cannabisnews.com: SF Commission Denies Permit for Wharf Pot Club










   SF Commission Denies Permit for Wharf Pot Club

Posted by CN Staff on July 13, 2006 at 21:13:22 PT
By Robert Selna, Chronicle Staff Writer 
Source: San Francisco Chronicle 

San Francisco -- A pot club seeking to set up shop near Fisherman's Wharf was denied a permit by the San Francisco Planning Commission in a 4-2 vote Thursday night. The Green Cross was the first medical marijuana outlet in San Francisco to undergo the city's new permit process, which was approved by the Board of Supervisors last year in an effort to more tightly regulate medical pot sales. Currently, 20 to 30 marijuana clubs operate in the city, planning officials say. All will need to submit applications by next June to continue operations.
The cannabis club faced strong opposition from neighbors and community groups at Thursday's commission meeting. Opponents filled a City Hall hearing room to capacity and said they were concerned that a medical marijuana business situated at 2701 Leavenworth St. -- where the Wharf's bustling tourist trade meets residential Russian Hill -- would impair the quality of life in their neighborhood. "The nature of pot clubs right now brings an element that's not appropriate for this neighborhood," Ryan Chamberlin, a nearby resident, said before the meeting. "There's myriad quality-of-life crimes associated with these clubs. ... This is a family neighborhood -- it's not right for such an adult-oriented and, to a great degree, counter-culture environment." Commissioners seemed swayed by the public outcry.  Snipped:Complete Article: http://tinyurl.com/qck5qSource: San Francisco Chronicle (CA)Author: Robert Selna, Chronicle Staff WriterPublished: Thursday, July 13, 2006Copyright: 2006 Hearst Communications Inc.Contact: letters sfchronicle.comWebsite: http://www.sfgate.com/chronicle/Related Articles & Web Site:The Green Crosshttp://thegreencross.org Fisherman's Wharf Shops Fume Over Pot Clubhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21993.shtmlMedical Pot Club Tests San Francisco Lawhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21991.shtmlFisherman's Wharf Bid Tests New Pot Club Laws http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21978.shtml

