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* The right way to approach a medical marijuana debate…

U.S. Rep. Rodney Davis (R-Ill.) today announced that he is co-sponsoring bipartisan legislation to ensure that children and individuals with epilepsy and other debilitating seizure disorders have access to Cannabidiol (CBD) Oil and therapeutic hemp.

“If one of my children suffered from seizures, I couldn’t imagine being told by a doctor that we’ve run out of options or being forced to split up my family to send a child to a state where CBD is available and legal,” said Davis. “While the state of Illinois has taken steps to legalize the use of supplements like CBD for medicinal purposes, not all states have followed suit. This bill is a narrow, commonsense approach to give individuals and families in all states the access to this potentially life-changing supplement to help treat and deal with seizure disorders.”

Currently, more than 300,000 children in American suffer from some form of epilepsy. Many of these children experience more than 100 violent seizures a day— any one of which could be fatal without proper care. There is evidence that CBD oil has been shown to reduce the amount and duration of seizures in children suffering from epilepsy and other seizure disorders.

H.R. 5226, the Charlotte’s Web Medical Hemp Act of 2014, would enable individuals to access this potentially life-saving supplement without having to split up families geographically in order to receive treatment.

* The Sun-Times shows us the near hysterical wrong way…

Chicago medical marijuana dispensaries are likely coming to busy shopping areas, despite the city’s initial attempt to hide them away at the edges of the city.

That means a medical marijuana dispensary could potentially open next door to a tony restaurant on Randolph Street or in River North near touristy fast food joints, according to new zoning regulations approved Tuesday by a the Chicago City Council’s Committee on Zoning, Landmarks and Building Standards.

Essentially most business and commercial strips are fair game.

Sheesh.

posted by Rich Miller
Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:12 pm

Comments

The next thing you know, they’ll have a Walgreens on every corner!

It’s a tightly regulated legal, medical substance; who do they think will be frequenting these stores? These places are not going to be head shops with tie-dyes and Dead stickers for sale.

Comment by Pot calling kettle Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:27 pm
I would like to thank the Sun Times for its attempt to protect us poor, delicate north-siders from those dastardly cancer patients trying to get medication to ease their suffering.

Gosh, I would really hate to see that sort of thing when walking around the area near Northwestern Hospital. Can you imagine heading up Michigan Ave., and having some person on chemo on that sidewalk? No thank you! We only have good looking healthy people there!

Great work, Sun-Times. Way to stand up for us little people!

Comment by Gooner Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:28 pm
OK, in all seriousness, as somebody who live on the near north side, I would very much like to see Northwestern Hospital have the ability to dispense marijuana. My understanding is that under the current law, they are banned from doing so.

I can imagine how tough it must be to deal with some of the conditions that the drug is prescribed for. It would be great for the patients to be able to pick up their medication at the same place they are receiving their treatment.

Comment by Gooner Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:32 pm
Good for Davis taking the lead. Might put him in a position to snatch away some of the left-leaning indy support that would have otherwise gone to Callis.

Comment by Dirty Red Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:35 pm
Surprisingly, there seems to be movement in Congress not only to get the feds off the back of medical marijuana, but even eliminate it as a Schedule I controlled substance.

What’s the Sun-Times on? They’re worried about a medical marijuana dispensary around all the bars in River North? They’re not pounding Yoo-Hoo in those joints.

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:49 pm
Sorry - why is that “hysterical?” They just pointed out that dispensaries are likely coming to commercial strips.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:49 pm
===Sorry - why is that “hysterical?”===

C’mon, it’s basically a Red Menace story… or Green Menace, as the case may be.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:51 pm
Hey Sun Times? So what?

Comment by Cheryl44 Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 2:58 pm
You have to ask yourself–why does a sick person, sometimes a very sick person, have to pay for something that they can grow in their closet? Would it cut too much into big pharma’s profits? Soon,the man behind the curtain will be revealed–hopefully very soon.

Comment by funny guy Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:05 pm
–Essentially most business and commercial strips are fair game.–

As they should be, they should be treated the same as a pharmacy. Heck, their are more dangerous drugs in pharmacy’s, maybe they should get a lower zoning qualification.

Comment by Ahoy! Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:06 pm
Legalize it, already. By the time Illinois gets its act together, the federal ban will be dropped–when the New York Times takes the stance they have, prohibition’s days are numbered. Just watch, though. A few folks with connections are going to get the licenses to grow and distribute, and they’re going to get stinkin’ rich with a state-protected monopoly. That’s the Illinois way.

