cannabisnews.com: Lawmaker Addressing Medical Marijuana





Lawmaker Addressing Medical Marijuana
Posted by CN Staff on February 01, 2008 at 05:40:51 PT
By Helen Altonn
Source: Star-Bulletin
Hawaii -- Although marijuana for medical purposes is legal in Hawaii, patients authorized to use the plant are being hassled by law enforcement agencies and others, said Maui Rep. Joe Bertram III.The major problem is patient access to marijuana, a gray area in the seven-year-old law, Bertram (D, Makena-Kihei) said yesterday, announcing legislation to "tighten it up with better management."
One of his measures (House Bill 2678), being heard today by the House Health Committee, would authorize the state Department of Health to develop a secure growing facility on Maui for medical marijuana. A facilitator would make space available to patients or caregivers for a total of as many as 98 plants at one time.A second bill, HB 2675, would allow a qualified patient to use marijuana for medical purposes with written certification from another state instead of a certificate from Hawaii's Department of Public Safety.Keith Kamita, chief of the state Narcotics Enforcement Division, which administers the medical marijuana law, said a growing facility would violate federal law.Also, because the bill mandates the DOH to control the facility, he said in an interview, "Now it's a state agency sanctioning marijuana. Say there's a bad batch and people die or get sick, the state would be liable for distributing a contaminated product."Marijuana is still a Schedule 1 controlled substance, with no medical use allowed under federal law, and growers would have to obtain a research permit from the federal and state governments, he said.Kamita also noted that more marijuana is showing up in schools, possibly because of its use for medical patients. "Kids can go see Grandpa and go see a harvest. We've just got to be very careful with this."He said the problem with recognizing certification from another state for a person to use medical marijuana is that each state could have different qualifying conditions and rules.Twelve other states have legalized marijuana, he said. "Our main concern is the differences between those states and Hawaii. There would be no way for law enforcement to verify the validity of that certificate (from another state)."As of Wednesday, Kamita said, 4,047 Hawaii patients had received medical marijuana cards, and 368 caregivers and 124 physicians are participating in the program.Joining Bertram at a news conference at the Capitol were Alan Doherty, a Big Island disabled veteran; Joseph Rattner, diagnosed with HIV 15 years ago; and Brian Murphy, executive director, Maui County Citizens for Democracy in Action and Patients Without Time.Doherty, 84, said he comes to Honolulu at times for treatment at Tripler Army Medical Center and brought some marijuana with him on a recent trip because of pain in an injured foot.It was seized at the airport, and six months later Hawaii County prosecutors charged him with transporting a detrimental drug, he said. He received a six-month suspended sentence and is on probation, he said.He said the law restricts use of marijuana to a person's own house. "You can't take it or get it any place. I certainly hope that will be corrected so we can get our medical marijuana without all this hassle."He said county prosecutors and the police "ignore marijuana as a medicine. They consider it to be a detrimental drug. That is a bad misnomer."Rattner, president of West Hawaii Hope for a Cure Foundation, said growing marijuana "is a science in Hawaii," and a seriously ill person is not able to grow his own medicine.Source: Honolulu Star-Bulletin (HI)Author: Helen AltonnPublished: February 1, 2008Copyright: 2008 Honolulu Star-BulletinContact: letters starbulletin.comWebsite: http://www.starbulletin.com/CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #34 posted by Hope on February 02, 2008 at 09:29:24 PT
Great!
"There is an archive page. I will ask Spaceman to post us there."
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Comment #33 posted by Hope on February 02, 2008 at 09:28:19 PT
Archives were last updated 9/20 / 07
So I guess there wouldn't be any of your programs archived yet.You're amazing.
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Comment #32 posted by Hope on February 02, 2008 at 09:26:33 PT
Ok... I found the archives...
but I can't tell if they are you and Linda.
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Comment #31 posted by fight_4_freedom on February 02, 2008 at 09:26:27 PT:
Good Deal
I'll be sure to tune in next time. Circle Reading?? Is that like a psychic reading?Namaste!I just researched it, and like :)Have fun in the rain.
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Comment #30 posted by Hope on February 02, 2008 at 09:24:58 PT
Runruff
Don't let us miss it next week!Are there archives we can listen to?I'm so excited that you'll have this new venue.
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Comment #29 posted by runruff on February 02, 2008 at 09:08:03 PT:
Hi!
