Days in Tallahassee 14
Remaining committees 7
Remaining Days for bills to be heard 29
Remaining days of funding 16
If you’ve been following my ramblings about this session you’ve read my complaints about the legislators only working three day weeks. This past weekend, I took advantage of the break and headed back to Melbourne. I suppose if you don’t much like the people you live with, traveling to Tallahassee and working from a hotel might be nice, me, I love my family and get terribly home sick.
While it was good to be home, since we were already in Melbourne, a quick trip to Boynton Beach for the Silver Tour presentation seemed like a great use of time.
Robert Platshorn brings together a great program including experts like Mary Lynn Mathre, RN., co-founder of Patients Out of Time; Mike Minardi, Esq.; Irvin Rosenfeld, the longest surviving medical cannabis recipient and Representative Jeff Clemens. Over 200 people attended the presentation including Jordan Malter, an associate producer with CNN Money.
Mary Lynn was brilliant as she talked about the emerging research on the endocannabinoid system. The Silver Tour ran live online and you can still view the program.
Last week, cannabis reform groups and drug policy reform supporters planned a coordinated day of action. Robert kicked off the day by encouraging attendees to make the calendar and program the number for Majority Leaders Andy Gardiner and Carlos Lopez-Cantera into their phone.
We are to the point where push is coming to shove. The only way HJR 353 will be heard this year if for us to flood the leadership with requests. No Republican wants to come out first and be seen as soft on crime. If we don’t act now, how many patients won’t be here next year?
Florida CAN has a plan for being here next year. We’ll raise awareness, meet with more stakeholders, raise money and hopefully, come back to support an even better bill. But, how many patients will we leave behind? How many people will lose their life or their sense or quality of life if we fail this year?
Changing the laws is a slow painful process. Three years, that is what they say it takes to get a hearing on a new bill. Three long, painful years. Unless something happens, unless a wave of support comes through like an unstoppable force.
Tomorrow we’re asking our friends and allies to join us in a day of action. www.FLDecides.org gives you the details, the numbers to call and asks you to e-mail me directly after you call!
Showing posts with label Robert Platshorn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Robert Platshorn. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Friday, January 20, 2012
Perception is Reality
Day 7
Remaining Committees – 7
Remaining Days to be heard – 40
Remaining funding – 23
There is an old saying about never eating sausage after you’ve seen how they make it. Tallahassee is a bit like that.
Today was spent playing catch up. The House was consumed with redistricting and only a few committees had business in the Senate. Our constitution set the 60 days legislative session, apparently that is consecutive days, so while lawmakers are nowhere to be found, the countdown to the end of sessions proceeds.
Lawmakers are home for a long weekend, little to no business on Monday either; but our work continues.
The theme for the week was: in Tallahassee perception is reality. I’ve spent quite a bit of time exploring the idea, meditating on its meaning and trying to see through the mystery.
Perception is reality. For now, the perception is the public in Florida doesn’t care about medical cannabis. When the CNN Money special runs early in February showing Robert Platshorn’s Silver Tour meeting at a synagogue in Boca, when they get overwhelming calls and letters of support, or when they are faced with a life threatening illness of their own they will reconsider.
In my down time today, I did some research on the 1978 Controlled Substance Therapeutic Research Program. This bill, introduced by Representative Lee Moffitt had an interesting history. Like our bills, the 1978 bill was assigned to numerous committees. After a month of languishing it was sent to a subcommittee – never a good sign.
Then something changed. Suddenly, the research act was withdrawn from its committees and within days was calendared for a vote on the House floor. The Senate picked up the bill, withdrew it from all of the committees in the Senate and again it passed with little opposition.
Perception is reality. Had we been on the outside watching the 1978 bill, we would have been convinced it didn’t have a chance.
Representative Moffitt is best known these days for his work with the Lee Moffitt Cancer Research Center. I sought him out this week when I knew he was in the Capital. He agreed to meet with me next week to share with me what happened. Why did those 1978 lawmakers suddenly change their perception of the bill?
With your e-mails, calls and letters, we are changing the perception lawmakers have about cannabis. They are beginning to see the light.
Remaining Committees – 7
Remaining Days to be heard – 40
Remaining funding – 23
There is an old saying about never eating sausage after you’ve seen how they make it. Tallahassee is a bit like that.
Today was spent playing catch up. The House was consumed with redistricting and only a few committees had business in the Senate. Our constitution set the 60 days legislative session, apparently that is consecutive days, so while lawmakers are nowhere to be found, the countdown to the end of sessions proceeds.
Lawmakers are home for a long weekend, little to no business on Monday either; but our work continues.
The theme for the week was: in Tallahassee perception is reality. I’ve spent quite a bit of time exploring the idea, meditating on its meaning and trying to see through the mystery.
Perception is reality. For now, the perception is the public in Florida doesn’t care about medical cannabis. When the CNN Money special runs early in February showing Robert Platshorn’s Silver Tour meeting at a synagogue in Boca, when they get overwhelming calls and letters of support, or when they are faced with a life threatening illness of their own they will reconsider.
In my down time today, I did some research on the 1978 Controlled Substance Therapeutic Research Program. This bill, introduced by Representative Lee Moffitt had an interesting history. Like our bills, the 1978 bill was assigned to numerous committees. After a month of languishing it was sent to a subcommittee – never a good sign.
Then something changed. Suddenly, the research act was withdrawn from its committees and within days was calendared for a vote on the House floor. The Senate picked up the bill, withdrew it from all of the committees in the Senate and again it passed with little opposition.
Perception is reality. Had we been on the outside watching the 1978 bill, we would have been convinced it didn’t have a chance.
Representative Moffitt is best known these days for his work with the Lee Moffitt Cancer Research Center. I sought him out this week when I knew he was in the Capital. He agreed to meet with me next week to share with me what happened. Why did those 1978 lawmakers suddenly change their perception of the bill?
With your e-mails, calls and letters, we are changing the perception lawmakers have about cannabis. They are beginning to see the light.
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