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Comment #81 posted by afterburner on July 16, 2006 at 00:26:03 PT
Hope #65, BGreen #77, whig #78
"We're just bunnies"Your description reminds me of one of my favorite animated movies, Watership Down. It's not really a kids' movie, maybe the older ones. If you haven't seen it yet, I like it for the prophecies, the necessary conflict (caution: violence), the haunting music, the beautiful scenes of nature, and the hopeful adventure and intrigue.BGreen, in the style of Haarlem: The Hamilton Compassion Society sometimes gives medical cannabis to patient members who need it and are too poor to buy it.whig, Health Canada has authorized medical cannabis growers for the few medical cannabis patient exemptees. This was a baby step in the direction you are advocating. However, rumor has it that they soon plan to eliminate patient-growing and patient designated growers in favor of a centralized supply. What do you bet it will be Sativex? Why offer an affordable method when an expensive one will do? Why not put increased pressure on medical insurance systems, public and private. Faugh! 
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Comment #80 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 20:26:38 PT
Whig
Actually, Whig. What you are describing sounds to me like great fun for a young couple. It really does. You will likely always remember this couple of weeks as a fine and wonderful adventure in your lives.About cannabis...you're right. We all should be free to grow and use and share it. It's a plant. Some people will be able to grow a finer plant. We should have shows and prizes for the best homegrown. It shouldn't be as big a deal as it is. But looking at it from where we actually are and what we are fighting for and against in this messed up country, it's like we have a great giant sore right on the end of our collective nose. The antis keep it bloody and raw and we are trying to heal it. I wish we were free and we could do it like we know would be best...but the fact is...we have to use what little bit of freedom we have left to fight the destroyers. It would be nice if they just flat didn't exist...but....they exist. If prohibitionists and assinine people didn't exist...Charity, Ashley, Xavier, Esequiel, and Alberto would likely still be alive. They might have to choose for themselves whether they used cannabis...but they would still be alive and free to make that choice...and many others. What have we lost? If we knew what might have been, we'd likely be more devastated than we already are. The grief might, of necessity and knowledge, be even deeper than it is...and it is a terrible grief just knowing what we know.What have we gained? Not one damn thing.
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Comment #79 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 20:03:06 PT
The Netherlands
If we had that freedom...we wouldn't be having to figure out a way for the medical needs people to have a place to get their medicine and it not being shut down by the government every other week.When I was in school and taught about how free and privileged I was to be living in this country...I believed it. I would never have thought that my country would someday put me, an American citizen, in a situation where I would envy the freedom and liberty enjoyed by the citizens of another country. I was told we were the best. I was lied, too. I feel betrayed and disappointed.The government runs our lives. Literally. They have rules for every single aspect of our lives. I despise what they have created in their fear and greed and desire to be my master.These chains chafe me. They weigh heavily on my soul and body and mind. 
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Comment #78 posted by whig on July 15, 2006 at 19:52:36 PT
Hope
I'm still getting situated here and we're still without our furniture except for a chair we bought today and an inflatable bed. Seriously. It will be another two weeks before we have the rest of our stuff, though we went looking at sofas and kitchen tables and all today and will probably have more furniture tomorrow because we didn't ship all of our old stuff and need to replace some things anyhow.So anyhow in the meantime I haven't really had time to meet people here or do much beyond get our own apartment together. If I seem too serious and insufficiently relaxed, I'm also cannabis-deprived for the time being.I really have to get a lot of things worked out here. I need to get new medical insurance established. We have to get our phone hooked up (still relying on my cell phone right now). Lots of things, and no time yet to pursue much socially.So with that having been said please don't be offended if we disagree sometimes, and don't ever be sorry for expressing your opinion. Maybe we will agree if we understand what one another is thinking and maybe not, but we will never know unless we express our point of view in the first place. So please don't hold back.On making medical marijuana more of a professional business, I guess my perspective is that even though I know that cannabis is commercial for some people, whether that is recreational or medical, I don't care much at all about that and I frankly don't want cannabis to be commercial at all. I understand the necessity, and I am not saying that people who are trying to help others should not have a way to support their ability to continue doing so. It just shouldn't have to be that way. People should be able to just grow their own or have a friend grow it for them, and it should be as close to free as possible.So that colors how I see the issue a good deal, and I do think that professionalizing medical marijuana is to endorse the business of cannabis, where I'd just as soon have things be relaxed and comfortable and people encouraged to find non-commercial sources as much as possible. I don't want to endorse it as a business, except as a necessary and temporary state of affairs while it is impossible for people to get help any other way. I hope that makes sense.
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Comment #77 posted by BGreen on July 15, 2006 at 14:35:49 PT
Don't be sorry, Hope.
Debate is good. We can discuss matters in a friendly, open-minded way here without it being inappropriate or somebody getting mad.I have my beliefs, and I always try to explain WHY I feel a certain way, instead of just saying how I feel.Debate is something that has been denied us by the pro-jail crowd because debate requires them to explain why they believe the way they do. They just want to treat us like babies and have us accept their words without explanation or questioning.I talked at length with Nol van Schaik, owner of three coffeeshops in Haarlem, about the medical cannabis business. Nol supplies medical cannabis to a lot of patients, including those well enough to make it into one of his shops as well as nursing home patients!I was shocked when he mentioned supplying nursing homes because that is totally out of sorts with the good ol' US of A. Nol said the nurses are absolutely supportive because they can see the benefits to the patients first hand, most notably is the patients ability to get a good night's sleep.You see, Hope, there wouldn't even be a medical cannabis movement without cats like Nol van Schaik, and if the medical establishment in the Netherlands can accept and embrace a recreational coffeeshop as a medical cannabis supplier then so should the US medical establishment.Remember the Harvest Party I went to back in Nov. 2004? Our five euro entrance fees went into a fund to throw a similar party for all of the medical cannabis patients for free. When was the last time your local pharmacy did that for their patients?I'm completely referencing the Netherlands in my views about coffeeshops and compassion clubs, so I'm sure this is a completely foreign concept if you've never experienced the freedom and thoughtfulness of the Netherlands.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #76 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 13:38:53 PT
Thanks, Lombar
I appreciate it. Just practiced and accomplished it.This is as awkward as the moon boots I was wearing a bit a go to show the children I could do it. Not nearly as much fun as I thought it would be. 
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Comment #75 posted by lombar on July 15, 2006 at 13:19:55 PT
Keys
If you are on a windows box, ctrl-c is copy and shift-insert is paste. (think its the same in linux)Mac its apple key - c to copy
apple key - v to pasteI agree that if recreational usage was 'legal' it would neatly solve the medical usage problem however the opposite is not necessarily true. Morphine is accepted for 'medical use' but I can't just ask my doctor for 20 mg for the weekend party...It is even more basic than the use of the plant, it is the state blocking the people from benefiting from agriculture to protect profits of existing business choking innovation and keeping the oil barons ruling with their guns bombs, dogs and LIES. Who usurps our right to grow the useful plant in our garden? They lie, kill and imprison YET still use shame so effectively to silence the people.
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Comment #74 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 13:13:49 PT
One more thing.
Professional nurses used to have to wear starched nurses caps, dresses, white shoes and white stockings. There was probably a whole lot of conflict about "professionalism" back when that changed.Pediatricians also noticed some time ago...that the white lab coat Doctor suit could be a sign for alarm for children and going to more casual colorful clothing helped the children to not be afraid...even if it might have caused some old codgers to be concerned about "professionalism".You gotta do what you gotta do. If it's hard to get used to...just do it.
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Comment #73 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 13:07:49 PT
Uh oh
That last post to Whig isn't even in the right thread, apparently.Guess if I can't pay enough attention to my commenting...I'd best just be quiet.Love you, guys.
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Comment #72 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 13:02:49 PT
If my spelling, punctuation, and structure
seems even worse than usual...it's because I'm on a strange computer...a laptop without a mouse...which I'm used to. I don't know how to copy and paste to word or anything for checking it...not that I always do.Got a house full of children and dogs, which are a lot more trouble than the children...announcing a pressing need to go outside, usually when I'm the busiest.Everybody's happy and content for the moment...and I can't count on more than a moment. About the professional and amateur business...I don't mean to be sounding short tempered and blunt...I'm just pressed for a chance to post and I've been losing my posts some, too. I may not be reading you guys posts carefully enough before I respond. I'm just dang lucky to get to read or respond at all.I'm so glad you are there safe and sound, Whig. I want to hear about what you think about where you are so far.Thinking about "Ethel" from the other day and Whig being in Berkley...I wouldn't be surprised to know that somehow Whig got turned into a protesting...and like Ethel's husband did when he saw Ethel streaking and was shouting, "Is that you, Ehtel?!"....maybe we'll be seeing our Whig marching with a sign and we'll be wondering, "Is that you, Whig?":0)I wish I hadn't "stepped in" such a controversial issue as "appearences". Doing the famous "Barnyard Shuffle"....wish I hadn't stepped in it.It's a subject worthy of thoughtful discussion...and I just don't have much time to be thoughtful about it. Sorry.
