cannabisnews.com: New Jersey Likely Next To Legalize Med Marijuana
function share_this(num) {
 tit=encodeURIComponent('New Jersey Likely Next To Legalize Med Marijuana');
 url=encodeURIComponent('http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/25/thread25222.shtml');
 site = new Array(5);
 site[0]='http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[1]='http://www.stumbleupon.com/submit.php?url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[2]='http://digg.com/submit?topic=political_opinion&media=video&url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[3]='http://reddit.com/submit?url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 site[4]='http://del.icio.us/post?v=4&noui&jump=close&url='+url+'&title='+tit;
 window.open(site[num],'sharer','toolbar=0,status=0,width=620,height=500');
 return false;
}






New Jersey Likely Next To Legalize Med Marijuana
Posted by CN Staff on November 30, 2009 at 17:34:53 PT
By Suzanne Sataline
Source: Wall Street Journal 
N.J. -- New Jersey is poised to become the next state to allow residents to use marijuana, when recommended by a doctor, for relief from serious diseases and medical conditions. The state Senate has approved the bill and the state Assembly is expected to follow. The legislation would then head to the governor's office for his signature.Gov. Jon Corzine, the Democrat who lost his re-election bid this month, has indicated he would sign the bill if it reaches his desk before he leaves office in January. It would likely be one of Mr. Corzine's last acts before relinquishing the job to Republican Chris Christie.
Mr. Christie has indicated he would be supportive of such legislation, but had concerns that one draft of a bill he read didn't have enough restrictions, a spokeswoman said.The bill has been endorsed by the New Jersey Academy of Family Physicians and the New Jersey State Nurses Association.Some lawmakers oppose the legislation, saying they fear the proliferation of marijuana dispensaries, as in California, where medical marijuana is legal. "It sends a mixed message to our children if you can walk down the street and see pot shops," said Republican Assemblywoman Mary Pat Angelini.Federal law bars the use of marijuana. But legislatures in several states, including California, Colorado, Michigan, New Mexico, Rhode Island and Vermont, permit use of the drug for medical purposes. Attorney General Eric Holder said earlier this year that federal prosecutors wouldn't prosecute people complying with state medical marijuana laws.The New Jersey bill would allow people with debilitating medical conditions to grow, possess and use marijuana for personal use, provided that a physician allows it after completing a full assessment of the patient's history and condition. The conditions that are stipulated in the Senate bill include cancer, glaucoma and human immunodeficiency viruses.State Sen. Nicholas Scutari, a Democrat who has led the fight for the medical-marijuana bill, said that was not a final list. He said the Senate bill would have to be reconciled with whatever the Assembly might pass.Support for the legislation stems partly from sympathy for the plight of John Ray Wilson, a New Jersey resident who suffers from multiple sclerosis, an autoimmune disease that affects the central nervous system. Mr. Wilson is scheduled to go on trial in December on felony drug charges, including operating a drug-production facility and manufacturing drugs. State police said they found 17 mature marijuana plants growing alongside his home in 2008. He has pleaded not guilty.The Superior Court judge who will oversee the case has barred Mr. Wilson from explaining to the jury that he uses marijuana for his multiple sclerosis instead of more conventional medicines, which he said he can't afford, since he has no medical insurance.If convicted, Mr. Wilson faces up to 20 years in prison. "It definitely helps for pain," Mr. Wilson said. "Stress can bring MS on. And I'm definitely under some stress."David Wald, a spokesman for the state attorney general, which is arguing the state's position, said: "We're prosecuting the law."At least two lawmakers, including Mr. Scutari, have asked Mr. Corzine to pardon Mr. Wilson. "I think it's unfair," said Mr. Scutari. "To try to incarcerate him for years and years doesn't serve a good government function."The governor's office said it wouldn't comment on pardons involving an ongoing case.Mr. Wilson's case hasn't persuaded Ms. Angelini, who voted against it in the health committee. As the executive director of Prevention First, an antidrug and antiviolence nonprofit, she said she was concerned that the bill would open the door for more liberal drug policies."If the drug laws are lax," she said, "that can open it up to eventual drug legalization."Source: Wall Street Journal (US)Author: Suzanne SatalinePublished: December 1, 2009Copyright: 2009 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.Contact: wsj.ltrs wsj.comWebsite: http://www.wsj.com/URL: http://drugsense.org/url/15Tlu4X7CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help 
     
     
     
     




