Medical marijuana legislation passes Minnesota Senate

I applaud the Minnesota Senate for listening to reason and truth. Marijuana is safer than Tylenol and less addictive than caffeine. Its medical uses are myriad – it even kills cancer cells! It is completely absurd that this valuable herbal medicine was ever made illegal in the first place. I pray daily for the legalization of cannabis for both medical and industrial uses. I understand that there are some problems with marijuana abuse in our country, but IMO these are a symptom of prohibition rather than an intrinsic problem with marijuana itself. HOORAY FOR THE MINNESOTA SENATORS who voted to legalize medical marijuana today. THANK YOU!

I am so tired of republican scare tactics. Weren’t they supposed to be for less government control? What the H?

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

Then why is tobacco legal, or alcohol? Look at the statistics and you will see that people who use these substances are several times more likely to use a drug like cocaine. Is there something about tobacco or alcohol that makes people want to use the hard stuff? Or does using these substances just serve as an indicator that someone is more likely than people who don’t use them to be the type drawn to using intoxicants?

If we were really smart we’d just legalize pot and regulate it like alcohol. Cigarettes are legal yet the number of smokers keeps decreasing. We’re not sending a message that they are good or safe by keeping them illegal. One of the many big problems with keeping pot illegal is that the same people that sell it often also sell other far more dangerous drugs, especially when it comes to Mexican organized crime, who according to the government bring in and distribute about 90% of the cocaine and more than 80% of the meth and heroin consumed in this country. They make most of their money from pot, because Americans consume many thousands of tons of that every year compared to only a few hundred tons combined of cocaine, meth and heroin. They piggy back these other drugs in on top of the marijuana and send it all through the same channels so that pot smokers are far more likely than people that do not smoke it to be exposed to these drugs.

If it was sold from licensed shops like liquor stores pot smokers would get far less exposure to drugs like cocaine. The shops would be no more likely to sell these drugs than liquor stores and people that use these drugs would be less likely to offer to share these drugs with pot smokers because they would no longer be fellow illegal drug users unlikely to say anything about illegal drug use. Teens would still get pot, like they get their beer, but that would be preferable to having them buy it from drug dealers who will offer them much worse drugs. That’s what we are faced with today. Marijuana is everywhere and it’s usually cheaper than beer on a per use basis, and the people that sell it are often offering their customers other far more dangerous drugs.

We’re doing more harm than good keeping it illegal. We need to just regulate production and sales of pot. People obviously going to do it anyway whether it’s legal or not, for medicinal purposes or just for the heck of it. Over 100 million Americans have done it. More than half of all American adults under 60 have done it. This is one battle we’ve already lost and it makes no sense to keep fighting it. We aren’t stopping a thing. We’re just creating more problems. It’s pointless and counterproductive to continue to blow a fortune trying in vain to keep up the ban on marijuana.

[...] is a link to the Minnesota Independent’s coverage of this [...]

Julie Rosen is a bad person for saying what she said. She has no idea what marijuana can do as a medicine unless she is a scientist that studies it profusely or has used it medically…. I don’t believe she has done either otherwise she wouldn’t be such an ignorant right wing idiot.

Send Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont a copy of Reefer Madness and let her go… Until your next election. She can be removed from office, and “That’s a fact.”

Organizations that have recognized marijuana’s medical uses include the American College of Physicians, American Nurses Association, American Public Health Association, American Academy of HIV Medicine and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, among others.

making marijuana legal would put people out of work, police, prison staff, drug cartel members, lawyers, judges, politicians and the be afraid be afraid talking heads on tv and radio.

As someone who qualifies under this proposed law, I certainly hope political aspirations can be put aside and the real issue debated. Marijuana use is already widespread in America. This law does nothing to change issues of public policy (such as impaired driving or smoking bans in public places.) If you have a conversation with a person who is sick or dying and would benefit from this law, you might be hard-pressed to look them in the eye and say, “tough it out, buddy.”

I am hoping Tim Pawlenty can cast aside his national aspirations for a moment and actually help sick and dying people. (Timmy, it’s called doing the right thing.) For a man of “God” it seems like this would be an obvious choice to help alleviate human pain and suffering.

