lbs. my Physician applied to the Government for the Compassionate I.N.D. & Research I.N.D program, and WAS approved and granted a Schedule I License. He was APPROVED in Dec. of 1990...yet the contract was never honored.
The First Bush Administration later suspended and then closed the program, but Jacki had already been approved. Federal bureaucrats told Jacki her prescription would be filled once they had additional supplies, "as they were in the process of growing more material." A federal employee later confessed to Jacki, "I must tell you the truth about your medicine: We are not out, nor were we out, nor do I see us running out anytime in the foreeable future":
Jacki and her daughter even appealed to Bill Clinton as he and Al Gore made a campaign stop in Osseo Wisconsin in 1992. Jacki handed Clinton a large folder of federal approval documents which he vowed to read, "as soon as I get on that bus". More importantly, Clinton also told her as to her medicine nor being supplied, "Why that;s just terrible! If elected, I'll make sure within the first 90 days after taking office that's made right."
His HHS Secretary-designate UW Chancellor Donna Shalala promised before leaving Madison to help Jacki get her medicine. Once in Washington, Shalala flip-flopped against medical cannabis. Attempts by Jacki's Republican U.S. Congressman Steve Gunderson were also rebuffed. In 1993, tragedy struck when Dr. Wright suddenly died of a heart attack, and Jacki was back to square one in her quest for her medicine.
Jacki Rickert will be speaking at "A Grassroots Evening" Monday, Feb. 22, 2010 at the University of Wisconsin: Waukesha at 7pm in Room N133.
For more info: List of qualifying medical conditions included in the JRMMA. Jacki Rickert MMJ Act Hearing Recap & Action Alert. Report on Jan. 20 Mary Powers Memorial and JRMMA Lobby Day. For additional details on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, info on the Dec. 15, 2010 combined Health committee hearing, bill text and status, how to donate, all the latest news and how you can help, visit JRMMA.org, IMMLY.org or MadisonNORML.org. Visit my Madison NORML Examiner articles archive. Photos courtesy IMMLY/WI NORML and friends.
Full article with Links and photos. (http://www.examiner.com/examiner/x-30194-Madison-NORML-Examiner~y2010m2d14-The-name-behind-Wisconsins-Medical-Marijuana-Legislation-Who-is-Jacki-Rickert-Part-One)
Posted by Gary at 09:53 PM | Comments (0)
February 12, 2010
Gary Storck: Capital Times: PUB LTE: Tell legislators to pass medical marijuana act
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, February 12, 2010
Here's a let ter in today's Capital Times! As the letter notes, please Call or write your legislators regarding the JRMMA!
Source: Capital Times
Pubdate: February 12, 2010
Author: Gary Storck
TELL LEGISLATORS TO PASS MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACT
Dear Editor: The grass-roots advocacy campaign for medical marijuana in Wisconsin has ignited a firestorm of interest in how state government works. Thousands and thousands of state residents are learning for the first time who represents them because of the popularity of this issue.
A recent ABC news poll found that nationwide, 81 percent of Americans, and 75 percent of Republicans, want medical marijuana legalized.
The question remains, however, will our Legislature listen to the will of the people? To their credit, many state lawmakers have already signaled they will vote for the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. However, the lack of bipartisan support for a decidedly nonpartisan issue is sad.
In neighboring Minnesota, a bipartisan bill won legislative approval only to be vetoed by Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty. Here in Wisconsin, Gov. Jim Doyle has promised to sign a bill if it reaches his desk. Wisconsinites cannot let this historic time pass without our Legislature acting on behalf of Wisconsin's citizens. State lawmakers know how popular this issue is. They only need to look at their office constituent contact logs or recall all the personal conversations in support they've had with people of all backgrounds.
Medical marijuana affects us all. We must each work so this option is available if the unthinkable happens to a loved one, a friend or ourselves. If doctors are allowed to prescribe toxic medications and treatments with dangerous, even potentially lethal side effects, why can't they recommend a natural plant that has compounds which work by binding to receptors within our body's own endocannabinoid system? Please contact your lawmakers via the toll-free Legislative Hotline: 800-362-9472 and ask them to support this bill.
Gary Storck
director of communications, Is My Medicine Legal YET?
www.immly.org
Posted by Gary at 12:50 PM | Comments (0)
January 27, 2010
The timelessness of Wisconsin's out of touch state lawmakers
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Gov. Jim Doyle did not mention medical cannabis in his "State of the State" (SOTS) Address to a joint session of the state legislature Tuesday night. Medical cannabis supporters have had a presence at the SOTS dating back to the early 1990's when Tommy Thompson had only been governor 6 or 7 years, and we'll likely be there in 2011. Just as timeless as our presence at the SOTS is the lack of movement session after session after session.
Patients are looking to lawmakers to get it together and pass, This Bill, This Time! Let us hope they do not fail us again!
Sent to the Wausau Daily Herald 01/23/10. No confirmation or publication as of 01/26/10. -- GS
Six years ago today (1/23/04), I had a letter published in the Wausau Daily Herald, "Support medical marijuana bill," in which I noted that then-Rep. Gregg Underheim (R-Oshkosh), then chair of the Assembly Health Committee, planned to introduce medical marijuana legislation.
The letter contained this timeless passage, which sadly applies equally well today as it did in 2004: “Failing to pass this bill this session means that suffering Wisconsinites who can benefit from medicinal cannabis will have to continue to choose between breaking the law or going without and suffering needlessly for another two years. Many will not live that long; some will die today.”
Can anyone begin to comprehend how many people have died in Wisconsin just from multiple sclerosis in those six years? How about cancer, AIDS, muscular dystrophy, Alzheimer’s? This session we have a better bill, AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act (JRMMA), sponsored by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee). The JRMMA is named after a Wisconsin woman who was approved for a small federal medical marijuana program 20 years ago, but never supplied. Jacki led a 210-mile weeklong wheelchair “Journey for Justice” from Mondovi to the Capitol in Madison in 1997.
Wisconsin’s state motto is supposed to be “Forward”, but while patients in 14 other states now have this therapy legally available, our state seems to be stuck in something like that movie, “Groundhog Day”, but instead of Bill Murray, it's seriously ill patients like Jacki Rickert going to sleep thinking things might change, but instead waking up screaming in pain asking, “Is My Medicine Legal YET?”
Medical marijuana has long had overwhelming public support in Wisconsin. A new nationwide poll found not only 81% support, but also 75% among Republicans. While Rep. Underheim, a Republican, sponsored a bill six years ago, this session, not one Republican has yet announced support for the JRMMA. This can only mean that 75% of Wisconsin’s Republican lawmakers are at odds with the views of the people they claim to represent. Please contact your legislators and make sure they know that their support on the JRMMA means your support this fall. To find out who represents you visit Who Are My Legislators? http://www.legis.state.wi.us/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx or call the Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 800-362-9472 (M-F 8:15a-4:45p).
Posted by Gary at 11:55 PM | Comments (0)
January 21, 2010
Madison NORML Examiner: Wisconsin medical cannabis supporters go on the offensive
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 21, 2010
This was originally posted on my Madison NORML Examiner blog earlier today. You can view the original posting complete with pictures, links and video Click HERE.
MADISON: Hundreds of medical cannabis patients and supporters flocked to the Wisconsin State Capital for a Memorial for the late medical marijuana patient-activist Mary Powers, then visited their legislator’s offices to lobby for the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. Hundreds more emailed or called from home.
The Memorial brought a diverse group of Wisconsinites to the Capitol, and included music from Native American traditional singer and drummer, Al Baker and singer songwriter Rick Harris. Harris played his song, “Legal Medicine Blues”, that Jacki Rickert’s quiet heroism inspired him to write 9 years ago.. Baker’s beautiful and haunting singing and drumming moved many as it echoed about the Capitol.
Mary's family was in attendance, Medical marijuana patients Jacki Rickert, Gary Storck and Teresa Shepherd spoke, as well as Wisconsin Veterans for Medical Marijuana’s Charles Wachtel and Mary Powers’ care provider Sherry, who cared for Mary in her last months and was present when she passed.
Ignoring the pleas of people in pain is something very un-Wisconsinlike. Is our state’s motto not “Forward”? Medical marijuana will be passed some day. Making patients wait means that in the end, more people will have suffered and died in pain unnecessarily because of the bigotry and cowardice of a small handful of Luddites. How many more Memorial Days will it take for state legislators to wake up and listen?
If the JRMMA fails to move this session, constituents will expect lawmakers to explain why it did not happen or why they refused to support it, when they contact voters to ask for their support this fall. There is a collision coming. Legislators will be expected to justify the delay. The best way to avoid this certain collision is to do the right thing and move the JRMMA to passage now. For that to happen, state lawmakers need to find the political courage to listen and do what their constituents are asking, not what the State Medical Society is asking, not what the pharmaceutical lobby is demanding, and not what the Attorney general is spinning.
Wednesday’s historic gathering, the largest indoor medical cannabis event inside the Capitol ever, proved that advocates are not giving up. If anything, they are learning what it takes to finish a battle that has now been going on since the 1970’s in our state, and they are well aware of those who are the impediments to patients having legal access to their medicine.
View original posting with pictures, links and video RIGHT HERE.
Posted by Gary at 11:29 PM | Comments (0)
January 20, 2010
Jim Miller: Explain marijuana’s use as a medicine
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 29, 2010
The Lobby Day and Memorial was a success! Hundreds came to the Memorial for Mary Powers, then lobbied their reps.
Jim Miller had this letter published this morning in the Wisconsin state Journal in response to Tom "Weedman" Meyer.
Jim Miller: Explain marijuana’s use as a medicine
Wisconsin State Journal
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
A Sunday letter to the editor titled “Legalization could open the door to abuse” stated “Every teenager at odds with parents over the dangers of marijuana is aware of actions to legalize weed” and “The message they’re getting is that weed is safe and parents are wrong — again.”
The writer offers no solution other than to not pass a medical marijuana law in Wisconsin, as if that will keep kids from trying marijuana.
It seems that if there was a correct message for kids about medical marijuana, we should be giving it to them instead of sacrificing seriously ill and dying patients over our perceived inability to do so.
We recently legislated a medical marijuana law here in New Jersey. My late wife, Cheryl Miller, fought for medical marijuana rights until her death in 2003. Cheryl and Wisconsin’s own Jacki Rickert were like sisters.
New Jersey’s legislators rejected this same old smoke screen. They proved that they consider patient care a priority. I would hope that Wisconsin legislators will do the same and pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act in her honor rather than her memory.
— Jim Miller, Toms River, N.J.
Posted by Gary at 11:31 PM | Comments (0)
IMMLY RELEASE: State Capitol Medical Marijuana Lobby Day and Patient Memorial Wednesday Jan. 20
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
The long-awaited Patient Memorial and Lobby Day has finally arrived. All across Wisconsin, patients and supporters are making their way to Madison to talk to their lawmakers about the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act and ask for their vote. Below is IMMLY's press release.
Is My Medicine Legal YET?
www.IMMLY.org & www.JRMMA.org
For immediate release: Wednesday, January 20, 2010
State Capitol Medical Marijuana Lobby Day and Patient Memorial Wednesday Jan. 20
Mary Powers was a warrior. The wheelchair-bound disabled Army veteran spent the last years of her life battling not only cancer, AIDS and Hepatitis C, but also for her dream of legal access for patients like herself to the medicine that worked best for her - cannabis. Mary passed away quietly in her sleep on Oct. 22, her dream unfulfilled.
On Wed. Jan. 20, Mary's family, friends and supporters of Wisconsin's Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act will gather in the first floor rotunda of the State Capitol for a Memorial for Mary and other patients who ran out of time before legislation to protect them could be passed. Appearing at the Memorial will be Jacki Rickert, Gary Storck, Teresa Shepherd and other state advocates. In addition, Singer-songwriter Rick Harris will perform his Jacki Rickert-inspired song, "Legal Medicine Blues" and Members of the Great Lakes Ogichidaa Society will perform a traditional Native American ceremony in Mary's honor. The Memorial will be in the first floor rotunda, from 12pm-1pm. Immediately following, attendees will fan out to their legislators offices from 1pm-3pm.
New polling has found that 81% of Americans including 75% of Republicans now support legalizing medical marijuana. Medical marijuana legislation will be passed one day in Wisconsin, whether it is this session or some future one. What will be gained by continuing to ignore the will of the people? The JRMMA needs to passed in Jacki Rickert's honor, not her memory!
Hopefully those lawmakers who have doubts or who are having trouble finding the courage to support Wisconsinites in pain by saying they will vote for this bill will take note of the people who come to ask them to vote for it Wednesday; chronically ill, dying, vets, seniors, the disabled. Refusal to vote yes for the JRMMA is a slap in the face to numerous Wisconsinites who would benefit greatly.
Just as New Jersey lawmakers of both parties found the courage to pass medical marijuana in their state, so should Wisconsin legislators. To fail to take advantage of this opportunity to provide basic health care would be a serious dereliction of duty for a group seeking voters' favor this fall.
Is My Medicine Legal YET? is a Mondovi and Madison Wisconsin based grass roots patient and caregiver organization dedicated to advancing public education about the medicinal benefits of cannabis. For further information contact Jacki Rickert or Gary Storck at 608.241.8922 or visit the IMMLY websites at www.IMMLY.org and www.JRMMA.org.
###
Posted by Gary at 11:23 PM | Comments (0)
January 17, 2010
Published Letter: WI State Journal: Now is time to legalize medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, January 17, 2010
With just three days to go until the Patient Memorial and JRMMA Lobby Day at the WI State Capitol, here is an LTE I penned, published today.
Source: Wisconsin State Journal
Pubdate: January 17, 2010
Author: Gary Storck
NOW IS TIME TO LEGALIZE MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Regarding a recent editorial, "GOOD NEWS: Headlines we'd like to see in 2010," my suggestion, published a year ago, remains the same: "Governor signs medical marijuana bill, Wisconsin becomes 15th state to protect patients using medicinal cannabis."
The Wisconsin Legislature now has before it AB554 and SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, sponsored by Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton and 15 cosponsors.
A combined Assembly and Senate Health Committee hearing in December lasted over eight hours. Only six parties, mostly special interests including the State Medical Society and the Attorney General's office, opposed the bill.
In contrast, over 100 individuals and organizations testified in favor, and more submitted in writing. Testimony came from patients, family members, doctors, nurses, clergy, the Wisconsin Nurses Association, AIDS Resource Center of Wisconsin, Hospice Organization and Palliative Experts and the Wisconsin American Civil Liberties Union.
This overwhelming weight of evidence that sends a strong message to state legislators: Pass the Medical Marijuana Act now!
People with serious medical conditions do not usually turn out in droves on cold winter days to share their medical histories with strangers, including hostile lawmakers such as Rep. Leah Vukmir R-Wauwatosa. The doubts of lawmakers and the fear mongering of the opposition must be rejected. This issue has overwhelming popular support, and Wisconsinites will not allow another session to go by without it being addressed.
Gary Storck, Madison,
director of communications,
Is My Medicine Legal YET?
Posted by Gary at 01:41 PM | Comments (0)
January 06, 2010
Published Letter: Capital Times: On medical pot, Lazich should practice what she preaches
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
My latest letter in the Capital Times. A rersponse to a letter from the Senator published recently.
Source: Capital Times
Pubdate: Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Author: Gary Storck:
ON MEDICAL POT, LAZICH SHOULD PRACTICE WHAT SHE PREACHES
Dear Editor: State Sen. Mary Lazich, R-New Berlin, concluded a recent letter by stating, "Here's to less taxing and spending in 2010 in Wisconsin with far less fraud, government intervention, and regulation."
I'm confused. At the combined Assembly/Senate health committee hearings on Dec. 15 on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, I heard Lazich propose so much government intervention and regulation as to render the new proposal impotent! Her very attempts to sound reasonable while discussing the bill were fraudulent.
Patients in 13 states now have the choice of medical cannabis among potential treatments for debilitating conditions. Wisconsin does not. Lazich, unlike some other opponents such as Rep. Leah Vukmir, R-Wauwatosa, stuck around long enough to hear patients describe how medical cannabis has been of immeasurable benefit. She heard patients say over and over how conventional treatments had failed or were too harsh and the side effects too toxic.
Lazich owes it not only to her constituents but also to all Wisconsinites by virtue of her committee post to keep an open mind when considering this issue. She should abstain from voting if unwilling to give the 105 people who registered in support, compared to just six opponents representing special interests, the true weight their support deserves.
This is an election year. The overwhelming majority of Wisconsinites support protecting medical cannabis patients by passing the medical marijuana act intact. Voters should look for less toxic alternatives to politicians like Lazich this fall.
Gary Storck
communications director, Is My Medicine Legal YET?
Madison
Posted by Gary at 09:18 AM | Comments (0)
December 30, 2009
2009 Top 10 Wisconsin medical cannabis stories
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Below is my year end report for the "Madison NORML Examiner. Read the original here.
Storck and Rickert at JRMMA hearing.
Madison: 2009 was a historic year for Wisconsin medical cannabis advocates. For the first time in decades, after a change in Assembly leadership, medical cannabis legislation gained the backing of key state lawmakers in both chambers. Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison), a sponsor of mmj bills dating back to the late 1990s, was joined by his colleague, Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee), in sponsoring AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. The bill also gained 13 Assembly and 2 Senate cosponsors.
Below are Madison NORML Examiner's "2009 Top 10 Wisconsin medical cannabis stories:"
#10) Thursday, Feb 26, 2009: US Attorney General Eric Holder: Ending Medical Cannabis Raids now US Policy. This event did not happen in Wisconsin, but it was one of many pieces of the puzzle that came together in 2009 to make the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act a viable bill.
#9) Sunday, June 7, 2009: State Capitol "Candlelight" Vigil for victims of Medical Marijuana Prohibition. On a Sunday evening in late Spring, nearly 50 patients and supporters including Jacki Rickert gather for a "candlelight" vigil to hear speeches from Jacki, Mary Powers, Gary Storck and others. Singer-songwriter Rick Harris' performance of his song, "Legal Medicine Blues," inspired by Jacki Rickert, topped off a moving night of activism and rememberance.
#8) Summer 2009: Re-establishing Milwaukee NORML: Since the creation of a Milwaukee NORML Facebook group in 2008, momentum had been building for the formation of an official Milwaukee NORML chapter. Finally, after numerous stops and starts, became a reality in the Summer of 2009. However the group was disbanded due to internal problems in early 2010.
Wheelchair patients lead parade!
#7) Thurs.-Sun. October 1-4, 2009, The 39th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival, with a live bill in play, represented the pinnacle of the festival's steadily rising focus on passage of Wisconsin medical marijuana legislation over the last decade or so. IMMLY's 7th annual Friday night benefit at the Frequency was the best yet. On Sunday, thousands of medical marijuana activists, led by a half dozen patients in wheelchairs, turned out on a cold and windy day for the traditional parade up State St., around Capitol Square, to the State St. steps of the Capitol for a rally and concert by Baghdad Scuba Review. And despite the cold weather, hundreds lingered to listen to speeches from advocates like JRMMA namesake Jacki Rickert, Gary Storck. Mary Powers, NJ activiist Jim Miller, along with other state and national activists.
#6) Monday, April 5, 2009: Michigan implements MMJ program, putting legal maedical marijuana just across the Wisconsin-Michigan borders: "Five months after voters approved a ballot measure to allow people with "debilitating" illnesses and diseases to use marijuana, the state Monday begins taking applications for the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program." Read more.
#5) Wednesday, Oct 21, 2009: Wisconsin Gov. Jim Doyle supports JRMMA. Although he had been telling supporters he would sign a bill if it reached his desk since before his election in 2002, Gov. Jim Doyle went a step farther, providing yet another piece of the puzzle by telling reporters at a October 2009 Wausau appearance that withholding medical marijuana was "senseless" and that he supported currentr legislation and would sign it if passed.
Mary & Gary and Friends.
#4) April 23-October 7, 2009: Lobbying with Mary & Gary (and friends). On April 23, Wisconsin patient activists Mary Powers and Gary Storck begin a new grass roots lobbying campaign at the State Capitol. By mid-summer, the two are making weekly visits, supplemented by increasing numbers of other patients and supporters, and documenting the visits with video "Mary & Gary" shows. By early October, this campaign has contacted more than 80 of 132 lawmakers offices.
Mary's veteran flag at memorial.
#3) Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009: Passing of Mary Powers. The Wisconsin medical cannabis community was saddened by the abrupt passing of Mary Powers, after a long and heroic struggle with cancer, AIDS and Hepatitis C. Mary's devotion to the cause of legal medical cannabis in Wisconsin, despite knowing she would not live to see it passed, should inspire everyone, whether healthy or dealing with a medical conditionm to step up and in some way, do something try to fill the gigantic activist shoes Mary left empty when she left us Oct. 22.
11/16 Press Conference (WI Eye)
#2) Monday, November 16, 2009: Capitol press conference announcing introduction of Jacki Rickert MMJ Act: The Capitol and it's ornate Senate Parlor, adjacent to the Senate Chamber, have hosted a number of press conferences about imedical cannabis legislation over the years. On Nov. 16, 2009, there was a different feeling in the air because, for the first time in decades, a bill with powrrful support in both chambers with the support of WI Gov. Jim Doyle, was unveiled to great hopes and much press.
#1) Tuesday, December 15, 2009: Combined Public Health Committee Hearing on AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. Despite shrill attempts by opponents to distract committee members from focusing on medicinal benefits, one hundred five people including representatives of state health groups, health care professionals and most importantly, patients and family members, testified or registered in support with only five against, four of them special intesrest group paid lobbyists. Even more patients who were unable to make it to the Capitol submitted reams of written testimony. This historic hearing, standing room only on a bitterly cold winter day that followed a major snowstorm, demonstrated that Wisconsinites support medical cannabis, by an overwhelming margin.
An online poll by Wisconsin Eye, which videocast and archived both the press conference and hearing, ran an internet poll on Dec. 29 that registered support for passing medical marijuana in Wisconsin in the 95% or higher support range at publication time. Read a great late breaking "gloves-off" dissection of JRMMA opponents' behavior from the Fox Valley Scene, "Conservatives trot out tired stories at medical marijuana hearing".
Posted by Gary at 01:26 PM | Comments (0)
December 26, 2009
Wisconsin: AB554/SB368 Hearing: Nurses, doctor support compassionate use
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Here is my latest Madison NORML Examiner article, which you can view the original version of, with photos here.
Wisconsin: AB554/SB368 Hearing: Nurses, doctor support compassionate use
Madison: At the Dec. 15 combined committee hearing on AB554/SB368, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, support from health care professionals, particularly those who treat patients in real pain or represent professions that do, was strong. This was evident to those attending the hearing and to those viewing it on Wisconsin Eye.
Unfortunately, the representative of the Wisconsin State Medical Society (SMS), Dr. Michael Miller, an addiction specialist with a lucrative practice treating people involuntarily referred for counseling after detection of marijuana use, was not among those supporting the JRMMA Dec. 15.
But even Dr. Miller's on record opposition on behalf of the SMS to the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act was tempered by statements he made. As to "gateway drugs", Dr. Miller identified tobacco, a legal substance, as the number one gateway drug. He also acknowledged not only had SMS members not been polled as to whether they supported the JRMMA, but if they were, "you might get a lot of members saying yes".
Miller did not elaborate on why the Society did not poll members before sending him to oppose the JRMMA on their behalf. Miller also offered no indication why the SMS felt it appropriate to send a representative skilled in the area of addictions rather than one who might actually approach medical use from the benefits it could provide to patients with cancer, chronic pain, AIDS, multiple sclerosis or any of the debilitating conditions and treatments included in the JRMMA.
A little later, the committees heard from Dr. Michael Wolkomir of Barneveld, a Wisconsin board certified family medicine physician and State Medical Society member in practice since 1971. Dr. Wolkomir spoke in support of the JRMMA, describing how legal access to medical cannabis would benefit his patients.
Dr. Wolkomir testified that marijuana is "a useful adjutant medicine and safest for many problems". He further noted cannabis could help reduce the use of stronger opiates like Oxycontin, Vicodin and morphine if used in conjunction with milder analgesics. Dr. Wolkomir also termed Marinol and Sativex, “expensive and less complete agents inferior to the natural product”. He also noted he had practiced in Ontario Canada and cited positive findings of Canada’s COMPASS study on medical cannabis.
Mary Lynn Mathre, an nurse with a specialty in addictions and the President and co-founder of the medical cannabis group Patients Out of Time, addressed many of Dr. Miller's contentions. She also invited SMS members and others to attend Patients Out of Time's next conference in Rhode Island in April 2010. Mathre also testified as to the strong support in not only the nursing community, but the medical world in general documented by their list of organizations supporting the therapeutic use of cannabis.Karen Carrig, a nurse with HOPE of Wisconsin, touted the JRMMA and how it would help hospice workers by offering protection for patients and hospice staff, as well as offering a safe supply source. Education opportunities would allow more chances to speak about the use of vaporization, edibles, tinctures or other alternatives to smoking. She also acknowledged that some patients do not respond to narcotics or the side effects are intolerable, like nausea, vomiting, constipation, even hallucinations. Carrig explained that cannabis could also replace more dangerous medications for neuropathic pain, like methadone. She said hospice “would be intimately involved and look forward to” helping to implement the JRMMA by educating the treatment team, patients and families and utilizing cannabis as an adjunct to other legal therapies.
Gina Dennik-Champion, Executive Director of Wisconsin Nurses Association, testified that she has heard many stories of the benefits of medical cannabis from nurses directly involved in patient care. She testified that nurses don’t want to see patients in pain and if cannabis works so be it, patients should have legal protection. Dennik-Champion also urged the committees to expand the JRMMA’s list of those legally authorized to certify patients are undergoing debilitating medical condition or treatments to include nurse prescribers, who already prescribe a wide range of medications under state law. The WNA formally went on record supporting legal access and asking the governor and state lawmakers to pass medical marijuana legislation over a decade ago.
For more info: List of qualifying medical conditions included in the JRMMA. Jacki Rickert MMJ Act Hearing Recap & Action Alert. For additional details on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, info on the Dec. 15 combined Health committee hearing, bill text and status, all the latest news and how you can help, visit JRMMA.org, IMMLY.org or MadisonNORML.org. Visit my Madison NORML Examiner articles archive.
Posted by Gary at 09:00 PM | Comments (0)
December 22, 2009
Jacki Rickert MMJ Act Hearing Recap & Action Alert
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, Dec. 22, 2009
Below you will find a recap of the Dec. 15, 2009 combined committee hearing as well as an action alert on how to help pass the JRMMA. As always, visit JRMMA.org for the latest news and information.
MADISON: Support from hearing attendees was overwhelming, and media interest high, for the Dec. 15 combined committee hearing on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. The JRMMA, Assembly Bill 554/Senate Bill 368), is sponsored by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee). A sampling of coverage is linked from JRMMA.org. The entire 8 hour hearing can be viewed online on Wisconsin Eye.
Those arriving close to the hearings start time found the large hearing room standing room only, with attendees crowding hallways leading in to the hearing room.
The final tally for the day was 57 who attended registered in support, with only one registered against. 48 people testified in support, with only 5 against. Those five were Dr. Michael Miller, State Medical Society, Kevin St. John, Wisconsin DOJ on behalf of AG Van Hollen, Charles Wood, Wisconsin Narcotics Officer Association, Robert Block, State of Wisconsin Controlled Substances Board and the fifth was a private citizen.
While media focused on negative comments from Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), The Medical Society's Dr. Michael Miller and other naysayers, eloquent testimony was heard from patient after patient who stayed long after the reporters left. It was a testimony itself to the toughness of this room of survivors that they came out on such a cold day and waited in pain long hours to testify. These stories of courage in the face of great adversity are emblematic of the Wisconsin spirit.
What comes next?
The two committees, the Assembly Committee on Public Health and the Senate Committee on Health, Health Insurance, Privacy, Property Tax Relief, and Revenue must now deliberate and vote on the bills. Only when the bills are voted out of committee will the JRMMA move to the floor of each chamber, the Assembly and the Senate, for a floor vote.
What you can do:
Please call your representative and senator. If they already are sponsors or co-sponsors, please thank them. If they aren't, let them know you are disappointed and ask them to support compassionate medical marijuana policy. If you live in the district of any committee members, please contact them and ask that they vote for the JRMMA when the committee votes on the bill sometime after the holidays. Please contact IMMLY at immly@immly.org with any information on your contact with the legislator. We need to develop a network of calls and contacts to make sure legislators support this bill. We need to know who says they support it and who is against. Let us know about fence-sitters who may just need more info. This goes for both committee members as well as all lawmakers. If they are against, ask for reasons why. If you can provide any info on a lawmakers position whatsoever, please let IMMLY know at immly@immly.org
Here is a list of the committees and members:
Health Committees and Members from combined public hearing on JRMMA on Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009 who must now debate JRMMA and vote on it in committee:
Senator Tim Carpenter (Vice-Chair)
Senator Judith Robson
Senator Ted Kanavas
Senator Alberta Darling
Representative Kristen Dexter
Representative Penny Bernard Schaber
Representative Patricia Strachota
Representative Leah Vukmir
Representative Scott Newcomer
Send pre-written letter to Legislators: http://capwiz.com/norml2/issues/alert/?alertid=14115736
Posted by Gary at 05:27 PM | Comments (0)
December 21, 2009
Two Letters supporting JRMMA in Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, Dec. 21, 2009
Below are two letters, one mine, published in Tuesday's Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
US WI: PUB LTE: MEDICAL MARIJUANA It's about time
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Pubdate: 22 Dec 2009
Author: Gary Storck
MEDICAL MARIJUANA: IT'S ABOUT TIME
In saying patients testifying in support of medical marijuana are somehow willing dupes of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws, isn't Capt. Charles Wood of the Wisconsin Narcotics Officers Association really insinuating they are stupid (Opinions, Dec. 21)? Gov. Jim Doyle has said he'd sign the bill if it reached his desk. I can only imagine what Wood must think of him.
Are concerns about job security behind Wood's hurtful and condescending attitude? Could he be worried if more people learn, despite years of propaganda to the contrary, that cannabis is a safe and effective medicine, it might spontaneously trigger full-scale legalization?
Is this the best Wood has? Wisconsin patients have waited many years for the Legislature to take a serious look at this issue. As one born with a medical condition that has resulted in a lifetime of ill health, I salute Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) for listening and bringing forth the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act.
Those who traffic in fear, like Wood and Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa), must not be allowed to obscure that this bill is really about compassion. One hundred three people testified or registered in support. Only five testified against. If democracy still matters, the bill must be passed intact out of committee and sent for floor votes without delay. Our seniors, vets, sick, disabled and dying and those who care about them are counting on it.
Gary Storck
President
Wisconsin chapter
National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
Madison
---------------------
US WI: Help the patients
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Pubdate: 22 Dec 2009
Author: Brett Waite
HELP THE PATIENTS
As Wisconsin is debating passing a bill that would permit the use of medical marijuana, I can only hope that those against the bill stop for one moment and consider those of us who suffer.
This bill is about helping the sick, not about political posturing. The simple facts are that marijuana is a safe and effective treatment for many different ailments, and, therefore, its recommended distribution should be in the hands of doctors. It seems to me that all plants were put here for a reason. If the U.S. Food and Drug Administration hasn't determined it safe by now, then the agency never will.
So enough with the political debate. Let trained medical doctors determine when its use will benefit patients. This bill has nothing to do with the recreational use of marijuana and will not impact its use for recreation as some may argue.
Brett Waite
Cedar Grove
Posted by Gary at 09:15 PM | Comments (0)
December 20, 2009
Wisconsin Narcotics Officers Association: NORML "A front for full legalization"
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, December 20, 2009
If it wasn't bad enough that NORML was attacked by a couple legislators and the Wisconsin Narcotics Officers Association at the 12/15 JRMMA hearing, their lobbyist has now attacked us in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel! This is how bad they want to try to stop medical matijuana in Wisconsin, and everyone who cares should be disgusted by these attempts to deny the will of the people!
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
Pubdate: 21 Dec 2009
Author: Charles Wood
A FRONT FOR FULL LEGALIZATION
The Wisconsin Narcotics Officers Association agrees with state Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) that medical marijuana is a "facade."
Testimony that is based on science clearly shows that marijuana is a marginal painkiller at best, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration does not approve it, and if Wisconsin passes legislation, our laws would become contrary to federal law.
The parade of people with real medical concerns at the Madison hearing on Senate Bill 368 and Assembly Bill 554 was sad, because those backing this effort are using them to reach their goal of expanded legal marijuana use.
Behind the scene, NORML (National Organization for Reform of Marijuana Law) is driving the engine, and the sick as well as well-meaning lawmakers are being used.
Polls show Wisconsinites are behind medical marijuana, I suggest dropping the word medical and ask our citizenry if we want marijuana.
Make no mistake, this is a foot in the door. It is marijuana legislation, and it is not genuine to refer to it as medical.
Charles Wood
Vice president
Wisconsin Narcotics Officers Association
Commander
Waukesha County Metropolitan Drug Unit
Waukesha
Posted by Gary at 07:26 PM | Comments (0)
December 17, 2009
Jacki Rickert MMJ Act Hearing registers strong support
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, Dec. 17, 2009
Below is my latest article for Madison NORML Examiner. Read a slightlt prettier version here.
MADISON: Support from hearing attendees was overwhelming, and media interest high, for the Dec. 15 combined committee hearing on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. A sampling of coverage appears below.
Those arriving close to the 10 am scheduled start time found the large hearing room standing room only, with attendees crowding hallways leading in to the hearing room. All committee members were present except Sen. Ted Kanavas (R-Brookfield), last seen on Milwaukee television in a debate with bill sponsor Sen. Jon Erpenbach saying he was against the bill. According to his website, he was at a Town Hall meeting. Let us hope a constituent asked him why he was not at the Capitol representing them at this critical hearing.
The final tally for the day was 57 who attended registered in support, with only one registered against. 48 people testified in support, with only 5 against. Those five were Dr.Michael Miller, State Medical Society, Kevin St. John, Wisconsin DOJ on behalf of AG Van Hollen, Charles Wood, Wisconsin Narcotics Officer Association, Robert Block, State of Wisconsin Controlled Substances Board and the fifth was a private citizen.
Some headlines and articles focused on remarks by Rep. Leah Vukmir (R-Wauwatosa) accusing bill sponsors Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) of using patients as a "façade" to push the complete legalization of marijuana in Wisconsin.
Rep. Leah Vukmir's claim at a public hearing drew boos and other derisive comments from many in the room packed with sick people in wheelchairs or walking with canes. Supporters say marijuana helps patients deal with diseases, cancer treatments and other ailments by relieving them of pain and nausea.
Vukmir, R-Wauwatosa, said there were no medical reasons to use marijuana and that other pain relief measures should be pursued that "do not require individuals to light a joint." She said once marijuana is legalized for medical uses, momentum will grow to make it available to everyone, as has happened elsewhere.
"What I resent most is this facade you are putting forth, using people who are dying of cancer and have other diseases, as your shield," she said to the bill's Democratic co-sponsors who vehemently denied her claims. -- "Rep. Leah Vukmir, R-Wauwatosa, draws boos for opposing medical marijuana", Dec. 16, 2009, Green Bay Press Gazette.
The same AP article ran statewide and beyond with various titles including, "Wisconsin: Secret agenda for medical pot?" Dec. 16, 2009, Dubuque Telegraph Herald, "Sides square off in state Legislature over medical marijuana", La Crosse Tribune, Dec. 16, 2009 and "Sides square off in Wisconsin over medical marijuana", Appleton Post Crescent, Dec. 16, 2009.
Predictable remarks in opposition by the aforementioned long time medical cannabis opponent Dr. Michael Miller, representing the State Medical Society also made it into various reports. The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel's Patrick Marley included Vukmir's "façade" quote as well as this of Dr. Miller.
Michael Miller, a physician, told lawmakers the Wisconsin Medical Society opposed the bill because drug approvals should be based on science and left to the federal Food and Drug Administration.
"This is not the way to approve a new medicine," Miller said.
Marijuana is not a very strong painkiller, he said. Patients who need THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, to spur their appetite or combat nausea can get a prescription to Marinol, a synthetic version of the drug, he said.
Miller stressed the dangers of smoking the drug and said that is the primary way patients would use it, despite claims by advocates that many would eat it, or vaporize it and then inhale it. - "Medicinal pot bill stirs strong emotions on both sides of issue", Dec. 16, 2009, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The Journal Sentinel article also noted testimony from the office of Republican Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen, who opposes the bill.
"Make no mistake, the marijuana possession permitted by the bill to a user or caregiver is illegal under federal law, with penalties of up to five years in prison and a fine of up to $250,000," Van Hollen said in written testimony to the committee.
Those charged with marijuana could more easily thwart prosecution in state court by claiming they had a medical condition, even if they were not on the state registry, Van Hollen said.
"If the bills are enacted as drafted, law enforcement's and prosecutors' ability to enforce what would still be illegal is seriously disabled . . . ," Van Hollen said. – “Medicinal pot bill stirs strong emotions on both sides of issue”, Dec. 16, 2009, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
Milwaukee’s Fox affiliate, FOX 6, posted this video report by reporter Jennifer Reyes “Medical marijuana: To legalize or not” (Dec. 15, 2009).
Southwestern Wisconsin's Vernon County Broadcaster weighed in on the proceedings and Vukmir's harsh behavior with an editorial, concluding the bill needs to be passed.
A claim in the legislature, Tuesday, that the fight for medical marijuana was a ploy to legalize the drug, was reactionary. This argument is about helping people who are ill — nothing more.
The state of Wisconsin should join the 13 other states in the nation that have allowed for the use of medical marijuana. There is no substitute for this medicine. The excuses for continuing to keep its medicinal use illegal are not compelling.
-- “Medical marijuana should be allowed”, Dec. 16, 2009, Vernon County Broadcaster
Eau Claire’s WQOW tv offered this report on the hearings: "Wisconsin lawmakers discuss medical marijuana bill", Dec 15, 2009, Eau Claire (WQOW).
WEAU, another Eau Claire tv staion aired a report with some surprisingly supportive comments from the Eau Claire County District Attorney.
Eau Claire District Attorney Rich White says he doesn't think allowing marijuana to be given legally with a prescription will affect his office's case load.
"We'll deal with the legal consequences but I believe they will be relatively minimal,” says White.
White says it's up to the medical experts to decide whether prescriptions for marijuana are safe.
"That's no different than any advance in science, or the development of a new prescription drug," says White.
White says he doesn't think the legalization of medical marijuana in Wisconsin would lead to more prescriptions being forged. He says forging documents would carry felony charges. – “Public hearing in Madison reignites medical marijuana debate”, Dec. 15, 2009, WEAU.com
Unfortunately, with expert testimony at the front end of the hearing, most or all of the press had departed long before testimony from individual patients and supporters had started, outside of IMMLY's Jacki Rickert and Gary Storck who testified with Rep. Pocan and Sen. Erpenbach.
Amazing testimony and revelation after revelation of heroic personal struggles with illness and the healing powers of cannabis followed. Heartbreaking personal stories of pain and even arrests were peppered among them.
These stories can be seen and heard on Wisconsin Eye, which broadcast the hearing in its entirety live and has it archived for future viewing on their website.
For more info: List of qualifying medical conditions included in the JRMMA. For additional details on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, info on the Dec. 15 combined Health committee hearing, bill text and status, all the latest news and how you can help, visit JRMMA.org, IMMLY.org or MadisonNORML.org. Visit my Madison NORML Examiner articles archive.
Posted by Gary at 12:16 AM | Comments (0)
December 14, 2009
IMMLY Statement on Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act Hearings
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009
Posted on the eve of a very historic event in Wisconsin: two committees meeting to hear testimony on a medical marijuana bill, and dozens of patients expected to attend to support the bill. It should be a memorable day for our state!
Is My Medicine Legal YET?
www.IMMLY.org & www.JRMMA.org
For immediate release: Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009
IMMLY Statement on Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act Hearings
Is My Medicine Legal YET? is looking forward to hearing from the people this bill is about - patients - at the combined health committee hearing on Tuesday Dec. 15, 2009.
And while many patients will be able to attend and share how cannabis benefits them, we remind committee members to be mindful that what they see and hear Tuesday only represents the proverbial "tip of the iceberg".
For every patient that can make their particular painful journey to Room 412 East of the State Capitol at 10am, there will be thousands more who will be unable. Some are bedridden, others may be isolated or without a means of transit. Some are just too scared to even say the "M" word and would not consider breaking the law even to save their own life, even if begged by family.
And there are those patients for whom the hearing comes too late, like our dear friend Mary Powers, a disabled Army veteran and IMMLY board member who lobbied tirelessly for passage of Wisconsin medical cannabis legislation, lobbying Capitol offices up until two weeks before her death Oct. 22, at 50 from cancer, AIDS and Hepatitis C. Mary did whatever she could but died without legal access to the life-sustaining medicine she fought so hard for.
