cannabisnews.com: Pot, Politics and Inhumanity Pot, Politics and Inhumanity Posted by CN Staff on May 18, 2007 at 05:46:19 PT Editorial Source: Quad-City Times Springfield -- Illinois lawmakers missed an opportunity that just might have prolonged, and perhaps saved, the lives of some seriously ill citizens. Instead, the state Senate's failure to legalize the use of medical marijuana did just the opposite, dashing the hopes of some terminally and seriously ill, their families and friends. We had hoped lawmakers would at last abandon the hollow law-and-order, anti-drug political arguments of opponents, especially after the Senate Public Heallth Committee approved SB650. The bill would have protected from arrest seriously ill pateitns who use medical marijuana on their doctor's recommendation. Under the bill, patients or their primary caregivers could legally possess up to 12 marijuana plants and 2.5 ounces of usable marijuana If approved, Illinois would have joined 13 enlightened states who put preserving public health before scoring political points. Courts, then, can continue to sentence to jail the very ill who use medical marijuana to improve their quality of life or to prolong it. What a pity we can't sentence the 22 senators who voted against medical marijuana to spend even a day in the wheelchair of AIDS patient, vomiting life-saving medications because of nausea. Or maybe they could walk a few milels in the shoes of Gretchen Steele, the Coulterville nurse who has multiple sclerosis. She told lawmakers last month, "I can tell you from firsthand experience that marijuana works better to control the spasticity, neuropathic pain, and tremors than do any of the myriad prescription medications that I currently take. The fact that it is perfectly legal for my doctors to prescribe morphine, OxyCodone, diazepam, hydrocodone, and other drugs that are not only highly addictive but have many unpleasant side effects, yet it remains illegal to recommend marijuana, is beyond reasoning." Funny isn't it, that so many senators are so absolutely sure she and other sufferers, and their doctors, don't know what they're talking about.Source: Quad-City Times (IA)Published: May 18, 2007Copyright: 2007 Quad-City TimesContact: opinions qctimes.comWebsite: http://www.qctimes.comRelated Articles: Medical Marijuana Bill Fails State Senate http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22964.shtmlWill Third Time Be The Charm for MMJ Effort?http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22958.shtmlWill Our Leaders Be Dopes?http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22943.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #16 posted by potpal on May 18, 2007 at 18:19:06 PT New Headline If you're going for an aliteration, allow me to stretch the headline to include, Pot, Police, Politics, Profits, Inhumanity [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by mayan on May 18, 2007 at 16:56:04 PT Inhumanity The fact that it is perfectly legal for my doctors to prescribe morphine, OxyCodone, diazepam, hydrocodone, and other drugs that are not only highly addictive but have many unpleasant side effects, yet it remains illegal to recommend marijuana, is beyond reasoning.Facts,logic and reasoning get in the way of making insane profits. The greedy fascists will put profits over people every time. THE WAY OUT IS THE WAY IN...NY Times Attempts To Debunk 9/11 Truth; Fails Miserably: http://infowars.net/articles/may2007/170507NYT_fails.htmNine Eleven: Official Fraud Demolished: http://www.etherzone.com/2007/stang051807.shtml9/11 Survivor Questions Official Story on Local Fox News (w/video): http://911blogger.com/node/8679Alex Jones Announces Loose Change Role: http://www.prisonplanet.com/articles/may2007/180507loosechangefcut.htmVancouver 9/11 Truth Conference - June 22-24: http://www.v911truth.org/conference2007.html9/11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB - OUR NATION IS IN PERIL: http://www.911sharethetruth.com/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by Dr Ganj on May 18, 2007 at 15:50:49 PT Hemp Biodiesel From: http://www.goldstreamgazette.com/May 16 2007 B.C. briefs Even before significant increases in temperature, climate change is starting to prompt shifts in B.C. agriculture. Increased interest in carbon-neutral fuel sources has put the focus on ethanol and biodiesel options for farmland. One of the crops that has popped up around B.C. is industrial hemp, a fast-growing plant that produces vegetable oil as well as tough fibre used in rope and textiles. A 110-acre hemp crop was planted in the 100 Mile House area in 2006. The agriculture ministry says smaller hemp plantings have been done in Smithers, West Moberly near Fort St. John and on Vancouver Island. B.C. Agriculture Minister Pat Bell said the 100 Mile House pilot project is being increased to 200 acres this year, to get to a volume where processing facilities could use it to produce fibre and potentially ethanol. B.C. is following the lead of Manitoba, which has 28,000 acres in hemp, and Saskatchewan with 14,000 acres in cultivation. A fuel with greater potential is biodiesel, which can be used full-strength in conventional diesel engines. It can be made from recycled restaurant cooking oil, or from oilseeds such as canola. The province provided $75,000 for a feasibility study of a biodiesel production plant in the Peace region, where most of B.C.’s 45,000 tonnes of canola is grown each year. The study found that production, along with 11,000 tonnes from Alberta, would feed a “best-size” biodiesel plant producing 22.7 million litres of the fuel per year. “We wanted to see if biodiesel production was a viable option for Peace canola growers, and it looks like it is,” said Irmi Critcher, president of the B.C. Grain Producers Association, which conducted the study. Ethanol in Canada is mainly produced today from feed grain. Husky Energy has plants in Saskatchewan and Manitoba. Both provinces have mandated ethanol use in gasoline. An unmodified engine can use gasoline with up to 10 per cent ethanol, which is marketed by Husky and Mohawk gas stations as a cleaner fuel with lower greenhouse gas emissions. Husky also has a refinery at Prince George, and Bell said the company is studying the addition of an ethanol plant that would take advantage of waste heat from the petroleum side. If built, it would use grain shipped by rail from Peace River farms, and possibly winter wheat, a crop being tested in the Vanderhoof area. Bell recently returned from a meeting of North American agriculture ministers in Mexico, where growing crops for energy production was a hot topic. It was there he heard about a commercial-scale ethanol plant being built in the southeastern U.S. that uses cellulose. Such technology could use waste wood or other plant fibre, and its potential for B.C. deserves further study, he said. http://www.goldstreamgazette.com/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by dongenero on May 18, 2007 at 14:49:42 PT Thanks GCW I am glad to see that op/ed getting some traction!It is reasonable, well written and succinct.I believe you have to take these politicians to task as much as possible when they show poor judgment.If they don't respond favorably, you then vote them out. