J.M.'S Question: Should He Come Out of the Closet to His Mom As a Pot-Smoker?

When I was 17, I flunked out of high school.

It wasn't a slow descent into failure, as it is with a lot of kids. It was an abrupt, spectacular, fail-every-class-my-senior-year crash into the deck. Despite the darkest, most-fervent efforts of my subconscious, I almost made it anyway, barely falling short of a D in biology. I missed graduation by one credit.

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Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery is alleging that an attorney who represents a proposed medical-marijuana dispensary violated ethics rules by attempting to dissuade the Board of Supervisors, Montgomery's client, from taking his advice.

Acting on that advice, the Board of Supervisors declined to follow the state's medical-marijuana law and has disallowed medical-marijuana dispensaries or cultivation sites within the county's jurisdiction. Montgomery had warned the board that county employees who carry out the state law may be subject to federal prosecution because marijuana is not a federally approved drug.

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The President Talks A Nice Game About Marijuana, But That Doesn't Mean Much

As the presidential election was unfolding, and it started to look like an Obama victory, cannabis advocates across the nation started wondering what the Choomer in Chief would do about the drug. It was looking like voters would make it legal for recreational use in Colorado and Washington and maybe Oregon, too.

President Obama had offered a few hints about how he feels, never advocating full legalization or even directly backing the medical paradigm, but saying he thinks the Department of Justice should consider it a low priority to bust medical-marijuana establishments in states where it's legal. It was a weak endorsement, of sorts. Some thought his post-election lame-duck status would allow him the freedom to revert to his high school days and come out for legalization. Then on Election Day, all hell broke loose when voters (the smart ones, anyway) gave the nod to recreational use in Washington and Colorado, prompting my daughter to say on Facebook, "Everyone is going to move to Colorado now and the current residents are going to be like 'wut is going on' and it's going to be a huge mess." I don't know how many people are planning to move, but I do think a huge mess is developing.

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So, the Mexican drug cartels are growing marijuana in our national forests but no tobacco that contains nicotine. Why? Tobacco is a deadly and addictive substance.

If we were to criminalize tobacco that contains nicotine would it disappear? No.

Would criminal gangs control and distribute it? Yes.

Kirk Muse,

Mesa

[end]

Watching the contortions that Arizona - and now the nation - are struggling to sort out on whether marijuana is legal or illegal is comparable to 8-year-olds playing Twister.

Now comes a report from The Arizona Republic that banks and credit card companies are staying away from handling transactions at medical marijuana dispensaries, thereby creating cash-only economies for these businesses.

Think for a moment of the dangers and criminal opportunities created by forcing a business to deal only in cash. Buying marijuana at a dispensary is comparable to the price of many medications now being purchased at your local pharmacy - it can easily cost several hundred dollars. Customers will be bringing cash to the counter. The burden on the business side is no less worrisome, the Republic article states, with owners constructing safehouse structures and relying on armed transport for the currency generated by the business. Paying employees, taxes and trying to convince the utility company that you will be a reliable cash account is significantly more difficult when banks and credit agencies will not handle your business.

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Give Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery credit: He doesn't back down from a fight.

Montgomery is no fan of the state's voter-approved medical-marijuana program. He has spoken strongly against it before and after the November 2010 election. And he took the issue to court, arguing that federal drug laws pre-empt any effort to make marijuana available for supposed medical uses.

He lost in Superior Court. When he announced his intention to appeal, criticism showered upon him. Why couldn't he just accept the will of the people?

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Mexican drug traffickers are finding prime new territory for their vast marijuana growing operations: American's national forests.

They are planting illicit crops on public land, creating risks for hunters and others enjoying the wild and leaving behind pollution and trash.

Drug organizations find it easier "to grow within this country" than to risk bringing marijuana across the U.S.-Mexico border, says Wisconsin Attorney General J.B. Van Hollen.

Benjamin Wagner, U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of California, which has been dealing with the problem for years, says it makes sense to drug traffickers "to move marijuana cultivation ... closer to your point of sale."

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Bankers Steer Clear of New Dispensaries

The medical-marijuana era might have arrived in Arizona, but dispensaries are stuck doing business like street-level dealers: cash only.

Checking accounts and credit-card machines for state-licensed dispensaries have become casualties of a crossfire between state and federal laws. Although Arizona voters approved marijuana in 2010 for certain medical conditions such as chronic pain and cancer, it remains illegal under federal law.

That means banks and credit unions, which are federally insured, steer clear of Arizona's new health buzz, citing federal regulators. Medical marijuana proponents say banks also won't lend to the marijuana industry out of fear of federal seizures.

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For 40 years, at a cost of more than $1 trillion, America has waged a "war against drugs." It has failed completely.

It has had no impact on the use of recreational drugs, which remains at the same or higher levels than when the "war" began.

Why do we continue this costly, failed and unpopular policy when other countries have tried legalization and decriminalization with considerable success?

Not surprisingly, the answer is money. Not just the drug dealers make huge profits, but also respected businesses and organizations.

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I was all set to go along with the charade. All the talk of "patients," of "caregivers" and "medicine."

But the picture of the teenager holding his skateboard as he came out of Arizona's first medical-marijuana dispensary ... Oh, come on. Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery didn't see the photo in Friday's newspaper, but he says it's an accurate reflection of Arizona's medical-marijuana program.

