MEDICAL POT DESERVES SUPPORT

I urge my fellow Montanans to contact their representatives and
express your support of medicinal marijuana. A few biased individuals
are trying to repeal the medicinal marijuana law. Failing this, they
seek to make it incredibly difficult to obtain a license. The
medicinal properties of cannabis are well documented, and a patient
must decide if the benefits are worth the side effects, as they do
with any medication.

As far as applying for a license is concerned, the current system is
working fine. We don't need to make it harder to get a license, it
makes sense that these marijuana doctors have appeared to fill the
vacant niche. A regular local doctor won't suggest cannabis for fear
of public or federal punishment. We do need to alter the law, but
after a great deal of discussion and consideration. The area that
needs to be changed is the business aspect of the law. It makes sense
to have zoning regulations for growers with more than five patients,
and a small tax, maybe 4 percent, but we also need to make it easier
for legitimate, law-abiding growers to conduct business with
dispensaries.

This medicinal marijuana industry is bringing a lot of money into the
community, and everyone is benefiting. This new industry utilizes
CPAs, attorneys and electricians, not to mention the money they spend
on their families. Several new gardening stores have opened to supply
this new industry, and across the state over a thousand jobs depend on
medicinal marijuana. The citizens of Montana need to support the
medical marijuana industry; it is bringing a lot of money into the
state and for once we have the opportunity to lead the rest of the
nation.

Joseph Waitworth

Bozeman