Hawaii Growers

DelSlow said:

When it comes to politicians, kickbacks are always the #1 reason for going against the people. That's my theory anyway lol.

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You said it Del- My idea to change the country would be that for elections- the politicians could not use their own money- or recieve donations/lobby money dollars either to put up millions of environmentally wasteful signs of their names and all that other jazz. People shouldn't vote based on name recognition- but rather knowing about the policies and personalities therefore the only "campaign" would be tax dollar funded weekly televised head to head debates, where people can actually learn about the candidates. And screw this lobbying crap- something must be done about it- our forefathers would be turning in their graves- the constitution was designed to keep the power in the people's hands- and it's been changed slowly bill by bill, law by law- and it is not even recognizable anymore...

CALL FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION!!!!!
MEDICAL CANNABIS PATIENTS UNDER ATTACK

Medical cannabis patients need to immediately and decisively take action to a proposed bill which could gut the state medical cannabis program and possibly disqualify more than 97% of the patients currently with blue cards.

No one, including advocates in the medical cannabis community, thought that SB 1458 which would have established state compassion centers (dispensaries) could become an absolute nightmare. Yet legislators, unresponsive to the expressed interests of patients, are currently modifying the original bill so dramatically that if passed and signed by the governor it will be the death knell to Hawai’i’s medical cannabis program.

During the past two months patients and advocacy organizations and groups from all over the state have submitted thoughtful testimony and testified before the legislative committees for a number of medical cannabis bills that would have eased the burden of growing and providing for patient needs. Only one bill is still under consideration.

SB 1458 when first passed in the Senate in February would have provided for six compassion centers on the Big Island. Certainly, it was not a perfect bill but with some amendments it could have helped patients with safe access and a reliable source to cannabis medicine.

When the bill moved to the House it was modified from a state- wide program to a five year pilot program on Maui with only one dispensary. Other islands would have to wait. That provision combined with the Senate version which included an extremely high 20K licensing fee, a 30% tax on sales and a $100 licensing fee for out of state visitors raised a red flag for most patients who have been waiting patiently for the legislature to pass an acceptable and comprehensive dispensary bill for many years. (Senator Green is proposing a 30K licensing fee, a 15% tax on gross sales, and still $100 to patients from out of state to get a temporary permit).

Other patient concerns were, also, being ignored such as the refusal to allow intra-state transportation of medicine and concerns patients had with keeping registration with Public Safety.

Then on April 26th the bill became a total nightmare when Senator Josh Green, M.D. (D-Kona and Kohala) taking the lead in a conference between Senators and Representatives to finalize the bill’s proposed amendments suggested to allow only patients with cancer, M.S. and neuromuscular disorders to qualify for medical cannabis. If this proposal passes and is signed by the governor those who no longer qualify would have two months before they had to turn in their blue card.

Justifying his position, Green stated that he was concerned about the abuse in the medical cannabis program. He cited with information provided by the Department of Public Safety that 50% of the Big Island patients were under the age of 30 and 500 were under the age of 21.

Andrea Tischler, co-chair of Big Island Chapter of Americans for Safe Access, an advocacy group working to improve BI patient’s medical rights, spoke to Green on Wednesday. In that conversation Green added that “no one under the 21 should be taking anything more than Tylenol” and doctors who recommend cannabis are mostly a bunch of ‘scum bags.’ For a doctor to refer to others in the same profession in such a manner is truly an eye opener.

To the medical cannabis community and the compassionate doctors who are open to recommending a safe, effective and proven medicine, the proposed amendments to the SB 1458 and the comments and attitudes of Senator Green cannot be accepted or tolerated for a minute.

This calls for immediate action by all BI cannabis patients, advocacy organizations and groups to defeat the vary bill which could have helped us. We must strongly address that the law abiding BI medical cannabis patients will not sit by idly and allow the suggested amendments to SD 1458 to pass the Legislature.

The next conference meeting is Thursday, April 28 at 1:30 pm. Time is extremely short. We urgently ask you to phone, fax and email Senator Josh Green now and tell him that you support the original version of SB 1458 and nothing more. The current proposals are completely unacceptable and we will not allow our legislators to turn a blind eye to the needs of the voting citizens who are medical cannabis patients of the State of Hawai’i.

