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Changing Minds 2009
Changing Minds 2010
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Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc. February 2009 Minutes

Monthly Public Meeting Minutes

Lawrence Township Library

Tuesday, February 10, 2009; 7:00 PM – 9:00 PM

7:20 PM:  Meeting called to order.  January 2009 minutes approved.  Discussion: 

Ø  “Come to Trenton to support medical marijuana, Monday, 2/23/09.”  The vote by the entire NJ Senate on “The New Jersey Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act” (S119), as amended, is expected to take place on 2/23/09.  CMMNJ will send Press Releases before the vote to rally support, and after the vote to discuss the outcome.  Contact your senator today.  Members of the national organization, Patients Out of Time, plan to assist in passing this important legislation.  If the bill passes in the senate, it will then go to the NJ Assembly.

 

Ø  Upcoming events:  Chris Goldstein, CMMNJ & Students for Sensible Drug Policy (SSDP) will host a free, educational seminar on medical marijuana on Wed., 2/18/09 from 12:30 PM – 2:00 PM at the Rutgers/Camden Law School, Room 207.  Ken & Jim Miller will be on WIFI 1460 AM Radio on 2/12/09 at 4:30 PM.  NORML NJ is meeting on 2/21/09 at 7:00 PM in Toms River, NJ to rally support for medical marijuana.  (For NORML NJ meeting info, contact [email protected] ).  CMMNJ plans to join SSDP Rutgers on May 2, 2009 in a march for medical marijuana in New Brunswick, NJ.

 

Ø  Recent publications: The Times of Trenton published CMMNJ’s OP-ED, "Drug laws vs. medical science" 1/15/09.  The Nursing Spectrum published the article, “The Great Debate: Medical Marijuana or Not?  Will New Jersey legislators pass a law in 2009?”  on 1/26/09.  The Asbury Park Press published Jim Miller’s LTE, “Support warranted for medical marijuana” on 2/9/09.

 

Ø  Recent appearances:  CMMNJ appeared on WIBG 1020 AM Talk Radio on 1/20/09.   A podcast of the live radio show is expected to be available soon.  CMMNJ and Chris Goldstein hosted a free, educational seminar on medical marijuana on 2/3/09 at the Willingboro Public Library.

Ø  Update on Jackson, NJ Crohn’s patient Mike Miceli who was arrested for medical marijuana on 9/4/08.

Ø  CMMNJ has new photos, etc. on Facebook and Facebook Friends of CMMNJ.

 

Ø  CMMNJ attended the Americans for Safe Access (ASA) national conference call 1/28/09.  Federal policy towards medical marijuana is changing!  

Ø  Treasury report: Checking account: $1864.45.  PayPal account: $577.59.  Please consider a tax-deductible donation to CMMNJ, a 501(c)(3) organization, to support public education about medical marijuana.  Donations may be made securely through Paypal or checks made out to “CMMNJ” and sent to corporate headquarters at the address below.  Thank you for your interest and support.

  9:00 PM Adjourn meeting.

Next Meeting: March 10, 2009 from 7:00 PM until 9:00 PM at the Lawrence Twp. Library, 2751 Brunswick Pike (at Darrah Lane), Lawrence Twp., NJ (Tel. #609.882.9246).  All are welcome.  Snacks are served.  Meeting at the library does not imply their endorsement of our issue.  For more info, contact:

Ken Wolski, RN, MPA
Executive Director, Coalition for Medical Marijuana--New Jersey, Inc. www.cmmnj.org, 844 Spruce St., Trenton, NJ 08648, (609) 394-2137

[email protected]

VIDEO: Michael Phelps and marijuana

Dear friends:

MPP's John Berry made this 30-second video about Michael Phelps and the hypocrisy surrounding the reaction to the photo of him smoking marijuana. Take a look, and please forward it to your friends.

And if you haven't already signed MPP's petition pledging to boycott Kellogg's products until the company changes its decision to drop Phelps as an endorser, please visit MPP's action center here and fill out the easy online form. You can also call Kellogg's at (800) 962-1413.

Sincerely,
Kampia signature (e-mail sized)

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.

Update: Kellogg's on Michael Phelps

You Can Make a Difference

 

 

Dear friends,

Thanks to you, the campaign against Kellogg's for dumping Michael Phelps has gotten the media's attention.  We've been the subject of hundreds of news articles, as well as a segment on CNN.

