There was a question from a member of the audience about the "red herring" of children gaining access to clubs for medical marijuana patients. (The regs don't allow it, you need a card to enter, etc.)
Roemer forcefully says, "With all due respect, it's not a red herring to the parent that I met whose teen-aged child is now fully addicted to medical marijuana and basically had to go through treatment." There are loud boos. Roemer moves into parental mode: "Now, now, now, if we're going to have a civil conversation, let's have a civil conversation."
Roemer continues: "One of my issues, why I'm not there yet on legalization, is that the jury is not in yet about substance abuse for young people....Now guys, come on. Let me challenge you. There are issues related to teenage abuse that have to addressed." He's concerned about abuse by those between 18 and 25. "We need to have this debate. I know it's awkward but that's who I am, I'm Chris Roemer."
Yes, he is. I'm not voting for him. He's totally the establishment candidate, as was his father, who used to be Governor of Colorado. Way too centrist for me.
Doug Linkhart disagrees: He says although he wasn't in favor of them due to privacy issues, the rules passed by Colorado require 24/7 video monitoring of medical marijuana centers. It's easy to see who's in there. And there's nothing to suggest that kids are more likely to get access to medical marijuana from someone they know than alcohol. In the end, it's about parenting. (Cheers from the crowd.)
Doug Linkhart also says medical marijuana shouldn't be taxed since pharmaceuticals aren't taxed. He also favors legalization of marijuana for everyone, with regulation and a minimum age. He points out a lot more kids have died from alcohol and prescription drugs than marijuana. He says we need to stop arresting adults and putting them in jail for minor things. He's a big advocate of providing after-school activities for children to help parents.
Mejia says the medical marijuana industry has saved the economy for the last few years. He says it's still young, and we need to let it grow.
Jeff Peckman: He's kind of an odd duck. He seems to be the new age candidate. He started out talking about the benefits of Ayurveda (which he misstated to be Chinese traditional medicine rather than Indian, but it was probably a speaking mistake, he otherwise sounds fairly knowledgeable on the topic.) Later, he said that he was a user of drugs in junior high, but he learned transcendental meditation in high school and then never wanted to use drugs recreationally after that. He seems to think alternative medicine is the answer to all our health care issues. I'm a big fan of Ayurveda, but I think he over-emphasizes it, almost to the point of proselytizing.
Thomas Wolf (who says he's the one "businessman" in the race) describes himself as a "free market capitalist." He says we need to move towards decriminalization. America's criminalization rate is "disgusting." He understands why the U.S. is referred to as a "police state."
Theresa Spawn: A former district attorney and judge. She says she supports medical marijuana. She's articulate, but doesn't really seem invested in the issue.
The winner, hands down: Doug Linkhart. The loser: Chris Roemer.
The conference continues through Saturday at The Grand Hyatt at 17th & California in downtown Denver. Rep. Jared Polis is the keynote speaker.
Friday afternoon at 4:30, I'll be on a blogging and social media panel:
4:30-6:00pm
Blogging and Social Networking: The Cure For Decades Of Reefer Madness Moderator: Steve Bloom, Celebstoner.com
* Russ Belville, NORML
* Jerri Merritt, Esq., TalkLeft.com
* Chris Goldstein, Freedom is Green
* Michael Roberts, Westword
If you're in the neighborhood, come on down:
NORML invites the public to join hundreds of likeminded marijuana law reformers at the nation's only annual conference dedicated to ending cannabis prohibition.