Mahalo.

Andrea Tischler
Matthew Rifkin
Co-chairs
Big Island American’s for Safe Access



Call Senator Green: (80 586-9385
Fax: (80 586-9391
Email: [email protected]

Aloha Oahu ASA...
From Big Island ASA..
This message came in from the MUM Clinic and I wanted to pass it along.

It makes great points about why you should be allowed to chose cannabis as your medicine, and it should not matter what your age is.

As before, we urge you to contact Senator Green's office and share your personal experience and why his proposal is not helpful to patients.

Mahalo
Matt Rifkin


Please, please please call Senator Josh Green ( 808-586-9385) TODAY and complain about the the changes he is trying to make to the Medical Cannabis program in Hawaii. Tell him your age ( especially if you are 30 year old or younger) Why you choose Cannabis as your preferred pain medicine, and that you have rights as a patient.
As a patient you have:
* the right to considerate and respectful care
* the right to make decisions about the plan of care and course of treatment
* the right to refuse a recommended treatment and to be informed of the medical consequences of this action
* the right to other options of care and treatments.( One of which is to use Medical Cannabis)
* the right to every consideration of privacy. Case discussions,consultations,examination and treatment should be conducted to protect each patient"s privacy.
The list goes on visit www.aha.org/resource/pbillofrights.html and read all about why it is a private matter that you choose to use medical cannabis.
Please call him 808-586-9385 or e-mail him [email protected]
The changes he is proposing will effect all of you. The patient population must speak up NOW!!!
I am going to forward and e-mail from NORML for you to read as well.

Mahalo to all of you for your voices,
Sandy Webb RN
The MUM Clinic

ASA Guys, Thank you so much for this alert! I'm making some phone calls today.......so disgusted with everybody knowing whats best for me....

anherbman said:

CALL FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION!!!!!
MEDICAL CANNABIS PATIENTS UNDER ATTACK

Medical cannabis patients need to immediately and decisively take action to a proposed bill which could gut the state medical cannabis program and possibly disqualify more than 97% of the patients currently with blue cards.

No one, including advocates in the medical cannabis community, thought that SB 1458 which would have established state compassion centers (dispensaries) could become an absolute nightmare. Yet legislators, unresponsive to the expressed interests of patients, are currently modifying the original bill so dramatically that if passed and signed by the governor it will be the death knell to Hawai’i’s medical cannabis program.

During the past two months patients and advocacy organizations and groups from all over the state have submitted thoughtful testimony and testified before the legislative committees for a number of medical cannabis bills that would have eased the burden of growing and providing for patient needs. Only one bill is still under consideration.

SB 1458 when first passed in the Senate in February would have provided for six compassion centers on the Big Island. Certainly, it was not a perfect bill but with some amendments it could have helped patients with safe access and a reliable source to cannabis medicine.

When the bill moved to the House it was modified from a state- wide program to a five year pilot program on Maui with only one dispensary. Other islands would have to wait. That provision combined with the Senate version which included an extremely high 20K licensing fee, a 30% tax on sales and a $100 licensing fee for out of state visitors raised a red flag for most patients who have been waiting patiently for the legislature to pass an acceptable and comprehensive dispensary bill for many years. (Senator Green is proposing a 30K licensing fee, a 15% tax on gross sales, and still $100 to patients from out of state to get a temporary permit).

Other patient concerns were, also, being ignored such as the refusal to allow intra-state transportation of medicine and concerns patients had with keeping registration with Public Safety.

Then on April 26th the bill became a total nightmare when Senator Josh Green, M.D. (D-Kona and Kohala) taking the lead in a conference between Senators and Representatives to finalize the bill’s proposed amendments suggested to allow only patients with cancer, M.S. and neuromuscular disorders to qualify for medical cannabis. If this proposal passes and is signed by the governor those who no longer qualify would have two months before they had to turn in their blue card.

Justifying his position, Green stated that he was concerned about the abuse in the medical cannabis program. He cited with information provided by the Department of Public Safety that 50% of the Big Island patients were under the age of 30 and 500 were under the age of 21.

