ssj4jonathan
Well-Known Member
Appears Florida democrats are pushing a bill through the state capital that will mirror California's Medical Marijuana laws. They believe it will create millions in tax revenue and help ease the pain of chronically ill patients. Of course there is opposition on the other side, who label this type of legislation immoral. Anyways, if this bill gains a foothold, we Floridians will be voting for/against it by Nov, 2012.
One by one states are recognizing Cannabis' medical properties, sooner or later the FEDs will have to cave in once enough states join the MMJ movement: states will be able to ratify a constitutional amendment similar to the one that stopped alcohol prohibition. Hope this happens during my life time but only time will tell...
Here are some news articles:
One by one states are recognizing Cannabis' medical properties, sooner or later the FEDs will have to cave in once enough states join the MMJ movement: states will be able to ratify a constitutional amendment similar to the one that stopped alcohol prohibition. Hope this happens during my life time but only time will tell...
Here are some news articles:
http://www.cfnews13.com/article/news/2011/november/351028/Medical-marijuana-could-soon-be-on-the-ballot-for-Florida-voters said:TALLAHASSEE -- Florida’s facing a $2 billion budget shortfall.
State lawmakers are trying to find ways to tackle it, and now some are floating the radical idea of legalizing medical marijuana.
They call it a way to rake in hundreds of millions of dollars in tax revenue and give doctors and their patients a new option.
It's already generating controversy in the state capital.
For many Republicans, legalizing marijuana, even only as a medical treatment, would be downright immoral.
But Democrats call it immoral not to take care of the chronically ill.
Whether you grow it, roll it or smoke it, if you’re caught with marijuana, you'll do time for it.
But under a new Democratic bill, voters next November could choose to give people with a "debilitating medical condition" a pass.
The legislation mirrors California's medical marijuana law where all it takes to buy a legal bag of pot is a recommendation from a doctor.
Jack Henmy, a Florida State University senior, said he’d vote no.
“It's just like alcohol, I guess, in a sense, just like any other drug, any other prescription drug,” Henmy said. “But see, the thing is, I guess I could see that, but the pain is still going to be there. The issue that's causing the pain is still going to be there, but you're just easing their pain.”
No matter your philosophy, there's no question medical marijuana could mean big money.
In California, pot farms and dispensaries have become a $2 billion a year industry, generating $100 million in taxes.
Florida could rake in millions, as well.
Beyond that, Democratic consultant Gary Yordon sees a big benefit for his party.
Like gay marriage bans for Republicans, medical marijuana could help candidates up and down the ballot.
“It will generate, I think, an increase in voters on the Democratic side, because there are some folks who will show up simply based on the progressive nature of that issue,” Yordon said.
However, with the capitol controlled by Republicans, that may be the biggest reason the bill may not even get a hearing.
The GOP’s other argument is that marijuana is a gateway drug that can lead even medical patients down a destructive path.
They said that's why the law can't be loosened.
Currently, 16 states have legalized medical marijuana. But only seven allow it to be sold within their borders.
http://www.cfnews13.com/article/news/2011/november/350064/Growing-support-to-make-medical-marijuana-legal-in-Florida said:MELBOURNE -- A movement in Florida could put the question of medical marijuana in the hands of voters.
State Senator Larcenia Bullard, D-Miami, filed a bill recently that would put legalizing medical marijuana on the 2012 ballot.
It's something hundreds of people who attended a festival in Melbourne would agree to.
They attended the Cannabis Freedom Festival at Wickham Park near Brevard Community College.
Jodi James, executive director of the Florida Cannabis Network says responsible adults and their doctors should be able to decide whether to use medical marijuana.
"We should take tax it, we should control it," James said. "If someone is growing it, it should be there responsibility alone. We believe by regulating it and controlling it we are going to be keeping it out of the hands of children as opposed to an unregulated market."
James also says making it legal would also make it a valuable cash crop. "This is a multi billion dollar worldwide industry that Florida farmers have no access to it."
But many believe marijuana is a dangerous gateway drug and want it to remain illegal.
Bullard's bill creates an amendment that allows people with a debilitating medical condition be able to use marijuana as a form of treatment on the advice of a doctor. The legislation would also allow medical marijuana farms and dispensaries to operate in Florida.
The bill has to pass both the Florida House and Senate before it can go on the ballot.
http://www.floridatoday.com/article/20111127/NEWS01/311270047/Medical-cannabis-urged-Freedom-Festival-Melbourne said:MELBOURNE — Cathy Jordan was given about five years to live when she was diagnosed in 1986 with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis — better known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, or ALS.
Saturday, the 61-year-old from the Tampa Bay area town of Parrish, the president of the Florida Cannabis Action Network, continued to defy that death sentence at the Cannabis Freedom Festival in Wickham Park’s main pavilion.
Sitting in her wheelchair, a marijuana leaf painted on her left cheek, Jordan joined dozens of people who showed up to support , legal access to medical cannabis.
Along with speakers and entertainment, guests also found information on the FLCAN hemp ballot initiative, efforts to place the issue on the 2012 ballot, and details on legislative bills to allow medical use of cannabis in Florida.
Personal stories melded with politics at the two-day festival, which continues today.
“I can’t sit at home and do nothing,” said Jordan, a Delaware native. “I thought by now, I wouldn’t have to be doing this.”
FLCAN Vice President Tripp Spring, 60, is former president of the Satellite Beach chapter of AARP.
Spring said he’s seen much support among older Florida residents who have watched friends suffer from debilitating illnesses such as cancer, Parkinson’s disease and ALS, but who also know of success stories from patients using medical cannabis, which is legal in 16 states and the District of Columbia.
“I think the majority of people are ready for this,” said Spring.
“Older people have seen all the fear tactics; been frightened by what they’ve heard. When they read our literature, I find, they agree it’s time for a change. They’re among our biggest supporters.”
Keynote speaker Irv Rosenfeld, 58, a stockbroker from Fort Lauderdale, is the country’s longest-surviving legal cannabis recipient and a veteran of the medical marijuana program shut down by the George H.W. Bush administration in the early 1990s.
Misconceptions abound about its use, he said, from it being a “gateway drug” to its effect: “Most patients don’t get a euphoric effect,” said Rosenfeld, who was diagnosed with a tumor-causing genetic disease as a child.