Update: Rhode Island Legislature Overrides Governor’s Veto of Medical Marijuana

freedom marchers march on!

I live in southern California (san bernardino co). I have been watching the police/law enforcement and govt agencies (in San Berdoo & San Diego counties)drag their feet; accuse patients of selling MMJ to school age children; accuse patients of faking conditions and say 'smoking cannabis causes cancer.'
Well, I have NEVER smoked cigarettes... but I have been smoking cannabis EVERY DAY, since I was 16. I am now 35, graduated from college 10 years ago (with 3 degrees). And I DONT have CANCER! I DO however, have Epilepsy from chemicals in my clothes when I was a child. I had my 1st seizure just before I turned 20. I tried the Neurologists pills for 13 years, and had 25-30 seizures PER MONTH! If you multiply 25X12 (months in a year)=300 seizures per year... 300X13 (years of Epilepsy)=3900 SEIZURES in 13 years!!! That's the MINIMUM!! 30X12=360 per year... 360X13years= 4680 MAXIMUM!! How many of YOU would try THAT??!! In feb 2008, I STOPPED taking my meds (against the advice of my Neurologist), and started smoking cannabis only. WITHIN ONE WEEK, I WENT FROM 25-30 SEIZURES A MONTH TO LESS THAN 5 PER MONTH!! Lets multiply 5X16 (months of NO meds)= LESS THAN 80 seizures in 16 months of ONLY smoking Cannabis. If it was 25 per month, that would be 400 IN 16 MONTHS ON THE DR'S MEDS!!! HOW is that GOOD for my health?! THANKS John Stossel for posting this.

As I wrote on the Lynch debacle (http://www.e3gazette.com/2009/06/federalism-we-hardly-knew-ye.html)

Can someone show me where in the US Constitution it says that Congress can make a law regulating marijuana grown in California, sold in California, and consumed in California?I've read that thing literally hundreds of times, and I can't find where it has that kind of power.

It's a really simple choice. If you like the system currently in place then by all means allow the drug gangs to distribute drugs to all (including our children) and to receive all profits and pay absolutely no taxes.
The only other option is to

LEGALIZE, REGULATE, AND TAX.

Currently children have access to cannabis because there are no regulations on it. Anybody can grow, sell, or use it. It is an untaxed, unregulated substance. Regulation will remove cannabis from the easy grasp of youth. Seen many alcohol or cigarette dealers around the school yard? Regulation removed these items from the easy reach of children. With cannabis, the government has taken a hands off approach. They keep cannabis and hemp illegal and only move to investigate, arrest, eradicate, and apply asset forfeiture laws all of which do not appear to be providing the intended drug-free results. Prohibition, however, provides the forbidden fruit. It's cool, secret, you got away with something... Prohibition doesn't work and has never worked. I don't think you could get more people using cannabis if you wanted. The country is awash in it. It's past time to learn from our history with alcohol and finally end cannabis prohibition.

I commend the Lawmaker's of RI. They believe in Common Sense, Compassion and Reality...

Everyone convicted of a federal beef supplying medicinal cannabis to certificated patients subsequent to Judge Francis L Young's determination twenty six years ago needs immediate release, restitution and an apology.

From Bryan Epis through Charlie Lynch.

Cannabis prohibition is a crime against humanity. Bottom line.

Everyone has the opportunity to put these idiots in office. If they do not listen to their constituents, then remember next election to make them get a real JOB.

Time to end the self-loathing politicians who do not work for their voters, but will work for their lobbyists. Medical marijuana is clearly an issue for Federal level laws...

Too bad there is so much corruption in the medical marijuana business. Those who truly would benefit from use are often punished by behavior of those who seek to bend the rules for their personal enjoyment. The former suffer, the latter profit unjustly at the former's expense.

"Can someone show me where in the US Constitution it says that Congress can make a law regulating marijuana grown in California, sold in California, and consumed in California?"

Geez, did you sleep through your high school Civics class? The government has the power to pass any law it wants and enforce same. Federal law trumps all state and local law. Federal law is specific to narcotics and drugs and therefor it overrules local laws.

