I have the utmost respect for Crista Eggers and everyone who continues to work so diligently to get medical cannabis to the sick and dying patients of Nebraska. They are not only fighting for that medicine, they are also fighting for democracy.

Let me explain.

Crista and her team continue to fight the arrogant thinking of Pete Ricketts, Jim Pillen, Mike Hilgers, the legislators, and regulators who continue to ignore the will of the people.

I’ll be honest, if I had epilepsy, MS, debilitating pain, or any of the other ailments that marijuana has been shown to benefit, I might have given up by now. I might drive down to, or maybe even move to, one of our neighboring states that have legalized THC products and medicate myself. I would say I’m tired of putting up with the crap that these government officials are throwing at me, and take my tax dollars elsewhere.

But Crista and her team continue to work to see that the voters get what they voted for and not what Pillen et al want.

Recently, the Nebraska Medical Cannabis Commission met once again to try to set the rules for the distribution of the plant that seven out of ten voters said they wanted. And the regulations they set are even more stringent than the ones Governor Pillen approved last June.

Yet through it all, Crista Eggers and her group have persevered through the lawsuits, the meetings, the disappointments. You’ve got to respect that.

The behind-the-scenes dealings of our elected officials are not just a slap in the face of those sick people wanting relief; it’s a slap in the face of all of us who voted to enter the 21st century.

The talk on the street is that former Democratic State Senator Lynn Walz is going to run for governor. If she does, I hope she makes this one of the foundations of her campaign. She should show how Governor Pillen thinks he’s smarter than the voters by trying to block the will of the people. She should show his arrogance and hubris, two things most of the good people of Nebraska have little tolerance for.

The same holds true for Dan Osborn in his campaign against Pete Ricketts. I would point out how our Senator has hurt the health of Nebraskans, not only by his opposition to Medical Marijuana, but his vote for the Big Beautiful Bill that gave him a nice tax break while hurting rural hospitals. And you can’t ignore his genius vote to appoint RFK Jr. to head up the Department of Health and Human Services, a department that is in complete and utter chaos and risks the lives of countless Americans.

For Crista Eggers, this fight is personal. She has put up with so much to legalize and distribute a medicine that can ease the suffering her son feels from his epileptic seizures. I respect her so much for her tenacity.

I wish I could respect our Governor and Senator that much.

I know that most Nebraskans aren’t paying close attention to what is going on regarding the regulation of the drug they voted for. So much is thrown at us in the news that many people have tuned out. Most Nebraskans won’t ever need or get a prescription for medical marijuana; they have other concerns on their plate than this.

And quite honestly, the fight for democracy has more concerns than this as well. But people don’t always vote based on logic; they vote on emotion. People don’t like to be dissed. They don’t like to be talked down to. And that’s just what Pillen and Ricketts are doing to us by ignoring our vote.

Yes, this is a bigger deal than just fighting for a plant. We need to fight for democracy. In the era where we have a president who thinks he can do whatever the hell he wants and a governor and senator who kneel at his altar, the voice of the people cannot be dismissed like this.

I know that being an elected official is a tough job. You can never please everyone. There aren’t many issues that unite us, but with seventy percent of the vote, medical marijuana comes pretty damn close.

I respect Crista Eggers and her team. I just wish the powers that be had the same respect for us.

Tom Becka is a long-time Nebraska broadcaster who for over 30 years has been covering Omaha and Midwest issues on both radio and TV. He has been a guest on numerous national cable and news shows, filled in for nationally syndicated talk radio programs and Talkers Magazine has recognized him as one of the Top 100 talk show hosts in the country 10 times. Never afraid to ruffle some feathers, his ‘Becka’s Beat’ commentaries can be found online on Youtube and other digital platforms.

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