Tribune Editorial: Utah has a drug problem. It’s not marijuana.

The Trib, thank goodness, appears to have its head screwed on straight in terms of the Initiative and understands the, yes cynical, motives of MC opponents….

“…it is sad that Gov. Gary Herbert, generally a level-headed sort, has come out against the initiative.

If the initiative earns the necessary 113,143 signatures on its petitions, and if the voters give their assent in November, Utah would join the 29 other states that have legalized the use of some forms of marijuana to treat pain, seizures and other maladies that have been shown to be relieved by the plant.

Sadly, members of the Utah Legislature have blocked such moves before and, this year, made a cynical attempt to head off the ballot measure. Lawmakers passed a pair of bills – HB195 and HB197 – that between them create a state monopoly on the production of medical marijuana and make it available only to people whose terminal illness has left them with less than six months to live.”

The Trib piece even has a sense of humor… …something we can all use a little of in these fraught times as opponents are binging out their long knives….

Three examples:

1. “A petition drive favoring a vote on making medical uses of cannabis legal in Utah is moving along and, if it gets on the ballot in November, polls indicate that it will pass by a Putin-like majority.”

2. “In signing the terminal-cases-only bills the other day, Herbert said he hoped the Utah Patients measure would not pass because it would open the door to recreational use of marijuana.

But that door in much of the United States is open. The horses have escaped, run up into the mountains, created whole new herds and are doing nicely, thank you.”

3. “The initiative, on the other hand, would offer hope to people suffering from chronic pain, seizures, AIDS, ALS, cancer, PTSD and a few other specific conditions. And it would do so under a fairly strict and complex regime of rules that may not really be necessary but that should help to assuage fears that it would become Cheech y Chong week in Provo.”

Lolol… 🙂

Meanwhile this op-ed also features the Trib’s clear understanding of the beneficial role medicinal cannabis can play in combatting the ongoing opioid crisis. Well worth your time.

And now back to the serious business of keeping the truth’s head above water in a super-charged atmosphere where both the Governor and the state’s “leading” doctor’s association are determined to thwart public opinion by exploiting their high positions and public visibility by any misrepresentations necessary…..

#MMJ #UTpol #Initiative #PatientsBeforePolittics #TRUCE    

See full article – Tribune Editorial: Utah has a drug problem. It’s not marijuana.