cannabisnews.com: Medical Marijuana Pondered in Jersey Medical Marijuana Pondered in Jersey Posted by CN Staff on December 14, 2008 at 06:24:39 PT By Susan K. Livio, Star-Ledger Source: Star-Ledger New Jersey -- Three years after it was introduced in the Legislature, the proposal to legalize marijuana for medical use in New Jersey gets its first test in a Senate committee tomorrow in what is expected to be a contentious process that will spill into an election year. New Jersey would become the 14th state to create a sanctioned medical marijuana program, although the upcoming vote in the Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens Committee is just the first step. The prime Senate sponsor of the bill (A804/S119) said he feels confident. "This is groundbreaking stuff, and I'm excited about the prospect of taking the next step," Sen. Nicholas Scutari (D-Union) said. The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act would require the state Department of Health and Senior Services to evaluate requests from physicians who recommend marijuana to their patients to help alleviate a "debilitating medical condition," defined as cancer, glaucoma, HIV and AIDS, or chronic illnesses that cause "wasting syndrome, severe or chronic pain, seizures and severe and persistent muscle spasms." Patients the health department deems worthy would receive a state identification card verifying their enrollment. Patients, and their primary caretakers who do not have a history of drug convictions, "shall not be subject to arrest, prosecution or penalty" provided they possess the card and no more than six marijuana plants and 1 ounce of "usable marijuana." Opponents refuse to concede medical marijuana has wide support anywhere -- in the Legislature or among the public. They intend to argue lawmakers ought to be concerned from a consumer standpoint. "Legislators, out of the goodness of their hearts, listen to these people," said David Evans, an attorney and executive director of the Drug Free Schools Coalition, a national group. "But many people don't look beyond the compassion argument." The bill up for a vote tomorrow has been changed to reflect concerns about how patients would legally obtain the drug, which would remain an illegal substance in all other circumstances. The bill allows the state health department to license "medical marijuana alternative treatment centers," a new entity that would cultivate and deliver the drug to participating patients, according to the amendment. Snipped Complete Article: http://drugsense.org/url/YsGRQ9avSource: Star-Ledger (Newark, NJ)Author: Susan K. Livio, Star-Ledger Published: Sunday, December 14, 2008Copyright: 2008 Newark Morning Ledger Co.Contact: eletters starledger.comWebsite: http://www.nj.com/starledger/CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #37 posted by FoM on December 15, 2008 at 12:12:55 PT fight_4_freedom All good things come to those that wait. We are winning. Sometimes people get way to anxious and miss the joy of small victories. [ Post Comment ] Comment #36 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 15, 2008 at 12:02:59 PT Right on FoM City by City...State by State...Change is happening right before our eyes.Ooooh it's amazing! (with the blink of an eye, you can finally see the light) [ Post Comment ] Comment #35 posted by FoM on December 15, 2008 at 11:54:54 PT fight_4_freedom As long as we keep putting one foot in front of the other we will win. [ Post Comment ] Comment #34 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 15, 2008 at 11:43:35 PT Alright NJ!!!!!!!!! Way to go guys and gals!!!! Congrats Richard and Charmed!!! [ Post Comment ] Comment #33 posted by FoM on December 15, 2008 at 11:40:08 PT Here's Some Good News Medical Marijuana Bill Clears Senate Committeehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread24370.shtml [ Post Comment ] Comment #32 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 15, 2008 at 11:38:56 PT The Michigan Medical Marijuana Association has their website up and it is now fully functioning correctly. Only up for a few days and the forums are already pretty active. Check it out.http://www.michiganmedicalmarijuana.org/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #31 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 15, 2008 at 11:27:48 PT I haven't heard anything yet I'm sure there will be audio or video available shortly. I plan on checking youtube in a little bit. I'm sure there will be some kind of news by the end of the day. [ Post Comment ] Comment #30 posted by Hope on December 15, 2008 at 11:20:07 PT Fight_4_Freedom I can't get it to play even though it's apparently already over. Says I don't have plugins and won't get them. Aaargh.Anyone heard what happened? [ Post Comment ] Comment #29 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 15, 2008 at 06:56:59 PT Anybody able to hear this hearing? http://www.njleg.state.nj.us/media/live_audio.aspIt's a half hour past the 9:30 start, but I'm not able to hear anything.Am I the only one? [ Post Comment ] Comment #28 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 15, 2008 at 06:47:33 PT Good Luck to All You Patients and Activists in New Jersey. This is your time to shine. Be brave and be bold.Thank You Richard Zuckerman and Charmed Quark for standing up and fighting back. I hope you have a successful hearing today.I'll be listening.ONE LOVE [ Post Comment ] Comment #27 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 21:26:42 PT Excerpt from Delawareonline.com Deadly war against drugs isn't worth the human