Homeless in Arizona

Sheila Polk is wrong saying there are no grassroots initiatives from the people to legalize marijuana.

Currently there are 3 current initiatives from grassroots groups. RAD or Relegalize All Drugs has two initiatives, one to legalize all drugs, and one to legalize marijuana. Safer Arizona another grassroots group has an initiative to legalize marijuana.

In the 2016 election cycle there were 3 initiative from grassroots groups, again 2 initiatives from RAD to legalize all drugs and marijuana, and one from AZFMR or Arizonans for Mindful Regulation to legalize marijuana.

In the 2014 election cycle there was at least one grassroots initiative from Safer Arizona and Dennis Bohlke to legalize marijuana.

And in the 2012 election cycle there was at least one grassroots initiative to legalize marijuana from Rain Baker and Dennis Bohlke.

Now Sheila Polk is right, in that the folks from MPP or the Marijuana Policy Project want to legalize marijuana so their members can make millions. But MPP is NOT a grassroots group.

Source

Our Turn: Marijuana fight proves why Arizona needs ballot initiative reform

Sheila Polk and Merilee Fowler, AZ We See It 4:02 p.m. MT April 3, 2017

We applaud legislative efforts to reform and improve the citizen initiative process in Arizona. We do this not from some theoretical viewpoint, but from actual experience with actual initiatives. [Translation Sheila Polk doesn't want the voters passing an initiative that interferes with the "War on Drugs", which pays her big bucks to lock up people for victimless drug war crimes]

The bills’ critics charge that the changes would make it impossible for grassroots groups to bring good ideas to the public for a vote. They are yearning for a past that no longer exists. No recent initiatives came from the grassroots. [Wrong Sheila Polk] They were all conceived and promoted by well-heeled special interests. [Sheila Polk seems to forget that 3 current initiatives are from grassroots groups, the RAD has two initiatives, one to legalize all drugs, and one to legalize marijuana. Safer Arizona another grassroots group has an initiative to legalize marijuana. In the 2016 election cycle there were 3 initiative from grassroots groups, again 2 initiative from RAD, and one from AZFMR or Arizonans for Mindful Regulation. And in the 2014 election cycle there was at least one grassroots initiative from Safer Arizona and Dennis Bohlke to legalize marijuana. And in the 2012 election cycle there was at least one grassroots initiative to legalize marijuana from Rain Baker and Dennis Bohlke.]

Others say these reforms would disenfranchise the under-educated. Really? What do they think the marijuana lobby did last year? It pitched a pot-legalization initiative as spreading freedom while packing 19 pages of legal jargon with self-serving, anti-competitive provisions. They were counting on voters not educating themselves. [OK, Sheila Polk is correct on the phoney baloney MPP or Marijuana Policy Project to initiative to legalize marijuana. It was mostly about money]

And they were counting on the constitutional provision that prevents legislators from fixing problems in a flawed initiative. When legislators make a mistake, they can fix it. When voters approve an initiative, every word is carved in granite.

Our populist forefathers wanted to protect the people’s right to be heard. They never envisioned the initiative process being used by well-heeled, out-of-state interests to pass pages and pages of law few people understand and no one can fix.

Out-of-state promises never materialized

In 2010, a slim majority of voters legalized marijuana for medical purposes. They may have believed advocates, who tugged at heartstrings by saying pot would ease the side effects of cancer patients’ treatment.

Today, less than 3 percent of marijuana cardholders are being treated for cancer. More than 80 percent say they need pot to relieve “chronic pain,” an often self-diagnosed condition. One-fourth are under 30 and nearly half are under 40. [Sheila Polk seems to forget that Prop 203 allows marijuana to be used to treat pain. And yes, 80 of the medical marijuana patients have illnesses that cause them pain, and they are legally justified in getting a medical marijuana prescription or recommendation to treat their pain. As a part of law enforcement, I suspect Sheila Polk considers everybody with a medical marijuana card a lying faker who just wants to get stoned. That's wrong]

Medical marijuana’s advocates, just like the marijuana lobby that pushed last year’s legalization effort, also promised they would keep marijuana away teens. That’s not working out.

From 2010, when medical marijuana passed, to last year, the portion of Arizona teens who said there is little to no risk in regularly using marijuana rose by nearly 75 percent, according to the Arizona Youth Survey. Last year, two-thirds of high school seniors said marijuana is easy to get, essentially the same number who said alcohol is easy to get. [Sorry Sheila Polk, you are twisting the facts around. These kids are not getting their pot from legal medical marijuana dispensaries, they are getting it from the local illegal pot dealer. Legalize marijuana and that problem will disappear.]

The medical marijuana initiative didn’t just fail to live up to its promoters’ promises. It is being abused. But there’s no point in the Legislature seeking solutions, because it can’t tighten requirements or otherwise change the act. [Sorry Sheila Polk, there isn't a problem that needs to be fixed]

Reforms reflect this sad reality

And the proponents who made all those emotional promises? They have no reason to push a second initiative to fix a law that is filling their bank accounts.

This is why initiative reform is so important. One proposal would have asked Arizonans to revoke the Voter Protection Act, enabling the Legislature to fix errors that inevitably creep into big pieces of law. It appears dead. That makes the other reforms more vital.

We too yearn for the days when a true grassroots effort could put an initiative on the ballot. We also yearn for the days when you could leave your doors unlocked, kids could walk alone to a nearby park and a handshake could seal a deal.

But those days are gone. Today, we protect ourselves and our children in ways our grandparents never would have imagined. We need reform to protect us from the big-moneyed, out-of-state special interests who use the citizens’ initiative to advance their agendas with no regard for Arizonans’ interests.

Sheila Polk is the Yavapai County Attorney and chair of Arizonans for Responsible Drug Policy. Merilee Fowler is executive director of MATFORCE and vice-chair of Arizonans for Responsible Drug Policy. Contact them at info@ardp.org.