IMMLY's 2002 poll and another from 2005 established that 70-80% of Wisconsinites support legal access with a doctor's note. The people of our state understand they may need this medicine some day. Passing the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act intact correctly removes this issue from the realm of the criminal justice system and places it squarely back where it belongs, in the hands of patients and their physicians. Medical cannabis is healthcare.
Is My Medicine Legal YET? is a Mondovi and Madison Wisconsin based grass roots patient and caregiver organization dedicated to advancing public education about the medicinal benefits of cannabis. For further information contact Jacki Rickert at 715.926.4950 or Gary Storck at 608.241.8922 or visit the IMMLY websites at www.IMMLY.org and www.JRMMA.org.
###
Posted by Gary at 10:51 PM | Comments (0)
December 09, 2009
Health committee combined hearing is Tuesday, Dec. 15 for Wisconsin's Jacki Rickert MMJ Act
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, December 9, 2009
Below is my latest Examiner.com article.
MADISON: The Associated Press has now issued a correction of an erroneous report that went out Sunday stating next Tuesday's hearing was this Wednesday. The incorrect information was widely reported by numerous tv and radio stations, news websites and other sources.
The actual hearing date remains Tuesday, Dec. 15, 2009 at 10am in Room 412 East of the Wisconsin State Capitol, The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act (Assembly Bill 554/Senate Bill 368), is sponsored by Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison).
The combined hearing will be held by two Wisconsin State Legislature Committees: the Assembly Committee on Public Health and the Senate Committee on Health, Health Insurance, Privacy, Property Tax Relief, and Revenue. The Senate committee is also chaired by Sen. Erpenbach.
For more info: List of qualifying medical conditions included in the JRMMA. For additional details on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, the Dec. 15 combined Health committee hearing, and how to submit testimony, bill text and status, all the latest news and how you can help, visit JRMMA.org, IMMLY.org or MadisonNORML.org. Visit my Madison NORML Examiner articles archive.
Posted by Gary at 10:44 PM | Comments (0)
December 02, 2009
Wisconsin media continues heavy coverage of Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act
Posted by Gary Storck
December 2, 2009
Below is a compilation of recent news articles about the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act. More are on the way.
MADISON: As support builds, Wisconsin media outlets continue to portray the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act in a favorable light. Patients are sharing their stories with reporters, resulting in some very moving personal stories of just how much cannabis can help people in our state who are suffering today
Below is a sampling of highlights from the last week.
On Wednesday Nov, 25, the day before Thanksgiving, The Capital Times published a 4000-word cover story by Cap Times reporter Steven Elbow that presented a very broad view of the issue, with many viewpoints represented.
(State Rep. Mark) Pocan says that with polls showing overwhelming support for medical marijuana in Wisconsin and wide support in neighboring states, Republicans have seen the writing on the wall.
"I'm sure they're hearing from their constituents," he says. "My guess is where they're used to just saying no, because that's kind of what they do when measures come up from Democrats, in this case I think they realize there's a real price back home to pay by just having an obstructionist agenda."
The article also explored the difficult choices faced by patients attempting to manage serious debilitating conditions, like MS patient Christine Harrington, whose husband was jailed for growing her medicine.
Crawford County District Attorney Tim Baxter didn't return calls for comment, but Christine Harrington says he was sensitive to her plight. Baxter agreed to a joint recommendation with John Harrington's attorney to hand him a light sentence that didn't include probation, allowing him to avoid potential prison time resulting from probation violations, which would have been a distinct possibility.
Having suffered drastic side effects from the steroid treatment prescribed by her physician -- including urinary, bladder, kidney and blood infections -- Christine Harrington says she has no intention to stop using marijuana, which she says alleviates her pain and nausea with no side effects.
-- "Will Wisconsin Join Other States in Legalizing Medical Marijuana?", Capital Times, Wed, 25 Nov 2009.
Wisconsin's Gannett dailies also went directly to patients in seeking out how Wisconsinites might find relief through legal medical cannabis. Like other sources, they talked to patients already doing so already in spite of the law, simply because it works much better than standard toxic pharmaceuticals.
"If ( marijuana ) is going to help, I have to make a decision -- I don't use it and lose my job and go on disability, or do I take a risk here?" Chuck said.
"I can go from on the floor crying in pain to sitting relaxed in minutes with a minute amount of cannabis," said Chuck, who suffers from myotonic dystrophy, a disorder where the person suffers progressive muscle wasting. "I'm talking about two puffs."
-- "State Weighs Medical Cannabis", Fri, 27 Nov 2009, Wausau Daily Herald.
The article was also picked up by the Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune on Sat, 28 Nov 2009: "State Mulls Legalization of Medical Cannabis".
Syndicated health columnist Dr. Peter Gott, an admitted tobacco consumer, displayed his old school roots with a recent backwards portrayal of the risks of smoking cannabis that was carried by the Wisconsin State Journal.
This was part of my response:
If Dr. Gott is so wrong about cannabis, how can we trust his other advice? The proper prescription would be to attend next April's cannabis conference. Patients Out of Time ( see: www.medicalcannabis.com ) presents these conferences every two years. Mary Lynn Mathre, a nurse and the group's cofounder, is scheduled to be in Madison on Dec. 15 for the combined Health committee hearing on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act.
-- “Dr. Gott Out of Date on Cannabis Advice”, Thu, 26 Nov 2009, Wisconsin State Journal.
Dave Zweifel, the editor emeritus of The Capital Times, offered his own personal story of playing "cannabis angel", in this piece arguing that while medical should be an immediate priority, that it's time to legalize cannabis completely.
The time for Wisconsin to become the 15th state to allow patients to use pot to make their lives a bit more comfortable is long past due. My own father, who was suffering mightily from the pains of pancreatic cancer, found some relief from marijuana I was able to illegally purchase for him in the last weeks of his life.
That was more than 30 years ago and politicians still balk at allowing sick people the relief that marijuana can provide some of them. Hopefully, the Wisconsin Legislature will act quickly to legalize medical marijuana at the very least. Meanwhile the time has come for Congress to end the war on pot - period. We've got far better uses for all the money and resources.
Zweifel went on to talk about my medical use as noted in the Capitol press conference on Nov. 16.
Madison's Gary Storck, who has been pushing for decades to get the Legislature to legalize marijuana for medical purposes, put it bluntly the other day: "We're not criminals, we're just trying to get on with our lives."
Storck says he has been using marijuana since 1972 to treat his glaucoma and arthritis.
-- “Time to End the War on Pot – Period”, Mon, 30 Nov 2009, Capital Times.
Some nice online commentary was provide on the website of Madisdon's weekly Isthmus, Isthmus.com, by columnist Emily Mills.
It’s ridiculous that pot has occupied the same class of dangerous drugs as LSD and heroin, and that penalties for possession and even small-scale grow operations have been so disproportionate. It’s even more ridiculous that our deeply ingrained and somewhat irrational fear of the stuff has led to such thorough stifling of important research—science that could help lead to a higher quality of life for those patients whose conditions would qualify them to use it.
Finally, The Scene, a Wisconsin monthly out of the Fox Valley, which devoted an entire issue to the First JRMMA in 2007, carried two articles about medical cannabis and the JRMMA in their Dec. 2009 edition.
"I cannot fathom the reluctance of my federal government to allow the use of medical cannabis for the sick and dying of the U.S.," (Federal patient Irvin) Rosenfeld said in a press release sent out to announce his world record. "My experience of use, the calming of my negative symptoms, that has allowed me to be a useful, contributing member of society must be extended to all the ill based on the judgment of medical professionals and not guided or restrained by the dictates of law enforcement who have no empathy for the ill nor the education to appropriately enter into doctor-patient relationships and treatment options."
Of the JRMMA, the Scene's Jim Lundstrom continued:
The Act has already drawn support from a number of state groups, including the Wisconsin Nurses Association, AIDS Resource Center of WI, Epilepsy Foundation of Southern WI, Hospice Organizations and Palliative Experts (HOPE), and the Wisconsin chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.
"As Jacki has put it, 'This bill, this time'," Storck said. "I have never felt this level of support before. People are fed up with being forced to use toxic meds. A lot of folks have no insurance. We are tired of looking over our shoulders, and buying medicine from drug cartels instead of dispensaries or getting it from caregivers."
-- “Medical marijuana: 'This time, this bill!',” 1 December 2009, The Scene.
The Scene's second article's focus discussed the efforts of myself and Mary Powers.
Mary's last day of lobbying was Oct. 7.
"She was using an oxygen tank," Storck said. "I took her into (Senate Republican leader) Scott Fitzgerald's office to show them the face of medical marijuana, after his spokesperson, Kimber Leidl, issued statements saying 'the risks outweighed the benefits'."
Mary Powers died in her sleep Oct. 22.
He also discussed my survibal of a 1997 post-surgical infection and my outlook on the JRMMA's chances.
"And I vowed that day that I would use this extra time I was given to see that medical cannabis was finally legal in Wisconsin. It's looking like, with a little luck and the blessings of the cannabis angels, that those efforts will soon come to fruition. But, there is still a lot of work yet, and the people of Wisconsin need to make their 80% support heard. But from a very long view, we are very close to the Promised Land."
A nice touch at the articles end was "Key Points Of The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act". Read entire article at the link below.
-- "Medical marijuana: 'Very close to the Promised Land'," 1 December 2009, The Scene.
For all the latest updates on the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act and how you can help, visit IMMLY and Madison NORML's website, JRMMA.org. JRMMA.org also has detailed information on attending and submitting testimony at the upcoming Combined Health Committee hearing on Dec. 15, 10am, Room 412 East at the State Capitol here in Madison.
Mirrored online at: Madison NORML Examiner .
Posted by Gary at 09:47 PM | Comments (0)
November 30, 2009
OPED: Plain Talk: Time to end the war on pot - period
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, November 30, 2009
A very nice OPED from Dave Zweifel, editor emeritus of The Capital Times. He even cops to playing "cannabis angel" (my words, not his), to his dying father 30 years ago. Kudos to him and anyone else who has done so for having the courage and compassion to take such a risk to help a suffering loved one. It is unacceptable that a bad law puts people in such a position, and passing the JRMMA would put an end to it once for all.
Source: The Capital Times
Pubdate: Monday, November 30, 2009
Author: Dave Zweifel
PLAIN TALK: TIME TO END THE WAR ON POT - PERIOD
Momentum is building to legalize medical marijuana in Wisconsin. State Rep. Mark Pocan, a Madison Democrat, and state Sen. Jon Erpenbach, a Waunakee Democrat, have authored a bill that would make it legal for doctors to prescribe marijuana as a pain reliever for various injuries or illnesses. Gov. Jim Doyle has said he would sign the bill into law.The time for Wisconsin to become the 15th state to allow patients to use pot to make their lives a bit more comfortable is long past due. My own father, who was suffering mightily from the pains of pancreatic cancer, found some relief from marijuana I was able to illegally purchase for him in the last weeks of his life.
That was more than 30 years ago and politicians still balk at allowing sick people the relief that marijuana can provide some of them. The Bush administration had a policy to arrest and prosecute folks using medical marijuana even in the states that have legalized it. Fortunately, the Obama administration has said it will cease doing that.
Madison's Gary Storck, who has been pushing for decades to get the Legislature to legalize marijuana for medical purposes, put it bluntly the other day: "We're not criminals, we're just trying to get on with our lives."
Storck says he has been using marijuana since 1972 to treat his glaucoma and arthritis.
In the latest edition of the Hightower Lowdown, editor Jim Hightower, the Texas gadfly, proclaimed that America's drug war is doing far more harm than marijuana itself ever will. He suggests that the nation would be better off legalizing all marijuana use.
Hightower insists that even the most conservative estimates say the outlay from taxpayers now tops $10 billion a year in direct spending just to catch, prosecute and incarcerate marijuana users and sellers. And that doesn't include the costs of militarizing the border with Mexico to stop pot imports. Even the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources this year asked deer hunters to look for pot growing in the woods so, presumably, wardens could go out and nab some farmers.
Some 41,000 Americans are in federal or state prisons right now on marijuana charges and that doesn't count the thousands more in city and county jails.
Plus thousands of law enforcement people are diverted from serious crimes to pursue someone smoking pot. That includes agents from the FBI, the Secret Service, Customs, and the Drug Enforcement Agency. Yet Congress refuses to change the long-outdated laws that cover the use of marijuana.
Hopefully, the Wisconsin Legislature will act quickly to legalize medical marijuana at the very least. Meanwhile the time has come for Congress to end the war on pot - period. We've got far better uses for all the money and resources.
Dave Zweifel is editor emeritus of The Capital Times. dzweifel@madison.com
Posted by Gary at 04:23 PM | Comments (0)
November 27, 2009
Letter: WI State Journal: Dr. Gott out of date on cannabis advice
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, Nov. 27, 2009
Dr. Peter Gott is a syndicated health columnist whose column appears across the nation in many local dailies. Last week's column stated that cannabis smoking could lead to cancer and health problems. Below is my response.
Source: Wisconsin State Journal
Pubdate: 26 Nov 2009
Author: Gary Storck
DR. GOTT OUT OF DATE ON CANNABIS ADVICEIn a recent column, Dr. Peter Gott wrote that smoking cannabis causes health problems, even cancer, while admitting that he smokes tobacco, a proven carcinogen.
Dr. Donald Tashkin, a researcher at UCLA has been searching for the "smoking gun" since the 1970s. Tashkin's studies identified toxic compounds in cannabis smoke, and he published photomicrographs showing cannabis smoke damages cells lining the upper airways.
Yet in California in April 2008, at the National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics, I heard Tashkin report his findings that smoking cannabis does not cause cancer.
Tashkin also discussed research on chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder (COPD), finding that the more tobacco was smoked, the greater the rate of decline. In contrast, no matter how much marijuana was smoked, the rate of decline was similar to normal. Tashkin's conclusion is that his and other studies do not support the concept that regular smoking of marijuana leads to COPD.
If Dr. Gott is so wrong about cannabis, how can we trust his other advice? The proper prescription would be to attend next April's cannabis conference. Patients Out of Time (see: www.medicalcannabis.com ) presents these conferences every two years. Mary Lynn Mathre, a nurse and the group's co-founder, is scheduled to be in Madison on Dec. 15 for the combined Health committee hearing on the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act.
Gary Storck, Madison, director of communications, Is My Medicine Legal YET?
Posted by Gary at 04:27 PM | Comments (0)
November 25, 2009
Appleton Post Crescent: Editorial: Medical marijuana's time has come
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009
This editorial from the Appleton Post Crescent illustrates the consensus coming together that medical marijuana should be legalized now. Or, This bill, this time!
Appleton Post Crescent
November 25, 2009
Editorial: Medical marijuana's time has comeThe tide is turning in favor of legalizing marijuana for medicinal use — and it's about time.
Studies have shown that cancer patients and those with other painful diseases, such as AIDS, can benefit from the substance, which stimulates appetite, reduces nausea and eases muscle spasms and pain. These patients shouldn't be criminalized for seeking relief for maladies hard to fathom unless you've been there.
Thirteen states have legalized medical marijuana and a dozen others, including Wisconsin, are considering it.
Though the idea has been floated in our state Legislature before, state Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, and state Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, have introduced a bill that may have a chance this time.
It has firm parameters, such as creating a maximum amount of marijuana a patient may have, and the backing of Gov. Jim Doyle.
Doyle says he supports the bill as long as the users have a doctor's prescription. That safeguard, while not infallible, should assuage the fears that legalization for this specific purpose would open the floodgates to wholesale legalization.
The American Medical Association, once an ally of opponents to legalizing medical marijuana, recently reversed its policy that claimed marijuana had no benefits.
Meanwhile, President Barack Obama has made good on a promise to halt federal prosecutions of medical marijuana use where permitted by state law.
It's time to adopt a law that simply allows the use of small amounts of marijuana to cope with the effects of debilitating illness.
Posted by Gary at 05:04 PM | Comments (0)
November 22, 2009
Wisconsin Legislative committees set to take another look at medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, November 22, 2009
As today is the 4th anniversary of Rep. Gregg Underheim's 2005 public hearing on his medical marijuana bill AB740, I thought I'd take a look back at that and other hearings I've attended over the years.
Madison: Medical marijuana has long been an issue in Wisconsin's legislature. A number of legislative hearings on the legalization of medical marijuana have been held over the years, and I have attended four, and submitted testimony at three of those.On July 31, 1979, as a congenital glaucoma patient and a 24 year old college student, I traveled from my then-Milwaukee residence to Madison to attend a public hearing on the Therapeutic Cannabis Research Act. The first Federal IND patient, Robert Randall, testified about smoking 10 joints per day for glaucoma. The bill was not passed that session, but it came back the next, and was passed by large margins in both houses in 1981 and signed into law by then-Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus in April 1982. However, the law was quickly rendered symbolic when federal authorities refused to supply Wisconsin with their supplies of medical marijuana. You can watch a short video I made about the experience on YouTube, "Medical Cannabis in Wisconsin: Gary Storck talks of glaucoma and Wisconsin medical cannabis efforts".
After a long drought, medical cannabis returned to the Wisconsin legislature in the mid-1990's. A number of bills were introduced, all eventually dying in committee, without receiving a hearing. In the 2001 session, then-Rep. Rick Skindrud (R-Mt. Horeb),, a moderate Dane County Republican, convened an informational hearing of his Assembly State Affairs Committee on Tuesday April 10, 2001.
Testimony was limited to invited guests. Among those testifying was IMMLY Founder Jacki Rickert. Jacki led off the hearing discussing her experiences and how medicinal cannabis has benefited her and helped her regain a little quality of life.
Others testifying included Dr. Michael Miller, representing the State Medical Society and speaking in opposition and Gina Dennik-Champion, Executive Director of the Wisconsin Nurses Association, testifying in favor. Also giving testimony were then-Rep. Frank Boyle (D-Superior), a longtime supporter, and then-Dane County Sheriff Gary Hamblin, a prostate cancer survivor.
Then-Rep. Gregg Underheim (R-Oshkosh) had become interested in medical cannabis in 2003, around the same time as myself accompanied by Jim Miller, visiting for Harvest Fest, stopped by his office and had a lengthy talk with a staffer about the issue. As Health Committee chair in 1997, Underheim had refused to hold a Health committee hearing on that session's bill, saying "It's not about medicine, it's about intoxication." That bill was sponsored by Frank Boyle and then-State Rep. Tammy Baldwin, now a U.S. Congressperson representing Madison.
But by 2003, Underheim was a cancer survivor himself. The following session, Underheim convened and chaired a public hearing of his Assembly Health Committee on Tuesday, Nov. 22, 2005, the topic, AB740, his bill to legalize medical cannabis in Wisconsin.
Testimony was heard from IMMLY's Jacki Rickert and Gary Storck, WNA director Dennik-Champion, Federal patient Irv Rosenfeld and others. A number of other Wisconsin patients testified, including the late Mary Powers. A synopsis can be found in a blog post I wrote, "Recap of Nov. 22 Public Hearing for AB-740".
Unfortunately, Rep. Underheim never put AB740 to a committee vote, and patients who traveled long distances in pain and revealed personal medical information to hostile committee members never got the satisfaction of a up and down vote. He did not seek reelection the following term.
The fourth hearing was an informational hearing on Wed. Nov. 14, 2007. Sen. Jon Erpenbach, the Senate lead sponsor of this session's SB368, held a hearing of the Committee on Health, Human Services, Insurance and Job Creation that he chaired. Those invited to testify included IMMLY's Jacki Rickert and Gary Storck, Federal IND patient George McMahon, who flew in by private plane from Iowa, as well as two physicians who are experts in the field of medical cannabis, Dr. David Bearman, Wisconsin native now practicing in Santa Barbara California and Dr. Chris Fichtner, an Illinois doctor with very extensive credentials. Dr. Bearman also held a book signing and spoke at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine while in Madison. The UW Badger Herald covered the hearing with an article, "Senate hearing on medical marijuana turns emotional". The hearing is archived in video at Wisconsin Eye.
Long suffering Wisconsin patients and those who care about them are hoping that the State Capitol's next hearing on medical cannabis on Tuesday Dec. 15 at 10am is the charm, and that their testimony will convince state lawmakers that this session it needs to be, "This bill, this time!" For more information on how you can help pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, submit testimony at the hearing, read the bill test or donate, visit JRMMA.org, IMMLY.org or MadisonNORML.org.
Posted by Gary at 05:13 PM | Comments (0)
November 21, 2009
JRMMA press conference generates flurry of WI media coverage
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, November 20, 2009
Below is an article I put together with highlights of some of the amazing media coverage of Monday's JRMMA press conference generated.
Madison: Wisconsin media responded to the Nov. 16 Capitol press conference announcing the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act with a flurry of coverage. News reports included widespread radio and television news coverage, articles on the internet, where it was also carried live and archived by Wisconsin Eye. In addition articles and supportive editorials appeared in a wide array of Wisconsin daily newspapers.
Madison's Wisconsin State Journal, the state's second largest daily, issued an editorial on Nov. 19, "Let Desperate Patients Have Pot". The editorial noted, "A doctor should be able to recommend marijuana to a Wisconsin cancer patient suffering from severe nausea, loss of appetite and pain. More than a dozen other states have legalized medical marijuana. Wisconsin should, too."
Wisconsin's Gannett Media dailies also came out editorially in favor of the JRMMA, sponsored by Senator Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) and Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison). In an editorial carried by many, if not all of the Gannett dailies around the state, "Time to legalize medical use of marijuana".
"The time is right for Wisconsin to act on legalizing marijuana for medical use. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said recently that the Justice Department would not enforce federal drug laws in states that permit medicinal use of marijuana and Gov. Jim Doyle said he would sign the bill if passed by the legislature. The legislature should pass the bill. It makes no sense to ban a drug that has proven to be medically beneficial when physicians are legally prescribing more toxic and addictive drugs." (Oshkosh Northwestern, 11/19/09).
The Wausau Daily Herald published an identical piece, also on Nov. 19, as well as the Appleton Post Crescent, and likely the rest of the dozen plus papers in the chain in Wisconsin.
On Friday November 20, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel columnist Jim Stingl offered his perspective, "Relief, not reefer, is reason for bill".
Stingl wrote, "It will seem strange at first to have marijuana sold in storefronts rather than alleys. But the product is more likely to be pure and safe, Erpenbach said. Doctors already can approve much stronger drugs, and this would be another form of medicine."
Also on Friday, an unexpected source, the online Milwaukee Biz Blog, carried a piece by Alan Gaudynski, a former Blue Cross & Blue Shield United of Wisconsin executive, "Legalize medical marijuana in Wisconsin"
Gaudynski, first noting he had undergone surgeries for health problems, continued, "Although I am not a marijuana user, I've read reports that people with certain types of cancers and other types of debilitating diseases find pain and anti-nausea relief when smoking marijuana. If we could devise a low cost way to deliver it to appropriate patients through prescription from a doctor, and purchased from a legal outlet, like a pharmacy, I am all in favor of it."
Wisconsin patients are finding hope where it had not been for many years. The Dec. 15 State Capitol hearing, set for 10am in Room 412 East, should be a very interesting and for many patients, emotional day. To stay updated on the JRMMA, visit JRMMA.org, Is My Medicine Legal YET? or MadisonNORML.org. Send a prewritten letter to your WI State Legislators.
Posted by Gary at 10:05 AM | Comments (0)
November 17, 2009
Channel 3000 video report on Jacki Rickert MMJ Act hearing
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, November 17, 2009
Yesterday's Capitol press conference was a success at getting the word out to state media, with coverage statewide. Below is a nice report from Madison's Channel 9 (Channel 3000)
2 State Lawmakers Put Forward Medical Marijuana Bill
13 States Have Legalized Medical Marijuana
MADISON, Wis. -- Supporters of legalizing marijuana for medical purposes said on Monday the time is right to change the law in Wisconsin.Two Democratic state lawmakers announced on Monday that a bill they are co-sponsoring to legalize medical marijuana will be the subject of a public hearing on Dec. 15.
The idea has been kicking around the state Capitol for years, but some said that they believe the momentum is there for passage next year, WISC-TV reported.
State Sen. Jon Erpenbach of Waunakee said he thinks there is enough support to get it passed. He and Assembly co-sponsor state Rep. Mark Pocan of Madison were joined by advocacy groups and patients who say using marijuana can help those ill with cancer regain their appetite and deal with pain from their diseases and treatments.
Under the new plan, called the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, people with certain diseases or medical conditions could legally grow 12 marijuana plants and possess three ounces of marijuana for medical use.
"We certainly are seeing a different landscape than we have in past years," Pocan said.
Thirteen states have legalized medical marijuana and Gov. Jim Doyle last month said he would support it if users have a doctor's prescription.
On the federal level, President Barack Obama favors less prosecution of it, according to bill proponents. Add in last year's passage of a Michigan referendum on legalizing medical marijuana, and advocates said that they're more hopeful than ever.
The legislation is named after Rickert, a wheelchair-bound medical marijuana user and advocate from Mondovi. She has been in a wheelchair for 15 years in a wheelchair suffering from Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and other problems.
"I've seen so much different change this time around that people seem to have hope ...you can lose a lot from your body, but when something's taken from your spirit, that's one of the hardest things," she said.
Rickert said the new proposed named after her is giving her and other supporters new hope.
She said "cannabis angels" mysteriously show up and give her marijuana that lets her keep her weight up and cut her morphine use in half.
Backers of the bill said the measure is about compassionate care when other legal painkillers don't do the trick."Medical marijuana, for some people ... is the best way they can find any sort of relief," said Erpenbach.
The measure might face some opposition from law enforcement and some Republican state lawmakers. However, even some conservatives like state Sen. Glenn Grothman of West Bend are mulling over a "yes" vote.
Grothman said he hasn't made up his mind yet, but is inclined to vote for it unless someone gives him "a good reason not to".
"It wouldn't shock me if I vote for it," Grothman said.
A joint committee hearing will be held on the plan next month. The proposal requires people with a doctor's prescription to register with the state before growing up to 12 marijuana plants or going to state regulated dispensaries.
Some lawmakers said that they want to know if law enforcement believes medical marijuana would increase illegal pot use.
A spokesman for the Madison Police Department said it doesn't have a stance on the issue.
Posted by Gary at 11:23 AM | Comments (0)
November 15, 2009
IMMLY Press Release: “This Bill, This Time!”: Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act A Step Forward For Wisconsinites In Pain
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, November 15, 2009
Wisconsin medical cannabis supporters are elated as the hours count down to a Wisconsin State Capitol press conference at 11:30am Monday in the Senate Parlor, with bill sponsors Rep. Mark Pocan and Sen. Jon Erpenbach speaking, along with Jacki Rickert and myself.
Here is an article I wrote about the press conference, and below is IMMLY's press release for Monday.
Is My Medicine Legal YET?
www.IMMLY.org & www.JRMMA.org
For immediate release: November 16, 2009
“THIS BILL, THIS TIME!”: JACKI RICKERT MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACT A STEP FORWARD FOR WISCONSINITES IN PAIN
Madison & Mondovi: With Wisconsin’s Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act AB554/SB368 set to be rolled out at a State Capitol press conference Monday morning, IMMLY Founder Jacki Rickert and IMMLY director of Communications Gary Storck, both longtime medical cannabis patient-activists, have each issued statements:
Jacki Rickert – “I would like to quote a line from a song my friend Rick Harris wrote called ‘Legal Medicine Blues’, ‘I never wanted to break the law but I hurt too bad to pretend’. Well, I stopped pretending years ago, before most current legislators were first elected. I am so happy that after so many years, we have reached the point where the cannabis therapy my late doctor William Wright worked so hard to get approved for me seems within reach. It’s tragic so many did not even make it to today, like our friend Mary Powers, who spent her last months in this building asking legislators to pass this bill. For many medical marijuana patients there will be no more do-overs. This bill, this time!”
Gary Storck – “I stumbled upon medical cannabis in 1972 as a means to save my remaining vision from severe congenital glaucoma. After decades of working to see this therapy relegalized and enduring many dark years with no hope that this medicine might be legal for patients like Jacki and me, I now feel that all of that is about to change, and Wisconsinites will soon be free to utilize medical cannabis again. Rep. Pocan and Sen. Erpenbach are true public servants for listening to the people and giving hope this can be resolved and that compassion might no longer be a crime.”
Is My Medicine Legal YET? is a Mondovi and Madison Wisconsin based grass roots patient and caregiver organization dedicated to advancing public education about the medicinal benefits of cannabis. For further information contact Jacki Rickert at 715.926.4950 or Gary Storck at 608.241.8922 or visit the IMMLY websites at www.IMMLY.org and www.JRMMA.org.
-30-
Posted by Gary at 11:26 AM | Comments (0)
November 06, 2009
New website JRMMA.org offers full info on Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, November 6, 2009
I have just put up http://jrmma.org/, the official site of the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. It is your one stop source for everything you need to help pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, and will be frequently be updated as the bill progresses through the Wisconsin Legislature.
Posted by Gary at 10:04 PM | Comments (0)
October 29, 2009
Capital Times: OPED: Gary Storck: Time is right for state to OK medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, October 29, 2009
This was accompanied by a Cap Times editorial, "Doyle signals it’s time to legalize medical marijuana"
Source: Capital Times
Pubdate: Thursday, October 29, 2009
Author: Gary Storck
GARY STORCK: TIME IS RIGHT FOR STATE TO OK MEDICAL MARIJUANA
Thanks to the efforts of Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, and Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, Wisconsin's Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act is finally out of the gates and on its way to introduction in the Wisconsin Legislature.
The proposal is a comprehensive medical marijuana bill based on the law Michigan voters passed with a majority in every county in November 2008. It would cover the same debilitating conditions as Michigan does, as well as post-traumatic stress disorder. PTSD is a major complaint of veterans returning from the Afghan and Iraq wars. Cannabis has long been known as a remedy for PTSD that helps victims of war and other trauma get on with their lives.
Last week's action by the Obama administration in setting new policy that exempts state medical marijuana programs from federal interference is just another piece of the puzzle coming together to bring this critical health care bill to the people of Wisconsin. Gov. Jim Doyle's remarks Oct. 21 in Wausau that keeping medical cannabis from patients who can benefit is "senseless" is another sign that Wisconsin is ready to do the right thing for our state's veterans, seniors, sick, dying and disabled for whom medical cannabis might be an option.
While Wisconsin patients await legislative action, some will not live long enough to see the Rickert measure become law. One such person was my dear friend Mary Powers, a wheelchair-bound Army veteran; a cancer, AIDS and hepatitis patient; and a medical cannabis activist.
For the last five years, Mary and I visited the Capitol numerous times to lobby for medical cannabis. Cannabis clearly helped Mary, slowing the progression of her cancer and helping her with the side effects of medications and endless chemo and radiation treatments. Cannabis therapy allowed her to twice testify before legislative hearings. This year, as the legislation was coming together, Mary and I instituted weekly Capitol visits. By the end of the summer, we had visited over 80 offices, and Mary and her wheelchair became a familiar figure in the Capitol.
Mary ran out of time on Thursday, Oct. 22, passing away peacefully at home. The legislation came too late for her. Although she served her country, she was forced to break the law to obtain the only medicine that treated all her symptoms and naturally elevated her mood as she struggled with multiple medical conditions, medication and treatment side effects, unending doctor visits, and way too many hours in ER and clinic waiting rooms.
We can't turn back the clock and give Mary her medicine legally, but we can protect the other "Marys" still with us.
As Jacki Rickert, namesake of the bill, has said, "This bill this time." Thirteen states comprising 25 percent of the U.S. population now protect their sick and dying using medical cannabis. It's time for medical cannabis in Wisconsin. Please help make it a reality for our veterans, seniors, sick, dying and disabled.
Gary Storck of Madison is director of communications for Is My Medicine Legal YET? www.immly.org
Posted by Gary at 09:40 AM | Comments (0)
October 26, 2009
OPED: Sen. Jon Erpenbach D-WaunakeeTime to consider medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, October 26, 2009
An OPED about the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act from the JRMMMA's Senate sponsor, Sen. Jon Erpenbach.
Source: Monroe Times
Pubdate: Saturday, October 24, 2009
Author: Sen. Jon Erpenbach D-Waunakee
SEN. JON ERPENBACH: TIME TO CONSIDER MEDICAL MARIJUANA
To see a loved one or friend in pain and to watch them struggle at the end of their life or from harsh treatments like chemotherapy is terrible. You watch the person you love disappear. To find peace and free them of pain is all that you hope for; for some people that relief could come as prescribed medical marijuana.
With all of the extraordinary advances of medicine and all of the life-saving techniques we have, sometimes relief can be as simple as marijuana - currently a regulated illegal drug in Wisconsin. I am co-authoring the Jackie Rickert Medical Marijuana Act this session in the hope that this medical option can be available to all Wisconsin patients who need it. Drafted based on the Michigan medical marijuana bill that passed by statewide referendum, this bill simply gives patients and their doctors an option to consider marijuana without fear of prosecution. The Michigan referendum passed in all 83 counties, with a 63 percent majority statewide.
This is an issue where the public has been far ahead of policy makers. Polling in Wisconsin has shown consistent support for medical marijuana, most recently reaching above 75 percent approval. In the seven states where medical marijuana was added as a ballot initiative, it passed in each state with a wide margin. As we work to address comprehensive health care reform, consideration should be given to the benefits of medical marijuana for patients with a debilitating medical condition.
The bill provides a medical necessity defense for marijuana-related prosecutions and property seizure if the patient has a valid prescription from their physician and an ID card from Department of Health Services. Conditions covered could include cancer, glaucoma, AIDS and HIV, and diseases as determined by administrative rule. The bill also creates a maximum amount of marijuana a patient may have, establishing clear limits for both the patient and law enforcement. If someone who is prescribed marijuana commits a crime, like operating a vehicle under the influence, they cannot use the defense created in this bill; they still have to follow Wisconsin laws. Finally, the bill gives the state Department of Health the ability to create rules for a registry of people allowed to use medical marijuana and for the licensing and regulation of a nonprofit corporation to distribute marijuana.
Recently, President Obama said that the federal law enforcement will follow the laws of the states regarding medical marijuana. Currently, there are 13 states where medical marijuana is legal and another 14 states where legislation is pending. Clearly the public pendulum on this issue is in support. That support, however, is not the only reason why the Wisconsin Legislature should act to make medical marijuana legal; we should act because it is simply the right thing to do for patients in pain.
Our friends and family deserve all medicinal options available when they struggle with disease and the therapy we have created to kill disease. Please contact my office for additional information on the Jackie Rickert Medical Marijuana Act at (888) 549-0027 or (608) 266-6670 or via e-mail at sen.erpenbach@legis.wi.gov.
- Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, serves the 27th Senate District.
Posted by Gary at 10:45 PM | Comments (1)
October 24, 2009
RIP Mary Powers, 1959-2009: A Wisconsin Medical Cannabis Hero
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, October 24, 2009
With her family notified, I can now report that my dear friend Mary Powers, a disabled US Army veteran, and medical cannabis patient/lobbyist extraordinaire, passed on peacefully at home last night. Mary was a true hero who tirelessly lobbied for medical cannabis for WI patients even as her cancer, AIDS and Hepatitis C progressed and ended her life. Mary knew the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act would not be passed in her lifetime, but heroically devoted the little time she had left to lobby week after week. Fortunately many of her exploits are memorialized in 7 episodes of the Mary and Gary Show and an episode of the Mary and Jacki Show. Watch all 8 below!
Mary at the Vigil at the Capitol on June 7, 2009.
Mary was also the Secretary of Madison NORML and a board member. Mary was known for attending every meeting, whether she had chemo or radiation that day or how bad she felt. Mary's mission. Her humor and compassion made her a beloved friend of many, and all who met her were touched by her spirit. She was also the founder, executive director and legislative director of the Wisconsin chapter of Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access (VMMA). Unfortunately, she had only just started and had so far been unable to find other veterans to join her in building the group. We certainly hope some WI veterans will step forward to complete her mission, in light of the important aspects for vets in the JRMMA..
The Mary and Jacki Show. This was the last time Mary spoke, and her last Harvest Fest speech, from Sun. 10/04/09.
Episode 1
Episode 2
Episode 3
Episode 4
Episode 5
Episode 6
Episode 7
Posted by Gary at 06:20 PM | Comments (0)
October 23, 2009
Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act: Where we are at
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, October 23, 2009
The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act has had a great week, with the new Obama Administration policy on state medical cannabis programs announced on Monday and Gov. Doyle's widely reported support of medical marijuana on Wednesday. Below is an update on where things are and where they are headed next.
Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act: Where we are at
Oct. 22, cosponsorship closed at 5pm
What happens next?
The bill will be sent to the Assembly Clerk’s office for introduction and a bill number, and the Assembly Speaker will then assign it to a committee.
What supporters can do:
Please continue to contact your Wisconsin State Assembly Representatives and State Senators and ask that they vote for the JRMMA if it is assigned to their committee, and when it gets a floor vote.
WRITE: Send pre-written, editable letter to Legislators: http://capwiz.com/norml2/issues/alert/?alertid=14115736
or http://bit.ly/JRMMA
Call, Call, Call:
Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 1-800-362-9472
Who Are My Legislators? http://www.legis.state.wi.us/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx
Get Involved and Donate Your Time or Money:
Spread The Word: Updated Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act Fliers: http://bit.ly/JRMMAfliers
Meet:
Madison NORML: 2nd and 4th Mondays at 7pm see: MadisonNORML.org or WINORML.org for more info on location.
Milwaukee Area NORML: Meets 2nd and 4th Tuesdays: See WINORML.org for more info.
DONATE: Any donation over $12 will get a free Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act pin. Any donation over $50 will get a free shirt.
Or send a check or money order to Madison NORML, PO Box 3132, Madison, WI 53704-0132.
More info: IMMLY.org - WINORML.org - MadisonNORML.org
Posted by Gary at 08:32 PM | Comments (0)
October 21, 2009
Shepherd-Express: Medical Marijuana Advocates Won't Wait
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, October 22, 2009
A great article from Lisa Kaiser and Milwaukee's Shepherd-Express!
Source: Shepherd-Express
Pubdate: Oct. 22, 2009
Author: Lisa Kaiser
News & Views » Page 7
MEDICAL MARIJUANA ADVOCATES WON'T WAITWisconsin could legalize pot for chronically ill people
In November 2008, 63% of Michigan voters made medical marijuana legal in that state-a significant victory, when you consider that the ballot measure won in each and every county and generated more support than Barack Obama.
More tellingly, that robust majority of voters approved a measure that the Michigan Legislature had previously rejected.
Since the program's implementation this spring, more than 6,000 Michigan residents have signed up for the program, either as a patient or a caregiver. Patients obtain a recommendation from their doctor, pay $100 (or $25, if the patient lives below the poverty line) for a state-issued ID card, and can purchase marijuana from a state-licensed dealer or grow his or her own plants (up to 12 per patient).
Tim Beck, head of the Michigan chapter of Americans for Safe Access, said that there's been no "reefer madness"-style chaos or corruption of kids. Instead, the program has allowed seriously ill Michigan residents to safely access medicine that had formerly been driven underground.
"It has been a godsend," Beck said.
The People Are Ahead of Their Politicians
Wisconsin residents, though, aren't that fortunate, even though credible polling shows that 80% support implementing a medical marijuana program in this state.
"It's more popular than any politician," said Gary Storck, president of the state chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML).
But Wisconsin voters don't have the ability to enact a medical marijuana law via a voter referendum, as Michigan residents did. That can be done at the local level, creating a patchwork of programs. Or an advisory referendum can be placed on a statewide ballot, but that would not necessarily lead to legislation.
Wisconsin voters can approve amendments to the state Constitu tion, however, but that would require having the question approved by two consecutive sessions of the state Legislature before it could be put on the ballot.
Storck said seriously or terminally ill patients who need immediate relief can't wait another two years.
"They just don't have that time," he said. That's why medical marijuana advocates are pushing hard for the passage of the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, sponsored by state Rep. Mark Pocan (D- Madison) in the state Assembly and state Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton) in the state Senate.
The legislation is based on Michigan's model, and would strictly regulate who could legally obtain or provide medical marijuana within the state. Patients with debilitating medical conditions-such as cancer, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, AIDS or HIV, seizures, severe pain or nausea- could participate in the program with a doctor's approval and payment of up to $150 for the state registry and an ID card.
"I've heard from people in my district and around the state that when they are dealing with their cancer or MS or glaucoma, the only bit of relief that they find from their chemo or their illness is marijuana," said Erpenbach, who chairs the Senate Health Committee. "It's something the medical community is a little mixed on, but [medical marijuana] helps to ease the pain, and the state shouldn't stand in the way or make someone a criminal if they're looking to it for medical reasons."
Despite strong public support, previous versions of the bill have died in committee, and were opposed by the Wisconsin Medical Society and the Wisconsin Sheriffs and Deputy Sheriffs Association (but supported by the Wisconsin Nurses Association). "This is one of those issues where the people are clearly way ahead of their legislators," Pocan said.
Advocates are hoping that with Democrats controlling both houses of the Legislature and the governor's office, they'll get more support than they did when Republicans controlled at least one house of the state Legislature.