Instead of wasting cart loads of money on the already failed war on drugs, why can’t we alleviate our ailing economy by simply putting an age restriction on marijuana and taxing it? People who do not wish to buy the crop could purchase a permit to grow it themselves. If marijuana was regulated, not only would there be less exposure to people through drug dealer’s offers, there would be no risk of drug dealers lacing the marijuana with more dangerous drugs such as PCP.

Allowing Marijuana to be grown by farmers would also boost the economy in many ways. Marijuana is not only a medicine, but also posses the strongest fibers in the plant kingdom. Marijuana can be used in various ways such as making paper, building materials and even in biomass to generate fuel and electricity. Stoners aren’t the stupid ones, it’s the politicians with their corporate greed and sheisty agendas who really need to look at them selves and get “above the influence” of money and bonuses.

Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, said: “Marijuana is not an herbal medicine. It is a gateway to drugs. I don’t even know why we are debating this!”

This is a cry for help from Sen. Julie. She has nothing left to say…no argument against it and it shows that they are running out of excuses. Sure, many things can be classified as a “gate-way”, but we are not responsible for what people decide to do when they come to that “gate”. I’m perfectly happy with MJ and have no desire to move on to HARD narcotics. Come on medical marijuana!….it is just one step closer to recreational smoking

The Republicans are such a global embarrassment I am so glad they are on the way out. People are simply smarter than they used to be albeit not much.

Y’know, the last 4 lines really piss me off. Marijuana is only a gateway drug because the only access anyone has to it is through DRUG dealers. If u spend enough time around drugs, eventually you will start buying them. It’s almost a guarantee that if marijuana was sold in controlled situations, the whole “gateway drug” idea would evaporate. That’s a fact.

Unlike those on the other side of this debate, Sen. Julie Rosen provided no evidence to back up her claims. I’m not referring to the skewed statistics the Gov’t uses (many states automatically enroll those arrested for pot into drug cessation classes – then use this number to justify the gargantuan totals they cling to).
Apparently Sen. Rosen hasn’t done enough research or shaken enough hands to have met a person with an ‘addictive personality’; as a politician that could be damaging later, right!?! The folks that make the jump from smokes to booze to weed and finally to the REAL hard drugs WOULD HAVE GOTTEN THERE EVENTUALLY.
We’ve all heard of severe alcoholics or inmates drinking rubbing alcohol or hand sanitizer in a feeble attempt to catch a buzz… Yup… the same people.

Or it’s the fact that hemp can be synthesized into all manor of textiles (hemp seed oil has better lubricating attributes than motor oil, or as was mentioned above, the fibers are stronger than cotton; and due to the source – IT’S BIODEGRADABLE) or the politicians that oppose this idea are accepting hush money from the various industries that lobbied to have it prohibited in the first place (bank on the latter!)

Why not consider ALCOHOL the ‘gateway’ drug (myth), or tobacco? Kids see their parents and friends of their parents drinking, and they mimic their parents. Then they smoke cannabis (’marijuana’ is a foreign word that has no proper place in the English language. We’re not speaking Mexican Spanish so we don’t use the word ‘marijuana,’ we use it’s English counterpart: cannabis) and they realize their own government has been lying to them, then they figure “well, if they were lying about weed, they’re probably lying about everything else too.”

Not to mention the FACT that before it was outlawed federally in 1937, it was one of the top three medicines prescribed by doctors: http://s269.photobucket.com/albums/jj48/phillydrifter/drugs/cannabis/Bottles/

It’s drug PROHIBITION that causes crime, just like we saw from alcohol prohibition. It removes taxability and puts the product on the street where dealers don’t card their customers, and are armed and ready to protect their product and profits.

YES marijuana has a very purposeful medical use!!! YES. It is NOT a gateway drug at all, it creates a peaceful, calm environment. It helps responsible adults relax and sleep better.

If you believe in legalizing medical marijuana in your state, PLEASE join your local Norml chapter, even if it legal, join and keep your voices heard to legalize and keep it legal!

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

What about the people who use tobacco and marijuana responsibly? They outnumber, far and wide, those that end up in drug treatment centers.