costhttp://bit.ly/lejoWe should immediately decriminalize marijuana, which certainly has not killed as many people as cigarettes. Marijuana should be handled just like cigarettes are now, with restrictions to protect children, with an appropriate tax perhaps on both the state and federal level, and with a publicity campaign similar to Surgeon General C.Everett Koop's highly successful campaign against cigarettes.If that step works, as it certainly will, we should move on to stronger drugs, cocaine and heroin included. Perhaps we can follow Switzerland's excellent example of providing drugs through prescription for incurable addicts, with the administration of the drugs taking place in a doctor's office, one group after another. It works there; it will work here. The money for the gangs will be cut off, and our drug problem will shrink to the 1920s model of perhaps only a few hundred thousand addicts, receiving free treatment at a tiny fraction of the cost of the failed "Drug War."Tell your legislators to support this. It is more important than that earmark they are trying to slip into the Budget Bill, and a chance to make a valid reputation for themselves and their State. [ Post Comment ] Comment #26 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 20:47:37 PT This is good. DEADLY WAR AGAINST DRUGS ISN'T WORTH THE HUMAN COST by Edmund N. Carpenter II http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v08/n1124/a04.html?397I don't always do searches on authors, but for some reason, I did, on Mr. Carpenter. http://www.innsofcourt.org/Content/Default.aspx?Id=344 [ Post Comment ] Comment #25 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 18:49:29 PT Richard Good luck to you tomorrow! [ Post Comment ] Comment #24 posted by The GCW on December 14, 2008 at 17:20:38 PT Richard Zuckerman, Keep Us informed. [ Post Comment ] Comment #23 posted by mykeyb420 on December 14, 2008 at 17:15:09 PT comment #1 to clairify my earlier post,,,it was not the DEA ,,,it was SFPD that raided Hope Net last night,,,protest tomorrow at hall of (in)Justice 850 Bryant Street, [ Post Comment ] Comment #22 posted by Richard Zuckerman on December 14, 2008 at 17:01:35 PT: I PLAN TO BE THERE TOMORROW, TOO!! I plan to leave bright and early, ingest an energy drink, and be there at the State House, Trenton, New Jersey, bright and early for the 9:30 A.M. State Senate Health and Senior Services Committee!!! [ Post Comment ] Comment #21 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 15:31:20 PT Hope He was quick! I feel sorry for him. I am not angry with him. I always believed he was a puppet on a string and got blamed for everything. [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 15:22:29 PT I'm impressed at our President's ability to duck a surprise shoe suddenly flying through the air. [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 15:18:04 PT Hope There is a lot to do. I was really interested in watching the documentary on FDR last night. The Depression was horrible. The War was horrible. He did things wrong but he did many things right. Our country is in bad shape again and President Obama will do some things right and some things wrong. I'm glad he will be in charge during these perilous times. [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 15:01:55 PT fight_4_freedom I saw that on the news. I feel sorry for the person who threw them at the President in Iraq no less. [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 14:52:09 PT Over at ChangeGov I've been reading the Agenda. It's very interesting. There's a lot to do.http://change.gov/agenda/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by fight_4_freedom on December 14, 2008 at 14:50:13 PT Ok, I don't know about you, but this made me laugh uncontrollably. Sorry if this offends anyone. He deserves it though. "The Shoe Attack on President Bush"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g3NaIumIe2Q [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 14:50:00 PT Hope Thank you. I believe what I said with my whole heart too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 14:47:00 PT That's beautiful, Martha. And so sweet, right, and true. Wise, too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 14:42:33 PT Hope Misery loves company. I could spend my time complaining about anything or everything or I can spend time being content with my lot in life. We make that choice and no one should ever try to take another persons joy away. I could write lots of things that would bring everyone down that reads this forum but why would I want to take joy away from those who are happy? That is selfish behavior and doesn't make the road of life any easier for anyone. [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 14:40:06 PT "...they feel so trapped" And scared, perhaps.After all, they don't really believe that much in the God they profess and what they really have is belief in their own self righteousness and superiority and right to govern others. Anyone should know that that small god of personal self righteousness has serious feet of clay. [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 14:34:22 PT Exactly. And exactly like the guy I was telling you about that said to me, "Why should you be happy? No one else is." [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 13:29:36 PT Hope Many fundamentalist christians gave up many things in life to be one of them. They are jealous and judgemental. It's almost like the story of the prodigal son. The one son took his inheritance and blew it and the other son did things