The facts --- the Utah Medical Association has produced an outstanding position paper on the Utah Medical Marijuana Initiative. The physicians are clearly NOT against any sound, well researched, and approved marijuana derived medicines that might be another substance that might help a the small group of people that might benefit from it in a controlled amount and controlled for purity. The LDS Church retained legal counsel to research the legal aspects of the pending Medical Marijuana Initiative and the objective opinion of the legal profession was well reasoned and presented.
One person posted that 'marijuana has known medicinal properties such as treating nausea for cancer patients'. Well, it is also know that marijuana also interferes direction with the chemo therapy medications thus making those compounds less effective.
It is also known that in Colorado there has been a rise in suicide rates among teens since marijuana was legalized. The rate of completed suicides vs. attempted ones has risen significantly. Autopsies have shown that many of the completed youth suicides had marijuana in their system (urine tests) and it is believed that the marijuana reduced the nausea so that the other substances were allowed to remain in the system resulting in the death of the child. Without the marijuana, the child's natural body response would have been to vomit out the toxic substances consumed to commit suicide.
It is also known that marijuana (dispensary grown or home grown) increases the risk of psychotic events developing in persons under the age of 25. These psychotic events can be a one time event, or they can can become a permanent reoccurring life time event last weeks or months at a time. I know of one mother whose son turned to marijuana to treat his sports injury, developed psychosis from the marijuana, and finally killed himself because he could no longer cope with the reoccurring psychosis. He left behind a wife and a toddler.
Research has also shown a link between marijuana consumption to an increase in asthma; head, neck, and throat cancers; marijuana consumption increases the frequency of infants born with life time birth defects; marijuana interferes with anesthesia so that the medical staff need to go to greater efforts to use different medications and to worry throughout the surgery that the anesthesia isn't so disrupted by the pot that the patient doesn't die from his own pot consumption; post operative pain is negative impacted by marijuana consumption and there isn't any pharma meds available to address this type of post operative pain so the marijuana consumer gets to endure the post surgical pain because of their marijuana consumption.
There is no 'free lunch' in this world -- there is no 'perfect' safe all natural substance that is a magical elixir to be the be-all and end-all substance to fix the human condition.
To those who believe that 'medical marijuana from a dispensary or home grown' has helped with your medical condition -- good for you. You are also exposed to molds, mildew, fungus, and possible heavy metals and pesticides. How about standing up to protect the majority of your neighbors and the kids from the marijuana industry? Request more police protection, support more funding for law enforcement, report known black/gray market sellers, report illegal grows, demand that growers be courtesy to everyone --- control the noxious odors, stop polluting the environment, stop making false medical claims of cures for everything, support the efforts of the majority of society that is weary of the spill over into the community of the crime, the environmental damage, and children using and/or getting addicted to pot because it is ' legal'.
I support true scientifically based and research medicine for conditions --- I do not support snake oil sales pitches.
Utah ...don't fall for the propaganda that Colorado fell for in the liberal cities that marijuana grown commercially ($$$$$) or homegrown is 'medicine' --- don't accept the effort to make you feel guilty for being unkind, lack of compassion, lack of empathy for the plight of ill people who want to dabble in using marijuana from this source as medicine ----weigh the costs that Colorado has paid for being the first in line for the 'snake oil sales pitch'. Colorado is not swimming in marijuana tax revenue -- we are paying with hospitals closing entire wings of medical services, sky rocketing emergency room visits from marijuana consumers, children in need -- of basically everything (shelter, special ed teachers, bathed by school staff before school because they reek of pot and need fresh clothing as well, even need to GET to school because parent doesn't bother to get their kid to school), law enforcement and SWAT teams increased but still cannot keep up with the crime wave, etc. etc.
If someone needs what are known as an 'Orphan Drug" then let's work together to make that happen with a controlled substance for dose and purity; and where its access does not destroy the rest of the community.