Andrea Tischler, co-chair of Big Island Chapter of Americans for Safe Access, an advocacy group working to improve BI patient’s medical rights, spoke to Green on Wednesday. In that conversation Green added that “no one under the 21 should be taking anything more than Tylenol” and doctors who recommend cannabis are mostly a bunch of ‘scum bags.’ For a doctor to refer to others in the same profession in such a manner is truly an eye opener.

To the medical cannabis community and the compassionate doctors who are open to recommending a safe, effective and proven medicine, the proposed amendments to the SB 1458 and the comments and attitudes of Senator Green cannot be accepted or tolerated for a minute.

This calls for immediate action by all BI cannabis patients, advocacy organizations and groups to defeat the vary bill which could have helped us. We must strongly address that the law abiding BI medical cannabis patients will not sit by idly and allow the suggested amendments to SD 1458 to pass the Legislature.

The next conference meeting is Thursday, April 28 at 1:30 pm. Time is extremely short. We urgently ask you to phone, fax and email Senator Josh Green now and tell him that you support the original version of SB 1458 and nothing more. The current proposals are completely unacceptable and we will not allow our legislators to turn a blind eye to the needs of the voting citizens who are medical cannabis patients of the State of Hawai’i.

Mahalo.

Andrea Tischler
Matthew Rifkin
Co-chairs
Big Island American’s for Safe Access



Call Senator Green: (80 586-9385
Fax: (80 586-9391
Email: [email protected]

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I would not argue with the criteria involved with the licence fee's , taxes and what not .... they were working on a pilot program and probably would have modiifed it in time....we all remember when calculators were 1200 dollars in the 1970's now there 11.95....its a new thing man ...some of these guys think MJ is the devil ...its gunna take time...to show them how we are functional with the use of the natural medicine.
i would have let them create the compassion center ...atleast that was moving in our direction...there is no compromise for quality health !
now it looks like we may lose our cards ?
comon man - seriously ? probably struck a nerve in the mind of these folks if we had any opinion on fee's or taxes ...theres gunna be fees and taxes ..shoulda took it on the chin...and let them move forward ...get it signed already ...like a high intrest loan ..shit we get stuck with um sometimes , but we gotta have a roof over our heads right ? ...ever see a momma bird come back to the nest and feed all her chicks at the same time ? nope .... they sit and get fed one at a time ...if im the Oahu bird and im third in line for the med center then so be it ... if i cry out abt maui or big island gettin first then i'll likely get none at all.

You're forgetting one thing pepper, when has the state ever made anything cheaper? Fees and taxes always seem to go up. New gas tax within the next few years, vehicle registration fees will be up starting next year. HECO just raised its rates, my family's electric bill went up $100!

I get what you're saying, compromise, fine. But this is no compromise on their side. They are picking and choosing now between illnesses. This is clearly a DICK move. How did the conversation go from licensing fees and taxes to fucking over patients?

Bah, i'm broke and the old post was full of lies out of a pissed off person like me that they might take away my medicine from being legal. over it

DelSlow said:

You're forgetting one thing pepper, when has the state ever made anything cheaper? Fees and taxes always seem to go up. New gas tax within the next few years, vehicle registration fees will be up starting next year. HECO just raised its rates, my family's electric bill went up $100!

I get what you're saying, compromise, fine. But this is no compromise on their side. They are picking and choosing now between illnesses. This is clearly a DICK move. How did the conversation go from licensing fees and taxes to fucking over patients?

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good question ...how did it ? Senator probably mentioned patients because thats whats its supposed to be about , a compassion center with medical marijuana for patients.
he talks to other senators im sure , my old state ( home state ) Ca , has them all over town , they draw alot of attention , alot of tax payers money on police interaction and so forth ...if i looked at the percentages of police intervention and success rate here in Hawaii ..id vomit ...then id double the fee for dispensaries because these sorry fucks cant guard a hole in the ground ... how much would you charge 24/7 security of a MMD ? ...what would you estimate the demand for law enforcement to protect these clinics ?
gotta figure it to cost some bucks .
I think the senator suffers from a lil bit of power problems mixed with a conflict in his mind due to his education , guy was taught to follow the leader as most doctors in pharmacy man made medcine , on his high horse could easy have discounted other doctors as scumbags, let him cut his own throat... i bet he's a young guy...wants to fix what he cant and thinks he can.
im glad its not 100k per license ...shit i'll donate 10k if its non - profit....just because i know it will save lives.