Jeff Peterson, head of the Milwaukee area chapter of NORML, said state lawmakers must pass this bill simply because it's the humane thing to do for seriously ill people with chronic pain.
"I have great anger that people are being denied the use of something that could help them," Peterson said.
A Green Economy
While Wisconsin doesn't have a medical marijuana law on the books it falls further behind popular opinion and advanced programs in other states. Even the Obama administration announced that it would respect state laws regarding medical marijuana. Attorney General Eric Holder announced that the administration would stop using federal resources to prosecute seriously ill patients and their caregivers.
Fourteen states have legal, regulated medical marijuana programs, and advocates in another dozen are trying to launch programs. California voters were the first in the nation to approve medical marijuana, in 1996, with 56% support. Voter initiatives then passed in Alaska, Colorado, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, while programs were approved by state lawmakers in Hawaii, Maryland, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Vermont. The legislative measures, like the voter referendums, usually win by a wide margin.
California, not surprisingly, has the most developed medical marijuana program, with an estimated 400,000 patients, and a flourishing "cannabusiness" that includes 2,100 dispensaries, co-ops, clinics and delivery services.
California medical marijuana patients can choose from specific strains of pot that are best able to address their illness, as well as cannabis-infused pastry, cooking oil, skin cream, soap, lozenges, lollipops, capsules and tinctures.
"It's a good, green business that provides jobs," NORML's Storck said.
Now comfortable with the program, California residents and lawmakers are moving toward making medical marijuana part of the state's economy.
After approval by 80% of city voters, Oakland now taxes sales of marijuana at dispensaries, which will bring in an estimated $400,000 to $500,000 in its first year.
There's also a proposal to tax marijuana throughout California, much like it taxes alcohol, which would generate up to $1.3 billion in taxes annually for that cashstrapped state.
In fact, when you crunch the numbers, legalization and taxation of marijuana makes sense during an economic downturn. Legalization of pot nationwide would generate about $7 billion in taxes and decrease law enforcement costs by $13.5 billion, according to Harvard economist Jeffrey Miron.
While Congress is unlikely to decriminalize marijuana anytime soon, the voters seem to be in favor of it. A Zogby poll of voters in May found that 52% supported treating marijuana as a legal, taxed, regulated substance, with 37% opposed.
While Wisconsin may be a long way from legalizing pot for all adults, Erpenbach said he is hopeful about the medical marijuana bill's prospects in the state Legislature.
"The people of this state are compassionate," Erpenbach said.
Comment on this article at ExpressMilwaukee.com.
Posted by Gary at 10:24 AM | Comments (0)
October 19, 2009
IMMLY RELEASE: New Federal Guidelines On State Medical Marijuana Programs Clears Way For Jacki Rickert Mmj Act In Wisconsin
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, October 19, 2009
Below is IMMLY's press release regarding the historic change in federal policy towards state medical cannabis programs by the Obama Administration.
For immediate release: Monday, October 19, 2009
NEW FEDERAL GUIDELINES ON STATE MEDICAL MARIJUANA PROGRAMS CLEARS WAY FOR JACKI RICKERT MMJ ACT IN WISCONSIN
The Obama Administration's historic, newly announced "hands-off" policy on state medical marijuana programs is another reason to pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act (JRMMA) in Wisconsin's legislature this session. These new USDOJ guidelines combined with an earlier US Supreme Court decision rejecting a challenge to state mmj laws have erased federal interference as a threat to state medical cannabis programs.
This decision should be more reason for state lawmakers to join bill sponsors Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Waunakee) in cosponsoring the JRMMA, which is pending introduction.
IMMLY Founder Jacki Rickert, namesake of the JRMMA, had this to say, "I'm still in shock. President Obama obviously understands that prosecuting medical cannabis patients and providers acting legally under state laws should not be a federal law enforcement priority. State lawmakers should recognize that the conflict with federal law is no longer an issue, and move quickly to protect Wisconsin patients who can benefit."
Is My Medicine Legal YET? is a Mondovi and Madison based grass roots patient and caregiver based organization dedicated to advancing public education about the medicinal benefits of marijuana. For further information contact Jacki Rickert at 715.926.4950 or Gary Storck at 608.241.8922 or visit the IMMLY website at www.immly.org.
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Posted by Gary at 10:23 AM | Comments (0)
October 18, 2009
Ask your Wisconsin State Legislators to Cosponsor the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act: Deadline is 5pm Thursday Oct. 22!
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Next Thursday at 5:00pm is the deadline for Wisconsin State Legislators to cosponsor Rep. Mark Pocan and Sen. Jon Erpenbach's LRB 2517, the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. While polling finds overwhelming support among state residents, this support must be conveyed to State Assembly Representatives and State Senators for the support to have an impact. Please take a few moments today to send a message and or make a call so Wisconsin's sick and dying have legal access to medical cannabis like the people of 13 other US states including our neighbors in Michigan.
Ask your Wisconsin State Legislators to Cosponsor the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act: Deadline is 5pm Thursday Oct. 22!
The deadline for Wisconsin State Assembly Representatives and State Senators to sign on to the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act (JRMMA) is fast approaching! Now is the time to contact them and ask them to do so.
It is important that the JRMMA be introduced with strong legislative support. While an overwhelming majority of state residents support legal access to medical cannabis with their doctor's support, the legislature needs to catch up, and the only way they will do that is by hearing from their constituents.
Click and send a prewritten letter: (http://capwiz.com/norml2/issues/alert/?alertid=14115736) Shortened Link: http://bit.ly/JRMMA
Find out who your state legislators are and give them a call and leave a message of support: "Who Are My Legislators?" (http://www.legis.state.wi.us/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx)
Please help pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act! Your efforts now will help sick and dying patients who can benefit. Please be a voice for people in pain by making a call and sending a message TODAY!
Posted by Gary at 11:12 AM | Comments (0)
October 12, 2009
Wisconsin Public Radio: Wisconsin Medical marijuana bill proposed; based on Michigan law
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, October 12, 2009
Here is a report from WI Public Radio regarding the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act.
Wisconsin Medical marijuana bill proposed; based on Michigan law
Source: Fox 21 click here
Mon, 10/12/2009 - 1:39pm
By Brian Bull, Wisconsin Public Radio
MADISON (WPR) New legislation for legalizing medical marijuana is being drafted in the Wisconsin legislature. Sponsors say this latest bill will be based on a medical cannabis law recently approved by Michigan voters.Last year, about two-thirds of Michigan voters approved the legalization of marijuana for severely ill patients. That inspired State Representative Mark Pocan and State Senator Jon Erpenbach to push – again-- for legalized medical marijuana in Wisconsin. Erpenbach says Michigan’s law gives credibility to their cause. Erpenbach says the proposal will be tailored to Wisconsin, with a doctor’s prescription needed. A non-profit corporation has also been proposed to dispense and distribute marijuana.
The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act is named for a 58-year-old Mondovi resident with several chronic ailments affecting her bones and joints. Jacki Rickert says she’s been on cannabis therapy since the 1990s, and it’s helped her endure both pain and nausea. At first, Rickert says her daughter carried her from room to room and she was told, “If we don’t get weight on you, you will die”. Rickert, who once weighed 68 pounds is now up to 94 pounds.
The bill also now includes PTSD as a qualifying condition. If passed, Wisconsin would become the 14th state to legalize medical marijuana. Opponents say patients are best helped with tested and approved drugs that are already legal.
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Information from Wisconsin Public Radio, www.wpr.org
Posted by Gary at 03:28 PM | Comments (1)
October 11, 2009
Updated Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act Flier
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, October 12, 2009
Below is a link to the updated Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act flier reflecting the addition of State Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton) as Senate lead sponsor, and with the link to send a prewritten letter asking legislators to cosponsor..
Posted by Gary at 09:32 PM | Comments (0)
October 08, 2009
The Mary and Gary Show: Episode Seven
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, October 8, 2009
Here is our report on Wednesday's lobbying at the WI State Capitol.
Posted by Gary at 09:56 PM | Comments (0)
October 07, 2009
Badger Herald: Bill may legalize medicinal weed
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Here is an article about the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act.
Source: Badger Herald click here
Pubdate: Sept. 7, 2009
Author: Ryan Rainey
BILL MAY LEGALIZE MEDICINAL WEEDCo-authored by 2 Wisconsin lawmakers, legislation follows lead of 14 other states
After last weekend's Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival protest on the Capitol steps brought attention to the issue of medical marijuana, two Wisconsin Democrats have proposed legislation that would legalize cannabis for medical purposes in the state.
According to a statement from advocacy group Is My Medicine Legal Yet?, Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, and Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Waunakee, are the co-authors of the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, which if passed would allow terminally or seriously ill patients to grow or have someone else grow a small amount of cannabis for medical use.
Rickert is a Mondovi, Wis., citizen suffering from Ehlers-Danlos syndrome who was never given federal government-issued joints for medical use, according to the statement.
Michigan voters approved a similar initiative in a statewide referendum, which is the basis for the Wisconsin bill, said Gary Storck, spokesperson for IMMLY. The bill is the early stages of development, currently gaining co-sponsorships from Wisconsin senators and representatives.
Storck said the legislation covers a broad base of debilitating illnesses and he named post-traumatic stress disorder as a prominent target of the bill.
"It's been known for many years that cannabis is a potent remedy for the symptoms of PTSD," Storck said. "It helps them sleep and wean themselves off of alcohol and other substances that may be preventing them from readjusting."
Storck said he hopes the inclusion of PTSD as a debilitating condition will compel the state Legislature to give more consideration to the bill. He also said medical marijuana dispensaries more tightly regulated than those found in California would be allowed for patients with a state-issued ID card.
Storck also cited President Barack Obama's administration's decision not to interfere with state-sponsored cannabis dispensaries, an overridden veto in Rhode Island allowing dispensaries and the lack of hostility from Wisconsin citizens and legislators as factors that have made the issue more mainstream.
According to Erpenbach spokesperson Julie Laundrie, the issue has become more legitimate around the country in the past years; 13 states now allow the use of medical marijuana and 14 states currently have medical marijuana legislation pending.
Laundrie also said she believes the issue of medical marijuana will go beyond partisan politics.
"Mostly, people who would be using medical marijuana would be at the end of life or in very dire situations," Laundrie said. "Everyone knows someone that has really struggled when they were dying or when they were in treatment that was really painful or awful for them. I don't think that has anything to do with party lines."
Since the bill is still in its preliminary stages, it is difficult to measure Republican support or opposition to the bill. However, Kimber Liedl, spokesperson for Senate Minority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, R-Juneau, said the legalization of marijuana should not be allowed, even under medical circumstances.
"The addictive and dangerous nature of the drug outweighs its benefits," Liedl said. "It's not high on the legislative agenda for this session. Other initiatives such as drunken driving legislation hold a greater priority than the legalization of marijuana."
Posted by Gary at 09:50 PM | Comments (0)
October 06, 2009
IMMLY RELEASE: Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act Offers Wisconsin Patients Hope For Life With Dignity
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, October 6, 2009
Here is the Is My Medicine Legal YET? release about the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act!
For Immediate Release: Tuesday, October 06, 2009JACKI RICKERT MEDICAL MARIJUANA ACT OFFERS WISCONSIN PATIENTS HOPE FOR LIFE WITH DIGNITY
Madison/Mondovi - Is My Medicine Legal YET? is proud to announce that LRB 2517, The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, sponsored by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison) and Sen. Jon Erpenbach (D-Middleton), is now being circulated among legislators for cosponsors.
The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act is based on Michigan's medical cannabis law, which was passed by state voters in Nov. 2008 with 63% support, gaining a majority in every Michigan County. Another provision creates a system of state regulated dispensaries based on a recently enacted Rhode Island law. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is also included as a qualifying condition for the program. Iraq and Afghani.war vets have been returning home in record numbers suffering from PTSD, and medical cannabis has long been a safe and natural remedy.
IMMLY Founder Jacki Rickert is the namesake of the bill. Rickert, a seriously ill Mondovi resident who suffers from Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome and advanced reflex sympathetic dystrophy, was once approved for, but never supplied by, a federal program that still provides 4 living Americans with 300 pre=rolled marijuana cigarettes each month, "This bill, this time", Rickert says, "80% of the people in Wisconsin agree marijuana should be available for medical use in this state."
IMMLY director of communications Gary Storck, who along with terminally ill disabled vet Mary Powers has been leading weekly delegations of medical cannabis patients to Capitol offices to educate about the bill, will be back at the Capitol with Powers Wednesday. "Wisconsin residents overwhelmingly support physician-approved medical cannabis access. It's time to do the right thing for state patients who can benefit."
Is My Medicine Legal YET? is a Mondovi and Madison based grass roots patient and caregiver based organization dedicated to advancing public education about the medicinal benefits of marijuana. For further information contact Jacki Rickert at 715.926.4950 or Gary Storck at 608.241.8922 or visit the IMMLY website at www.immly.org.
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Posted by Gary at 01:40 PM | Comments (0)
October 05, 2009
The MARY and JACKI show Live from Harvest Fest!
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, October 5, 2009
IMMLY Founder and WI medical cannabis patient/advocate mmj bill namesake Jacki Rickert and "Mary and Gary Show" star, medical cannabis patient activist Mary Powers speak at Harvest Fest 39, on Library Mall, before the 2009 parade to the Capitol on Sun. 10/04/09.
Posted by Gary at 10:53 PM | Comments (0)
October 04, 2009
Wisconsin State Journal: Medical marijuana supporters rally at Capitol
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, October 4, 2009
Despite chilly winds that made 50 degree temps feel colder, nearly 2000 people paraded up State St. for the finale of HF 39, with many sticking around to hear speeches from Jackli Rickert, Ben Masel, Jim Miller, myself and other advocates and hot tunes from local rockers Baghdad Scuba Review.
Particularly moving was a courageous speech by an Iraq combat vet who discussed how cannabis relieved his intense post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. PTSD is one of the debilitating conditions included in the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act.
Source: Wisconsin State Journal: click here
Medical marijuana supporters rally at Capitol
By SANDY CULLEN
Sunday, October 4, 2009 7:40 pm
Hundreds of medical marijuana supporters rallied Sunday at the State Capitol for legislation that would make Wisconsin the 14th state to legalize cannabis for treatment of debilitating illnesses.
Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Madison, and Sen. Jon Erpenbach, D-Middleton, are co-sponsors of the newly drafted Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, which would protect Wisconsin patients from arrest and prosecution and allow them or a designated caregiver to possess and grow a small amount of cannabis for medical use, said Gary Storck, communications director for the nonprofit advocacy organization Is My Medicine Legal YET?
"It is time that we address medical marijuana as an issue of providing comprehensive health care to all people," Pocan and Erpenbach said in a memo to legislators. "The patient and their doctor should have as many options as possible available when treating a patient's medical condition."
Rickert, a 58-year-old grandmother from Mondovi who has Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and advanced reflex sympathetic dystrophy, founded IMMLY in 1992. In 1997, she led a 210-mile trek of patients in wheelchairs from Mondovi to Madison to advocate for legal access to marijuana.
Rickert said she began using marijuana to stimulate her appetite after dropping to 68 pounds. "I'm alive because of cannabis," said Rickert, who now calls herself "a heavyweight" at 93 pounds.
"It's got to be this bill, this time," Rickert told supporters Sunday, saying that every time someone else signs on in support of medical marijuana, "It's like saying, 'More hope.'"
Storck, who has been advocating for medical marijuana for decades, said cannabis has helped him retain his eyesight, which he began losing from glaucoma as a child. He agreed that the time for passing legislation could be now or never. "Gov. Doyle has been willing to sign it all along," he said, adding, "The legislature has never been in a position to pass it until now."
Storck said that while there is a lot of support for the legislation from people throughout the state, "We need them to step forward and let their legislators know it."
The act is based on a Michigan law passed by voters in November 2008, Storck said. It also includes provisions from a Rhode Island law that would allow patients to obtain medical marijuana from dispensaries if they cannot grow it themselves.
Posted by Gary at 08:01 PM | Comments (1)
September 17, 2009
The Mary & Gary and Friends show: Episode 6
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, September 17, 2009
Another Mary & Gary and Friends show. The JRMMA remains on the verge of being rolled out for cosponsors. Stay tuned for developments, and mostly, as Mary says, Call, call, call your legislators!
Posted by Gary at 12:42 AM | Comments (0)
September 12, 2009
Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act tee shirts are ready for Fighting Bob Fest!
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, Sept. 12, 2009
WI NORML/IMMLY will have a booth at Fighting Bob Fest in Baraboo today. Among the items available will be our new "Pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act" tee shirts. These beautiful shirts, 4 colors in front and 3 in back, bring back Jacki's original Rip Van Winkle, "Is My Medicine Legal YET?" design on the front and the purple Cheryl's heat" on the back. The heart design is also available as a lapel pin.
Join us at Fighting Bob Fest, or get them via the mail via our PayPal button. T-shirts are $20/$25 postage paid US only. Pins are $10/$12 postage included.
Front
Rear
Posted by Gary at 12:04 AM | Comments (0)
September 11, 2009
The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, September 11, 2009
The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act is still not back from being drafted by the Legislative Reference Bureau. What that means is that the exact details and language of the bill are not available yet. Once the draft is available, it will be available. Until then, all of us from the bill sponsor to the entire legislature to we the people just have to be patient.
The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act
Per the office of chief bill sponsor Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison), the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act is still at the bill drafters. These delays are often inexplicable, and the bill is expected literally any day.
Our recent lobby visits to the Capitol have found growing interest in the bill from lawmakers and their offices. We will let people know as soon as the draft becomes publicly available.
In the meantime, please continue to call your state Assembly Rep and State Senator and to talk to friends, family, co-workers, health care professionals, anyone, and ask them to do the same.
It's time for Medical Cannabis in Wisconsin, but we all must become activists in our communities to make this a reality.
Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 800-362-9472 (M-F 8a-4:30p) - Who Are My Legislators? http://www.legis.state.wi.us/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx
Posted by Gary at 02:47 PM | Comments (0)
September 09, 2009
The Mary & Gary and Friends show: Episode 5
Posted by Gaey Storck
09/09/09
Although Mary was not feeling well, our friends helped make the vaunted 09/09/09 a productive day. Hopefully, things will continue to progress so patients like Mary can truly live "Life with Dignity".
In the fifth episode of the "Mary & Gary and Friends Show", Gary Storck and Mary Powers offer their report on their most recent day of lobbying (Wed 09/09/09) at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison. Mary and Gary and friends have been visiting state lawmakers to let them know the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act will be introduced soon in the WI legislature by State Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison). Learn how to help pass it by watching!
Tags: Gary Storck, Mary Powers, Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act, Medical Cannabis, Madison WI, WI State Capitol, Mary and Gary show, IMMLY, Wisconsin NORML, Madison NORML
Posted by Gary at 10:23 PM | Comments (0)
September 06, 2009
Santa Barbara Independent: David Bearman, M.D.: What This Country Needs Is a Marijuana Summit
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Many may remember Dr. Bearman's visit to Madison in November 2007, with State Senate Health committee testimony, a book signing at Escape Coffee, and an address at the UW medical school that rose to the top of the video charts on the UW server click here.
Source: Santa Barbara Independent: click here
Saturday, September 5, 2009
What This Country Needs Is a Marijuana Summit
One Doctor's Answer to the Beer Summit
By David Bearman, M.D
When a white cop handcuffed a black professor outside his own home we had a beer summit in the name of better race relations. That summit addressed the number one social problem in this country since 1619 (the date the first African slaves were sold in the U.S.)
I'm calling for a marijuana summit. This summit will benefit the health of millions, while saving hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars.
The federal government must concur with what we the people already know. In the Obama Transition Team's own on-line poll, respondents overwhelmingly selected legalizing marijuana as our country's number one priority. This May, even a Zogby poll commissioned by the conservative O'Leary Report, found 52 percent of American voters in favor and only 37 percent opposed to legalizing (and taxing) marijuana.
I call on Gil Kerlikowske, director of the Office of National Drug Control Policy, to have a frank discussion with doctors and researchers on medical cannabis and the efficacy of various routes of administration. Sadly, Kerlikowske seems to be using the same illogic as his predecessors in the drug office. He recently cited a University of Washington treatment program as the information source for his position that cannabis is bad stuff. Why? Because people who had a choice between treatment and going to jail chose treatment. Duh. I am disappointed in Kerlikowske. I expect more from a former Seattle police chief and Obama appointee.
The chief administrative law judge of the Food and Drug Administration, in a 1988 decision, found that cannabis is one of the safest therapeutic agents known to man. The FDA in 2005 said that liquid marijuana (Sativex) is safe enough to test on humans, cancer patients in fact. The government needs to look at the types of cancers that cannabis has been shown to treat. Chief Kerlikowske has said he wants to hear from the doctors on this.
When he does he'll find that we have a national organization, the American Academy of Cannabinoid Medicine, which will give him the real dope on the medical utility of cannabis. We can tell him of the benefits that our patients have received. I have incredible, compelling stories. There is the 85-year-old ex-Marine cancer survivor who was dying from starvation and used cannabis as an appetite stimulant and mood elevator. The 26-year-old. hemiplegic woman with intractable epilepsy that was well controlled by cannabis. The Vietnam vet who got surgery to remove shrapnel, due to intractable seizures, and as a result of the surgery got double vision and headaches. Cannabis allows him to productively participate in civic affairs. And the examples go on and on, including paraplegics with intractable pain, patients successfully treated for gastrophoresis , post-traumatic stress disorder, cyclic vomiting syndrome. I'll tell him about the productive lives of my patients. They include the principal of a high school, the mayor of a small city, a deputy sheriff, an assistant DA, a counselor at a drug treatment program, a very famous movie director, and lots of people with everyday jobs in construction, medicine, education-contractors, developers, doctors, nurses, professors.
Kerlikowske has tried to mitigate his earlier statements by saying he only meant smoked marijuana. He was recently quoted as saying that "the FDA has not determined that smoked marijuana has a value, and this is clearly a medical question that should be answered by the medical community." Speaking as the vice president of the AACM, let me assure the drug czar that cannabis is medicine whether smoked, vaporized, sprayed sublingually, dropped sublingually, drunk in beverages, made into tea, eaten, or used topically.
Kerlikowske is wise to say he will listen to the doctors. If he had a medical background I don't believe he would say it's okay to have intractable seizures, excruciating migraines, phantom limb pain, or to suffer with the symptoms of Crohn's Disease, or to die of malnutrition. Like thousands of American physicians, he would see the medical efficacy of cannabis. I have literally hundreds of patients with those conditions and a thousand more with chronic pain, cancer, and failed back syndrome who have benefited from the medicinal use of cannabis, smoked or otherwise.
The Drug Czar is on a listening tour. Let's give him an earful. It is not marijuana that is dangerous, but the laws which restrict research on it and make it difficult for people to use it therapeutically. That is real risky. We need to get the federal government out of the way, to honor the 9th and 10th Amendments to the Constitution limiting the federal government's authority, and to affirm that the 1925 Linder decision-recognizing the right of states to regulate the practice of medicine-still means something. It is time for the drug czar to listen to America. It is time for the marijuana summit.
David Bearman, M.D., physician, founder of the Isla Vista Medical Clinic, former Goleta Water District boardmember, and current Goleta West Sanitary District boardmember.
Posted by Gary at 12:44 AM | Comments (0)
September 04, 2009
All 4 Episodes of the Mary & Gary Show
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, September 4, 2009
With the 4th episode of the Mary and Gary show now in the can, depicting lobbying on Tuesday Sept. 2, 2009 with our 9 person delegation, I thought it was a good idea to put them in one spot so folks can see how our efforts are building, and to let you know what you need to do to help.
The best ways to help are contacting your state Assembly Rep and State Senator, as well as having us personally deliver those letters for people in certain districts. Another way to help, especially for those outside Madison, is to join us at the Capitol and meet with your reps.
Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 800-362-9472 (M-F 8a-4:30p) - Who Are My Legislators? http://www.legis.state.wi.us/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx
Episode Four:
Episode Three:
Episode Two:
Episode One:
Posted by Gary at 04:20 AM | Comments (0)
August 30, 2009
Baraboo News Republic: Sauk County Board makes pot fine, not a crime
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunfay, August 30, 2009
We just became aware of this little noted move by the Sauk County Board on Aug. 18.
Sauk County Board makes pot fine, not a crime
By Tim Damos / News Republic click here
The Sauk County Board voted 28-1 Tuesday night to make possession of marijuana-related paraphernalia a fine, not a crime.The amendment to the county’s Public Peace and Order ordinance will allow prosecutors to issue a $100 forfeiture to anyone caught with pot related items in Sauk County, rather than charge them with felony or misdemeanor crimes.
The county’s ordinance already includes language from state statutes regarding the possession of the drug, making it a violation of county codes. But until now, the ordinance did not deal specifically with the equipment related to using marijuana.
Possession of pot and pot paraphernalia is a criminal offense under state law. But prosecutors in counties that have adopted those laws into their own codes have the option of charging the offense as a simple ordinance violation, which is less serious.
"What this does is it gives the (District Attorney) another prosecuting option and I think it’s a good idea to provide her with that option," said supervisor Bill Wenzel of Prairie du Sac.
A fiscal note attached to the amendment voted on Tuesday night says the change will save county money, because people accused of ordinance violations are not entitled to have an attorney appointed at the cost of the county. Also, the revenue from any forfeitures goes to the county, whereas criminal fines go to the state’s coffers.
The amendment didn’t pass without criticism, however.
"A $100 fine is so minimal," said supervisor Lowell Haugen, the only board member who voted against the ordinance change. Board members Marcy Huffaker and Bob Cassity were excused from the meeting.
Haugen said there should be some provision in the law that allows the county to deport violators of the ordinance.
Supervisor Don Stevens of Loganville sits on the two committees that gave nods of approval to the new paraphernalia rule, sending it to the full board Tuesday night. He voted against amending the ordinance once, then for it in a different committee.
During Tuesday night’s board meeting, Stevens explained that he does not like a section of the county’s Public Peace and Order ordinance that sets curfew hours for minors.
He voted against amending the ordinance during an executive and legislative committee meeting because of those rules. When the pot paraphernalia amendment was being discussed in a later meeting of the board’s law enforcement committee, which Stevens chairs, he was informed that officers do not use the curfew rules as a primary reason for pulling someone over, he said. That’s why he said he decided to vote in favor of adding the pot paraphernalia rules to the ordinance in the second meeting.
Posted by Gary at 07:34 PM | Comments (0)
August 26, 2009
The MARY and GARY Show Episode Three!
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, August 26, 2009
Here is the latest MARY and GARY show, a report on today's weekly lobby visit to the Wisconsin State Capitol to lobby for the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act.
Public support will make or break the Jacki Rickert MMJ Act. Please contact your reps regularly until this is state law. Toll-free Legislative Hotline: 800-362-9472 (M-F 8a-4:30p - Who Are My Legislators? http://www.legis.state.wi.us/w3asp/waml/waml.aspx Please take action today!
Posted by Gary at 09:56 PM | Comments (0)
August 20, 2009
Updated schedule: 39th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Here is our latest updated schedule for hf39!
October 1-4, 2009 - Thu, Fri, Sat, Sun.
Madison NORML presents
39th Annual Great Midwest
Marijuana Harvest Festival:
Thursday, Oct. 1, 2009: Bluegrass pre-show. Location TBA
Friday October 2, 2009, 5-8 pm, 7th Annual IMMLY/WI NORML medical cannabis benefit at the Frequency in downtown Madison
Saturday, Oct. 3, 2009, 12-6 pm, Library Mall,
11:30 - 12:15a Kronic Jones (reggae, roots rock)
12:45 - 1:45p Adam Isaac & The People (funk, rock, soul)
2:15 - 3: 15p Elf Lettuce (psychedelic jam rock)
3:45 - 4:45p Nama Rupa (reggae, dub)
5:15 - 6: 30p - TBA
Also featuring speakers including NORML Daily Stash's Russ Belville, CMMNJ's Jim Miller, Ben Masel, Jacki Rickert, Gary Storck, Mary Powers and more, vendors, food, admission FREE all ages.
9pm - High Noon Saloon
Natty Nation w/ Blue Island Tribe
Special event evening club show, $10 adv, $12 door, 18+
Sunday, Oct. 4, 2009: Harvest Fest Parade: Gather at Library Mall for live music and speakers,
1:15 - 2:15p The Dave Band (cookie rock)
2:30 - 3:30p - Ifdakar (jam rock)
3:40 pm.- Parade to State Capitol for rally and concert Featuring Speakers including NORML Daily Stash's Russ Belville, CMMNJ's Jim Miller, Ben Masel, Jacki Rickert, Gary Storck, Mary Powers and more and music by Baghdad Scuba Review
Posted by Gary at 11:25 PM | Comments (0)
August 18, 2009
The Mary and Gary Show: Episode 2
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Here is the second episode of the Gary and Mary Show. The film date was today, August 18, 2009.
In this second episode of the "Mary and Gary Show", Gary Storck and Mary Powers report on their most recent day of lobbying (Tues 08/18/09) at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison. Mary and Gary and guests have been visiting state lawmakers to let them know the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act will be introduced soon in the WI legislature by State Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison). Find out how to help pass it by watching the ending credits!
Posted by Gary at 06:47 PM | Comments (0)
August 11, 2009
Episode One: The Mary & Gary Show!
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
While it may be Episode One of the "Mary & Gary Show", it is actually our first post-lobbying video report. As far as actual wheelchair tires and shoes hitting the corridors of the Capitol, Mary and I have both put in some serious time for awhile now. As the rollout date for the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act approaches, we are trying to get to as many offices as possible to let lawmakers know a comprehensive bill is coming.
Today we had some help from friends from Sauk County who had never lobbied or been to Capitol before, and they did great and came away impressed with how easy it is. We had face to face meetings with both their Assembly rep and State Senator. Between the four of us, we were able to relate many benefits of cannabis in treating debilitaing conditions.
Here is our first effort!
We'll be back next week with episode Two!
Posted by Gary at 07:17 PM | Comments (0)
August 05, 2009
Video: Wisconsin Cannabis talk from April 2009 WI Libertarian convention
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
When I spoke at the Wisconsin State Libertarian Convention on April 18, 2009 up in WI Dells, my friend Tim Krenz was on hand videotaping the event.
Snapshot from video
Here is his description of the video of my talk, and below it the video itself:
"Gary Storck, a leading Wisconsin medical marijuana advocate, is featured in the latest installment of cepiaClub.com's "St. Croix Valley Liberty Beacons" video log. Storck, who was recorded by cepiaclub.com for "Liberty Beacons" at the Libertarian Party of Wisconsin convention in April, is a Madison chapter organizer of NORML.org, a marijuana normalization group. Medical marijuana efforts seek in part to make marijuana available as a regulated pain-management substitue for chemical-pharmecuticals for patients suffering life-threatening and chronic illnesses. Watch Gary Storck's update on the past and present status of medical marijuana advocacy, and its potential future for legalization at www.cepiaclub.com."
Posted by Gary at 01:15 AM | Comments (0)
July 31, 2009
RELEASE: Madison Norml To Mark Fifth Birthday August 2nd
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, July 31, 2009
Here is the press release for Madison NORML's 5th birthday!
For immediate release: July 31, 2009
Contact: Gary Storck (608) 301-5665
MADISON NORML TO MARK FIFTH BIRTHDAY AUGUST 2ND
Madison - The Madison chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) will celebrate its fifth birthday with a party at Escape Coffee on Sunday, August 2, from 4-9 pm. Escape Coffee is at 940 Williamson St. on Madison's near east side.
In five years, Madison NORML has held over a hundred meetings and other events, including medical cannabis lobby days at the Capitol, benefits, concerts, book signings, lectures, and the annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival. The chapter's current focus is working alone and with other groups to pass Wisconsin medical cannabis legislation this session.
Madison NORML's birthday party will feature music from Madison's Nama Rupa and Milwaukee's Chalice in the Palace. Several Madison NORML board member will speak, and there will be NORML merchandise and literature, movies, and of course, birthday cake. Admission is free.
Among videos being screened is a 6 minute short created by Madison NORML co-founder Gary Storck detailing life with glaucoma, visiting the State Capitol for a medical marijuana hearing on July 31, 1979, and his nearly four decades as a medical cannabis patient. The movie can also be viewed online at: (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dVmUehs2TeY)
Madison NORML was first formed as a group of local activists met on the Memorial Union Terrace on August 1, 2004 and at precisely 4:20 pm, decided to form a chapter. Five years later, we welcome the community to come to our celebration, learn more about our mission, meet our members and find out how you can help end cannabis prohibition by joining Madison NORML. The Madison chapter has always been a volunteer driven organization with no fees to join, and donations of time and/or money encouraged. Chapter members can volunteer at a level that suits their schedule. Madison NORML meets the second and fourth Mondays of each month at Escape Coffee at 7 pm, excluding major holidays.
Madison NORML is also presenting the 39th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival from Oct. 1-4 at various downtown locations. Saturday Oct. 3 will include 6 hours of music and speakers at Library Mall. Sunday Oct. 4 will feature a march up State St. to the State Capitol for a rally for the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act featuring speakers and live music.
Visit MadisonNORML.org, Wisconsin NORML at WINORML.org, or MadisonHempFest.com for more information or join us in Facebook!
- end -
Posted by Gary at 12:14 AM | Comments (0)
July 09, 2009
Kalamazoo Gazette: Editorial: Medical marijuana program appears on track
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, July 9, 2009
The Kalamazoo Gazette pronounces Michigan's medical cannabis law is working as intended. This is good evidence that passing similar legislation in Wisconsin should go similarly well.
Source: Kalamazoo Gazette click here
Author: Kalamazoo Gazette Editorial Board
Thursday July 09, 2009, 9:04 AM
Editorial: Medical marijuana program appears on track
Marijuana now can be used legally by patients in Michigan with certain medical conditions, a state identification card and a recommendation from a doctor. For the most part, it seems the state's voters are getting about what they expected from the program they approved in last November's election. Not a lot more, not a lot less.The state started issuing ID cards in April to approved users, including some with HIV/AIDs, multiple sclerosis and glaucoma. Now there are more than 2,000 approved users statewide. Dozens of other people have been licensed as "caregivers," who may legally grow and supply users with marijuana.
In Southwest Michigan alone, there are about 190 registered users and 78 licensed caregivers.
From the early results, the program seems to be working about as anticipated. Doctors and patients are working together to decide if marijuana might be of some help, and the production and supply generally are being done within the rules established. At the moment, there does not appear to be a great deal of social or legal disruption, although some minor ambiguities about the process remain to be cleared up.
We're among those who think some scientific study and research still are needed, particularly to address good questions about marijuana's effectiveness, dosing and side effects. We also believe that kind of research could be conducted effectively in Michigan given the system that's been established and the patients who are available now for possible study, and considering the bio-medical research resources in existence here.
Snipped, continues: click here.
Posted by Gary at 09:19 AM | Comments (0)
July 08, 2009
Wisconsin Dells Events: Letter: Use marijuana for post traumatic stress
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, July 9, 2009
Here is a letter I had published in Wisconsin Dells Events today!
Source: Wisconsin Dells Events
Pubdate: 8 July 2009
Author: Gary Storck
USE MARIJUANA FOR POST TRAUMATIC STRESSThanks for the article about the Vietnam veteran who finally received medals due him for his courageous service to our nation.
Post traumatic stress disorder is something very much in the news again, as U.S. troops serve long multiple deployments in combat zones in Iraq and Afghanistan.
With PTSD rates soaring, today's veterans have rediscovered marijuana or cannabis by its scientific name, as a natural, non-toxic treatment for this disorder.
Earlier this year, the State of New Mexico added PTSD to the list of medical conditions covered by their State Medical Cannabis Program.
A medical cannabis bill is pending introduction in Wisconsin's legislature, and PTSD is included as a qualifying condition in the bill draft, along with other serious and debilitating conditions and symptoms. The Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act is expected to be introduced soon by Rep. Mark Pocan (D-Madison). Polling has found over 80 percent support for legal access to medical cannabis in Wisconsin, but this support is meaningless if citizens do not express it to their elected representatives. Please call the Wisconsin Legislature's Toll-free Legislative Hotline at 1-800-362-9472 and ask your State Senator and State Assembly Representative to cosponsor this important health care bill. It is time to show compassion for Wisconsin veterans and Wisconsin patients and protect them from arrest and jail for using a natural medicine to ease their suffering.
Gary Storck, Madison, Is My Medicine Legal YET?
Posted by Gary at 09:41 AM | Comments (0)
July 03, 2009
Prohibitionist WI judge refuses to go along with plea bargain in cannabis case
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, July 3, 2009
Here is an interesting case headed toward the Wisconsin Supreme Court. A prohibitionist Fond du Lac County judge rejected a plea bargain in a cannabis case, and the county DA is fighting the judge's decision.
Source: Fond du Lac Reporter: click here
July 3, 2009
Can judge reject plea agreement for cases?
State Supreme Court may take county case
By Kevin Murphy
Special to The Reporter
MADISON — Should Wisconsin judges continue to have the unique authority to reject a plea agreement?
That's a question an appeals court has asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to determine Thursday in a Fond du Lac County marijuana case.
Last year, Circuit Judge Peter Grimm rejected a plea agreement four times that would have reduced a felony marijuana charge against Joshua D. Conger to three misdemeanors. Grimm explained that he was acting in the "public's interest" in rejecting the plea bargain because police didn't agree with the agreement considering it involved 1.6 pounds of pot packaged in 48 "baggies."
Putting the case on hold, District Attorney Daniel Kaminsky appealed Grimm's rejection, claiming it impedes a prosecutor's constitutional authority to charge crimes.
"Prosecutors have the sole discretion to bring, reduce or dismiss charges without interference from the judicial branch. That's the way it works in the federal system and all states that I know of. However, in Wisconsin, the lines have been blurred, and that's what's being addressed here," said Kaminsky in a phone interview Thursday.
Because of a 1978 decision, prosecutors have to explain to judges why they are reducing charges, which judges have interpreted to allow them to accept or reject pleas.
Grimm, who has intervened in the appeal, acknowledges a prosecutor's "unfettered discretion to bring criminal charges," but the discretion to change the charge becomes a shared power between the judicial and executive branches of government under the separation of powers doctrine.
While Grimm was unavailable for comment Thursday, Kaminsky said the separation of powers gives him and not the judge absolute authority to charge a crime throughout the case.
"He can't be judge, jury and prosecutor while wearing the same hat. I'm not saying anything negative about judges, as they're in the same predicament we're in, and I think they would like this resolved," Kaminsky said.
In cases like Conger's, allowing judges to have authority over charging decisions could require district attorneys to prosecute crimes they believe they couldn't prove, said Kaminsky. Prosecutors have an ethical duty under law not to proceed with a case if they can't prove it.
Snipped: Continues at: click here
Posted by Gary at 09:46 AM | Comments (0)
July 01, 2009
Call for entries: Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival poster/shirt design contest!
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Summer is here and that means that fall is not far behind, and fall brings Harveat Fest! Here is a chance to immortalize your design as the official design of the 39th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival this October 1-4 at various Madison downtown locations!
Call for entries: Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival poster/shirt design contest!
Madison NORML's poster/shirt design contest for this October's 39th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival continues! We have received some great entries, but there is still plenty of time to submit yours! Submit your entries by August 9th to contests@winorml.org.
Madison NORML will judge the entries at our August 10th meeting at 7:00 p.m. at Escape Java, at 940 Williamson St (behind La Rocca's) on Madison's East Side.
Madison's Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival began as a marijuana smoke-in in 1971. Now in its 39th year, Harvest Fest has a long history of promoting cannabis hemp legalization and free speech while providing an annual celebration for like-minded people to join together.
Details: 13"x9" poster size 600dpi minimum/T-shirt design
Include: 39th Annual Great Midwest Marijuana Harvest Festival October 1-4, 2009 Madison, WI
Room for event details: Bands, speakers, and any other details will be added to final proofs/designs for T-shirts (back) and posters when finalized. No need for blank space, just somewhere for the text to go on the poster.
www.madisonhempfest.com
Winner must provide a 600 dpi copy for printing. A compressed (jpg) version can be sent to contests@winorml.org for selection.
Contest winner will receive a framed poster on a special paper stock and a T-shirt with their design. Winner will also receive assorted NORML "schwag" including a Madison NORML shirt of their preferred size.
Disclaimer: All designs submitted become property of Madison NORML to be used for promoting said event. Any additions or modifications will be done with artists consent.
Questions can be sent to contests@winorml.org
Posted by Gary at 07:30 PM | Comments (0)
June 27, 2009
NORML.org: Urge Congress To Support Marijuana Law Reform!
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, June 27, 2009
NORML makes it easy to write federal lawmakers on the two new cannabis bills in the US Congress!
From NORML.ORG:
Urge Congress To Support Marijuana Law Reform!
NORML is writing you today to remind you to contact your members of Congress in support of marijuana law reform.
Earlier this month, Massachusetts Democrat Barney Frank reintroduced a pair of bills to limit the federal government's authority to arrest and prosecute marijuana offenders.
