Cannabis and Utah

Utah's medical cannabis ballot was passed with a compromise between its proponents and opponents. Strangely one of the parties actively involved was the Church of Latter Days Saints which in Utah seems to believe that political work is God's work. The Church also seems to have clear cut opinions regarding cannabis such as that medical cannabis is good but recreational cannabis is bad. The Church it appears does not believe that recreation is medicine when it comes to cannabis.

Utah's Department of Health reported that roughly 6% of its population uses cannabis. This includes medicinal as well as recreational use.

In terms of popular opinion, the percentage of people for medical cannabis is roughly nearly the same as the percentage of people against medical cannabis it appears. With regard to recreational cannabis, it appears that the number of people against it may be more than those in favor. Or if they are for it, they are not speaking out. At least, not yet.

At least 35 US states have legalized cannabis for medical use so far. The federal US government however continues to keep cannabis in the Schedule 1 list of banned substances saying that it has no medicinal value. The list of US states that have legalized adult recreational cannabis is available here. All these states have legalized cannabis for adult recreational use, aimed specifically at improving public health, ensuring equity,  reducing crime, decreasing the black market, improving law enforcement, reforming criminal justice, improving the economy, agriculture and industry, to name just a few reasons.

 

As Utah gets increasingly surrounded by states that have legalized recreational use, the pressure mounts on its lawmakers to take the inevitable step.  

Listed below are articles taken from various media related to the above subject. Words in italics are the thoughts of your truly at the time of reading the article.   

'“In the six states surrounding Colorado—Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Utah, and Wyoming—following Colorado’s legalization, the border counties experienced, on average, a decrease of 393.1 cases of property crime and 277.3 cases of larceny per 100,000 population relative to the nonborder counties.”

 “Specifically, we observed that the property crime rate and larceny rate experienced substantial decreases in the border counties in neighboring states relative to nonborder counties following the legalization in Colorado,” the study says. “This is also true for the rate of simple assault…if Utah is not considered (only considering Kansas, Nebraska, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Wyoming as neighboring states of Colorado).”
https://www.marijuanamoment.net/colorados-marijuana-legalization-law-decreases-crime-in-neighboring-states-study-finds/

'With nearly three-quarters of precincts reporting, Utah's medical cannabis ballot measure was leading by a margin of 53 percent to 47 percent, and NBC News and Salt Lake City's local Fox affiliate both projected that it was approved.

Regardless of the result, however, legal medical marijuana in the state was a near certainty after both proponents and opponents of the ballot initiative came together last month in support of a plan to enact compromise legislation allowing patients to use cannabis.'
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomangell/2018/11/07/utah-voters-approve-medical-marijuana/#4f06250f4140


'"We think the state is in a pretty good position right now for medical cannabis. It’s our intent now to let the legislature manage this issue. We’re not going to get involved in which doctor should be prescribing, which conditions should be covered. We believe there’s a good compromise in place now and it’s not an issue the Church intends to engage on further going forward," Stephens said.

"Unless something wildly different comes up, certainly if recreational marijuana comes in, we may engage. But as far as tweaking the compromise that’s there, this is not an issue the Church will engage in going forward."'
https://fox13now.com/2019/01/24/lds-church-stepping-away-from-medical-marijuana-fights/


Marijuana..hemp..cannabis..ganja..oil..medical..recreational..industrial..vaping..smoking..missing the forest for the trees...
https://www.leafly.com/news/politics/strange-tactics-emerge-in-utahs-medical-marijuana-legalization-fight


'A new report by the Utah Department of Health finds that roughly six percent of adults in the state admit to using marijuana.

The report, released Monday, said the majority of those use marijuana recreationally (42.3 percent). According to the report, another 30.8 percent used for both medical and non-medical reasons and another 26.9 percent used marijuana purely for medical reasons.'
https://fox13now.com/2019/01/14/new-report-released-on-marijuana-use-in-utah/


Opponents of marijuana are increasingly fitting the stereotype of bigots, racists and religious fanatics...

'“I would find it deeply offensive to be forced by the State of Utah to allow the possession and use of cannabis or other mind-altering or psychoactive drugs by tenants on my real property or to otherwise be mandated by the State of Utah to lease or cause my real property to be leased to these individuals,” Plumb wrote.'
https://fox13now.com/2018/10/04/opponents-of-medical-marijuana-initiative-ask-a-judge-for-a-rushed-restraining-order-to-keep-it-off-the-ballot/


'“We are especially disappointed that the church’s entry into the conversation was alarmist and riddled with factual errors and misrepresentations,” the LDS Dems' statement says. “We wish there was some discernible pattern to the issues the church finds pressing — but we are as bewildered by their choices on this front as everyone else.”'
https://www.sltrib.com/news/politics/2018/08/29/lds-democrats-bewildered/


'Marijuana scored a sweeping victory at the ballot box on Tuesday, with voters approving new markets in Michigan, Missouri and Utah that eventually could generate $2 billion in medical and recreational sales.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/key-cannabis-legalization-wins-could-bring-in-upwards-of-2-billion-in-new-sales/


'With Texas, as well as some of the nation’s ­deepest-red states, like Utah and Oklahoma, moving forward with marijuana policy changes, all Republicans will have to pick a side on legalization, as well as affirming states’ right to choose what works for them. “This is not something that is going to stop at the edges of Colorado or California,” Gardner warns. “This is going to march across the country. It’s an opportunity for Republicans to practice what they preach.”'
https://www.newsweek.com/2018/08/24/legal-weed-republicans-love-marijuana-1072761.html


'There is no cure for autism (although a small percentage of children do appear to outgrow it), and there are few treatments for its symptoms. But, because of the potential promise of cannabis treatments, the Ray and Tye Noorda Foundation, a nonprofit based in Utah, donated $4.7 million to the Center for Medicinal Cannabis Research (CMCR) at the UC San Diego School of Medicine — the largest private gift to date for medicinal cannabis research in the United States, according to an April 25 statement from the university.'
https://www.livescience.com/62455-can-marijuana-treat-autism.html


'Utah’s biggest health-care provider – Intermountain Healthcare – told its physicians they’re allowed to write medical marijuana recommendations for patients, which could boost the number of potential customers for the state’s upcoming MMJ industry.

According to The Salt Lake Tribune, the organization’s chief physician executive sent a memo to its network of roughly 1,500 doctors, rescinding a previous policy that discouraged them from writing MMJ recommendations.'
https://mjbizdaily.com/largest-health-care-provider-in-utah-greenlights-medical-cannabis-recommendations/


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