“I don’t believe the number of people who want this is a large number.  I think there’s a vocal number of people but I don’t know if there’s a large number of people,” Dr. Tom Huber with the South Dakota State Medical Association said.
Yeah, because 32,000 people in a state of 750,000 isn’t a lot of people. You may be a doctor, but you are not a mathematician.
“So far with my patients, or patients I’m familiar with that work with specialists, we seem to have control of this and it doesn’t seem to us that we have a huge problem that needs something new and very controversial.”
Something NEW!? WTF are you talking about?! Marijuana has been around before mankind! It has been consistently proven to be a natural analgesic. Maybe Tom needs to smoke a joint and get a clue.
“I’ve seen what its like to suffer from one of these illnesses and have met MS patients, people who have cancer and there is a community out there of medical marijuana patients that are suffering,” Reistroffer says.
Why would we deny people who are dying, relief from pain because a couple of buearacrats labeled it the ‘evil weed’. When this passes in November, Huber is the one that will look like a gigantic asswipe.
For the record, Emmett helped Theresa and I with the tax petition drive. He is an incredible guy, with tons of passion. If someone can get this done, it is him.
The only reasons people fight this is because
1) anyone can grow it in their back yard for free, thus negating the huge profits companies get for drugs like viagra.
2) They still believe all the propaganda about MJ causing black men to become more sexually attracted to white women, and visa versa, plus all the other bogus claims made 75 years ago.
There is no real reason to fight this bill. If a single person could be helped by medical MJ, it’s worth it.
I signed the petition when they were outside of the Minnehaha County building… but I was simply amazed at the number of people who ignored the people asking for signatures or even went so far as to say they disagree with them.
Sorry… I don’t think this will pass. It isn’t like SD is known for our progressive ideas.
It’s got a better chance passing this time than last time.
Crazy stuff. I am for it simply because it works, however I would like to see some tight restrictions on who can prescribe it so we don’t have potheads with a terminal case of hangnail getting it. I do agree with the statement about pharma, no doubt they have few horses in that race.
“I am for it simply because it works, however I would like to see some tight restrictions on who can prescribe it so we don’t have potheads with a terminal case of hangnail getting it.”
Man, I do not understand comments like this. If it works for hangnails, why not? If someone wants weed, they’re already getting it. Why threaten them with jail?
As I’ve said before, I’d like to see this issue folded in alongside Industrial Hemp.
Our number #1 industry is Agriculture and a rising one is Energy, and both would get a huge boost from this. Imagine what would happen if we incentivised value-added processing the same way we did with credit operations and lured the top companies in set up shop.
how is 32000 out of 750000 “not a lot of people”? Please explain
Sy says: same way we did with credit operations and lured the top companies in set up shop.
Lured, BS, they came to SD because there are no usury laws and they can raise interest rates as high as they want and the state leg. lets them do that.
Think of all the argus leaders you could print…
It got 48% of the vote last time, and so much has changed in the last 4 years. It’s a lock to pass.
Sy- Did you know Hemp burns just as hot as coal? And you don’t have to dig mile deep holes in the ground to get it.
Kwo- Grow a fucking brain. I was being sarcastic. 32,000 signatures in a state of 750,000 people is a lot. It almost passed last time around, and I think it will this time. You should see the donors and orgs behind it this time, people will be astonished.
James, I disagree with you. I think Mary Jane should be just as available as aspirin. It is a natural analgesic and should be used for minor aches and pains also, like headaches, joint pain, arthrithis, etc. Why are we denying people this incredible natural pain relief because way back when, people in tie-dye shirts who listened to Jefferson Airplane smoked it? It is silly. It is harmless, and I will have to admit, it feels pretty damn good, of course, of what I can remember from my youth . . .
Interesting point l3wis but something i have not seen addressed; what about companies with anti drug use policies? If MJ was legalized would these policies then be wrong? I’ll clarify my earlier statement, I support it for medical use.
They are wrong in IMO, I also believe they are unconstitutional.
UC San Diego earlier this year published the first exhaustive study of medical usage of cannabis done in decades:
http://media.nbcbayarea.com/documents/medicalpotstudy.pdf
You know what they found? Yes it IS effective for pain relief. Yes, the medical MJ claims that have been made by those in favor of it are true.
I think Mary Jane should be just as available as aspirin. It is a natural analgesic and should be used for minor aches and pains also, like headaches, joint pain, arthrithis, etc. Why are we denying people this incredible natural pain relief because way back when, people in tie-dye shirts who listened to Jefferson Airplane smoked it? It is silly. It is harmless, and I will have to admit, it feels pretty damn good, of course, of what I can remember from my youth . . .
Jefferson Airplane? Ok I guess. But it was hard to beat these two groups when making sure your buds weren’t bogarting that joint. Also made me hungry as hell. Can’t be all that bad for someone with a loss of appetite. Of course, like l3wis…I speak strictly from days gone by. What I recall, it was less harmful than say… having a two martini lunch.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7rkgm1yGgbM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PECk9A-07Pw
The Doors are one of my favorite classic rock bands, I know it is about as cheesy as saying the same about Led Zep, but I don’t care. A few years back they had a reunion tour with the lead singer of The Cult. Hos, Rocco and I went, it was in SC at the Orpheum. There must have been a lot of people with headaches at the show because there was some ‘bogarting’ going on. Oh, and BTW, it was a great show.
4% is a lot of voters? Really? I didn’t know it only takes 4% to say that is a strong following.
You only need twice that to get elected to school board or mayor in SF.
however I would like to see some tight restrictions on who can prescribe it so we don’t have potheads with a terminal case of hangnail getting it.
Why not support it for recreational use? It’s easy to get – legally or illegally, it’s relatively harmless compared to other drugs like coke, meth, and even alcohol, and our prisons are overflowing with people arrested for selling, transporting, and using it.
Nobody has been able to make a decent – not good, just decent – argument against recreational MJ use. The only reason people think it’s bad now is because it’s illegal, and circular logic says that if it’s illegal, it’s bad, so it should be illegal.