NC writers on Biden’s marijuana pardon and why doctors will be watching NC’s election
Welcome to NC Voices, where leaders, readers and experts from across North Carolina can speak on issues affecting our communities. Send submissions of 350 words or fewer to opinion@newsobserver.com.
Biden pot pardons damaged us all
President Joe Biden recently pardoned individuals convicted under federal law of possessing marijuana. He wants governors to do the same.
To some this may seem like the logical and compassionate thing to do since personal use of marijuana is now legal in many states. However, if we really believe in law and order and the justice system, pardoning those who’ve broken the law and been convicted is harmful to our way of life.
Enforcement of law allows us all to function as law-abiding citizens. When guilty individuals are selected for pardons, it chips away at our concept that we are all equal under the law.
To have law and order, the law has to be enforced fairly, including punishment. When enforcement is slack, nonexistent, unjust - or rescinded - it damages our respect for law and order.
There are times when laws change. If laws are no longer deemed necessary, then laws need to be changed. However, a change in law does not negate sentences given while a law was on the books. Without consequences, lawless actions are reinforced, rather than discouraged.
When an individual knowingly breaks the law, that individual should expect there will be consequences. This is called accountability. Without accountability, law and order has no meaning. Pardoning criminals impacts all citizens because freedom without accountability limits the freedom of all of us.
If an individual is proven to be innocent after being incarcerated, they definitely should be pardoned. But if an individual was proven guilty then pardoned, it is a miscarriage of justice and a slap in the face of judges and juries that weighed the evidence and issues a verdict of guilty.
Pardoning criminals because of friendship, loyalty, or to gain votes before an election is immoral. Perhaps it is time to reexamine presidential pardons. Giving power to one individual to cancel out legitimate punishment is damaging to our system of justice. It disrupts the expectation of law-abiding citizens that we are a country that believes in equal justice for all.
Patsy Neal, Matthews
Your vote can keep NC safe for doctors
The writer chairs the NC section of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.
There is a possibility with the next election that the North Carolina legislature returns to a veto-proof majority. If that happens, any veto by Gov. Cooper could be overridden and put into law.
That may seem like the best case scenario for the party in power, but consider what it could mean for our state. It could mean termination of pregnancy is outlawed, as in other states in the Southeast.
It could mean physicians are criminalized for doing their jobs. It could mean that a patient – you, your parent or your child – has care delayed while a physician consults with an attorney rather than proceeding with appropriate care. It’s already happening in other states.
All of that concerns me as an N.C. OB-GYN. But so does the threat of losing physicians in our state and not being able to recruit more.
I practice in Shelby, a mid-sized town within an hour of a major metropolitan area. I work with a fantastic group of physicians and we have a great reputation. Yet, I have been trying to recruit more physicians for over two years without success. I know of smaller practices that have been recruiting longer. I hear similar stories from colleagues across the state.
The U.S. already has a shortage of OB-GYNs, but it’s growing more rapidly in states that are limiting the scope of our practice and placing criminal penalties on physicians.
Good physicians will leave North Carolina if we allow laws that inhibit our practice to be passed. It will only become harder to recruit physicians, as one of the first questions many prospective physicians now ask is what are your state’s laws surrounding termination of pregnancy. This includes physicians in emergency medicine, oncology, even primary care. Waits will be longer in emergency departments, cancer treatments will be delayed, patients will have to travel further to deliver their babies and preventive visits will be harder to come by.
Help keep North Carolina a safe place to live and practice medicine. Vote Nov. 8 or during early voting. Every vote will matter.
Dr. Katie Borders, Shelby
This story was originally published October 20, 2022 at 5:30 AM with the headline "NC writers on Biden’s marijuana pardon and why doctors will be watching NC’s election."