Yes that is Pacific time. I come on at about 8:30 to 8:45. I'm on for 30-40 minutes.Last night Mrs Runruff did her Light Circle reading at around 10:00pm PST. Gee, I forget about the time zones. There is an archive page. I will ask Spaceman to post us there.It has been raining for a week straight here. Suppose to rain for another week.Namaste
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Comment #28 posted by FoM on February 02, 2008 at 07:44:46 PT
runruff
I missed it. Could you post about the program a day early next week? I want to hear it. Is there an archive of your program?
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Comment #27 posted by fight_4_freedom on February 02, 2008 at 07:43:12 PT:
Newsom needs to stand up
Source: Bay Area Reporter (San Francisco, CA)
Copyright: 2008 The Bay Area ReporterPOT CLUB ADVOCATES ASSAIL SILENCE ON DEA TACTICSMedical cannabis advocates are stepping up pressure on San Francisco officials to denounce the federal Drug Enforcement Administration's latest tactic of targeting landlords who rent to pot clubs in their long-running dispute with California over the use of marijuana to treat health ailments."We are calling for people to stand up for safe access," said Shona Gochenaur, executive director of the local patient advocacy group Axis of Love and chair of the Harvey Milk LGBT Democratic Club's Cannabis Caucus. "This is a safe access emergency."Frustrated by the lack of response, medicinal marijuana supporters convinced local Democratic Party leaders to pass a resolution last week calling on Mayor Gavin Newsom and the Board of Supervisors to speak out against the DEA's decision to threaten property owners with asset forfeiture and imprisonment for leasing space to medical cannabis dispensaries.At its meeting Wednesday, January 23 the Democratic County Central Committee overwhelmingly adopted the resolution which called the DEA's tactics "aggressive, hard and unfair" and called on Congress to investigate the DEA's conduct. At its meeting the night before the Milk Club, which has 60 members who use medical marijuana, voted to endorse the resolution."I do not want to go out to 16th and Mission to get my medical marijuana. I urge you to do whatever you can to get the feds off our backs," said Karen Kircher, a Milk Club member and co-chair of the Women's Health Collective at Axis of Love.DCCC member Holli Their, who added her name as a co-sponsor of the resolution, said "to have Bush and the DEA and the feds come in to San Francisco we all know why they are doing it. They want to shut down the most progressive city in the nation and it is just disgusting."The resolution singled out Newsom and the Board of Supervisors, in particular, in asking them to follow the lead of Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums, who already has spoken out publicly against the DEA and its harassment of landlords. The resolution also requests that the city's state and federal representatives also take a public stance against the DEA. Activists held a rally at City Hall Tuesday urging the mayor and board members to take a stand against the DEA's "scare tactics."State Senator Carole Migden ( D-San Francisco ) introduced a resolution in Sacramento January 10 that asks Congress to enact legislation requiring the DEA and other federal agencies to respect the compassionate use laws of California and 11 other states.Medical cannabis activists argued last week that it is time for other San Francisco electeds to follow suit."We cannot make the DEA in San Francisco feel welcome and shut down our collectives. That is unacceptable," said Gochenaur. "We are going backwards in time by 30 years. And I don't want to go back 30 years."A spokesman for Newsom did not respond to a request for comment this week.Last December, Gochenaur said a group of 20 activists called on Newsom to recommit his support for San Francisco being a sanctuary city for medical cannabis and to include landlords under the sanctuary policy. Their pleas have gone unanswered, she said."He needs to protect the citizens of his city who have voted overwhelmingly over the last 30 years in support of medical cannabis. He needs to stand up for it just like he stood up for gay marriage and for illegal immigration," said Gochenaur. "My people are going to be pushed out onto the black market by their own government. That is unacceptable."As for the supervisors, Gochenaur said activists have been waiting for Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi to introduce a resolution similar to the one Migden put forth in the state Senate and the DCCC passed last week. She said it was unclear why the resolution had yet to be brought forward.Mirkarimi told the Bay Area Reporter this week that while the DEA's targeting of landlords "is reprehensible," the DCCC's action was "a serious misfire," since the board's passing a resolution would have little impact on changing DEA policies."We pass resolutions by the boat load. It is not as effective to pass another meaningless law unless the mayor is brought into line to compel our federal reps to represent our interests," he said. "Otherwise, it is just another resolution that nobody will take seriously."He suggested activists approach other supervisors and ask them to submit the resolution, which he said he would nonetheless support even though it would only be "symbolic.""If it comes before the board I am sure it will pass," he said. "It is a bet I will make. But we are dealing with a lot of other issues, too." 
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Comment #26 posted by fight_4_freedom on February 02, 2008 at 07:41:44 PT:
RunRuff
First off, that's pacific time right?Also, do you usually have a specific time during that show that you are on? Or does is vary every week?
