Ohio Patient Network - April 2007

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April 2007

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OPNews - April 2007 edition

A Publication of Ohio Patient Network (OPN)

From the President of OPN - "Our Turn"

I'm from a state that doesn't have medical marijuana law. In fact, the first bill on the legislative docket in 1997 removed the "medical necessity defense" from Ohio law. Medical marijuana bills were prepped for introduction in 2003 and 2005, but even though introduced in the Ohio Senate in 2005, the Ohio Medical Marijuana Act languished in the Criminal Justice Committee for two years with only last-minute sponsor testimony in November to show for it.

ORGANIZATIONAL NEWS

OPN/OPAN Spring Meeting

OPN invites you to attend our Spring Meeting at the Comfort Inn in Columbus. This will be your chance to meet other OPN members, discuss our plans for the year, and brain storm ways of enacting sensible and compassionate medical marijuana legislation in Ohio.

Help Wanted

The Ohio Patient Network is currently looking for dedicated individuals to fill the following positions:

We Are Patients, Not Users

From the editor at OPNews - In last month's issue of OPNews, OPN President Mary Jane Borden used the "Medical Cannabis Users Bill of Rights" from the "Virtual Medical Marijuana March on Ottawa" website (http://www.compassionatecanadians.com/) with permission from the author, Philippe Lucas. Many members commented on the use of "users" vs "patients", and it was also noted that this was written in a place where medical cannabis is legal. OPN has taken note of the suggestions and comments from our members, and we have modified the original to the "Medical Cannabis Patients Bill of Rights", again with the blessing of the original author. "The important part is making politicians and policy-makers acknowledge these basic rights, and ensuring that they are the core of any policies affecting us," said Philippe. Thanks for your input, everyone! The modified version now appears at http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/587/2/.

Essay Challenge

From the editor at OPNews - With New Mexico becoming the 12th state to legalize medical marijuana, and several more states on the verge, why shouldn't Ohio be next? With the help of a wonderful volunteer giving us visual inspiration (see http://www.ohiopatient.net/v2/content/view/629/165/), OPN members are invited to write a brief essay: Why Ohio Should Be the Next Medical Marijuana State. This month, OPN President Mary Jane Borden and OPN Information Specialist Mike Boop kick things off with their submissions.

Essay: It's Ohio's Turn!

You wake up, it's still dark outside, but you know it's time. The rumbling in your bowels and that "Wet Mouth" feeling means it's time for another chemo session. You get up and race to the bathroom, hoping you are not too late again, when here it comes, everything you ate last night (what little you COULD eat, that is). So far , you have lost forty seven pounds, twenty five of which you could not afford to lose, all because of the cancer that is eating at your belly. Chemotherapy every six to eight hours for the past 3 months has trained your mind and body so well that you get sick just thinking about the next session. You have felt yourself growing weaker these past few weeks, as you battle to retain what little weight and dignity you have left. You look in the mirror over the sink, marvelling at how much older you look; lines on your face and nearly bald. At least your hair is finally growing back after the radiation treatments made it all fall out, hoping to yourself that it is finally the last one. Once again you pray; pray for your life and pray for relief from the illness that comes with the treatment that is somehow almost worse than death.

Upcoming Meetings

OPN and OPAN meetings are scheduled for the following dates in April. Please mark your calendar.

STATE NEWS

Cincinnati: City Council Makes Pot Recrim "Emergency" Ordinance "Indefinite"

Cincinnati, OH: Members of the Cincinnati City Council voted 7-2 this week to make a provisional ordinance criminalizing minor marijuana possession offenses "indefinite," despite the law's apparent failure to show a demonstrable reduction in serious crime or so-called 'drug tourism.' The municipal ordinance, initially passed by the Council in March 2006, was slated to expire this week.

Cannabis Studies by Condition

Last week, Administrative Law Judge Marry Ellen Bittner, ruled that the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) should issue a license to Massachusetts plant biologist, Dr. Lyle E. Craker, which would allow him to grow cannabis for research purposes. Judge Bittner stated in her long-awaited 87-page ruling that issuing such a license would be "in the public interest."