Now is your chance to increase the heat! We've swamped Kellogg's with comments on their phone lines, and now we can make sure they listen by sending an email urging them to retract their statement on Phelps.

DPA Network has already contacted Kellogg's asking for a meeting, and I'll let you know what we hear. With thousands of drug policy reformers like you taking action, they'll have to respond.

Believe it or not, a South Carolina sheriff is considering going after Phelps himself and has already arrested eight people associated with the party last fall at which he was photographed. So it's more important than ever to stand with Phelps and make our voices heard.

There should be no more marijuana arrests for Michael Phelps or anyone else. And Kellogg's should renew their contract with him. Contact them today to keep this concern at the forefront of Kellogg's -- and the public's -- minds.

Sincerely,




Ethan Nadelmann
Executive Director
Drug Policy Alliance Network

Michael Phelps Saga: "Send a Strong Message" to USA Swimming

[Courtesy of SAFER] Tell them to reinstate Michael Phelps and stop driving athletes to drink! http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5559/t/4030/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=2533 USA Swimming suspended the 14-time Olympic gold medalist following the publication of a photo showing him using marijuana at an off-season party. USA Swimming was not required to punish Phelps, according to Executive Director Chuck Wielgus, but it "decided to send a strong message to Michael..." That message: athletes must only use alcohol when they party, and they will be punished if they make the safer choice to use marijuana instead. After all, the 23-year-old swimmer would never have been punished had he been photographed chugging Budweiser beer -- an official sponsor of the U.S. Olympic Committee. If you agree Michael Phelps should be reinstated and that athletes should not be driven to drink, please take a second to click on the following link and "send a strong message" to Chuck Wielgus and USA Swimming: http://salsa.wiredforchange.com/o/5559/t/4030/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=2533 Mason Tvert, Executive Director SAFER ? SAFER Voter Education Fund office: 303-861-0033 ? fax: 303-861-0915 [email protected] ? http://www.SAFERchoice.org

LEAP on the Hill: Stories from the week of February 6, 2009

[Courtesy of Law Enforcement Against Prohibition] Slip of the tongue: In a Republican office this week with whom I had already had two meetings since 2006, the usually expressionless, poker faced aide said, “Now, I personally would go…” And stopped in mid-sentence. Then finished by saying, ‘This office will not support anything you propose.’ Too late. I now know how he personally feels. Trouble is spelled H O W A R D & makes for Good Theater: George Mason University’s Center for Evidence Based Crime Policy sponsored bringing ten (10) distinguished professors of criminology from all over the country to share their expertise with 150 attendees. For two hours each explained how this or that strategy would reduce crime, gang violence or both. I was able to ask the first question: "As a Michigan police detective a solid 70% of my felony case load touched crimes related to modern prohibition/war on drugs. Have any of you ever done any research or know of any research that shows how much felony crime would be reduced, if we repealed modern prohibition and these illegal drugs were sold like alcohol & cigarettes?" For a solid 5 seconds no one said anything! Finally, a brave professor from Temple University and former London, England police officer rose and said no, no studies have ever been done. He continued saying that Holland has enjoyed lower crime rates with their partial legalizations. This statement caused another professor to rise and say but one can not compare crime our rates with the Dutch because we are so different. To which the former Bobbi replied, “Yeah, that is because they are taller.’ And the crowd giggled. As I was leaving the Russell Senate Office Building, the Brit commented how he liked my jacket (THIS COP SAYS STOP THE DRUG WAR). He and the last speaker and I enjoyed a robust discussion on the 5 minute walk to the Metro. It was mentioned that the feds fund most of the professors’ research and one must be careful. Can you spell uncomfortable? As a bonus to the seminar, another attendee asked the moderator from George Mason University: "Since GMU has the Center for Evidence Based Crime Policy, why don’t you do the research that the detective asked about earlier? Isn’t that your job?" The University official mumbled something that I in the first row could not hear. LOL (Laughing Out Loud).