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Comment #71 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 12:39:03 PT
Whig
I'm not talking about "professionalizing" cannabis or the culture or the people or the enjoyment of it at all.If we have to seperate medical and recreational...then the medical should be professionalized...but never, ever the fun of it.I'd love to enjoy a cannabis, cafe, restaurant, coffee shop, club. I'd love it. A young man from Friesland who had owned and operated a coffee shop there, visited, a few years ago for over a week. We had a really cool time.I wish we could have got recreational legalized first, then there wouldn't be all this conflict.If we have to do this medical thing to assure that medical patients don't get arrested, then so be it. The thing is, we've always enjoyed cannabis has a good thing and a fun thing. It's about the coolest thing to consume that God put on this earth. I love it. I like it. I think people who are prejudiced against it seem to have no sense at all. They act like idiot, mindless, meat puppets because they are totally saturated with the false propaganda that has been foisted on the public for decades. Medical would be covered if recreational was legal. Nothing to prove...just be. But we've gone up this medical road or fallen into this medical pit....however you see it...and I'm just trying to come up with ideas about how to insure that the medical supply business is respected. I'm just saying if your business is about medical and you have trouble with people claiming it's just recreational...it's best to be wearing your professional "hat".I know there is serious medical value to the use of the plant. There is a good reason to be "professional" instead of "amateur" if you are going to set up a storefront and call it a business.When I sold floor coverings...people wanted my professional advice and if I didn't know anything about it, I needed to be in another "business" that I did know something about.Professional restauranteers need to know how to run whatever kind of restaurant they are running if they don't want to fail.Casual business is cool. I offered coffee and soda to my customers. It was casual....but they were sure they were in a carpet and other floorcovering store, no doubt.I'm not saying professionalize cannabis use at all. I just suggested that if we are going to be saying that a certain business is about medical use...and is being accused of being about recreational...we should analyze what we are doing and see if matters can be improved. That's absolutely all.I say legalize it across the board for adults. If someone under eighteen needs to be able to get the help that can be in the herb...then a doctor could write a special need excuse or something...so that an adult who purchased it for him would not have to be persecuted for it.I DON'T MEAN PROFESSIONALIZE CANNABIS USE! Certainly not...no more than I want to "professionalize" beer drinking. I'm just talking about it MIGHT be a good idea to make it clearer what sort of business one was operating. Maybe I'm wrong though. Maybe it's not a good idea. I'm just thinking out loud and I sure don't know anything about running a cannabis dispensary. I'm just wondering about how to "disarm" those that say there is no medical use and it's all recreational.Just wondering...what if, this or that...pertaining purely to medical.Please don't misunderstand me. I knew this would happen if I even mentioned. I'm sorry I did.
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Comment #70 posted by Toker00 on July 15, 2006 at 12:13:45 PT
afterburner
I understand. The modern "Medical Ritual" has always given me pause when I needed to seek treatment. Honestly, I think the fear, if that is what it is, of going to a "medical" facility has to do with movies I have seen in my life that depict horror or Frankenstienish activities in these facilities. Scenes of sick people with all sorts of wires and tubes and stuff hooked up to them. Gangsters sneaking in and "silencing" a patient by shooting something in his feeding tube. Most of my family members who have died in medical facilities looked so frail around all the monitors, and such. I guess I shouldn't blame the "ritual" for the sadness of death, but it would be great to have warmer equipment and uniforms. You know, a more personal touch? Toke. 
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Comment #69 posted by FoM on July 15, 2006 at 09:42:16 PT
Just a Note
Since this is an active thread I thought I should mention this here. We will be turning over to 22,000 articles very soon. I e-mailed Matt last Sunday and hopefully what causes the site to crash has been fixed before it happens. If it does go down the comment secion will work so we can keep in contact if it happens. Hopefully it will turn over smoothly. I hope everyone is having a great weekend.
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Comment #68 posted by FoM on July 15, 2006 at 09:12:00 PT
Ekim
One of these days I would really like to meet Don. I have been to where he has or had the Ohio Hempery. That was back in the late 90s though. I thought he moved to Canada.
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Comment #67 posted by ekim on July 15, 2006 at 08:55:49 PT
what a caring person-Don is. good people in ohio:)
, 
Subject: Legal fallout from this year's gatheringDon E Wirtshafter wrote: > Thank you everyone for helping make 2006 such a safe and spiritual
 > event.
 >
 > I offer to help anyone who received a gathering ticket through the
 > legal morass. I spent six days in court helping hundreds of people
 > through the complex legal process. I got myself admitted into the
 > local bar and was therefore able to appear in the Kangaroo Court to
 > conduct trials. On the day of my admittance, I represented one sister
 > who got a gathering ticket on her honeymoon. Tim Lynn, the Incident
 > Commander, testified against her saying that the Rainbows were a group
 > and that the Forest Service determined the gathering to be illegal. I
 > got to cross examine him for over an hour about this testimony. My
 > reward was that I and Summerbreeze, my volunteer legal assistant,
 > received our own gathering tickets as we drove the client back into
 > camp. There is no better way to motivate me to fight this government
 > bullshit.
 >
 > Our heroes who fought their tickets and were found guilty need to know
 > that there is still probably time to appeal their cases. The law
 > gives you only ten days from the filing of the conviction, but most of
 > these convictions were not filed until Monday, July 10th, when the
 > clerk took the paperwork back to the court in Denver. So the ten days
 > starts from that time. If you have an appealable case, please, please
 > contact me ASAP.  The formwork is easy and we can do it on the
 > phone. I will fax and mail it into the court for you. I can help you
 > file the needed paperwork and can help you hook up with an attorney.
 > Please call ASAP. Call collect if you have to.
 >
 > I am especially interested in helping those who pled not guilty to
 > gathering tickets (ìuse and occupancy of a National Forest without a
 > permit to do soî), little shit marijuana busts and especially those
 > who were arrested simply because they could not produce their ID in
 > the woods. Some generous family supporters have donated enough funds
 > that we are able to offer attorney help in the right cases. All the
 > action is happening in Denver. We have several Denver-based attorneys
 > willing to help, which means you may be able to fight your ticket
 > without ever having to go to Denver. Again, contact me.
 >
 > The third category of people who need help are those who ignored their
 > tickets and did not show up in court. My estimate is that there are
 > over 200 of you. If any of you want help getting through these
 > tickets, let me know. I hate the thought of 200 of my friends and
 > family walking around with these time bomb warrants. A simple traffic
 > stop can turn into months of hell if you have one of these hanging
 > over you.
 >
 > Mostly I need your stories. Thousands of you witnessed abusive police
 > tactics at the gathering. These tactics get more outrageous every
 > year. They get away with testing their fascist technologies on us
 > because we donít fight back. The way we fight back is to write it all
 > down and make the proper complaints to the Dept. of Agriculture and to
 > Congress. As one old Colonel once implored me: ìtake names and kick
 > ass.î If we had good personal accounts of the LEO abuses, we could
 > take them down with much more efficiency than they are using to take
 > us down. So several of us are starting a new website intended to
 > document the intensity of the police pressure on the gathering and how
 > it affected us as individuals.  You will hear about this soon, but in
 > the meantime, please write down your stories while they are fresh in
 > your minds. Photographs are needed as well. If you have any good
 > photographs of the roadblocks, police encounters or such, please email
 > them to me. I will pay the actual cost of copying any video tapes or
 > non-digital photographs that people may have.
 >
 > I plan to write a lot more about my unique perspective of the
 > gathering, but first I wanted to put out these important
 > announcements. Please spread the word on this to your individual
 > lists and to friends whom you think may be affected.
 >
 > Don E Wirtshafter
 >
 > don hempery.com
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Comment #66 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 08:51:38 PT
Afterburner 64
Right on!
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Comment #65 posted by Hope on July 15, 2006 at 08:38:29 PT
Celaya! Lol!
Oh my! Sorry! Once again...exotic sounding names don't have to be women, obviously.I was very doubtful about mentioning how I feel that there be no doubt about the seriousness of our "medical presentation".You guys are great. I was quite doubtful about trying to say what I was thinking about as defense against their disrespect of us. Our particular "culture" was very instrumental in the birth and success of the Health Food industry. Oh...do I remember the mocking and berating I took for being in the forefront of the Health Food movement. Now it's important to everyone. It was new territory and we forged paths into superhighways. We will do it again for the sake of the blessed plant and the people who need it or want it.Remember when they accused Health Food stores of practicing medicine without a license.We're right this time,too.It's just the hardest being the one that has to be the first to push through on any new or better endeavor. Besides the brush and woods we have to cut through...there's a damned anti hiding behind every tree and loaded for "Bear". We're just bunnies...but those bear loads can take us out too if we aren't quick and alert and ready to move in the best direction to survive.This is very difficult...what we are doing. It's uncharted territory. We've got to figure out where we are going in a trackless wilderness. Todays Medical Marijuana people are truly pioneers in our time.There were no mistakes or successes to learn from in the past. We just have to keep our eyes open and be alert for any clue that we are going in the right direction or if we might have taken a wrong turn.We're sort of charting our progress by the stars and watching very carefully where we step. There's bound to be uncharted pitfalls on any uncharted path.
