ALERT: Still Time to Lobby Congress on Medical Marijuana Vote

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At 10:07 AM 7/19/07, you wrote:

StoptheDrugWar.org:

the Drug Reform Coordination Network

Hinchey Medical Marijuana Amendment 2007

Dear Kraig Carroll,

The

latest word is that the Hinchey medical marijuana amendment -- one of the

most important votes in drug policy reform this year -- is now expected

to happen next week. That means there is still time for you to help --

and your help is needed! The Hinchey amendment, which will go to the

floor of the House of Representatives during debate on the

Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations bill, would prevent the US

Dept. of Justice (of which the DEA is a part) from targeting medical

marijuana in states that have made it legal.

Please use our web site to write your US Representative today!-- or send

a message by email to our system with " hinchey " as the subject

line " to send the message (use " reply-to-sender " to send

your email to the long and complicated ga0.org address, not

drcnet).

 

 

Send a letter to the following decision maker(s):

Your Congressperson

Below is the sample letter:

Vote YES on Hinchey Medical Marijuana Amendment

Dear [decision maker name automatically inserted here],

On June 6, 2005, the US Supreme Court made a ruling upholding the power

of the federal government to ban medical use of marijuana. While this

ruling did not change law in the states that have passed medical

marijuana protections, it does mean that the federal government --

unfortunately -- still has the power to use its resources to undermine

the will of the voters or legislatures of those states.

I think that is wrong, and I urge you to take an important opportunity

coming up to set things right. The Hinchey amendment, to be considered

NEXT WEEK in the debate over the Science-State-Justice-Commerce

Appropriations bill, would prohibit the federal government from

arresting, raiding or prosecuting patients who are abiding by state

medical marijuana laws.

Please vote YES when the Hinchey amendment comes to the floor. Medical

marijuana patients and their providers should not have to live in fear

that police will break down their doors and take them to jail because of

their choice of medicine, certainly not in states whose voters or

legislators have voted to protect them. That is a horrendous state of

affairs, and it is irrational to divert federal resources to attacking

patients that could otherwise be used to protect the nation from

terrorists who want to attack us.

Voting YES on the Hinchey amendment is the only compassionate, rational,

responsible choice that you can make on this amendment.

Sincerely,

Kraig Carroll

 

Take Action!

Instructions:

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reply with " hinchey " in the subject.

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What's At Stake:

Since medical marijuana initiatives were first passed over ten years ago, the DEA has conducted raids against medical marijuana clinics in California, recently with increasing frequency, forcing hundreds if not thousands of patients to procure marijuana in the black market instead. In a ruling issued on June 6, 2005, the US Supreme Court upheld the government's power to do this.

While this didn't change anything -- state laws protecting medical marijuana patients and their providers still are binding upon state and local law enforcement authorities -- it was a missed opportunity for the Court to rein in federal overreaching and help some of our society's most vulnerable members.

Fortunately, Congress will have a chance next week to set things right. The Hinchey amendment, to be considered during the debate on the Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations bill, would prohibit the federal government from arresting, raiding or prosecuting patients who are abiding by state medical marijuana laws.

Your help is needed to get it passed, and there won't be another chance until next year at the earliest. Please visit http://stopthedrugwar.org/medicalmarijuana/ to send an e-mail to your US Representative asking him or her to vote YES on the Hinchey medical marijuana amendment to the Commerce, Justice, Science Appropriations bill. When you are done, please call your Rep. on the phone as well to make even greater impact -- call the Congressional Switchboard at (202) 224-3121 to be connected, or use our lookup tool at http://stopthedrugwar.org/lookup.html to get the direct number.

TALKING POINTS FOR YOUR PHONE CALL OR LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

 

The Hinchey Amendment, which will come up during debate on the House Science-State-Justice-Commerce Appropriations bill this month, would forbid the Dept. of Justice from using funds to undermine state medical marijuana laws. More than three out of four Americans think medical use of marijuana should be legal, according to polls, and twelve states -- Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Vermont, Rhode Island, and Washington -- have all enacted medical marijuana laws in recent years. Despite such strong support, the federal government continues to block even research to determine marijuana's medical benefits. Yet the 1999 Institute of Medicine report determined that marijuana does have medical benefit. Medical organizations such as the American Nurses Association and the American Academy of Family Physicians support legal access to medical marijuana with a doctor's recommendation. Blocking patients from receiving needed medicine -- threatening them with arrest, prosecution and incarceration -- is senseless and cruel. Congress should respect state's rights and not used armed federal agents to threaten patients and providers who are in compliance with state law.

 

Campaign Expiration Date:

September 30, 2007

 

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******

Kraig and Shirley Carroll ... in the woods of SE Kentucky

http://www.thehavens.com/

thehavens

606-376-3363

 

 

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