Medical Cannabis bill

[couzin]

Medical Cannabis bills have been filed in the Texas House and Senate. While I believe it to be a good thing for a lot of folks, including myself because of my disabilities, I believe I would never ask my Rheumatologist to give me a card as long as I carry a weapon per CHL. As to experiences with marijuana - I am very familiar with its effects (long ago and far away). What are ya'll s thoughts if it passes?

[CoffeeNut]

I think it should pass and would genuinely help a lot of people with legitimate disabilities. I find it a better alternative to giving people several different kinds of pills (and many that are highly addictive) with a long list of side effects. I just hope that Texas doesn't hand them out like candy as they did in Colorado before full legalization (per my Uncle) as that does nothing but make the "medical" part seem like a joke.

[gemini]

If it passes. I would hope that it would allow those taking certain forms of chemo be
included. There are several medical conditions that might be helped with the passage
of a "medicinal" pot law. I do not use or currently have any medical condition that
would benefit from its use. However, IF I did have, or had a child or spouse that could
benefit by the use of THC, I would want it to be available to Dr's to prescribe.
I'd think the current "driving or carrying under the influence" laws would apply.

[remington79]

I hope it passes too. I don't see any problem with carrying. You just wait until you sober up just as you would do with alcohol.

[rotor]

Rather than argue the legalization of this on a state level unless it is legal on a federal level I think there will always be a problem. No matter what the state does you will be in violation of federal law, just depends how much they want to go after you. Eric Holder might not. The next one might want to.

[Jumping Frog]

I hope it passes too. I don't see any problem with carrying. You just wait until you sober up just as you would do with alcohol.

But it is different from alcohol in a very key way.

Alcohol, your liver clears the bloodstream in a matter of hours and a breath-alcohol or blood alcohol test can show you being sober in short order.

Marijuana can test positive for up to a month.

Consider two scenarios:

1. You get drunk on a Friday night. You have a self defense shooting on Monday, are tested for alcohol post-shooting, and the test results come back clear.
2. You smoke marijuana on a Friday night. You have a self defense shooting on Monday, are tested for drugs post-shooting, and the test results come back positive for marijuana.

Seems like scenario two could create a lot of life complications that we haven't really figured out how to deal with as a society.

[MeMelYup]

I hope it passes too. I don't see any problem with carrying. You just wait until you sober up just as you would do with alcohol.

But it is different from alcohol in a very key way.

Alcohol, your liver clears the bloodstream in a matter of hours and a breath-alcohol or blood alcohol test can show you being sober in short order.

Marijuana can test positive for up to a month.

Consider two scenarios:

1. You get drunk on a Friday night. You have a self defense shooting on Monday, are tested for alcohol post-shooting, and the test results come back clear.
2. You smoke marijuana on a Friday night. You have a self defense shooting on Monday, are tested for drugs post-shooting, and the test results come back positive for marijuana.

Seems like scenario two could create a lot of life complications that we haven't really figured out how to deal with as a society.

That is only if the test for THC. If they test for the amount of THC is another story. The more a person uses cannabis the more tolerant they become and less they exhibit the symptoms, but the higher the level of THC.

[remington79]

I don't know all the details but I do know that Washington has a test where they draw blood in suspected DUIs. There is a blood test they use that determines the level of THC in the bloodstream. As in alcohol they have a level that is the cutoff for being under the influence.

[The Annoyed Man]

Seems like scenario two could create a lot of life complications that we haven't really figured out how to deal with as a society.

This is marginally off-topic, but still relevant in a parallel sort of way.....

It's funny..... I was just talking to some friends at church not too long ago, and my statement was that, if marijuana is ever legalized........and I believe it is just a matter of time.......then the church is going to have to deal with it. Although alcohol excess has always been condemned in both Old and New Testaments, the use of alcoholic beverage is not only socially accepted in the Bible, it is a part of the sacraments depending on your denomination. This is important in that, since the Bible accepts both social and sacramental use of wine, and since wine is an alcoholic beverage (yes, yes, I know that the wine of the Biblical era was lower in alcohol than today......it was STILL alcoholic, and it STILL made people drunk), then why else have a social glass of wine if the effects of the alcohol aren't part of the "accepted" experience. People who do not drink to excess, do have a glass of wine in order to relax by means of the relatively small amount of alcohol contained in one glass of wine.

In other words, they are self-medicating. They are in control of what they are doing, and they may be enjoying other aspects of the wine, such as the color, the balance, the fruity finish, but they ARE still self-medicating.

Other kinds of intoxicants are not addressed in scripture so far as I can recall, but marijuana certainly falls into the class of "other kinds of intoxicants not mentioned." The primary reason a religious person wouldn't use marijuana right now would be that it is still illegal in most places, and scripture tells us to be obedient to the authorities placed over us. But when that barrier to obedience is removed by decriminalizing marijuana, then the very same believers who — with scriptural permission — will be faced with whether or not they care to try a little boo. (BTW, I've been there and done that, and I have no desire to smoke any more weed....or eat it.....or drink it.....or whatever.)

I raise this whole thing with the church, NOT because I am trying to make any kind of spiritual argument, but rather to offer this conundrum as a microcosmic look at what Society At Large, and Government has to do to adjust. In this case, substitute the word "Law" for the word "Scripture", and you've got a similar kind of picture.

I just found that an interesting comparison. Your mileage may vary.