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Comment #64 posted by afterburner on July 15, 2006 at 07:32:18 PT
Toker00
"The medical field is ninety-percent BS." In other words, ritual. The comforting rituals and sterile setting of the doctor's office/hospital are meant to establish the authority of the doctor and the confidence of the patient, a power-based relationship. Aboriginal healers or medicine people also had ritual actions and chants to establish a perception of their healing abilities. We need to follow Dr. Andrew Weil's inspired notion of Integrative Medicine, both of both worlds, meet the patient where sHe lives.Cannabis is not a magic bullet, like the so-called wonder drugs. It is more organic and longer acting. The prospective patients need to be informed of this, and many doctors are ignorant (due to lack of herbal training) or afraid of malpractice suits. We need to continue to lead and to build bridges to the traditional Western medical community.
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Comment #63 posted by afterburner on July 15, 2006 at 07:09:03 PT
Thank You, Hope...
...for starting this discussion/debate. We are building a "roadmap" for cannabis peace. With all our give and take, point-counterpoint. Others are lurking, reading what we say and taking notes. Onward and Further!Respect.
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Comment #62 posted by FoM on July 15, 2006 at 06:58:34 PT
Health Food Store
I compare a medical marijuana dispensary to a health food store. I have been in a really great health food store back in Pa years ago. I could very easily see Cannabis being sold along with other natural medicinal herbs. Heck herbs are herbs. 
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Comment #61 posted by Toker00 on July 15, 2006 at 06:55:06 PT
Dispensary
A Medical Cannabis dispensary is NOT a Pharmacy. It doesn't dispense Pharmaceutical drugs. There are NO Prescriptions, NO Physicians, NO Nurses, NO paper covered cold tables to lie down on, and NO Pharmacist. A Medical Cannabis dispensary is a dispenser of Compassion, Love, Mercy, Healing, Natural Treatment and Cures. It is the exact OPPOSITE of a Pharmacy/Doctor's office. Medicine is serious business, but not as serious as they would have us think. The medical field is ninety-percent BS. Yes, things need to be sterile. Yes, stainless steal is the easiest surface to disinfect. Yes, white is the easiest color to SEE dirt or contamination on. But the starkness of the uniforms and the starkness of the mentality of pharma-corps control and manipulation is Stifling and Smothering. And don't we want to change more than just the perception of Cannabis as Medicine? Isn't it about finding comfort, not conformity? Isn't it about breaking the Image of medicine being so COLD and STERILE? I would much rather be treated by my wife in the comfort of my home, with all it's worldly dirt, than face the possibility of obtaining some fatal infection from the "sterile" facility I came to for treatment. Sterility, Cold Steel, Hard Surfaces are a mind control thingy. They don't want you to LIKE being treated, they want you to see it as a COLD, HARD, CONTROLLED, NECCESSITY! Just take your Pharm-poisons, and don't ask questions.Hope, I am not arguing with your point. You made an unequivocally excellent point. I do, however, have an issue with all the Cold, Hard, images of medicine. Medicine is a wonderful thing. It should look inviting and warm, not cold and hard. That's really all I'm saying.That, and ALRIGHT WHIG! The transplanted California Pot Head! I say that with Love in my heart, bro. I'm glad you had a safe move, and I know you are glad to have it behind you now. Have fun meeting your new neighbors!Wage peace on war. END CANNABIS PRHIBITION NOW!   
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Comment #60 posted by afterburner on July 15, 2006 at 06:44:54 PT
Hope: Food for Thought
"Coffee Shops, Cannabis Cafes and all 
are completely different than a medical dispensary."Not all that different, yet. Someone pointed out that the pharmaceutical approach was tried in The Netherlands with minimal success. Most medical cannabis patients prefer the selection available at cannabis cafes.In Canada I know of a cannabis cafe that also houses a compassion club (that is medical dispensery). The Up In Smoke Cannabis Cafe has a secure locked area in the back for members only, the Hamilton Compassion Society. One of the staff is in charge of the Compassion Society and the owner of the cafe manages the Cannabis Cafe. This is a pragmatic solution in Canada where the government continues to be lukewarm in its support for medical cannabis. A business must be financially viable in order to survive. 
Another Toronto activist owns a hemp store, Toronto Hemp Company ( http://www.torontohemp.com/ ), a cannabis cafe, Kindred Cafe ( http://www.kindredcafe.com/ ), and is one of the original founders of the Toronto Compassion Centre ( http://torontocompassioncentre.org/ ). People that feel strongly about our issue do not always limit themselves to one area of the struggle. He is in favor of non-confrontational activism. He was also the chief organizer and moderator of Green Truth - the Green Tide Shadow Summit 2004. "Canadians for Safe Access presents: 
Green Truth - the Green Tide Shadow Summit 2004 (March 4)
Voices of Reason - Exploring Alternatives to the Drug War"
http://www.greentide.ca/summary.htm
"The Summit was a smashing success, very valuable networking, information sharing, strategizing and countering of the OACP propaganda. "Thank you all for your help and support and a job incredibly well done. We really are raising the bar, and letting the world's ignoramuses know that we'll play their game (and beat them at it) if that's what it takes."Details: Switch Off Grow-Ops
http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/18/thread18474.shtmlThere is a place for medical cannabis dispenseries that cater to a more traditional clientele, but there is no reason for them all to be the same. California is a special case as the originator of the medical cannabis reform movement. They are far ahead of most areas of the world in medical cannabis access and public acceptance of medical cannabis, but even they have to fight the Feds and the NIMBY backlash of County Supervisors, rogue LEOs, city regulations, and prohibitionist businesspeople and residents.
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Comment #59 posted by Truth on July 14, 2006 at 23:18:55 PT
Whig
Welcome home
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Comment #58 posted by Celaya on July 14, 2006 at 23:17:26 PT
Hope
Hope I don't disappoint you, but I'm a guy too 8^)Celaya is nice town in Mexico.
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Comment #57 posted by Celaya on July 14, 2006 at 23:13:34 PT
FoM
"help our young people and our world"Yep.
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Comment #56 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 23:12:48 PT
Celaya!
Celaya! I knew I was forgetting one of our women the other day. Celaya! Of course.Once, I thought Sukoi might be a woman. But I found out he is a guy and the name has to do with airplanes!
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Comment #55 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 23:05:08 PT
Casual and Serious
I feel uneasy about people who are in a very serious business who don't seem to be professional or business like when they are working in that setting. If they don't look and sound like they know what they're doing...there's a really good chance that they don't.It's fine for the snow cone man to let it all hang out. When it's about medicine it's serious...and it shouldn't appear to be about a lifestyle or culture.Recreational is a completely different animal than this medical situation. It's not about having fun or being cool or expanding our minds. It's medicine and it's serious and we should go out of our way not to give any impression that it might not be.Meanwhile...I'm all for recreational...mind expanding...having fun and feeling good and well. I hope it doesn't ever have to be serious for me...but obviously it's cancer and heart attack serious when it comes to medical.We want to help people and we don't want to be misunderstood if we can help it.
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Comment #54 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 22:52:24 PT
Coffee Shops, Cannabis Cafes and all
are completely different than a medical dispensary.Nobody should have to change who they are...by no means. It's about business acumen. You shouldn't have to wear your work clothes all the time. We want medical cannabis to be available to sick people who need it...whoever they are. It's about being sharp and on the ball for what you are trying to do. The work and the product, of course, is what it is all about...it's what REALLY matters...but if there is no appropriate appeal and appearence...one won't ever get to present the quality of the actual work or product. If the appeal or appearence is wrong...it won't ever get that far.If we appear to be appealing to the recreational user, it is only natural that people would think it was really about recreational use and not medicinal.That's what I've been trying to say.I don't want any people to change who they actually are. But if they are going to be in business or service...they need to be as wise and sharp and knowledgeable as they can be about it.You don't want to appear to be about private recreational use or social use if it's about medicine. If it really is about medicine...it should be obviously not about recreational use.A head shop, a cafe, or a coffe house...should appeal to the recreational user. A cafe shouldn't look like a pharmacy and a pharmacy that looks like a cafe or lounge isn't the brightest idea...I think.If we appear to be trying to appeal to the recreational user, like a headshop or cafe or coffee shop would be, then people will naturally be led to believe it is about recreational use and not medical.I love my hippie look and clothes...even if I'm not a real hippie...it's really me and I'd feel like not me...if I lost it. But if I'm going to work as a life guard...I put on my swimsuit. If I'm going to be judged...and I would be...on my appearence or presentation ...as well as the quality of my work...it would be in my better interest if I tried to appear as competent and capable as possible for whatever task is at hand. If I'm mucking out stalls, I want to be prepared for that...clothing and tool wise. We are being watched very carefully. We are being accused of being about recreational use...even if it's not. Why play right into our enemies' hands?If you don't want the job and don't want to do the best you possibly can...don't take it.
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Comment #53 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 22:08:51 PT

