California considers 2010 legalization of pot

I applod the State of California for moving towards the legalization of marijuana. I believe it is time to stop being contradictory in parading alcohol in front of society with "beer summits" at the White House when alcohol is responsible for so many violent crimes and has so many health hazards while at the same time brainwashing our young people to believe that marijuana is an abhorrent evil.

There is one thing that bothers me still in all of this. We have seen states pass medical marijuana laws in the past only to find out that Federal law superceeds state law and have to watch sadly as sick and dying persons get carted off to already overcrowded prisons at tax payer expense. The Federal government has already stated that they do not recongnize state marijuana laws and will continue to seek out and prosecute marijuana users, whether or not they posses valid medical marijuana prescriptions.

I hope that California sets a precedence for the rest of the country by legalizing marijuana, but I hope even more that the Federal government will reconsider its stand on marijuana and again take the stance "Hemp for Victory!" as it did in the 1940's. Until that happens its anyone's guess what chaos will come of state legalization.

Hi Tamaura, I do want pot legalized, but not halfway, that is why I support AB390 and not this initiative. It needs to address the issue of supply and not just demand. If I grow my own stash in the backyard I can get exactly one harvest per year and 1oz isn't going to last me until the next season. I don't want to grow indoors because of the electric bill, and even that would put me over the 1oz limit. The mexican cartels will still be in business and nothing will be done to keep it out of the hands of those under 21, dealers don't ask for ID. Giving the counties the authority to tax and regulate would effectively make the initiative null and void since many counties would keep it illegal anyway. As for getting pulled over with weed on me, I have been, more than just a few times, never had It taken from me, never got a citation. Unless it's over an ounce or packaged for sales it's not a big deal to most leos. Even if it is a big deal to one all he can do is cite you for possesion, not haul you of to jail as long as your not driving impaired. It needs to be state law not subject to local goverment with a clear set of rules for distribution and no limit on quantity in possesion for personal use. Tax over the counter sales at a reasonable rate and let homegrowers grow what they need without taxation.

I LOVE these stories because they drive home the point that all over the USA there are thousands and thousands of tons of pot being grown, transported, sold and smoked and there's NOTHING the cops can do about it, they don't even catch 5%. Pot should be legal. Mexico just legalized possession of small amounts of all drugs. Switzerland just legalized heroin. Portugal decriminalized all drugs in 2001 and their experience has been positive. Now if you are caught with a 10 day supply of your drug or less you face an administrative court, not a criminal court, but in practice they are just not arresting people. A group of 10,000 very serious policemen, prosecutors, attorneys and citizens have formed a group to legalize ALL drugs, Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (http://leap.cc ) They see what happened when we legalized alcohol in 1932 as a good example of how drug legalization would work. This foolish war on drugs has lasted 37 years and cost us over a TRILLION dollars and we are not an inch closer to stopping drugs. How many millions of Americans are we going to lock up in prison for decades? Mark Montgomery boboberg@nyc.rr.com