[Abraham]

A very close friend who suffered with cancer and I do mean suffered, I think may have benefited from smoking weed as his very potent pain killers weren't working. His agony was immense.

He however was quite religious and wouldn't touch the stuff.

I took him to his last visit to M.D. Anderson where his oncologist told him in front of me to pick out a hospice as they couldn't do anything more for him. I thought this blunt assessment could have been delivered with a little more tact. He died three weeks later.

Alright, I'm steering a bit off course. I wish he'd of smoked some powerful weed to make his last days a bit more tolerable.

Sometimes cancer pain can't be controlled with opiates.

[MeMelYup]

Seems like scenario two could create a lot of life complications that we haven't really figured out how to deal with as a society.

This is marginally off-topic, but still relevant in a parallel sort of way.....

It's funny..... I was just talking to some friends at church not too long ago, and my statement was that, if marijuana is ever legalized........and I believe it is just a matter of time.......then the church is going to have to deal with it. Although alcohol excess has always been condemned in both Old and New Testaments, the use of alcoholic beverage is not only socially accepted in the Bible, it is a part of the sacraments depending on your denomination. This is important in that, since the Bible accepts both social and sacramental use of wine, and since wine is an alcoholic beverage (yes, yes, I know that the wine of the Biblical era was lower in alcohol than today......it was STILL alcoholic, and it STILL made people drunk), then why else have a social glass of wine if the effects of the alcohol aren't part of the "accepted" experience. People who do not drink to excess, do have a glass of wine in order to relax by means of the relatively small amount of alcohol contained in one glass of wine.

In other words, they are self-medicating. They are in control of what they are doing, and they may be enjoying other aspects of the wine, such as the color, the balance, the fruity finish, but they ARE still self-medicating.

Other kinds of intoxicants are not addressed in scripture so far as I can recall, but marijuana certainly falls into the class of "other kinds of intoxicants not mentioned." The primary reason a religious person wouldn't use marijuana right now would be that it is still illegal in most places, and scripture tells us to be obedient to the authorities placed over us. But when that barrier to obedience is removed by decriminalizing marijuana, then the very same believers who — with scriptural permission — will be faced with whether or not they care to try a little boo. (BTW, I've been there and done that, and I have no desire to smoke any more weed....or eat it.....or drink it.....or whatever.)

I raise this whole thing with the church, NOT because I am trying to make any kind of spiritual argument, but rather to offer this conundrum as a microcosmic look at what Society At Large, and Government has to do to adjust. In this case, substitute the word "Law" for the word "Scripture", and you've got a similar kind of picture.

I just found that an interesting comparison. Your mileage may vary.

The Bible says that a lot of things are ok as long as it is not in excess. I think the same would be for MJ.

[airborned]

Im fine with it if there are legitimate medical reasons. That being said i know it will end up as a scape goat to carry around dope. im not a fan of that.

[The Annoyed Man]

Im fine with it if there are legitimate medical reasons. That being said i know it will end up as a scape goat to carry around dope. im not a fan of that.

I am NOT referring here to people who are really sick with cancer, or terminally ill with something, but I DO think that about 95% or more "medical marijuana" use (a la California) is bogus crap. Among all of the people I've met over the years who had medical marijuana permits, only a small number were genuinely sick in a way that required use of pot for honest medical reasons. One of the young men whom I sponsor in Celebrate Recovery came from a California family in which EVERY member had a marijuana permit from some quack.......including the only "normal" son who had PTSD from his family situation, a son with severe ADHD, and a son with autism. The unemployed and basically useless father, and the 400 lb morbidly obese mother both had marijuana permits. The entire family was a psychiatrically dysfunctional car-wreck, and their marijuana permits were just another layer in the drug abuse pie.

Again, I'm not saying that there is no place for marijuana in medicine......... but the truth is that most of those prescriptions are issued to people who just want a legal way to get high. So while some hard to dispute libertarian arguments can be made in decriminalizing marijuana, what has been done in California is just a flat out lie. Either legalize it, or don't; but DON'T pass a "medical marijuana" bill. That is nothing more than a fraud — particularly when it is already possible to prescribe cannabis derivatives for serious medical use.

[Oldgringo]

In the past half dozen years or so, we passed laws in our little hamlet to allow the sale of beer and wine. A couple years later, the sale of liquor was also legalized. The point of this is: those who drink will drink whether it's sold locally or not. Those who don't drink, will not start drinking just because it's sold in the grocery store.

The same is true for cannabis. I've never partaken of cannabis in the past three score and thirteen years. I won't start 'toking' if it's available in WalMart or elsewhere. I suspect I'm not alone in that regard?

A benefit to the legalization of alcohol sales in our hamlet resulted in a new fire engine and raises for the city employees from the increase in tax revenues. Similarly, the monies spent on the drug war could be better spent elsewhere or not at all; not to mention, legalization would put a bunch of drug dealers out of business; e.g., the repeal of prohibition in the early part of the last century.

[winters]

So how do you fill out the 4473 form when you buy a gun without breaking the law when it asks:

"Are you an unlawful user of, or addicted to, marijuana or any depressant, stimulant, narcotic drug, or any other controlled substance?"

This is a federal form not state so how does it being legal at the state level matter?

Other then this I'm not going to express my opinion about marijuana users as I'm sure it would get me banned.Im sure this question will get the arm chair lawyers to post.