Week of October 30, 2018
www.usustatesman.com (435) 797-1742 TSC Room 118 Free single copy
STUDENT LIFE | Lodel vs Joyrun
SPORTS | Love & team have historic performances
NEWS | Aggie Ice Cream
Utah State’s Dairy Lab is closing this winter. Find out how this will impact Aggie Ice Cream.
Utah State goes for program-record 704 yards in 61—19 win over New Mexico.
see PAGE 2
UnKoch My Campus report urges USU to cut ties By Alison Berg NEWS SENIOR WRITER
A report released on Tuesday by nonprofits UnKoch
My Campus and the Center for Biological Diversity recommends Utah State University “should immediately
rescind its agreement with the Charles Koch Foundation and disaffiliate itself from the Center for Growth and Opportunity.”
Two food-delivery services are currently in operation in Cache Valley.
see PAGE 6
see PAGE 4
Support for Prop 2 Wanes Week Before Midterm Elections
that lawmakers
By Erick Graham Wood STUDENT LIFE STAFF WRITER
would introduce a bill to legalize medical
Next week, Utahns will officially know the
results of the midterm elections. This year’s ballot includes a medical marijuana initiative called Proposition 2.
A “yes” vote for “Prop 2” supports legaliz-
UnKoch My Campus is an organization that seeks to
ing the medical use of marijuana for indi-
and universities nationwide,” according to its website.
“no” vote opposes the legalization of medi-
expose donors who exert “undue influence on colleges In 2017, the Charles Koch Foundation agreed to donate
$25 million to USU’s Huntsman School of Business
over the course of five years. USU became one of the
hundreds of other universities nationwide to receive a
donation from the foundation, sparking controversy on campus.
Though university officials have repeatedly denied
“strings attached” to the donation, the nonprofit report says otherwise.
Part of the donation was used to build an on-cam-
pus research center called the Center for Growth and Opportunity. According to its website, the center was
see “Koch” PAGE 8
Aggies ranked No. 18 in AP Poll
viduals with qualifying medical illnesses. A cal marijuana.
poll conducted by the Hinckley Institute of Politics, support for Proposition 2 has
waned in the last month despite what they describe a strong summer campaign. The
poll, released in mid-October, indicates that public support is at about 51 percent, with three percent of voters still undecided.
Cache Valley resident Ross Davis has had
a “#PatientsNotCriminals” sign in his front yard since spring. He said it is important heard and vote in the mid-
term elections, adding that he hopes to see this initiative passed.
“The fact that there is a
drug that can help people
The Associated Press released its weekly Top 25 college
football poll this afternoon, placing the Utah State foot-
ball team No.18 in the nation after achieving its first 7-1 start to a season since 1965.
After receiving 50 votes last week and finding them-
selves as the second team outside of the Top 25, Utah
State’s emphatic 61-19 win over New Mexico on Saturday helped push them in. The Aggies received 340 votes in this week’s poll, the most of any Mountain West team. “It’s really cool. It’s a salute to our program on how
we do things and how the season has been going,” said senior safety Jontrell Rocquemore. “At the end of the
day, it doesn’t affect the Mountain West Championship, and that’s our goal. It’s cool and an honor to be in the
top 25. We still have big plans for the rest of the season.” The Aggies were ranked in individual ballots as high as
No. 15 by two different voters, and were included on all but five ballots.
This is only the eighth time in program history that the
Aggies have been ranked in the AP Top 25, which first
began in 1936. USU’s most recent appearance came fol-
lowing the 2012 season, when they finished No. 16 in the see “Ranked” PAGE 8
The church’s proposal says that there
could be a total of five privately operated
dispensaries in Utah and one publicly controlled one. This differs from Proposition 2 which would allow one dispensary per
150,000 residents. Proposition 2 also allows marijuana to be grown in homes, while the This type of deal isn’t new for the church,
which has had its say in many other laws in the state, including the sale of alcohol.
For example, the “Zion curtains” liquor law separates bartenders preparing alcoholic
drinks from the customers who order them in Utah restaurants.
“It’s not fair,” Davis said. “We all live in
this state and yet even if Proposition 2 is passed, what we are voting for could be
address the compromise. While streaming
his experience in a Facebook Live video, he
said that he thought it was “about time that
at least one legislator knew a little bit about marijuana.”