The first act, House Bill 2835: The Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act of 2009, would ensure that medical cannabis patients in states that have approved its use will no longer have to fear arrest or prosecution from federal law enforcement agencies. Sixteen members of Congress have signed on as cosponsors to HR 2835, which is now before the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
The second act, House Bill 2943: An Act to Remove Federal Penalties for Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults, would eliminate federal penalties for the personal possession of up to 100 grams (three and one-half ounces) of cannabis and for the not-for-profit transfer of up to one ounce of pot -- making the prosecutions of these offenses strictly a state matter.
Passage of this act would provide state lawmakers the choice to maintain their current penalties for minor marijuana offenses or eliminate them completely. Lawmakers would also have the option to explore legal alternatives to tax and regulate the adult use and distribution of cannabis free from federal interference. Four members of Congress have signed on as cosponsors to HR 2943, which is now before two separate committees -- The House judiciary Committee, and the House Energy and Commerce Committee.
Now is the time to contact your U.S. Representatives are urge them to support common sense marijuana law reform. Ask your member of Congress to become a cosponsor of these important pieces of legislation.
To write your members of the House in favor of House Bill 2835: The Medical Marijuana Patient Protection Act of 2009, please go here:
http://capwiz.com/norml2/
To write your member of the House in favor of House Bill 2943: An Act to Remove Federal Penalties for Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults, please go here:
http://capwiz.com/norml2/
Thanks you for your support and assistance of NORML's federal marijuana law reform efforts.
Sincerely,
The NORML Team
Posted by Gary at 04:20 AM | Comments (0)
June 20, 2009
Wisconsin Assembly Bill 206 would create a committee to study the uses of industrial hemp
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, June 20, 2009
In a little noticed move, a Wisconsin State Assembly Bill that proposes to create a committee to study the uses of industrial hemp was introduced April 14, 2009. The bill mirrors a proposal from from the 2007-2008 session with truly bipartisan support that had a committee hearing and unanimous committee vote, but never reached the Assembly floor for a vote under then-GOP speaker Mike Huebsch click here.
AB206 An Act relating to: creating a committee to study the uses of industrial hemp.
History of AB206 with link to Bill text: click here
AB206
LRB-2009/1
2009 - 2010 LEGISLATURE
2009 ASSEMBLY BILL 206
April 14, 2009 - Introduced by Representatives Garthwaite, M. Williams, Ballweg, Berceau, Black, Grigsby, Parisi, Pocan, Pope-Roberts, Soletski, Vruwink and Zepnick, cosponsored by Senators Schultz and Taylor. Referred to
Committee on Rural Economic Development.
Pg1Ln1 An Act relating to: creating a committee to study the uses of industrial hemp.
________________________________________________________________
Analysis by the Legislative Reference Bureau
AB206 This bill creates the Committee to Study the Uses of Industrial Hemp. The bill requires the committee to review literature related to industrial hemp, to evaluate the economic opportunities for this state that could result from producing and using industrial hemp, and to report its findings and recommendations to the legislature.
Posted by Gary at 05:17 PM | Comments (0)
June 06, 2009
Back on the Larry Zamba show on Kenosha WLIP from 4-5pm Saturday June 6
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, June 6, 2009
Due to technical problems with last week's show, I've been invited back on Larry Zamba's progressive talk radio show this Saturday June 6 on WLIP AM 1050 http://wlip.com/ in the Kenosha WI area. The show airs from 4-5 pm. WLIP can be streamed live at http://wlip.com/pages/1361911.php. Join the discussion at (262) 694-1050.
Posted by Gary at 08:24 PM | Comments (0)
June 05, 2009
Is My Medicine Legal YET?: Vigil for Medical Cannabis patients at WI State Capitol June 7
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, June 5, 2005
Here is IMMLY's press release for Sunday's vigil.
For Immediate Release
Contact: Gary Storck 608-241-8922
Is My Medicine Legal YET?: Vigil for Medical Cannabis patients at WI State Capitol June 7
MADISON: On Sunday, June 7, 2009, Is My Medicine Legal YET? (IMMLY.org), will host a vigil commemorating victims of medical marijuana prohibition, past and present, at the Wisconsin State Capitol in Madison. IMMLY Founder Jacki Rickert is scheduled to attend and speak. The vigil will be held on the landing at the top of the State St. steps, just outside of the Capitol building, from 8:00-10:00 pm. Battery-powered LED candles will substitute for wax candles.
This vigil is one of a number of vigils being held nationwide on June 7 including one at the New Jersey Statehouse in Trenton, all marking the 6th anniversary of the passing of MS patient/medical cannabis activist Cheryl Miller. Cheryl's husband, Jim Miller, is speaking at the NJ event. Jim Miller and Cheryl worked closely with IMMLY's Jacki Rickert and Gary Storck.
Mineral Point WI singer-songwriter Rick Harris, who was inspired to write his song, “Legal Medicine Blues”, after meeting Jacki, will be performing an acoustic version of the song at the vigil Sunday. Listen to the song here: http://www.immly.org/legal_medicine_blues.htm
Jacki Rickert says of the event, "This vigil commemorates Cheryl Miller and all victims of medical cannabis prohibition, those who have passed on. and those who vow to carry on".
For more information contact Gary Storck at 608-241-8922 or visit IMMLY.org or the IMMLY Vigil event page on Facebook: (http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=80078284874).
Posted by Gary at 04:20 AM | Comments (0)
June 04, 2009
A letter from 30 years ago today
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Good luck to my friends in NJ today as they take medical cannabis to the next level with a hearing that could put their state's bill on the NJ Assembly floor for a final vote later. Cheryl Miller's spirit will be in the hearing room!
I first wrote this post in 2006, when it had been 27 years ago that I obtained a letter from my eye doctor saying if he were able to legally, he would prescribe cannabis for my glaucoma.
Now it has been 3 decades since the letter, and nearly 37 years since an earlier eye doc tested my intraocular pressure (IOP) after I had medicated and found that my chronically elevated IOPs were normal!
June 04, 2006 A letter from 27 years ago todayPosted by Gary Storck
Sunday, June 4, 2006Since 1979, June 4 has held special meaning for me. My then-ophthalmologist wrote me a letter dated June 4, 1979 that states, "I am familiar that reports that marijuana lowers intraocular pressure in many people who have glaucoma. If marijuana were available for me to prescribe to this patient, I would be willing to do so, in the hope it would adequately control his condition with fewer side effects than the medications currently available."
Unfortunately, under federal law, my doctor could not prescribe marijuana then and still cannot do so today. Marijuana could be prescribed up until 1970, when Congress passed the Controlled Substances Act classing marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug with a high potential for abuse and no medical use. 36 years later and counting, they have still not corrected this grave error, and many millions of patients over several generations have paid the price.
The letter was significant personally in that it represented the first time a doctor had recognized, in writing, that cannabis would benefit me and that it should be available like any other medication. Seven years earlier, October 3, 1972, I had stumbled upon pot as a treatment for the congenital glaucoma that had steadily stolen my sight all through childhood. I had smoked some pot with friends after school and headed off to see a different eye doctor. He found my normally highly elevated intraocular pressures normal. Since that day I have continued to medicate with cannabis every day I could obtain it, through the 1970's, 1980's, 1990's and today over halfway through the 00's.
If America truly is the land of liberty and justice for all, the Berlin wall of cannabis prohibition must fall, like the lies and myths that have been perpetrated in the name of keeping this gentle herb from patients in need. The sky is blue not green, and its time to stop the lies and the war and let the healing begin.
Posted by Gary at 04:20 PM | Comments (0)
June 03, 2009
Waukesha Freeman: Medical marijuana debate to spark up soon
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
My hometown paper, the Waukesha Freeman, interviewed me for this article last week. I had to hand transcribe the second half off the paper hard copy mailed to me by my friend Katie. Thanks Katie!
Source: Waukesha Freeman click here
Pubdate: 30 May 2009
Author: Joe Petrie
Medical marijuana debate to spark up soonSupporters, detractors expect another fight over potential bill
WAUKESHA - An already controversial session of the state Legislature is about to spark another big fight.
Advocates for legalizing medical marijuana in Wisconsin are gearing up to get a bill passed in the Legislature that would open up the drug to those fighting severe diseases.
Gary Storck, spokesman for the group Is My Medicine Legal Yet? said they expect the bill to be introduced within the next six weeks and given the make up of the current ruling bodies, gives it a good chance of passing.
"We had a poll done in 2002 and the results found that over 80 percent of people statewide supported it," said Storck. "If the representatives and senators truly represent the people, they'll support this one thing that has been introduced into every session since 1997."
State Rep. Leah Vukmir, R-Wauwatosa, who has also worked as a registered nurse, has been a vocal opponent of the medical marijuana bill, saying it would only say it's OK for people to break the law.
"This is nothing more than a back door attempt to try and legalize marijuana," she said, "I took an oath of office to uphold the laws of the land and if I agreed to a bill like that, I'd be asking people to break the law because marijuana isn't a legal substance."
Medical marijuana is currently legal in 13 states and it has been gaining traction in the Great Lakes region.
In November, Michigan voters approved a medical marijuana bill making it legal there. This week the Illinois Senate also approved a similar bill and Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty vetoed a bill legalizing it there, gearing up for a fight with the Legislature.
Storck said the Wisconsin bill would be similar to the Michigan bill in that it would allow for people with severe debilitating diseases to possess and grow a small amount of marijuana for medical purposes.
One difference, he said, was that the Wisconsin law may also exempt veterans suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder.
Although supporters say there are an untold number of medicinal benefits to marijuana medication, Vukmir disagrees with that argument, saying other means of medication are available to patients now that can give the same effects of the drug.The Freeman was unable to locate an area doctor willing to speak on record about claims made by either side of the debate by press time.
Past Wisconsin bills have gotten support from state Democrats, including Gov. Jim Doyle.
The state's first medical marijuana bill was signed by Republican Gov. Lee Sherman Dreyfus in 1982, which opened the door for more medical marijuana research.
E-mail: jpetrie@conleynet.com
This story appeared in The Waukesha Freeman on May 30, 2009.
Posted by Gary at 04:20 PM | Comments (0)
June 02, 2009
Letter in the Minocqua WI Lakeland Times: Time for a look at 'undoing counterproductive blunder'
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Here is my response to an article in the Minocqua WI Lakeland Times about the workplace smoking ban. The letter answers some hypocritical statements by prohibitionist Republican state lawmakers.
Source: Lakeland Times
Monday, June 01, 2009
TIME FOR A LOOK AT 'UNDOING COUNTERPRODUCTIVE BLUNDER'
To the Editor:State Rep. Dan Meyer (R-Eagle River) was quoted in The Lakeland Times as saying in some cases, people who break the new workplace smoking ban law may be punished more severely than some people who are found with marijuana, "New state smoking ban law receives mixed reviews" (May 26 edition).
As the article noted, Meyer's guesstimate of the cost of a Madison ordinance violation for casual possession of marijuana was low. The amount is actually $109 rather than the $15 amount being bandied about by Meyer and other Assembly Republicans who opposed the bill.
If Rep. Meyer and his colleagues truly believe that the statewide workplace smoking ban fine should be lowered to the cost of a Madison ordinance violation, then it would only be fair that they introduce a companion bill reducing statewide marijuana penalties to the same amount as Madison's.
It is not fair to cannabis consumers in places outside Madison who face misdemeanor or felony charges for the same amount of pot that gets them a ticket in Madison.
Rep. Meyer should also look into reducing the penalty for pot possession, second offense, any amount, at the state level. Under current state law, someone might get just a ticket for a few joints in Madison and some parts of Wisconsin, but then face a felony should it happen twice.
But, if Meyer and his colleagues support current state marijuana laws, it would then be consistent that a second smoking ban violation should merit a felony, just like it is for the poor pot smoker.
In addition, cannabis consumers, unlike tobacco consumers, cannot legally buy their substance of choice.
Complete fairness would call for Meyer to sponsor legislation creating a legal market for cannabis, then taxing it to help state finances in these troubled times, if he is able to stomach additional taxes.
That's what California State Rep. Tom Ammiano did recently. Even California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, a staunch Republican, is now saying California should explore legalizing and taxing pot.
While I may be writing slightly tongue in cheek, the fact is Wisconsin and the entire nation are facing serious troubles. We can't continue to fund programs that eat up tax dollars, like marijuana prohibition, while funding basic services.
Should education and health care take the hit so we can keep arresting our fellow citizens for pot, even medical users?
Or do we start undoing an unjust counterproductive blunder and embrace the green industries that the cannabis plant can bring to our economy?
Gary Storck
president Wisconsin chapter of National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) Madison
Posted by Gary at 10:14 AM | Comments (0)
May 31, 2009
Letter in Madison's weekly Isthmus: Edwards: wrong about everything?
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, May 31, 2009
I've been so busy I had not yet gotten around to reading Madison's weekly Isthmus and was pleasantly surprised to find my letter below.
Source: Isthmus click here
Pubdate: 29 May 2009
Author: Gary Storck
EDWARDS: WRONG ABOUT EVERYTHING?I knew John Edwards was only in it for himself when he failed to support medical marijuana, even with his wife undergoing treatment for terminal cancer ("The Undoing of John Edwards" 5/15/09). But Edwards reached full weasel status for me when asked about marijuana decriminalization during a debate in October 2007. He opposed it "Because I think it sends the wrong signal to young people, and I think the president of the United States has the responsibility to ensure that we're sending the right signals to young people."
Edwards spoke these words while concealing his marital infidelity from supporters and the nation he sought to lead. Talk about wrong signals!
Gary Storck
Madison NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws)
Posted by Gary at 12:08 PM | Comments (0)
May 29, 2009
NORML on Larry Zamba show on WLIP 1050 AM Kenosha WI Saturday
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, May 29, 2009
Just wanted to let folks know that Allen St. Pierre, executive director of national NORML in Washington DC, and myself, representing Wisconsin NORML/Madison NORML, will be on Larry Zamba's progressive talk radio show this Saturday May 30 on WLIP AM 1050 in the Kenosha WI area click here. The show airs from 4-5 pm.
WLIP can be heard from Milwaukee to Chicago, and the show can be streamed live: click here. Please tune in, and if you like, join the discussion by calling (262) 694-1050.
Posted by Gary at 10:01 AM | Comments (0)
May 18, 2009
UP Michigan cop lies about new medical cannabis law
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, May 18, 2009
While the majority of law enforcement officers no doubt realize the futility of cannabis prohibition overall and understand alcohol makes their jobs much harder than pot ever would, at least one UP Michigan drug task force leader has resorted to outright lying about the state's new medical cannabis law.
Medical marijuana is ‘nightmare’ for some
By Audrey LaFave
POSTED: May 18, 2009
Source: Daily Press: click here
ESCANABA - A law enforcement official from the Upper Peninsula Substance Abuse Enforcement Team called Michigan's newly-legalized medical marijuana law "a nightmare."Det. Lt. Jeff Racine of UPSET discussed the new law and its implications for police agencies and county prosecutors. He said the law is ambiguous and has a lot of loopholes.
"The problem with these new laws is they are not fully understood," Racine said. "It's going to be a nightmare for law enforcement because there are so many loopholes."
Racine said the confusion may cause officers to get to the point where they may not enforce what law is left regarding marijuana, for fear of litigation.
"People said this would be like a small step towards the complete legalization of marijuana. This is more like a major jump towards legalizing it," he said.
Racine also said there is not a lot of talk about some of the negative side effects or the fact, he said, that marijuana is a gateway drug.
"Not every person who smokes marijuana becomes a crack smoker or a heroin user, but every person who does the hard stuff started with marijuana," he explained.
Racine said statistics show us that there are 10 times more people driving vehicles under the influence of drugs than there are drunks on the road.
"The way the law was written, it is written in favor of the user and against law enforcement. Do you want the brakes changed on your car by a guy who smoked marijuana on his lunch hour? A very large percentage of people are going to abuse this law," he said.
Racine also said it's likely many people will try to cloak themselves in the law wrongfully.
"Probably 90 percent of the medical defenses are going to be false, and that's a low guess," he said.
Posted by Gary at 10:05 AM | Comments (0)
May 11, 2009
Entry level activism: Handing out information on MS and medical cannabis at a Wisconsin MS Walk on May 3
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, May 11, 2009
Last weekend we had the Global Cannabis March Madison on Saturday May 2, and then on Sunday May 3, I joined a trio of local activists for a very laid back yet productive bit of activism.
Each year chapters of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society hold MS Walks around the country. Jim Miller of New Jersey and his wife Cheryl pioneered this back in the 1990's and they hit numerous walks up until Cheryl passed from complications of MS in June 2003. Since then, Jim has continued to hand out literature at MS walks, but with little help until this year, with a bill in play in NJ.
May 3 was my first MS Walk, and I found it was as low impact as Jim had often described. Even though we had the location wrong and showed up late, we still handed out over 400 fliers explaining how to contact state lawmakers and details of the bill to walkers crossing the finish line!
This shows just how easy it is to help spread the word about medical cannabis and still have most of the day to take care of your daily activities.
The flier we handed out, adapted from Jim Miller's NJ design: Download file
Posted by Gary at 11:43 PM | Comments (0)
May 08, 2009
Letter in Capital Times: Jail over medical marijuana akin to torture
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, May 8, 2009
Bryan Epis is a good man who has been horribly mistreated by federal authorities. Here's a plea for justice for a true American hero who was just trying to help patients get their medicine.
Source: Capital Times click here
Pubdate: 8 May 2009
Author: Gary Storck
JAIL OVER MEDICAL MARIJUANA AKIN TO TORTUREDear Editor: A recent letter writer called for the removal of U.S. Judge Jay Bybee for writing memos supporting torture when he was part of the Bush administration. Bybee was also part of a three-judge panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that recently reaffirmed the 10-year mandatory minimum sentence of California medical cannabis provider Bryan Epis, on charges of conspiracy to manufacture marijuana.
Epis' case began in 1997, shortly after the passage of California's groundbreaking medical cannabis law by voters in 1996. According to NORML (National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws), Epis' appeal was filed on various grounds, including prosecutorial misconduct and "the unclarity of the law at the time of his arrest." The judges did not even bother to hold a hearing, only issuing an 11-page denial.
Bryan Epis has already served part of the sentence, and he and his family have already been tortured enough by federal authorities. It is incredibly disgusting that torture was used widely to further our foreign policies in the Bush administration. Denying medicine to sick people and engaging in long, wasteful prosecutions of patients trying to help others legally under state laws, as Bryan Epis did, is a stain on a nation that claims to be an example of freedom and democracy. Not only should Bybee be impeached for his torture memos, but Bryan Epis deserves a full pardon under the new policy announced by Attorney General Eric Holder that state medical cannabis laws will be respected.
Gary Storck
Madison
Posted by Gary at 10:20 AM | Comments (0)
May 07, 2009
Letter in WI State Journal: Another reason for peaceful block party
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Here's a letter I wrote that was published in today's WI State Journal. The reception our march received once we turned the corner on to Mifflin St. was incredible and the cheering only got louder as we proceeded onward. Partygoers lined up to be photographed with our marchers and our banners. We were the bright shiny thing emanating good vibes. In the words of the Gov. of California and new supporter of Cannabis Legalization, Arnold Schwarzenegger, "We'll be back in 2010, Mifflin!"
Source: Wisconsin State Journal click here
Pubdate: 7 May 2009
Author: Gary Storck
ANOTHER REASON FOR PEACEFUL BLOCK PARTY
Sunday's article about the Mifflin Street Block Party should have been titled "Pot paraders pacify partiers."Alcohol, the legal drug of choice for Mifflin partiers, is a depressant. Cannabis produces euphoria. The good vibes given off by the Global Cannabis Marchers stuck around long enough to keep everything much more peaceful and the result was less violence and fewer arrests this year. There's a lesson in there somewhere.
-- Gary Storck, co-founder, Madison chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws
Posted by Gary at 01:36 PM | Comments (0)
FdL Reporter: High court ruling changes protocol for police searches
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Another article on the effect of the recent SCOTUS ruling on Wisconsin police stops and searches.
High court ruling changes protocol for police searches
Source: Fond du Lac Reporter: click here
May 7, 2009
By Russell Plummer The Reporter
Policies covering 28 years of routine car searches in Fond du Lac County have been tweaked after a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling.On April 21, the highest court in the land — in the case of Arizona v. Gant — rejected the automatic application of the Search Incident to Arrest Doctrine, noting that people in custody no longer pose a threat or can conceal evidence.
The decision limits performing a search of a car to two factors: the arrested individual is not restrained and within reaching distance of the vehicle's passenger compartment during the search, or an officer finds probable cause that the vehicle contains evidence of the arrest.
Fond du Lac Police Department Lt. Aaron Goldstein said he is following the guidance of Assistant Wisconsin Attorney General Dave Perlman when training officers about searches.
Goldstein offered the example of a driver who has a warrant for operating after revocation. He said that in the past, an arrest could happen after an officer searched the vehicle.
"It's not going to change the way we do business when we have an arrest (and) you see something like drugs or open intoxicants in plain view or smell recently burnt marijuana," Goldstein said. "There are exceptions when you have probable cause to search the vehicle.
"What Gant did is really getting it down to mere fact. Just the mere fact that somebody is in a vehicle that we justifiably stop, there has to be something more to that story to perform a search."
Fond du Lac County Sheriff Mick Fink said the Supreme Court's 5-4 decision likely will not have a significant impact on his deputies.
"(Gant) isn't going to change us turning on the red and blues," Fink said. "If you are arrested for something, you are arrested. It's just going to effect how the deputy, in our case, searches the vehicle after you are arrested."
Goldstein noted that allowing a person to stand outside a vehicle during a search is a concern with the Police Department.
"It's not worth the officer safety concern. If we are going to be searching the vehicle, the search is going to be justified, it is going to be based on a reasonable suspicion, it's going to be based on probable cause," Goldstein said. "We are not going to have the person sitting in the vehicle while we search their car or within a grab/lunge/reach area because of the (weapons) and equipment we carry."
He added that defense attorneys could also pick apart the location of the defendant outside of the vehicle relative to the search.
Chief Deputy Mark Strand said a majority of vehicle searches come up empty. He and Fink added that they are not opposed to a deputy watching over an unrestrained person as another officer searches the car.
(snip) Continues: click here
Posted by Gary at 09:51 AM | Comments (0)
May 03, 2009
Global Cannabis March in Madison exceeds all expectations!
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Madison's Global Cannabis March on Saturday went very well. Attendees gathered at the State St. steps and heard impromptu speeches delivered by bullhorn before heading out. An attendee from Milwaukee brought the bullhorn, saving the day after a promised sound system failed to materialize.
It was the bullhorn that saved the day again as members of the UW-Milwaukee Students for Sensible drug policy and others led attendees in chants, some made up on the spur of the moment, as we wound through downtown.
The march size swelled while progressing down State St. and then heading to Mifflin. Arriving at Miffland, GCM Marchers were greeted with deafening cheers and applause.
The GCM definitely elevated the Mifflin Party into a truly fun event, creating a welcome distraction from the usual activities, drinking beer and drinking beer, then having a beer before tipping another beer.
Miffland partiers posed for pictures with marchers gathered behind a WI NORML banner and "Is My Medicine Legal YET?" and "Pass the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act signs.
Facebook members can find video clips and phots that I took at the festivities.
Meanwhile, the WI State Journal came up with an article about Miffland Partiers that was more about our march:
Source: Wisconsin State Journal click here
Pubdate: May 2, 2009
Author: RON SEELY
MIFFLIN STREET TRADITION OFF TO 'CALM, WELL-BEHAVED' STARTOf all the sights on West Mifflin Street on Saturday, none seemed more reassuring than long-time marijuana activist Ben Masel, his hair pulled back in a graying pony tail, toting a sign that read "Grow Hemp Save Farms."
Amid all the partying, Masel, 55, seemed at least an echo of the first Mifflin Street block party 40 years ago, born in 1969 during the politically charged days of the Vietnam War protests.
The more mainstream 40th anniversary edition of a Madison springtime tradition, fueled by sun and warm temperatures and beer, was in full swing by 2 p.m. on Saturday with hundreds of students filling Mifflin curb to curb and others jammed onto the sagging porches and balconies of the street's old two-story homes.
Police, on horses and in cars and on foot, were much in presence. Nearby streets were blockaded and signs reading "No open alcohol, no glass, no public urination," greeted party-goers.
Despite the prime spring weather and the swelling, swilling crowds, few problems had surfaced by late afternoon, according to Rachel Strauch-Nelson, a spokeswoman for Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz. She reported only a handful of arrests, though the number was expected to go up as day turned into evening.
"Things are going well at this point," said Strauch-Nelson at mid-afternoon Saturday. "The crowd is calm and well-behaved."
About 120 officers with Madison and Dane County were on patrol during the event, which is expected to draw at least 15,000 people, mostly students. Considering that the first Mifflin Street party ended with police and students squaring off in riots that lasted three days, the relationship between law enforcement and party-goers seemed friendly enough Saturday with smiling officers frequently agreeing to pose with students for photos.
Most law enforcement efforts seemed directed at keeping beer drinkers on the grounds of private residences where open alcohol containers were legal, as opposed to the street and sidewalks.
T-shirt sales were brisk, driven by both the good weather and the 40th anniversary. Brynne and Erin McBride, twin sisters who work with ABC For Health, were hawking T-shirts from a back door of the non-profit, now housed in the old Mifflin Street Co-op building. The T-shirts read "The Revolution Continues, Mifflin Street, 1969-2009."
"We're keeping the Mifflin Street spirit alive," said Brynne.
Most other T-shirts were somewhat less inspiring. "I Would Rather Be a Good Liver Than Have One, Mifflin '09," read another.
With a stage and a disc jockey spinning tunes and food carts up and down the street, a search for the goofiness of some of the old Mifflin Street parties took a while. But the strangeness could be found Saturday afternoon in the 400 block where Alex Scherer-Jones did yo-yo tricks for beer and money. At his feet sat a cardboard box inscribed with the words "Drunk People Love Yo-Yos." In the box were two beers and a pile of bills.
Few had as much perspective as Masel, who led a march advocating the legalization of marijuana from the Capitol Square to Mifflin at noon. Masel said his first block party was in 1971, two years after the first. Saturday, he and about about 150 others carrying signs and chanting "We smoke pot, we like it a lot," paraded onto Mifflin and were greeted with wild cheers and applause.
"We did this to sort of demonstrate that some of the spirit remains," said Masel.
Posted by Gary at 04:20 PM | Comments (0)
April 26, 2009
Michigan: Seed planted for medical marijuana zoning
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Michigan continues to deal with implementation of their new medical cannabis law.
Source: Daily Tribune (Oakland MI) click here.
Seed planted for medical marijuana zoning
Sunday, April 26, 2009
By Catherine Kavanaugh, Daily Tribune Staff Writer
Public can pipe up about ordinance at May 12 hearing.ROYAL OAK — Some city officials want to weed out the possibility of medical marijuana suppliers growing 60 plants in their houses by requiring them to set up shop in a general business district.
Registered primary caregivers can grow 12 plants each for up to five qualified patients under a Michigan law passed last November.
The Plan Commission is looking at regulating where some growing operations can locate. Royal Oak could be one of the first — if not the first — community in the state to set up zoning rules for people supplying patients.
"I haven't heard of anything like this. It will be interesting to see what comes of it," said James McCurtis, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Community Health, which registers primary caregivers and qualified patients.
The Plan Commission set a public hearing on proposed changes to the zoning ordinance for 7:30 p.m. May 12 at City Hall. The amendments would define primary caregivers as medical marijuana dispensaries and allow them in general business zones only as a special land use, which adds a level of scrutiny.
In Royal Oak, Woodward Avenue, Main Street north of the downtown, and some parts of Coolidge Highway and 14 Mile Road are general business districts.
The zoning amendments wouldn't affect residents with written certification of debilitating medical conditions, such as cancer, AIDS, epilepsy and multiple sclerosis, who are growing marijuana for personal use.
If the ordinance is adopted, a qualified patient could still grow up to 12 plants at home indoors and possess up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana, according to Doug Hedges, city planner. If more than one qualified patient lives in a house, each can grow up to 12 plants.
The zoning amendments would affect people growing marijuana for one or more qualified patients.
"Primary caregivers can be compensated so that has the potential to be a business," Hedges said. "We don't think that's suitable for a house. We want to treat it similar to other medical services."
However, one primary caregiver probably won't be able to afford rent in a general business district as well as growing supplies and utility bills for lights and water, Plan Commission member Stacie Vorves said.
"If we're going to require this in a business district, we won't have medical marijuana grown here," Vorves said.
To make it economically feasible, Hedges said several primary caregivers could form a consortium to lower costs and serve more patients. This idea comes from Berkeley, Calif., he added.
"We see a potential for four or five primary caregivers to act together as a business," Hedges said.
But Vorves doubts they will.
"It's a good excuse but that doesn't happen too much in business," he said.
Vorves isn't sure he will support the zoning changes. He said as long the state law limits primary caregivers to grow up to 60 marijuana plants, he thinks it should be allowed as a home business.
"I don't care if people are growing pot or tomatoes. If both are legal, what's the difference?" Vorves asked.
(snip) Continues at: click here.
Posted by Gary at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)
April 24, 2009
Beloit News: Supreme Court case reduces police's ability to search cars
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, April 24, 2009
The US Supreme Court has restored part of the 4th Amendment of the US Constitution, and state law officers are adjusting, according to this article from the Beloit News.
Source: Beloit News: click here.
Supreme Court case reduces police's ability to search cars
By Ashley Rhodebeck
arhodebeck@beloitdailynews.com
Published: Friday, April 24, 2009 11:41 AM CDT
Stateline Area police - along with law enforcement officers nationwide - are adapting their practices to adhere to a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that limits authorities' power to search someone's vehicle immediately after an arrest.In a 5-4 decision, the court ruled Tuesday that police need a warrant to search an automobile if the person is locked in a patrol cruiser and poses no safety threat to officers, according to the Associated Press.
Justice John Paul Stevens said in the majority opinion that warrantless searches still may be conducted if a car's passenger compartment is within reach of a suspect who has been removed from the vehicle or there is reason to believe evidence will be found of the crime that led to the arrest.
For example, Roscoe Police Chief Jamie Evans said, if she were to pull a motorist over and could smell marijuana, she would have probable cause to conduct a search. Towed vehicles also could be searched.
“I'm not going to say that it's going to impact us greatly because a lot of times we do have the probable cause,” she said.
Beloit Police Chief Sam Lathrop said the court's decision “has definitely taken a turn away from what was common law enforcement practice” and has changed law enforcement's perspective on search incident to arrest.
Police have the right to conduct an immediate search of the area, whether it is a home or vehicle, when taking someone into custody, Lathrop said. It is a normal and common procedure.
“It's a basic tenant of officer safety,” he said. “We're not necessarily looking for additional evidence.”
But, he added, the ruling will mean police may sometimes not find more evidence when they would before.
Justice Samuel Alito, in dissent, complained that the decision upsets police practice that has developed since the court, 28 years ago, first authorized warrantless searches of cars immediately following an arrest.
“There are cases in which it is unclear whether an arrestee could retrieve a weapon or evidence,” Alito said.
Even more confusing, he said, is asking police to determine whether the vehicle contains evidence of a crime. “What this rule permits in a variety of situations is entirely unclear,” Alito said.
The Wisconsin Office of the Attorney General has issued a synopsis and review of the case and what it means for police in the state, Lathrop said. He noted his department is reviewing the ruling.
“It's important we bring our officers up to speed on this most recent ruling,” he said.
(snip) Continues at: click here.
Posted by Gary at 09:15 PM | Comments (0)
April 20, 2009
Happy 4/20!
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, April 20, 2009
Wishing a Happy 4/20 to all those who appreciate the cannabis plant. Here is an OPED I wrote a few days ago.
President Obama says he wants to move us from, "a dark and painful chapter in our history," by promising not to prosecute CIA employees for torture.One could also say the suppression of medical cannabis also represents "a dark and painful chapter in our history". Particularly for those people in states where it is legal, like Charles Lynch, the Morro Bay CA medical cannabis provider who had the approval of state and local authorities to operate, yet is still facing a minimum of 5 years on federal charges this Thursday.
Of course it goes far beyond the tragedies of those who were persecuted for trying to help, to the actual suppression of science. After all, the government knew that cannabis shrunk tumors back in 1974, but kept it secret. That action has meant millions of tragedies, unnecessary suffering, grieving survivors. And cancer is just one subset of myriad medical conditions that can be eased with cannabis. Because of it, scientists today are only scratching the surface on the tremendous cancer fighting potential of cannabis and its cannabinoids and other components. Patients undergoing chemotherapy might have had a non-toxic alternative years ago, were it not for this “dark and painful chapter in our history”.
Harvard Professor Lester Grinspoon has said that medical cannabis will never reach its full potential until cannabis is legalized completely, and I agree.
We have a unique opportunity to correct the mistake of cannabis prohibition at this time in history. Support for legalization is at all-time highs, and numerous commentators and columnists have recently joined in support. Legalization could pacify a deteriorating Mexico, while creating a huge new green industry at home.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt raised the nation’s spirits during the Great Depression by legalizing beer early in his Administration, a move that restored many jobs at my ancestors’ Storck Brewery in Slinger, WI and other brewers around the country.
President Obama should do the same with cannabis, as many Americans have been urging. Not only would it lift the nation’s spirits, provide millions of new green jobs, as well as fulfill Obama’s commitment to be true to the science, but it would also stop any more Americans from becoming victims of marijuana prohibition. Now that would be something to celebrate this April 20th!
Posted by Gary at 09:39 AM | Comments (0)
April 15, 2009
Rep. Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) still wants pot smokers to lose their driver's licenses, thinks they are criminals
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday April 15, 2009
As with his cynical and uncompassionate comments about the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act a year and a half ago, Rep. Scott Suder (R-Abbotsford) continues to be a reliable advocate for demonizing cannabis and those who utilize it. Today, per the Badger Herald, Suder still wants pot smokers to lose their driver's licenses, despite a prudent change in state law. Suder deserves an earful from his constituents on this!
Doyle signs bills on drug offenders, fertilizer
Governor OKs new laws to allow judges more say on non-traffic violations, 4 other legislative pieces
Source: Badger Herald (UW EDU) click here.
by Rachel Vesco
Wednesday, April 15, 2009 00:08
Gov. Jim Doyle signed five bills into law on Wednesday, changing state regulations on fertilizer and sentencing for drug offenders.One Senate bill, introduced by Sens. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, and Glenn Grothman, R-West Bend, and Reps. Tamara Grigsby, D-Milwaukee, and Fred Kessler, D-Milwaukee, will allow individual judges to decide if a person convicted of a non-traffic drug conviction would have his or her driver’s license suspended.
According to Taylor spokesperson Eric Peterson, the new law will allow people to keep working since they will be able to drive to their jobs, keeping individuals out of prison and saving taxpayers’ money.
However, Rep. Scott Suder, R-Abbotsford, who voted against the bill in the Assembly, said he disagreed, arguing the bill was soft on those who commit crime.
“If they didn’t break the law in the first place, they wouldn’t lose their license,” Suder said. “The governor loves being soft on criminals who break the law … and this is another way to do it.”
(snip)
Posted by Gary at 07:46 PM | Comments (0)
April 12, 2009
San Francisco Chronicle: Political winds shift in favor of legalized pot
Posted by Gary Storck
Easter Sunday, April 12, 2009
As a child of the 60's, I and millions of other Americans believed that cannabis would be be legalized in the 1970's. Unfortunately, the celebrating got ahead of the reality and the winds shifted in the other direction for a few decades. But now, hope is back in the air, as this SF Chronicle article explains.
Political winds shift in favor of legalized pot
Source: San Francisco Chronicle: click here
Carla Marinucci, Chronicle Political Writer
Saturday, April 11, 2009
(04-11) 20:45 PDT --
Marijuana has been a part of the American cultural landscape for nearly a century, tried by millions - including, apparently, the last three presidents and the current California governor.
So why has it taken so long to arrive at a political moment of truth - a full national debate about the legalization, taxation and regulation of cannabis?
Experts say an unprecedented confluence of factors might finally be driving a change on a topic once seen as politically too hot to handle.
Among them: the recession-fueled need for more public revenue, increased calls to redirect scarce law enforcement, court and prison resources, and a growing desire to declaw powerful and violent Mexican drug cartels. Also in the mix is a public opinion shift driven by a generation of Baby Boomers, combined with some new high-profile calls for legislation - including some well-known conservative voices joining with liberals.
Leading conservatives like former Secretary of State George Shultz and the late economist Milton Friedman years ago called for legalization and a change in the strategy in the war on drugs. This year mainstream pundits like Fox News' Glenn Beck and CNN's Jack Cafferty have publicly questioned the billions spent each year fighting the endless war against drugs and to suggest it now makes more financial and social sense to tax and regulate marijuana.
(snipped) Continue reading click here.
Posted by Gary at 12:13 AM | Comments (0)
April 05, 2009
Monday starts process for Michigan medical marijuana program
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Michigan's new medical cannabis law prepares for full implementation!
Source: Detroit News click here
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Monday starts process for medical marijuana program
Charlie Cain / Detroit News Lansing Bureau
Lansing -- Five months after voters approved a ballot measure to allow people with "debilitating" illnesses and diseases to use marijuana, the state Monday begins taking applications for the Michigan Medical Marijuana Program.But it will take weeks before patients can legally use marijuana.
Once state health officials receive an application for approval they have 15 days to review it. If approved, the state will then mail out a picture ID card within five days.
"We should be issuing the cards probably by the end of April," said James McCurtis, spokesman for the Michigan Department of Community Health, which will oversee the program. Michigan is the 13th state to legalize medical marijuana.
A rally is scheduled for 10 a.m. Monday at Lansing's Gone Wired Café. Organizers expect as many as 200 people to attend. Buses will then take participants to the state's Ottawa Building in downtown Lansing to turn in their paperwork. It must include a certification form from a Michigan-licensed physician that the patient suffers from a medical problem covered under the new law. The registry card costs $100.
The doctor will have to vouch that a patient's pain and suffering could be lessened though marijuana use. Conditions include patients with cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C and Crohn's Disease. It also covers those with wasting syndrome, severe and chronic pain or nausea, seizures and persistent muscle spasms. It's unknown how many people will qualify for the program, although those who backed the successful petition drive placing the question before voters estimated that it could be as many as 50,000.
"Some police departments are still resisting the law," said Brad Forrester, communications director for the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, which is helping patients get marijuana.
"But judges are throwing these things our way," he said, adding that in at least three recent cases, judges have dismissed marijuana charges against people who will likely qualify under the law.
Posted by Gary at 09:53 AM | Comments (0)
April 01, 2009
Associated Press: Michigan to start issuing IDs for medicinal pot users
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Michigan prepares to issue its first medical cannabis ID cards!
Michigan to start issuing IDs for medicinal pot users
by The Associated Press click here
Wednesday April 01, 2009, 6:44 AM
The state will begin issuing identification cards to people who want to use marijuana legally.The Michigan Department of Community Health will issue the cards, which require users to provide a doctor's note recommending the drug for medicinal purposes. Applications can be mailed to the department starting Saturday or delivered in person Monday.
Saturday is also the deadline for the health department to finalize guidelines for the medical marijuana law approved by Michigan voters in November. It allows patients with cancer, HIV, AIDS, glaucoma and other diseases to use marijuana to relieve symptoms.
Rae Ramsdell, the health department's health professions licensing director, tells the Detroit Free Press she's heard from about 120 people seeking applications for the card or information about getting a doctor's letter.
Posted by Gary at 09:50 AM | Comments (0)
March 25, 2009
Wisconsin Drug offenders could retain licenses
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, March 25, 2009
Good news for WI drivers caught up in a federal mandate that revoked driver's licenses for any drug violation.
The Daily Cardinal click here
By: Molly Sheetz
March 25, 2009
Drug offenders could retain licenses
The Wisconsin state Assembly passed a resolution removing a federal mandate requiring automatic suspension of drug offenders’ drivers’ licenses Tuesday.
The Wisconsin state Assembly passed a joint resolution Tuesday allowing judges to decide whether drug offenders’ driver’s licenses should be suspended.Wisconsin is the 38th state to pass a resolution that removes itself from a federal mandate requiring judges to automatically suspend or revoke driver’s licenses of convicted drug offenders.
The resolution passed with a vote of 86 to 12, a result that did not surprise state Rep. Cory Mason, D-Racine, one of the co-sponsors of the resolution.
“This is a no-brainer. This is easy. It’s just giving [offenders] more time to pay [fines],” he said. “It’s a win for municipalities, and we get people back to work.”
Although the resolution relates solely to suspensions for non-moving drug violations, supporters of the resolution hope it will help offenders keep their jobs.
State Rep. Tamara Grigsby, D-Milwaukee, said she co-sponsored the resolution because she believed it was important to get people back to work.
“This is certainly not the bill that’s going to bring us out of the recession, but it’s one that will help people maintain their jobs,” she said.