MikeAugust 28, 2018
I live in Colorado. We are known as the 'human marijuana experiment state' and I would like to point out to the folks in Utah that the experimentation is a failure. The few controls that have been slapped together to control the marijuana craze has been poorly (ie rarely) enforced. For example in Colorado is it illegal to advertise things related to marijuana where minors can access it -- but the agency charged with enforcing this has done nothing so we have print and radio ads that are uncontrolled. We have had a significant increase in children grade school - high school trying, as well as using, marijuana on a regular basis (regular being at least once per week). We have an increase in the number of psychotic patients because of the consumption of marijuana (both recreational and medical). Colorado law requires that marijuana grows must be at least 1000 feet from a dwelling, school, church, or park. By contrast Utah's Medical Marijuana Initiative which was written by those with a vested interest in more marijuana the requirement is a mere 300 feet from residential property or a mere 600 feet from schools, churches, or parks. 1000 feet in Colorado is inadequate to keep quality communities and Utah is looking at a mere 300 - 600 feet! Wisdom is to learn from the mistakes of others!!! Colorado requires that 'medical marijuana' consumers obtain a recommendation from a medical professional in which they have an established relationship with. Ha! Colorado does not enforce this requirement -- basically one goes to a physician who is willing to recommend medical marijuana for a hefty price (ie money) and will likely never see the 'patient' again. I have physician friends who have told me that the majority of the 'medical marijuana' patients don't even know the name of their 'medical marijuana recommending physician'. Given that many of these Colorado MDs are writing not dozens, not hundreds, but THOUSANDS of 'recommendations' it does not surprise anyone with common sense that these are recommendation mill operations and have nothing to do with any sincere medical concerns. For those who are wavering that 'I don't want to deny someone medicine, if they need medical marijuana..." PLEASE do your homework before buying into the marijuana industry hype. There are pharma available marijuana products for the RARE types of medical conditions where marijuana MIGHT help. Balance this with the known facts that medical research is showing 'marijuana' negatively interferes with over 400 pharma medications, medical marijuana is NOT useful in most 'pain management' and even for the rare type of pain it can cause adverse reactions for some consumers and/or not be effective at all -- it it can be addictive, the FDA just approved Epidiolex a marijuana based medication developed in England for managing SOME rare forms of seizures (know the facts not propaganda -- marijuana to treat seizures --- might help SOME patients, it does NOTHING for the majority of them, and in the remain population it increases seizures. Then there is the concern with hepatic disorders that is documented in the research with marijuana consumption in research with marijuana as a 'medicine' for seizures.') Denver's public health department requires that CBD products that are consumed orally must be refrigerated --- why? Do your homework --- anyone who does home canning will be familiar with this deadly concern. Dispensary / homegrown marijuana -- anyone tell you about the mold, mildew and fungus that can grow on these 'all natural plants"? Well tell that to the young man in California who used medical marijuana while undergoing chemo for cancer. He died. No, not from cancer but from his pot -- he contracted a deadly fungus from his 'medical' marijuana. A small town in Colorado voted to have medical marijuana dispensaries and a marijuana club. For those who claim that marijuana has increased businesses they should take an honest look at the destruction of this town. Crime has increased 4 fold. Non-pot consumers no longer stop in the town for gasoline nor groceries but prefer to shop in safer communities on their family vacations. The same has happened in the town of Trinidad, Colorado. Local businesses are hurting because tourists no longer want to be accosted with marijuana smoke ever where and the local box store that once catered to the RV vacationers -- those travelers take a look at the number of drugged people in the parking lot and drive on to the next town. Utah voters would be wise to vote "NO" on the so-called "Medical Marijuana Initiative" don't fall for the beguiling claims of medical compassion -- THERE ARE other means to get TRUE medical marijuana. Marijuana is being marketed like snake oil -- as a cure all for everything. Think....does it make sense that ONE substance can treat / cure everything from acne to nail fungus to cancers (all forms) to anxiety (it actually increases anxieties) to seizures to pain to diabetes etc.
Ann in ColoradoAugust 28, 2018
I live in Colorado and have witnessed the state's degrade with the legalization of both medical and recreational marijuana. Legalized marijuana has brought homeless people to Colorado like moths to an open flame. Each year the demand by the marijuana-migrant homeless increases beyond the abilities of communities to cope with. Last year alone one center had a 90% increase in out of state homeless flocking to Colorado to consume marijuana (recreational or medical). So let us talk about the many forms of compassion: 1) The emergency rooms are swamped with persons suffering from toxicity of
marijuana. There is even a new medical term to describe the SEVERE vomiting that accompanied with screaming. ; Compassion 2) the children of the adults who consume marijuana are being neglected and often times abused to the point of being brought to the emergency room -- mother marijuana consuming mother had submerged both hands of her toddler in boiling oil and the toddler was 'feelin' no pain' because he was stoned -- life time of damage to that child; Compassion 3) a son separated from his mother because he got addicted to marijuana in Colorado and was placed in rehab -- while on marijuana at age 14 he would hang out with the violent homeless, he threatened to kill his mother and his younger brother several times, his little brother was so traumatized he developed PTSD at age 11; Compassion 4) persons killed by stoned drivers and traffic accidents are on the rise in Colorado and other states which have legalized marijuana. The pain of the surviving victims of needless destruction.; Compassion 5) medical professionals in the emergency room who are threatened with violence by the enraged marijuana consumer; Compassion 6) property values reduced when marijuana growers move in -- be it residential or commercial grows. If you live a mile down wind of a marijuana grow you will smell the stench that is marijuana (AKA Skunk Weed). If you live next door to a personal pot grower -- you will smell the odor from marijuana. No more fresh air for the kids playing in their backyard swing sets, no more pot free odor at the family outdoor hamburger grill; Compassion 7) Colorado first responders to fires and emergencies are exposed to toxins on these sites of marijuana grows -- they often develop hives or rashes after responding to these emergencies; Compassion 8) insurance premiums are UP in Colorado as a direct result of the problems linked to marijuana consumption / grows --- because it has brought with it an increase in home robberies, property theft; Compassion 9) every state with legalized marijuana has seen a significant increase in the number of infants born with birth defects. Infants born with various deformities impacting: heart, brain, IQ, and internal organs. Documented increase in the number of infants born with intestines developed outside the body; documented increase in infants born with minimal to no brain at all. Compassion 10) patients who have encountered stoned medical professionals attempting to provide medical care to a patient in need -- MY family encountered this 5 months after Colorado legalized recreational marijuana.
