Guam jumps on the medical marijuana train

Medical marijuana has steadily made inroads across the U.S., but now the territories are getting in on the action.

Guam is positioned to legalize cannabis for medicinal use, 56-44 percent, with all but two of its 58 precincts reporting.

Assuming the measure passes, Guam will add itself to the list of 23 states — plus the District of Columbia — that have medical marijuana programs, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Voters in the District are deciding Tuesday whether to let people 21 and older possess of up to two ounces of marijuana and grow up up to six plants at home.

“The marijuana majority is a truly global phenomenon. People all across the world are ready to move beyond failed prohibition laws, especially when seriously ill patients are criminalized just for following their doctors’ recommendations,” said Tom Angell of the Marijuana Majority advocacy group.

There are even more pot-related measures on state ballots across the U.S., as more Americans liberalize their views toward recreational or medicinal use of the drug.

Voters in Alaska and Oregon will decide whether to join Colorado and Washington State in legalizing limited amounts of the drug for recreational use.

Even so, those within the cannabis industry say voters should not be a rubber stamp for broader access to the drug.

“I’m a part of the industry, but that doesn’t mean I’m in favor of every measure to legalize pot,” said Steve Janjic, CEO of Amercanex, an electronic marketplace exchange for marijuana. “We need to proceed with care and thoughtful consideration of possible consequences, intended and unintended. We have the opportunity to fix some problems, but also the opportunity to create even bigger problems down the road.”