cannabisnews.com: Move Over, Mary Jane





Move Over, Mary Jane
Posted by CN Staff on February 22, 2005 at 08:01:08 PT
Editorial
Source: Daily Californian
Medicinal marijuana users are stuck between a rock and a hard place. They have documentation showing their stash is legal under state law, but the California Highway Patrol still confiscates it. A proper ID verification system will be up soon, but many won’t register because federal law still considers marijuana use a crime. Berkeley-based marijuana advocacy group Americans for Safe Access has now filed against the CHP. But asking for an injunction to stop seizures without probable cause will further violate federal law without giving them rights they deserve.
Currently, CHP policy is to confiscate anything they find regardless of prescription or ID, as there is no comprehensive system to distinguish between actual users and fakes. Virtually all cases that go to court return the goods to their owners, but they still have to endure having their property appropriated and the discomfort of forgoing treatment. Faced with bureaucracy and unnecessary trouble, it’s not surprising the plaintiffs aim for complete freedom. The state hopes to get an identification system up within a year, accessible to CHP officers at all times. This would eliminate the need to take first and ask questions later. The drawback? Marijuana possession is still a federal crime. Many feel putting their name on such a list is asking for trouble. Instead of providing relief, the system will make them sitting ducks when the FBI decides to issue one of its “crackdowns” on substance users. Until federal law changes, the best thing for medical marijuana users is to know their rights. Those comfortable with their cannabis’ legality voluntarily show officers their stash, but for the time being, they need to exercise their right to privacy, not to treatment. Unless they are pulled over for an offense like driving under the influence, officers have no right to search their car without permission. Possessing marijuana is still a federal offense; letting illegal users get away with abuse right under law enforcement’s nose makes a mockery of state law. Such a policy could bring the feds down upon all users’ heads, rather than just illegal ones. Until federal law becomes more amenable, medical users need to sit tight. Source: Daily Californian, The (CA Edu)Published: Tuesday, February 22, 2005Copyright: 2005 The Daily CalifornianContact: dailycal dailycal.orgWebsite: http://www.dailycal.org/Related Articles & Web Site:Americans For Safe Accesshttp://www.safeaccessnow.org/ Medical Marijuana ID Cards Cominghttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20254.shtmlState To Issue ID Cards To Medicinal Pot Users http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20247.shtmlGroup Sues State To Stop CHP Pot Confiscationshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread20245.shtml
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Comment #3 posted by ekim on February 22, 2005 at 09:25:07 PT
$3 billion in revenue each year. 
Canada: Liberals To Debate Legal, Taxable PotURL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v05/n300/a08.html
Newshawk: CMAP http://www.mapinc.org/cmap
 Votes: 0
Pubdate: Tue, 22 Feb 2005
Source: London Free Press (CN ON)
Copyright: 2005 The London Free Press a division of Sun Media Corporation.
Contact: letters lfpress.com
Website: http://www.lfpress.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/243
Author: Dan Dugas, Canadian Press
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mjcn.htm (Cannabis - Canada)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization)LIBERALS TO DEBATE LEGAL, TAXABLE POT OTTAWA -- Delegates to the Liberal party convention next month will debate a motion to legalize and tax marijuana sales, bringing in billions in new tax revenue. Parliament is already debating legislation to decriminalize marijuana, but a resolution by Alberta Liberals would go much further. It would tax the proceeds of legalized pot sales, which the resolution says would bring in $3 billion in revenue each year. "Legalizing marijuana would be a serious blow to drug dealers and organized crime financially," says the resolution for the March 5-6 gathering. Delegates are told part of the money could go to drug awareness. 
 
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on February 22, 2005 at 09:14:10 PT
Just My Thoughts
I think but don't know for sure that Angel's case will be ruled on soon. I'm very nervous.Excerpt from Article:The assisted suicide case is now the second before the high court in which the Bush administration is challenging West Coast voters on an issue of individual liberty and personal privacy.California's voters have approved a law that permits patients to use medical marijuana. The Bush administration appealed to the Supreme Court when the 9th Circuit ruled that federal agents may not raid the homes of patients who are growing marijuana for their own use.That case, Ashcroft vs. Raich, was heard in December. A decision is expected soon. Justices to Review Oregon's Right-to-Die Law:http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-022205scotus_lat,0,2140073.story?coll=la-home-headlines
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Comment #1 posted by ekim on February 22, 2005 at 08:47:35 PT
swift boat ad firm gets 10 million to run against 
aarp and push for SS reform. while cdc says the biggest threat to the world is the bird flu. Please AARP stop Cannabis Prohibition and save taxpayers Billions, support Sen. Durbins Med Cannabis bill.Most Older Americans Back Med PotWASHINGTON, Nov. 29, 2004(AP) Nearly three-fourths of older Americans support legalizing marijuana for medical use, according to a poll done for the nation's largest advocacy group for seniors. More than half of those questioned said they believe marijuana has medical benefits, while a larger majority agreed the drug is addictive. AARP, with 35 million members, says it has no political position on medical marijuana and that its local branches have not chosen sides in the scores of state ballot initiatives on the issue in recent elections. But with medical marijuana at the center of a Supreme Court case to be decided next year, and nearly a dozen states with medical marijuana laws on their books, AARP decided to study the issue. "The use of medical marijuana applies to many older Americans who may benefit from cannabis," said Ed Dwyer, an editor at AARP The Magazine, which will discuss medical marijuana in its March/April issue appearing in late January. Among the 1,706 adults polled in AARP's random telephone survey in November, opinions varied along regional and generational lines and among the 30 percent of respondents who said they have smoked pot. AARP members represented 37 percent of respondents. Overall, 72 percent of respondents agreed "adults should be allowed to legally use marijuana for medical purposes if a physician recommends it." Those in the Northeast (79 percent) and West (82 percent) were more receptive to the idea than in the Midwest (67 percent) and Southwest (65 percent). In Southern states, 70 percent agreed with the statement. Though 69 percent of those age 70 and older said they support legal medical marijuana use, less than half agreed it has medical benefits. Seventy percent of respondents age 45-49 said they believe in the medical benefits of pot, as did 59 percent of those in the 50-69 age group. And while 74 percent of all people surveyed said pot is addictive, older respondents were more likely to think so: 83 percent of those 70 and older, compared with 61 percent of those aged 45-49. Generational lines also divided those who have smoked pot: Just 8 percent of those 70 and older admitted having lit up, compared with 58 percent of the 45-49 group, 37 percent of those between 50 and 59 and 15 percent of the 60-69 set. National polls in recent years have found majority support for allowing the use of marijuana for medical purposes. Last month, the Supreme Court heard arguments over whether federal agents can pursue sick people who use homegrown marijuana with their doctors' permission and their states' approval. The Bush administration has argued that allowing medical marijuana in California would undermine federal drug control programs, and that pot grown for medical use could end up on the illegal market and cross state lines. The AARP poll of adults age 45 and older was conducted Nov. 10-21 by International Communications Research of Media, Pa. The margin of sampling error was plus or minus 2.5 percentage points. 
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