The FDA in June approved an anti-seizure medication that is marijuana based for the FEW types of seizures where marijuana MIGHT be helpful. This form of marijuana controls doses and purity unlike the 'homegrown pot' or 'dispensary pot'. Compassion for EVERYONE not just those wanting to consume marijuana at the reckless and complete disregard for the rest of society.
KennyAugust 25, 2018
Right up front I want to say that I would only support the use of medical marijuana if it is prescribed by a licensed physician and obtain at a pharmacy.
Compliance with marijuana laws in California and Utah is very similar to compliance with the speed limit on the freeway. Punishment only occurs if you’re caught, and chances of that happening are very unlikely. Most of my relatives live in Utah and I graduated from BYU over 30 years ago. Even so, I’ve called Northern California my home most of my life. At my high school marijuana smoke was a common odor on campus. While at BYU I occasionally had to close my apartment windows to keep the marijuana smoke out. A few years ago my neighbor was illegally growing 44 marijuana plants in his back yard. A sheriff’s deputy looked over the back fence but did nothing.
I’ve trained and talked with many hundreds of local, state, and federal government workers who have to deal with the many hazards associated with illegal and legally grown marijuana in California. Here’s a few things I’ve learned in California that the people of Utah my want to consider before legalizing marijuana in any form.
• There is no longer any pristine water in the state of California. That cool, clean water that I used to drink out of a sierra cup while backpacking as a youth, can’t be found today. Pesticides that have been banned in California for decades are used throughout the remote areas of our national forests in illegally growing marijuana. Not only do they kill the insects, they also kill everything living within the creek they use for water, including large animals, birds of prey, rabbits, deer, mountain lions and bear.
• You say, well that’s illegally grown marijuana, you don’t have the same problems with legally grown medical marijuana. Not true. According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, 80% of all medical marijuana grown in the state is grown in violation of state environmental regulations.
• Of all the medical marijuana growers I’ve spoken with, I can only recall a few who spoke English as a first language and only one who could remember the disease he had in order to get his medical marijuana card. He was a cancer survivor and he was only growing six plants. Most of the people I’ve talked with don’t even live in California, they’re only here for the growing season. They’re also growing more plants than one person could possibly use in a year for medical purposes.
• Money is of course the major incentive for most medical marijuana growers. Where there’s money involved there’s crime. A couple of years ago in one California county, three men were murdered running down a public road because someone thought they were trying to steal marijuana plants. The shooters were charged with murder. I thought it was odd that the sheriff in that county died a week later. Most medical marijuana in California is sold on the black market, much of it being sold in other states where it’s more difficult to grow. I’ve been told that medical marijuana grown in California can be sold for $5000 per pound in Michigan. The latest report is that the state is not seeing the tax revenue anticipated from legalizing marijuana simply because it’s so much cheaper to purchase on the black market.
Other hazards and nuisances associated with the growing of medical marijuana:
• The marijuana plants stink, similar to the smell of a skunk.
• Growers have been known to use pit bulls and traps, such as punji pits to protect their crop.
• Other illegal operations have been found associated with the growth of medical marijuana, such as meth labs and “honey oil” extraction (marijuana concentrate).
So don’t be fooled into thinking that medical marijuana or legalizing marijuana in general is a good choice. It’s bad for public and environmental health. I’ve worked with quite a few marijuana and meth users. I have no reason to believe that the use of these substances, at doses that are NOT medically prescribed by a physician, makes a person a better student, parent, employee or citizen. (Yes, the last time I checked, a physician can prescribe methamphetamine, (Desoxyn.) It’s also bad for the economy. Consider the cost of fighting crime, that stoned drivers are just as dangerous as drunk drivers, and have you seen the cost of potting soil lately?
Ashley BartonAugust 24, 2018
I live in Colorado, and it is still known for it’s beauful landscape. The same hysteria occurred before the legalization of medical marijuana, everyone thought there would be a spike in crime and degeneracy. Not much has changed though, other than our booming economy.