Celaya
I'm glad you appreciate female input. Women are very concerned about their family and their children. They want their children to be given a good world. A woman doesn't need to get angry but needs to see good things coming out of our tax dollars. It says to me help our young people and our world and the children will have a better place. When we are gone we won't have to worry then.
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Comment #52 posted by Celaya on July 14, 2006 at 21:57:36 PT

FoM
Good points. Shows how much we need feminine input in these oh-so-angry, testosterone-driven times!
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Comment #51 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 21:49:37 PT

Celaya
Yes, I agree that would be good. I like this new ad because it would be understood by women. I like when that flow of emotion comes out of an ad. It doesn't get you angry it makes you think how much better our tax dollars can be spent.
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Comment #50 posted by Celaya on July 14, 2006 at 21:45:54 PT

FoM
Yes, "Imagine" is tremendous. But I'm sure the best is yet to come. Imagine when someone finally makes an effective video to communicate the REAL reasons the forces of marijuana prohibition do what they do!Greed, power, greed, control, greed, money, and greed! 8^)
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Comment #49 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 21:30:35 PT

BGreen
I believe that is true. We are social creatures.
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Comment #48 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 21:25:08 PT

Celaya
That was the best ad they ever did in my opinion. Thank You. Yes Imagine!http://www.changetheclimate.org/tv/imagine.html
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Comment #47 posted by afterburner on July 14, 2006 at 21:16:47 PT

Hope #22 & ekim #37
Hope, Your question/proposal and the ensuing discussion reminds my of a similar discussion at Cannabis Culture Forums regarding how a cannabis cafe should look and act. The sparks flew and some common ground was discovered. One general conclusion was that there is room for hardcore in-your-face activist cannabis cafes for the working man and woman and for laid-back upscale cannabis cafes with more subtle activism for the professionals. "Different strokes for different folks." We are not all the same even though we love the blessed herb for one or more reasons. The goals are the same: a public meeting place for those who celebrate cannabis and its medical social and spiritual values, public acceptance of cannabis culture, a viable business, outreach to medical patients and to the community at-large, and a focal point for continued personal and social growth and activism. ekim, that's great news. We are seeing the beginning of the oh-so-necessary human interest stories that put a human face on our issue. We need the visual and aural touch to contact the heart of America, to share our concerns. We are the robins of spring, the canaries in a coal mine, the harbingers, forerunners, scouts, guides, and prophets, but we need to reach John and Jane Q. Public in order to achieve critical mass and change these heartless laws. Don't be afraid, America. We are your brothers and sisters, your fathers and mothers, your grandparents, your children, and we are alright, thanks to the blessings of cannabis. We love you.
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Comment #46 posted by Celaya on July 14, 2006 at 21:15:26 PT

Wayne
Many groups ARE working to improve marijuana's image - which is only bad because of the many decades of demonization, of course.SAFER utilizes the comparison to alcohol to great advantage.http://www.saferchoice.org/Change The Climate has the normalization of marijuana consumption as their primary goal. Check out CTC's new video, "Imagine." 
Change The Climate
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Comment #45 posted by Celaya on July 14, 2006 at 21:03:40 PT

A More Balanced View Of The Wharf Conflict
(Excerpt from the San Jose Mercury News)Will it add to the carnival atmosphere at Fisherman's Wharf? 
Hardly, says Green Cross owner Kevin Reed. ``There are 30 different bars and different restaurants within two blocks of here,'' he said. 
He pointed out that he must comply with dozens of regulations, including hiring security guards and controlling odor emissions, before he can open on Leavenworth Street just down the block from the Cannery, a century-old building with stores, restaurants and bars. 
``We are playing by the rules,'' said Reed, 32, whose earlier marijuana dispensary on the edge of Noe Valley was closed in a compromise with city officials after San Francisco clamped down on pot clubs. 
Wharf battles are not new. In-N-Out Burger ticked off the fishmongers at its opening. The addition of a Hooters restaurant was a frontal assault to traditionalists. 
Now, the dispensary debate comes as local crab and salmon fishermen are under siege and cannot afford to berth their picturesque floating crafts. The city is threatening to tear down a century-old pier. And tourism, while rebounding, has not reached pre-Sept. 11 levels, dispensary opponents say. 
One merchant complained that bringing a pot club to the neighborhood is akin to the headaches of ``a big-box retailer or fast-food drive-in.'' 
Supporters of the Green Cross laugh. ``It's metro-chic,'' said Kathleen Prevost, a medicinal marijuana user who dropped by Wednesday to check out the proposed new digs. ``It's in Amsterdam, in Paris.'' Reed said he is not targeting tourists. In fact, the only customers who will be allowed through the fortified front door must carry state or city-issued medicinal marijuana cards, which require a doctor's written permission. There will be a one-ounce per customer limit. 
And no marijuana smoking will be allowed on or near the premises. 
But perhaps the biggest only-in-San Francisco irony is that the Cannery, the pot club's biggest opponent, has served as the temporary home to a museum that celebrates one of San Francisco's original joint-toting countercultures -- the Beat Generation. 
SJMN On Fisherman's Wharf Controversy
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Comment #44 posted by whig on July 14, 2006 at 19:29:21 PT

