I am writing about the March 2 front page story: "Medical marijuana, prescriptions boost number of DUIs in Mesa." Not only does marijuana not impair driving ability, perhaps it improves it. I suggest that the readers Google: "Medical marijuana and highway deaths." Then you will see that states that have medical marijuana laws have substantially fewer highway deaths than states that don't.

Marijuana metabolites stay in a person's blood system for up to three weeks, long after its effects have worn off. How would the readers feel if they received a DUI two weeks after they consumed a single glass of wine or bottle of beer?

I am disappointed that the East Valley Tribune would publish such a story. When the EVTrib was published by Freedom Communications it was an excellent newspaper. Now it is not.

Kirk Muse

Mesa

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Conservatives in the Arizona Legislature Want Guns Galore on Campus-but Not a Whiff of Weed

Sometimes, a parallel universe just smacks you upside the head. One such moment occurred recently, when the Arizona Legislature birthed a pair of bills that would-conversely-allow gun fanatics to pack heat on campus, and ensure that sick students can't toke medical marijuana.

One bill has the support of college muckety-mucks; the other most definitely does not. But in this alternate reality called Arizona, neither measure is much of a surprise.

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Mesa police are arresting more drivers for drug impairment, saying prescription drug abuse and Arizona’s medical marijuana law are contributing to the problem.

Drug DUIs now make up a majority of impaired driving arrests in Mesa for the first time. The number of drug-impaired drivers has grown for years but it has spiked more recently, said Mesa Sgt. David Miecke. Fifty-two percent of DUIs issued last year in the city were for drugs, he said.

“For us to think that there’s more people out there driving on drugs than alcohol is startling,” Miecke said. “It’s harder to detect a drug-impaired person than an alcohol-impaired person.”

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It's revealing that the U.S. federal government will allow sick citizens to have highly addictive Class A narcotics like Oxycontin and Percocet on campus but the relatively safe God-given plant (see the 1st page of the Bible) cannabis (marijuana) is treated like a weapon of mass destruction (Medical Marijuana Ban To Hit Campuses, Feb. 23, 2012).

Harmfully, government classifies cannabis a Schedule I substance alongside heroin while meth and cocaine are only Schedule II substances. The problems associated with that misclassification harm all North Americans in more ways than can be comprehended.

- - Stan White

Dillon, Colo.

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The word to use is "cannabis." Your column will be a lot more helpful once you read The Pot Book ("J.M. on J.M.," Medical MJ, Feb. 2).

You have yet to mention that just like endorphins, the brain has its own endogenous cannabinoid receptors. This was discovered by researchers in the '90s. Also, you have failed to have a decent article on sativa versus indica, or on CBD, by far the most medically promising compound found in marijuana.

Please reduce your swearing, too. My grandmother once said swearing just means you have a poor vocabulary. You can usually find a better word.

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University Could Lose Federal Funding If Drug Use Is Permitted

The UA may have to keep the bongs at bay, as a new bill would make medical marijuana on campus illegal, even if it is allowed in the state.

The university already bans medical marijuana on campus in order to receive federal funding under the Drug-Free Workplace Act of 1988 and the Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act of 1989. House Bill 2349 would make it illegal for the ban not to exist.

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What do the names Blue Dreams, G-13 Haze, Canna Sutra, Crimea Blue, Purple Kush, Romulan, S.A.G.E, Vortex, Sour OG Kush and A-Train have in common? They are some of the most popular strains of medical-grade cannabis, and they could be on Arizona dispensaries' shelves this summer.

Arizona became the 16th state to allow medical marijuana after voters passed the Arizona Medical Marijuana Act on Nov. 2, 2010, and it became law Dec. 14, 2010. According to the proposition, its purpose "is to protect patients with debilitating medical conditions, as well as their physicians and providers, from arrest and prosecution, criminal and other penalties and property forfeiture if such patients engage in the medical use of marijuana." There are currently 17 other states with pending legislation to legalize the use of cannabis for medicinal use.

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Just like many of you, I have struggled with the new onslaught of medical information about cannabis.

There's a lot of data out there to parse, and it's hard to get past the fusillade of unsourced bloggers and marketing mavens who seem like they're giving you information, but are actually just telling you what they heard at a NORML meeting or trying to get your $150 for a certification.

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PHOENIX -- Ignoring a possible lawsuit, the state House voted Thursday to ban marijuana on college and university campuses, even for those who have a state-issued card entitling them to use it for medical reasons.

A 2010 voter-approved initiative allows those who have a doctor's recommendation to possess and use up to 2 1/2 ounces of marijuana every two weeks.

That initiative bans use in public areas and public schools. But it leaves the door open for possession and use on the campuses of colleges and universities.

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When a student flunks out, it's time for second-guessing by parents and teachers, too.

The same holds for a drug-resistance curriculum like DARE. Police officers in fifth-grade classrooms need course materials that have an impact and reinforcement from parents and the culture at large.

The fact that DARE officers are being withdrawn from the fifth grade and possibly reinserted into ninth grade with an upgraded curriculum should be no reflection on the officers themselves. The course content and teaching techniques have been standardized across the nation for two decades -- if it was going to work in Flagstaff, it would have worked elsewhere, too.

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Whitney Houston's voice could leave you in tears.

So can the universal lessons of her death.

She used her sparkle and astonishing vocal range to become a roaring success. Her talent was big enough to sustain a fantastic and enviable lifestyle.

Who wouldn't feel invincible in that situation? Stars are immortal. Unstoppable.