A doctor has the responsibility and training to dispense medicine - including opiates, which actually ARE dangerous. They prescribe drugs which literally kill, but they cannot prescribe cannabis? The state must?
You can not deny relief to those who are suffering, on the off chance that marijuana may be a gateway drug which may lead to further drug use in the future. I know many people who have used cannabis and have not progressed to harder drugs. Just as guns are not the problem, people are, cannabis is not the problem, people are.
It’s easy to jump on the bandwagon to prevent legalization, when you aren’t in legitimate, debilitating pain everyday. When you aren’t seizing all day long. There are parents desperate for this to be legalized so their afflicted child may use it. How can anyone stand in the way of that?
Michael WellsAugust 24, 2018
Medical marijuana is no longer a radical, unstudied policy as it has been accepted by 30 States, many of those with years of experience. For the last few years, the Utah Legislature has considered similar measures for Utah for last few years, yet once again delayed concerned the issue needed more study. The paralysis of analysis. It was earlier this year I decided only the initiative would get the attention of the Legislature and other organizations opposed to medical marijuana. A potentially damaging way, but people are watching loved ones suffer when there are multiple examples of properly limited and controlled medical marijuana blessing similar lives. Thankfully, it seems the threat of the initiative was enough to get organizations to take this issue seriously and recognize, if done properly, the benefits far exceed the perceived issues. I will now be voting no on the initiative but the Legislature needs to act next session.
AnnAugust 24, 2018
Would you please provide a link, so we could read Prop 2 in its entirety? I appreciate your highlights from different sections, but would like to be able to read the whole thing.
Christopher HansenAugust 23, 2018
My son was beaten and nearly killed. Because of this trauma he had micro seizures. This kept him from being able to work. The drugs that the Doctors gave him did nothing except make him angry and sleepy. He now takes (legally in Nevada) Gummies with THC and CBD. Not only did it stop the seizures it got rid on the tinnitus that had bothered him for a decade. He is back to work. It also lowered his blood pressure to a normal level. So don't tell me it is not medicine. It is the BEST medicine.
My wife has Multiple Sclerosis and pernicious anemia, The doctors "wise physicians?" gave her many drugs. They turned her into a zombie and also had another side effect. Her teeth started braking off. She now smokes marijuana. She is working now, She also does 20 hours of genealogy a week. She helps the missionaries with people that are non-members that would like to learn about genealogy, She has started several Facebook pages that deal with Genealogy and history. She actually found out about pernicious anemia by doing her genealogy and discovered that many family members had died from it. She got a doctor to order the test and BINGO, she had it. The "wise physicians" had misdiagnosed her for 50 years.
She is NOW a great wife, mother and grandmother. Without the marijuana she would, once again, be locked up in a dark room...a Zombie. Don't tell me marijuana is not GOOD medicine.
B BatesAugust 23, 2018
I work in Sonoma County, California, so I've seen first-hand the results of Marijuana growing and legalization. While it can be legitimately argued that it has medical benefits (i.e. reducing nausea for cancer patients), the downside is the deterioration of the neighborhoods surrounding a dispensary. For example, there was a small machine shop in Berkeley that I would visit. On my most recent visit, the owner announced he was retiring because they had 2 burglaries in the last 6 months, after the dispensary opened up next door. Other small shops nearby had put bars up on the windows. While the dispensaries may be well run, in our area there seems to be an increase of illegal drug dealing, car break-ins, homeless sitting on the sidewalks, " etc. near the dispensaries. If it is really being used for medicinal purposes, then it should be dispensed through a pharmacy and by prescription.
MarilynnAugust 23, 2018
Dear Gayle,
I commend you for your passion to stand for what you believe. I too, do not believe legalizing marijuana in Utah would be good for Utah but NOT for any of the reasons you have published here. It would take too long for me to explain here why. I too, am passionate in my beliefs, and want you to know that I have never, ever responded to a post of any kind on the internet before but this one I felt driven to respond to. I listened to Doctors at Primary Children’s hospital express their hope it will be made legal. It is the lack of objective research and sincere study upon the subject that causes people to raise the objections such as the ones parroted here. I have two severely handicapped granddaughters who would benefit greatly from having access to the medicinal cannabis plant. I believe with all my heart Gayle, that were you to live with my family’s circumstances, seeing the physical suffering, you would be supporting a different platform. As to your argument that people and particularly our children would become drug addicts, in the legalization of cannabis in US states has not led to a rise in adolescent use. While cannabis use was generally higher in the states that had passed medical marijuana legislation before 2014, the passage of such laws did not affect the rate of marijuana use in those states. Thank you, Gayle.
JeffAugust 23, 2018
Thank you very much for this in-depth analysis of an extremely complicated proposition. I could not have read or understood it by myself and you have confirmed my suspicions. I will be voting 'no'.