Hope & BGreen
I have to agree with BGreen on this one, and I don't think we should try to "professionalize" our image for the sake of making cannabis a more "socially acceptable" medicine. I think cannabis should be legal as medicine, absolutely and positively but we should not have to pretend to be pharmacists to use it or to help people. In fact, if we have to lie to win, we will certainly lose.I don't say this to flame you Hope, it's just something about how I feel and what I want to say about what we believe. I don't want to conceal who we are or what we are about. I don't want to pretend to be something other than I am. I'm frankly tired of having to do that. I know we are still in too much danger to be completely open, even here in the liberal San Francisco Bay Area. But the goal should be for us to come out of our closet, as the gays have come out of theirs.Does this seem immature or too careless? Why should a picture of Bob Marley be incriminating? He was a great and good man, and a fine musician, we should be proud of his legacy. He did nothing shameful in his life that we should conceal, least of all by using cannabis.Why should people have to be helped in sterile, hospital-like environments, tended by humorless nurses in strict uniforms who poke and prod and make people as uncomfortable as possible? Why should we not take joy in helping one another and being helped and in having the experience of perceiving and understanding our common humanity and divinity?Why should even our religion be a secret?
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Comment #43 posted by BGreen on July 14, 2006 at 19:29:17 PT

Hey, whig!
Glad you made your move safely.FoM, I just heard a story on my local news that said a study showed people who lived alone and lacked an active social life had a much higher risk of disease and dying as those who lived with a partner.How many sick people live by themselves and need someplace to go to socialize?What a coincidence in time this was when I had just posted my previous post.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #42 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 19:19:15 PT

BGreen
I understand what you are saying.
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Comment #41 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 19:16:44 PT

Whig
It's great to hear from you already. I think that you will know what is right. 
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Comment #40 posted by BGreen on July 14, 2006 at 19:14:31 PT

It's not the clubs that they hate
It's the people who use cannabis that they consider the "undesirable element."They tried prescription cannabis in the Netherlands, but the patients almost unanimously like purchasing at the coffeeshops better. There's more of a selection (just like the 55 varieties that were to be offered at the Fisherman's Wharf club,) some coffeeshops offered medical cannabis at half the cost as the general public pays, but the main reason is the patients LIKE the laid-back atmosphere of the coffeeshops. That's who we are and we shouldn't be ashamed of it.People like socializing, and I can see how that would be therapeutic to the sick.They hate the cannabis plant and it's partakers, so it doesn't really matter how you dress it up to them.If they don't care about the suffering of the sick, why do we think they care about aesthetics?The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #39 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 19:04:56 PT

Ekim
Thank you. Here is a trailer.http://www.aclu.tv/episodes/drugwars
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Comment #38 posted by whig on July 14, 2006 at 19:03:11 PT

Hey Y'all
I'm here in Cal. And I have internet already at our new home.San Francisco is a short ride from me now, and I'm going to want to help in ways that are constructive and non-confrontational. Back east, there wasn't much I could do or say publicly because the culture was not ready to accept us and there was no support system for me to do anything. Here, I think it is otherwise.I hope to find out how to be effective, consistent with the approach of helping and educating without conflict or provocation.Do you think our people are ready to have the religious case for Cannabis in public? Or will MMJ activists find this a hindrance to their efforts? I'd like to find out, and at the very least, make this case privately to everyone we can in our own community.Cannabis is medicine, it is also more than that. It heals the sick in body, in mind and in spirit. It can transform and heal entire societies, even one as sick as ours. It needs to happen before we destroy ourselves and the rest of the world with our insanity and violence and destructiveness.
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Comment #37 posted by ekim on July 14, 2006 at 18:57:53 PT

give peace a chance---------------------
Massive screw-up by U.S. troops in Iraq
http://blogs.salon.com/0002762/
With all the problems we're having in Iraq and the rest of the Middle East, and with our soldiers' lives at risk, it's disheartening to see such a complete lack of command competence.
The issue this time? US troops and Iraqi police seized and destroyed a bumper crop of marijuana plants last week, according to a report in Stars & Stripes. Based on a military press release, the report said soldiers from the 172nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, which has responsibility for most of northern Iraq, discovered the field in an unnamed location. 
According to the military press release, the field contained "juvenile marijuana plants grown in a series of furrows. The owner claimed he was growing sesame." Police put the value of the field at $2 million. The crop was cut down and destroyed, and the man arrested.ACLU-TV Drug WarsThe ACLU Freedom Files: Drug Wars will air tomorrow (Saturday, July 15) at noon (Eastern and Pacific) on Court TV.
Here's the line-up for the program: Racist Drug Raids: The "War on Drugs" costs taxpayers more than 50 billion dollars annually, but it costs those disproportionately targeted by the government -- youth, communities of color and the sick and dying -- so much more. In the "Drug Wars" episode, we'll take you to Hearne, Texas, where nearly 15% of the town's young African American men were incarcerated on drug charges based on the false accusations of a mentally ill police informant.
The Drug War Goes to School: And you'll meet the students at Stratford High School in Goose Creek, South Carolina, who were held at gunpoint, forced by school officials and a police SWAT team into lockdown -- all because of suspicion that a student "might" be in possession of a marijuana joint.Excessive Prison Sentencing: We look at the family impact of cruel and excessive prison sentences for drug offenses through the eyes of three sisters from Oregon. Their mother, Hamedah Hasan, was sentenced to 27 years in prison because of her involvement with a man who was dealing drugs, though she never sold or used drugs herself.Medical Marijuana: Valerie Corral suffered from constant, debilitating seizures until she discovered that marijuana relieved her symptoms. She helped author the country[base ']s first statewide law allowing the use of medical marijuana and started a hospice to help people with terminal illnesses cope with pain. Nevertheless, federal agents stormed her California home and arrested her and her husband. She talks about her fight to help seriously ill people live with dignity.The ACLU web page for the program has some good resources (the pdf viewing guide looks pretty cool). They also have a web page for people to tell their own stories.Nice. Just wish the program was on network TV in prime time instead of Court TV at noon, but still, it looks like they've done a good job with it.If you don't have Court TV, you may not be out of luck. The ACLU has plans to stream the video on their site next week.
http://www.drugwarrant.com
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Comment #36 posted by mai_bong_city on July 14, 2006 at 17:44:38 PT

