TODAY'S QUESTION: Should the state ban K2 or wait until more information about its effects becomes available?

Missouri Sen. Kurt Schaefer, R-Columbia, introduced a bill to ban K2, a synthetic cannabinoid that mimics the effects of marijuana. Mid-Missouri hospitals have reported multiple incidents of adolescents experiencing effects from the substance.

However, John Coffman, a lobbyist for the American Civil Liberties Union, thinks that the government should seek more scientific proof before banning the substance, comparing the substance's drug content to the alcohol content of cough syrup.

A similar bill was introduced by Rep. Jeff Roorda, D-Barnhart, in the House.

Jeremy Essig, a Missourian reporter, wrote a column confirming Schaefer's concern that the effects of K2 are similar to that of marijuana and about the substance's availability in Columbia.

"Unfortunately, the high provided by the 'fake pot' was quite real, restricting my movements to laying in an easy chair and watching television," Essig wrote in his column.

Should the state ban K2 and other forms of synthetic marijuana now, or should there be more information available about its effects first?