Comments | Return to Story
RogerAugust 28, 2018
The facts --- the Utah Medical Association has produced an outstanding position paper on the Utah Medical Marijuana Initiative. The physicians are clearly NOT against any sound, well researched, and approved marijuana derived medicines that might be another substance that might help a the small group of people that might benefit from it in a controlled amount and controlled for purity. The LDS Church retained legal counsel to research the legal aspects of the pending Medical Marijuana Initiative and the objective opinion of the legal profession was well reasoned and presented. One person posted that 'marijuana has known medicinal properties such as treating nausea for cancer patients'. Well, it is also know that marijuana also interferes direction with the chemo therapy medications thus making those compounds less effective. It is also known that in Colorado there has been a rise in suicide rates among teens since marijuana was legalized. The rate of completed suicides vs. attempted ones has risen significantly. Autopsies have shown that many of the completed youth suicides had marijuana in their system (urine tests) and it is believed that the marijuana reduced the nausea so that the other substances were allowed to remain in the system resulting in the death of the child. Without the marijuana, the child's natural body response would have been to vomit out the toxic substances consumed to commit suicide. It is also known that marijuana (dispensary grown or home grown) increases the risk of psychotic events developing in persons under the age of 25. These psychotic events can be a one time event, or they can can become a permanent reoccurring life time event last weeks or months at a time. I know of one mother whose son turned to marijuana to treat his sports injury, developed psychosis from the marijuana, and finally killed himself because he could no longer cope with the reoccurring psychosis. He left behind a wife and a toddler. Research has also shown a link between marijuana consumption to an increase in asthma; head, neck, and throat cancers; marijuana consumption increases the frequency of infants born with life time birth defects; marijuana interferes with anesthesia so that the medical staff need to go to greater efforts to use different medications and to worry throughout the surgery that the anesthesia isn't so disrupted by the pot that the patient doesn't die from his own pot consumption; post operative pain is negative impacted by marijuana consumption and there isn't any pharma meds available to address this type of post operative pain so the marijuana consumer gets to endure the post surgical pain because of their marijuana consumption. There is no 'free lunch' in this world -- there is no 'perfect' safe all natural substance that is a magical elixir to be the be-all and end-all substance to fix the human condition. To those who believe that 'medical marijuana from a dispensary or home grown' has helped with your medical condition -- good for you. You are also exposed to molds, mildew, fungus, and possible heavy metals and pesticides. How about standing up to protect the majority of your neighbors and the kids from the marijuana industry? Request more police protection, support more funding for law enforcement, report known black/gray market sellers, report illegal grows, demand that growers be courtesy to everyone --- control the noxious odors, stop polluting the environment, stop making false medical claims of cures for everything, support the efforts of the majority of society that is weary of the spill over into the community of the crime, the environmental damage, and children using and/or getting addicted to pot because it is ' legal'. I support true scientifically based and research medicine for conditions --- I do not support snake oil sales pitches. Utah ...don't fall for the propaganda that Colorado fell for in the liberal cities that marijuana grown commercially ($$$$$) or homegrown is 'medicine' --- don't accept the effort to make you feel guilty for being unkind, lack of compassion, lack of empathy for the plight of ill people who want to dabble in using marijuana from this source as medicine ----weigh the costs that Colorado has paid for being the first in line for the 'snake oil sales pitch'. Colorado is not swimming in marijuana tax revenue -- we are paying with hospitals closing entire wings of medical services, sky rocketing emergency room visits from marijuana consumers, children in need -- of basically everything (shelter, special ed teachers, bathed by school staff before school because they reek of pot and need fresh clothing as well, even need to GET to school because parent doesn't bother to get their kid to school), law enforcement and SWAT teams increased but still cannot keep up with the crime wave, etc. etc. If someone needs what are known as an 'Orphan Drug" then let's work together to make that happen with a controlled substance for dose and purity; and where its access does not destroy the rest of the community.