According to Eric Peterson, chief of staff for state Sen. Lena Taylor, D-Milwaukee, Taylor considered the federal policy overly restrictive and detrimental to offenders who are working to rebuild their lives.
The issue originally caught Taylor’s attention when she learned that roughly 90,000 people in Milwaukee County did not have valid driver’s licenses.
Taylor proceeded to work as the primary author of the resolution.
Peterson said the resolution does not guarantee licenses will not be suspended, but said judges will now make the decision.
“This is just one tool that is in the toolbox of keeping people driving,” Peterson said.
Posted by Gary at 09:34 AM | Comments (0)
March 24, 2009
MI Messenger: Medical marijuana may soon be legal, but questions remain
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Michigan continues to move closer to issuing the first ID cards in their new medical cannabis program. Patients with valid doctor's recommendations have been protected since the law took effect in Dec. 2008.
Medical marijuana may soon be legal, but questions remain
Source: Michigan Messenger: click here
By Chris Killian 3/24/09 6:50 AM
State police chiefs organization director on Proposal 1 implementation: 'We don’t know what it’s going to look like. It’s new to all of us.'In a matter of days, state residents suffering debilitating ailments and serious diseases will have a natural — and now legal — option to treat the pain and discomfort of their conditions. But on April 4, when Michigan becomes the 13th state to sanction the use of medical marijuana with a physician’s recommendation, there are some questions about the legalities of how the product will be procured.
While the Department of Community Health has outlined the rules, regulations and application requirements since voters overwhelmingly approved Proposal 1 last fall, the new law is mum on where exactly patients can obtain their legal pot.
There are three options for patients: Buy it on the street, grow their own or have someone grow it for them. A registered patient will be able to possess up to 2.5 ounces of usable cannabis and up to 12 marijuana plants without facing state criminal prosecution.
But the increase in the amount of marijuana “legally” available in the state could open the door to potential abuses. Selling the drug is still illegal, according to state and federal law.
“The first year, there will be some bad press,” said John Targowski, a Kalamazoo criminal defense attorney who specializes in drug cases. “It’s going to be a maturing process. The first year or two, it’s going to be a test. But it could head in the wrong direction if we’ve got those idiots who think they can operate like a drug dealer.”
Targowski, who is a member of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws’ legal team, was speaking about caregivers, people who would assist pot patients in the cultivation of their marijuana and assist them in the delivery of the drug into their body if they can’t do so themselves. One caregiver can assist up to five patients and is protected from prosecution provided he or she does not ingest the marijuana or distribute it to a non-patient, according to the law.
And regardless of the legal protections in place for patient and caregiver alike, the initial marijuana purchase means that “someone will have to break the law,” Targowski said, referring to patients buying pot in the first place.
Tom Hendrickson, executive director of the Michigan Association of Chiefs of Police, has worries, too.
Although he said local law enforcement agencies throughout the state have no intention of monitoring patients’ behavior, the law does “open the door to complete legalization.”
Marijuana being grown for medical use has “the potential for abuse” by non-patients, he said. “If you’ve got one caregiver growing pot for five patients, that’s 60 plants, which is a potential quasi-commercial operation. Look at your access points: If there are more gas stations and 7-11s, they are used more.”
Hendrickson said that law enforcement officials will just have to wait and see. “We’re concerned about how they’re going to implement the law. It’s going to be a learning process, and right now we don’t know what it’s going to look like. It’s new to all of us.”
Patients can’t use their marijuana in public and cannot operate cars and machinery while under the drug’s influence, the law states. They also can face stiff fines and possible jail time if they sell or furnish marijuana to those who are not registered to possess the drug.
In all cases, failure to operate within the confines of the regulations outlined in the law would lead to a permanent ban of a patient from the state’s medical marijuana registry.
Greg Francisco, executive director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, said that medical marijuana patients will be able to meet at “compassion clubs” that have been forming over the past several months to learn more about how the drug can alleviate their symptoms.
But marijuana cannot be purchased at the meetings. “These aren’t medical marijuana hook-ups,” Francisco said. “It’s hard for marijuana to become any more available than it already is.”
Francisco said that ideally patients would grow their own cannabis.
“We’re expecting things to go smoothly,” Francisco said. “We don’t expect anything major to happen. The sky’s not going to fall. There could be a few speed bumps, though. The police have said they will respect it.”
Still, Francisco does have concerns, including so-called “grow-rippers” or other criminals who steal a crop of marijuana plants, irresponsible caregivers who sell the drugs they grow on the black market and law enforcement personnel who abuse the new law.
Proposal 1 passed with 63 percent of the vote in November, making Michigan the first state in the Midwest to have some kind of medical marijuana law. It also becomes the second-most populous of the medical marijuana states, behind California, which approved a similar ballot initiative in 1996.
The Michigan measure collected 250,000 more votes than Barack Obama did in the Great Lakes State during the November elections. It also garnered a majority of votes in every county.
Advocates are estimating that 500 applications will be filed before the law’s official introduction on April 4. Within two years, about 50,000 Michiganders are predicted to be using medical marijuana legally.
Since taking office, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder has signaled a considerably more relaxed federal attitude toward the state-level sanctioning of medical marijuana. “The policy is to go after those people who violate both federal and state law, to the extent that people do that and try to use medical marijuana laws as a shield for activity that is not designed to comport with what the intention was of the state law,” the attorney general said at a press briefing last week.
In 2001 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that federal authorities had the right to prosecute marijuana sellers, regardless of state laws. Later, in 2005, justices ruled that the federal government could still ban possession of marijuana in states that have sanctioned the medical use of the drug.
(Chris Killian is a freelance journalist based in Kalamazoo and writes regularly for the Kalamazoo Gazette.)
Posted by Gary at 10:51 AM | Comments (0)
March 22, 2009
Grand Prize Winner for the 2009 NORML Ad Contest: Legalization: Yes We Can
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, March 22, 2009
Here is a great quick watch -- the Grand Prize Winner for the 2009 NORML Ad Contest!
Posted by Gary at 08:10 PM | Comments (0)
March 20, 2009
Chicago Tribune: Legal pot debuts in Midwest
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, March 20, 2009
A very patient-friendly look at Michigan's medical cannabis law.
Source: Chicago Tribune: click here
By Tim Jones | Tribune correspondent
March 20, 2009
Legal pot debuts in MidwestAs Michigan's medical marijuana law takes full effect next month, sufferers of chronic pain and other ailments cheer while police predict problems
Medical marijuana in Michigan
Ron Stephens, who has a chronic neck disorder and depression, built his own marijuana "grow room" with high-powered lights and reflective paper on the walls. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Tribune photo / March 12, 2009)
PAW PAW, Mich.—At first glance they look like old pals, maybe a bunch from the Rotary Club leisurely gabbing away over the hamburger special, making the waitress work overtime for her tip.
But these guys are different. Their eyes, their fidgeting and their restlessness betray a shared bond of chronic pain, sleepless nights, depression and a reliance on heavy-duty prescription drugs. Around this lunchtime table, they talk about the only thing that gives them a measure of peace, the only thing that, for perhaps a few hours, sets them free: marijuana.
They've been smoking or eating marijuana for years—privately and illegally. And now, because Michigan voters approved marijuana use for the treatment of certain serious maladies, Bob White soon will be able to get himself together in his Three Rivers home "without having to draw the shades."
Legalized medical marijuana is about to make its debut in Michigan, which becomes the 13th state and the first between the Rockies and the East Coast to embrace the controversial pain treatment. In a vote last November that defied the culture war/reefer madness connotation to the illegal drug, 63 percent of the state's voters—and a majority in every county—said yes to medical marijuana. The measure collected 250,000 more votes than Barack Obama, who won the state easily.
(snip) Continues: click here
Posted by Gary at 09:57 AM | Comments (0)
March 16, 2009
Putting marijuana in the Minnesota State Constitution?
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, March 16, 2009
MinnPost.com is reporting that due to MN Gov. Pawlenty's continuing threats to veto state medical cannabis legislation, putting it to voters as a constitutional amendment is now being considered.
Putting marijuana in the state Constitution?
By David Brauer | Monday, March 16, 2009
Source: MinnPost.com click here
The PiPress' Jason Hoppin says because of Gov. Pawlenty's implacable opposition, medical marijuana advocates may pursue a constitutional amendment. An ex-Republican legislator is pushing the possibility if the Legislature can't override the guv's likely veto this year. Both houses would have to approve putting the measure on the ballot. The non-amendment bill sets up drug dispensaries and specifically names allowed conditions, which supporters call "one of the tightest laws on the books."
Posted by Gary at 05:58 PM | Comments (0)
March 11, 2009
Minnesota: Medical marijuana wins in another Senate committee
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
More good news out of MN as a medical cannabis bill passes another Senate committee!
Source: Minnesota Independent click here
Medical marijuana wins in another Senate committee
By Andy Birkey 3/11/09 7:53 AM
The Senate Health and Human Services Budget Division heard a controversial medical marijuana bill on Tuesday. The bill would allow for severely ill patients to procure marijuana either through a nonprofit registered through the state or to grow up to 12 plants themselves. The bill passed the committee by a voice vote, but not before a grilling from Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont.the full Senate.Rosen wanted to know how to measure THC content in medical marijuana, how to prevent tampering, and what the sentencing guidelines would be for abuse.
But even further, “I’m very concerned about the parameters of the products that is coming out. Who’s growing it, what is grown, what type of herbicides and pesticides are being used on the product?”
Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, the chief author of the bill, said that the small number of plants, a 12-plant limit grown by the patient or by a nonprofit in a locked facility, negate the need for chemicals. “Other than Miracle Grow, I think that’s about it,” he said.
Rosen continued, “Who is controlling the quality of these plants? You are using a plant as a medicinal painkiller, and there is a lot of room for tampering.”
Murphy said, “Since this state was formed, there have been zero deaths from use of marijuana.” He pointed out that these are users of illegal marijuana, which is highly prone to tampering.
And in terms of THC content in marijuana, one of the plant’s active chemicals, Murphy said that patients control their own dosage. “There are no cases in the history of the world of anyone overdosing on marijuana and dying. I mean zero,” he said.
But after several rounds of questions, Murphy speculated on what the real concerns of opponents: that this bill would be a break from drug war policy. “You know, this country has spent billions on the war on drugs and [drug use] more prevalent than it ever has been,” he said. “This bill is simply to allow these patients to use this legally without being outside the bounds of the law.”
The bill faces its next test in the Senate Finance Committee and, if passed, will be considered by
Posted by Gary at 09:53 AM | Comments (0)
March 07, 2009
East Bay (CA) Express: The Manhattan Project of Marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Cannabis prohibition is not conducive to quality control. Clandestine production, transport and storage often mean a less than perfect product. Now, a California dispensary is leading the way in ensuring safer medicines.
East Bay Express click here
The Manhattan Project of Marijuana
If pot is truly medicine, shouldn't it be standardized? Analytical Labs wants to test the potency and safety of Cali cannabis.By David Downs
March 4, 2009
At downtown Oakland's Harborside Health Center, the hairy green buds have numbers. The new nomenclature beckons viewers from within seven gleaming glass display cases. Antiseptic white placards boast authoritative black digits. Each stands erect next to a Petri dish of high-octane "White Rhino" or "Afgooey Super Melt." They read: 7 percent, 11 percent, 18 percent, or 21 percent. Even 80 percent.
"80 percent THC?" asks a potential customer. He's referring to delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol — the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana.
"That's a concentrate," reminds Stephen DeAngelo, proud owner of the three-year-old collective. DeAngelo's facility boasts 20,000 members and grossed more than $10 million last year. Even amid the recession, lines are a constant phenomenon and DeAngelo is looking to double his space. Hundreds of new customers sign up monthly, attracted partly by the immaculate facility: its savvy, well-paid "budtenders" and $40, eighth-ounce pot dosages. But part of the appeal is the new placards — the result of a disruptive new service by Harborside's partners at the Analytical Laboratory Project.
"For the first time in the 3,000-year history of human cannabis consumption, consumers will be provided a scientific assessment of the safety and potency of products prior to ingesting them," DeAngelo announced in December.
In the months since, DeAngelo's patrons have enjoyed mankind's most detailed product information thanks to the country's first commercial marijuana lab. Arrest and jail remain a constant worry for him and the lab's two owners. But they believe that if pot is truly medicine, it needs quality assurance and dosage information. The Analytical Laboratory Project wants to be the source of that information. The lab's ultimate goal is to provide testing for half of the 300 dispensaries in California.
(snip) Continues...
Posted by Gary at 10:44 AM | Comments (0)
March 05, 2009
UW Badger Herald Column: Marijuana laws ridiculous, impractical
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Here's a nice column from the Badger Herald. I wish Mayor Dave had more respect for the clout his office carries, that as Mayor of a town with a 4-decade plus close personal relationship with cannabis, his opinion that cannabis should be legal does matter and is appreciated by most Madisonians. There are things he could do, like study what the impact of a legal cannabis market would be on Madison, or direct the City's state and federal lobbyists to lobby for cannabis law reform. This is what he does with other issues he can't address locally. Cannabis law reform would have a direct positive impact on life here. Isn't that worth more than a qualified opinion?
Marijuana laws ridiculous, impractical
Badger Herald
Kyle Szarzynski
Thursday, March 5, 2009 00:00
Being a communist executive in a hippie town, Mayor Dave Cieslewicz expressed his support for the legalization of marijuana last Friday on Pulse Madison 1670 AM. Just the previous week, it was revealed a police officer filed a report detailing how my alder, Mike Verveer (also a fire-breathing radical), was in a room of a local restaurant in which the drug was almost certainly being smoked.Only in Madison, I guess.
Yes, in few other cities would either the mayor’s statement or the alder’s whereabouts not have done serious political damage. In most of our parochial land, giving the only reasonable opinion as to what should be the legal status of Cannabis sativa, let alone operating within a 10-foot radius of its consumption, would qualify as political masochism.
But even here in hippie-dom, having what should be a banal position on drug use still requires the most pathetic of apologies. Mayor Dave had to clean up the edges of his remarks by stating this was just his personal opinion, and he has no policy proposals that would affect marijuana’s criminalization. Meanwhile, poor Alder Verveer gave the excuse that he was recovering from the flu, which he claims affected his ability to detect the thick cloud of smoke swirling around his head.
“I didn’t see anything,” he said. “I didn’t smell anything. I didn’t use anything.”
While it’s certainly the obligation of any open-minded thinker to consider all the angles on any issue, I confess I can see about as much legitimacy in demonizing weed smoking as the claims of illegal campaigning by the victorious opponents of the new ASM Constitution. It’s a freaking plant that, among other side affects, induces a state of mellowness, introspection and heightened physical sensation. Aside from the minor toll it takes on the lungs, it’s essentially harmless. I therefore feel completely justified in referring to right-wing Dane County Executive candidate Nancy Mistele — who in response recently said she would support drug testing for pro-sanity politicians like Cieslewicz and Verveer — as a veritable square and demagogue.
Because Verveer can’t say it himself, the rest of us will have to say it for him: Whether he was aware of the marijuana or not, whether he used the marijuana or not, he did absolutely nothing wrong.
It’s a disgraceful statement on our society that the voluntary consumption of selected substances invites such viciousness and unreason. Lurking police officers interrupting an individual’s private lifestyle choice in the quiet evening harkens back to what is commonly thought of as a more intolerant American past, including the days of Prohibition and criminalization of homosexuality.
Of course, the hysteria surrounding other drugs — especially “hard drugs,” as they have been colloquially termed — is much worse. Ours is a society in which selling a few grams of white powder to a willing purchaser can earn one decades of prison time. The social stigma of non-marijuana drug use is so great its public users could never think of being treated equally. Drugs and its users have effectively been relegated to the status of “other” — they are something not to be understood or respected, but demonized as something substantively different from the rest of society.
Last year I wrote a column detailing how America’s drug war — something truly unique in the Western world — has little to do with fighting the ever-hyperbolized dangers of a few plants. Our government’s commitment to outlawing drugs is expensive, violent and, of course, impossible to win. The war instead serves as a prime justification for the maintenance and expansion of the police state and military-industrial complex. It keeps people scared of potentially rebellious and oppressed populations — namely people of color and the poor — and justifies their unequal social standing. It’s an essential tool of injustice that bolsters a status quo that is wretched for so many people.
It’s hard to see how anyone who is empathetic and rational would not instinctually feel sympathy for Verveer in his unluckiness and Cieslewicz in his forthrightness. These are people and positions with which students at this university can relate. It should never be forgotten, however, that most of the victims of America’s insane war against drugs are much less visible and endure far worse repercussions.
Kyle Szarzynski (szarzynski@badgerherald.com) is a senior majoring in history and Spanish.
Posted by Gary at 07:45 PM | Comments (0)
March 04, 2009
Illinois Legislators consider medical marijuana bill
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, March 4, 2009
Illinois medical cannabis legislation is being introduced.
Legislators consider medical marijuana bill
03/04/2009, 10:35 am
By Kevin Lee
The Daily Journal Springfield Bureau
SPRINGFIELD -- Chronically ill Illinois residents should be able to request a potent form of medicine: marijuana.At least that's the contention of state lawmakers pushing medical marijuana legislation.
Lawmakers are considering a law that would allow limited amounts of marijuana to be dispensed to patients with a doctor's recommendation. Dispensaries and patients would have to register with the state's Department of Public Health before participating in the program.
If passed, the legislation would allow marijuana to be used as treatment for long-term illnesses such as AIDS, cancer, and multiple sclerosis, said state Rep. Lou Lang, D-Skokie, the sponsor of the bill.
"This is a very controlled piece of legislation that allows people who need it, and only people who need it, to relieve their discomfort," he said.
State Rep. Frank Mautino, D-Spring Valley, did not see the need for medicinal marijuana.
"I talked to some optometrists about it for the treatment of glaucoma, and there are 50 different things they can use that don't have the after-effects to the lungs as well," he said.
The proposed legislation revisits long-running questions on marijuana's medicinal value and how the drug should be regulated.
Supporters cite a 1999 study by the Institute of Medicine at the National Academy of Sciences that found that marijuana can be used to ease symptoms of chronically-ill patients.
Marijuana should still be considered a "gateway" drug, not as a medicine, according to Judy Kreamer, president of a Naperville-based drug education non-profit, Educating Voice.
"There is no such thing as a proper dosage. When was the last time you took a medication for which there was no dosage or quality control?" she said.
Politicians and law enforcement agencies at the federal and state level are unsure of how to regulate medicinal marijuana.
Federal government prohibits any marijuana use, but 13 states have legalized marijuana for medical purposes, according to Bill Piper, director of national affairs for a national organization that supports legal recreational use of marijuana.
Piper says federal and state laws cannot be reconciled, as seen last month when federal agents raided locally sanctioned medical marijuana dispensaries in California.
"The best way to solve the conflict is for the federal government to allow access to marijuana for medical use and give states broader authority to regulate," he said.
U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder said last week that President Barack Obama's administration will stop using federal resources to close medicinal marijuana dispensaries and give greater autonomy to states.
State Rep. Lisa Dugan, D-Bradley, said she would not support the measure unless more extensive regulations are added to limit who receives marijuana and how much they receive.
Lt. Scott Compton, spokesman for the Illinois State Police, said the proposed bill might cause complications with current DUI laws if passed. Illinois currently has a no-tolerance stand on driving with THC, marijuana's active ingredient, in the bloodstream.
The proposed bill allows medical marijuana users to have THC in their bloodstream so long as it was "insufficient" to cause impairment, which could be difficult to determine without a benchmark, he said.
State Rep. Pat Verschoore, D-Milan wants strict regulations to discourage abuse, but says he understands the appeal of medical marijuana.
"I had some family members who had to take chemotherapy -- they got as sick as a dog. They didn't smoke marijuana, but if that would have helped them, I would have certainly thought it was appropriate," he said.
Posted by Gary at 11:02 AM | Comments (0)
March 03, 2009
Badger Herald: Mayor wants pot legalized
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Who else wants cannabis legalized in Madison, and who does not? Read on...
Source: Badger Herald
Pubdate: Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Author: Heather Burian
MAYOR WANTS POT LEGALIZEDCieslewicz would make it alright to smoke weed if the decision was within his power
Speaking on the radio station Pulse Madison 1670 AM Friday, Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said if he was granted the option, he would make marijuana legal.
In a phone interview with radio show "Sly in the Morning," Cieslewicz was asked about a pending issue concerning Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4.
Madison police officer Carrie Hemming found Verveer and Zander's owner Mohamed Barkatallah sitting in the dimly lit top level of Barkatallah's bar last month where she allegedly smelled marijuana. She left the bar without saying a word to Verveer.
"Trying to make the case, I basically said, 'Look, if it were up to me, marijuana would not be illegal, but it's not up to me,'" Cieslewicz said.
According to Cieslewicz, wanting to legalize marijuana is not a policy proposal from his office.
To become legal, the issue would need to be handled on a state level, Cieslewicz said. He added the city has to focus its attention on more important issues.
Rachel Strauch-Nelson, spokesperson for Cieslewicz, said legalizing marijuana is not a pending decision in the city. If the mayor had more say about the issue, he would probably be pursuing the matter, she added.
"I think it's some sort of statement of his opinion," Strauch-Nelson said.
Regarding the Verveer incident, Cieslewicz said the issue has been covered thoroughly, and it is now in the past.
Ald. Michael Schumacher, District 18, a member of the Alcohol License Review Committee, said though he never used marijuana, he has no moral issue with the drug and no issue with people consuming it in their own proximity.
If marijuana were to be legalized, Schumacher said he would want the conditions placed on alcohol - such as no use while driving or operating heavy machinery - placed on marijuana use.
"If [marijuana] doesn't lead to heavier drug use and it doesn't lead to unacceptable behavior in public, it certainly helps save resources and [not] criminalize behavior," he added. "I don't think it really harms anybody."
Cieslewicz agreed, saying there is not much evidence marijuana is harmful.
However, Nancy Mistele, challenger in the race for Dane County Executive said she is confused why Cieslewicz would want to legalize marijuana.
According to Mistele, Cieslewicz and all members of the City Council maybe should be subject to drug testing, adding it is the responsibility of elected officials to uphold the law.
In the 2007-08 Legislature, a bill to legalize medical marijuana in Wisconsin was devised and spoken about in an information hearing. However, the bill was not brought to a vote in either house and has yet to be reintroduced.
"[Marijuana] is certainly widely used in this country for quite a while, and I don't see the point in continuing to make it illegal," Cieslewicz said.
Verveer declined to comment on the issue.
Dane County Executive Kathleen Falk and Madison Police Chief Noble Wray could not be reached for comment.
Posted by Gary at 09:40 AM | Comments (0)
Wisconsin State Journal: Legalize marijuana? 'I don't have a problem with it at all,' says Cieslewicz
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Interesting article out of today's State Journal.
Legalize marijuana? 'I don't have a problem with it at all,' says Cieslewicz
By SANDY CULLEN
Wisconsin State Journal
Madison Mayor Dave Cieslewicz said on a radio talk show Friday that if it were up to him, marijuana would be legal."I don’t have a problem with it at all," Cieslewicz said on the "Sly In The Morning" show on WTDY-AM (1670).
But mayoral spokeswoman Rachel Strauch-Nelson said Monday that "it was just a personal opinion" and "not a policy initiative of any kind."
"I thank him for his candor, but I’m disappointed he’s not willing to take it any farther," said Gary Storck. co-founder of the Madison chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws.
"This is a city that’s known for cannabis — why not run with it?" Storck said, adding that it would be better than Madison being known for alcohol intoxication. "If it’s legal, the city could benefit from all the green businesses that would grow up around it."
Cieslewicz made the comment while discussing a recent incident at a State Street lounge where a Madison police officer said she smelled burnt marijuana but failed to investigate further after she saw Downtown Ald. Mike Verveer. Officer Carrie Hemming was given a letter of reprimand.
"It doesn’t matter what I think," Cieslewicz said. "What matters is what is legal and illegal now."
Posted by Gary at 12:44 AM | Comments (0)
March 01, 2009
Madison NORML blog marks 4th year online
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, March 1, 2009
On March 2, 2005, the Madison NORML blog was launched, with a post about an upcoming meeting. Other March 2005 posts noted Madison NORML's first medical cannabis lobby day at the State Capitol and a medical cannabis benefit at Cafe Montmarte. 4 years later, both Madison NORML, with well over a hundred meetings and other events held since August 2004, and our blog, with over 400 posts, are going strong.
Posted by Gary at 11:04 AM | Comments (0)
February 27, 2009
Capital Times editorial: An embarrassed Police Department
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, February 27, 2009
My favorite part of the Capital Times editorial below is Number 3.
Source: Capital Times click here
Pubdate: Feb 27, 2009
EDITORIAL: AN EMBARRASSED POLICE DEPARTMENT
The comedy of errors involving the Madison Police Department, Ald. Mike Verveer and the supposed smell of marijuana would have been just that -- a comedy of errors -- if it did not remind us of the need for the Police Department to get focused on its actual mission.
Let's get a few things clear:
1. There is no evidence that Verveer did anything wrong. And there never was. Any attempt to suggest that there is a cloud over the downtown alder -- and any attempt to alter his role with the city's Alcohol License Review Committee -- would be pure politics of the worst kind.
2. There is no evidence that marijuana was being used by anyone at the State Street lounge, where Madison police officer Carrie Hemming saw Verveer and thought she smelled something. Hemming acknowledges that she saw no illegal activity, saw no drug-related paraphernalia, and did not conduct an investigation. If she did, indeed, smell marijuana, the odor could have come from the coat of a passing customer.
3. There is no reason to be particularly concerned about the smell of marijuana or the presence of marijuana in Madison. This city has, for the better part of four decades, adopted the view that possession and use of the substance should be decriminalized. And if a poll were conducted, we are quite certain that most Madisonians would prefer that -- in instances where everyone who might be involved is an adult -- police officers always walk away when they smell marijuana.
So there is no problem with Verveer.
And there is not much problem with Officer Hemming, although she received a reprimand for not following department procedures.
But there is a problem with a police department that seems so frequently to struggle when it has serious matters to deal with -- like murders and patterns of downtown assaults -- but seems to have plenty of time and energy to produce and circulate after-the-fact reports about incidents that were not investigated and did not matter.
The Madison Police Department has embarrassed itself, badly.
Chief Noble Wray and his team should take a deep breath, review this incident and figure out how to make sure that the focus is on serious crime fighting rather than petty gossip.
Posted by Gary at 03:52 PM | Comments (0)
February 26, 2009
US Attorney General Eric Holder: Ending Medical Cannabis Raids now US Policy
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, February 26, 2009
President Obama's promise to end DEA raids on medical cannabis dispensaries will be upheld, according to the new Attorney General. Video below:
Posted by Gary at 11:29 AM | Comments (0)
February 25, 2009
New Jersey Gov. Corzine says he will sign medical cannabis bill
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine has again reiterated he will sign the medical cannabis legislation now halfway through the New Jersey legislature. Hopefully, NJ state lawmakers will get it done quickly, so patients don't have to wait any longer.
Corzine says he will sign medical marijuana bill
Source: NJ.com: click here
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine said he will "absolutely" sign a medical marijuana bill for chronically and terminally ill patients if it gets to his desk.Corzine, a Democrat running for re-election, made the comments Wednesday morning on WNYC radio's "Brian Lehrer Show."
He told Lehrer the law could be structured so patients are comfortable and there are safeguards against abuses.
The Senate approved the bill Monday. It faces an uncertain fate in the Assembly.
Tony Kurdzuk/The Star-LedgerGov. Jon Corzine
Thirteen states have medical marijuana laws on the books. All but four came about because of voter referendums. In New Jersey, the Legislature must change the law.
Corzine also said on the show that the $17 billion-plus in federal stimulus money headed to New Jersey will generate or protect 100,000 jobs.
He told Lehrer that the jobs tally includes keeping police officers, firefighters and teachers who might have been laid off in the deepening recession.
The governor and the Legislature will have little control over most of the money, including $7.5 billion in tax breaks, Corzine said.
Much of the $10 billion or so in spending is earmarked for programs like Medicaid or the unemployment insurance fund.
Corzine said a screening process will be set up for discretionary spending on projects like clean energy and road and bridge repairs.
Posted by Gary at 11:00 AM | Comments (0)
February 23, 2009
New Jersey State Senate passes Medical Cannabis bill 22-16!
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, February 23, 2009
Today is a great day for NJ patients and their families and friends along with medical cannabis supporters everywhere! Today, the NJ Senate passed medical cannabis legislation by a vote of 22-16. The bill now proceeds on to the NJ State Assembly.
Posted by Gary at 04:08 PM | Comments (0)
February 22, 2009
Letter in Capital Times: Medical cannabis effective for elderly
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, February 22, 2009
Here's a quick letter I penned in response to a letter about overmedication and the elderly.
Source: Capital Times click here
Published: Sunday, Feb. 22, 2009
Medical cannabis effective for elderly
Dear Editor:Problems due to overmedication of seniors are just one more reason why Wisconsin needs to join Michigan and 12 other states in passing comprehensive medical cannabis legislation. As noted by Ann Albert in her recent letter, medication management is vital for senior citizens.
Physicians and scientific researchers have found medical cannabis effective in managing symptoms and treating illness associated with aging. Medical cannabis has a number of properties that make it ideal for senior citizens. Nontoxic cannabis works synergistically with other medications, allowing patients to reduce or eliminate doses of conventional medications, reducing side effects. Cannabis can replace multiple meds: it treats many ailments common to older folks, like glaucoma, arthritis, diabetes, high blood pressure and chronic pain. Cannabis protects the brain against trauma from stroke or falls.
Wisconsin seniors and other patients who can benefit now from medical cannabis should not have to risk arrest and jail for something not only safer, but legally available to 25 percent of Americans under these compassionate state laws. Wisconsinites and groups that care about the health of state residents need to contact Gov. Jim Doyle and their lawmakers and ask them to pass medical cannabis legislation this session.
Gary Storck
Is My Medicine Legal YET?
Madison
Posted by Gary at 09:55 AM | Comments (0)
February 19, 2009
CMMJ: New Jersey Senate to Vote on Medical Marijuana Mon., 2/23/09
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, February 18, 2009
Cheryl Miller's dream of medical cannabis for New Jersey patients is moving closer to reality!
New Jersey Senate to Vote on Medical Marijuana Mon., 2/23/09
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For more info, contact: Ken @ (609) 394-2137
New Jersey Senate to Vote on Medical Marijuana
WHO: State Senators in New Jersey
WHAT: Will vote on the New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act
(S119)
WHEN: Monday February 23, 2009 at 2:00 PM
WHERE: Senate Chambers of the New Jersey State House in Trenton, NJ
WHY: To advance a bill that will protect seriously ill or injured New Jersey patients who use therapeutic marijuana on the advice of a licensed physician.The New Jersey State Senate will vote on the _New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act" (S119) _ (http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/bills/BillView.asp?BillNumber=S119) on Monday, February 23, 2009 at 2:00 PM in the State House Senate Chambers in Trenton, NJ. Many supporters of the bill plan to attend the voting session, led by the Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc. (CMMNJ). New Jersey would become the 14th state in the nation to legalize medical marijuana by passing this legislation into law.
S119 will remove the state penalties for the possession, use and cultivation of a small amount of marijuana when a licensed physician recommends it for a debilitating medical condition. Qualifying medical conditions include chronic pain, cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, Crohn’s disease, etc. Patients will be issued ID cards in a program run by the New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services (DHSS). Patients will be permitted to grow up to six plants and possess one ounce of marijuana, but they will not be permitted to use their therapeutic marijuana in public or while operating motor vehicles. Patients may designate a caregiver or treatment center to grow the plants for them, but the caregiver/center must also register with DHSS. CMMNJ Executive Director, Ken Wolski, RN said, “The bill is very conservative. No medical marijuana state has a smaller plant limit or possession amount. Still, it will help a tremendous number of patients here.” The American Nurses Association, the American College of Physicians, the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, the American Public Health Association, the American Academy of HIV Medicine and many other professional healthcare organizations have endorsed medical marijuana.
S119 was originally introduced by Senator Nicholas Scutari, D-Linden, in January 2005, and was referred to the senate health committee. Hearings were conducted on the bill in June 2006 and in December 2008, at which time the bill was favorably released out of committee by a 6 – 1 vote. If the bill passes in the senate, it will then go to the assembly for votes by the health committee and the entire assembly. Governor Jon Corzine has said on several occasions that he supports medical marijuana and that he will sign the bill when it gets to his desk.
CMMNJ, 501(c)(3) public charity, provides education about the benefits of safe and legal access to medical marijuana. For more info, contact:
Ken Wolski, RN, MPA, Executive Director
Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc.
844 Spruce St., Trenton, NJ 08648
609.394.2137 _www.cmmnj.org_ (http://www.cmmnj.org/) _ohamkrw@aol.com_
Watch and listen live online the day of the vote around 2:00 p.m. at: (http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/live_audio.asp) or (http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/archive_audio2.asp?KEY=S&SESSION=2008).
The vote will also be recorded and archived on the NJ legislature’s homepage at: (http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/archive_audio2.asp?KEY=S&SESSION=2008) if you can’t be by your computer at that time and day.
Posted by Gary at 11:14 AM | Comments (0)
February 16, 2009
New Mexico adds 7 conditions to medical marijuana coverage
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, February 16, 2009
Great news as New Mexico adds 7 qualifying conditions including PTSD.
Source: Las Cruces Sun-News: click here
NM adds 7 conditions to medical marijuana coverage
By The Associated Press
Posted: 02/16/2009 03:52:46 PM MST
SANTA FE — The state Department of Health is adding seven conditions to coverage under the state's medical marijuana program.Patients can apply if they have painful peripheral neuropathy, intractable nausea or vomiting, severe anorexia/cachexia, hepatitis C infection if that's also receiving antiviral treatment, Crohn's disease, post-traumatic stress disorder and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, better known as Lou Gehrig's disease.
Health Secretary Dr. Alfredo Vigil said Monday the conditions were added based on recommendations of the department's Medical Advisory Boards and scientific findings that the conditions could be helped by medical cannabis.
The board recommended adding eight conditions, but Vigil turned down fibromyalgia, saying there wasn't enough evidence that medical marijuana is effective for it.
Posted by Gary at 09:57 PM | Comments (0)
Revised Michigan medical cannabis rules "much better"
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, February 16,2009
In about a month and a half, the state of Michigan will begin issuing medical cannabis ID cards to patients and caregivers. Here's an update on the program rules.
Monday, February 16,2009Marijuana Journal
Revised medical marijuana rules much betterby Greg Francisco
The revised rules for the state medical marijuana program were released last week and we could not be more pleased.
Gone from the new rules are the objectionable provisions contained in the Dec 5 draft. Gross violations of patient privacy, plant production logs and inventories, defining private homes as public space are all gone.
(To read the new rules, go here.)
As commented upon in an earlier column, the Dec. 5 rules did not match with the law voters approved in November. Nowhere in the law was it envisioned that patients would be forced to disclose private information to authorities, that patients cultivating their own medicine would be subject to random searches, nor that they be compelled to hand over to law enforcement written documentation of their inventories, which was equivalent to documenting a federal crime. The state Department of Community Health was put on notice at the Jan. 5 hearing by medical marijuana patients and advocates that it was overreaching its authority.
Fortunately, state administrators were willing to listen and talk to leaders within our activist community. Over the last six weeks, there has been considerable discussion as both sides sought common ground. And we really did agree on much more than we disagreed. We all want to live in an orderly society — no one wants to arrest or exploit cancer patients. We all agree that like or loathe the law, it is the law. It is in everyone’s best interest that implementation goes smoothly.
The revised Administrative rules much more accurately reflect the will of the voters. Patient privacy is protected, common sense prohibitions on using marijuana in public are preserved and sensible limits are put on the possession, transfer and use of medical marijuana. But the bottom line is that patients and caregivers who stay within the limits of the law will be protected from arrest and harassment. And that is exactly what voters approved.
To learn more about the rights and responsibilities of patients under the Michigan Medical Marijuana program visit our Web site, www.MichiganMedicalMarijuana.org.
Posted by Gary at 03:41 PM | Comments (0)
February 14, 2009
One year ago today: asking Bill Clinton, "Whee's Jacki's Medicine?"
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, February 14, 2009
It seems so long ago, but it was just a year ago today that Ben Masel and I ventured out to the UW Stock Pavilion on a freezing cold day to ask Bill Clinton, "Where's Jacki's Medicine?"
Clinton had promised Jacki at a 1992 campaign stop that if elected, she would get her medicine. As Dick Cowan once observed, "what a difference it would have made if Clinton had won.
Here is the original entry: 16 years later, Bill Clinton finally gets asked, “Where’s Jacki’s Medicine?” click here.Here is a follow up: Bill Clinton claims not to remember 1992 campaign encounter with Jacki Rickert click here.
Posted by Gary at 11:01 AM | Comments (0)
February 12, 2009
Minnesota Independent: Medical marijuana bill advances in Senate with moving testimony
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, February 12, 2009
On Wednesday Feb. 11, Minnesota's latest medical cannabis bill, S.F. 97, passed the Senate Health, Housing and Family Security Committee in a bipartisan vote of 8 to 3, despite veto threats from the Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty, a Republican.
Medical marijuana bill advances in Senate with moving testimony
MN Independent: click here.
By Andy Birkey 2/12/09 3:33 PM
It was a tear-filled room at a meeting of the Health, Housing and Family Security Committee as senators heard testimony about how medical marijuana had helped loved ones live in less pain during the last few days of their lives. But after those tears, the hearing devolved into a strange round of testimony as opponents pulled out all the stops to blame marijuana for higher crime rates and the downfall of the family, and one testified that medical marijuana is a scheme by billionaire George Soros to make drugs legal.Continues: click here.Dr. George Wagoner, a physician in Virginia, Minn., broke down as he described the trials he and his wife suffered as she struggled with ovarian cancer. They had tried Marinol, a prescription made of synthetic THC, one of the more than 60 active compounds in marijuana.
After the couple tried everything, they turned to friends after hearing about medical marijuana. Soon after, a bag of marijuana mysteriously appeared on their doorstep. After smoking a small amount, he said his wife “experienced sudden and complete relief from her nausea.”
Choking back tears, he said, “Eating lunch isn’t a big deal until you can’t … The relief was as complete and dramatic as any I’ve experienced in my practice.”
Joni Whiting described how marijuana helped her daughter, a wife and mother of three, deal with the pain of cancer during the last days of her life.
“I can tell you with conviction that I would have no problem going to jail for acquiring medical marijuana for my suffering child,” said Whiting. “The law is unjust. And I would have rather spent the rest of my life in prison than have denied her the medicine that kept her pain at bay and allowed her to live 89 more days.”
She spoke of her family, their service to the country (Whiting is a Vietnam veteran and one of her sons recently completed an 18-month tour in Iraq) and her reluctance to allow an illegal drug in her home. “What would you have done had you been in my shoes?” Whiting asked. “Could you sleep at night when your child was screaming in pain?”
Kathy Rippentrop spoke of her mother, who used marijuana when she suffered debilitating pain as a result of cancer. “Two puffs, two minutes, and the violent sickness was totally gone,” she said. “An hour later, Mom was able to have a good meal. The stomach problems from the chemo were totally gone. It also helped her regain a quality of life that allowed her to continue to fight.”
(snip)
Posted by Gary at 06:35 PM | Comments (0)
February 11, 2009
Minnesota: New push for medical marijuana legalization
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
More on Minnesota patients' ongoing fight for medical cannabis and the Republican governor standing in the way.
Source: Minneapolis Star Tribune: click here
New push for medical marijuana legalization
By MARK BRUNSWICK and BOB von STERNBERG, Star Tribune
February 11, 2009
Backers of medical marijuana want the face of Stephanie Whiting-Shadinger to be one of those Minnesota lawmakers remember as debate resumes at the State Capitol on allowing some patients to use the now-illegal drug.Whiting-Shadinger died in 2003 at age 26, suffering from malignant melanoma that required experimental treatments, chemotherapy and 10 surgeries. Daily doses of pain killers failed to relieve her misery.
Joni Whiting, a suburban grandma from Jordan, will be testifying today in a Senate committee that she reluctantly abandoned her anti-drug sentiments and went along with her daughter smoking marijuana in her final days. And she's glad she did.
Opposition to legalizing medicinal marijuana remains strong among those concerned about its effects on drug abuse. But supporters hope new strategies can build support for their cause.
Like nothing else, Joni Whiting said, marijuana eased some of her daughter's pain and restored some of her appetite. She lived three months longer than doctors predicted, smiled for the first time in months and was able to eat a mushroom and cheese omelette the day before she died.
Before her daughter's illness, Whiting said, "I looked at people talking about medical marijuana as the potheads, lazy people wanting to smoke pot and sit on the couch all day. My daughter was living proof that this plant is a miracle plant and it worked.
"She smiled again and she played with her children. It was a miracle what happened to my daughter from the moment she smoked that pot."