Drop the Rock's Advocacy Day Sign Up

Dear friend of Drop the Rock, Sign up today for Drop the Rock's Advocacy Day on Tuesday, March 10th in Albany! On this day, hundreds of Drop the Rock coalition members from throughout the city and state will unite in Albany and speak out for repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws. Drop the Rock will arrange for bus transportation from at least three locations in New York City: Union Square, Harlem, and downtown Brooklyn. * To sign up, please print and fill out the attached Participant Sign-Up Form and mail it to the Correctional Association of NY or fax it to 212-473-2807. * If your organization would like to have its members participate in Advocacy Day, please fill out the attached Organization Bus Form. * If you are interested in attending Advocacy Day, and need a letter requesting permission for your P.O., please contact Caitlin and we will be happy to send a letter on your behalf. SPREAD THE WORD! * Help us bring hundreds of New Yorkers to Albany. Please forward this email to your networks, and feel free to make copies of the attached flyer and pass them out in your community, school, and place of work. TRAINING * We are offering an educational training to prepare participants for Advocacy Day on Tuesday, March 3rd at 6PM at the Correctional Association. * We are also able to come to your organization/group to conduct a training for interested participants. If you would like an onsite training, please contact Caitlin Dunklee at 212-254-5700 x339 or cdunklee@... . FUNDRAISING * We need help defraying the cost of the buses. The cost of renting buses is our largest expense in making Advocacy Day happen, and each seat comes to about $20. We ask that you help us make this day possible, by paying $20 for your seat, or raising money to pay for your seat on the bus. Please note that no one will be turned away for lack of money. * If your organization is able to fill a bus of 50 seats with participants, please contact Caitlin as soon as possible. Please also ask your organization if they will sponsor the cost of a bus ($1100) or help raise money to enable your group to travel to Albany with us. We will also do our best to help subsidize buses. * If you or your group would like to make a donation for buses, please have checks made out to "The Correctional Association of NY" and mailed to the address listed below. Please make sure to note on the check that the donation is for "DTR Buses". Now is a critical time in the movement to reform New York's incarceration policies. Please sign up today to join Drop the Rock as we urge New York's policymakers to enact repeal of the Rockefeller Drug Laws this year. Please contact Caitlin Dunklee, Drop the Rock Coordinator, at 212-254-5700 x 339 or cdunklee@... , for more information. Drop the Rock!

New Report: Trends in Incarcerated Parents

A new analysis by The Sentencing Project highlights the growth in the number of incarcerated parents and their children since 1991.  Incarcerated Parents and Their Children: Trends, 1991-2007 reviews data from the Bureau of Justice Statistics and documents the growing impact of incarceration on children and families.
 
As of 2007, 1.7 million children had a parent in prison, an 82% increase from the figure of 936,000 in 1991. The racial/ethnic variation among this group is quite broad: 1 in 15 African-American children has a parent in prison, as does 1 in 42 Latino children and 1 in 111 white children. 
 
Due to the distance from home in which many parents are incarcerated - 62% of parents in state prisons are more than 100 miles from home - visits from children are declining over time.  In 2004, more than half of parents in state prisons and nearly half in federal prisons had never had a visit from their children.
 
To address the issues presented by these developments, The Sentencing Project recommends policy responses that include:

  • Supporting parent-child relationships through programs such as that of the Bedford Hills, NY women's prison in which newborn babies can live with their mothers for a period of time.
  • Revise legislation that impedes the prospects for successful reentry and uniting parents with children, such as the ban on receipt of welfare and food stamps for persons with drug convictions.
  • Reconsider lengthy sentencing policies that are overly punitive and contribute to greater separation between parents and children.
The full report, Incarcerated Parents and Their Children, is available here.

Press Advisory: Press Conference Wednesday to Launch Final Drive for Medical Marijuana in Minnesota

Minnesota Cares logo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE   
FEBRUARY 10, 2009

Press Conference Weds. to Launch Final Drive for Medical Marijuana in Minnesota
Hearing in Senate Health, Housing and Family Security Committee to Follow

CONTACT: Former Rep. Chris DeLaForest..................................................................(763) 439-1178

ST. PAUL, MINNESOTA -- Legislators and patients will launch what they expect to be the final push for passage of bipartisan medical marijuana legislation in Minnesota at a statehouse press conference at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 11. The Senate Health, Housing and Family Security Committee will hold a hearing on the bill, S.F. 97, at 12:30 p.m. A previous version of the bill passed the Minnesota Senate as well as every House committee, but did not receive a House floor vote.

    WHAT: Press conference to launch drive for final passage of medical marijuana legislation, S.F. 97 and H.F. 292, followed by Senate Health, Housing and Family Security Committee hearing.