Funny how not one person (American) has agreed with the decisions the republicans are taking on this issue. Wake the f*ck up people. We are putting people in prison, with rapists, murders and child molesters for planting a seed? The war on marijuana is not a war because it is dangerous. It is a war fueled by corporations who stand to lose alot of money if hemp is decriminalized. Why dont we wake the f*ck up and realize that this is the single most ignorant thing we can be doing as a government. Legalize it, tax it, regulate it. Quit being a bunch of f*cking morons. Quit worrying about your political career. Soon all of the old ass people who support you and your war on drugs will be dead and then we will smoke your ass. Wake up and smell the gange.

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.” LOL

“Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, said: “Marijuana is not an herbal medicine. It is a gateway to drugs. I don’t even know why we are debating this!”
She said her visits to drug treatment centers demonstrated that.
“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.””

It’s amazing that such ignorance is still present in this day and age. You’d think with all the hard scientific evidence against pot being a gateway drug and being addictive, such stupidity would be relinquished.

>>Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, said, “These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

So I guess that means she’ll sponsor legislation to make tobacco illegal, right? I mean, if she’s so concerned with the children and whatnot.

Watching the legislators opine as to why this is a bad idea was interesting. More than one of them asked the question: “Why isn’t this approved and regulated by the Feds so that state lawmakers are not in this awkward position of trying to determine what is medicine?” I can’t say I agree with any of the reasoning brought forth by the opponents as to why this law shouldn’t pass, but I completely agree with them that the Federal stance must change and allow full research and a regulated way to make sure the people that need medical marijuana can get it. America needs to get its head out of the sand and let science do its thing.

Ya know, I might be daft, but how is keeping marijuana (or cannabis) illegal keeping it out of the hands of kids? I couldn’t buy alcohol or cigs when I was 12, but sure as hell could buy a joint.

Here’s a clue for the idiots who keep saying “protect the children”… DRUG DEALERS DON’T CARD!

They don’t care who they sell to. They just sell. If it were regulated, the “dealers” (storeowners) wouldn’t sell it without carding because they would be more afraid of losing their legitimate businesses. Drug dealers don’t have a legitimate business to lose, so they don’t follow the prohibitions that are already there.

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”
So, obviously, Rosen thinks that pot is a gateway drug? Because that quote right there just throws that out the window. So I guess that means tobacco is just a substance?

My theory for pot being a “gateway drug” is this:
When you go to your dealer to buy pot, this dealer normally has some other kind of drug on them. Nine times out of ten, he’ll ask you if you want some. With that exposure to it, it’s much easier to give in. BUT, if marijuana were legalized and sold just as alcohol and tobacco, people buying pot would never ever have that exposure to other drugs.

You cannot use treatment centers as a source. These centers are filled with marijuana patients for the simple fact that a judge gave them a chance of jail or treatment. Obviously these kids are going to take treatment over jail. Also, marijuana has been proven to have more medical uses than any other perscription drug on the market. I have done tons of reasearch on this because i have now done 5 paper and 3 speachs at UW Stout and my teachers all let me repeat that every single teacher has agreed with me. HMMM, easy decision from my point of view.

I guess if the only place you interface with drug users is in hospitals, then you might think pot is dangerous, just like if the only place you see the drinkers of the world is in court on manslaughter charges, you might think all consumption of alcohol is evil. Similarly, if you were a cop and needed to bust someone, would you rather bust a pothead or a drunk? If you were a prison guard, would you rather have a prison full of pot heads? or psychotic murderers?

The only available logic to maintaining the criminalization of pot, and other drugs of entertainment is simply that there is a large and substantial industry vested in profiting from its illegality. From cops to lawyers ( prosecuting and defense) to judges, to bailiffs, to security guards at the court house, not to mention swat teams DEA talking heads and all the cottage industry growers and distributors involved, and one can just imagine how many people would ave to find other work if pot were decriminalized.

Follow the money associated with the illegality of drugs, and you will find the real reason it remains taboo. That the laws against drugs cause far more devastation than any of the drugs themselves is testimony to the cynicsm the anti drug lobby cultivates to maintain their slef interested money supply.

