No on Question 5
10/22/09 | 11 comments
editorial

No on Question 5


Do you want to change the medical marijuana laws to allow treatment of more medical conditions and to create a regulated system of distribution?

In 1999, Mainers voted to allow marijuana to be used for treating certain illnesses. The law stipulated that using the plant had to be approved by a doctor, and it allowed patients with specific illnesses to grow and use small amounts of marijuana. Question 5 is designed to facilitate the intent of the 1999 law, but it leaves too many unanswered questions.

There are many patients who might benefit from using marijuana in the treatment of medical conditions. The substance is said to ease the nausea of chemotherapy, muscle cramps that come with multiple sclerosis and the eye pressure of glaucoma, among others. But the proposal voters face on the Nov. 3 ballot is rife with problems. It should be defeated, and lawmakers should work to create a better mechanism to honor the intent of the 1999 vote.

A key problem with the law proposed by Question 5 is that it would create marijuana dispensaries with very little oversight.

Under the proposal, the state Department of Health and Human Services would oversee the dispensaries, which raises the question of whether the agency would then have a responsibility to control the quality of the marijuana that is distributed. DHHS has a domain of responsibility that is already too large as its budget shrinks. Adding drug control to it is unfair to the already overburdened staff, and it puts an agency with little law enforcement experience in the position of having to safeguard against illicit use of the drug.

Guy Cousins, director of the Maine Office of Substance Abuse within DHHS, said any measure that encourages more people to grow, possess or use marijuana will increase the availability of the drug for recreational users, including teens. That argument is compelling.

Mainers, and Americans, are still struggling to come to terms with how they handle drugs. A recent Gallup poll showed 44 percent of Americans favor legalizing marijuana for all uses, recreational and medical. That figure is up from 39 percent three years ago. And 50 percent of Americans under 50 years old favor legalization, suggesting that public opinion will eventually tip toward accepting marijuana use.

But until that larger question is resolved definitively, approving Question 5 is not the answer, because in a practical sense, it would weaken the existing law and create difficult judgment decisions for law enforcement officers. State lawmakers must address this issue and craft a plan that allows patients who would benefit from using marijuana to have access to the plant, while also not unlocking the door to more illicit use.

Not registered? Click here
E-mail this
Print this
Guidelines for posting on bangordailynews.com

Bangordailynews.com is pleased to offer a forum for readers to react to our stories, discuss them and provide additional information. We are reluctant to delete comments, but do reserve that right for those who abuse our forum. For more on using this site, please see our terms of service.

The primary rule here is pretty simple: Treat others with the same respect you'd want for yourself. What does that mean specifically? Here are some guidelines (see more):

Comments
11 comments on this item
On 10/21/09 at 11:01 PM, ElectraGlide wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

So it seems that around 50% of all the population wants to end the Laws for all citizens allowing them to use Marijuana, I would say if people could vote on that today. In the voting booth it would be a much larger %.

You did not give a % of people with Medical conditions that want it. I don`t care they need it. Period!!

Voting yes on 5.

Report abuse
On 10/22/09 at 10:32 AM, HeartOfSky wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Please allow me to re-phrase the question:

"Do you favor having the dispensation of marijuana overseen by the HHS or by organized crime (as it is now)?"

Report abuse
On 10/22/09 at 10:56 AM, viper13 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Did not know it would be overseen by DHHS. I have to agree, those folks already have their plates full, so I don't think that is the dept. to oversee it. That being said, I do not know which dept. should oversee. I don't think we should implement a "new" dept. to oversee. It's a quandry. I'm inclined to think it should fall under the alcohol & tobacco dept.

Report abuse
On 10/22/09 at 1:50 PM, a_realrain_willcome wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

yes on on 5

Report abuse
On 10/22/09 at 1:52 PM, Greenmansean wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

“Guy Cousins, director of the Maine Office of Substance Abuse within DHHS, said any measure that encourages more people to grow, possess or use marijuana will increase the availability of the drug for recreational users, including teens. That argument is compelling.“

The argument might be compelling – if it didn't fly in the face of all existing evidence.

Teenage marijuana use has decreased in every state that has passed a medical marijuana law -- with an especially dramatic decrease in teenage marijuana use in California, the state with the most liberal medical marijuana law.

And the proposed law contains tough provisions to ensure that only qualified patients can receive marijuana from dispensaries and that patients caught selling their medicine would lose their rights under the law.

The BDN wants patients to wait for the legislature to fix the problems in Maine's existing medical marijuana law. The legislature has had ten years to do so and in the past two years rejected proposals to create a well regulated distribution system for medical marijuana. Patients with diseases like cancer and HIV don't have time to wait for the legislature to decide to make this issue a priority. Vote yes on 5!

Report abuse
On 10/22/09 at 2:46 PM, JonAlbrecht wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

"Guy Cousins, director of the Maine Office of Substance Abuse within DHHS, said any measure that encourages more people to grow, possess or use marijuana will increase the availability of the drug for recreational users, including teens. That argument is compelling."

Why is this compelling. Its the same old lie the drug warriors have been selling since the 1940's. Wasn't true then not true now. BDN didn't buy the lies of SFMM. Why buy this one.

Vote Yes on 5

Report abuse
On 10/23/09 at 6:49 PM, glenna wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

DHHS is the wrong department to be overseeing the compliance of this if it were to be passed. DHHS cannot do the work it is currently charged to do. So more people would have to be hired, trained, etc. and there would need to be new offices set up state-wide. Not cost efficient. Re-write the law and turn the responsibility over to some component within a state law enforcement agency and it might work. Law enforcement personnel are already trained re: marijuana (legal and otherwise) and would be better able to "snif out" - no pun intended - what's being done in and out of compliance with the law.

Maybe some aspects of this idea have some validity - but I'm still thinking about that recent huge marijuana drug bust in the northern part of the state. We just need to watch which way the gate is swinging here.

Report abuse
On 10/24/09 at 6:27 AM, harley07 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Let it not be a cost to the State but a revenue legalize it for everyone and tax it to the max....

Report abuse
On 10/25/09 at 9:54 PM, a_realrain_willcome wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

I say that too electricglide... I think this state and the entire country need to look at it this way. We're allowing gay marriage.but not marijuana that can help people?

Report abuse
On 10/27/09 at 8:11 AM, julieh777 wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

I wonder how many people would be clamoring for medical marijuana if they didn't get high from it.

Report abuse
On 10/29/09 at 11:54 AM, betterthanthat wrote:         Repeated separate thumbs down will cause comment to be hidden

Prohibition for alcohol only lasted so long........Marijuana will have it's day on the shelf. Let adults choose which vice they would like to consume. Passing question 5 will be one giant step towards legalization.......Everyone should be thankful. The government will tax the mess out of it and schools, hospitals, and every Mainer will benefit from it. A lack of Marijuana edutcation is what leaves people so misleased and biased. Of course, some people will abuse the right to do what they want with Marijuana, but that is the very same for many other things........Gambling, Drinking, Video Games, Religion, Freedom of Speech............I can assure you that Marijuana is the least harmful of the group.

Report abuse
You must be logged in to post a comment. click here to log in.

Powered by: Creative Circle Advertising Solutions, Inc.