    WHO: Bill sponsors Sen. Geoff Michel (R-Edina), Sen. Steve Murphy (DFL-Red Wing) and Rep. Tom Rukavina (DFL-Virginia); K.K. Forss of Ely, who has used medical marijuana to relieve pain from multiple neck surgeries; Dr. George Wagoner, physician from Manitee, Mich. (and formerly licensed in Minnesota), whose wife used medical marijuana during her battle with ovarian cancer and who campaigned for the Michigan medical marijuana initiative that passed in November with 63 percent of the vote.
    Also testifying at the hearing will be Joni Whiting of Jordan, whose daughter's battle with malignant melanoma was made bearable by using medical marijuana, and Kathy Rippentrop of Lakeville, whose mother used medical marijuana during her treatment for liver cancer. Written testimony from other patients will be presented to the committee and will be made available to the media.

    WHERE: Rm. 125, State Capitol, 75 Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., St. Paul.

    WHEN: Press conference at 11 a.m. Hearing at 12:30 p.m.
   

####

Dump Kellogg's like it dumped Michael Phelps

Dear friends:

As you probably know, cereal giant Kellogg's has announced that it won't renew Olympic swim champion Michael Phelps' endorsement contract because he was photographed smoking marijuana.

If Phelps had been photographed hoisting a Budweiser, no one would have said a word. In fact, Phelps was arrested for drunk driving in 2004 — which could have resulted in someone being hurt or killed — and Kellogg's never took issue with that. Alcohol is far more toxic and addictive than marijuana and tends to make users reckless, aggressive, and violent.

Would you take a minute to speak out against this hypocrisy, by adding your voice to the hundreds of thousands of people who are pledging to boycott Kellogg's products until the company changes its decision? Just visit MPP's action center here and fill out the easy online form.

Meanwhile, MPP has been all over the news to point out the hypocrisy of the situation.
For instance, check out this video of MPP's Bruce Mirken discussing the issue on CNN last week.

Please join me in rejecting the farce of the condemnation of marijuana users — one that has already long been abandoned by the general public.

Sincerely,
Kampia signature (e-mail sized)

Rob Kampia
Executive Director
Marijuana Policy Project
Washington, D.C.

P.S. As I've mentioned in previous alerts, a major philanthropist has committed to match the first $2.35 million that MPP can raise from the rest of the planet in 2009. This means that your donation today will be doubled.

ALERT: #394 Kellogg's Gets Stupid Over A Bong

DrugSense FOCUS Alert #394 - Monday, 9 February 2009 By now just about everybody who may read this Alert is aware of the photo of Michael Phelps inhaling from a bong which was printed on Sunday, February 1 by the British tabloid newspaper News of the World. A high resolution .jpg copy of the photo, which you may download - and perhaps print out for your own use, like pasting on a Kellogg's cereal box - is here http://www.mapinc.org/images/phelps.jpg The News of the World article is here: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v09/n140/a11.html The result has been a firestorm of articles and opinions printed in newspapers as you may read at this link: http://www.mapinc.org/people/Michael+Phelps Please target the newspapers with your letters to the editor. Other suggested actions you may wish to take: Please take time today to contact the Kellogg Corporation. Tell them that you oppose their decision to drop Michael Phelps and that, as a result of their actions, you will not be purchasing any Kellogg's related products for the next three months (or until the company decides to reinstate the Phelps as their spokesperson). There are several ways you may make your opinion known to the company. You can call Kellogg's main telephone number during east coast business hours, Monday through Friday, at: (269) 961-2000 or toll free at: 1 (800) 962-1413. You may email Kellogg's consumer services department by visiting: http://www2.kelloggs.com/ContactUs.aspx You may contact Kellogg's media relation department at: 269-961-3799 or via e-mail at [email protected] You may email Kellogg's corporate responsibility department at: [email protected]. You may email Kellogg's investor relations department at: [email protected]. Or you may write the Kellogg Company a letter at: One Kellogg Square P.O. Box 3599 Battle Creek, MI 49016-3599. Join the Students for Sensible Drug Policy's petition campaign. Phelps still faces a potential four-year suspension from the International Olympic Committee and the World Anti-Doping Agency. If you have a Facebook account, please join thousands of others in signing a petition demanding that the IOC and WADA not suspend Phelps from international competition. http://apps.facebook.com/causes/petitions/62.
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