LTE: A Cigarette and a Blindfold

It is a very old tradition to allow a person with no more time left on their personal clock a final request. One last moment of dignity, one last instant when they can feel like they are in control, one last minute of peace before time runs out; the last wish of a dying person. Whether that person is standing in front of a firing squad or in a hospital with a terminal illness, they are always given the opportunity to take one last action or make a final statement to affirm their existence or to rail at the unfairness of it all. The choice to not go quietly into that long night.

LTE: Cannabis

Dear Editor of Columbus Free Press,

Another reason to allow sick citizens to use cannabis (kaneh bosm / marijuana) for medicinal purposes that doesn't get mentioned (Lobby Your Legislators For Medical Marijuana, Mar. 17, 2007) is because it is Biblically correct since Christ God Our Father, indicates He created all the seed-bearing plants, saying they are all good, on literally the very first page (see Genesis 1:11-12 and 29-30). The only Biblical restriction placed on cannabis is that it is to be accepted with thankfulness (see 1 Timothy 4:1-5). And, "But whoever has the world's goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (see: 1 John 3:17).

Column: High on Compassion

It seemed like a good idea at the time, the Compassionate Use Act of 1996, which allowed Californians to use marijuana with a doctor's permission to alleviate pain. The act was put on the ballot, and California voters passed it 56 to 44 percent.

LTE: O'Reilly Right about Compassion

Dear Editor,

Bill O'Reilly is right! If you remove the digs on George Soros, fear mongering, and disinformation veiled as fact, his Op-Ed, "High on Compassion" hits the mark on these important points:

NATIONAL NEWS

Flint Becomes Fifth Michigan City To Pass Medical Pot Law

Flint, MI: Flint voters overwhelmingly decided on Tuesday in favor of a municipal initiative shielding medicinal cannabis patients from local prosecution.

Medical marijuana law could expand in Vermont!

By Times Argus Newspaper (Mar 1, 2007) MONTPELIER — State senators gave preliminary approval Wednesday to a bill that would expand a Vermont law that permits marijuana to be used to alleviate some medical conditions.

MN: MEDICAL MARIJUANA MAY SOON BE REALITY

Support is growing at the Capitol for a measure to allow its use in seriously ill patients.

FLINT POT VOTE RAISES AWARENESS

MEDICAL MARIJUANA advocates are hailing -- or is it inhaling? -- a victory Feb. 27. By a 1,777-1,101 vote, Flint became the fifth Michigan city to approve legally puffing pot for health reasons. Use remains illegal under state and federal law. Officials reminded Flint residents not to start loading up their hookah pipes -- or face the consequences.

NPR audio: Court orders police to return medical marijuana

http://www.npr.org/templates/dmg/dmg.php?prgCode=ME&showDate=06-mar-2007&segNum=15&NPRMediaPref=RM&getUnderwriting=1 See also Santa Rosa Court Orders Police to Return 19 Pounds Of Medicinal Marijuana! Santa Rosa Police Charged With Contempt Of Court

Just where does Barack Obama stand on the topic of Marijuana?

Barack Obama is certainly not the first presidential candidate to admit he inhaled marijuana, but he is the first to admit using cocaine. The Democratic senator from Illinois experimented with drugs during his high school years in Hawaii in the '70s and as a college student at Occidental College and Columbia University. He also experienced the drug war firsthand when a friend of his was busted for weed. How will this influence Obama's platform on illegal drugs?

IL: OPED: RESEARCH, NOT RHETORIC: MARIJUANA CAN SAVE LIVES

As Illinois legislators prepare to debate a new, practical plan for legalizing the medical use of marijuana (the Legislature actually passed a medical marijuana bill in 1971 but that flawed measure was never put into practice), they should consider a new study, published in the journal Neurology last month.

MD: Lawmakers Discuss Making Medical Marijuana Legal

(Mar 6, 2007) Mike Hellgren Reporting Channel 13 Baltimore (WJZ) ANNAPOLIS, Md. Lawmakers are discussing making medical marijuana legal.

L.A.'S MARIJUANA STORES TAKE ROOT

A decade ago, the Rev. Scott Imler co-wrote and organized the ballot initiative that made California the first state to legalize marijuana for medical use. Now Imler shakes his head with dismay over what his law has wrought: scores of storefront marijuana shops across Southern California with menus of pot varieties for sale to anyone with a doctor's note.