It's stories like those -- from people no one would expect to sing marijuana's praises -- that supporters hope will persuade legislators to add Minnesota to the list of 13 states that permit some form of medicinal use of marijuana. The proposal, debated repeatedly in recent years, has gained support among legislators but has been blocked by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
Pawlenty spokesman Brian McClung said the governor remains opposed but would reconsider if law enforcement officials do.
(snip)
Continues: click here
Posted by Gary at 10:35 AM | Comments (0)
February 09, 2009
Marijuana Journal reports MI physicians slow to recommend medical cannabis so far
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, February 9, 2009
More on the implementation of Michigan's new medical cannabis law which passed in every county in MI last November, outpolling President Obama by 10%.
Marijuana Journal
by Greg Francisco
Monday, February 9,2009
Physicians are gatekeepers for entry into the state medical marijuana program. Patients wishing to use medical cannabis to treat the symptoms of disease or debilitating condition must obtain a recommendation from a physician — this is not subject to review or second-guessing. It may not be overridden by any government agency.Naturally, there is confusion and concern about how this is supposed to work. Doctors are unsure what constitutes a legitimate recommendation; they worry about liability when recommending a drug not approved by the Food and Drug Administration. And how do you ensure consistency in dosage, purity and strength?
The Michigan Medical Marijuana Act stipulates doctors shall not be subject to sanction for writing medical cannabis recommendations. In Conant v. Walters (2003), the U.S. Supreme Court ruled doctor-patient privacy rights protect discussions of medical marijuana and that recommendations are protected free speech. The confidentiality provisions contained in the state law protect doctors as well as patients; the state maintains no list of doctors writing recommendations. Physicians cannot lose their license to prescribe medications for writing medical marijuana recommendations.
Finding physicians willing to assess patients for a medical marijuana recommendation is turning out to be difficult for many patients. Almost daily I hear from patients with the same question, “Where do I find a doctor that will evaluate me for a medical cannabis recommendation?” Thus far, only one clinic in the state is openly accepting new patient referrals for medical marijuana assessments: the THC-F clinic in Southfield.
A few family doctors have begun quietly writing recommendations for old patients. Most, however, are either refusing or taking a wait-and-see attitude. Many erroneously believe that the law, which actually took effect Dec. 5, is on hold until the state publishes final rules in April.The most troubling reports concern patients being dismissed from practices for simply asking their physicians about medical marijuana. While rare, it is happening. Recently, I spoke with a woman in Antrim County with epilepsy; on another day it was a man in Grand Rapids with heart disease. Each had asked their doctor about medical marijuana and both were dismissed just for asking. This is unconscionable and unethical but apparently legal.
For up to date information visit our Web site, www.MichiganMedicalMarijuana.org. Appointments with the THC-F clinic may be scheduled at: www.thc-foundation.
Posted by Gary at 03:09 PM | Comments (0)
February 08, 2009
AP: Medical marijuana bill returns to Minn. Capitol
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, February 8, 2009
The Minnesota Legislature is again seeing medical cannabis legislation in motion as the new session's bill gets a Senate hearing this Wednesday.
Medical marijuana bill returns to Minn. Capitol
Associated Press - February 8, 2009 1:24 PM ETST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) - A plan to let seriously ill patients smoke pot is back at the Minnesota Legislature.
The bill from Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, gets its first hearing of the session in a Senate health panel on Wednesday.
The legislation would allow those with cancer, AIDS, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease and other debilitating conditions to use marijuana to control pain and other symptoms. The Health Department would keep a registry of authorized medical marijuana users.
Gov. Tim Pawlenty has stood against the proposal and has said it would make enforcing drug laws harder.
Lawmakers have considered medical marijuana bills going back a decade, without signing off. Two years ago, the full Senate passed the bill.
Copyright 2009 The Associated Press.
Posted by Gary at 03:13 PM | Comments (0)
February 06, 2009
UW Daily Cardinal: Phelps drama overdone, marijuana ban should go up in smoke
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, February 6, 2009
Nice piece on the Michael Phelps hypocrisy from the UW Daily Cardinal!
Phelps drama overdone, marijuana ban should go up in smoke
By: Cole Wenzel /The Daily Cardinal click here -
February 6, 2009
If we can learn anything from the recent troubles of Michael Phelps, it's that marijuana should not be illegal in the U.S.By Cole Wenzel The Daily Cardinal
Until Wednesday, I was going to keep my mouth shut about the media’s obsession with Michael Phelps hitting a bong. But, in the midst of my Digging, I found an article on CNN.com titled “Police Looking to Charge Michael Phelps for Smoking Pot.” This has gone too far—much too far. Are the police really going to charge an Olympian for recreational marijuana smoking, something that allegedly happened all the way back in November? Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott claims, “If someone breaks a law in Richland County, we have an obligation as law enforcement to investigate and to bring charges.” Must we pry further into this “mistake” that our beloved, smiling, gold-medal winning, American swimmer made at some college party? Let’s not forget that some time back in 2004 Phelps had to suffer 18 months probation for a DUI charge. So, it is clear that Phelps is no stranger to the occasional substance abuse—as few of us are that attend college at prestigious Big Ten institutions (Phelps did at Michigan). The powers that be are blowing this out of proportion. It is completely absurd to be taking such drastic and hostile action as investigating such an act, a mostly harmless one at that, which took place three months ago.
What’s more, the goofy dolphin-man has already issued his apology, citing the behavior as “regrettable.” On the Fox News program “Red Eye” the other day, the commentators began discussion of this incident and came to the careful conclusion that Phelps even had a good “bong stance,” clearly indicating that he is no novice to the likes of the Schedule I substance.
Let us examine the situation logically. Michael Phelps willingly and knowingly smoked a bong, supposedly some time in November. Recently, a British tabloid got ahold of a photograph of Michael Phelps in the act. This would have to mean that someone at the party, perhaps an acquaintance of Phelps, snapped the photograph and, later, someone submitted the photo for print in the paper. Now published, the world has freaked out and cannot believe that swimming’s poster boy would commit such a horrible act. Naturally, being an intelligent businessman and public relations person, Phelps has thoroughly apologized for his heinous act. This is where everything should have stopped—even university police and Columbia, South Carolina, police have decided not to pursue any charges. But the damn sheriff’s department is simply too just of an institution to let this slide.
What really comes out of this whole debacle is the fact that the most winning Olympian in history not only drinks (as the DUI showed us), but also indulges in marijuana from time to time. If Phelps, the amazing role model and inspiration for Americans, can do the amazing things he does and still smoke some pot, perhaps we need to reconsider our stance on the issue of marijuana use.
Currently, marijuana sits on the top of the list of America’s worst drugs. The DEA drug-scheduling system, which came about in the Controlled Substances Act of 1970, was an early part of Nixon’s War on Drugs, which we still wage today. The system is composed of a five-part scheduling system, ranging from I through V, I being most severe. The definition of a Schedule I drug is as follows: a) The drug or other substance has a high potential for abuse, b) The drug or other substance has no currently accepted medical use in treatment in the United States, c) There is no provision for safe use of the drug or other substance under medical supervision.
There are currently 13 states where medical marijuana is legal under state law. Clearly, marijuana does not meet the criteria of a Schedule I drug. Other drugs on this list include heroin and ecstasy (MDMA). What may be more alarming, though, is the fact that the Schedule II, a lesser classification, includes such drugs as cocaine and opium. Logically, marijuana should not hold such stern unlawful status.
I think it is time for our nation to recognize the relevance of Michael Phelps’ marijuana use. He is the embodiment of a great American. He possesses great willpower, determination and perhaps greatest of all, he has a hell of a work ethic. If such an individual chooses to recreationally use marijuana, maybe as an alternative to drinking alcohol, and can still reach the monumental pedestals that he does, then perhaps it is time we consider a more logical approach to this legal travesty.
Cole Wenzel is a sophomore majoring in business.
Posted by Gary at 10:42 AM | Comments (0)
February 04, 2009
Kalmazoo MM Compassion Club forms as Michigan patients implement new law
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
Wisconsin patients have to be heartened by recent progress in Michigan. As medical cannabis goes mainstream, how long can it be before the entire Midwest is safe and legal for patients who can benefit?
Source: Kalamazoo Weekly click here
Kalmazoo MM Compassion Club forms
By J. Anderson
Kalamazoo now has a Medical Marijuana Compassion Club that meets at the Oshtemo branch of the Kalamazoo Public Library bi-weekly. Compassion Clubs inform, teach, and most importantly, support patients.At the first local meeting Monday, February 2nd, supporters discussed the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act of 2008, qualifying conditions, obtaining a medical marijuana recommendation, talk-ing with your doctor, becoming a caregiver, finding a caregiver, and enrolling in the MMM program.
MMC Clubs have sprung up all over the state of Michigan since the passing of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act in 2008. Several club meetings are being held in Paw Paw, Coloma, Kalamazoo, Cheboygan, Traverse City, Bay City, Monroe, Mount Pleasant, Grand Rapids, Owosso, Flint, Escanaba, Manistee, Marquette, Wayne County and Ann Arbor. The clubs are sponsored by the MMM Association, the largest, patient advocacy group in the state. The first Compassion Club meeting was held in January at Hydrobiz in Lansing.
Patients find out about these clubs by notices on the MMM website and word-of-mouth. Greg Francisco, Southwest Michigan coordinator for MINORML, says that patients get the “same thing they would get out of any patient group, support.” He goes on to say that they won’t get medical marijuana or seeds to grow plants for medicinal purposes.
“It is a private medical matter and patients owe no one any explanation,” said Francisco, “patients may still rightly fear the stigma (of smoking marijuana), but they no longer need fear agents of their own government.”
Caregivers that assist and support patients are also involved in the MMC Clubs. Caregivers are not growers as one might think; according to Francisco “being a caregiver means assisting the patients with his or her total medical needs, not just as it relates to medical marijuana.”
Locally, the Oshtemo Library Branch was chosen for its location, (it is easy to find, right off US-131) as organizers came from Berrien County, Holland, Three Rivers and Grand Rapids to learn how to launch their own MMC Clubs.
The MMM Association was organized as an umbrella group serving the entire state of Michigan. The MMM Act prohibits smoking medical marijuana in public and smoking the substance is outlawed inside public buildings in Michigan.
“These meetings are a place where people who have lived in the shadows for too long can finally come together and openly support each other,” said Francisco.
Posted by Gary at 01:54 PM | Comments (0)
Medical marijuana picks up GOP support in MN House
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
The Midwest moves closer to medical cannabis as Minnesota's bill gains more support!
Medical marijuana picks up GOP support in MN House
Source: Minnesota Independent: click here
By Andy Birkey 2/4/09 8:51 AM
Scott Beale / Laughing Squid
Marijuana is back in the news this week after Olympic gold medalist Michael Phelps is threatened with criminal charges for toking at a party and three Minnesota House Republicans sign on to a bill relax criminal penalties for users of medicinal marijuana.Rep. Mark Buesgens, R-Jordan; Bob Gunther, R-Fairmont; and Tom Hackbarth, R-Cedar, are the three Republicans comprising a bipartisan slate of support to make Minnesota the 14th state to allow medical marijuana. Buesgens and Gunther are new to the bill, which saw similar bipartisan support last session. Hackbarth is a big supporter, having seen how it helped members of his family who were dying of cancer.
Rep. Tom Rukavina, DFL-Virginia, is the lead author on the bill, and coauthor support has doubled from last year with 29 legislators backing the bill.
The medical marijuana bill, and its companion bill in the Senate, are expected to do well in the Minnesota Legislature, but could face a shaky future if it arrives on Gov. Tim Pawlenty’s desk. As shaky a future as Phelps career? Let’s hope both do just fine.
The list of bill sponsors include:
Rep. Mark Buesgnes (R-Jordan), Rep. Anthony Sertich (DFL-Chisholm), Rep. Thomas Huntley (DFL-Duluth), Rep. Tom Hackbarth (R-Cedar), Rep. Bob Gunther (R-Fairmont), Rep. Michael Paymar (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. Cy Thao (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. Lyndon Carlson, Sr. (DFL-Crystal), Rep. Tim Mahoney (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. Bill Hitly (DFL-Finlayson), Rep. Kent Eken (DFL-Twin Valley), Rep. Will Morgan (DFL-Bursnville), Rep. Karen Clark (DFL-Minneapolis), Rep. Leon Lille (DFL-North St. Paul), Rep. Phyllis Kahn (DFL-Minneapolis), Rep. Larry Haws (DFL-St. Cloud), Rep. Sheldon Johnson (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. Alice Hausman (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. Carlos Mariani (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. Jeff Hayden (DFL-Minneapolis), Rep. Rick Hansen (DFL-South St. Paul), Rep. Al Juhnke (DFL-Willmar), Rep. Dianne Loeffler (DFL-Minneapolis), Rep. Linda Slocum (DFL-Richfield), Rep. Frank Hornstein (DFL-Minneapolis), Rep. Erin Murphy (DFL-St. Paul), Rep. David Bly (DFL-Northfield)
Posted by Gary at 09:36 AM | Comments (0)
February 03, 2009
Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel: Published letter: It’s time to make pot legal and taxable
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
I guess I must be feeling better after recent eye surgery, as I penned this letter which the Journal-Sentinel published, my first in the J-S since 2002.
Source: Milwaukee Journal Sentinel click here
Pubdate: 3 Feb 2009
MARIJUANAIT’S TIME TO MAKE POT LEGAL AND TAXABLE
Who cares if Olympian Michael Phelps was photographed enjoying cannabis? (“Phelps apologizes for photo,” Feb. 2)
In light of everything else going on in the world, the real issue is why is this still an issue? Millions are jobless and facing foreclosures, climate change is wreaking havoc, billions in bailout funds are being diverted and misspent, while a few prudes moralize about how Phelps celebrates victory.
It’s time to stop imprisoning our citizenry for this noble herb, legalize it and use the tax revenues to help our country.
Gary Storck
VP, Wisconsin chapter, National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana
Laws (NORML)
Madison
Posted by Gary at 07:04 PM | Comments (0)
February 02, 2009
Wisconsin Radio Network: Phelps furor: totally bogus?
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, February 2, 2009
The appearance of a photo taken last fall of multi-gold medal Olympian Michael Phelps apparently taking a hit of cannabis from a bong has helped trigger a discussion of cannabis prohibition!
Phelps furor: totally bogus?
Source: Wisconsin Radio Network click here
Monday, February 2, 2009, 2:22 PM
By Bob Hague
Michael Phelps tokes up . . . should we care? An image of the Olympic gold medal swimmer taking a bong hit is all over the media.
"Hyperbolic and hysterical" is how Gary Storck with the Madison chapter of NORML characterizes the coverage. "Three out of four college students have used marijuana," says Storck. "It's nothing out of the ordinary. I think the most egregious part of it is whoever snapped his picture, and violated his privacy like that."
Storck says it's past time to decriminalize marijuana in Wisconsin. "We have a 5-point-4 billion dollar budget deficit," he notes. "Can we continue to enforce marijuana laws, where we're targeting people for small amounts and putting them in jail? I don't think a lot of people understand that a second offense for cannabis in Wisconsin, any amount, is a felony."
Storck notes that cannabis is not a performance enhancing drug, and Michael Phelps apparently tested clean for the Olympics. In a statement, the 23 year-old Phelps said his pot smoking "was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgment."
Posted by Gary at 02:20 PM | Comments (0)
January 29, 2009
Marijuana activist's case against UW police officers ends in hung jury
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, January 28, 2009
The Capital Times filed this report on the Masel v. Mansavage case.
Marijuana activist's case against UW police officers ends in hung jury
Kevin Murphy
The Capital Times click here
January 28, 2009
An excessive force lawsuit brought against two University of Wisconsin-Madison police officers by marijuana activist Ben Masel, 55, of Madison, ended Tuesday night in a hung jury.After a two-day trial, the seven-person jury was unable to reach a unanimous verdict on whether Officers Mike Mansavage and John McCaughtry used more force than necessary when arresting Masel for trespassing at the Memorial Union in June 2006.
Masel had been soliciting signatures to get on the ballot for the U.S. Senate while on a sidewalk near the Memorial Terrace, an area not designated for such activity by UW policy. Masel refused to leave the area when requested by Memorial Union event managers who then called UW police to enforce the policy.
Masel alleged he was pepper sprayed and "brutally handcuffed," when arrested. He sued the officers alleging use of excessive force. He also sued the Memorial Union employees and the UW Board of Regents claiming their policy, which limits political activity of uninvited guests to the sidewalk in front of the union, infringed on his free speech rights and was unconstitutional.
District Judge John Shabaz dismissed Masel's constitutional claim, citing case law that allows public universities to restrict activities of uninvited guests on their property as long as the policy is applied equally to all individuals. Shabaz allowed the excessive force claim to go to trial.
District Judge Rudolph Randa, from the Eastern District of Wisconsin, tried the case replacing Shabaz, who retired to part-time status in December after being on medical leave since February.
Jurors deliberated about four hours Tuesday night before telling Randa they were unable to reach a verdict. Randa dismissed them. The case hasn't be rescheduled for trial.
Masel's attorney, Jeff Scott Olson, said he looks forward to retrying the excessive force claim and is considering an appeal of the dismissal of the free speech claim.
McCaughtry is still employed by UW Police, while Mansavage left last year and is presently employed as a police officer by the town of Madison, according to William Cosh, spokesman for Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen.
Posted by Gary at 09:24 PM | Comments (0)
Green Bay area cannabis prohibition related robbery and shooting?
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, January 29, 2009
It appears the lack of a regulated market caused by the prohibition of cannabis has led to violence in the Green Bay area.
January 28, 2009
Suspect's mother 'stunned' by Allouez shooting
By Andy Nelesen
Gannett Wisconsin Media click here
The mother of an 18-year-old man accused in a weekend drug-related shooting says she can't believe her son is involved in an attempted murder."This does not sound like my son," said Vera Foster of Green Bay. "This is not the child I raised. I'm still stunned. I don't know what's going on."
Foster's son, Marcus Johnson, was arrested early Tuesday in connection to the shooting of a 32-year-old Milwaukee man inside an Allouez townhouse. The victim was shot in the right rear hip in what authorities believe was a drug deal gone bad.
(smip)
Continues: click here
Posted by Gary at 04:14 PM | Comments (0)
January 28, 2009
Minnesota Daily Editorial: Pass medical pot bill
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 28, 2009A medical cannabis Midwest inches closer and this editorial can only help spread the word!
Published on mndaily.com - Serving the University of Minnesota Since 1900 (http://www.mndaily.com) click here
Pass medical pot bill
The medical marijuana bill has two Republican co-authors and support for it looks promising.
EDITORIAL BOARD
PUBLISHED: 01/27/2009State Sen. Steve Murphy, DFL-Red Wing, authored a bill (SF 97) that would legalize the medical use of marijuana and the Health, Housing and Family Security Committee is slated to debate it Feb. 11, said the committee’s administrator, Laura Blubaugh. Only imprudent lawmakers would refuse to support this smart legislation.If enacted into law, the bill allows patients in incapacitating pain respite from the often dangerously addictive and ineffective market painkillers like OxyContin and Vicodin. For inane cultural and political reasons, it’s much more acceptable to peddle these veritable drugs than the less lethal pot. Indeed, according to the Drug Abuse Warning Network , a health surveillance network which monitors causes of death, in 2004 — the last year in which data were available — at least 58 deaths in St. Paul or Minneapolis were related to opioids while there were no marijuana-related deaths.
The bill presciently contains stringent language regulating the drug. It severely penalizes state-regulated non-profit organizations — which would be charged with administering the pot — if they let the substance get into the wrong hands. Patients who have registered with the state as a medical marijuana user would be able to obtain 2.5 ounces if that person suffers from a “debilitating medical condition” such as cancer, glaucoma and other explicit conditions.
Murphy proposed similar legislation last year and it passed the Senate but Gov. Tim Pawlenty indicated he would veto. Such a move would disappoint thousands of Minnesotans in pain and can only be viewed as greedy and illogical political maneuvering.
Posted by Gary at 11:04 PM | Comments (0)
January 27, 2009
Ben Masel: "hung jury" in civil pepperspray trial
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, January 27, 20097:31 pm:
From Ben's Facebook status: "Hung jury. unanimous on 1 officer, but the verdict's bundled. We don't know if the unanimity was to acquit, or convict."
8:00 pm: Further details from Ben: The hung jury resulted in a mistrial. The case can be re-litigated, or the officers can offer to settle.
From Paul Soglin's Waxing America blog, written by Barry Orton:
Ugly Details Emerge at Masel Civil Rights Trial(snip)Previously unreported details that came out at the trial included the fact that officer Michael Mansavage first missed Masel and instead peppersprayed his partner John McCaughtry, who was holding Masel by the arm at the time. Apparently, once McCaughtry and Mansavage had wrestled Masel into a face-down position on the ground, with McCaughtry's knee on Masel's back, Mansavage then peppersprayed Masel in the face. Mansavage also threatened to use a Taser on Masel for not putting his arm behind his back to be handcuffed fast enough, when the arm was, in fact, trapped under Masel's body.
The officers' descriptions of their actions made them look totally unprofessional, and strengthened Masel's claims. The multiple times both officers had to be taken through deposition statements that disagreed with their trial testimony didn't help either.
(snip)
Posted by Gary at 07:11 PM | Comments (0)
Michigan Medical Marijuana Association helps implement the new medical cannabis law
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, January 27, 2009While Wisconsin patients dream of passing a medical cannabis bill, in Michigan, where a law is already a reality, the implementation continues.
Monday, January 26,2009
Marijuana Journal click here
What the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association does
by Greg Francisco
The Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (M3A) was organized as an umbrella group to serve the entire state of Michigan. We are incorporated as a non-profit and aspire to be Michigan’s leading advocate for medical marijuana patients and the community. We provide education, advocacy and open communication to our members, uniting ourselves into one community and one state. But we are not a substitute for local action.To serve those local communities M3A Compassion Clubs have began meeting in libraries and back rooms around the state. The first meeting of the Lansing Compassion Club met recently at Hydrobiz along Barnes Avenue with plans to continue meeting bi-weekly. A second group expects to begin meeting soon at Gone Wired Caf. And activists from surrounding counties attended the kick-off to learn how to launch Compassion Clubs in their own communities. It only takes a spark.
M3A Compassion Clubs are patient support groups. A place for medical marijuana patients, their caregivers and those who care about them to safely meet and offer mutual support — no different than any other condition-based patient support group. Compassion Clubs are sources of information, emotional support and referrals. Things people do as a community.
M3A Compassion Clubs are neither medical marijuana hook-up sessions nor are they a place to swap seeds or clones. It wouldn’t be appropriate for patients at an HIV/AIDS support group to break out their medications and start swapping around. It’s not appropriate at our meetings either. Transfers of medical marijuana and genetic material are private matters best done in private. By the same token, what members talk about or do in private away from the meeting is none of our business either.
Any recreational marijuana user attending an M3A Compassion Clubs looking to score will be sorely disappointed. Our meetings are open to the public and are often held in public places. The Michigan Medical Marijuana Act prohibits smoking medical marijuana in public and smoking anything — just like tobacco products — is illegal inside public buildings anywhere in Michigan. These are not smoke sessions; they are a place where people who have lived in the shadows for too long can finally come together and openly support each other.
To find out the time, date and location of M3A Compassion Clubs, visit our website at: www.MichiganMedicalMarijuana.org or contact us at: info@MichiganMedicalMarijuana.org
Posted by Gary at 09:59 AM | Comments (0)
January 25, 2009
Ben Masel federal peppperspray civil trial begins Monday in Madison
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, January 25, 2009After a series of delays over recusals and other issues, Ben Masel's now federal civil rights trial against UW-Madison police officer Michael Mansavage "MASEL, BEN v. MANSAVAGE, MIKE", is scheduled to commence tomorrow, Monday, Jan. 26, 2009, at 9:00 AM in Courtroom 260 for Jury Selection and Trial. Location is Madison's federal building, "the Blue Box" at 120 N. Henry Street in downtown Madison. Per Ben, testimony from the officers involved is expected not long after 10 am, with all testimony expected to wrap up Tuesday. He is represented by Jeff Scott Olson, his longtime counsel.
Background:
The original WSJ story:
Saturday, July 1, 2006: Police Arrest Masel At UW
The Activist Was Collecting Signatures At The Terrace, Which An Official Says Is Against Policy.
Wisconsin State Journal :: LOCAL :: B1 click hereMadison NORML blog posts:
June 29, 2007:Ben Masel sues over June 2006 Union Terrace pepper spraying and arrest: click here
July 1, 2006: Weedstock organizer peppersprayed, arrested: click here
Posted by Gary at 08:34 PM | Comments (0)
January 24, 2009
NORML.ORG: New Mexico: Guidelines For State Medical Marijuana Program Finalized
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, January 24, 2009New Mexico has completed their medical cannabis program rulemaking, and apparently kept an open mind to the medical potential by creating more flexibility in the law.
New Mexico: Guidelines For State Medical Marijuana Program Finalized
Source: NORML http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7792
January 22, 2009 - Albuquerque, NM, USA
Albuquerque, NM: The New Mexico Department of Health has finalized rules governing the production, distribution, and use of medicinal cannabis under state law.The new guidelines specify that state qualified patients may possess up to six ounces of medical cannabis (or more if authorized by their physician) and/or 16 plants (four mature, 12 immature) in accordance with state law.
To qualify under the law, patients must be registered with the state Department of Health and be must diagnosed by a physician to be suffering from one of the following medical conditions: cancer, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, spinal cord damage, or HIV/AIDS. Any patient in hospice care may also qualify to use medicinal marijuana under state law.
Additional qualifying conditions, including nerve pain, Hepatitis C, and post-traumatic stress syndrome, are awaiting final approval by Department of Health.
State regulations also authorize non-profit facilities to apply with the state to produce and dispense medical cannabis. State licensed producers may grow up to 95 mature plants at one time. The guidelines stipulate, "The non-profit will sell medical cannabis at a consistent unit price and without volume discounts."
To date, no organizations have applied with the state government to cultivate marijuana.
New Mexico lawmakers approved the use of marijuana under a physician’s supervision in 2007. More than 200 patients have since registered with the state Health Department to possess cannabis under state law.
Application information for patients and nonprofit providers is available from the New Mexico Department of Health at:
http://www.health.state.nm.us/marijuana.htmlDL: http://norml.org/index.cfm?Group_ID=7792
Posted by Gary at 10:17 AM | Comments (0)
January 21, 2009
Medical marijuana bill introduced in the Minnesota Senate
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 21, 2008The Midwest march towards medical cannabis continues with the introduction again, of legislation in Minnesota.
Medical marijuana bill introduced in the Senate
Source: click here
By Andy Birkey 1/20/09 9:00 AMA bill to allow incurably ill patients to legally purchase marijuana is up for consideration in the Minnesota Senate. The Medical Use of Marijuana bill (SF 97) is nearly identical to a bill that passed the Senate last year and almost passed the House. It enjoys partisan support this year, although last year Gov. Tim Pawlenty indicated he would veto such a bill so long as law enforcement opposed it.The Medical Use of Marijuana bill would make it legal for patients to procure up to 2.5 ounces of marijuana from a state-regulated nonprofit, only with a physician’s approval and only to those patients who have registered with the state as medical marijuana users. The bill lays down harsh penalties for patients and nonprofits that dispense marijuana to individuals that aren’t qualified by state registration.
Two Republicans are co-authors on this year’s bill. Sens. Geoff Michel of Edina and Debbie Johnson of Ham Lake have signed on to support the bill, as have Sens. Steve Murphy of Red Wing, Linda Higgins of Minneapolis and John Marty of Roseville. A similar bill is expected to be introduced in the House this month and will likely have similar bipartisan support.
Fourteen states allow the medical use of marijuana, from libertarian Alaska and Montana to liberal Vermont and California. If Minnesota passes legislation this year, it would become the second state in the Midwest to do so. Michigan passed a medical marijuana law in 2008.
Public polling in Minnesota shows that legalizing medical marijuana is a popular public policy goal. Last year, a KSTP/SurveyUSA poll showed support from 64 percent of Minnesotans, including 58 percent of Republicans. Minnesotans have favored the legalization of marijuana by more than 60 percent in most public opinion polls over the last 10 years.
Posted by Gary at 07:37 AM | Comments (0)
January 19, 2009
MI Marijuana Journal: The rules: first draft
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, January 19,2009Here's a great update on the rule-making for Michigan's new medical cannabis program.
. . . . . .
Source: City Pulse click here
Monday, January 19,2009
Marijuana Journal
The rules: first draft
by Greg FranciscoMarijuana Journal is a column tracking the implementation of the state medical marijuana law. The column will be written by Greg Francisco, the executive director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, and will run weekly in City Pulse and every Monday before publication online.I wasn't sure what to expect on Jan. 5 when the state Department of Community Health held a public hearing on a set of proposed administrative rules for the state’s new medical marijuana system. I knew that many of the rules either directly conflicted with the law approved by voters, threatened patient privacy, or gave the Department expanded powers beyond those spelled out in the law. But I was neither sure if any of that was going to matter to the powers that be, nor how many others would attend the hearing to make their own concerns known.
I shouldn't have feared. As the executive director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, it was my job to rally the troops, and rally they did.
At the meeting, 150 chairs were provided and it was almost standing room only. Patients from as far away as Marquette turned out to voice their concerns with the proposed rules.
In addition to the public hearing, the department was taking written comments through 5 p.m., Jan. 10. Late on the afternoon of Jan. 10, I spoke with a department administrator overseeing the rule-making process. She told me that the department had received scores of written comments. The next step would be go through those comments, organize them and then begin to look at revising the rules. Given the strict time lines involved, the department expects to make those revised rules available to the public on or about Jan. 30.
There is no way to know absolutely what the final rules will look like until we actually see them. But based on my conversations with department officials and the comments made at the public hearing, I believe the medical marijuana community has every reason to be optimistic that the revised rules will be much more workable.
I encourage everyone to visit the Web site of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association, www.MichiganMedicalMarijuana.org, to learn more about this new law.
Posted by Gary at 09:42 AM | Comments (0)
January 18, 2009
New Mexico Panel considers cannabis for more uses
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, January 18, 2009Medical cannabis continues to move into the mainstream in New Mexico, where a panel considered and added some new conditions to the state's law and is studying adding others.
Panel considers cannabis for more uses
Last Edited: Thursday, 15 Jan 2009, 12:17 PM MST
Source: KRQE: click hereALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - Post traumatic stress disorder, nerve pain and Hepatitis C could soon be added to the list of ailments treated by medical marijuana in New Mexico.On Thursday, petitioners asked a medical group to recommend the use of medical marijuana for several other ailments.
Medical marijuana became legal in New Mexico in July 2007.
There are currently seven qualifying conditions for acceptance to smoke marijuana in the state.
The petitions were heard by an out of state medical group.
So far four of the 17 ailments petitioned Thursday will be placed on a recommendation list that will go to the secretary of health for approval.
Many of the petitioners said that the recommendations are step in the right direction.
"It helps her cope and it gives her relief from pain. And how could we deny that for anyone with something as safe as medical marijuana," medical marijuana supporter Stephen Hunt said.
The panel has tabled some ailments including chronic pain. They said some of the tabled ailments need to be further researched.
The use of medical marijuana to treat depression was denied by the panel.
206 people in New Mexico have been granted medical marijuana licenses since the law took effect in 2007.
Posted by Gary at 05:06 PM | Comments (0)
January 14, 2009
WI State appeals court upholds search protection
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, January 14, 2009Far too often, state and federal courts have granted drug war exemptions that have shredded constitutional protections against illegal searches. Here's that rare case that actualy holds the line and protects these rights.
Source: Chicago Tribune click here
Wisconsin judge errs in drug case
Associated Press
9:59 AM CST, January 13, 2009WAUSAU, Wis. - A state appeals court has overturned a man's drug conviction because police improperly obtained the evidence.The Third District Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday the strong odor of air freshener and cologne in Richard Lord's car during a routine traffic stop in Washburn County was not reason enough to summon a drug-sniffing dog.
The panel overturned Lord's conviction for possession of marijuana, ruling his constitutional right against illegal searches had been violated.
Court records say Lord was 17 when he was stopped in June 2006 by a state trooper because his vehicle's muffler was too loud. Circuit Judge Eugene Harrington ruled that the strong odors from the scents provided the trooper with reasonable suspicion of drug activity. Court records say the police dog found some marijuana and a drug pipe in the car.
Posted by Gary at 04:15 PM | Comments (0)
January 12, 2009
Michigan Medical marijuana clinic founder defends its legality
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, January 12, 2009It is said that cannabis causes paranoia in some, and that is apparently what is happening in the state of Michigan in regard to the state's new medical cannabis program and a clinic that has opened to screen patients.
The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation's clinic is providing a valuable service for patients who can benefit from medical cannabis. Doctors are a notoriously conservative lot, and it is a common experience in states with recently enacted medical cannabis laws that many physicians are initially reticent to recommend cannabis. Clinics like THCF provide a means for suffering patients to gain legal access when their own physicians are not comfortable doing so. Frequently, after their regular physicians observe the benefits of cannabis, they then become open to writing recommendations themselves.
Medical marijuana clinic founder defends its legality
Source: CandGNews.com click here
By Jennie Miller
C & G Staff WriterSOUTHFIELD — The state’s first medical marijuana clinic is defending its legality as residents, government officials and law enforcement agencies learn more about the controversial proposal voters approved in November.“I am in the exploratory stages, trying to figure out what is what,” said Southfield Mayor Brenda Lawrence, who had a meeting scheduled for Jan. 12 with the president, founder and CEO of The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation, Paul Stanford. The clinic recently opened up shop in the Southfield Town Center.
“This is so new — the legislation passed and they just sprung right up. (I am learning) what are the rules, what are the guidelines — things that I don’t know, and that’s one of the reasons I called the meeting with him,” the mayor said.
Representatives from the Michigan Department of Community Health are also scurrying to learn exactly what the THC Foundation is doing, and whether or not it falls within the limits of the new law.
“We worked so hard to establish the program, and we don’t want any misinformation out there,” said James McCurtis, spokesperson for the department. “We understand that this is going to take a little bit of time. This law is so brand-new, and there has to be an educational window period. It is going to take some time for people to understand.”
Stanford, however, maintains that everything his foundation is doing is lawful. The Southfield clinic joins 17 others in the country run by Stanford: four in Oregon, four in Washington state, three in Colorado, three in Hawaii, one in Nevada, one in California and one in Montana. Thirteen states in the U.S. have legalized marijuana for medical purposes.
“We have carefully investigated — along with our attorneys — the law, and we are operating completely within the law,” Stanford said.
While the law permitting the use of marijuana for medical purposes is now in effect, the Michigan Department of Community Health has not issued any identification cards signifying an individual is approved for the program. The department is due to begin doing so by April 4.
In order for a person to be approved, the MDCH will review a patient’s application, which must include a physician’s statement and an authorization letter indicating that, due to the individual’s debilitating condition, that person is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the use of medical marijuana.
At the THC Foundation, doctors are on staff to review a patient’s medical history and ascertain whether or not this statement can be made. No marijuana is provided by the organization.
“What they’re doing is absolutely legitimate — I think they are perfectly legal,” said attorney Greg Schmid, of Saginaw, who has been advising the organization. “They’re merely providing honest information based on their professional opinion … of whether the patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit for their serious condition.”
If it’s determined the patient would receive such a benefit, the doctors would then submit a statement and authorization letter to the MDCH, which would then review the patient’s application and determine whether the patient qualifies for the program. The MDCH will not provide a qualified patient with marijuana or information about how to acquire marijuana.
Since identification cards are not being issued just yet, the THC Foundation is operating to assist those under Section 8 of the law, which allows for an “affirmative defense,” Schmid said.
“It’s an entirely separate arm of the medical marijuana act,” Schmid said. “The law states the medical use of marijuana is legitimate and legal under Michigan law — all the registry ID does (is) provide advanced immunity. But a person who is arrested and prosecuted for any crime involving marijuana can assert an affirmative defense. To assert that defense, all a person has to do is establish three things: one, that a doctor has made a statement to them that in the doctor’s professional opinion, after a full review of their medical history and their current medical condition, the doctor feels they would benefit from the medical use of marijuana for the treatment of their serious medical condition symptoms. The second thing is to prove that the amount in their possession was not an unreasonable amount … necessary to ensure an uninterrupted supply of medicine. The third thing is that their actual use or possession of marijuana was for medical purposes. It’s a very robust defense, and it’s feasible to prove. And all you need is that statement. (The THC Foundation’s doctors) are merely making that statement.”
The MDCH held a public hearing in Lansing on Jan. 5 regarding the rules and regulations of the medical marijuana program. More than 200 people attended, many of whom voiced concerns and made recommendations.
“We are reviewing that as we speak,” McCurtis said, adding that the department plans to contact Stanford this week to learn more about his operations. “Our staff has been incredibly busy. We have not been able to call them. (But) we’re going to find out exactly what they’re doing.”
For more information about the THC Foundation, visit www.thc-foundation.com/michigan or call (248) 351-1746. For more information about the medical marijuana program, visit www.michigan.gov/mmp or call (517) 373-6873.
You can reach Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586) 279-1108.
Posted by Gary at 06:34 PM | Comments (0)
January 09, 2009
NM finalizes rules for medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, January 9, 2009The state of New Mexico is finalizing rules for the medical cannabis program that came to be because Gov. Bill Richardson got state lawmakers to finish the job. Like New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine, Richardson has followed his duty to help state patients struggling with serious illness.
Souce: NEWSWEST9: click here
NM finalizes rules for medical marijuanaAssociated Press - January 9, 2009 4:15 PM ET
SANTA FE (AP) - The state Department of Health is accepting applications from nonprofit businesses that want to produce and distribute medical marijuana to patients in New Mexico.
Qualified patients also can apply to produce medical marijuana for themselves.
The department announced Friday it has finalized its regulations for identification cards and for a production and distribution system.
Health Secretary Dr. Alfredo Vigil says patients now can get medical marijuana for chronic conditions in a way that's safe and legal under state law.
A 2007 law allows certified people to use marijuana for pain or other symptoms of debilitating illnesses such as cancer, glaucoma, epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, HIV-AIDS and certain spinal cord injuries.
Copyright 2008 The Associated Press.
Posted by Gary at 04:56 PM | Comments (0)
January 08, 2009
Michigan Messenger: Medical marijuana rules go too far, critics say
Posted by Gary storck
Thursday, January 8, 2008Just when you think you have won, the battle goes on. That seems to be the situation in Michigan as patients express their opposition to the proposed rules for the new program.
Medical marijuana rules go too far, critics say
By Todd A. Heywood 1/7/09 6:01 PM
Source: Michigan Messenger: click here
MDCH Departmental Analyst Desmond Mitchell and MDCH employee Laurie VanBeelen, listening to public testimony about medical marijuana rules (photo: Todd A. Heywood)MDCH Departmental Analyst Desmond Mitchell and MDCH employee Laurie VanBeelen, listening to public testimony about medical marijuana rules (photo: Todd A. Heywood)
The Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) is one step closer to finalizing rules for a state medical marijuana registry.
Officials held a hearing Monday on proposed rules for administering the new list. But critics say the rules violate the spirit and letter of the voter-approved medical marijuana law and raise civil rights concerns.
“The [voter-approved] act gives the [Community Health] department a very limited role to perform very limited functions: simply to take applications, process them and issue or deny the cards,” said Greg Francisco, executive director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association.
“Instead [the proposed] rules seem to have taken on this role of investigatory or law-enforcement duty for the department, which is inappropriate and not consistent with the law itself.”
The registry is part of a law passed by voters in November making the use of marijuana legal in Michigan for certain medical conditions, like HIV infection, AIDS, glaucoma and others. The law mandates that MDCH create identification cards for qualified users and growers, to be implemented by April 4.
Among the rules contested at the Monday meeting were a mandate that medical marijuana be kept locked up and accessible only to qualified patients. Advocates say this rule would interfere with the seriously disabled and the dying, and keep them from having access to the marijuana, because their caregivers would not legally be allowed to access the drug. The law passed in November only mandates that plants being grown be kept under lock and key, advocates point out.
Also disputed was a rule that would make it improper to smoke marijuana in “any place visible to the public.” Critics say this wording could be taken to mean that a person who fires up a joint in front of a living room window, for example, would be liable for charges and have his or her ID card revoked.
In addition, patients and advocates expressed concern about patients’ privacy. Rules mandate that patients identify the other patients of a caregiver licensed under the act, thus forcing caregivers to violate the confidentiality of their clients. Under the current proposal, advocates believe patients would be required to ask for patient lists from their caregivers. It would also mandate the identification of doctors who are prescribing the marijuana.
The rules also include a verification process that would allow the Medical Marijuana Program to contact the Social Security Administration to verify if a low-income patient was on Medicaid or receiving Social Security benefits.
The Michigan State Police (MSP) appeared at the hearing Monday to register its own concerns about another rule that would require unused marijuana left over after a patient was cured or passed away to be turned over to law enforcement.
“Our department doesn’t want anything to do with taking medical marijuana from anyone,” MSP Inspector Greg Zarotney told the hearing. “It is burdensome on law enforcement.”
