From NORML.ORG: IL State Senate Votes on Medical Cannabis Tomorrow! Take Action Now! Dear Friend, NORML is pleased to inform you that Senate Bill 2568, an act to authorize the medical use of marijuana for qualifying patients, will be voted on by the Illinois Senate tomorrow, Thursday, March 2. In addition, several seriously ill patients will be meeting with their state elected officials today to raise awareness of the need to allow for the legal use of medicinal cannabis in Illinois. If you have not already done so, please contact your state Senator today and tell him or her to vote in favor of SB 2568. If approved, this proposal would allow authorized patients to possess up to two and one half ounces of cannabis and/or 12 plants for medicinal purposes. Read the full bill text here: http://www.ilga.gov/legislation/bil...8&GA=94&DocTypeID=SB&LegID=23485&SessionID=50 .) For your convenience, a pre-written letter to send to your Senator in support of SB 2568 is available online. In addition, after you have e-mailed your Senator, please consider also calling his or her office and urging them to support SB 2568. Inform your Senator that the Illinois State Nurses Association, "Support the right of patients to have safe access to therapeutic cannabis under appropriate prescriber supervision," and that locally, more than 60 percent of Illinois voters support the legal use of medicinal cannabis when that use is approved by a physician. For your convenience, phone numbers for your state Senator is available here: http://www.ilga.gov/senate/ Currently, eleven states -- Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington -- have enacted laws protecting medical marijuana patients from state prosecution. Patients in these eleven states enjoy legal protections to use medicinal marijuana under a doctor's supervision; seriously ill Illinois citizens deserve this same protection. Please take a moment today to ensure that they do. Sincerely, Paul Armentano Senior Policy Analyst NORML | NORML Foundation NORML and the NORML Foundation: 1600 K Street NW, Suite 501, Washington DC, 20006-2832 Tel: (202) 483-5500 • Fax: (202) 483-0057 • Email: norml@norml.org
already saw this but didnt kno the vote was today .. hope they pass it .. and like i said last time about the quote above.. makes no sence.. wouldnt they get in trouble after they harvest the 12 plants? its well over 2.5oz's from 12 plants hope the patients get what they need!!
What do you guys think the chances of this passing are? My parents live in Chicago and I live there over the summer and during breaks, so this could be pretty cool.
shitt i hope it passes!!.. im going to college in chicago next fall and that would be awesome if it happend..then we would have 12 states hopefully it will spread to more
man i doubt it. I lived in illinois for the first 20 years of my life, and they bust people hard for weed. I cant imagine them going from the harsh punishment to straight out legalization. im curious though.
damn... always next year I guess... they didn't even vote. fucking politics. http://www.mpp.org/IL/ \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t\tMedical marijuana bill stalls in Illinois Senate \t\t\t\t\t\t<small>Last updated March 6, 2006</small> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\tDespite more than 2-1 public support for medical marijuana legislation, endorsements from reputable health organizations, and an inspiring committee victory, there was not enough support among legislators to pass Sen. John Cullerton’s (D-Chicago) medical marijuana bill, S.B. 2568, last week. This is a disappointment for seriously ill Illinoisans — who will likely have to wait another year to be protected from arrest and prison — but the fight to protect the state’s medical marijuana patients is not over. If you’ve already taken action to get us this far, thank you; but don’t forget that there is more work to be done. Please click here to send a letter-to-the-editor to your local papers, expressing your displeasure that so many lawmakers are out of step with the public on this issue. Our automated system will easily allow you to send a letter to newspapers in Illinois. It takes only a few moments, but it can make a world of difference. Feel free to draw from the talking points that we have provided, but remember that a personalized letter is more likely to be published than a form letter. The Illinois Senate Health and Human Services Committee triumphantly passed S.B. 2568 in a 6-5 vote last month, marking the first time a medical marijuana bill has passed a committee in Illinois in recent years. Sadly, however, this victory was short-lived, as the Senate failed to pass the bill before last week’s deadline to vote on Senate bills during the regular session. But the committee win is a tremendous step forward, putting MPP in a great position to move medical marijuana legislation even further next year. Earlier this year, Rhode Island became the 11th state to protect medical marijuana patients from arrest and incarceration. It’s time for Illinois to follow suit. Polls consistently show massive public support for this issue; in fact, a new statewide poll by Anzalone-Liszt Research, Inc., found 62% support for medical marijuana legislation. We can show legislators that protecting medical marijuana patients isn’t only the right thing to do; it’s also politically popular. Thank you for supporting the Marijuana Policy Project. Please subscribe to our free legislative alert service, and then pass this message along to your friends and family in Illinois so that others can stand up for the state’s most vulnerable residents \t\t\t\t\t