MN: STUDENT QUESTIONED ABOUT DAD'S USE OF POT

The Controversy Surrounding a Bill to Allow the Use of Medical Marijuana Hits Home for a Junior-High Student in Brooklyn Park.

GOVERNMENT OPPOSES FREEDOM OF CHOICE ON BOTH ENDS OF DRUG WAR

After three years, it finally happened in my state. The medical cannabis bill that has lingered in committee since being introduced back in 2004 will go before the full senate and, perhaps, the full Illinois legislature sometime this session.

NM: MEDICAL MARIJUANA: GOVERNOR'S WRANGLING REVIVES MEASURE

Senate Passes Resurrected Bill, Which Now Heads to the House

ANOTHER WALTER REED SCANDAL: Cannabis for the Wounded

Screaming Chris Mathews and the corporate media would have us believe that it's only the living conditions at Walter Reed Army Medical Center that are deplorable, not the medical care itself. Donna Shalala and Bob Dole have been assigned to investigate the situation. A superficial clean-up will ensue -rodents poisoned, moldy drywall replaced-while the quality of care gets lauded and prosthetic limbs are presented as proof that all is state-of-the-art.

CT: MEDICAL MARIJUANA DEBATE RETURNS TO STATE CAPITOL

HARTFORD - The question over whether to legalize marijuana for medicinal purposes is back before state legislators. The question, which has produced some rousing floor debates over the past four years, never has made it to the governor's desk.

NM: HOUSE REVERSES ON MEDICAL MARIJUANA VOTE

SANTA FE -- In a reversal of a decision last week, the House approved a measure Tuesday to legalize marijuana use for medical purposes.

Judge Rules Ed Rosenthal Was Vindictively Prosecuted

ASA Chief Counsel, Joe Elford, secured a huge victory for the medical marijuana movement yesterday in the case of author and medical marijuana activist Ed Rosenthal. Federal District Court Judge Charles Breyer ruled that Rosenthal was vindictively prosecuted, and dismissed charges of tax evasion and money laundering - charges that were added after Rosenthal's conviction in 2006! The remaining marijuana charges against Rosenthal are virtually identical to those pursued against him in his previous trial. With an admission in court by the U.S. Attorney that it would not seek additional punishment beyond the one-day sentence for Rosenthal's conviction, the prosecution has little reason to proceed with the case.

DYING WOMAN LOSES APPEAL ON MARIJUANA AS MEDICATION

SAN FRANCISCO -- Federal appellate judges here ruled Wednesday that a terminally ill woman using marijuana was not immune to federal prosecution simply because of her condition, and in a separate case a federal judge dismissed most of the charges against a prominent advocate for the medicinal use of the drug.

MD: OAKS' BILL WOULD ALLOW MARIJUANA FOR MEDICAL USES

Before her arrest three years ago, the first thing Leslie Miller did when she woke up each morning was reach for her bong and take four or five tokes of marijuana.

GA: MEDICAL MARIJUANA ENDORSED BY PATIENT

ALBANY -- Elvy Musikka, a widely known advocate of medical marijuana use, credits pot with restoring her vision.

OPED: REEFER MADNESS

On Wednesday, the Ninth Circuit turned away another constitutional challenge to the federal ban on using cannabis for medical purposes. Its decision revealed a glaring weakness in how the Supreme Court protects liberty under the Constitution.

FEDS PLAN TO RETRY MARIJUANA ADVOCATE

A federal prosecutor said Friday that he plans to retry a prominent marijuana advocate on cultivation charges even though the man faces no punishment if convicted -- a decision the trial judge suggested he reconsider.

NM: EDITORIAL: APPLAUD LAWMAKERS FOR MEDICAL POT BILL

It took years, a lot of wrangling and considerable grief, but finally New Mexico will join 11 other progressive and caring states that allow the use of marijuana for medical purposes.

MA: Lexington drug co. hopes to use Cannabis compound to fight disease

While doctors who would have patients "smoke two of these and call me in the morning" snag headlines, serious marijuana research could result in a Lexington company offering a new treatment for a painful disorder.

NM: Medical marijuana: Governor calls bill 'right thing to do'

by Deborah Baker, Associated Press (March 16th, 2007) -- Democratic Gov. Bill Richardson, poised to sign a bill making New Mexico the 12th state to legalize medical marijuana, said Thursday that he realizes his action could become an issue in the presidential race.