So am I to suppose that the 11 or 13 states that have implemented a medical marijuana bill are just a bunch no brainers who did not do THEIR research. If state official want to protect the children..raise the consensual sex age to at least 17. Protect the children by enforcing tougher laws on drunk driving. Never really heard of a child getting killed by someone smoking marijuana, though I am sure there has been the rarity. Alcohol has been the contributing factor in how many deaths? I traveled to California and Montana where medical marijuana is in use. I even qualified for it, had I stayed. I met quite a few people who where prescribed marijuana and they were not “gatewayers” nor where they a threat to society nor doing anything illegal with it because they did not want to lose it.

Gov Pawlenty needs to understand that the plant is what God gave us to use and has been around forever with a very good record of being much less evil as many of the synthetic drugs big pharm produces.

Synthetic drugs are not always the answer and can cause more harm then good.

The gateway to other drugs is laughable to say the least.
Gee, that would make 60% of all americans out of control drug addicts as that is how many has tried it. Oh the HUMANITY !

What about teenagers stealing drugs out of their parents medicine cabinets that are far more dangerous then pot ?

My sister in-law is suffering from cancer and cannot eat unless she takes an addicting benzodiazepine which she’ll need to take every day in order to acquire much needed nutrition as nothing else helps.

Benzodiazepine’s are one the most difficult drugs to quit much more so then heroin or crack!

My sister passed away from cancer and was struggling for nutrition as Marinol and other meds didn’t work. . She needed MANY benzo’s daily as after awhile one builds up tolerance thus everything becomes worse. If she survived she would had been in hell trying to get off the poison. I miss her so very much as she was my only sister and needn’t suffer as much as she did.

I myself have chronic insomnia were I cannot fall asleep AT ALL 24/7 w/out a bloody synthetic benzo or hypnotic. I’ve been juggling these horrid drugs and suffering w/the side effects which are making my life more miserable.

I pray Pawlenty will WAKE UP !
Must we wait for he or someone he love’s to go through this hell ?

http://www.benzo.org.uk/

PS) I’m planning on moving to California where I can get the help I need .
Mn won’t be getting any more of my tax dollars .. Who else would like to follow ?

It’s amazing that anyone in their right mind would go against a substance that is proven to provide a medicinal benefit of the people. It is a sad day when those who would otherwise prescribe to be educated blindly accept hearsay and refuse to educate themselves as times change.

I wish all those in Minnesota the best of wishes in their fight to use Cannabis, a substance that less then 100 years ago was healing and is so in the states where Cannabis has been legalized again, no thanks to the federal government.

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

Would that not make tobacco the gateway drug?

I don’t know about you people, but where I come from plenty of Republicans smoke pot… Not that I’m a right-winter. I’m Libertarian and hope to move to Minnesota for graduate school. I hope to God that someday soon this originally racist law will be repealed, and that the nation can reap the environmental, social and economic benefits of this blessed plant.

Oh, and Sam Mac… Thank God there are intelligent people in this world! This is the exact logic I use in my pro-marijuana arguments.

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

This is ridiculous. From personal experience, most people who regularly use marijuana don’t use other drugs. I smoked reefer before I ever picked up cigarettes (which I quit) and I have absolutely NO desire to do cocaine, meth, heroin or anything else. Smoking pot is relaxing. Why would smoking pot make me want to snort coke? They are two totally different things. Not even comparable. The whole “gateway” thing is bullshit. It’s not like people get marijuana withdrawals and decide to shoot up heroin. Let’s be serious.

If the police want to really crack down on teenage drug use, they need to look into stopping prescription drug abuse. That’s the real problem. Do they not get that kids aren’t even smoking weed anymore? I mean, why would they when they can fake having ADHD and get Adderall with little to no effort or sneak into mom’s room and steal the Vicodins or Percocets she has left over from whatever. Doctor’s practically HAND OUT prescriptions for the littlest aches and pains or the slightest hint of personality disorders. Don’t you find it odd that these people are raking in millions off of diseases they’ve probably made up to sell you drugs? Less harmful than an asprin, marijuana is a huge threat to these people. Relieving nausea, aches and pains, stress, and benefiting cancer patients is all too much for one “miracle plant”. Why use one, NATURAL ingredient, when we can mix a bunch of chemicals and whatnot to make drugs that are not only addictive, but often times have side effects worse than the problem you started with?

The drug companies don’t want pot legalized because they’d lose a ton of money. The small town police don’t want it legal because they won’t have anything to do anymore.