"There's not a single state with a medical-marijuana act or anything similar that hasn't turned into a recreational-use program," he said.

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Judges continue to hand down harsh sentences for marijuana-related charges

Last winter, Kaleb Phillips stalked a man to a Maryland parking lot, then gunned him down for being in the wrong gang. Phillips and six of his friends plotted the murder of Arnold Fagans for several hours and abruptly ended his life outside of his apartment on Jan. 12.

Last Thursday, Phillips, 20, took his medicine in the form of a 30-year sentence, half of which must be served, because gunning people down is a violent crime. Yes, he won't be eligible for parole for 15 years. Violence, being so aggravating, is an aggravating factor when it comes to murder sentencing. Give worse, get worse.

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Owner still must decide when to open Broadway-Kolb site in Gaslight Plaza

Tucson's first medical marijuana dispensary has received state approval to open. Now the owner has to decide on a date.

"Right now we haven't decided when we will open up," said Rouben Beglarian. "We're going to have a couple meetings with staff members and see when they feel comfortable."

Beglarian's dispensary, Green Medicine, 112 S. Kolb Road at Broadway, in the Gaslight Plaza Shopping Center, passed inspection Tuesday. He received an email Wednesday from the Arizona Department of Health Services confirming he is allowed to open for business. He expects to start selling before the end of the year.

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Recently, you ran a front page story about: "Police agencies don't test thousands of rape kits" (Nov. 11, 2012).

This is not just a local issue. Throughout the United States rape kits are going unused and murders are going unsolved for one major reason: the War on Drugs. I urge the readers to view this short video featuring the former LAPD Deputy Chief of Police Stephen Downing: http://tinyurl.com/b3juxa4.

There is no financial incentive for police agencies to solve murders or rapes, however, there is major incentives to confiscate drug money. Before the drug war, police were credited with solving 91 percent of the murders in the U.S. Today, they solve 61 percent.

In drug transactions, there are willing buyers and willing sellers. In rapes or murders there are unwilling victims. I want our police to protect me against people who want to harm me against my will. Not myself.

Kirk Muse

Mesa

[end]

The Arizona Department of Health Services has licensed the state's first medical-marijuana dispensary.

Arizona Organix passed a detailed inspection of its facility in Glendale, with surveyors examining everything from security to inventory control and medical credentials.

The license allows the dispensary to begin selling medical marijuana.

The dispensary operators haven't yet decided when they will open, said Ryan Hurley, their attorney.

"They're ready to open as soon as they want to," he said. "It's not going to be tomorrow."

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Pediatrics Group Raises Red Flag About Effect on Fetuses, Seeks Changes to Law

Arizona pediatricians are concerned that the state's medical-marijuana law is being used to treat the ailments of pregnant women, potentially harming fetuses.

Members of the Arizona chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics want to stop the practice and point to one incident in which a mother in labor told hospital officials that she had received a medical-marijuana card during pregnancy and had been using the drug.

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More Than 3,600 Tucson-Area Residents Have Obtained Marijuana Cards

I've been thinking about a lot of numbers this week---heart rates, survival rates, ejection fractions, likelihoods of various disasters---so I thought it might be a good time to reflect on the Arizona medical marijuana numbers. I touched on some of the latest figures a couple of weeks ago, but it's been a while since I've offered a detailed look, so ...

As of Sept. 19, the last update from the state Department of Health Services, there were 32,110 cannabis patients statewide. Of those, 4,901 were renewals. About 16 percent of the cardholders applied for half-price cards under the federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps), which sounds like a lot until you know that's the percentage of Arizonans on SNAP. Actually, it is a lot, but that's an issue for another columnist. There were just 824 caregivers statewide.

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This Is the Second Article in a Three-Part Series.

PRESCOTT VALLEY - Every Wednesday, Yavapai County Sheriff's Deputy Randy Evers and his K-9 partner, Neo, meet other K-9 teams from around the county at the Prescott Valley Police Department for a training session.

Officers and their partners from the Sheriff's Office, Prescott, Prescott Valley, Chino Valley, Cottonwood, and the Camp Verde Marshal's Office all train together as a team.

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ON I-40 WEST OF ASH FORK - Neo, Deputy Randy Evers' K-9 partner, is quiet in the back of the patrol Tahoe, just enjoying the ride, as Evers looks for possible drug runners.

After letting one car pass at 92 mph, Evers picks out another car that goes by and stops on the shoulder. The occupants get out, get back in, drive a bit more and stop again.

Evers pulls out of the median.

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YCSO watches the road for likely suspects by gauging speed, behavior

This article is the first in a three-part series.

ON I-40 WEST OF ASH FORK - Yavapai County Sheriff's Deputy Randy Evers has parked his marked Chevy Tahoe in the freeway median and has a radar gun in hand.

He spots car after car traveling well over the 75 mph speed limit, but he doesn't stop them.

Evers is doing drug interdiction with his K-9 partner, Neo.

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Thank goodness Mr. Smith's grandma has access to medical marijuana should she need it.

By the Numbers

32,110 registered medical-marijuana patients in Arizona

1,209 cancer patients

517 patients age 71 to 80

181 women patients age 71 to 80

One potential older MMJ patient in Mr. Smith's family

It's been a rough couple of weeks in Mr. Smithville. Financial delays and the familiar sting of foraminal spinal stenosis are mounting, and someone very, very close to me got the Bad News.

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