Fred Gardner, editor of
O’Shaughnessy’s, a new journal for doctors who work with medical cannabis, has an editorial up on
Counter Punch where he just rips into Rob Kampia of the
Marijuana Policy Project. His starting point is the recent vote on the Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment. The Hinchey-Rohrabacher amendment would prevent government agencies from spending federal dollars chasing medical marijuana patients in states with medical marijuana laws, got only 165 'yea' votes, when it needed 218. Last year there were 163 in favor. Two votes isn't much of a gain, you could even say it's a loss, especially in a supposed Democratic take-over of the House. Gardner takes MPP and director Kampia to task for using this disappointing result (4th year in a row that the amendment has lost) in fundraising letters to encourage more donations.
This isn't MPP's only perennial loser. You may recall that there's an initiative almost every election year in Nevada to decriminalize recreational marijuana use. MPP funds and runs this campaign to the tune of about $3 million per election, though it has taken pains in recent years to make it look a Nevada-born project. It does about a percentage point better every time. At this rate it'll be another 30 years and $50 million before they achieve their goal, IF the voters of Nevada don't get completely tired of them and run'em out of the state on a rail.
What's the impact on the average Jane's psyche when she sees that Congress approved arresting medical marijuana users again, or that the Supreme Court struck down medical marijuana defenses, that Nevadans handily beat back an attempt by wacky outsiders to legalize weed? Why keep tilting at these windmills?
Don't get me wrong, MPP has done some truly awesome things, and should be complimented for successes in Rhode Island and Vermont this year. The win in Rhode Island was particularly impressive, passing a medical marijuana bill through the state legislature.
The author admits that it's a bit sour grapes (Rob doesn't fund his journal), but some of his points are still valid.