I hear the same arguments over and over again, and you’re 100% right, but you Americans never do anything about it. Not that us Canadians are much better, but you have the power to vote and change these things, rather then just complaining. If everyone who felt this way were to vote to change it we wouldn’t have this enormous problem. This legalization of cannabis has an endless list of benefits for society, and all it needs is a little political will.

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

sounds like tobacco is the gateway drug for those souls, then.

wow, some of you people just have your head up your ass. i started smoking weed before i even thought about ciggarettes. when i got put on probation for smoking weed, i started drinking because i couldnt smoke. you cant say weed is bad because an everyday stoner is always questioned on how much money they spend on pot. there are people doing alot more drugs that are alot worse. why is alcohol legal when you can die from the withdrawls? why are cigarettes legal when they are harder to quit than meth? why is marijuana illegal when you have to smoke more than your body weight to overdose and its impossible to smoke that much that fast. rethink what you say before you say it. weed makes the world a better place and makes people get along alot smoother. just pass it and get off your up-tight high horse and quit complaining because youre missing out on something fun.

[...] [From Minnesota Independent: News. Politics. Media. » Medical marijuana legislation passes Minnesota Sena...] [...]

Every argument in favor of legalizing cannabis has been said in the comment section already so I dont have much to add except that, as an educated “pot head”, I am down right proud how eloquent and informed everyone who has commented has been so far. That’s all.

What people (read: republicans) don’t seem to realise when they claim “Marijuana is a gateway drug”, is that, if marijuana is made legal, people will no longer consort with drug dealers. Drug dealers who expose people to harsher and more dangerous drugs.

That is how marijuana becomes a “gateway” drug, because you have to walk through the drug dealers gateway to purchase it. The drug dealer usually also sells other drugs. If it is legal, and you can walk to your local store and purchase it, you are probably 100 times less likely to even run into a drug dealer, and you won’t be exposed to the more dangerous drugs out there.

But of course this fact involves using your God-given brain. Something most republicans are obviously incapable of.

I agree one hundred percent with Chris this is not about a dangerous drug its about big business and there republican lackeys who push there agenda for money in there Swiss bank accounts.God republicans make me so sick I wish they could just be freed of there obsession with controlling things its a serious joke anymore and thank god every one is starting to see the Republican closet Nazis for what they really are a bunch of money grubbing cowards who destroyed the world economy and now us pot heads have finally got a chance to save the world AMEN

well you gotta admire the arguements for prohibition i mean yeah cannabis is a gateway drug “tobacco,pot,cocaine,meth” oh wait pot wasnt the first thing on that list another drug was anyone thinking that maybe tobacco is a so called gateway drug now? hmmmm kinda makes you think? im not in favor of all drugs i do believe that alcohol and cigarettes are far more dangerous to everyone including kids but to argue that prohibition is a good thing is seriously far fetched i say we ban chocolate its a gate way food product to obesity [with that in mind i got 4kg of dairy milk and a tax free way of making serious money, lol ] the world is in favour of prohibition i say have all drugs and addictive – mind altering substances prohibited ill list a few just off the top of my head: 1st cigarettes, alcohol,caffeine,all E numbers, McDonalds, KFC, burger king, pizza hut, chuckie cheese, dairy queen……. the list could go on and on but eventually we would be left with a bland and regimental diet with alot of deaths due to lack of control of any product sound kinda familiar well maybe its a better idea to scrap prohibition and gain back a little control [its only an idea?]

Heres Julia Rosens email address.

Be nice and let her know what you think.

sen.julie.rosen@senate.mn

I wonder how much revenue could be raised from legalising Cannabis. I know everyone is feeling this resession in the U.S as much we are over here in the United Kingdom.

If it was legalised there would be Billions made in revenue, and Billions saved from not having to arrest and imprision decent citizens. And with lots of available weed everyone would be happier.

Time to take some lessons from the Dutch. Drugs are not regarded as a political or criminal issue but treated as a social issue, with people themselves being able to decide what they want. I think its a pretty shocking state of affairs when we are “FORCED” by legislation and law to be able to decide these things for ourselves.

OOPs I mean’t.

