Last year, two separate medical marijuana issues were approved by the Ohio Ballot Board. Supporters of the Ohio Medical Cannabis Amendment of 2012 and the Ohio Alternative Treatment Amendment have until July 6th to collect enough signatures of support to qualify for the election ballot. Both groups would need to collect over 385,000 signatures.
So far, however, neither group has reported much in terms of fundraising or signature collecting, making many believe that neither measure stands a chance of making it onto the ballot.
Despite that, anti-marijuana groups are ramping up for a fight. Yesterday, representatives from a number of anti-drug groups spoke at a Statehouse news conference.
Kevin Sabet, a senior adviser to national drug czar Gil Kerlikowske from 2009 to 2011, was one of the speakers at the conference. He said that prescribing marijuana for medical purposes isn’t a bad idea if it is in pill form, but it’s wrong to use “smoked marijuana under the pretense of medicine.”
At the conference, Sabet also claimed that studies show that only 5% of medical marijuana patients throughout the country have severe medical problems. He did not cite the study that proved that, but continued to explain that the typical medical marijuana user is apparently “a 32-year old white male with a history of drug-abuse problems and no major medical history.”
The fight against medical marijuana in Ohio is strong at the moment, but advocates hope that either of the proposed measures gains enough support for it to be put to a vote of the people. A recent poll showed that 73% of Ohio voters support medical marijuana legalization.
[Source]
jibbler said on Feb 28, 2013
Isn't this the same old story? Alcohol prohibition was nothing but the same… '32-year old white male with a history of drug-abuse problems and no major medical history.'
K-Budzz said on Feb 28, 2013
what a republican state, spewing untrue facts without any proof.. 5%? sorry were not all dying of a disease; some have back problems, imune difficiency problems, depression. but, no, its not right for us to seek medication that actually works we have to suffer and pop pharmaceutical pills. and do i look like a 32 year old white male w/ a history of drug-abuse problems and no major medical history? some may argue, but no i do not. i personally do not know any medical marijuana patients under this alias. pure arrogance over there in the buckeye state, but that is as well as the whole country pretty much :/
lucy said on Feb 28, 2013
I'm just really dying to know where he pulled those stats from.
OG_Corp said on Mar 5, 2013
What a "Republican State"? You do know that Ohio was a blue state for the past two elections, don't you?
K-Budzz said on Feb 28, 2013
A-L-I-A-S, not allas.
LloydChristmas said on Feb 28, 2013
Would be nice if politicians would cite their sources like an intelligent person would. Pretty sweet how the people we elect to make the right decisions for us just lie to everyone. The whole reason George Washington and all those guys came here was to get away from those politics. Can someone explain where things went wrong and people started thinking cannabis was evil? It's perfectly legal for me to take some opiates if I'm prescribed, but I can't smoke a natural plant? INCREDIBLE!!!
spkavyo said on Feb 28, 2013
Why is the form of intake so important? I can titrate my dose pretty accurately when using either of my vaporizers, not so much with edibles. The labeled amount of THC is just not accurate enough to predict how hard an edible is going to hit, leading to either over or under medicating. Just another shill for the drug companies is my bet. Lucy, he pulled those numbers right out of his ass!
iHydroEyez said on Feb 28, 2013
Following this protest, the Protesters went and collected their Checks from big Pharma, Smh.
slowwevo said on Mar 1, 2013
You would think someone who worked at the top level of goverment would at least use true statistics
but then you see the statement-" prescribing marijuana for medical purposes isn’t a bad idea if it is in pill form"
I think when you see big pharma producing "pot pills" you will see the first case of someone dieing from cannabis overdose
Another thing that worries me would be this guy has advised 3 diff. US administrations for drug policy
why wasn't he making these statements about med pot being ok 3 presidents ago….
sad..but your P.H.D. doesn't convince me you know what the fuck your talking about
I shall continue to listen to real doctors,who do
WeedFairy said on Mar 1, 2013
I can't believe the ignorance of some people, nor can I believe how much like children these politicians, and anti-marijuana protestors can act. You would never be able to get away with giving any kind of report in school without citing your damn sources, so neither should this fool. On top of that I have worked in the industry as a bud tender, and while yes, many people are there just to get high, I met sooooooooo many patients who deal with life altering medical issues. Real medical issues aside (MS, epilepsy, cancer, etc) not enough people credit anxiety, depression, and many other psychological issues that many MMJ users have, and use cannabis for. These conditions can render some useless, and unhappy, and if cannabis can help them calm their fears, anxiousness, and pain then by all means they count as part of the population of legitimate medical users.
Nexxicon said on Mar 2, 2013
I can't believe with the ethnicity of our Commander in Chief, and the reasons why marijuana was illegal in the first place (propaganda: Weed would make white women more susceptible to sexual advances from black people (http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/why-is-marijuana-illegal/), and protection of OTHER drug dealers (cigarettes, alcohol, Big Pharma, etc.), that Capital O hasn't GOVERNMENTALLY ENDORSED weed?!
COME ON USA – UNF*** YOURSELF!! We are a nation of fertile soil and we could be a World Leader in the production of marijuana!! WE NEED TO CHANGE THE MATH THAT WE'VE BEEN OPERATING ON! Big Pharma doesn't give a s*** about how many flipper-babies the latest round of Lunesta causes and that s*** doesn't happen with weed!
OG_Corp said on Mar 5, 2013
We can all get on sites and argue how unfair it is that marijuana is illegal. Not only should it be available everywhere for medical use, but for recreational use as well. Coming on the internet to complain won't do a damn thing. I am from Ohio and I say that since there's nothing we can do about it, let's all just stay high and live with it.