OR: Under bill, medical-marijuana users could be fired

Employers would be shielded from lawsuits by users -- by Aaron Clark, Associated Press (March 15th, 2007) -- Employers could fire medical-marijuana users who fail drug tests under a bill passed Wednesday by the Oregon Senate.

CA: EDITORIAL: State must follow voters wishes on medical marijuana

The Argus (CA) (March 14th, 2007) -- You would have thought the state Department of Health Services was out to kill the medical marijuana identification card program. The department planned to increase the cost of the cards tenfold before wiser minds prevailed and the hike was cut in half.

CA: Medical marijuana cards OK'd

by John Holland, Modesto Bee (March 15th, 2007) SONORA - Medical marijuana users in Tuolumne County soon can get identification cards under a plan narrowly approved Tuesday by the Board of Supervisors.

What Would Jesus Smoke?

The Christian doctrine on bong hits. -- By Torie Bosch (March 20, 2007) http://www.slate.com/id/2162292/fr/rss/ -- On Monday, the Supreme Court heard arguments in a First Amendment case involving a high-school student who was suspended for holding a sign that said "Bong Hits 4 Jesus." His provocative slogan turns out to have been little more than a ploy to get on TV. But what do Christian groups really think about marijuana?

CA: PERILS GROW IN BATTLE FOR MEDICAL POT

Laws In Conflict -- Environment Dicey For Patients, Dealers -- A decade after Californians approved the medical use of marijuana, the state's battle with the federal government over the use of marijuana still is being fought hard, with contradictory results.

CT: Lawmakers Resurrect Bill To Allow Medical Use Of Marijuana

(March 22, 2007) HARTFORD, Conn. -- A move to legalize marijuana for people suffering from certain medical problems cleared its first legislative hurdle Wednesday, giving hope to those who've been pushing for the bill for several years.

CA: POLITICS OF CARING

Personal Experiences Lead Salinas Council Members to Support Medical Marijuana. -- When City Council-member Jyl Lutes' then-husband lost his appetite during a battle with bone cancer more than 20 years ago, Stanford doctors gave him an experimental prescription: a vile of tightly-rolled joints. The marijuana cigarettes, she recalls, had a stamp from the Department of Agriculture on them and the directions read, "smoke at the first sign of nausea." Lutes says the pot helped ease the pain of his last days -- he died at the age of 30.

CA: POT CARD CAN'T STOP SEARCHES, COURT SAYS

Conviction Upheld in Napa County Case -- California's medical marijuana law doesn't protect card-carrying patients from being stopped and searched by police who detect the presence of the drug, a state appeals court ruled Thursday.

CT: TALK SHOW HOST MONTEL WILLIAMS ADVOCATES FOR MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL

A Call for Relief -- Talk show host Montel Williams tried to fight back tears Friday as he described to Connecticut lawmakers how he smokes or eats marijuana every day to hold off the spasms and pain caused by multiple sclerosis.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

CNN Daily News Clips: Cannabis Granny

British granny self medicates, advocates the medicinal benefits... http://us.video.aol.com/video.index.adp?pmmsid=1863876

Israel: RIGHTIST MK PRESENTS BILL AUTHORIZING THE USE OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

A new bill presented to Knesset on Monday would allow for a greater amount of growing, cultivation, and manufacture of marijuana plants for medicinal purposes.

GW signs Otsuka as cannabis drug partner

16th March 2007 By Sarah Routledge -- GW Pharmaceuticals has signed Japanese company Otsuka Pharmaceutical as a partner to help develop and market its cannabis-based cancer pain drug Sativex.

UK: Drug laws

An expert panel, the RSA Commission on Illegal Drugs, Communities and Public Policy, calls for a change of drug laws, since they are not based on scientific knowledge. In a 335-page report they state that "cannabis is likely to fall roughly in the middle of any harms index. (…) Its position on the harms index several places below both alcohol or tobacco suggests that the form this control takes might have to correspond far more closely with the way in which alcohol and tobacco are regulated." The whole report is available at: http://www.rsadrugscommission.org/ (Source: RSA report of 8 March 2007)

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