I think its a pretty shocking state of affairs when we are “FORCED” by legislation and law NOT to be able to decide these things for ourselves.

Just to add to this, we have recently seen Cannabis regraded in the United Kingdom from a Class C to a Class B Drug. Basically that means its gone from one law enforcement wouldn’t do anything about other than confiscate it, unless they thought you were dealing. To one that carries prison sentences and criminal records even for personal use. We had months of BS TV programs about Cannabis Psycosis and other scare mongering to the none educated about it being 20 times stronger than it used to be etc etc. We went right back to the days of Reefer Madness. Then a change in the law.

We all know theres more to all this than it being banned because its used as a drug. Cannabis / Hemp is really an amazing plant and could certainly effect profits of other industries. Industries that hold a lot of political power.

My favorite arguments to hear are the ones stated by these old republicans who have NO respect for the scientific method. Studies abound detailing the facts about cannabis and its uses. Evidence shows that cannabis is not/does not : Cause brain damage, addictive, lead to other drug usage, carcinogenic, but I digress… Science is in OUR favor and all that’s left for these outdated fools is scare tactics and banter of “facts” from the age when studies were done incorrectly to give politicians the outcomes they desire. When last I checked, no government which the people put in place can make the people bow to it. I will keep doing with my body as I see fit regardless of what ANY entity tries to tell me, and it is wrong for anyone to believe they can have authority over another when it comes to matters of personal choice.

I’m so tired of ignorance holding leadership positions in this country. I’d like to ask Republican Julie Rosen one question, “Are you so unsure of your parenting skills that you truly believe your children will become addicts?” Millions of people drink alcohol on a daily basis, are they all alcoholics? Then again, why am I surprised, these conservatives think Earth is only 6000 years old.

“Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, said: “Marijuana is not an herbal medicine. It is a gateway to drugs. I don’t even know why we are debating this!””

“She said her visits to drug treatment centers demonstrated that.”

““These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.””

- Wait Wait, Cigs, to weed, to coke, to meth, OK so which one of these as listed first in the list is a gateway drug, and legal? And where do booze fit into all this? I think you can ask any Coke or meth head commited enough too be in treatment which drug they are there too really deal with, the first two drugs, or weed, and I think you will have a very simple and straightforward answer. It’s not ganja. Legalize it!

by that rationale, breakfast cereal is a gateway drug. every meth head has used it!

julie rosen might want to spend a little less time in drug treatment centers and more time googling “post hoc ergo propter hoc”

The only times I have ever done cocaine I have been shitwasted off of alcohol. Any time I have been offered it after smoking budd, I’ve turned it down. Republicans should calm the hell down with the “gateway drug” schpeel, it’s getting old and it’s untrue. If a person has the predisposition to try drugs, they’re going to, regardless of the illegality of it or what they try first. Nobody’s gonna stop people from smoking weed, so why doesn’t the government just let it go? The government could even tax it and make money off of it (read: us), which our leaders seem to love to do.

It is a proven fact that alcohol and nicotine kill more people in this country than any other drug in this nation, directly kills to be clear. Indirectly many more people lose their lives. I would like you to treat nicotine, alcohol and shoot even caffeine for that matter the same way you do marijuana or vice versa. You can make the argument that marijuana is a gateway drug and you have probably convinced yourself of your argument but the people you serve are much smarter than the old 1950’s rhetoric. The truth is that marijuana has not been the direct cause of someone overdosing or dying. It is just as safe as Tylenol and much safer then aspirin. Do the research you will see.

Also if you are trying to protect the “kids” then you argument about keeping it illegal is a false argument because today it is much easier for the average 8th grader to get marijuana then it is for them to get alcohol. Hmm makes sense considering that alcohol is taxed and regulated and you must show an ID to purchase it. I don’t know too many drug dealers who ask kids for identification.

Last but most certainly the most important is QUIT WASTING TAX DOLLARS! This so called war on drugs has gone on for far too long and has cost the taxpayers billions. Eighty percent of all people in prison are non-violent offenders in for drug charges. If they are non-violent then they pose no threat directly but I bet when they leave prison they will be violent. So just do the right thing and give people their medicine or for Pete’s sake come up with a better argument then “gateway” drug. http://www.campaignforliberty.com

The only time I have every done coke was when my marijuana dealer had some and offered it to me. Had marijuana been legal I probably would have never even seen cocaine. I’m so happy my state’s legislators are passing this. It a shame that our dumbass Governor is going to veto it. We can only hope that we get a new governor soon who wont veto this common sense bill!