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Comment #25 posted by runruff on February 01, 2008 at 22:39:29 PT:
Takilma FM Radio.
Hi everyone. Tonight and every Friday night me and Mrs. Runruff do a segment on the Spaceman Radio Show. I do characters, talk about the "Shadow War", cannabis prohibition. Mrs. Runruff does the "Light Circle Ezine", a reading.
It is coming across very nicely. I often mention C/news whenever I can.The Spaceman show from 8pm-12am on Fridays, talk and music.Tune in if you are interested.http://takilmafm.com/
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Comment #24 posted by runruff on February 01, 2008 at 20:36:56 PT:
OOPS!!!
I accidentally voted "yes" 4 times.Seems if I wait a while and check back it lets me vote again.I'm not suggesting.......
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Comment #23 posted by Storm Crow on February 01, 2008 at 16:43:31 PT
Latest on the poll
No- 2 %Medical only - 11%YES! - 86%Don't care - 1 %A little math for those of us who use medically, and perhaps the politicians will notice, too. 11% + 86% = 96% + 1 % who don't care= 97% What does that tell you? It speaks LOUD and CLEAR to me!
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Comment #22 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 14:55:11 PT
Had Enough 
They always called us Space Cadets and now that seems like a good thing!
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Comment #21 posted by Had Enough on February 01, 2008 at 14:36:21 PT
NASA Launching Beatles Tune Into Space
WASHINGTON (AP) - The Beatles are about to become radio stars in a whole new way. NASA on Monday will broadcast the Beatles' song "Across the Universe" across the galaxy to Polaris, the North Star. This first-ever beaming of a radio song by the space agency directly into deep space is nostalgia-driven. It celebrates the 40th anniversary of the song, the 45th anniversary of NASA's Deep Space Network, which communicates with its distant probes, and the 50th anniversary of NASA. "Send my love to the aliens," Paul McCartney told NASA through a Beatles historian. "All the best, Paul." The song, written by McCartney and John Lennon, may have a ticket to ride and will be flying at the speed of light. But it will take 431 years along a long and winding road to reach its final destination. That's because Polaris is 2.5 quadrillion miles away. NASA loaded an MP3 of the song, just under four minutes in its original version, and will transmit it digitally at 7 p.m. EST Monday from its giant antenna in Madrid, Spain. But if you wanted to hear it on Polaris, you would need an antenna and a receiver to convert it back to music, the same way people receive satellite television. The idea came from Martin Lewis, a Los Angeles-based Beatles historian, who then got permission from McCartney, Yoko Ono and the two companies that own the rights to Beatles' music. One of those companies, Apple, was happy to approve the idea because is "always looking for new markets," Lewis said.more…http://apnews.myway.com/article/20080201/D8UHK7PO0.html
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Comment #20 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 13:27:38 PT
Hope
When that happened to me I did a virus scan and had a virus. I checked the link again and the pop up was blocked. I use IE.
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Comment #19 posted by Hope on February 01, 2008 at 13:16:21 PT
Pop ups
They're back again when I rechecked the poll. Yes... pop ups are a problem and with all the blockers they aren't as hellacious as they used to be, but they're still and annoyance. Some of them you can x off but not this one and it's odd that it appears just as the poll appears and blocks most of it from view. Oh well. I managed to get in a yes vote. Not too many people voting though.
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 13:11:27 PT
Hope
Sometimes I get pop ups too but it is so much better then it was before pop up blockers. Pop Ups are so annoying.
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Comment #17 posted by Hope on February 01, 2008 at 12:56:28 PT
Strange about the pop ups
It's gone now. I checked everything and pop ups were supposed to be blocked... so I unblocked and reblocked them and they seem to be gone, now.I voted.
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Comment #16 posted by Hope on February 01, 2008 at 12:54:36 PT
Ok...
So, the Yes... is for legalization? I'll vote now. I cant' understand why I'm getting pop ups today. They are supposed to be blocked.Thanks.
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Comment #15 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 12:37:09 PT
Hope
So far 85% YesDo you think marijuana should be legalized in the United States? 
    
 No
 Yes, but only for medicinal purposes 
 Yes
 I don't care
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Comment #14 posted by RevRayGreen on February 01, 2008 at 12:12:00 PT
Time to get on the 'Pineapple Express'
4,047 Hawaii patients had received medical marijuana cards, and 368 caregivers and 124 :)
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Comment #13 posted by Hope on February 01, 2008 at 12:11:48 PT
There's a poll here...
http://www.star-telegram.com/388/story/436023.htmlbut, at least when my computer brings it up, the wording is obscured by some ads. I suspect the work of prohibitionist. I'd like to be able to see what it actually says before I vote on it. I can see the yes and no stuff... but not what it really says.
