Pubdate: Fri, 12 Feb 2010 Source: Winfield Daily Courier, The (KS) Contact: 2010 The Winfield Daily Courier Website: http://www.winfieldcourier.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/5127 Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?253 (Cannabis - Medicinal - U.S.) KELLEY: MEDICAL MARIJUANA BILL 'PROBABLY GOING NOWHERE' A medical marijuana bill introduced recently in the state Legislature is unlikely to be seriously considered - much less adopted, a Cowley County state representative said. "I would say that bill probably is not going anywhere, especially after what happened with K2," said Kasha Kelley, R-Arkansas City, late last week. She referred to the Legislature's endorsement earlier last week of criminalizing K2, a synthetic form of marijuana. Kelley said she could not support a medical marijuana bill. "There are so many other remedies out there," she said. The K2 bill was being looked at by the Senate, Kelley said, and could end up in conference committee, a further step toward getting the bill passed. Kansas would be the first state to outlaw K2 if the bill ends up being signed into law. The same week legislators acted on the K2 bill, State Rep. Gail Finney, D-Wichita, introduced a bill that would set up state-registered centers where people with prescriptions could buy marijuana. Supporters said the medical marijuana helps ease pain from chronic diseases, according to the Associated Press. But Kelley said legalizing pot for medical purposes isn't right for America. "My personal opinion is America isn't there," she said. "We're an abusing, addictive nation." She added that she is opposed to use of marijuana as a recreational drug. But Finney said in the AP story that her lupus makes her sympathetic toward those with diseases such as Parkinson's, cancer and HIV. Adopting a medical marijuana law would be "the right thing to do," she was quoted as saying. She said several lawmakers have told her they support legalizing medical marijuana. "Everybody said, 'Oh, it's a good idea, but I don't want to touch it,'" she said. But other legislators oppose it. Rep. Scott Schwab, R-Olathe, is one of them. "Let's be honest. This would be an attempt to legalize marijuana," Schwab said Wednesday. "It has no benefit for pain management. All it does is make you crave another bag of chips." Cowley County's other state representative, Ed Trimmer, D-Winfield, could not be reached for comment. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake