The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

Tuesday, A pril 21, 2009 - 3B

2008 ELECTION ISSUES
~Marijuana reform

2008 ELECTION ISSUES
Stem cell research

Michigan residents permission by a
with the Departi
now allowed to nity Health and b
gram identificati
use marijuana for The initiative,
the Michigan Co
medicinal purposes passionate Care,
organization.
By EMILY BARTON "We're very
Daily News Editor this is a solid
patients and the
November 4, 2008 - Michigan desire to use mE
became the thirteenth state to when other tr
legally allow the use of marijuana working for th
for medicinal purposes yesterday Byrum, spokesv
after Proposal 1 passed with 63 coalition.
percent of the vote in the 91 per- Opponents o
cent of precincts that reported by including Gov.
early this morning. nholm and At
The ballot initiative allows Mike Cox, said
atients with severe medical con- guage doesn't
ditions like cancer, HIV/AIDS, how patients wo
glaucoma and hepatitis C to legal- juana and voice
ly use marijuana to treat pain and change in the k
other symptoms. Patients would an increase in
be able to own 12 marijuana plants lence.
and 2.5 ounces of usable mari- The opposing
juana once they've been granted led by Citizens P
OBAMA
From Page 2B
again defied political paradigm in his campaign
strategy.He energized an entire generation ofyoung
Americans with his message of hope and change.
Obama's platform, which centers on tax breaks
for middle-income families, health care policy
eforms, withdrawal from Iraq and developing
alternative energy technology, has resonated over-
whelmingly with young voters.
Many young people not only voted for him, but
dedicated themselves to getting him elected.
Membership in the University's chapter of Col-
lege Democrats quadrupled in size when the school
ear began. At the group's first mass meeting, they
turned away more than 100 people because they
couldn't fit the 300 people who wanted to help elect
Obama in one room.
In his acceptance speech, Obama thanked them
for their efforts.
"(My campaign) grew strength from the young
people who rejected the myth of their generation's
apathy who left their homes and their families for
jobs that offered little pay and less sleep," he said of
those who worked in support of his ideals.
On a campus scattered with Obama campaign
literature and plastered with the president-elect's
likeness, students celebrated throughout the streets
of Ann Arbor in droves. Their chants and yells could
be heard for hours after the major news networks
called the race for Obama.
Before flooding the streets, students gathered at
campus bars and residence hall lounges to watch
esults trickle in.
Hours before television and Internet news
outlets declared Obama the winner, College
Democrats members were already celebrating an
expected victory.
As CNN projected Ohio would go to Obama just

doctor, registered
ment of Commu-
been issued a pro-
on card.
was proposed by
oalition for Com-
a Ferndale-based
excited because
victory for the
eir families who
edical marijuana
eatments aren't
iem," said Diane
woman for the
f the initiative,
Jennifer Gra-
torney General
the ballot lan-
clearly stipulate
uld obtain mari-
d concern that a
aw would cause
crime and vio-
campaign was
Protecting Michi-

gan's Kids, a coalition of anti-drug
organizations.
The passing of a similar propos-
al in California led to the creation
of thousands of "pot shops," qua-
si-legal stores selling marijuana to
people with prescriptions. Propo-
nents of Proposal 1 have insisted
that Michigan's law will guard
against those problems. The bal-
lot language provides penalties
for anyone who illegally sells
marijuana but doesn't explain
how patients should obtain it.
"The ballot initiative is silent
on how you get the first seed,
because the reality is that patients
are getting that today and using
it," Byrum said.
LSA junior Chris Chiles, chair
of Students for Sensible Drug Pol-
icy, said he thinks Proposal 1 is a
step in the right direction.
"I think it's great that patients
will be able to use medicine their
doctor recommends without
fearing arrest or jail," he said. "I
think it's fantastic."

Mi
law
th

chigan stem cell Creek) and Richard Whitmer, a for-
mer chief executive officer of Blue
s eased, allowing Cross Blue Shield formed a com-
mittee to push for a ballot initiative.
le 'U' to expand Previous legislation introduced to
it rstate Congress failed to pass, and
its research the committee members decided to
leave the decision up to voters.
By EMILY BARTON The campaign collected 570,016
Daily News Editor signatures before July 7, the dead-
line for a proposed amendment to

I

cial stance on the proposal. But that
hasn't stopped itfrom hosting a series
of "educational" events on the issue.
Many University researchers and
administrators personally endorsed
Proposal2, including Sean Morrison,
director of the University's Center
for Stem Cell Biology, and University
President Mary Sue Coleman.
Students at the polls yesterday gen-
erally supported the ballot initiative.
"Stem cell research is really
important for medical advances,"
said LSA junior Lorna Song. "It's in
everyone's interest."
- Thomas Chan contributed
to this report.

November 4, 2008 - After the
passage yesterday of Proposal 2,
which amended the state's con-
stitution to loosen restrictions on
embryonic stem cell research, Uni-
versity researchers will now be able
to derive their own embryonic stem
cell lines.
The ballot initiative passed nar-
rowly with 52 percent of the vote,
with 91 percent of the precincts
reporting as of 2:30 a.m. Wednes-
day. It overturns a 1978 Michigan
law banning the destruction of
human embryos. Michigan's ban on
cloning remains intact.
Scientists at the University have
been conductingembryonic stem cell
research with lines derived in other
states, but the new amendment will
allow them to start deriving lines
from fertility clinic embryos that
would otherwise be discarded.
Opponents of the initiative have
cited precedent from other states to
argue that the new law could lead
lawmakers to spend public money on
stem cell research, and argued that
the ballot language is vague enough
that it would not adequately prohibit
the misuse of human embryos.
Proponents of the measure say
the initiative will enable research in
Michigan that could lead to cures for
diseases like Juvenile Diabetes and
Parkinson's Disease.
"We're very pleased with the
vote today," said Chris DeWitt,
spokesman for Cure Michigan, the
campaign advocating the ballot ini-
tiative. "This has helped bring our
state in line with 45 other states for
stem cell research."
Cure Michigan started its cam-
paign initiative over a year ago when
Rick Johnson, former speaker of
the state House of Representatives,
Detroit Attorney Linda Bloch, for-
mer U.S. Rep. Joe Schwarz (R-Battle

make it on the ballot. That same day,
Michigan Citizens Against Unre-
stricted Science and Experimenta-
tion released a statement against the
ballot initiative.
Because the University is a state
institution, it cannot take an offi-

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after 9 p.m., the group of 50 people cheered raucously.
"Ohio kind of seals the deal," said Danny Abo-
sch, a School of Music, Theatre and Dance sopho-
more and a member of the group's executive board.
"Looking at the 2000 and 2004 elections, Ohio has
really been the key state. It's really amazing."
Just before 11 p.m., the election-watching crowds
at Good Time Charley's braced themselves for the
closing of polls in California. They began counting
down from ten. As they cried one, the television
screens displayed the CNN projection, "Barack
Obama elected president."
As students embraced and took photos of the
screen, they lined up at the bar to order blue-colored
"Obama shots." Others simply stared at the screen,
their eyes transfixed and welling with tears.
- Daily Staff Reporters Jillian Berman, Kelly
Fraser, Charles Gregg-Geist, Andrew Grossman,
Elaine LaFay, Katherine Mitchell, Nate Sandals, Caitlin
Schneider, Kyle Swanson and Sara Lynne Thelen and
The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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