pepperbelly said:

good question ...how id it ? Senator probably mentioned patients because thats whats its supposed to be about , a compassion center with medical marijuana for patients.
he talks to other senators im sure , my old state ( home state ) Ca , has them all over town , they draw alot of attention , alot of tax payers money on police interaction and so forth ...if i looked at the percentages of police intervention and success rate here in Hawaii ..id vomit ...then id double the fe for dispensaries because these sorry fucks cant guard a hole in the ground ... how much would you charge 24/7 security of a MMD ? ...what would you estimate the demand for law enforce to protect these clinics ?
gotta figure it to cost some bucks .
I think the senator suffers from a lil bit of power problems mixed with a conflict in his mind due to his education , guy was taught to follow the leader as most doctors in pharmacy man made medcine , on his high horse could easy have discounted other doctors as scumbags, let him cut his own throat.
im glad its not 100k per license ...shit i'll donate 10k if its non - profit....just because i know it will save lives.

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You are wrong. Dr. Green is making millions from oxycotton like pharmaceutical companies to ensure more people pay for harder drugs for their pain/nausea/digestive needs.

What he's doing is immoral and highly illegal.

EDIT: I was hastey. He's not corrupt. I talked to someone who knows him and The guy is not corrupt. They said they think he's just trying to make a name for himself. His stance is based most likely on his religion I was told and his view of public policy. I retract any negatives I said about him.

I still however don't agree with his stance. I believe that his version of SB1458 if what he said is true would be bad for people with disabilities everywhere.

This is the reply I got from my e-mail this morning from Sen. Greens office......

Bill will be deferred. Status quo. You won’t hav to worry about any changes to your prescription.

Josh

tardis said:

You are wrong. Dr. Green is making millions from oxycotton like pharmaceutical companies to ensure more people pay for harder drugs for their pain/nausea/digestive needs.

What he's doing is immoral and highly illegal.

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Really a Millionaire ? ... why bother senator ...why bother ?
Im pretty much right Tardis , Im from Berkeley lol , I wont run away if they take my card ... i dont care if Green is a millionaire ... Schwarznegger was a millionaire governor and ran that state right into the ground.....killed workers compensation rights.
and yes a new dispensary will attract alot of attention because its new ...a new thing , so ya gotta figure a lil more to protect it...but it will wear off in time.

you know what i think about the pharma industry ....did you know that bayer has a product called Sativex ? what do you think about that ?

SurfdOut said:

This is the reply I got from my e-mail this morning from Sen. Greens office......

Bill will be deferred. Status quo. You won’t hav to worry about any changes to your prescription.

Josh

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Surfd ...your the man , thanks for doing that ..made my day !

no need pack ur bags Tardis !

pepperbelly said:

Really a Millionaire ? ... why bother senator ...why bother ?
Im pretty much right Tardis , Im from Berkeley lol , I wont run away if they take my card ... i dont care if Green is a millionaire ... Schwarznegger was a millionaire governor and ran that state right into the ground.....killed workers compensation rights.
and yes a new dispensary will attract alot of attention because its new ...a new thing , so ya gotta figure a lil more to protect it...but it will wear off in time.

you know what i think about the pharma industry ....did you know that bayer has a product called Sativex ? what do you think about that ?

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Yeah I think living in an age where it is illegal to cultivate your own food, water, and medicine is against liberty. I'd be forced to leave if they changed the laws because i'm a law abiding citizen just trying to ensure I can keep food down. If my kind arn't welcomed by the law here then I have to go somewhere where they will leave me in peace.

SurfdOut said:

This is the reply I got from my e-mail this morning from Sen. Greens office......

Bill will be deferred. Status quo. You won’t hav to worry about any changes to your prescription.

Josh

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That is great news! I don't have to move!

