cannabisnews.com: Amsterdam of the West Amsterdam of the West Posted by CN Staff on September 27, 2002 at 16:02:17 PT By Geoff Schumacher Source: In These Times Las Vegas—It shouldn’t be surprising that Nevada is at the center of the latest battle over marijuana legalization. After all, Nevada is home to legalized gambling and prostitution and has long cultivated a live-and-let-live reputation. It would seem an ideal place for advocates to go a step further in their campaign to decriminalize pot. And yet Nevada’s actions don’t always live up to its reputation. On many issues, Nevadans are extremely conservative, showing overwhelming support for a “protection of marriage” initiative and recently imposing tighter restrictions on exotic dancing. Nevadans are just as split on the legalization of marijuana. In two recent polls, the state was evenly divided on the question of whether to legalize possession of up to three ounces of the drug. That hasn’t stopped a constitutional amendment to that effect from appearing on the state’s November ballot, and supporters and critics are working furiously to make their case to a highly undecided populace. The initiative is the product of an aggressive petition drive, sponsored by Nevadans for Responsible Law Enforcement, a local group affiliated with the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington. NRLE volunteers fanned out across the state, gathering 109,000 signatures—a state record—in 40 days to qualify for the ballot. If it passes in November, the question must be approved again in 2004 to go into effect. (Constitutional amendments in Nevada must be approved twice by voters.) The initiative seeks to alleviate an array of concerns voters might raise. Under the plan, only state-licensed establishments could sell marijuana, and only to adults. Use would be prohibited in public places, and transporting pot out of Nevada would be illegal. Marijuana sales would also be heavily taxed, providing a new revenue source for the perennially cash-strapped state. While advocates have downplayed the parallel, critics have said the initiative could turn Nevada into the Amsterdam of the West. “Most people say, ‘I don’t care what you do in your own home,’ ” says Billy Rogers, campaign manager for NRLE. “This initiative allows responsible adults to possess marijuana in their own homes, and it prevents irresponsible people from acting irresponsibly.” Rogers says passage of the initiative would put many drug dealers out of business. Early in the campaign, NRLE thought it had scored a major coup when the Nevada Conference of Police and Sheriffs came out in support of the initiative. NCOPS President Andy Anderson took an informal poll of his board and declared it supported the proposal, on grounds that police officers do not believe they should be wasting valuable time arresting people possessing small amounts of marijuana. The announcement caused a firestorm in the law-enforcement community: A formal vote of the board later denounced the initiative, and Anderson resigned. The controversy has also awakened a sleeping giant: Las Vegas police officials and unions, who are organizing a fundraising campaign to fight the initiative. Richard Winget, the No. 2 man in the Las Vegas Police Department, cites numerous reasons for police opposition, including predicted increases in traffic fatalities and auto insurance rates, as well as concerns that increased marijuana use will spur an increase in crime. Winget says convenience stores in Nevada are constantly caught selling alcohol to minors. “Do we really believe these stores will be more effective at controlling the sale of marijuana?” he asks. Most important, Winget contends, is that Nevada has already settled this issue. In 2001, the Nevada legislature effectively decriminalized possession of up to one ounce of marijuana, turning what had once been a felony offense into a misdemeanor punishable with a citation. The state also has legalized the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes. “We don’t waste our time now booking people for small amounts,” Winget says. Nevada’s initiative has drawn national attention. While Arizona and Ohio are considering easing marijuana possession penalties, Nevada’s initiative is by far the most dramatic U.S. effort to legalize pot. White House Drug Czar John Walters has condemned the plan, suggesting its passage would make Nevada a “vacation spot for drug traffickers.” Walters has announced plans to campaign against the initiative across Nevada. NRLE’s Rogers responds that Nevadans, stung repeatedly by Washington do-gooders and meddlers, are “sick and tired of the federal government stepping in and telling them what to do.” Rogers has challenged Walters to a public debate on the question. With the anti-marijuana forces aggressively joining the publicity battle, the fate of the initiative is hardly decided. The pro-pot contingent is counting on Nevada’s independent-minded silent majority to make its presence known come November. “Ultimately, education is our strongest weapon,” Rogers says. “If voters know what’s in this initiative, we will win.” Note: Fear and Toking in Las Vegas.Source: In These Times Magazine (IL)Author: Geoff SchumacherPublished: September 27, 2002Copyright: 2002 The Institute for Public Affairs Contact: itt inthesetimes.comWebsite: http://www.inthesetimes.