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Thoughts on ballot measures

James Maxson , Minot One of the measures on the ballot this November regards term limits for state legislators. At first glance, it looks like an intramural battle between conventional Republicans and angry Republicans. Since I don’t have a dog in that fight, I look to an old-fashioned method of decision making, evidence. Two states which have enacted similar term limits are Arizona and California. It is quite obvious that the California legislature has swung too far to the left and that the Arizona legislature has swung too far to the right. Are these two states the prototype of ...

Vote to defeat marijuana legalization

Martin Graner , Minot I have had the privilege to work with hundreds of people that were having lots of problems in their lives. The problems were from drugs, alcohol, sexual, etc. I am a social worker. In 90% plus of the problems, marijuana was involved. People who were well when I first met them, well motivated and had goals went downhill after they used marijuana. My experiences in the last 60 years tell me that marijuana is a death sentence for people. In the last 60 plus years, marijuana (cannabis) has become more potent and harmful, with its average ...

Bob Wefald , Bismarck Recreational marijuana was a very bad idea four years ago when it was soundly defeated, and it is still a very bad idea. Nothing has changed in four years to make recreational marijuana a better choice for the people of North Dakota. Although the marijuana advocates try to sell us a bill of goods of inevitably, they still do not have the support of the majority of North Dakota voters. Their claim that recreational marijuana was approved by the legislature in 2021 is simply false. The fact one chamber fell for the argument of recreational marijuana does not ...

Rep. Clayton Fegley , Berthold I am writing about measure 2, legalizing recreational marijuana, that you will be voting on in November, and I urge you to vote NO! Recreational marijuana, “it is not a safe drug.” And to legalize in North Dakota, it will change our culture. Once again outside interests are funding the ND legalization group with more than $520,000.00 from the New Approach Advocacy Fund and the Marijuana Policy project, both Washington, D.C.-based pro-pot groups looking to see this happen in ND. Tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC for short, attacks the brain and is a ...

People best served by informed legislators

Sen. Dick Dever , Bismarck As a member of the ND Senate Appropriations Committee, I chair the sub-committee that manages the budget of the Department of Human Services. It is the largest budget in State government and provides a greater impact in the lives of more citizens than any other agency. Understanding the budget requires an understanding of the services provided by the agency. It is not possible in our part-time citizen legislature to gain the knowledge and experience in three sessions to manage the budget in the fourth allowed by the term limits measure. If the people ...

Educational leaders urge ‘no’ on Measure 1

Aimee Copas NDCEL Executive Director Bismarck NDCEL (North Dakota Council of Educational Leaders) representing K12 school leaders and administrators in North Dakota are gravely concerned with the possibility of the passage of a constitutional amendment which would create term limits for our state legislators.  I personally share this concern.  As educators, we commonly work closely with our legislators in our state to ensure policies and funding for our North Dakota public schools are appropriate and in the best interest of our students in North Dakota.  Individuals who have had ...