i agree Hope
about legitimacy and business and proper environment - you're right.
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Comment #35 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 17:12:56 PT

global_warming
It does seem that we can't win no matter what we try to do. The good thing is people are waking up and because of the Internet are more vocal about how they feel. If we keep on talking actually typing sooner or later they will have to see why we believe like we do.
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Comment #34 posted by global_warming on July 14, 2006 at 16:30:38 PT

tolerance
perhaps, yet this zero tolerance world of people are so blind, and they have erected organizations, that are fed by my taxed dollars, a feeding system that lobbys, advertises, freely on my taxed earnings, It seems that I am damned if I Protest, and damned if I remain silent.
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Comment #33 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 16:17:10 PT

global_warming 
You're right about freedom. Maybe I should have used the word tolerance. That seems more fitting.
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Comment #32 posted by global_warming on July 14, 2006 at 16:07:21 PT

re: This is what I think about San Francisco.
The west was truly formed by people who were disenfranchised by the politics/religion/economics of the east.The movement west was partially fuelled by the wicked witch trials of the nor east, the apathy towards human slavery, and the beginnings of the industrial revolution.It took a lot of courage and determination to venture out to a land that had no laws, medicine or civilization.To answer your question, there is no place on this planet you can have freedom, so it is best to start seriously thinking about colonizing the other planets, the other star systems, that God in Infinite Mercy has provided.
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Comment #31 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 14:47:31 PT

About San Francisco
This is what I think about San Francisco. People went to San Francisco to find people who would accept them as they are. It doesn't matter if it was the Hippie Culture or before that the Beat Generation. It has been a haven for Gay people too. I don't know why they are insulting San Francisco and saying the Counter Culture is a bad influence. Why do the people of San Francisco have to change to please a few close minded folks? Where will freedom ever happen if not out there?
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Comment #30 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 14:20:03 PT

The Video is on YouTube Now
It's not as clear as a download but it might be easier for some to view and hear it on YouTube. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57PzfwhjYFw&search=%22Neil%20Young%22
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Comment #29 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 13:37:25 PT

Off Topic: Video Download of After The Garden
It really is good. It is set to Al Gore's movie.http://streamos.wbr.com/download/wbr/neilyoung/atg_700.wmv
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Comment #28 posted by Wayne on July 14, 2006 at 13:24:00 PT

re: Hope
A PR firm is a fantastic idea, whether it be for a cannabis club or an activist group (NORML). They get paid to make things appealing to the public. If they can make dishwashing detergent seem exciting, surely they can help turn marijuana's image around. I wonder why no one has thought of that?
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Comment #27 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 12:45:04 PT

PR people
If the clubs are even a tenth as lucrative as the antis like to claim they are...which I'm sure, they aren't...they should be able to afford really good professional advice.
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Comment #26 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 12:40:16 PT

They may all be very different from those
few early ones that I saw pictures of. Probably what we need more than a designer is a Public Relations professional.
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Comment #25 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 12:34:09 PT

San Francisco and California style....
I thought about that. Drug stores may even be extra cool in a style I didn't know about. In the past I have seen pictures of clubs that were decorated like crash pads.The green cross one looks very business like and tasteful...all though it kind of reminds me of a jewelry store. I'm not saying I'm right...I'm just trying to throw something out there to consider. They all may be 
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Comment #24 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 11:27:27 PT

Hope
I am not sure how it is now in San Francisco but it always had been different then any other city. By nature it has been where extremes happen. I doubt that spirit will every leave San Francisco. 
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Comment #23 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 11:23:39 PT

Hope
Here are pictures from The Green Cross building.http://www.thegreencross.org/ver3/sneakpeek.htm
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Comment #22 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 11:15:16 PT

Perhaps
Cannabis Clubs should make an effort to be less like a hangout for counter culture and more like a regular business or drug stores. Not a groovy hangout. No pot leaves. No posters and groovy stuff and present just a pure, legitamate business like appearence. I really think they should. It's an effort that could prove very valuable with our acceptance. We don't need a picture of Jimi Hendrix or Jerry Garcia (much as I love them) or Shiva to provide medicine. Decorate the den or your bedroom that way...but I think it's a bad idea for a medical business. It's fine for head shops or novelty stores. Business is business...and medical business is even more serious. We should be professionals and look like it when we are working.(Cowering with my arms over my head waiting for the backlash.)It's a serious endeavor...let's lose the freak flags if it means we can do a better job of helping the needy and running a respectable business. It is respect that we want. Isn't it?We can get that respect by being strictly business when we are operating a serious business ....and we can still be ourselves. It's kind of like showing a lot of cleavage. It's fine in the appropriate situation but having it out there all the time for every stranger that comes along cheapens the situation.Just my humble opinion.(Don't hate me!)
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Comment #21 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 10:42:17 PT

Hope
Yes, prejudice can be overcome. I have overcome being prejudiced in my life and it makes living so much easier. When people judge other people it cripples the growth of the person that is judging. When a person lets it go what a liberating feeling it is. Prejudice is such a negative emotion.
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Comment #20 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 10:42:03 PT

Sadly...
Prohibitionist and bigoted and prejudiced against us types are not likely to read here, unless, they are trying to catch us doing something illegal or to try and find something to mock us with.Maybe, though, if we keep it up, someone like that, will, whatever reason they come here, might have some light dawn in their thinking.Maybe.
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Comment #19 posted by Hope on July 14, 2006 at 10:34:37 PT

Prejudice
It's hard to overcome...but it can be. Can't it?
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 09:42:00 PT

MBC
I understand what you are saying. It does appear to be a battle between what is good and what isn't good.
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Comment #17 posted by mai_bong_city on July 14, 2006 at 09:34:09 PT

true indeed
FoM. they are missing out - if they would only come here and read the stories - of grandmothers, of young men battling cancers, of the good this has proven to do.....if the shoe were on their foot, should we ban them from the public marketplace because they're under the influence of prozac or viagra then? 
i just don't know what's happened to sense and decency....it seems more and more to be the fight between light and darkness, good and evil - there are those striving to mirror the face of god and those who have so much darkness inside that they turn away from that.....
i'm so disillusioned - look at what 'our' society worships - more gas consumption in the recent tally than ever before - it's sickening - we seem to learn nothing - jerry springer and maury povich parade meat and misery and degrading as sport.....
i just want to cry. the world is, our country is, our people are dying. and for no good reason.
what they've passed up. what they've killed. what they've created to worship and idolize....
madness.
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 09:30:22 PT

