cannabisnews.com: West Takes on East in the Drug War West Takes on East in the Drug War Posted by CN Staff on July 28, 2002 at 08:56:27 PT By Debra J. Saunders Source: San Francisco Chronicle East does not meet West when it comes to America's drug war. California, Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, Oregon and Washington have legalized medical marijuana. But that doesn't stop federal drug agents from raiding West Coast medical marijuana clubs. Skirmishes are erupting on new fronts. Nevada's November ballot will rachet up the fighting with an initiative to legalize possession of up to three ounces of marijuana -- with or without a prescription. Then last week, if only to add silliness to the equation, San Francisco Supervisor Mark Leno proposed a ballot measure to have The Special City grow medical marijuana. The timing couldn't have been worse for U.S. Drug Czar John Walters to visit the West, but that didn't stop him. On Thursday, Walters told The Chronicle editorial board that he wasn't happy that some San Franciscans frame his position on medical marijuana as "bigoted" and without justification. Medical research, he said, simply doesn't support marijuana as medicine. Besides, many medical-marijuana advocates are more interested in using medicinal pot as a back door to legalize drugs; they don't care about the afflicted. So who are these people to call Walters cold-hearted? And he's right. On the pro-medical marijuana side, there are some (sort of) healthy potheads who shamelessly hide behind sick people. And then there are Democrat anti-drug war partisans who charge that Republicans are hypocrites for saying that they advocate states' rights -- unless drugs are involved. (Of course, Dems don't notice that makes them hypocrites for boosting states' rights only for the drug war.) What about a truce -- an admission that both sides do care? Most medical- marijuana advocates care about cancer patients, who believe marijuana reduces their pain and calms their nausea. Walters cares about children, who are abused or neglected because their parents' wasted lives revolve around drugs, not family. Voters in eight western states, plus Maine, have told Washington they want to do things their way. Washington should listen. Snipped: Complete Article: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2002/07/28/ED37422.DTLSource: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)Author: Debra J. Saunders Published: Sunday, July 28, 2002 Copyright: San Francisco Chronicle Contact: letters sfchronicle.comWebsite: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/Related Article:Drug Czar Skirts S.F. Proposal to Grow Its Own http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13544.shtmlVoters To Decide On Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13523.shtmlNevada Becomes Marijuana Battle Ground http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread13518.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #1 posted by The GCW on July 28, 2002 at 09:27:45 PT Shall We pressure Our brothers? Normally I do not spend much effort in trying to talk other people into voting that choose not to vote.Now, this is different!We must spend some time making sure all people that normally do not vote, yet are opposed to cageing humans for using cannabis, vote.Even if You've never voted before and do not vote on any other issue, it is time to register and vote on this issue.Votes are needed, in a big way, to stop the ignorance of caging humans for using a plant.It would surely be a sad day in Nevada, if this vote was not won, by a small margin, and that small margin consisted of people on Our side who just did not vote. [ Post Comment ] Post Comment