AJB, you are the one who needs a few more civics classes.

Eric,

"Can someone show me where in the US Constitution it says that Congress can make a law regulating marijuana grown in California, sold in California, and consumed in California?"

The constitution does not give Congress the power to do this. The power was instead given in 2005 with the Supreme Court decision of Gonzales v. Raich.

The court said "the regulation is squarely within Congress' commerce power because production of the commodity meant for home consumption, be it wheat or marijuana, has a substantial effect on supply and demand in the national market for that commodity"

They basically say: you 'could' transport it out of the state, so Congress has the power to ban it altogether.

The court consistently bends our laws to their fullest to prevent people from having access to Marijuana, and the precedents they set tend to take away age-old rights that also apply to people who have nothing to do with drugs.

We needed a constitutional amendment to ban alcohol. Without the Supreme Court consistently ignoring what is clearly spelled out in the constitution, we would have needed a constitutional amendment to ban Cannabis as well.

'CP',
I am (Eric) the person posting the comment about living in San Berdoo co. NOT 'The Monster' posting the question about 'Can someone show me where in the US Constitution it says that Congress can make a law regulating marijuana grown in California, sold in California, and consumed in California?I've read that thing literally hundreds of times, and I can't find where it has that kind of power.' ...names are posted BELOW comments.

medical marijuana is great and all but uh the majority of tens of millions of people aren't using marijuana for medical reasons. we use marijuana because we're people and people like to get high in some way or another, some people like to get high once in a while and some like to always be high (the rest fall some where in between). no matter how much a person likes to get high if they can do so responsibly (not endangering others' safety, rights, or property) and also handle their own personal responsibilities (bills, family, taxes, etc.) then frikkin let them. it's called freedom and we're supposed to have it in America. those who argue that regulating and legalizing properly documented and accurately labeled marijuana would send the wrong message to children apparently forgot that in America we don't remove adults' freedoms based on the message it sends to children. if we did limit the rest of our freedoms based on what kind of messages those freedoms were sending to children just think of everything else that would be prohibited. in America we are supposed to have the freedom to choose for ourselves how we live our lives and the liberty of NOT being arrested or discriminated against for doing so as long our choices to not infringe on others' freedoms, rights, or property. tens of millions of people currently choose marijuana for themselves, if they do so responsibly then they should be left to live their lives in peace instead of being hunted and prosecuted as criminals. the gov made a big mistake when it made marijuana illegal (it wasn't American citizens that voted on it) and the gov needs to fix the mistake they made no matter how much they theorize it will cost. regulated, legal, marijuana can easily pay for itself and then some so let us all have our freedom to legally choose or not choose marijuana again. until that is done marijuana prohibition will continue to create and fund unregulated and undocumented (and untaxed) black markets, prohibition will continue to make criminals of millions of otherwise honest Americans, and prohibition (of marijuana) will also continue to cost our gov billions of dollars every year. let people be people and stop wasting money and people's lives on forcing American citizens to comply with someone else's view of moral behavior.

The MERP Model for Re-Legalization will destroy the Mexican Drug Cartels and much, much more. Please visit and post the following link far and wide. This subweb is both for understanding MERP and implementing MERP. We need everyones help on this. Get on the mailing list now! Let's Re-Legalize Marijuana in 2009 World Wide.

MERP Headquarters
The Marijuana Re-Legalization Policy Project (MRPP) = "MERP"
http://www.newagecitizen.com/MERP.htm

The MERP Model for Re-Legalization will destroy the Mexican Drug Cartels and much, much more. Please visit and post the following link far and wide. This subweb is both for understanding MERP and implementing MERP. We need everyones help on this. Get on the mailing list now! Let's Re-Legalize Marijuana in 2009 World Wide.

MERP Headquarters
The Marijuana Re-Legalization Policy Project (MRPP) = "MERP"
Goto NewAgeCitizen dot com
Then click on "Merp Headquarters"

Hey Stossel. How about having me on your show so we can talk about legalizing Marijuana for all adults without taxes or regulation. What would be the problem?

The solution is the MERP Model. See additional posts above