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 12:08:25 PT
dongenero
I guess since I've never listened to him I wouldn't know that it would make him angry. Some things I avoid for sanity sake. LOL!
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Comment #11 posted by dongenero on February 01, 2008 at 11:55:04 PT
Obama- Move on
That endorsement will drive the neo-conservative and Rush Limbaugh extremist Republicans wild with hate.
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 11:49:52 PT
Dankhank
I voted in that poll. I'm glad it came out the way I wanted.
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Comment #9 posted by Dankhank on February 01, 2008 at 11:39:14 PT
how 'bout this?
http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/02/01/moveon-endorses-obama/index.html?hp
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Comment #8 posted by tintala on February 01, 2008 at 10:46:28 PT:
GUESS OXYCONTIN AND MORHINE ARE SAFER THEN!?!?
Never has a person died from injesting cannabis, but pharmaceuticals? So they are basically saying that heroin and morphine are safer... I can't beleive the people IN ALL nations haven't protested the USA dictating world "prohibition"... I mean the world isnt that stupid and gullable? MOST people have rational thinking,and to not stop the drug war is as IRRATIONAL as can be..
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Comment #7 posted by dongenero on February 01, 2008 at 10:06:40 PT
comment 1# re: keith kamita NED
Say there's a bad batch and people die or get sick, the state would be liable for distributing a contaminated product."That is a ridiculous statement and proof of the need for prohibitionists to remain ignorant.How could the chief of the state's Narcotic Enforcement Division be SO uninformed. Kamita is flat out ignorant about that which should be his core competency.Mr.Kamita, you would have more risk of of someone getting sick or dying from a "bad batch" if your were handing out chocolate chip cookies!Death or sickness from cannabis is totally unprecedented in something like 10,000 years of medical use. 
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Comment #6 posted by Hope on February 01, 2008 at 09:53:36 PT
comment 4 
Forty years and ninety five million dollars in fines?Our justice system is completely insane, monstrous, and out of control.How can any rational, reasonable person not recognize that?This is such a dark period in the history of this country and the world. When will there be light?
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 09:41:56 PT
Hope
I believe the Washngton Times is working hard to stir up trouble. They are a right wing paper. I haven't seen anyone talk about this on Obama's blog. 
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Comment #4 posted by FoM on February 01, 2008 at 09:39:33 PT
News Article from KTVU.com
Owner Of Local Medical Pot Dispensaries Facing 40-Year Sentence February 1, 2008LOS ANGELES -- The owner of a chain of medical marijuana dispensaries is facing up to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to federal charges of distributing pot at his West Hollywood location.Larry Roger Kristich pleaded guilty Thursday and he will be sentenced April 21. Besides the prison sentence, he's facing up to $95 million in fines.The 64-year-old businessman owned the Oakland-based Compassionate Caregivers marijuana dispensaries in San Francisco, San Diego, Ukiah, Oakland, San Leandro, Bakersfield and West Hollywood.He pleaded guilty to knowingly operating the Yellow House dispensary on La Brea Avenue. A conspiracy count is expected to be dismissed at sentencing. Copyright 2008 by KTVU.comhttp://www.ktvu.com/news/15194883/detail.html
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Comment #3 posted by Hope on February 01, 2008 at 09:39:29 PT
Paul Armentano
Don't know whether to cuss or cry. I guess I'll do both.
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Comment #2 posted by paul armentano on February 01, 2008 at 09:19:03 PT
Obama retreats from decrim statements
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080201/NATION/43529865/1001When confronted with the statements on the video, Obama's campaign offered two explanations to The Times in less than 24 hours. At first, Obama spokesman Tommy Vietor said the candidate had "always" supported decriminalizing marijuana, suggesting that his 2004 statement was correct. Then after The Times posted copies of the video on its Web site, www.washingtontimes.com, yesterday, his campaign reversed course and declared he does not support eliminating criminal penalties for marijuana possession and use."If you're convicted of a crime, you should be punished, but that we are sending far too many first-time, nonviolent drug users to prison for very long periods of time, and that we should rethink those laws," Mr. Vietor said.The spokesman blamed confusion over the meaning of decriminalization for the conflicting answers.
http://www.washingtontimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080201/NATION/435298
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Comment #1 posted by Treeanna on February 01, 2008 at 07:29:48 PT
Bad batch?
"Say there's a bad batch and people die or get sick, the state would be liable for distributing a contaminated product."Is he planning on spraying it with paraquat?
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