cannabisnews.com: Punting on Pot: Is MMJ Too Touchy for Davis?





Punting on Pot: Is MMJ Too Touchy for Davis?
Posted by FoM on July 16, 1999 at 14:58:20 PT
Bee Editorial
Source: Sacramento Bee
A task force assembled by Attorney General Bill Lockyer has sketched a sensible though vague outline of how to make an illegal substance, marijuana, legal medicine for the seriously ill, as voters mandated by passing Proposition 215 in 1996.
The task force of prosecutors, legislators and medicinal marijuana advocates decided to leave many of the tough decisions to Gov. Gray Davis and his Department of Health Services. The proposals are now embodied in SB 848, authored by Sen. John Vasconcellos of Santa Clara, a co-chairman of the task force. The bill deserves to advance, at the very least, to keep this debate before both the governor and lawmakers.The bill seeks to define what the poorly drafted proposition did not, and to delegate further definitions to the state. Proposition 215 legalized undefined quantities of marijuana for "seriously ill" people and authorized "primary caregivers" to cultivate the marijuana on a sick person's behalf. The proposition has proven unworkable by omitting any reasonable process of identifying who truly is seriously ill or a process of cultivating and distributing medicinal quantities of the marijuana to this population.The task force proposes to establish a registry program to provide identity cards to those who qualify for marijuana. This would be administered by the Department of Health Services along with county health departments. It is up to the department to determine both the details of this registry program and to identify the appropriate quantities of marijuana. Patients could delegate the cultivation of marijuana to cooperatives, which, again, would be defined and regulated by the state. How much money could be made in the marijuana trade? The compensation must be "reasonable," says the legislation.Vasconcellos' bill wrongly seeks to permit public smoking of medicinal marijuana just about everywhere cigarettes can be legally smoked. The few exceptions include near a school, in a vehicle or on a school bus. The bill allows local governments to adopt "consistent" laws. Does this prohibit further restrictions at a local level? Most Californians who voted for this proposition surely assumed that seriously ill people who smoke marijuana would do so discreetly. Any definition to the contrary unnecessarily runs the risk of a backlash.Despite this flaw and many unanswered questions, the approach by this task force represents a welcome change of direction by Lockyer. Unlike his predecessor, Lockyer seeks to accommodate the will of the voters to the extent legally feasible. This accommodation is the moderate stance that Davis has taken with respect to followup policies for Propositions 187 (benefits for illegal immigrants) and 209 (banning race-based affirmative action programs). Curiously, he has threatened to veto SB 848. Why the double standard? The governor shouldn't punt on pot. He should lead.Published July 16, 1999Newshawk: Jean CowsertCopyright © The Sacramento Beehttp://www.sacbee.com/voices/news/voices02_19990716.htmlDemocrats Accuse Davis Of Usurping Their Authority-7/15 http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread2052.shtmlBreaking News: SB Bill 848 May Be Dead-7/14http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread2045.shtmlDavis Moves Away From OK of Card For Marijuana Use-7/14http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread2041.shtml
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on July 16, 1999 at 22:23:43 PT:
Thanks For Your Comment!
jdd,I see both sides in this situation. We are a society built upen a sense of law and order. I remember when the hippie movement was going so well and all there was was peace, love and kindness. It was doing fine and gaining acceptance which was shown with the original Woodstock, then a few bad apples, just like now a days, had to go and put a stain on it all and it turned around and we all know the rest of the story. As long as people don't keep themselves in check we will have laws made to try to make that happen. Prop 215 should be self regulated but I hope you also see the problems that could happen from historys point of view.Peace, FoM!
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Comment #1 posted by jdd on July 16, 1999 at 20:42:49 PT
Too touchy for Davis?
Can someone tell me what is wrong with Prop. 215 that we have to ammend it? What agravates me is that I can take any drug prescribed by my physician any time and any place I choose, so long as it's in conformance with his prescription. Prop. 215 sought to do the same thing. The only difference is that politicians think that they need to pander to those who think that marijuana is evil, so that they look like they are still 'tough on crime'. If marijuana has been approved by the people of California as a viable prescribed drug, then it should be treated as such, and not have extra stipulations put on it that other prescriptions drugs do not, just to appease those 'moralists' who think it's wrong. Marijuana is an herb, and actually, should be just as available as any other herb. It doesn't have to be smoked (which is what gives it it's negative image). It can be made into a tea, eaten, etc., just like any other herbal concoction. Let's don't get the state government involved in this just because we think it might expedite the process of implementation. We need to stick with what the people (the REAL government) voted to do. Thanks
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