Friends,
With every passing week of sensational medical marijuana news in Montana, I become more and more impatient. In fact, sometimes I wonder if medical marijuana is dangerous.
No, not clinically dangerous — it’s one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to humankind, and effective at treating the symptoms of a broad array of medical conditions.
But here are four questions to consider:
- Will the ~20,000 registered Montana patients continue to care about the efforts of NORML and other organizations attempting to remove the threat of arrest for all cannabis consumers? After all, they have their card now; mission accomplished, right?
- As Montana and other states further refine their medical marijuana laws to be morestrictly regulated as a medicine, do our efforts to re-legalize marijuana as a personal social/spiritual/recreational herb become further marginalized?
- Will the rhetoric of “medicine for the sick and dying”, combined with the thousands of grinning green-carded 20-somethings poison the well for additional reform? Will the mockery of both law and medicine be too much for the public, and push reform backwards years or even decades?
- Will the approval of Sativex(TM) in the UK begin additional calls for the repeal of medical marijuana laws in the US? After all, if a whole-cannabis medicine was available through the Official Medical System, why do we need mite-infested, chemical-dripping, electrical-hazard “grow operations” in residential neighborhoods?
If my concerns are warranted, then it seems to me we should be pressing for re-legalization hard, fast, and strong, right now, before it’s too late. If cannabis becomes over-medicalized, the rest of us who are sufficiently healthy and honest will be left out in the cold, as criminals, as we have been for far too long.
Maybe I’m blowing this out of proportion. Feel feel to reply and let me know what you think, or leave a comment on the blog. I’d like to hear your opinion.
In any event, here’s the news:
Montana Marijuana News
- Opinion: Facts show marijuana benefits outweigh costs
- Medical marijuana dispensary open Monday in Eureka (compliant with local regulations)
- Shakeup at Montana Caregivers Network (aka Cannabis Caravans)
- Evidence that Montana dispensaries are selling black-market cannabis
- Representative proposes bill to change medical marijuana laws
- Montana state committee publishes report on likely changes to medical marijuana law
- Legislative panel offers ideas to change medical marijuana law
- Montana GOP opposes health reform, urges amending or repealing medical marijuana
- Medical marijuana becomes issue in child custody fights
- Businesses advised they do not need to tolerate medical marijuana at all
- Group sues Great Falls over medical marijuana ban
- Missoulian: Snuff out pot shops
- Great Falls: Growers Meeting Saturday 6/26
Marijuana News from Beyond Montana
- NASCAR cannabis policy sucks.
- Washington State Marijuana Legalization Effort Coming Down To The Wire
- Help Oregon Qualify An Important Medical Marijuana Initiative
- Give a few bucks to the California legalization effort, even if it’s not perfect.
- Ethan Nadelmann Destroys Bill O’Reilly in Drug War Debate
Thank you for your continued interest and advocacy. If our mission is important to you, you can become a Montana NORML member here.
You can get the free weekly Montana NORML Newsletter delivered to your inbox by subscribing here.
I hope everyone who wants to maintain their right to use medical marijuana as a more healthy alternative to pharmaceutical chemicals and drugs, will go to the web site of Montanans for Responsible Legislation, and will contribute any form of support to that organization as they are able to. The city of Great Falls is in violation against the constitutional rights of the Montana citizens who live within it’s city limits, and is not recognizing the jurisdiction of the states over and above Federal law. Montanans for Responsible Legislation has filed suit against Great Falls in order to right this wrong. Their web site: http://m4rl.net/contribute.html
I sense your discouragement John but don’t give up the fight! We are gaining momentum!
I am a green card holder and am at least twice 20 years old. More of my peers in the 40+ age range need to ‘come out of the closet’. That’s what needs to happen! Also, when MJ providers look like cheech and chong, instead of looking like business people, it sends the wrong message to the ‘reefer madness’ generation. We have to start trying to blend in and actually act like and look like normal businesspeople… I know, I know, beauty is only skin deep and all that jazz, but appearances seem to be what the whole world bases their judgements on, so we gotta play the game…. if ya wanna be important, ya gotta look important
I hope this does not happen. There are hundreds of people out there who can not take traditional medications as they have stoped working, and/or the side-effects from those drugs become a prevalent daily factor, not to mention allerigic reactions such as the medication actually creating more pain, psychotic episodes, or what have you, then lets not talk about the way prepared medicines actually break down organs, tissues, etc. What about those whose only work able option is medical marijuana? When they take that away – can you imagine going through life knowing there is absolutely nothing you can do about your condition, but drag yourself through the worst days to be what society deems productive, contributory and not just some whinner.