MikeAugust 28, 2018
I live in Colorado. We are known as the 'human marijuana experiment state' and I would like to point out to the folks in Utah that the experimentation is a failure. The few controls that have been slapped together to control the marijuana craze has been poorly (ie rarely) enforced. For example in Colorado is it illegal to advertise things related to marijuana where minors can access it -- but the agency charged with enforcing this has done nothing so we have print and radio ads that are uncontrolled. We have had a significant increase in children grade school - high school trying, as well as using, marijuana on a regular basis (regular being at least once per week). We have an increase in the number of psychotic patients because of the consumption of marijuana (both recreational and medical). Colorado law requires that marijuana grows must be at least 1000 feet from a dwelling, school, church, or park. By contrast Utah's Medical Marijuana Initiative which was written by those with a vested interest in more marijuana the requirement is a mere 300 feet from residential property or a mere 600 feet from schools, churches, or parks. 1000 feet in Colorado is inadequate to keep quality communities and Utah is looking at a mere 300 - 600 feet! Wisdom is to learn from the mistakes of others!!! Colorado requires that 'medical marijuana' consumers obtain a recommendation from a medical professional in which they have an established relationship with. Ha! Colorado does not enforce this requirement -- basically one goes to a physician who is willing to recommend medical marijuana for a hefty price (ie money) and will likely never see the 'patient' again. I have physician friends who have told me that the majority of the 'medical marijuana' patients don't even know the name of their 'medical marijuana recommending physician'. Given that many of these Colorado MDs are writing not dozens, not hundreds, but THOUSANDS of 'recommendations' it does not surprise anyone with common sense that these are recommendation mill operations and have nothing to do with any sincere medical concerns. For those who are wavering that 'I don't want to deny someone medicine, if they need medical marijuana..." PLEASE do your homework before buying into the marijuana industry hype. There are pharma available marijuana products for the RARE types of medical conditions where marijuana MIGHT help. Balance this with the known facts that medical research is showing 'marijuana' negatively interferes with over 400 pharma medications, medical marijuana is NOT useful in most 'pain management' and even for the rare type of pain it can cause adverse reactions for some consumers and/or not be effective at all -- it it can be addictive, the FDA just approved Epidiolex a marijuana based medication developed in England for managing SOME rare forms of seizures (know the facts not propaganda -- marijuana to treat seizures --- might help SOME patients, it does NOTHING for the majority of them, and in the remain population it increases seizures. Then there is the concern with hepatic disorders that is documented in the research with marijuana consumption in research with marijuana as a 'medicine' for seizures.') Denver's public health department requires that CBD products that are consumed orally must be refrigerated --- why? Do your homework --- anyone who does home canning will be familiar with this deadly concern. Dispensary / homegrown marijuana -- anyone tell you about the mold, mildew and fungus that can grow on these 'all natural plants"? Well tell that to the young man in California who used medical marijuana while undergoing chemo for cancer. He died. No, not from cancer but from his pot -- he contracted a deadly fungus from his 'medical' marijuana. A small town in Colorado voted to have medical marijuana dispensaries and a marijuana club. For those who claim that marijuana has increased businesses they should take an honest look at the destruction of this town. Crime has increased 4 fold. Non-pot consumers no longer stop in the town for gasoline nor groceries but prefer to shop in safer communities on their family vacations. The same has happened in the town of Trinidad, Colorado. Local businesses are hurting because tourists no longer want to be accosted with marijuana smoke ever where and the local box store that once catered to the RV vacationers -- those travelers take a look at the number of drugged people in the parking lot and drive on to the next town. Utah voters would be wise to vote "NO" on the so-called "Medical Marijuana Initiative" don't fall for the beguiling claims of medical compassion -- THERE ARE other means to get TRUE medical marijuana. Marijuana is being marketed like snake oil -- as a cure all for everything. Think....does it make sense that ONE substance can treat / cure everything from acne to nail fungus to cancers (all forms) to anxiety (it actually increases anxieties) to seizures to pain to diabetes etc.
Ann in ColoradoAugust 28, 2018
I live in Colorado and have witnessed the state's degrade with the legalization of both medical and recreational marijuana. Legalized marijuana has brought homeless people to Colorado like moths to an open flame. Each year the demand by the marijuana-migrant homeless increases beyond the abilities of communities to cope with. Last year alone one center had a 90% increase in out of state homeless flocking to Colorado to consume marijuana (recreational or medical). So let us talk about the many forms of compassion: 1) The emergency rooms are swamped with persons suffering from toxicity of marijuana. There is even a new medical term to describe the SEVERE vomiting that accompanied with screaming. ; Compassion 2) the children of the adults who consume marijuana are being neglected and often times abused to the point of being brought to the emergency room -- mother marijuana consuming mother had submerged both hands of her toddler in boiling oil and the toddler was 'feelin' no pain' because he was stoned -- life time of damage to that child; Compassion 3) a son separated from his mother because he got addicted to marijuana in Colorado and was placed in rehab -- while on marijuana at age 14 he would hang out with the violent homeless, he threatened to kill his mother and his younger brother several times, his little brother was so traumatized he developed PTSD at age 11; Compassion 4) persons killed by stoned drivers and traffic accidents are on the rise in Colorado and other states which have legalized marijuana. The pain of the surviving victims of needless destruction.; Compassion 5) medical professionals in the emergency room who are threatened with violence by the enraged marijuana consumer; Compassion 6) property values reduced when marijuana growers move in -- be it residential or commercial grows. If you live a mile down wind of a marijuana grow you will smell the stench that is marijuana (AKA Skunk Weed). If you live next door to a personal pot grower -- you will smell the odor from marijuana. No more fresh air for the kids playing in their backyard swing sets, no more pot free odor at the family outdoor hamburger grill; Compassion 7) Colorado first responders to fires and emergencies are exposed to toxins on these sites of marijuana grows -- they often develop hives or rashes after responding to these emergencies; Compassion 8) insurance premiums are UP in Colorado as a direct result of the problems linked to marijuana consumption / grows --- because it has brought with it an increase in home robberies, property theft; Compassion 9) every state with legalized marijuana has seen a significant increase in the number of infants born with birth defects. Infants born with various deformities impacting: heart, brain, IQ, and internal organs. Documented increase in the number of infants born with intestines developed outside the body; documented increase in infants born with minimal to no brain at all. Compassion 10) patients who have encountered stoned medical professionals attempting to provide medical care to a patient in need -- MY family encountered this 5 months after Colorado legalized recreational marijuana. The FDA in June approved an anti-seizure medication that is marijuana based for the FEW types of seizures where marijuana MIGHT be helpful. This form of marijuana controls doses and purity unlike the 'homegrown pot' or 'dispensary pot'. Compassion for EVERYONE not just those wanting to consume marijuana at the reckless and complete disregard for the rest of society.
