Mixed messages for medical marijuana
A City Council committee on Monday recommended denying requests from 28 medical marijuana dispensaries for exemptions from a moratorium, which would ultimately lead to barring them from operating in Los Angeles. LA Now reports:
"I thought the hearings were a farce and a sham," said Graham Berry, an attorney who spoke for 10 dispensaries.
Comments on the blog are, on balance, supportive of medical marijuana dispensaries. Doug writes, "Los Angeles is in a massive budget crisis, yet they're spending time and resources shutting down operations that hurt NO ONE. Why isn't this energy being put into saving education jobs and improving safety?"
The question of budget problems and medical marijuana is also under debate up north in Oakland, but that city is dealing with things differently. This week, Oakland began sending out ballots in a special mail-only election on four revenue-generating ballot measures, including Measure F, a tax on medical marijuana.
Oakland has just four medical marijuana dispensaries, each of which would see taxes on gross sales of $1,000 increase from $1.20 to $18. The proposed tax would generate $315,000 in 2010 (an increase of $294,000 over existing rates). The Oakland Tribune reports that the dispensaries are all for it:
The clubs see the ballot measure as a way to help the broader cause of medical marijuana.
"Criminals don't pay taxes," said James Anthony, an attorney for Harborside Health Center, one of the dispensaries. "Law-abiding citizens do. We are nothing if not law-abiding citizens."
That's how Oakland sees it, at least.
-- Carolyn Kellogg Photo: Luis Sinco / Los Angeles Times
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Our current marijuana laws are impossible to enforce. Despite decades of marijuana eradication and despite arresting 800,000 people a year, pot is still easier to buy for most high school kids than vodka.
Keeping marijuana illegal does not benefit our children. It benefits special interest groups: drug cartels, the prison industry, police departments, and government bureaucracies.
It is immoral to prevent responsible adults from choosing to use a less harmful substance in place of alcohol. If pot were legalized, alcohol use would decrease along with its associated social costs.
If you want marijuana to be legalized, taxed, and regulated for adults, YOU can make it happen. Tell your legislators to support California Assembly Bill 390. It's easy. Visit http://yes390.org
Posted by: AB390 | 06/30/2009 at 01:31 PM
Pot should be legalized especially now more than ever, we are in an economic down slide and the democrats are having more government intervention that ever before, which is using more money that we do not have. I'm only 18 but at least I know that legalize Pot will make more money and cause a decrease in the my unhealthy industry of them of all, the tobacco co. Also some more jobs will be created. There is no harm in making it legal and theoretically there is harm in keeping it illegal, that is not making the money that you could be. I know that the States definitely need the money, and anyways, compared to alcohol and cigarettes, Pot is holy. Pot has medical purposes as well, the only reason it was made illegal in the first place was because of some race of people wanted war over it or something along those lines. If you ask me you are jailing innocent people who just want to smoke some weed, whats wrong with you people.
Posted by: Frederick | 07/03/2009 at 01:47 AM