Dabakis went on to say that he “survived
the experience” and endorsed Proposition 2. If Proposition 2 passes, individuals with
qualifying medical conditions would be
able to receive a medical marijuana card
and purchase two ounces of unprocessed
marijuana or 10 grams of THC at dispen-
saries across the state in a 14-day period.
Individuals would be prohibited from smoking marijuana but as of January 1, 2021,
would be able to grow up to six marijuana plants for personal use if there are no dis-
pensaries within 100 miles. Marijuana sales would be exempt from local and state sales taxes.
Whether the initiative passes or not, Utah
Governor Gary Herbert has called for the
Whether it passes or fails, we’re going to arrive at the same point and conclusion, which is going to be of benefit to the people of Utah
when nothing else does
— Gov. Gary Herbert
that has the power to do good.”
Davis said while he has already voted and
has spent much of the year advocating for Proposition 2 he recognizes that there are needs to stay “optimistically-cautious.”
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-
day Saints has been a strong opponent of
Proposition 2 going as far as emailing Utah members in August to urge voters to vote “no” on the ballot.
“As a member of the coalition, we urge
voters of Utah to vote NO on Proposition 2,” read the email from religious leader, Craig C. Christensen. It continued.
“And join us in a call to state elected
officials to promptly work with medical
experts, patients and community leaders to
find a solution that will work for all Utahns, without the harmful effects that will come to pass if Proposition 2 becomes law.”
Despite campaigning against the initia-
tive, on Oct. 4, just before the religion’s
bi-annual conference, the church reposi-
tioned their views on medical marijuana calling for a compromise between state lawmakers and their authorities. The
announcement, made in front of an audience at the Utah State Capitol, explained
medical marijuana policy for Utah in November.
“Whether it passes or
fails, we’re going to arrive
at the same point and conclusion, which is going to
be of benefit to the people Salt Lake City while dis-
cause for me,” Davis said.
“We shouldn’t be criminalizing something
state legislature to create a
of Utah,” Herbert said in
says enough about the
people against the initiative and that he
By Jaden Johnson SPORTS CONTENT MANAGER
or not.
compromise restricts it.
According to The Tribune-Hinckley
to him to make his voice
cannabis whether Proposition 2 is passed
GRAPHIC BY Matthew Sellers
extremely different from what actually
becomes law. I think people just fear what they don’t know.”
Some of these fears include the idea that
more people will be driving while under
the influence of marijuana. However, medical marijuana does not contain enough
tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), the chemical
compound responsible for the “high” found in recreational marijuana. Instead, medical marijuana contains cannabidiol (CBD), which does not produce a “high.”
Matthew Wappett, the director of the
Utah State University Center for Persons
with Disabilities told Utah Public Radio that he believes many adults make the choice to become a criminal because their only other option is to go on living with their condi-
tions. This has been the predominant argument from supporters of the proposition,
claiming that not passing it would continue to criminalize medical patients.
Peter Grinspoon, MD of Harvard Medical
School, said in an article that medical
marijuana helps relieve insomnia, anxiety, spasticity and pain in patients. It can also
be used to treat life-threatening conditions like epilepsy.
Senator Jim Dabakis (D-Salt Lake) tried
marijuana in Las Vegas for the first time before the state legislature convenes to
cussing what he called a “shared vision.”
Proposition 2 is estimated to cost the state
$3.6 million in one-time setup costs. Annual revenue is expected to cover the initiative’s expected annual cost of $2.1 million.
Governor Herbert and The Utah Medical
Association have both argued against
Proposition 2, the latter claiming that it is
“paving the way for recreational use of cannabis in Utah” and slammed the supporting side for using images and stories of suffering patients to “disguise their true aim.” Utah State alumnus John R. Miller is
one of the top donors to the oppositions
campaign, donating $100,000 of the over $960,000 raised.
Currently there are only four states that
have no laws supporting medical marijuana or cannabis oil. Surrounding Utah, with
the exception of Idaho, are states that have passed laws legalizing or decriminalizing medical marijuana.
To vote in Utah, residents must be over
the age of 18 and registered online or in
person. Polls close at 8 p.m. on Nov 6 for registered voters and early voting is currently underway across the state. — erickwood97@gmail.com
@GrahamWoodMedia