Comment #13 posted by rchandar on December 03, 2009 at 20:07:37 PT:
HempWorld
I, too, am a little taken by the statement. I guess that was something inculcated in me as a kid: if you don't like what we're showing you on TV, change the channel. If it isn't for you, no one's asking you to watch it."And I get the same sentiment when I read this. No one said, because there are MJ shops in your neighborhood, that you have to frequent them. No one's going to stop you from demonizing the hell out of 'em, and forswearing your kiddies to never associate with anyone who walks in and out of these places. The only thing we're actually ASKING for is a legitimate place where sick or injured people can seek medical treatment that works when pharmaceutical, synthetic medicines don't.Let me reiterate: NO ONE, from our side is being unfair to your family. We live in a big world, and unfortunately not everyone is just like you. It may be unthinkable at the moment, but then: why the hell should YOU be in charge of everything? Your life's not a good model for hundreds of millions of people, most of whom don't look like you, act like you, or think like you. We didn't ask for your consent, we only asked that consent could exist.A salient point I try to remember, in my offseason because I'm not teaching these days. In a class of 30, if even one student gets the point of what you're doing, then you've done your job. Just one. And that's all we would be asking for--that enough people support our cause for it to exist and prosper alongside the usual hostile institutions.--rchandar
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #12 posted by FoM on December 01, 2009 at 09:23:18 PT
Pa. Legislature’s First Medical Marijuana Debate
By John George,  Staff WriterDecember 1, 2009 
Pennsylvania is set to host what state officials are calling its first-ever hearing on a bill that would allow for the use of marijuana for medical reasons.The Pennsylvania House of Representatives Health and Human Services Committee will hold a public hearing on Wednesday to debate House bill 1393, also known as the “Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act.”The proposed legislation, introduced by state Rep. Mark B. Cohen, D- Philadelphia, chair of the House Democratic Caucus, would allow seriously ill patients to use medical marijuana without fear of arrest or jail if their doctor has recommended it. The measure would allow qualified patients who register with the state to grow six plants or purchase marijuana through compassion centers. Sales of medical marijuana could be taxed, according to the bill.The hearing begins at 11 a.m. in the majority caucus room at the Capitol Building in Harrisburg.Committee members, patients, medical experts and other advocates are scheduled to testify.Copyright: 2009 American City Business Journals, Inc.URL: http://philadelphia.bizjournals.com/philadelphia/blogs/health_care/2009/12/pa_legislatures_first_medical_marijuana_debate.html
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #11 posted by FoM on December 01, 2009 at 07:23:43 PT
The GCW
Thank you. I liked the song. Here's one I like.R.E.M. - It's The End Of The World As We Know It - And I Feel FineURL: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bmxyj6iInMc
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #10 posted by The GCW on November 30, 2009 at 22:17:44 PT
FoM,
I know You like horses.Here's 4 that I like a lot.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=selfqEH-JnY
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #9 posted by ekim on November 30, 2009 at 19:46:29 PT
heard that Larry King guest 
was Jessy Venture -- he will have his own show on cable
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #8 posted by ekim on November 30, 2009 at 19:20:35 PT
probation story 
http://www.drugwarrant.com/2009/11/the-bizarre-limbo-of-medical-marijuana/#comments
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #7 posted by FoM on November 30, 2009 at 19:04:42 PT
museman
Amen to that one brother! 
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #6 posted by museman on November 30, 2009 at 18:54:19 PT
Santa Claus
Talk about "mixed messages"!!
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #5 posted by runruff on November 30, 2009 at 18:45:19 PT
Running out of hot buttons!
Hot button talking points!Bumper sticker slogans!Catchy Public Service Spots [backfired].Reefer Madness has become a national joke.The kid card is about all they have left as a hot button issue however this is really stupid if you know the reals on herbs. I can tell by listening that they don't know what the heck they're talking about. I think [I know] they have their brainstorming sessions where they discuss the most strident and poignant talking points. Push the emotion button is how you get their attention! These gas bags have no shame, are sold out, Every other action in their lives indicate a complete callousness toward the plight of children from education to health-care. Children starve under their policies and fiscal choices. They are sociopaths or snakes in neckties.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #4 posted by The GCW on November 30, 2009 at 18:24:05 PT
IGNOIDS
The ignoids don't seem concerned about the message to the children when they attempt to cage a multiple sclerosis patients for 20 years for using what God indicates He created and said is good on the 1st page of the Bible.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #3 posted by The GCW on November 30, 2009 at 18:19:10 PT
Colorado's latest news
http://www.summitdaily.com/article/20091130/NEWS/911309995/1078&ParentProfile=1055Pot patients sue Centennial over closed dispensaryCENTENNIAL — A medical marijuana lawsuit in suburban Denver could test the limits of how far Colorado cities can go to stop pot shops.A dispensary and three patients sued the city of Centennial Monday after the town shut down a marijuana dispensary last month.Centennial originally gave CannaMart a business license but then forced the dispensary to close after about a month, saying town officials didn't know the business was selling pot.Kirsten Lamb, 41, one of the patients suing, said she has multiple sclerosis and can't find an alternative dispensary she likes as well.“They have always been there to take care of me, but now they're not there,” she said.
 Cont.The AP-0-A couple weeks ago, Rob Kampia said, reading the Denver Post is like reading High Times. That could also be said about the Summit Daily News. -From the high country.
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #2 posted by HempWorld on November 30, 2009 at 18:04:25 PT
"It sends a mixed message to our children if you
can walk down the street and see pot shops."Oh yeah? Because you, and republicans in general, refuse to own up to the truth! And with this sentence and line of thinking, you are still not being truthful. Does that not matter to the republicans, to be truthful? Is war mongering and fear mongering the only way you can get votes? What message does it send to 'the children' to have a drugstore on every corner in America and not to mention the liquor and tobacco stores, or is this suddenly not a 'mixed message'?!Who is going to take these stupid lying politicians to task? Certainly not the voters or the media!If you handcuff handicapped people over marijuana, not to mention quadriplegics? What message does that send to 'the children?'
[ Post Comment ]


Comment #1 posted by The GCW on November 30, 2009 at 18:02:37 PT
Thugs and wicked creatures.
"barred Mr. Wilson from explaining to the jury that he uses marijuana for his multiple sclerosis"One of the only things the thugs can do is suppress the people. And still the superplant is moving forward. What kind of human would work so hard to put a MS person in prison for using an herb?Proof there are wicked people.
[ Post Comment ]


Post Comment