Zarotney also asked that information from the registry be accessible through the Law Enforcement Information Network, which would allow officers to identify the name, address and date of birth of those who were legally in possession of a valid ID card. Advocates said that goes too far, arguing that the law only allows law enforcement to verify the validity of the card, which has a unique number assigned to it.
Advocates expressed frustration with the proposed rules Monday.
Karen O’Keefe, director of state policies for the nonprofit Marijuana Policy Project, submitted a lengthy written testimony with 22 proposed changes to the rules. O’Keefe was also the principal drafter of the law, which appeared on the November ballot as Proposition 1. In her written testimony, she said:
“Voters enacted Proposal 1 as written. They were satisfied with its safeguards, which were carefully considered and are working well in other states, like Rhode Island. The department’s role now is to implement the law, not to rewrite it.”
Francisco said the MDCH proposals suggest an apprehension and uncertainty on the state’s part as to how to implement the new law.
“I believe it is fear. The department is afraid of the unknown,” said Francisco. “I don’t believe they are acting out of malice. I don’t believe they are trying to stifle the program, but I believe that they just don’t know and they are trying to cover the worst-case scenario.”
James McCurtis, spokesperson for the MDCH, said the department would carefully consider all the testimony and plans to issue final rules by April 4.
Posted by Gary at 03:54 PM | Comments (0)
January 05, 2009
Letter to the Editor: Wisconsin State Journal: Time to legalize medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
January 5, 2009Just back from a visit to the WI State Capitol where the Assembly's new Democratic majority was being sworn in. Now, for the first time in nearly 25 years, the Governor's office, State Assembly and State Senate are all under Democratic control. This means that medical cannabis legislation now has the best chance of moving in the legislature it has possibly ever, if given strong support from state residents.
Today, the State Journal published a letter I sent along those lines:
First, here is the letter as published, below it is the original letter as I submitted it:
What was published:
Source: Wisconsin State Journal: click here
Monday, January 5, 2009Time to legalize medical marijuanaWith overwhelming support, Wisconsinites would be thrilled to read this headline: "Governor signs medical marijuana bill, Wisconsin becomes 15th state to protect patients using medicinal cannabis."
Michigan became the 13th such state when voters passed Proposition 1 on Nov. 4. On Dec. 15, the New Jersey State Senate Health Committee passed medical marijuana legislation by a 6-1 margin, sending it to the full Senate for a vote. New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine urged quick passage.
With the change of leadership in the state Assembly, Wisconsin has the potential to be next. Gov. Jim Doyle, who has stated he would sign a bill if it reached his desk, should follow the lead of fellow governors who urged legislators to act.
The Michigan state agency tasked with regulating their medical marijuana program expects to begin certifying patients and caregivers in April, meaning a Michigan resident with a qualifying medical condition will be eligible to legally use medical cannabis with a doctor's approval. A Wisconsinite with the same condition would still be eligible only for arrest and jail.
One in four Americans now live in a state where medical marijuana is legal. For the sake of state patients and families struggling with serious illness, Wisconsin needs to join the club in 2009.
-- Gary Storck, Madison, Is My Medicine Legal YET?
My original, unedited submission with additional content:
Dear Editor,With overwhelming support statewide, Wisconsinites would be thrilled to read this headline, “Governor signs medical marijuana bill, Wisconsin becomes 15th US state to protect patients using medicinal cannabis”, “Headlines we would like to see in 2009” (Dec. 31).
While Michigan became the 13th such state when voters passed Prop 1 on Nov. 4, the next state likely to pass a medical marijuana law right now is New Jersey. On Dec. 15, the New Jersey State Senate Health Committee passed medical marijuana legislation by a 6-1 margin, sending it to the full Senate for a vote. The following day, New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine urged quick passage, telling reporters "I don't think that we ought to be having fights on issues that don't go to the heart of the needs of a broad majority of folks, I think that this is one that if it can be moved expeditiously because there's a consensus, I think that's great. I have studied the issue and I think that if properly structured, it's an initiative that's sensible."
With the change of leadership in the State Assembly, Wisconsin has the potential to be the 15th state. Gov. Jim Doyle, who has stated he would sign a bill if it reached his desk, should follow the lead of fellow governors who urged legislators to act as Gov. Corzine did in New Jersey or Bill Richardson did in New Mexico in 2007. New Mexico would not have become the 12th state without the personal efforts of then Gov. now Commerce-Secretary-designate Richardson who worked with legislative leaders to assure passage.
The Michigan state agency tasked with regulating their new medical marijuana program expects to begin certifying patients and caregivers in April. This will mean that a Michigan resident with a qualifying medical condition will be eligible to legally use medical cannabis with a doctor’s approval, while an identical Wisconsinite would still only be eligible for arrest and jail.
One in Four Americans now live in a state where medical marijuana is legal. For the sake of state patients and families struggling with serious illness, Wisconsin needs to join the club in 2009.
-- Gary Storck, Madison, Is My Medicine Legal YET?
Posted by Gary at 03:01 PM | Comments (0)
January 03, 2009
Detroit Metro Times lampoons opponents of MI medical cannabis initiative
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, January 3, 2009Here is a piece by Detroit's Metro Times chronicling some of the pathetic lies opponents used in Michigan. Voters, of course, were not fooled and passed Prop 1 easily, by a 10% higher margin than Barack Obama received in winning Michigan.
Source Detroit Metro Times click here
Dec. 31, 20082008's Most Dubious
(snip)
Call them the straight dope twistersA close runner-up to MiCAUSE in the race to the bottom of the campaign trough was the coalition that came together in opposition to the proposed constitutional amendment to legalize medical marijuana in Michigan. As activist Bruce Mirken noted in a blog, one TV spot sponsored by the so-called Citizens Protecting Michigan's Kids was "so egregiously dishonest that even my very jaded jaw dropped when I saw it. It may set an all-time record for the most lies ever packed into a 30-second commercial." Joining in the condemnation of deceitful tactics employed by opponents of the proposal was former state Rep. Dianne Byrum, who headed up the Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care. Particularly galling was a stunt pulled by John Walters, the Michigan native appointed our nation's drug czar by that well-known expert on illicit drugs, President George Bush. At taxpayer expense, Walters journeyed to his home state towing a marijuana vending machine seized in California. The only problem with Walters' prop was that the proposed Michigan law, as one columnist pointed out, "does not permit dispensaries, much less vending machines." Byrum called the whole effort a "desperate campaign of lies and outrageous distortions." Fortunately voters saw through the toxic smokescreen and approved the use of weed for medical purposes.
Posted by Gary at 10:40 AM | Comments (0)
January 02, 2009
$48,000 drug dog stars in Menasha small-time pot arrests
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, January 2, 2009My first post of 2009 finds that, according to the Appleton Post Crescent, the Fox Valley city of Menasha Wisconsin is apparently using its new K-9 dog, Gommez, financed by $48,000 in community donations, primarily to find small quantities of pot or paraphernalia. While, the majority of Wisconsin municipalities and counties now handle small-time cannabis possession as a civil citation, Menasha is one of a dwindling number of state locales where small amounts of pot or paraphernalia still merit state criminal charges.
In Dane County, for example, any case involving paraphernalia or less than 25 grams of cannabis receives a citation. In Menasha, small-time pot possession means big trouble for offenders and big costs to taxpayers, without making the city safer. Menasha residents should be asking their civic leaders if they really think that in a time of financial crisis, with budgets strained, tax bases shrinking and growing unemployment, that major resources should be used to detect and target citizens using small quantities of cannabis.
Source: Appleton Post Crescent click here
January 2, 2009MENASHA POLICE K-9 NETS QUICK DRUG ARRESTSDonations start to pay off in unit's first days
By Michael King Post-Crescent staff writer
MENASHA — Paul Scheppf had an interesting job in the U.S. Air Force: refueling fighter jets or bombers flying 400 mph at 35,000 feet in the air.
But he thinks his latest job is pretty cool, too, and not just because he lives and works in sometimes-frigid Wisconsin.
The Menasha police officer now has a new partner joining him on his night shift patrol, thanks to the generosity of the community. Scheppf is the department's first K-9 handler in more than a decade and is now accompanied by a specially trained 2-year-old German shepherd named Gommez.
In the unit's first three nights on the job in mid-December, Gommez was responsible for four drug arrests.
It's the kind of impact that officials and residents had hoped to see.
His first assist came on his second night when he alerted the officer about a vehicle and a subsequent search found a marijuana pipe inside.
On his third night on duty, a Monday night, Gommez had a large role in three arrests.
The first occurred when another officer made a traffic stop and Scheppf drove to the scene for backup and a walk-around.
"He alerted on the ash tray and (officers) found some partially smoked marijuana joints in the ash tray. And he alerted on the back seat and found a partially smoked joint under the seat. The driver was arrested for possession of marijuana," Scheppf said.
Later that night, Appleton police asked for assistance in looking for a suspect at a Third Street apartment complex. The suspect was not located but the tenant granted permission for a search of his apartment and Gommez "found a relatively significant amount of marijuana in a dresser drawer in a bedroom and he found another bag of marijuana in the closet."
The 40-year-old man was arrested for felony possession of marijuana.
The third incident occurred when a lieutenant observed an 18-year-old Menasha man he knew was wanted on warrants and attempted a traffic stop. The man quickly pulled into a driveway and took off on foot.
"We didn't really do a track because of the (frigid) temperature and weather conditions," Scheppf said. "We knew who the driver was so it wasn't an issue of trying to identify (him)."
Gommez, however, did a search and "found in the vehicle partially smoked marijuana joints." The suspect, who is still at large on felony drug and weapons charges, will be referred on additional drug and bail-jumping charges.
Scheppf praised the narcotics detection training that took place since October at FoxTal training center in Black Creek. "He's trained marijuana, meth(amphetamine), cocaine, crack, Ecstasy and heroin," Scheppf said.
"In my opinion, you're going to see an instant change," Scheppf said. "In time it will certainly decrease the amount of drugs in Menasha."
Gommez also participated in tracking training, which will be completed with a two-week session in spring. Scheppf sees big benefits as well in tracking suspects who flee from burglaries or thefts in progress and elude officers by hiding.
Schools will benefit from Gommez, who will start making school visits next semester. Scheppf said schools are drug-free zones and, "I think the kids seeing the dog in school will keep it free from drugs."
Undoubtedly, Scheppf said the word will spread in the community about the successful drug searches.
"There's no doubt in my mind that they're telling their buddies that the dog walked around my vehicle and found dope," he said. "It's certainly going to be a deterrent."
A collaboration of residents and businesses raised $47,592 to fund the purchase, equipping and training of the unit.
"Just to know that the community stepped up and donated all that money to make a difference it's really gratifying," said Scheppf, who drives a new Ford Expedition, specially designed to accommodate his sidekick. Part of the backseat was removed and replaced with a kennel.
(snip)
Continues: click here
Posted by Gary at 09:33 AM | Comments (1)
December 30, 2008
WKOW TV: Wisconsin Supreme Court expands police authority to search vehicles
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, December 30, 2008The year closes with another blow to search and seizure rights under the state Constitution.
Wisconsin Supreme Court expands police authority to search vehicles
Source: WKOW TV click here
Posted: Dec 30, 2008 01:30 PM
MADISON (WKOW) -- from WI Dept. of Justice: It is lawful for police officers to search inside any container found inside the passenger compartment of a vehicle when any of the occupants is arrested, as a "search incident to arrest."
Tuesday morning, the Wisconsin Supreme Court expanded the scope of such searches to objects or containers found outside the vehicle in close proximity to it.
"Here, Pepin police conducted a classic search incident to arrest," says Van Hollen. "I'm pleased that the Wisconsin Supreme Court recognized the need to protect both officer safety and the possible destruction of evidence."
In November 2004, Jordan Denk was a passenger in a car stopped on a rural county road late at night in Pepin County.
A police officer on routine patrol stopped to see if the occupants needed assistance.
The officer smelled the strong odor of burning marijuana coming from inside the car and ordered the occupants out.
The driver was found to be carrying drug paraphernalia, admitted having marijuana on his person, and was arrested.
The officer then went over to the passenger side of the vehicle where Denk was standing and saw the eyeglasses case on the ground just outside the passenger's door.
Denk stated that the case was his and placed it on top of the car.
The officer looked inside and found a pipe used for smoking methamphetamine.
Denk was placed under arrest, and additional drugs and paraphernalia were found in his clothing.
Denk was charged with multiple drug crimes in Pepin County Circuit Court.
Denk asked the court to suppress the evidence, arguing that the initial search of the eyeglasses case was unlawful.
Under existing law the eyeglasses case could have been searched if it had been found in the car, but not if it had been on Denk's person, unless the officer had reason to fear that Denk was armed.
The judge denied the motion to suppress, and Denk plead no contest to the charge of felony possession of methamphetamine.
Denk was sentenced to five months in the county jail as a condition of probation, and appealed to the Wisconsin Court of Appeals.
The Court of Appeals asked the Wisconsin Supreme Court to decide the case because the issue might involve the creation of new law.
The Supreme Court accepted the case, and today decided that the eyeglasses case found outside the car should be treated the same as containers found inside the car, and was lawfully searched.
The Court's reasoning was that the same policy considerations of protecting the safety of the officer and preventing the destruction of the evidence apply whether the eyeglasses case was found inside the car or in close proximity outside of it.
Posted by Gary at 02:23 PM | Comments (0)
December 24, 2008
Michigan’s new rules need revision, say medical marijuana advocates
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, December 24, 2008The Michigan Agency tasked with regulating the state's new medical cannabis law is tampering with the will of Michigan voters, according to state advocates. Marijuana prohibition is ingrained deep, and the hard attitudes of some prohibitionists apparently remain unchanged despite the passage of Prop 1. While the law has changed, the struggle continues.
State’s new rules need revision, say medical marijuana advocates
Source: Michigan Messenger: click here
By Eartha Jane Melzer 12/24/08 8:25 AM
Advocates say the state’s plan for administering a new medical marijuana law, approved by state voters on Nov. 4, focuses too much on law enforcement concerns and not enough on health.Michigan’s medical marijuana law–which passed in every county while winning 63 percent of the vote–allows people with qualifying medical conditions to grow 12 marijuana plants and/or possess 2.5 oz. of marijuana for medicinal use. Those who use marijuana medicinally may also designate a caregiver to grow the drug for them. The mood-altering plant relieves chronic pain and nausea.
The Michigan Department of Community Health (MDCH) has proposed rules for the program a scheduled hearing of those rules takes place 9 a.m. Monday, Jan. 5, at the state secondary complex general office building in Lansing.
Patient advocates say they see many shortcomings in the proposed rules.
“I think they were written by people who don’t have a clear idea of how something like this would work,“ said Greg Francisco, director of the Michigan Medical Marijuana Association (MMMA), an education and advocacy group for patients and caregivers. “I think they [MDCH] took on some responsibilities and roles that were not given in the law.”
The rules suggest the state envisions its role as one of law enforcement, not administering a public health program, Francisco said, adding that MMMA has compiled 21 concerns with the draft rules which it will air at the Jan. 5 hearing.
One problem, Francisco said, is a requirement that caregivers or patients provide detailed cultivation records and track where each and every plant goes.
“This is akin to telling a farmer who grows beets he must track which beet goes to which processing facility,” he said.
The MDCH proposed rules require that any marijuana leftover when a patient no longer qualifies or dies be handed over to police–something Francisco said is unreasonable. Because medical marijuana remains illegal under federal law, he suggested that patients and caregivers might be hesitant to provide police with evidence by handing over excess marijuana.
MMMA has proposed that this provision be removed or modified to say that the caregiver or patient may provide the marijuana to another registered patient, may destroy it or may hand it over to law enforcement for destruction.
The rule also imposes an unfair double standard, Francisco said. “With other controlled substances, such as morphine and oxycontin, there is no requirement that these be turned over to law enforcement.”
Another burdensome rule, according to Francisco, is that if a patient designates a caregiver he or she must list all the other patients served by that caregiver.
Francisco described this provision as an invasion of privacy and unnecessary.
“This would be like me going to get a prescription filled and having to give the pharmacist a list of everyone else who got this prescription.”
And because all patients and caregivers must be licensed with the state anyhow, he said, the requirement is unnecessary.
Francisco said rumors are circulating that opponents of medical marijuana want to revise the state’s rules so that registered medical marijuana users would be required to wear a special medic alert bracelet.
Sgt. Tom Deasy of the Michigan State Police Executive Division said state police are not pursuing a bracelet requirement.
“The act is pretty clear about wanting to ensure some level of privacy, and [requiring bracelets] would seem to contradict that,” Deasy said.
He predicted the state police officials, now reviewing the new rules, would not seek major changes.
“If we have any suggested changes, it won’t be anything substantial,” he said, “Overall we do not have any substantial problems.”
The spread of medical marijuana, now allowed in 13 states, seems to be part of a growing interest in reforming drug laws.
More than a dozen of the top 50 questions submitted in the past month to the incoming Obama administration’s website, change.gov, have pertained to drug law reform.
Posted by Gary at 07:42 PM | Comments (0)
December 21, 2008
Editorial: Allow marijuana for medical use in N.J.
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, December 21, 2008Last Monday's 6-1 New Jersey state senate health committee vote for medical cannabis seems to have inspired an outpouring of support. Not only has Gov. Jon Corzine urged the entire legislature to move quickly and pass the bill so he can sign it, but state newspapers are now editorializing in support. The day is coming very soon when Cheryl Miller's efforts in New Jersey will finally pay off. While they will be too late for her, thousands and thousands of other patients will not have to face what she did.
Source: CourierPostOnline.com click here
December 21, 2008Allow marijuana for medical use in N.J.Drug has been proven effective in treating some medical conditions and should be legal to use for those patients.
New Jersey lawmakers took a key step toward allowing those suffering with cancer, AIDS, glaucoma and other conditions to legally use marijuana to relieve their pain.
Last week, the state Senate's Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee, by a 6-1 vote, approved the Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act.
Legalizing the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes remains controversial in part because it runs counter to federal drug laws regarding marijuana, and also because there are many people who do not want to see any door opened toward legalizing drugs.
However, there is overwhelming documentation and heartfelt testimony from people from all walks of life who have lived in tremendous pain and say that marijuana, more than any other medicine, helps reduce their pain, take away their nausea, clear up their vision, stop their muscle spasms, etc. These people are not drug abusers; they're regular Americans who are just desperate to live without the pain of often incurable diseases and conditions.
Who are we, and who is the government, to stop people from alleviating their suffering?
Thirteen states -- Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington -- allow people, with a doctor's consent, to possess small amounts of marijuana and/or grow marijuana plants for their personal medicinal use.
The law New Jersey proposes would be similar. The state Department of Health and Senior Services would register people with debilitating conditions such as HIV, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, etc. and issue them a photo identification card. They would be able to possess as many as "six marijuana plants and an ounce of usable marijuana." The law would bar them from operating a motor vehicle while under the influence of marijuana or from smoking in many public areas.
At the committee hearing in Trenton on Monday, Joyce Nalepka, president of the national organization Drug Free Kids: America's Challenge, worked to convince lawmakers that legalizing medical marijuana would make children and young adults more aware of marijuana and that using it is acceptable. State Sen. Jim Whelan, D-Atlantic, was dead on in his response: "I think our youth are pretty much aware of marijuana today. I think we are kidding ourselves if we don't think that," Whelan said.
The fact is, the same laws and penalties we have for criminal marijuana use and distribution can be kept in place and enforced just as they are now.
But people who are in pain, some in their last days, deserve to be able to take whatever medicine works to help them. For certain conditions, marijuana has shown itself time and again to be a powerful medicine. There's no reason for New Jersey or any other government to stand in the way of people looking to ease their suffering.
We don't ban OxyContin or Percocet altogether because some people abuse those medicines and use them just to get high. Why? Because OxyContin and Percocet help many people with real medical condidtions. For the same reason, marijuana should be legalized strictly for medical use.
Posted by Gary at 10:08 AM | Comments (0)
December 18, 2008
Patients Out of Time Press Release on new civil complaint against feds on medical cannabis
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, December 18, 2008I'm honored to be on the advisory board of the great medical cannabis advocacy group, Patients Out of Time. Here is a new press release from them regarding a civil complaint Carl Olsen has filed against the federal government over the denial of medical cannabis access.
For Immediate Release:Ever wonder why the federal government still classifies marijuana as a substance with no accepted medical use in the United States?
Over the past 12 years, 13 States in the United States have enacted laws accepting the medical use of marijuana. Isn't that the same "accepted medical use" the federal drug law refers to?
Patients Out of Time Board of Advisors member Carl Olsen was curious enough to ask the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), but got no response. So, Carl filed a civil complaint in federal court against the U.S. Attorney General; Carl Olsen v. Michael Mukasey, No. 4:08-cv-370, United States District Court for the Southern District of Iowa.
It seems the voters in Oregon approved an assisted suicide law in 1997, the Oregon Death with Dignity Act, and the DEA tried to tell them it was illegal. The State of Oregon filed a civil complaint against the DEA, and it ended up in the U.S. Supreme Court. The Supreme Court said the DEA was stepping on Oregon's turf and told the DEA to back off.
Carl thinks the same thing is true with state medical marijuana laws. When the federal law was written, it was certainly true that marijuana had no currently accepted medical use in the United States. However, Congress entrusted the DEA with the responsibility of making sure the federal drug law was updated annually to catch any change that might occur.
Well, that change has occurred and the DEA has failed to do anything about it. The DEA never planned on changing it anyway. Who's watching the DEA to make sure they do their job?
American citizens are considered the luckiest people in the world, not because of our wealth, but because we are actually supposed to have a say in what our government does. Carl is showing us that one citizen can question the federal bureaucracy.
Carl keeps detailed records of everything that is going on at his web site: http://www.iowamedicalmarijuana.org/ so he hopes you'll stop by and take a look.
(1) www.medicalcannabis.com
(2) www.iowamedicalmarijuana.org
Carl Olsen
Iowans for Medical Marijuana
(515) 288-5798Al Byrne,Co-founder
Patients Out of Time
(434) 263-4484Mary Lynn Mathre, RN, MSN, CARN, CLNC
President and Co-founder
Patients Out of Time
1472 Fish Pond Rd.
Howardsville, VA 24562
434-263-4484 434-263-6753 fax
www.medicalcannabis.comPosted by Gary at 09:48 AM | Comments (1)
December 17, 2008
New Jersey Gov. Jon Corzine says he would sign medical marijuana legislation
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2008Will New Jersey become the 14th medical cannabis state? The state's governor, Jon Corzine, has reiterated that he would sign a bill if it gets to his desk. Corzine originally had promised to sign a bill when first running for office when he and GOP candidate, Doug Forrester, both on a live call-in radio show, were asked by caller Jim Miller. Forrester went first and stated he would sign, and Corzine then answered yes too.
Corzine says he would sign medical marijuana legislationSource: The Press of Atlantic City Media click here
By DEREK HARPER Statehouse Bureau
Published: Wednesday, December 17, 2008TRENTON - Gov. Jon S. Corzine said Tuesday that he supports and would sign a bill allowing medicinal marijuana use, but added that economic issues are his top priority.
"I don't think that we ought to be having fights on issues that don't go to the heart of the needs of a broad majority of folks," Corzine told reporters Tuesday afternoon. "I think that this is one that if it can be moved expeditiously because there's a consensus, I think that's great. I have studied the issue and I think that if properly structured, it's an initiative that's sensible."
The Compassionate Use Medicinal Marijuana Act would allow state-licensed patients to possess as much as 1 ounce of marijuana and six plants for medical treatment. The bill, sponsored by Sen. Jim Whelan, D-Atlantic, and Nicholas Scutari, D-Middlesex, Somerset, Union, also would create Medicinal Marijuana Alternate Treatment Centers.
The possession and distribution of marijuana would remain illegal under federal law, but advocates said it would essentially decriminalize that, because most prosecutions are under state laws.
The state Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee approved the bill by a 6-1 vote Monday. It now faces a full Senate vote. While it has been discussed in General Assembly committees, a vote has not been scheduled. Thirteen other states have similar laws.
Posted by Gary at 10:08 AM | Comments (0)
December 15, 2008
Medical marijuana wins approval from New Jersey Senate committee
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, December 12, 2008Jim Miller reports that Cheryl's name was cited repeatedly today as the New Jersey State Senate's Health committee heard testimoy then voted 6-1 with 2 abstentions to send the state's compassionate use medical marijuana bill to the full Senate for a vote in the first-ever modern day vote on a NJ medical cannabis bill!
Source: Star Ledger: click here
Medical marijuana wins approval from Senate committeePosted by mdowling December 15, 2008 13:15PM
A Senate committee today approved a bill that would regulate the sale and use of medical marijuana for seriously, chronically-ill patients.
Over the objections of family rights groups and attorneys who warned the bill sends a conflicting message to kids, lawmakers said they were moved to support the bill by the compelling personal testimony.
Photo Caption: TONY KURDZUK/THE STAR-LEDGER Walking with the assistance of canes from the effects of their multiple sclerosis, Nancy Fedder of Hillsborough (left) and Elise Segal of Wenonah get up after giving testimony in support of the Compassionate Use of Medical Marijuana Act before the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee at the State House today. Both women testified that marijuana works better to relieve their pain than any of the prescription drugs they have taken.Sen. Bill Baroni (R-Mercer) cited the testimony of one man who said the pain from multiple sclerosis prevents him from playing with his kids, ages 3, 8 and 9.
"There is too much pain, too much hurt, and too much suffering, and we can do something about it," Baroni said.
The bill would allow patients with a written recommendation by their doctor to possess six plants and one ounce of usable marijuana and be free of the threat of state prosecution. The bill also calls upon the state health department to regulate who grows the plant and who is permitted to smoke it.
"When all other avenues of currently-approved pain relief have been exhausted, we need to give doctors the freedom to prescribe medical marijuana to give their patients a measure of comfort and dignity in the face of their debilitating diseases," said Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Union), one of the bill's prime sponsors.
The 6 to 1 vote with two abstentions in the Senate Health Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee means the bill moves to the full Senate for a vote when Senate President Richard Codey (D-Essex) decides to post it.
The Assembly has yet to act on the bill (S119).
Posted by Gary at 02:49 PM | Comments (0)
December 11, 2008
Michigan’s first medical marijuana clinic opens in Southfield
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, December 11, 2008Michigan's medical cannabis law moves closer to implementation with the opening of a clinic to screen patients. Medical cannabis is real now in Michigan. Are Wisconsinites ready to roll up their sleeves and demonstrate to our state lawmakers that Wisconsinites want their reps to pass a law like Michigan's? It will take everyone's help. Start by letting your newly elected or reelected state representatives and senators that you support passage of medical cannabis legislation in Wisconsin!
Source: C & G News.com click here
Published: December 11, 2008
Author: Jennie MillerSTATE’S FIRST MEDICAL MARIJUANA CLINIC OPENS IN SOUTHFIELDSOUTHFIELD — The first medical marijuana clinic in the state of Michigan opened Dec. 4 in Southfield, following the controversial proposal voters approved last month making the drug legal in the state for medical purposes.
Run by The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Portland, Ore., the clinic currently has two licensed physicians on staff.
The Southfield clinic joins 17 others in the country run by THCF: four in Oregon, four in Washington state, three in Colorado, three in Hawaii, one in Nevada, one in California and one in Montana. Thirteen states in the U.S. have legalized marijuana for medical purposes.
“We’ve helped over 45,000 patients in eight states now, including Michigan since we opened up there last Thursday,” said Paul Stanford, president, founder and CEO of THCF. “We plan on expanding to other cities in Michigan.”
Prospective patients are advised to contact the clinic by phone and have their primary care physician provide medical records.
“We require they have medical records from another doctor and be under another doctor’s treatment,” Stanford explained. “All of our patients have to have another current relationship with either an M.D. or a D.O. to meet their medical needs.”
After the medical records have been reviewed, the patient meets with a nurse or doctor at the clinic for a non-invasive physical examination.
If it is determined that the patient meets the criteria and could benefit from the use of medical marijuana, a prescription will be provided, as well as an identification card that registers the patient in the program and the appropriate documentation needed to submit to the state.
Twenty-five patients were seen by a physician on the first day of the clinic’s operation in the Southfield Town Center. Two additional patient days will be held in December, and another two are scheduled in January.
“As those days fill up, we’ll add more days,” Stanford said.
But marijuana is not provided by the clinic.
“We explicitly do not distribute marijuana itself,” Stanford said. “We don’t have anything to do with the procurement. We cannot assist in the procurement in any way.”
According to the new law, a patient who has been prescribed medical marijuana by a licensed physician can purchase, possess and/or cultivate up to 2 1/2 ounces of marijuana or 12 plants.
“For a patient who is authorized to have medical marijuana, they can purchase it on the black market,” Sanford said. “The people who are selling it are breaking the law. It can be dangerous. But there are a number of organizations out there that are currently being set up to help patients. We cannot directly provide them or help them obtain cannabis, but there are a number of resources in the community that they can pursue.”
Sixty percent of THCF’s patients across the country suffer from some sort of chronic pain, said Stanford, adding that in 30-40 percent of the chronic pain cases, the patients also have severe muscle spasms, seizures, cancer, AIDS, glaucoma or severe nausea.
“Cannabis is a very safe and effective medicine for a variety of ailments,” Sanford said. “What we find overwhelming is that our chronic pain patients are able to get off of large quantities of debilitating narcotics that they’re on and improve their quality of life through the use of cannabis. And they don’t have to be subjected to the high associated with marijuana to get the relief, through the use of the leaf instead of the flower.”
But not everyone feels so positive about the passage of the proposal in Michigan.
“I am not happy the (proposal) passed,” said Southfield City Councilman Myron Frasier. “But the vote passed and that’s the law now and I expect that they will follow the law. … That’s the one thing about voting: The majority wins and the losers have to understand that they did their best but they came out the losers. But I’m also not happy that we happen to be the first place in the state they opened up one of these clinics.”
City Council President Don Fracassi had a lot of questions with regard to the operation of the clinic and others like it.
“I opposed the issue to begin with,” Fracassi said. “But it was approved, and I don’t know how they’re going to regulate it. I don’t know how they’re going to tell who’s got pain and who doesn’t. Is it people who have no hope and are just suffering from pain? Or is it people who are hurt and are doing this instead of taking an aspirin? Is it the medical profession seeking other ways to make more money? I don’t know. I’m just against the whole thing. There is enough medication out there to serve the purpose. I think it’s going to be misused. I don’t see there’s enough controls.”
The city is going to conduct research to learn how to handle the operation of the clinic.
“We can go to other states that have passed the marijuana law and find out how they deal with it so we aren’t trying to invent the wheel all over again,” Frasier said. “We’ll take advantage of what’s already out there and find out the good things they’ve done to help control it and that will get us years ahead rather than try to find out on our own.”
Fracassi has every confidence that the Southfield Police Department has the situation covered.
“I expect the Police Department to follow all the regulations, rules and laws, and they will do that to the utmost,” Fracassi said. “Any violations to the law the Police Department will take care of it.”
For more information about the clinic, visit www.thc-foundation.com/michigan.
You can reach Staff Writer Jennie Miller at jmiller@candgnews.com or at (586) 279-1108.
Posted by Gary at 09:45 AM | Comments (0)
Column: Prohibition never has worked
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, December 11, 2008The chairman of the Libertarian Party of Wisconsin, Jim Maas, penned this OPED for the Wausau Daily Herald.
Source: Wausau Daily Herald click here.
Pubdate: December 11, 2008
Author: Jim MaasCOLUMN: PROHIBITION NEVER HAS WORKEDThis month marks 75 years since America repealed its disastrous alcohol Prohibition. Toast!
Prohibition was the work of the early 20th century progressives' grand social engineering agenda. It failed miserably.
The great social critic, H.L. Mencken, wrote of prohibition: "Five years of Prohibition have had, at least, this one benign effect: They have completely disposed of all the favorite arguments of the Prohibitionists. None of the great boons and usufructs that were to follow the passage of the Eighteenth Amendment has come to pass. There is not less drunkenness in the republic, but more. There is not less crime, but more. There is not less insanity, but more. The cost of government is not smaller, but vastly greater. Respect for law has not increased, but diminished."
Sounds strangely familiar. But there's one positive thing we can say about alcohol prohibition: At least it was constitutional.
Congress understood that the federal government hasn't the constitutional authority to issue a national ban on booze without changing the Constitution. When America repealed Prohibition, it was with a constitutional amendment, recognizing that the power to regulate alcohol is reserved for the states.
Contrast that with drug policy, in which Congress made no attempt to comply with the Constitution in passing the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970, which gave us our current version of Prohibition. When it became clear that alcohol Prohibition had failed, it was repealed. The drug war has failed, but our government merely claims more powers to fight it more aggressively.
Drug prohibition has been every bit the failure alcohol Prohibition was - and then some. Nearly 40 years after the CSA passed, 400,000 Americans are in prison for nonviolent drug crimes; domestic police forces resemble an occupying military force; nearly $1 trillion is spent on enforcement, both here and through aggressive interdiction efforts overseas; and urban areas can resemble war zones. Yet illicit drugs such as cocaine and marijuana are as cheap and abundant as they were in 1970. The street price of both drugs has actually dropped.
Drug use violations are the most frequent arrest offenses in the United States. Consequences are brutal. Half a million Americans are incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails for nonviolent drug law violations, helping our nation become No. 1 in the number of citizens behind bars. With 5 percent of the world's population, the United States houses 25 percent of the world's prisoners.
Are Americans really that bad? 751 prisoners per 100,000 population exceeds the incarceration rate of all other countries on the planet. Wisconsin holds 605 prisoners per 100,000, in the top 20 of the states. Why?
Prison numbers are largely due to the insane policy of drug Prohibition, which persecutes people who insist upon using substances which the government has arbitrarily declared illegal. The other reason is the lengthy sentences in America, often several times those seen in other Western countries. Yet, we are told we must again expand the capacity of the jails.
If logic, reason, law, or compassion can't persuade legislators to reconsider their prejudices, perhaps a deep recession will. The economy helped hasten the repeal of Prohibition 75 years ago. How badly does Marathon County want to see nonviolent drug users in the slammer?
The War on Drugs is America's longest war. It is long past time to call a truce. We have more important issues to deal with. If you agree, let your elected representatives know that.
Jim Maas of Rothschild is chairman of the Libertarian Party of Wisconsin.
Posted by Gary at 09:31 AM | Comments (0)
December 09, 2008
Detroit News: LANSING: State starts up treatment Web site
Posted by Gary Storck
Tuesday, December 9, 2008Michigan patients must be feeling absolutely giddy with relief as the state's new medical cannabis program takes shape.
Detroit News click here
December 9, 2008LANSING: State starts up treatment Web siteThe state launched its Medical Marijuana Program Web site Monday to coincide with the proposal that voters approved last month. The site is www.michigan.gov/mmp.
A public hearing on proposed rules for the program is to be heldat 9 a.m. Jan. 5 in Lansing, in Conference Room A at the State Secondary Complex, General Office Building, 7150 Harris Drive. Public comments about the rules can be sent to the Department of Community Health, Bureau of Health Professions, Lansing, 48909-8170, attn: Desmond Mitchell, Departmental Analyst, or at dmitch@michigan.gov, until 5 p.m. Jan. 9. Those who need special assistance should call 517-335-1341.
Posted by Gary at 09:51 AM | Comments (0)
December 08, 2008
Sheboygan Press: Guest Editorial: Medical marijuana is worth study
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, December 8, 2008Today's Sheboygan Press contains a guest editorial click here, the editorial the Green Bay Press Gazette published on Nov. 8 click here. My unpublished reply to that editorial?: click here.
Posted by Gary at 12:51 PM | Comments (0)
December 06, 2008
Detroit Free Press: Michiganders Go to Clinic Seeking Pot to Dull Pain
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, December 6, 2008How joyous it is to read of medical cannabis patients who are now protected under Michigan's new law. The new clinic is located in the Detroit suburbs. In a few short months, the program will be underway and these patients will have cards. If this can happen in Detroit, it surely can happen here!
Source: Detroit Free Press (MI) click here
Pubdate: Fri, 5 Dec 2008
Copyright: 2008 Detroit Free Press
Author: Tammy Stables Battaglia, Free Press Staff Writer
The Hemp and Cannabis Foundation Medical Clinics' new location in Southfield click hereMichiganders Go to Clinic Seeking Pot to Dull Pain
Doctors There to Give OK
Getting high was the furthest thing from their minds as some of Michigan's first legal medical marijuana users lined a Southfield waiting room Thursday.
But they all shared one thing: pain.
"I pray it helps the pain like they say," said diabetic cancer patient Renee Collinsworth, 48, of Croswell. She is hoping to dull the pain from a 1986 motorcycle accident in Ferndale. "It's not all about smoking it, either."
Michigan became the 13th state to allow the use of medical marijuana to treat debilitating illnesses after voters approved it in November. A licensed physician must grant approval before patients can use the otherwise illegal drug.
The patients waiting in the Southfield office either wouldn't or couldn't get approval from their regular doctor. So they were at the opening of the Hemp and Cannabis Foundation Medical Clinics' new location in Southfield. THCF Medical Clinics, a nonprofit headquartered in Oregon, employs seven doctors in eight states solely to sign off on medical marijuana use.
"If a patient's personal care physician is unwilling to sign off on their registration application packet, we have one that will," Brian Schreckinger, a spokesman for the group, said Thursday. Schreckinger, 28, said he became involved in the cause after excruciating pain from breaking his ankle skateboarding kept him up at night.
"Sometimes I'd be complaining I'd just want my foot chopped off," he said.
John Smith, 33, of Monroe was trying to find relief from back pain stemming from a 1998 car accident. And he doesn't want to use painkillers anymore.
"I've seen so many people dying on pills," he said. "And that's all the doctors push on you is the pills.
"Sometimes I think it's in my head, and they're just keeping me doped up on pills."
Charles Synder III, 31, of Flint suffers from Nail Patella Syndrome, a hereditary condition that causes kidney issues and painful bone defects.
"When I use cannabis, it doesn't take it 100% away," said Snyder, who collected signatures to help put a measure legalizing medical use of marijuana on the November ballot. "It doesn't put me in a zombie-like state like OxyContin."
Eric Eisenbud, a licensed ophthalmologist, examined each of the patients Thursday. He interviewed them, reviewed their medical records, checked their blood pressure and listened to their heart before handing out authorizations.
Eisenbud said he joined the practice looking for more fulfillment than he was finding in practicing ophthalmology. At the clinic, "I see those patients every day that make me feel that I'm doing a worthwhile endeavor," Eisenbud said.
Posted by Gary at 12:04 AM | Comments (0)
December 05, 2008
75th anniversary of the repeal of alcohol prohibition today
Posted by Gary Storck
December 5, 2008Like many German immigrants, my German immigrant ancestors opened a brewery in Slinger, Wisconsin in the 1880's, back when the town was still known as Schleisingerville.
When Prohibition took effect in Wisconsin, some breweries produced "near beer". At Storck, a decision was made to convert to producing ice cream. But prohibition did not sit well with people whose German culture included a love for beer. While ostensibly producing ice cream, these earlier Storcks continued to brew beer:
In reality, Prohibition did not completely shut down Storck's brewing operations in 1919. As the children ate ice cream and played outside the factory, their fathers drank real beer out of the shiny copper mugs that hung in Rathskeller. The Storck family and their employees knew exactly what to do anytime a stranger visited the plant. Real beer was easily discharged from the Rathskeller and the tapper was quickly hidden inside the Rathskeller's wall. No trace of beer was ever seen.Henry Storck took daring chances during Prohibition. The beer aged in the tanks stored among the ice cream manufacturing equipment. Raymond Storck cautiously ran beer to Hartford on a weekly basis. He would remove the back seat from his car and place two half-barrels of beer inside the seat, cover the barrels with a plaid blanket while making deliveries.
Storck brewers relax with the family brewSome time in 1922, Chicago mobsters paid Henry Storck a visit. The mobsters, with the help of one Chicago Prohibition Officer, turned the Storck's business into a distillery and made hard liquor for the Milwaukee and Chicago markets. They told Henry to keep his family and workers away from the brewery for three weeks. After the three weeks were over, the mobsters removed their distillery equipment and informed Henry that the building was ready to manufacture ice cream again. Henry and Ray returned to the brewery to find that everything was undisturbed and no trace of the distilling operation was evident.
Henry Storck continued to brew real beer throughout most of Prohibition. Storck was Milwaukee's chief source of real beer for seven years. Several times, Prohibition Officers paid Storck a visit hoping to catch them, but were unsuccessful. It wasn't until 1926 when Storck's illegal operation became too well known and finally caught up with them.
An assortment of Storck brewerriana from my collectionHenry Storck had applied for a brewery license several times during the early 1920s. He was refused each time. When he applied for a license in 1926, he was refused again, based on alleged delinquencies in 1922. A Prohibition agent visited the plant on a regular basis, interrupting Storck's production of ice cream. Henry asked the federal courts for an injunction restraining the Prohibition agent from interrupting Storck's legitimate activities. A temporary injunction was granted and a hearing was pending on March 6, 1926, but was postponed to allow the District Attorney to gather more evidence.