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by The GCW on May 18, 2007 at 14:19:37 PT dongenero ALSO AT:US IL: Editorial: Pot, Politics And InhumanityPubdate: Fri, 18 May 2007Source: Dispatch, The (Moline, IL)http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n613/a11.html?397 [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by Storm Crow on May 18, 2007 at 13:20:52 PT "Marijuna Moms" article http://www.kpho.com/news/13347274/detail.html?rss=pho&psp=news"PHOENIX -- So much for a glass of wine at night. A shocking number of Valley moms admit they use marijuana to wind down after a long day.Shay Pausa surveyed hundreds of mothers through her Web site, Chikii.com. She targeted women in affluent suburban areas."These were middle to upper-middle class women, professional women, mommies. We had some that were members of the PTA and one school teacher even reported," Pausa said."(Snipped)It seems that over 1/2 of the moms say they have used cannabis 10 times during the past year. 27% use it weekly or more often. [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by museman on May 18, 2007 at 11:08:45 PT another OT: sharing info This is not for everyone -though it should be. The website is a little intimidating, but the material, especially what is contained within the first book 'Fossilized Customs' is I think exemplary. My wife bought several copies so we could loan them out to people. I am about halfway through, and find much vindication for my ideology, knowledge, and beliefs. So if you think I'm some kind of 'spiritual nut' then don't bother. If you want some actual research backing up the conclusions that I have consistently made, this book is packed full. One can find some real clear answers to why things are happening the way they are.Have a good weekend everybody. http://www.fossilizedcustoms.com/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by freewillks on May 18, 2007 at 10:18:58 PT OT: Jericho Jericho is one of the best shows to grace network TV in a long time. I, like many of the dedicated fans of Jericho am trying to let CBS know that they made a poor decision. If you feel like I do, please take the time to visit www.jericholives.com and se how you can help. I wonder what CBS will do with all the nuts they are getting http://www.jericholives.com [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by FoM on May 18, 2007 at 10:07:51 PT dongenero You're welcome. I hope you have a nice weekend too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by dongenero on May 18, 2007 at 09:05:20 PT FoM Ooo, thanks FoM! Have a nice weekend. [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by ekim on May 18, 2007 at 08:57:45 PT God-- please help us URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v07/n615/a05.html Newshawk: Kirk Votes: 0 Webpage: http://www.clarionledger.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070516/OPINION/705160306 Pubdate: Wed, 16 May 2007 Source: Clarion-Ledger, The (Jackson, MS) Copyright: 2007 The Clarion-Ledger Contact: http://www.clarionledger.com/news/about/letters.html Website: http://www.clarionledger.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/805 Author: Lovisa Stannow and Kathy Hall-MartinezA DEVASTATING LINK: PRISONER RAPE, THE WAR ON DRUGS IN THE U.S. LOS ANGELES -- The enormous financial and moral costs of the U.S. "war on drugs" have been well-documented over the past few years. Less known is the devastating link between that crusade and the epidemic of rape behind bars. With laws requiring longer sentences for drug offenses and less judicial discretion for leniency, the war on drugs has had a profound impact - just not the impact that was intended. Instead of resolving the problems of drug use and drug addiction, these policies have resulted in a mushrooming of the inmate population, which in turn has contributed to the problem of rampant sexual abuse in prisons and jails. Of the 2.3 million people behind bars in the United States today, more than 500,000 are incarcerated on drug charges alone, with hundreds of thousands more imprisoned on drug-motivated crimes, such as property offenses and public order violations. snippedhttp://leap.cc/Events/ May 20 07 NYC AIDS Walk 08:30 AM Jeff Kaufman New York City New York USA http://aidswalk.net/newyork/index.html May 20 07 Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Galveston County 10:00 AM Dean Becker Galveston Texas USA 502 Church Street, Galveston, TX [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on May 18, 2007 at 08:51:54 PT dongenero Here it is.http://qconline.com/archives/qco/display.php?id=338770 [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by dongenero on May 18, 2007 at 08:47:26 PT Quad City Times I have been looking for the above article at the QC Times website and can't seem to find it.I often follow the links on key articles to be sure the source gets hits on the article, and to look for comment sections. I don't know where this article is buried but, I sure can't find it! [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by FoM on May 18, 2007 at 08:30:27 PT Hope I agree. I have a lot of pent up anger and I know in my heart so do others. I am fed up with games. Games are for fun. This is for real. [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Hope on May 18, 2007 at 07:55:25 PT The light and fire of Truth. Lots of good articles today. Wonderful. The light and fire of published truth is growing. Feed the fire! [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by FoM on May 18, 2007 at 07:34:59 PT News Article from Salem-News.com Michigan Cop Busted in Marijuana Brownie Overdose Call to 911 Avoids Charges (AUDIO/VIDEO)May 18, 2007http://www.salem-news.com/articles/may182007/cop_brownies_51807.php [ Post Comment ] Post Comment