Related Article With Pictures
http://www.sanfranciscosentinel.com/news_in_brief/green_cross_060714.shtml
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Comment #15 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 09:03:27 PT

MBC
I think it is very wrong how they put people in boxes without ever getting to know them personally.It's the inside of a person that makes the difference not the outside of a person.
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 09:00:57 PT

Truth
I really don't understand why they dislike people that they classify as counter culture human beings. Think of all the beautiful rainbow colors that the 60s brought into the world. Now all these pretty rainbow colors decorate shopping malls that I've seen.
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Comment #13 posted by mai_bong_city on July 14, 2006 at 08:52:16 PT

how sad
i hear ya', FoM - i'm nodding....but damn, sometimes i wish i wasn't cognizant of this insanity.
comfortably numb is what i'd like to be. but i'm not allowed any of their kool-aid.
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Comment #12 posted by Truth on July 14, 2006 at 08:40:26 PT

Alcohol vs. Cannabis
When I was trying to convince my mother that alcohol was more dangerous then cannabis I offered up the following idea so that she could see...The deal was to find the first death. She was to watch for a cannabis death, anywhere in the world, any kind of cannabis.On my side, I would limit myself. I wouldn't go after any kind of alcoholic drink, I would limit it to beer, not only to beer, but to one brand, Coors. I would also limit myself to not the whole world, not even to our country, but I would limit myself to Colorado. I bet her I could find a death from coors in Colorado before she could find a death from cannabis worldwide.The deck was stacked extremely in her favor but I knew the facts, I knew I would win. It was but a short two months later when a coors security guard crashed his work truck on coors property. He died. I won.
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Comment #11 posted by Truth on July 14, 2006 at 08:29:31 PT

Mayan
Thanks for the link about Coors.Years back, when they were naming Denver's new baseball stadium after a drug dealer, I held a protest in downtown Denver where we brought up the notion that it would glamourize a dangerous drug by naming a sports shrine after a dealer of that drug. I publicy call Coors a drug dealer in newspapers and on radio stations and he couldn't do dodo about it because I spoke the TRUTH.The sports talk shows ate it up.
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on July 14, 2006 at 08:02:14 PT

mayan
I saw that article and it didn't say anything conclusive. Why do they keep using terms like well maybe or it might etc.? One thing I do believe is just living in this world with all the pollutants we are exposed to can contribute to a person getting cancer.
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Comment #9 posted by mayan on July 14, 2006 at 06:45:29 PT

How Ironic
Beer exec Pete Coors cited in May for DUI:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/2006-07-14-coors_x.htm?csp=34
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Comment #8 posted by dongenero on July 14, 2006 at 06:40:46 PT

whaaa?  huh??
"There's myriad quality-of-life crimes associated with these clubs. ... This is a family neighborhood -- it's not right for such an adult-oriented and, to a great degree, counter-culture environment."I don't know if this is a direct quote or bad journalism butthe quotes at the end are certainly non-sensical.What the heck are quality-of-life crimes? then,.....is he saying cannabis clubs are not right for such an adult oriented and, to a great degree, counter culture environment of the Wharf?Either it is really poorly written or the guy they are quoting is on pharmaceuticals.

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Comment #7 posted by mayan on July 14, 2006 at 06:32:12 PT

No Cancer, No Bodies
This is just insane. Once again a headline is contradicted by the content of the article. Doesn't "precancerous" mean before cancer? Where is the cancer? Where are the bodies???Marijuana tied to precancerous lung changes:
http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=31&art_id=qw115285338696B243But the article states..."We must conclude that no convincing evidence exists for an association between marijuana smoking and lung cancer based on existing data," Mehra and her team write.What a joke.Meanwhile, in Ohio...Justices set limits on police searches in traffic stops: 
http://www.vindy.com/content/local_regional/321776575893223.phpAnd here's a very good LTE...Government's fixation on pot reflects poor prioritizing:
http://www.tcpalm.com/tcp/letters_to_the_editor/article/0,,TCP_24461_4842549,00.html
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Comment #6 posted by mayan on July 14, 2006 at 05:47:35 PT

Ugh!
Here's a very interesting piece regarding the sorry state of drug approval. And this is one of the main industries which lobbies for the continued prohibition of cannabis. How sickening...Medical journal reveals that 70 percent of drug decision-making panel members have financial ties to industry: 
http://www.newstarget.com/019608.html
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Comment #5 posted by afterburner on July 14, 2006 at 05:08:44 PT

So Predictable
First, they set up impossibly restrictive zones for medical cannabis dispensaries. Then, they refuse to approve dispensaries even in those zones.It looks like California needs a medical cannabis dispensary initiative. Take it to the people!
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Comment #4 posted by mayan on July 14, 2006 at 04:50:15 PT

NIMBY Syndrome
This is a family neighborhood -- it's not right for such an adult-oriented and, to a great degree, counter-culture environment."Oh, no! Not the evil counter-culture! Actually, this has nothing to do with the counter-culture as people from all walks of life use medical cannabis these days! And look what America's "status quo culture" is doing to this world. The counter-culture isn't yet the dominant culture but if it was I guarantee we wouldn't be on the brink of WWIII!!!THE WAY OUT IS THE WAY IN...Nass still seeking Barrett's removal: 
http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/local/index.php?ntid=90930&ntpid=19/11 Truth Video on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5sb7kZBEHL8&search=twin%20towers%20storyGround Zero - 9/11/06:
http://www.truthmove.org/groundzero.htmlInterview with April Gallop: 
http://georgewashington.blogspot.com/2006/07/interview-with-april-gallop.html Preview of Upcoming Book That Roasts Rudy Giuliani -- Over 9/11:
http://editorandpublisher.com/eandp/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1002838833&imw=YThe Truth About September 11th:
http://www.truth911.net/
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on July 13, 2006 at 21:54:09 PT

How I Feel Sometimes
I really don't understand why they are fighting so many people over a plant that was legal for centuries. Doesn't anyone analyze the polls that have been done over the years?Comfortably Numb (Gilmour, Waters) Hello?Is there anybody in there?Just nod if you can hear me.Is there anyone at home?
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on July 13, 2006 at 21:39:17 PT

Counter-Culture Environment
What makes people hate and fear a Counter-Culture Environment? San Francisco is remembered by many people for The Summer of Love. It isn't thought of as bad but always makes a person smile. What is so offensive about being a little different?***Excerpt: This is a family neighborhood -- it's not right for such an adult-oriented and, to a great degree, counter-culture environment." 
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Comment #1 posted by runderwo on July 13, 2006 at 21:29:48 PT

quality of life
*** There's myriad quality-of-life crimes associated with these clubs.What an ironic statement.
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