KennyAugust 25, 2018
Right up front I want to say that I would only support the use of medical marijuana if it is prescribed by a licensed physician and obtain at a pharmacy. Compliance with marijuana laws in California and Utah is very similar to compliance with the speed limit on the freeway. Punishment only occurs if you’re caught, and chances of that happening are very unlikely. Most of my relatives live in Utah and I graduated from BYU over 30 years ago. Even so, I’ve called Northern California my home most of my life. At my high school marijuana smoke was a common odor on campus. While at BYU I occasionally had to close my apartment windows to keep the marijuana smoke out. A few years ago my neighbor was illegally growing 44 marijuana plants in his back yard. A sheriff’s deputy looked over the back fence but did nothing. I’ve trained and talked with many hundreds of local, state, and federal government workers who have to deal with the many hazards associated with illegal and legally grown marijuana in California. Here’s a few things I’ve learned in California that the people of Utah my want to consider before legalizing marijuana in any form. • There is no longer any pristine water in the state of California. That cool, clean water that I used to drink out of a sierra cup while backpacking as a youth, can’t be found today. Pesticides that have been banned in California for decades are used throughout the remote areas of our national forests in illegally growing marijuana. Not only do they kill the insects, they also kill everything living within the creek they use for water, including large animals, birds of prey, rabbits, deer, mountain lions and bear. • You say, well that’s illegally grown marijuana, you don’t have the same problems with legally grown medical marijuana. Not true. According to the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, 80% of all medical marijuana grown in the state is grown in violation of state environmental regulations. • Of all the medical marijuana growers I’ve spoken with, I can only recall a few who spoke English as a first language and only one who could remember the disease he had in order to get his medical marijuana card. He was a cancer survivor and he was only growing six plants. Most of the people I’ve talked with don’t even live in California, they’re only here for the growing season. They’re also growing more plants than one person could possibly use in a year for medical purposes. • Money is of course the major incentive for most medical marijuana growers. Where there’s money involved there’s crime. A couple of years ago in one California county, three men were murdered running down a public road because someone thought they were trying to steal marijuana plants. The shooters were charged with murder. I thought it was odd that the sheriff in that county died a week later. Most medical marijuana in California is sold on the black market, much of it being sold in other states where it’s more difficult to grow. I’ve been told that medical marijuana grown in California can be sold for $5000 per pound in Michigan. The latest report is that the state is not seeing the tax revenue anticipated from legalizing marijuana simply because it’s so much cheaper to purchase on the black market. Other hazards and nuisances associated with the growing of medical marijuana: • The marijuana plants stink, similar to the smell of a skunk. • Growers have been known to use pit bulls and traps, such as punji pits to protect their crop. • Other illegal operations have been found associated with the growth of medical marijuana, such as meth labs and “honey oil” extraction (marijuana concentrate). So don’t be fooled into thinking that medical marijuana or legalizing marijuana in general is a good choice. It’s bad for public and environmental health. I’ve worked with quite a few marijuana and meth users. I have no reason to believe that the use of these substances, at doses that are NOT medically prescribed by a physician, makes a person a better student, parent, employee or citizen. (Yes, the last time I checked, a physician can prescribe methamphetamine, (Desoxyn.) It’s also bad for the economy. Consider the cost of fighting crime, that stoned drivers are just as dangerous as drunk drivers, and have you seen the cost of potting soil lately?