Does anybody here live in the big island, mainlolo ( sumthin like that ) gonna be going there and was wondering how to get some dank. I dont wanna be runnin up to everybody sayin " where the weed at" lol all in all how do tourists go about getting some weed in hawaii?

tardis said:

That is great news! I don't have to move!

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asshole millionaires ...lol
glad to see ya smilin Tardis

This whole thing is and always has been rediculous. It was my understanding that Benjamin Franklin was basically a moderate user of opiates quoted as saying somethign similar to "it relaxes me and brings out creativity- while unaffecting my cognition"- as far as i am concerned, he was one of the greatest contributors to this country- and humanity of all time. Look- we are going to smoke pot whether or not it's perfectly legal. The only difference is if the state wants to categorize us as criminals or not. It's really not fair. I have generated hundreds of thousands of dollars for Maui county in g.e.t taxes over the years, employed no less than 40 people at a time, and to be quite honest- I don't think I could have survived the hell that the state, county, and federal government have created in terms of stress with their clusterfuck business environment without a smoke every now and again. The system of the US has changed so drastically- they've forgotten that people are most productive when they are happy. They keep trying to rule us with an iron fist- telling us what is good for all of us in a "one size fits all manner" and frankly I am sick of it. I already have already decided that with the path this country is going on- it is doomed. They have slowly, bill by bill, law by law made a joke of the original constitution that once made this country so great. Sometimes it's easy to not see it, as it slowly happens everyday and we adjust accordingly. But, look at the state of affairs, and you have to trace it back to "bad management"- when will they ever learn?

I think the good senator should not be qualified to make laws about things he doesn't know about. Has he ever been in constant severe pain? Well- if it were up to me- I wouldn't let him pass bills on marijuana until he tries it at least once. Then I might take his opinion more seriously. For now he is basically afraid of what he doesn't know- and that's a very dangerous person to have in charge of a particular subject- how can he possibly make the right choice? I wonder how many "Benjamin Franklins" will end up as useless jailbirds under the current political climate... Alchohol is legal- I've been a legal drug dealer for over 13 years, and it's definitely worse than cannabis. It's physically addictive, toxic to the body in larger doses, and causes some people to turn into monsters. When was the last time you saw someone smoke a joint and go home and beat their wife? I like do drink in moderation, just like smoking. Neither is harmful, and can be beneficial in moderation. If the gov't focused on creating an environment conducive to mentally healthy people, then there wouldn't be so much abuse, and that's where the problems arise. But for now the country is disfunctional, creates disfunctional people who need to constantly escape reality and become hard core addicts. They try to solve the problem by making it illegal for everyone, making criminals out of perfectly good citizens. Does anything seem wrong here? I mean how come I can see it- and I'm not even graced with the job of running the country- while the people who are- are in need of alot of eye opening themselves...

Tardis- Didn't you get some of Alphakroniks seeds? If so, pop them yet? Impressions? Best of luck managing your families fortune......

This is one of my AK 48 with a sativa(ish) pheno. Had to chop it a day 61 due to a budworm attack. This little monster weight 4 oz wet

MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL DIES AT THE LEGISLATURE

A proposal establishing a medical marijuana pilot project appears dead
this year.

Lawmakers decided to defer the proposal in Senate Bill 1458, calling
on advocates to further study the issues and come up with
recommendations for next year.

Originally, lawmakers had proposed a five-year pilot project
establishing a "compassionate care" distribution center on an island
to be determined.

The latest version of the proposal, floated today, would have delayed
the opening of the distribution center for two years while a working
group studied ways to cut down on alleged abuses of the existing
medical marijuana statute.

Sen. Josh Green, the Senate health committee chairman, had sought
tougher restrictions on medical marijuana, saying more than half of
Big Island patients with legal prescriptions were young adults under
the age of 30.


Newshawk: Hawaii http://www.drugpolicy.org/hawaii
Pubdate: Sat, 30 Apr 2011
Source: Honolulu Star-Advertiser (HI)
Copyright: 2011 Star Advertiser
Contact: http://www.staradvertiser.com/info/Star-Advertiser_Letter_to_the_Editor.html
Website: http://www.staradvertiser.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5154
Bookmark: http://www.drugsense.org/cms/geoview/n-us-hi (Hawaii)