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:NRLEhttp://www.nrle.org/Marijuana Policy Projecthttp://www.mpp.org/One Puff At A Time - Economist UKhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14262.shtmlDiscussion About Pot Initiative Becomes Heated http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14259.shtmlSmoking Up The Debate on Pot http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread14237.shtml Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #5 posted by mayan on September 27, 2002 at 18:17:48 PT Think About It! "Winget says convenience stores in Nevada are constantly caught selling alcohol to minors. “Do we really believe these stores will be more effective at controlling the sale of marijuana?” he asks." I take it Winget advocates alcohol re-prohibition? Such a wonderful policy that was!!! A convenience store is much more likely to card a minor than a drug-dealer! Do these people have no common-sense?unrelated -Aftermath:Unanswered Questions from 9/11(Parts I & II - QuickTime video) http://www.gnn.tv/after_math/index.htmlWILDCARD: Down the rabbit hole with the man who says he tried to warn the world about 9/11 - http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/092602_vreeland_gnn.htmlNational Trial Lawyers President Urges 9-11 Families to Consider Federal Fund Rather than Sue: http://www.usnewswire.com/topnews/prime/0927-102.htmlExperts skeptical of reports on al-Qaeda-Baghdad link: http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2002-09-26-iraq-alqaeda_x.htmIvanov: No proof of Iraq, al Qaida link http://www.upi.com/view.cfm?StoryID=20020927-110648-4229rAgency disavows report on Iraq arms: http://www.washtimes.com/national/20020927-500715.htmBush Administration Uses CIA To Stonewall Iraqgate Investigation: http://mediafilter.org/MFF/BushCIAstonewall.htmlIraqgate Scandal Documents: http://www.parascope.com/articles/1196/iraqgatedocs.htmFlash Traffic:Political buzz from Washington(Aug.18,2001 -read the last paragraph!!!) http://www.worldmag.com/world/issue/08-18-01/opening_4.asp [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by FoM on September 27, 2002 at 17:03:52 PT p4me That would be great! [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by p4me on September 27, 2002 at 16:51:45 PT Well, here goes I have this thought of a television or radio personality. I am thinking about the Jay Leno segments where he walks out on the sidewalk and ask people questions. This is called the Jay Walking. Now say someone in Los Vegas that has beat all the old subjects to death, decides to get involved and talk about the Nevada iniative.He goes outside and ask are you for or against the iniative. So if he says he is against the iniative, he gets asked "Why are you for prohibition?" Now how is the guy on the street going to answer that? Well if you look at Jay Leno it is amazing at how little the average person knows. I would love to see some answers. What would they say? "Those potsmokers belong in jail" or "It goes against the teachings of the Bible?"I think it would be real interesting if this happened on a regular basis so people would no where to be to speak. When given a chance to speak for legalization, I think people would be trying to have a chance to speak. It would be neat to see.I listen to almost no radio, but about 6 months ago I was listening and it had a segment called something like "F*** What." It was very telling in the attitude that was displayed and two of the few comments I heard were about F*** the marijuana laws. I say the energized group is the reform group and most prohibitionist if asked why they are for prohibition would give mostly short and embarassing answers.The more the prohibitionist address the issue the worse they look it seems to me. Things look good for Nevada and US of America that want legalization. 1,2 [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by FoM on September 27, 2002 at 16:36:13 PT firedog That's a really good idea! I noticed one error in this article. Ohio isn't doing anything about marijuana laws just the Ohio Treatment Initiative. I wish they were but the laws are better then many states already. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by firedog on September 27, 2002 at 16:12:33 PT Amsterdam of the West A great idea for a new theme casino!Canals, coffeeshops, an art museum or two, 17th Century Dutch-style row houses along the canals, lots of bicycles... I can see it now. I don't know if the red light district should be included or not...We already have New York and Paris. Amsterdam would be a great addition! [ Post Comment ] Post Comment