right. When the party was ordered for the returning prodigal son it made the other son angry. So many hate the freedom of others since they are so uptight about everything. They don't want people to have fun because they feel so trapped. [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 13:22:18 PT I agree, FoM. Today's Christians disappoint me. They have so much information. So much knowledge is at their fingertips. They all have Bibles or have access to them. They mostly know how to read. Don't they know how to think? Don't they know how to understand? They like to say they are Christians but they don't seem to know much about or understand much about the teachings of the man they know as Christ. They claim to believe that crucified teacher is the Christ and they claim to worship him. But, as foretold, only with their lips. Their actions are far removed from the Gospel they claim to hold dearly.They want political power over others. They see political power and they want it. They lust after and covet it. They want to bring overbearing power down on others. They do not consider others equal human beings in any way... not even in the eyes of their God, which, in their case, is their own Self-Righteousness. They pervert "Love" to "Tough Love" (Oh yeah! A better idea than their Christ had!), which gives them license to feel they have a duty to abuse and steal the freedom that Christ bought for others. They claim to serve him while denying his teachings. That's does not jive with true Christian, basic and deep, principles. Of so many things, maybe of all things, it's outrageous that they believe themselves to be super godly in some way by judging that another man or woman cannot consume a plant or concoction of his or her own choosing.I'm really disappointed. Not all Christians are bent that way, of course, but too many are, and too little seems to be done within the organized circles of religion, about correcting it. They've grown content and useless as far as being actually able to pursue and achieve understanding of what they like to think is important to them. What is really important to them though, whether they see it or not, is not Christ, but domination of others.Very disappointing in this day and age. Very disappointing. [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 12:02:03 PT Hope I believe when fundamentalist christians get involved in an issue like marijuana it just doesn't help. That is why I won't consider the Republican Party because they have allowed fundamentalists too much power. They want to control anything they think is a vice. [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 11:55:57 PT This is a very good article at Stop The Drug War about the Netherlands and the coffee shops and what's really going on, apparently.http://bit.ly/aiFV [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 11:47:23 PT UN Drug Czar Embarrassed at Cannabis Question. http://bit.ly/nC0R [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by FoM on December 14, 2008 at 11:30:11 PT Related Article From The Associated Press NJ Lawmakers To Discuss Medical Marijuana BillDecember 14, 2008Trenton, NJ -- New Jersey's legislature is considering a proposal to legalize marijuana for medical use in New Jersey.The Senate Health, Human Services and Senior Citizens committee was scheduled to take up the issue Monday.The bill's primary sponsor is Union County Democrat Sen. Nicholas Scutari, who told the Star-Ledger of Newark that he thinks the legislation is groundbreaking.The proposal would make New Jersey the 14th state to sanction marijuana for medical uses.It would require state health officials to approve case-by-case requests from doctors who recommend marijuana for patients with debilitating medical conditions. Approved patients would then be given a state ID card verifying their enrollment in the program.The proposal could face a lengthy approval fight. Copyright: 2008 The Associated Presshttp://wcbstv.com/topstories/Medical.Marijuana.trenton.2.887093.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 10:32:02 PT Comment 1 Oh no.When a government seizes citizen's property ... they are doing some kind of major "taxation without representation" thing, for sure, to say the least. Government agents actually linger, lay in wait, and watch, in some cases for extended periods of time, so that they can strike at a time when they might get the most from their heist.In all truth, no matter what their excuse, that government is essentially robbing the citizens, because they can, and they can get away with it. Maybe not forever, though. [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by Hope on December 14, 2008 at 10:21:55 PT What "Reality" do they live in? "Opponents refuse to concede medical marijuana has wide support anywhere -- in the Legislature or among the public".Prohibitionist La La Land? "La La La, I can't hear you. I can't see you. La La la." How can they not know in this day and age? [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Vincent on December 14, 2008 at 09:42:48 PT: New Jersey Medical Marijuana The article clearly states: "Opponents refuse to concede medical marijuana has wide support anywhere -- in the Legislature or among the public".So, what do you expect from these anti-marijuana knuckleheads? Intelligence? [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by mykeyb420 on December 14, 2008 at 09:02:48 PT NEWS FLASH raid in SF The Hope Net pot club in San Fran got raided last night. No arrest, just confiscated meds and $$$$$$$$ ( lots of $$$$$$$ ) [ Post Comment ] Post Comment