[Sen. Julie Rosen, R-Fairmont, said: “Marijuana is not an herbal medicine. It is a gateway to drugs. I don’t even know why we are debating this!”]

Sounds like a D.A.R.E teacher. Get your facts right you nut job.

Sen Julie Rosen needs to smoke a fatty and get some wisdom.

the pawlenty test :
will he prove to be a compassionate christian or just looking out for himself ?

sen julie rosen must be googling florrie fisher (the real jerri blank..thanks amy).
http://www.boingboing.net/2009/04/23/florrie-fisher-in-th.html

btw: Marijuana May Slow Alzheimer’s
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/10/06/health/webmd/main2072101.shtml

ok first of all how can people say that marijuana is a gateway drug there is no proven evidence that it leads to people trying other things. in fact most people dont even start with it they start with something like tobacco or alcohol so if anything THOSE are the gateway drugs blaim them. and second of all it is indeed a medicine it helps with tons of different diseases like arthritis, parkinsons, and muscular diseases as well, not to mention morning sickness, anorexia, and depression

saying it is a gateway drug is like saying a shop display window is a gateway to shoplifting. shall we ban shop displays?

Such nonsense from these silly people… if everyone who tried tobacco went to pot, then coke and meth, wouldn’t many, many more people be meth addicts? Wouldn’t anybody who tried pot end up as a meth addict as well? I’m sick of illogical debating from these change-fearing types.

I want to add that Cannabis Marijuana CLOSES THE GATEWAY TO DRUGS!
The DRUG dealers in our society are DOCTORS who prescribe DANGEROUS PILLS for profit. The more sick people, and the sicker the are, the more pills Doctor Drug dealer can prescribe to KEEP THEM SICK. Marijuana eliminates pharmaceutical company profits and necessity.

The Big Pharma lobby is probably the cock Tim Palenty and these other republicans are sucking, when they come out with their dumb ass talking points.

Do they really want to protect children, or profits? EVIL FOOLS!

see how the women says:
These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact
SO BANN TOBACCO IF YOU WONT LEGALIZE WEED!.

“These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.”

Is that why I tinkered with anything that didn’t need a needle to use about… Oh, let’s call it 20 years ago now… and today, I use – almost exclusively – tobacco (1.5-2 packs a day) and cannabis (If I’ve got a steady supply and the free time, I’ll usually smoke about 1.5-2 ounces a month)

The “almost” is my very occasional 3-4 shot-equivalents of Jack Daniel’s (I’ve got a half full pint bottle of Jack Daniel’s sitting here on the desk – six months after buying it) or a beer or two. (The last six-pack of my favorite beer I bought still has two bottles in it – almost 8 months after buying it)

Been a tobacco smoker since young – at first “second-hand”, then in my teens, picking it up outright. I’m stuck with that habit. And it sucks. Don’t tell me about “then quit” – I’ve had rabid former smokers by me butts when I try to quit – Quite bluntly, I’m not fit for human contact without nicotine.

I was close to 18 when I first tried cannabis. I found that I liked it very much. I also found that it took the edge off my ADHD symptoms. And it didn’t make the bugs start coming out of the walls like the ritalin did. Since those days, if somebody wants to hand me a bowl or a joint, I won’t refuse. At the same time, I can and have quit smoking it after an extended period – literally years – of “ounce-or-two a month” smoking without feeling the slightest ill effect beyond “Sure would be nice to have a toke or two right about now.”

Coke – Tried that. Made my nose numb and runny. Didn’t impress me as being something I’d be willing to spend money on. Additional drawback: I get what I refer to as the “?-caine sizzle” – Any “caine” drug, from procaine, to xylocaine, to cocaine, and every other variant-caine I’ve encountered, gives me the same unpleasant sensation that I can best describe as “my skin sizzles”. Not like it’s actually frying – it doesn’t feel “hot”. But trying to describe it is difficult. Somehow, the sensation “matches” with the sizzling sound of frying bacon. I might try it again, if somebody else was buying, but it’s unlikely in the extreme that I’d willingly pay for it.