Ashley BartonAugust 24, 2018
I live in Colorado, and it is still known for it’s beauful landscape. The same hysteria occurred before the legalization of medical marijuana, everyone thought there would be a spike in crime and degeneracy. Not much has changed though, other than our booming economy. A doctor has the responsibility and training to dispense medicine - including opiates, which actually ARE dangerous. They prescribe drugs which literally kill, but they cannot prescribe cannabis? The state must? You can not deny relief to those who are suffering, on the off chance that marijuana may be a gateway drug which may lead to further drug use in the future. I know many people who have used cannabis and have not progressed to harder drugs. Just as guns are not the problem, people are, cannabis is not the problem, people are. It’s easy to jump on the bandwagon to prevent legalization, when you aren’t in legitimate, debilitating pain everyday. When you aren’t seizing all day long. There are parents desperate for this to be legalized so their afflicted child may use it. How can anyone stand in the way of that?
Michael WellsAugust 24, 2018
Medical marijuana is no longer a radical, unstudied policy as it has been accepted by 30 States, many of those with years of experience. For the last few years, the Utah Legislature has considered similar measures for Utah for last few years, yet once again delayed concerned the issue needed more study. The paralysis of analysis. It was earlier this year I decided only the initiative would get the attention of the Legislature and other organizations opposed to medical marijuana. A potentially damaging way, but people are watching loved ones suffer when there are multiple examples of properly limited and controlled medical marijuana blessing similar lives. Thankfully, it seems the threat of the initiative was enough to get organizations to take this issue seriously and recognize, if done properly, the benefits far exceed the perceived issues. I will now be voting no on the initiative but the Legislature needs to act next session.
AnnAugust 24, 2018
Would you please provide a link, so we could read Prop 2 in its entirety? I appreciate your highlights from different sections, but would like to be able to read the whole thing.
Christopher HansenAugust 23, 2018
My son was beaten and nearly killed. Because of this trauma he had micro seizures. This kept him from being able to work. The drugs that the Doctors gave him did nothing except make him angry and sleepy. He now takes (legally in Nevada) Gummies with THC and CBD. Not only did it stop the seizures it got rid on the tinnitus that had bothered him for a decade. He is back to work. It also lowered his blood pressure to a normal level. So don't tell me it is not medicine. It is the BEST medicine. My wife has Multiple Sclerosis and pernicious anemia, The doctors "wise physicians?" gave her many drugs. They turned her into a zombie and also had another side effect. Her teeth started braking off. She now smokes marijuana. She is working now, She also does 20 hours of genealogy a week. She helps the missionaries with people that are non-members that would like to learn about genealogy, She has started several Facebook pages that deal with Genealogy and history. She actually found out about pernicious anemia by doing her genealogy and discovered that many family members had died from it. She got a doctor to order the test and BINGO, she had it. The "wise physicians" had misdiagnosed her for 50 years. She is NOW a great wife, mother and grandmother. Without the marijuana she would, once again, be locked up in a dark room...a Zombie. Don't tell me marijuana is not GOOD medicine.
B BatesAugust 23, 2018
I work in Sonoma County, California, so I've seen first-hand the results of Marijuana growing and legalization. While it can be legitimately argued that it has medical benefits (i.e. reducing nausea for cancer patients), the downside is the deterioration of the neighborhoods surrounding a dispensary. For example, there was a small machine shop in Berkeley that I would visit. On my most recent visit, the owner announced he was retiring because they had 2 burglaries in the last 6 months, after the dispensary opened up next door. Other small shops nearby had put bars up on the windows. While the dispensaries may be well run, in our area there seems to be an increase of illegal drug dealing, car break-ins, homeless sitting on the sidewalks, " etc. near the dispensaries. If it is really being used for medicinal purposes, then it should be dispensed through a pharmacy and by prescription.
MarilynnAugust 23, 2018
Dear Gayle, I commend you for your passion to stand for what you believe. I too, do not believe legalizing marijuana in Utah would be good for Utah but NOT for any of the reasons you have published here. It would take too long for me to explain here why. I too, am passionate in my beliefs, and want you to know that I have never, ever responded to a post of any kind on the internet before but this one I felt driven to respond to. I listened to Doctors at Primary Children’s hospital express their hope it will be made legal. It is the lack of objective research and sincere study upon the subject that causes people to raise the objections such as the ones parroted here. I have two severely handicapped granddaughters who would benefit greatly from having access to the medicinal cannabis plant. I believe with all my heart Gayle, that were you to live with my family’s circumstances, seeing the physical suffering, you would be supporting a different platform. As to your argument that people and particularly our children would become drug addicts, in the legalization of cannabis in US states has not led to a rise in adolescent use. While cannabis use was generally higher in the states that had passed medical marijuana legislation before 2014, the passage of such laws did not affect the rate of marijuana use in those states. Thank you, Gayle.
JeffAugust 23, 2018
Thank you very much for this in-depth analysis of an extremely complicated proposition. I could not have read or understood it by myself and you have confirmed my suspicions. I will be voting 'no'.
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