But addition can pierce even gold-plated armor. It can take away anybody's dignity.

The exact cause of Houston's death last weekend at age 48 is not yet known. But it is no secret that she plunged into substance abuse years ago. It brought her down from the dizzying heights of pop-culture fame and fortune. It took what could have been a storybook life and turned it into a colossal struggle.

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Editor:

Reading about the most recent bills before our state legislature makes me wonder what is it about morality that makes the Republicans think they can impose theirs on everyone else? I'm thinking in particular about putting Bible studies in the middle and high school curriculum, telling women what they can and cannot do with their bodies, and putting everything in the way of pain ridden Arizonans getting their medical marijuana.

How is it that it's the Republicans who put forth these bills, and the Democrats that are rejecting them? Are we to assume the Republicans are more moral than the Democrats? Isn't that an over-the-top, superiority complex? And what about Republicans always talking about wanting less government.

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ATF's Cartel Suspects Worked for Other Agency

Mexican cartel suspects targeted in the troubled gun-trafficking probe known as Operation Fast and Furious were actually working as FBI informants at the time, according to a congressional memo that describes the case's mission as a "failure."

The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives has acknowledged that guns were allowed into the hands of Mexican criminals for more than a year in the hope of catching "big fish."

The memorandum from staffers with the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform says the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration were investigating a drug-trafficking organization and had identified cartel associates a year before the ATF even learned who they were. At some point before the ATF's Fast and Furious investigation progressed -- congressional investigators don't know when -- the cartel members became FBI informants.

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A lot of things are happening with Arizona's medical-marijuana program--judges are ruling right and left in federal and state court; a humbled Will Humble is moving ahead with dispensary applications at the Department of Health Services; and Gov. Jan has leaped off her MMJ high horse for the time being and moved on to eating presidential crow.

Arizona is 0-for-2 on lawsuits right now, having lost bids to find out if federal agents will storm state offices to arrest employees and to restrict who can open dispensaries. Because the state was legally smacked down, wheels are quickly turning toward the day when we can to walk into a shop and buy MMJ. Humble said on his blog on Jan. 25 that dispensaries could open as soon as summer.

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Procedures, Timelines for Requests Not Complete

A medical-marijuana dispensary request in northeast Phoenix has been postponed a second time due to red tape in state government.

This would have been Phoenix's first medical-marijuana dispensary request since legal issues surrounding the voter-approved law were resolved.

The problem is that even though the legal issues are completed, the procedures and timeline for dispensary requests are not yet complete, Phoenix planner Alan Stephenson says.

The dispensary request was for a building on the southeastern corner of Cave Creek and Cactus roads, currently home to a check-cashing and gold-purchasing business. The applicant, Linda Sonder of American Healthcare Alternatives, needed a permit plus zoning variances because the site is closer to residences and the Phoenix Mountain Preserve than the city ordinance allows.

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Arizona law seems to be forever pushing up against federal law, and the grating sound is becoming unbearable.

Sometimes it's political defiance and sometimes it's nonsense. We've had a bit of both with SB 1070. Sometimes it's Arizonans challenging Washington, D.C., and sometimes it's our state legislators resisting the will of Arizonans. We have a big mix of both with the medical-marijuana law.

State officials are notoriously bad losers when a citizens' initiative they do not like is approved by voters. The marijuana issue has brought out the worst in them. That grating sound is their teeth grinding.

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Arizona law seems to be forever pushing up against federal law, and the grating sound is becoming unbearable.

Sometimes it's political defiance and sometimes it's nonsense. We've had a bit of both with SB 1070. Sometimes it's Arizonans challenging Washington, D.C., and sometimes it's our state legislators resisting the will of Arizonans. We have a big mix of both with the medical-marijuana law.

State officials are notoriously bad losers when a citizens' initiative they do not like is approved by voters. The marijuana issue has brought out the worst in them. That grating sound is their teeth grinding.

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Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer recently announced Jan. 13 that she will begin processing applications for medical marijuana dispensaries.

Brewer released the statement after her lawsuit was dismissed Jan. by U.S. District Judge Susan Bolton.

Brewer's lawsuit stopped dispensaries from finalizing the licensing process and opening their doors just before the state was going to begin the 30-day application period.

Brewer's decision will now allow state health officials to start the process for licensing medical marijuana dispensaries.

However, pending lawsuits could delay the licensing process to be finalized and ultimately dispensaries from opening their doors for business.

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PHOENIX -- A House panel voted Wednesday to ban medical marijuana use and possession on college and university campuses, setting the stage for a lawsuit.

The unanimous vote by members of the House Committee on Higher Education came after Rep. Amanda Reeve, R-Phoenix, said the schools fear loss of both direct federal aid and federally backed student loans if they allow faculty and students to possess the drug.

That was backed by Kristen Boilini who lobbies for several community colleges. She said the law will reinforce policies the schools already have in place.

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A medical-marijuana dispensary request in northeast Phoenix has been postponed a second time due to red tape in state government.

This would have been Phoenix's first medical-marijuana dispensary request since legal issues surrounding the voter-approved law were resolved.

The problem is that even though the legal issues are completed, the procedures and timeline for dispensary requests are not yet complete, Phoenix planner Alan Stephenson says.

The dispensary request was for a building on the southeastern corner of Cave Creek and Cactus roads, currently home to a check-cashing and gold-purchasing business. The applicant, Linda Sonder of American Healthcare Alternatives, needed a permit plus zoning variances because the site is closer to residences and the Phoenix Mountain Preserve than the city ordinance allows.

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