Meth – Cooked up a batch (also probably 20 years ago now) under the supervision of a well-on-the-way to being certified organic chemist. Eh… I wasn’t much impressed by the stuff. The reaction worked (We had access to facilities to verify it – purity was close to 98%) the leftovers got properly disposed, nobody was hurt, blown up, burnt down, or contaminated, and I let the supervisor take the rest of the batch without ever asking what he intended to do with it. Would I cook it up again? Nah, it’s been too long for me to remember the details right, and frankly, I don’t have enough interest to do it. Would I buy it? Again, no. Would I use it if supplied? Probably not unless I was in a “doing a touch of speed might help me survive” situation (which is about as likely as me deciding that stepping out a 10th story window would be a good idea)

Heroin? Various other opiates? Let me make something really clear: Needle drugs, unless being administered by doctor/nurse/nurse’s aide, etc under proper clinical conditions, are just plain not on the menu for me. Period. Just don’t even waste your effort trying to go there. I simply cannot do the “street-needle” thing. I can be tapped for blood or have an IV done under proper aseptic technique using gear I’ve seen come out of its individual “Sterility guaranteed unless…” package. But come at me with a needle that I don’t “My eyes saw it” *KNOW* is clean, and there’s likely to be casualties…

Other opiates – I broke 6 ribs in an accident last year just about this time. Doc kept me on IV pain drugs for three days, then wrote me scripts for a total of 70 Oxycontin and 180 Oxycodone.
I can account for each and every one of them – I obsessed over NOT getting hooked on them, diligently logging each one taken, and a rating of the pain at the time I took it. Got more than half of the “refill” script of the Oxycodones left. If/when I get hurt again, I may well eat one of those to hold me over until a doc sees me, but otherwise, they’ll sit here in their airtight package in the back corner of the freezer.

Hallucinigenics – LSD and shrooms – Been there, done that, don’t think I’m interested in doing it again anytime soon. It was fun “back in the day”, but these days, it just doesn’t seem too inviting.

To be perfectly honest, I’d just as soon kick back with a bowl of cannabis and a tall glass of milk. On the other hand, if I don’t have any to smoke… So what? In the future, when I get handed some more, I’ll smoke it. Until then, I’ll survive just fine without it.

If that’s addiction, I guess I’m addicted. Addicted or not, I’m a productive member of society, making a decent, if not spectacular, living, harming nobody (at least, not knowingly causing harm). I may not be living a “Bill Gates” lifestyle, but I’m also not “tapping the public teat”, and I have the majority of what I want out of life.

For my lone data point, Legalize it.

pot is not and never has been a gateway drug. its the people choice to do other drugs. if you blame pot for other drug addicts than you should say alcohol is a gateway drug or tylonal. i thought this country was done putting blame on things and the people in it would take resposability for there actions. apparently not. WWII started by putting the blame on someone besides ourselves and it was a pointless war. how can we sit back and not allow the one thing we know has medical use not be legall. and i dont care either way i will go down fighting! all you people see is the words that come out of dope addicts and crack heads. if it were them saying that they didnt hit some kid on the side of the road when they were cracked out would you belive them probly not so why belive them now?

What is this “war on drugs” thing supposed to achieve?

Weed is available and reasonably priced because it’s in demand and does no harm.

The WOD just seems to randomly attack users and deny sick folk a palliative. It does this while allowing criminal organizations to make cash off of the “criminal” dividend.

I am heartily sick of these know nothing politicians trying to score votes off of “hard nosed drug attitudes.

Surely there is a majority amongst American voters that is either pro marijuana decriminalization or at worst neutral about it. That being the case how come these ignorant bigots get elected?

Marijuana hasn’t harmed anybody. I speak as a user of over 40 years. I have my own engineering business employing over 420 people, I have a family, I am a respected community member and I am a criminal because I get high. Go figure.

let me get this straight… she said pot was a gateway drug, but then went on to say “These addicted people went from tobacco to pot to cocaine to meth. That’s a fact.” wouldnt that just make tobacco the gateway drug? wouldnt that make pot a drug on the path rather than the beginning of the end like everyone claims that it is?