On Sunday, March 7, 1926, Storck Products Company was finally raided by two Chicago special Prohibition agents. The agents had been on lookout the entire night for beer trucks moving between Milwaukee and Slinger. Shortly after five o'clock, three trucks loaded with empty beer barrels proceeded by a scout car drove to the loading platform at the brewery. The Prohibition agents, in a touring car, swooped down upon the scene and placed the drivers and Henry Storck under arrest. The Prohibition agents confiscated 2,348 gallons of 3.35 percent alcohol beer contained in 20 full barrels, 98 half barrels, 16 one-quarter barrels, and two pony barrels. The brewery was immediately padlocked and Henry was released the following day after posting a $500 bond. The confiscated beer was dumped down the sewer on Tuesday, March 9, 1926.
--- excerpted from Slinger's Very Own - Storck Brewing Company American Breweriana Journal, July-August 1995 by Otto Tiegs
While Storck Brewery reopened after repeal took effect on December 5, 1933, it never truly recovered from the blow dealt by prohibition, and was further hindered by ingredient shortages during World War 2. It eventually folded in the 1950's, another piece of a once rich immigrant culture gone.
As Cannabis Prohibition suppresses the cannabis culture, alcohol prohibition was a suppression of immigrant culture and a product of the same anti-German sentiment during the first World War that persuaded civic leaders to rename the town with the more American sounding name of Slinger.
America's failed attempt at alcohol prohibition was mercifully short. It only took a few years for many even ardent prohibitionists to change sides.
Today, cannabis prohibition, in its 71st year, seems intractable. But, cracks have been appearing in its once impenetrable facade for many years, and like alcohol prohibition in 1933, the tipping point may be near. Prohibition as an idea is at odds with not only human nature but also the American spirit. We all had ancestors who defied alcohol prohibition just like the mass disregard for the foolish and racist laws prohibiting marijuana today.
There is no defense for maintaining the monster of cannabis prohibition. America cannot truly be America as long as it persists, and President-elect Obama and Congress should seize this moment to put an end to this counterproductive wasteful injustice. It's time to end the sanctimony and face reality.
Posted by Gary at 10:35 AM | Comments (1)
December 04, 2008
Shepherd Express: Are Marijuana Laws Changing to Keep Up with Public Opinion?
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, December 4, 2008Here is the main article from the Shepherd Express.
Source: Shepherd Express click here
Pubdate: Wednesday, December 3,2008
Author: Lisa KaiserAre Marijuana Laws Changing to Keep Up with Public Opinion?
A Shepherd Q&A with High Times editor David Bienenstock
People have been smoking pot ever since they discovered that sparking one was good clean fun. So why do we need The Official High Times Pot Smoker's Handbook, published just in time for the holidays? Editor David Bienenstock explains that even an experienced stoner could learn a few things-as well as get involved in the larger marijuana movement to make pot smoking legal, especially for those who are chronically ill.
In this Shepherd Q&A, Bienenstock also discusses President-elect Barack Obama's proposed drug policy changes, why Wisconsin should join the 13 states that have legalized medical marijuana, and some of the best things to do when you're stoned.
Shepherd: Why did you decide to write an official High Times pot smoker's handbook? Are you saying that we've been doing it wrong all of these years?
Bienenstock: The best answer I can give you is that Bill Clinton was a Rhodes scholar, a student at Oxford University, and he didn't even know he should inhale. So I think even the most well-seasoned smoker could stand to learn something new.
Shepherd: The war on drugs wasn't discussed much during this presidential campaign. But will Obama's drug policy differ from Bush's?
Bienenstock: Yes. Short answer, yes. Whether or not it's going to be "change you can breathe in" is yet to be determined. But we've gone from one of the worst administrations on everything you can imagine, including drug policy, to at least a chance to go in a new direction. I can't say what Obama is going to do. But what he's promised to do already in the short term is to have the federal government get off the backs of the states that have approved medical marijuana. And that in and of itself would be a huge change in our policy.
Shepherd: You're referring to the 2005 U.S. Supreme Court decision that said that the federal government has a right to prohibit state-level medical marijuana programs because they interfere with interstate commerce. But that decision doesn't make any sense to me. Does it make sense to you?
Bienenstock: It made sense to me in that you have a Supreme Court that decided what they wanted their decision to be and then they tortured logic until they found a way to get there. The court admitted that this woman [Angel Raich] was chronically ill. They admitted that marijuana may help her. And they decided that one woman growing a plant on her own property and consuming it herself constitutes interstate traffic and that the federal government has jurisdiction.
The government's justification for that is to say that if she hadn't grown it herself in her own back yard, she might have decided to buy some marijuana on the open market. And even if she bought it in California from someone who grew it in California, there's a national market in it, and therefore that's going to reduce the overall market-you can see where this is going. It makes no sense. They're saying, "Even though we don't want this market to exist, we're going to regulate it."
It's just an excuse for the federal government to thwart the will of the people of California. That should end on Jan. 20. Obama has been unequivocal in saying that. He's said that many times and he hasn't gone back on that promise. It's something that will be easier for him to do. It's easier to create inaction than to really roll up your sleeves and fundamentally change the system. But it'll be a huge start.
Shepherd: That was a Supreme Court decision, so doesn't the president have to abide by it?
Bienenstock: He is appointing the attorney general, who is the top law enforcement agent in the United States. It is about priorities. Now, 13 states have medical marijuana laws, with Michigan being the most recent. But Obama is not allowing California to be a lawless state. He's saying the federal government is going to respect a state's laws. This is a states' rights issue. This is where you see the hypocrisy of-I don't want to say just Republicans, because there's enough hypocrisy to go around when it comes to our pot laws-but to have a party that wants to talk about states' rights and the freedom of individuals as their core beliefs and then to say that we want the big bad federal government to bust a chronically ill woman because she grew a plant on her property, it's frankly bullshit.
Obama doesn't need a new law to do this. He needs to give the federal government a new set of priorities. One of those priorities is to respect California law. That doesn't mean that the DEA wouldn't get involved if you were growing non-medical marijuana and thousands of pounds of it. It just means that if it's OK with California, then the federal government is not going to get involved. That's something you can do without a new law and going to Congress. You just give your attorney general new priorities and new instructions.
Shepherd: You just mentioned Michigan, where voters approved a medical marijuana program on Nov. 4. How were they able to pass it?
Bienenstock: Through the ballot initiative process, which is the same way that Prop 215 passed in California [in 1996]. There have been other states where the state legislature has taken up this issue. This is an issue where the government has not been enacting the will of the people, which is why this initiative process has been created in states. This passed with 63% of the vote in Michigan. Obviously if something is that popular, then the question is, "Why isn't the state legislature taking up this measure?" And that's where you see people saying that this is what they want and then putting it on the ballot. There was plenty of spirited opposition. But in the end, people know what they want. And people in America recognize that medical marijuana really does help people and they're willing to push their government in the right direction, which is a great sign.
Shepherd: Wisconsin legislators have introduced medical marijuana bills in the past, but they've always been blocked by Republican legislators. Now Democrats control the Legislature. What can you say to these Democrats to get them to act?
Bienenstock: The best thing I could say to them is that I can understand why state legislators would be hesitant to get involved in this because we had a federal government that said we don't care what law you make, we're going to come in to bust anybody at any time because we don't recognize medical marijuana. Your law doesn't mean shit. So it's difficult for a legislature to take up this issue and say we're going to make a law anyway. And it's a testament to how strongly people feel about this that it's happening anyway. But now that you have a federal government that is going to respect your laws I think that should give a lot of momentum to these states. I think it's going to get a lot easier to work across the aisle with people, when you can say that whatever we come up with, that's going to be the law of the land.
Shepherd: Popular opinion definitely favors approving medical marijuana. In Wisconsin, reliable polling shows that as many as 80% of people in Wisconsin want a program.
Bienenstock: Let's be honest about this. The opponents of medical marijuana are scared to give any ground on this issue because it's propping up a larger war on drugs that is the elephant in the room. The war on drugs is a tremendous failure. It's a tremendous waste of resources. And it has unintended consequences that are worse than the problem it's meant to address. [Opponents of medical marijuana are] less concerned with whether chronically ill people are getting their medicine than they are with continuing to prop up this huge war of drugs.
Shepherd: What has been the impact of the war on drugs on people who smoke pot?
Bienenstock: It's been incredibly punitive. You have students who can't get financial aid because they have one small marijuana possession arrest on their record, yet people who are murderers are still eligible. You have also taken a huge percentage of the American public who are good people and contribute to society and have made them live in fear. It's difficult for them to form a community. You have children afraid of their parents and parents who are afraid of their children.
And I think in a larger sense you have to look into the economics of it. If you add up what we spend on enforcement and then what the government would take in under a reasonable tax and regulation system, it comes out to about $15 billion a year. That was always ridiculous, but to use our resources so foolishly now, it makes no sense. To be fighting two wars and have a crashing economy, with people out of work and losing their jobs and homes and 401(k)s, for the government to come to them and say we need $7 billion to hassle people who enjoy a harmless plant-that's the bottom line.
Shepherd: Has Obama said anything about the student loan situation?
Bienenstock: I don't know if it's something he has to address specifically. I was just at the 10th anniversary conference of the Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP), which is a group that literally was founded a year after that penalty went into effect to address it. It's become one of the fastest-growing student organizations in the country. It's been a tremendously effective one. Even before this election, which obviously is making their job a lot easier, they were able to pull it back to [denying financial aid] only if you have a drug conviction while you're receiving aid. It used to be any drug conviction. If something happened when you were 16, you were denied aid.
And I have to say that Bill Clinton signed that law. And Bill Clinton arrested as many pot smokers as anyone else. And Bill Clinton sent the DEA into California after Prop 215 passed.
What pot smokers are looking for is a completely new direction. We're not looking for a return to the good old days, because we've never had them. But as far as what Obama may or may not do about student loans, I can't speak about that specifically, but coming back from that SSDP conference, I feel a lot of optimism that this policy is something that can be changed pretty quickly.
Shepherd: Has High Times' publication ever been threatened over the years?
Bienenstock: Even in Bush's America we still have the First Amendment to protect us. And we have lawyers. I don't think any of us have the attitude that we could never be hassled. We're not engaged in criminal activity. We're engaged in running a publication. But will I be breathing a little bit easier on Jan. 20 to know that the president and his administration, even if they don't agree with me, probably don't see me as a threat that needs to be destroyed? Yes. I will feel better. But I haven't had any problems, and the magazine hasn't had many problems.
Shepherd: In the book there's a list of 420 things to do when you're high. What are some of your personal favorites?
Bienenstock: Playing ping-pong. It's a huge passion of mine and of some people on the staff here. The two activities definitely go well together. I do play better after a couple of puffs. There's another item on the list that says, "Invent a milkshake." And I've certainly been known to enjoy that.
And I really liked what Redman said, which was, "work." It's definitely true for me, too. I try to make the point that people think pot makes you lazy, but it's really that lazy people love to smoke pot. And part of having to be in the closet is that the people who are the most successful who smoke pot have the most to lose by admitting it. I think that's something that's beginning to change.
But the No. 1 thing you should do when you're stoned is to join NORML [the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws] or an organization like it that's right for you. One of the best things you can do when you get stoned is to get involved in changing these laws. Because it does feel good to get stoned and it does feel really good to work toward bringing that freedom to everyone.
I really do feel that people are starting to drop some of these old stereotypes of what a pot smoker is. Part of that is that people are just tired of pretending. There's a lot of talk in the marijuana movement that we need to take inspiration from the gay rights movement, where people finally said, "This is who I am and it's up to you to deal with it." It's very difficult. It's illegal to smoke pot. So it's this slow process of change. If we all woke up tomorrow and everybody knew who smoked pot and who didn't, it would be legal the day after that. And that would be a glorious day, because it would be your doctor or your stockbroker or your butcher and baker and candlestick maker. I can't tell you how many construction sites I walk by at lunchtime and catch a nice whiff. Pot smokers come from all ethnicities, all socioeconomic areas, all generations. I've been involved in this for a long time and it's good to be at such an optimistic moment, coming back from that SSDP conference. There's just so much optimism right now that we really can pass sensible drug policies.
Shepherd: Here's the part of the interview where you can crassly plug your book. Why should it be under everyone's Christmas tree this year?
Bienenstock: Even if you do smoke pot, I hope that you would find a lot to learn from reading it, and have a lot of fun. And it does make a great gift, because everybody-everybody, everybody-knows somebody who smokes pot and enjoys it. And they'll think you're cool and they'll know that you respect them and their lifestyle. You can buy the book for them and read it first and learn a little something about your friends and neighbors.
I want pot smokers to be knowledgeable about what we're doing, and to be proud of what we're doing and to be well versed in it and to feel that we're part of a large community full of good people.
What's your take?
Posted by Gary at 10:43 PM | Comments (0)
December 03, 2008
Shepherd Express: Could Wisconsin Be Next?
Posted by Gary Storck
Wednesday, December 3, 2008Milwaukee's Shepherd Express looks at cannabis this week, both with this article and another about the national scene.
Source: Shepherd Express click here
Pubdate: Wednesday, December 3,2008
Author: Lisa KaiserCOULD WISCONSIN BE NEXT? On Nov. 4, Michigan became the 13th state to legalize medical marijuana when 63% of its voters approved a grassroots-supported ballot initiative. Now, a quarter of all Americans live in a medical marijuana state.But even though 80% of Wisconsin residents approve of legalizing medical marijuana for seriously ill patients, the state does not allow voters to ratify a program through the ballot initiative process, as Michigan did. Instead, medical marijuana supporters must urge the state Legislature to pass a bill in both houses that also would be supported by the governor.
Unfortunately, attempts to get a well-thought-out bill through the state Legislature have failed in past years, even with bipartisan support among lawmakers.
But Gary Storck, spokesman for Is My Medicine Legal Yet? (IMMLY), said he's "fairly confident" that a Democratically controlled state Legislature will legalize medical marijuana in the next session. "It's becoming more of a mainstream issue," Storck said. "And it would be really wrong to delay something that got such strong support in Michigan. I think it would be incredibly cruel to string it out. The groundwork has already been done."
He said the Legislature should act quickly to save people's lives. "I know people who are having a really hard time every day because they don't have legal access to medical marijuana," Storck said. "Their situations are so dire that they're not going to see it in their lifetime, even if it is passed in the next session."
While most medical marijuana users are coping with cancer treatments, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS and chronic pain, Storck added that veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or brain injuries may also benefit from medical marijuana use. Other research indicates that using marijuana may forestall Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
What's more, Storck argued that the state as a whole would benefit economically from cannabis research and a legal medical marijuana industry. "It's an industry with a lot of jobs," Storck said. "And we can have it here really easily."
Storck is also encouraged by the U.S. Supreme Court's refusal on Dec. 1 to review a case concerning California's medical marijuana law. He said it shows that even the highest court in the land has decided to respect state laws in this area, despite a 2005 court decision that seemed to give the federal government more power over state-level medical marijuana programs. "This is a case with ramifications in Wisconsin," Storck said. "There isn't a gray area anymore. The Supreme Court said that law enforcement should uphold state law first."
Storck said that a Milwaukee-area NORML chapter is in the works; those who are interested can contact him at www.immly.org or the state chapter of NORML at www.winorml.org.
-Lisa Kaiser
Posted by Gary at 03:33 PM | Comments (0)
December 01, 2008
ASA Release: U.S. Supreme Court: State Medical Marijuana Laws Not Preempted by Federal Law
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, December 1, 2008Below is a press release from Americans for Safe Access noting the U.S. Supreme Court refused to take a case challenging a California appeals court decision that state law took precedence. The action upholds the earlier finding that,"it is not the job of the local police to enforce the federal drug laws."
This case has implications for Wisconsin, both in the lawmaking process as well as practical implications for when Wisconsin joins other medical marijuana states including California and our neighbor, Michigan.
PRESS RELEASE
Americans for Safe Access
For Immediate Release: *December 1, 2008
*U.S. Supreme Court: State Medical Marijuana Laws Not Preempted by Federal Law*/medical marijuana case appealed by the City of Garden Grove was denied review today/
*Washington, DC* -- The U.S. Supreme Court refused to review a landmark decision today in which California state courts found that its medical marijuana law was not preempted by federal law. The state appellate court decision from November 28, 2007, ruled that "it is not the job of the local police to enforce the federal drug laws." The case, involving Felix Kha, a medical marijuana patient from Garden Grove, was the result of a wrongful seizure of medical marijuana by local police in June 2005. Medical marijuana advocates hailed today's decision as a huge victory in clarifying law enforcement's obligation to uphold state law. Advocates assert that better adherence to state medical marijuana laws by local police will result in fewer needless arrests and seizures. In turn, this will allow for better implementation of medical marijuana laws not only in California, but in all states that have adopted such laws."It's now settled that state law enforcement officers cannot arrest medical marijuana patients or seize their medicine simply because they prefer the contrary federal law," said Joe Elford, Chief Counsel with Americans for Safe Access (ASA), the medical marijuana advocacy organization that represented the defendant Felix Kha in a case that the City of Garden Grove appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court. "Perhaps, in the future local government will think twice about expending significant time and resources to defy a law that is overwhelmingly supported by the people of our state."
California medical marijuana patient Felix Kha was pulled over by the Garden Grove Police Department and cited for possession of marijuana, despite Kha showing the officers proper documentation. The charge against Kha was subsequently dismissed, with the Superior Court of Orange County issuing an order to return Kha's wrongfully seized 8 grams of medical marijuana. The police, backed by the City of Garden Grove, refused to return Kha's medicine and the city appealed. Before the 41-page decision was issued a year ago by California's Fourth District Court of Appeal, the California Attorney General filed a "friend of the court" brief on behalf of Kha's right to possess his medicine. The California Supreme Court then denied review in March.
"The source of local law enforcement's resistance to upholding state law is an outdated, harmful federal policy with regard to medical marijuana," said ASA spokesperson Kris Hermes. "This should send a message to the federal government that it's time to establish a compassionate policy more consistent with the 13 states that have adopted medical marijuana laws."
Further information: Today's U.S. Supreme Court Order denying review: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/Kha_USSC.pdf Decision by the California Fourth Appellate District Court: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/downloads/GardenGroveDecision.pdf Felix Kha's return of property case: http://AmericansForSafeAccess.org/article.php?id=4412
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With over 30,000 active members in more than 40 states, Americans for Safe Access (ASA) is the largest national member-based organization of patients, medical professionals, scientists and concerned citizens promoting safe and legal access to cannabis for therapeutic use and research. ASA works to overcome political and legal barriers by creating policies that improve access to medical cannabis for patients and researchers through legislation, education, litigation, grassroots actions, advocacy and services for patients and the caregivers.
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--Posted by Gary at 01:25 PM | Comments (0)
Patients Out of Time: Release regarding Irv Rosenfeld's now 26 years of federally-supplied medical marijuana
Posted by Gary Storck
Monday, December 1, 2008I'm very proud to serve on the advisory board of Patients Out of Time click here. In April, I attended their 5th National Clinical Conference on Cannabis Therapeutics at the Asilomar Conference Center in Monterey, CA. Their next conference is scheduled for Rhode Island in April 2010. Below is their press release about Irv Rosenfeld, one of four surviving patients in the federal compassionate IND program. For 26 years now, Irv has now been supplied with federal pot grown near the site of one of the 2008 presidential debates, in Oxford, MS click here. Jacki Rickert was approved for the program, but never supplied.
For Immediate Release:When Noah started to give God some lip he was asked, “Noah, how long can you tread water?
The US government’s free for the asking (once) medical marijuana program has treaded in an ocean of medical cannabis hypocrisy for 30 years.
This hypocrisy is best personified by Irv Rosenfeld: husband, career stock broker, dog lover, champion handicap sailor and recipient of 9 ounces of US government supplied medical cannabis every three weeks since 1982. Irv just passed the previous record held by the late Robert Randall, who in 1976 became the first patient to be supplied cannabis from the federal government for the treatment of glaucoma and received it for 26 years.
Irv Rosenfeld comments that, “Four of us in the federal medical cannabis program (IND) were examined for three days at St. Joseph's Hospital, Missoula, MT in 2001using private funds. All of us were found to be in fine physical and mental condition. (1). I am long passed feeling euphoria from my medical use but what I do feel is a lack of pain and discomfort and a frustration with my government for not allowing other citizens to have what is given to me with my gratitude.”
Sitting in his Florida office Irv continued, “While the US government has been arresting patients and caregivers for using cannabis medically they have been sending it to four of the Directors of Patients Out of Time (POT). In my case I have gotten my medicine for over 26 years, the longest use of any medicinal cannabis patient. Federal myths about cannabis not being medically accepted, coupled with its world wide use as a medicine on every continent plus the 14 states that have accepted the medical community’s endorsement of medical value (1) has created a conundrum for US medical cannabis policy. Political whim versus hard science for the federal employees of the HHS and NIDA has been the mantra for making medical decisions concerning cannabis. That professional betrayal the Obama administration can correct. HHS needs to answer The Petition to Reschedule Cannabis in the affirmative. Meaning, declare my medicine may be good for all citizens and turn our medical use of cannabis over to the health care community instead of having us treated by the police and jailers.”(2)
Mary Lynn Mathre, RN, President of POT and pioneer in the education of the health care community about the therapeutic uses of cannabis adds her comments from her VA office, “Irv suffers from a rare disorder called multiple congenital cartilaginous exostosis and without the medical use of cannabis he would be crippled, unable to work and on numerous pharmaceuticals to manage his pain or maybe even dead. Cannabis is a safe and effective medicine for a variety of ailments. Irv and only 3 other US citizens can legally smoke cannabis supplied by our government. What about the rest of us? Why does our government forbid us this medicine? There is no honest justification for the prohibition of cannabis”
(1)www.medicalcannabis.com
(2)www.drugscience.org
IND=Investigational New Drug ProgramIrv Rosenfeld
Newbridge Securities
(877) 447-9625 x120
Al Byrne, Co-founder
Patients Out of Time
(434) 263-4484Posted by Gary at 12:04 AM | Comments (0)
November 30, 2008
MI: Saginaw News: 'Trying to ease my suffering'
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, November 30, 2008The Saginaw News published this article, which begins with a compassionate look at a patient dealing with serious illness who clearly benefits from legal access to medical cannabis. The second half reports on the naysayers and quacks who dismiss medical cannabis as not needed. It's shameful for a physician to close their minds to any potential treatment. To do so with cannabis with its incredible safety and lack of toxicity, when they have patients who could benefit, is nothing short of malpractice.
'Trying to ease my suffering'
THE SAGINAW NEWS click here.
Sunday, November 30, 2008Unlike former president Bill Clinton, Charles H. Snyder III inhales.On bad days, he heats up marijuana three times a day. On good days, it's less.
However, on bad days -- when the chronic pain from glaucoma and the rare genetic disorder Nail-patella syndrome becomes unbearable -- the 31-year-old Genesee County resident sniffs more marijuana through an electric vaporizer.
''For seven years, doctors tried to find the right formula of pain pills to help me lead a more normal life,'' said the married father of a toddler daughter. ''They never found the right combination or dosage amount that didn't make things worse. It's not about getting high. I'm not a thug. I'm trying to ease my suffering.''
Snyder estimates he's one of approximately 50,000 Michigan patients struggling with chronic pain who rejoiced when citizens passed the controversial Proposal 1 in the Nov. 4 general election.
When the proposal takes effect Thursday, Michigan will join Arkansas, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington in permitting medical marijuana to treat cancer, glaucoma, multiple sclerosis, epilepsy, chronic pain and HIV/AIDS -- without fear of state prosecution.
Compassionate?
Snyder is a member of the Ferndale-based medical marijuana reform advocacy group Michigan Coalition for Compassionate Care.
An unemployed construction worker, he began using marijuana after reading about the relief it provides. Absent or underdeveloped kneecaps and thumbnails characterize Nail-Patella, which causes bone, joint, fingernails and kidney abnormalities.
He began buying it seven years ago from ''underground people I trust.''
He uses a vaporizer to heat the drug to 356 to 392 degrees -- nearly the same temperature as baking a cake -- to release active cannabinoids, but below the point where the heat produces carcinogenic tars and noxious gases.
''There are less than 100 people in mid-Michigan that I'm aware of using marijuana for medical reasons, but who knows for sure, since people are afraid of being put through the ringer or arrested,'' Snyder said. ''For me it's more important to have some type of quality of life, so the fear and danger involved with buying illegal drugs are worth it because I'm taking a more proactive role in my overall well being.''
The proposal allows people to use and grow marijuana to treat certain medical conditions with a physician's authorization. However, users of the mind-altering drug -- also known as cannabis, weed, herb, maryjane, reefer, 'the chronic', pot and blunts -- must register with the state.
Once licensed, patients may possess 2.5 ounces or less of marijuana and cultivate no more than 12 plants in an enclosed, locked facility, according to the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act.
(snip)
Continues: click here.
Posted by Gary at 10:41 AM | Comments (0)
November 27, 2008
Response to 11/20 Green Bay Press Gazette editorial on medical cannabis in WI
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, November 27, 2008On Nov. 20, the Green Bay Press Gazette published an editorial. "Medical marijuana is worth study", which I posted here: click here.
I sent the following response, which to date, has not been published in the Gazette.
Dear Editor,Thank you for your sensible editorial, “Medical marijuana is worth study” (Nov. 20).
However, in stating, “There is no need to rush to judgment, but lawmakers should investigate the idea by holding hearings to gauge public support”, the Press Gazette underestimates the urgent need for legal access to medical cannabis for Wisconsin patients and families, while ignoring hearings already held in the last several years.
Then-State Rep. Gregg Underheim held a hearing on his medical marijuana bill in Nov. 2005, and State Sen. Jon Erpenbach convened an informational hearing on medical cannabis in Nov. 2007. Polling in 2002 and 2005 also found overwhelming support statewide.
The groundwork for passing a bill like Michigan’s and the 12 other states has already been done. The only reason the issue has remained stalled in the legislature is because the outgoing leadership in the Assembly has been extremely hostile to the idea of medical cannabis, dating back to bills introduced in the mid-1990’s.
State lawmakers who truly represent their constituents know that medical cannabis deserves passage as soon as possible. Delaying matters further only places patients and their loved ones in the difficult position of either breaking the law or allowing a loved one or family member to suffer greatly. That is not the way to treat people in pain.
Gary Storck
Director of communications,
Is My Medicine Legal YET? www.immly.orgPosted by Gary at 09:36 AM | Comments (1)
November 23, 2008
Saginaw's Review Magazine: Implementation of Michigan's New Medical Marijuana Law
Posted by Gary Storck
Sunday, November 23, 2008Here is a great article on the details and fine points of Michigan's new medical cannabis law, including when it will take effect.
Source: Review Magazine (Saginaw, MI) click here
Published: Thu, Nov 20, 2008
Copyright: 2008 Review Magazine
Author: Robert E. Martin & Greg Schmid
Referenced: Proposal 1, The Michigan Medical Marijuana Act
click here and here
Read article on MapInc.org: click here.IMPLEMENTATION OF MICHIGAN'S NEW MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAWThere are several keys to understanding the new Michigan Marijuana Law. Enacted by voters in a landslide election with a 63% margin on November 4th, Michigan now joins twelve other states that have decriminalized marijuana for medical purposes.
Prop 1 is now to be cited as the Michigan Medical Marijuana Act and for the first time in over 75-years, the 'criminal' element that has profiteered on this multi-billion dollar underground industry, along with the Pharmaceutical companies that also reap billions for creating synthetic pills that handle 'pain & suffering' are being opened to competition from providers and patients seeking treatment from the plant that George Washington and Thomas Jefferson harvested on a regular basis.
Modeled after the state of Oregon's approach, the law states, "The medical use of marijuana is allowed under state law to the extent that it is carried out in according with the provisions of this act."
Specifically, what this translates into is that the law takes effect 10 days after the official declaration of the vote, which is scheduled for November 24th, so you can expect the law to take effect on December 4th.
The Department of Community Health has 120 days from the effective date of the new law to establish rules and commence issuing Registry ID Cards on April 2, 2009.
They must also promulgate rules that govern the manner in which it shall consider applications for renewals of ID cards and Caregiver applications, and may establish application fees that generate sufficient revenues to offset expenses of administering and implementing the act.
Additionally, they must submit an annual report to the Legislature that does not disclose specific information about applicants and caregivers, but contains information on the number of applications, the number approved in each county, the nature of the debilitating medical conditions, and the number of cards revoked.
The Registry ID Card & Primary Caregivers
The Act gives the Michigan Dept. of Health the duty to issue Registry ID cards, which will take a maximum of 20 days to get. Registry information is strictly confidential, and cannot be used as probable cause to target you or your Primary Care Giver. If the Department gives out your identifying information inappropriately, it is a crime.
If the Registry ID Card is not issued within 20 days after proper application, the qualifying patient may "self-issue" by executing a notarized statement, available online at the Free Form Bank (see link below). This is called an Affidavit in lieu of a Registry ID card.
To obtain a Registry ID card the patient must get a written certification from a doctor stating the patient's debilitating medical condition and also stating that, in the physician's professional opinion, the patient is likely to receive therapeutic or palliative benefit from the medical use of marijuana to treat or alleviate the patient's debilitating medical condition.
According to the new law, Doctors are the unquestioned gatekeepers to access. No court can second-guess their professional judgment. The law provides that the physician (MD or Osteopath) is immunized against legal or professional sanctions.
The key benefit of participation in the Formal Registry is that a registered Qualifying Patient and a designated Primary Caregiver, who have in their possession Registry ID Cards, enjoy presumptions of legitimacy. This creates a prophylactic immunity from arrest.
A designated Primary Caregiver must be at least 21 years of age with no prior felony convictions involving illegal drugs. The Caregiver is allowed to cultivate 12 plants (kept in a locked facility) and possess 2.5 ounces of marijuana, for each of up to 5 patients.
The law specifically bars arrest, prosecution, criminal or civil penalty, disciplinary action, and bars seizure or forfeiture of medical use marijuana. Any incidental amount of seeds, stalks, and unusable roots shall also be allowed under state law and shall not be included in this amount.
A registered Primary Caregiver may receive compensation for costs associated with assisting a registered qualifying patient in the medical use of marijuana. Any such compensation shall not constitute the ale of controlled substances.
A registered "Qualifying Patient" may possess 2.5 oz. of marijuana for medical use, and can cultivate 12 plants (kept in a locked facility) unless a "primary caregiver" has been designated. The law specifically bars arrest, prosecution, criminal or civil penalty, disciplinary action, and bars seizure or forfeiture of medical use marijuana.
"Enclosed, locked facility" means a closet, room, or other enclosed area equipped with locks or other security devices that permit access only by a registered primary caregiver or registered qualifying patient.
Bystanders merely in the presence or vicinity of the medical use of marijuana in accordance with the Act, or assisting a registered qualifying patient with using or administering marijuana, and suppliers of paraphernalia are legally protected under state law too.
Medical Purpose Affirmative Defense
Perhaps most significant of Michigan's new law is that it creates a stand alone Medical Purpose Affirmative Defense, which is only employed by one other state allowing Medical Marijuana - the state of Oregon, from which the proposal was modeled.
It protects patients and primary caregivers, even if they do not have Registry ID Cards. Defendants with charges pending on December 4,
2008 may use this defense. This defense is very liberal, easy to prove, and fully explained in "The Essentials of the Affirmative Defense", which is available, along with a model Motion to Dismiss and Affidavit in Support at the Free Form Bank.
This umbrella Affirmative Defense is the key to the Act. Using this defense, the specific limits give way to a reasonableness standard; not more than is reasonably necessary to ensure the uninterrupted availability of marijuana for the purpose of treating or alleviating the patient's serious or debilitating medical condition or symptoms of the patient's serious or debilitating medical condition.
All other acts and parts of acts inconsistent with this new law do not apply to the medical use of marijuana as provided by this new act.
This protects drivers, not under the influence, from Michigan's OWI law, which makes it a crime for drivers to have any amount of a controlled substance in their body, even if it has been weeks or months since they used marijuana.
Moreover, Parental Rights are protected. A person cannot be denied custody or visitation of a minor acting in accordance with this act, unless the person's behavior is such that it creates an unreasonable danger to the minor that can be clearly articulated and substantiated.
Conditions Covered
Disqualifying Factors that preclude protections under the act include: smoking marijuana in any public place or on any form of public transportation, use by a person who has no serious or debilitating medical conditions, any conduct where being under the influence would constitute negligence or professional malpractice per se, operating, navigating or being in actual physical control of any motor vehicle, aircraft, or boat while under the influence of marijuana, or use in a school bus or on school grounds or in any correctional facility.
Under the Act, Doctors are able to certify patients for an expansive list of specified debilitating medical conditions, plus any other 'chronic or debilitating disease or medical condition, or its treatment that produces symptoms or side effects like appetite loss, severe and chronic pain, severe nausea, seizures, or severe and persistent spasms.
Some of the Debilitating Medical Conditions specified in the Statute include: cancer, glaucoma, Positive HIV, AIDS, Hepatitis C, Lou Gehrig's Disease, Crohn's Disease, Agitation of Alzheimer's disease, epileptic seizures, or Multiple Sclerosis.
Because this law was adopted as a ballot initiative instead of as an act by the State Legislature, it can only be changed by a 3/4 vote of both the State Senate and House of Representatives.
While Federal Laws conflicting with State laws may be enforceable, the costly resources expended by the Federal government to challenge and prosecute individuals in other states that also have medical marijuana laws has averaged around one percent.
For more information. Registry & Provider Form Cards, and to complete a survey on the new Medical Marijuana Law, go to www.qualifyingpatient.com
Posted by Gary at 05:59 PM | Comments (0)
November 20, 2008
Green Bay Press Gazette: Editorial: Medical marijuana is worth study
Posted by Gary Storck
Thursday, November 20, 2008Today, the Green Bay Press Gazette editorializes in favor of medical cannabis and calls for a statewide referendum. While a referendum would be one approach, it would delay relief rto Wisconsin patients who need it today, not next session or the following one. The best course for patients and their families is for state lawmakers to recognize their constituents are not that differernt than our neighbors in Michigan or in the other 12 states where it is legal. Prompt action by the state legislature this coming session is the only fair way to end this stalemate for patients who may not live to see a hypothetical referendum, and cannot move to Michigan or other states that protect patients using medical cannabis.
Source: Green Bay Press Gazette: click here
November 20, 2008EDITORIAL: MEDICAL MARIJUANA IS WORTH STUDYAn interesting sidelight from Election Day 2008 is what happened up the road and over the pond in Michigan, where 63 percent of voters approved the removal of state penalties for registered patients who buy, grow or use small amounts of marijuana for medical purposes.
Michigan thus becomes the eighth state where a ballot initiative has OK'd the use of marijuana for therapeutic purposes. Legislatures in four other states have enacted medical marijuana laws, so nearly a quarter of the country has moved in this direction.
Recreational use of marijuana remains illegal everywhere and we're not suggesting that law be changed.
On the other hand, most all of us know or have known someone whose suffering might have been alleviated from its purported medical qualities. The most-cited benefits of medicinal marijuana are as an anti-nauseant for cancer chemotherapy and to treat nausea and appetite loss in HIV/AIDS.
The Michigan campaign featured two faces of the struggle to legalize marijuana as a medicine, according to The Associated Press coverage of the initiative's success. Rochelle Lampkin of Detroit suffers from multiple sclerosis and experiences blindness from optic neuritis, and George Wagoner, a retired physician from Manistee, helped his wife of 51 years by procuring marijuana to ease her symptoms of chemotherapy.
It's foolish to equate these legitimate efforts to aid seriously ill patients with the plague of street drugs, but that's been precisely the federal government's reaction to the states that have passed such legislation.
Justice Department funds continue to be used to arrest and prosecute patients even where state laws permit access to physician-supervised medical marijuana. During his campaign President-elect Obama pledged to respect the will of the voters in those states; he should keep that promise.
With medical marijuana about to become legal just north of the border, perhaps it's time for Wisconsin to take a serious look. There is no need to rush to judgment, but lawmakers should investigate the idea by holding hearings to gauge public support.
It may even be a subject worthy of a statewide referendum.
Also: Capital Times: State debate: Medical marijuana should be considered in Wisconsin, the Green Bay Press Gazette says click here
Posted by Gary at 09:33 AM | Comments (0)
November 15, 2008
Letter in Capital Times: Time to get real with marijuana laws
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, November 15, 2008Here's a letter the Capital Times published today.
Source: Capital Times click here
Pubdate: 15 November 2008
Author: Gary StorckTIME TO GET REAL WITH MARIJUANA LAWSDear Editor:
One of the hallmarks of the Bush administration has been creating and maintaining its own alternate reality on seemingly most, if not all, issues.
Continuing to maintain the legal fiction that cannabis is an evil Schedule 1 drug with a high potential for abuse and no medical use was one facet of this policy.
With his landslide victory, President-elect Barack Obama has both the political capital and the opportunity to start with a blank slate. Two statewide marijuana ballot initiatives even outpolled Obama. Michigan voters legalized medical marijuana by a 63 percent margin, and marijuana decriminalization passed in Massachusetts by a 68 percent margin. Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank, sponsor of federal legislation that would decriminalize possession of marijuana nationwide (Rep. Tammy Baldwin is a co-sponsor), depicted the current situation as "a case of people being ahead of the politicians."
Real change means acknowledging reality, not selectively, but across the board. It would be intellectually dishonest and unfitting for a new administration to reject science and reality-based positions on any issue. To continue to do so with cannabis ignores a major opportunity to finally correct a colossal mistake that just claimed its 20 millionth American arrested last month.
Gary Storck
co-founder, Madison chapter of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML)
Madison
Posted by Gary at 09:41 AM | Comments (0)
November 14, 2008
One year ago today: WI State Senate informational hearing on medical cannabis
Posted by Gary Storck
Friday, Nov. 14, 2008It was just one year ago today that the Wisconsin Senate Committee on Health, Human Services, Insurance and Job Creation, chaired by State Senator Jon Erpenbach, held a public information hearing about medical marijuana featuring testimony from expert witnesses. The three experts were federal legal patient George McMahon, CA medical cannabis physician and WI native Dr. Dave Bearman, and Dr, Chris Fichtner, a psychiatrist who is the former head of mental health for the Illinois Department of Health and Human Services.
Today, DRCNET's Drug War Chronicle click here is passing on a suggestion from Eric Sterling that Dr. Fichtner would be a good candidate for the US drug czar position in an Obama Administration:
(snip)
One possibility would be Chris Fichtner, the former head of mental health for the state of Illinois," (Eric) Sterling suggested.Fichtner is an associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Chicago who has worked with drug reformers in Illinois. He testified in favor of medical marijuana bills in Illinois and Wisconsin.
We'd really love to have Dr. Fichtner back testifying in support of Wisconsin's next medical cannabis bill, but he certainly has the knowledge, qualifications and credentials to be an excellent drug czar, should his name be considered, long shot as it is.
Posted by Gary at 10:24 AM | Comments (0)
November 08, 2008
Green Bay Press Gazette and AP: Medical marijuana law's passage encourages advocates in Wisconsin
Posted by Gary Storck
Saturday, November 8, 2008With the help of IMMLY's press release, Green Bay's Press Gazette has published an article about the effect of MI Prop 1 on Wisconsin and other Midwest states. The Associated Press also picked up the article and it also appeared in the Capital Times, Chicago Tribune online, along with dozens of other sources, according to Google News, making reader's aware of the existence of Michigan's new law and the potential impact on their state or our state.
Source: Green Bay Press Gazette click here
Pubdate: 8 November 2998
Author: Malavika JagannathanMEDICAL MARIJUANA LAW'S PASSAGE ENCOURAGES ADVOCATES IN WISCONSINProposition OK'd Tuesday in Michigan
People who support using marijuana for medical purposes in Wisconsin hope a Michigan proposition could have a ripple effect in the Badger state.
On Election Day, a two-thirds majority in Michigan voted for the proposition, which would allow people with serious or terminal illnesses to use marijuana if certified by a doctor. The law allows patients to possess 2½ ounces of marijuana; they would receive a state ID card.
The law only recognizes patients with identification cards or their equivalent given out by states that also allow medical marijuana.
It's legal according to Michigan law, but federal law still prohibits the drug, even for medicinal purposes. In 2005, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that state laws allowing the use don't provide immunity from federal prosecution.
"The federal government has been hostile to these laws," said Bruce Mirken, communications director for the Marijuana Policy Project, a Washington, D.C.-based group that lobbied for the Michigan law. "But a quarter of the country now allows it."
Twelve other states and Michigan allow severely ill patients to use marijuana in their treatment.
Gary Storck, director of a nonprofit lobbying organization called Madison NORML, said he thinks the Great Lakes states would take their cue from Michigan especially because of the 2-to-1 margin of support at the polls.
(snip) Contnues: click here
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Here is the Associated Press version in the Chicago Tribune:Sou
