Here is a letter to the editor I wrote that was published Saturday, October 27, 2018 by Madison’s Capital Times.
Letter to the editor by Gary Storck as published by the Capital Times on Sat. Oct. 27, 2018.

Gary Storck: Capital Times: Voters should pass pot referendums, defeat candidates who oppose legalization

Dear Editor: When I first stumbled upon cannabis as a means to save my sight from the ravages of congenital glaucoma 46 years ago, I never could have imagined this versatile medicine would still be illegal in my home state today.

But change is in the air. Public support for legalization is at an all-time high of 66 percent, according to a new Gallup poll. A recent Marquette Law School poll found 61 percent of Wisconsinites support legalizing adult use of cannabis. Support for medical use is overwhelming.

No fewer than 16 Wisconsin counties and two cities have placed advisory referendums on cannabis on the ballot in the Nov. 6 general election. Not only do seven counties that voted Democratic in 2016 have referendums on the ballot, but so do nine that voted Republican. Ten counties are voting on medical cannabis, four on adult use, two more on both. These diverse counties stretch from the Michigan border to the Mississippi River, from Green Bay to the border of Illinois. Never before has Wisconsin seen an election where over half the state’s population will weigh in on cannabis laws.

Wisconsin voters have long been ahead of state political leaders on cannabis policies, and I expect that every referendum will pass easily. But passing these advisory-only referendums alone will not bring legalization; voters also need to reject those incumbents who refuse to follow the public’s lead on cannabis and replace them with candidates who will. Then we can join the majority of states that have rejected the counterproductive fraud that is cannabis prohibition.

Gary Storck, Cannabadger.com

Madison

The Cannabadger Guide to the 2018 Wisconsin County Cannabis Advisory Referendums