Comment by Anonymous Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:07 pm
Lets step tap dancong around thr issue, Rep. Davis and co-sponsor legislation to legalize it!

Comment by Goonhammer Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:19 pm
If we legalize it in Illinois in a couple years, will the Sun Times call for a “No marijuana dispensary within 2000 yards of a convenience store selling munchies” rule?

Comment by Robert the Bruce Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:31 pm
The reason people should be concerned is that Med Mar has been laughable from the beginning. It is a Trojan horse for recreational use being legalized, even the companies vying to become Med Mar growers will tell you that. So if there is going to be a dispensary for Med Mar, once legalized that same place will be there to “dispense” everyone’s “medicine” for recreational use, which will attract an entirely different crowd. It’s mind boggling the suspension of critical thought that comes along with discussions surrounding Medical Marijuana.

Comment by John A Logan Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:34 pm
=== It’s mind boggling the suspension of critical thought that comes along with discussions surrounding Medical Marijuana. ===

You should heed your own advice, doom meister.

Comment by Rich Miller Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:37 pm
John Logan, I agree with you. I supported medical marijuana despite knowing that it was a Trojan Horse because there are very sick people who will significantly benefit from access.

That said, I firmly believe, based upon my experience with friends and family members who became addicts, that full legalization is a horrible thing for our country. I know most of my friends on the left disagree and that I’m in the minority on this issue, but so be it.

Oh, and crime was up 7% in Denver in the year since full legalization in CO.

Comment by Chicago Cynic Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:51 pm
–Oh, and crime was up 7% in Denver in the year since full legalization in CO. –

You can’t be serious.

Where do you think the baddest, most violent criminals in North America stand on marijuana legalization?

You think Al Capone liked Prohibition a little bit?

Comment by wordslinger Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:59 pm
Sell it, tax it, use the proceeds to pay down the pension debts.

Comment by DuPage Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:59 pm
IF this were called something else, it would be a medical breakthrough for treating kids. Ease their pain and put the other stuff aside.

Comment by A guy... Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 4:05 pm
Yes, really.

http://drthurstone.com/denver-crime-rate-up/

http://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2014/07/28/patrick-kennedy-marijuana-brain/13292245/

Comment by Chicago Cynic Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 4:21 pm
Crime was up in Denver? Not so fast.

Comparing Denver’s county- and city-wide crime statistics from the same six-month period from January to June in 2013 and 2014, homicides dropped 62 percent since marijuana was legalized there in January. It’s worth noting, though, that Denver has a relatively low murder rate compared to Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The number of murders in Denver dipped from 21 to 13 in six months from 2013 to 2014, whereas Baton Rouge has had 34 murders in the first six months of 2014.

“Most violent crime categories, like sex offenses and kidnapping, also saw a drop in Denver since marijuana was legalized. Aggravated assault and kidnapping stayed nearly the same. A notable increase came in simple assault, which increased by more than a third, or 35 percent. Overall, property crimes decreased by about 9 percent.”

Comparing Denver’s county- and city-wide crime statistics from the same six-month period from January to June in 2013 and 2014, homicides dropped 62 percent since marijuana was legalized there in January. It’s worth noting, though, that Denver has a relatively low murder rate compared to Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The number of murders in Denver dipped from 21 to 13 in six months from 2013 to 2014, whereas Baton Rouge has had 34 murders in the first six months of 2014.

http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2014/07/denver_marijuana_crime_louisia.html

Comment by Hon. John Fritchey Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 4:36 pm
Sorry for the sloppy cut and paste, but the song remains the same.

Comment by Hon. John Fritchey Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 4:37 pm
The sun-times sounds just like the people who dont like gun stores in the area

Comment by Todd Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 4:40 pm
==- Chicago Cynic - Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 3:51 pm:==

Where are you on cigarette and alcohol prohibition?

Comment by Precinct Captain Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 5:06 pm
Could it be that the opponents to legalization are troubled that they could only buy from during the day on main street instead of three in the morning in some dark alley?

Comment by persecuted Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 5:33 pm
Many years ago (late 70s-earl 80s) in a downstate county, the sheriff’s dept confiscated a large quantity of marijuana. Rather than incinerate it all in one go, the kept it in a locked basement room and dispensed small quantities to cancer patients for incineration. They helped a lot of folks who were in a bad way. Thirty years later, we seem to be making some progress help folks get the relief they need.

Comment by Pot calling kettle Wednesday, Jul 30, 14 @ 7:21 pm