Medi-Pot bill now ACTIVE in TEXAS

HB 164 is a bill which makes it so that someone busted for pot can use the fact that it was prescribed by a doctor as a legal defense. That's basically all it does. This is because in Texas, we must introduce this incrementally so as not to scare too many of our representatives. You see, we haven't been writing to them and educating them about the many uses and benefits of medical marijuana, so when our bills come up, they don't get voted on because our representatives haven't heard from enough of us and because they are ignorant (as in the absence of knowledge, not calling them stupid).

I have a long thread going over on the Legalization board. We have something going called
Operation Contact Hi! It's a weekly list of 2 Representatives and 2 newspapers to contact per week.

There are options for phone call, fax, e-mail or hard-copy letter. You can participate any way you please, just please do participate.

People who don't live in Texas are encouraged to participate by writing Letters to the Editor.

Every year, our Texas bills die in Committee because our representatives don't hear our voices. We must all stand up for what is right and help the sick and suffering people of Texas! Please make this year the year our voices are finally heard!

I look forward to fighting beside each of you!

 

To "PS" & "step":
You two are right. This is Texas 4th medical marijuana bill that I'm aware of. That's why this one is so lame- they are doing this incrementally, with an eye toward California as a model. That came straight from Rep. Naishtat's office. He is the author of this bill and I called his office today for some first hand information. I'm not trying to brag, I just tend to be leary of sources on the Internet and I want you to know that this one is pretty good, to say the least!

I'm working really hard to get people to speak out about this bill so that it doesn't die in committee like all the rest, because most of us didn't even know about it.

 

I wish. But in reality, all of our representatives are required to serve in committees, and they all take turns in different positions within those committees. Our bill won't get any special attention because Naishtat's the vice chair. He can, after all, only say so much about it without being annoying.

We should recognize that these people are all each other's co-workers, and they do interact as such- eating lunch together, passing each other in the halls. When a bill comes through, IF it generates interest from the public, that WILL make it fodder for conversation.

They actually ask each other how the other plans to vote, and why. They put almost as much stock in that as in what we say to them. Just as in a regular office or workplace setting, nobody wants to be the odd man out. The few of our representatives who support this bill should be thanked properly and the majority who don't support it should be educated.

It's all up to us. We can all see that the drug war isn't working-it's a no-brainer. We should also be able to see that every time a bill like this comes through, NORML & TCCC & MPP and all the rest support it, and we should be able to see that they need US, because every single bill dies in committee. None ever even make it to the floor for a vote. The big orgs cannot do it all. Yes, we need them and I'm not knocking them, but they need us, too, obviously.

It's going to take all of us to get the word out to the Texas masses, as well as to each other.

Thanks to everyone who has agreed to participate in Operation Contact Hi!

 

I'm posting about this HB 164 on several marijuana forum sites. This one is, by far, the most active. I'd really like to get all of us, from each site, together, and have our big orgs present as well, onto an e-mail list where alerts about HB 164 & it's soon-to-follow companion bill for the Senate.

I'm really trying to get everyone busy in some way, which absolutely must include contacting Texas representatives, but our side also needs to keep informed about what representatives are saying what, such as who has just agreed to sign on as a co-sponsor to this bill, whose objectives include misgivings which our letters to them can correct, and things like that.

It would also be nice if any movement of this bill could be monitored and sent to all of us as soon as it happens. For instance, the recent move of HB 164 into the Public Health Committee.

And, if there are any rallies or other such gatherings planned, we're all going to want to know about that, too.

If you want to help, the easiest way is to join the e-mail list I set up at Yahoo!Groups, "Legalize Texas". I use that list to store files related to HB 164. I'd like to see someone representing one of the big orgs subscribe and forward any information they get from their org onto the list so the people on the list can spread that information around for everyone.

To give you an idea of how weak 'our side' is on legalizing marijuana, even just medical marijuana, in Texas is, this bill doesn't even do that. It only states that if arrested for marijuana, we Texans are now allowed to say it's our medicine- IF we have a prescription for it.

So, why is this bill in the Public Health Committee? Sounds like a legal issue to me. I strongly suspect that it was sent to the wrong house on purpose, however, I also believe that the main focus of this bill is going to turn out to be the fact that physicians in Texas are about to be free to prescribe medical marijuana. This might be an important point to make when you contact any of the representatives on the Public Health Committee. Remember that at this point, the bill doesn't contain any language regulating physicians who prescribe medical marijuana. In othe words, doctors can prescribe medical marijuana for things like balding, hang nails, hiccups, and anything else. They can prescribe the patient use 10 pounds of it per day, to control foot odor. Understand what I'm saying? This is a legitimate concern. Representative Naishtat's office is working on filling in this hole as we speak.

As soon as the bill has been amended regarding regulation of physicians, we all need to know that has taken place, so that we can write back to any representatives and let them know, too. And we'd need to let as many of our fellow Texans know it, too.

Spreading the word is the most important thing, but if we aren't aware of what 'the word' is, we cannot spread it!

To subscribe to Legalize Texas, please send an e-mail to legalize_texas-subscribe@yahoogroups.com

Although I don't know whom they are, Thank You all on behalf of Texas' medical marijuana patients! They need our protection the most.