The Tea Party’s sterling defense of freedom:
Questions about who really benefits from medical marijuana are now gripping Montana. In the Legislature, a resurgent Republican majority elected last fall is leading a drive to repeal the six-year-old voter-approved statute permitting the use of marijuana for medical purposes, which opponents argue is promoting recreational use and crime.
If repeal forces succeed — the House last month voted strongly for repeal, and the Senate is now considering it — Montana would be the first to recant among the 15 states and the District of Columbia that have such laws.
Now, to be sure, there’s often something more than a little silly about “medical” marijuana as a wink/nudge kind of legalization. I think the sensible course of action for a state (especially an overwhelmingly rural one like Montana) that doesn’t want to see a commercial marijuana industry is to just straight-up legalize small-scale growing and possession. That way Montanans who want to smoke pot will be able to smoke pot without the state turning into a smuggling center or drug tourism hub.