Legal Pot in California in 2010? "Oaksterdam" Provides the Model

[dreamdancer 0]

looks like legalisation is just around the corner...

Quote

There is a buzz moving through the culture, as the public attitudes around cannabis use are rapidly shifting, that the legalization of marijuana in some states, particularly California, is a growing possibility.

Recent polling by Zogby in May demonstrated that a majority of Americans, say it "makes sense to tax and regulate" marijuana. The Zogby poll, commissioned by the conservative-oriented O'Leary Report, found 52 percent in favor of legalization, only 37 percent opposed. As Ryan Grim reports on the Huffington Post , a previous ABC News/Washington Post poll found 46 percent in support. In California, a Field Poll found 56 percent backing legalization and as a result California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger called for an open debate on legalization, all which suggest that American society may be reaching a tipping point when it comes to legal pot.

An array of new circumstances -- Democrats in power, economic recession leaving states starving for revenue that could come from taxing cannabis sales, less funds for law enforcement and Mexican drug operatives moving into the US to grow huge amounts of untaxed pot, contributing to the horrible drug violence South of the Border -- support the growing public support for legalization of pot.

Anther element perhaps pushing changes to our pot laws is the gaggle of strange bed fellows who are outspoken on the issue. Former Secretary of State George Shultz and the late conservative economist Milton Friedman have been for legalization for years. But recently Fox News' latest conservative wild man Glenn Beck and CNN's much more reasonable Jack Cafferty have publicly questioned the billions spent each year fighting the endless war against drugs. They are joining the growing chorus that suggest it now makes more financial and social sense to tax and regulate marijuana.

At the epicenter of legal pot talk and strategic political action is Richard Lee, a highly successful pot entrepreneur, who over the past decade has turned the "uptown" entertainment area of downtown Oakland, California into what many call Oaksterdam, a play on Amsterdam, their sister city in Holland. A centerpiece of the Oakland transformation is Oaksterdam University which Lee founded to prepare people for jobs in the cannabis industry. As he told MSNBC, "my basic idea is to professionalize the industry, and have it taken seriously just like beer and distilling hard liquor."

http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/140642/legal_pot_in_california_in_2010_%22oaksterdam%22_provides_the_model/

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
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[lawrocket 3]

That's great.

Too bad that drugs are a federal crime, as well. Even if you were to grow your own for yourself, you can be busted by the feds under the commerce clause. If everybody grew their own pot and used it, then interstate commerce would be affected.

Amazing how "progressives" 70 years ago helped to kill progress today.

My wife is hotter than your wife.

[LongWayToFall 0]

It has been on ongoing issue for pot clubs since the beginning of the medical pot laws. Feds have raided many many clubs in the area. Right now, clubs are indeed paying taxes on the bud, although I am not sure at what level. Pot clubs continue to thrive though, and seeing how easy it is to get approved for medical pot, they might as well make it legal for all. In the early 2000s the system was run with county based cards, namely San Fran and East Bay, with many more down south as well. Right now, there is a state issued card, no more county cards anymore. This is good in that it makes it easier for POs to identify the cards, however many are concerned about lasting consequences with having their name on a list that basically proves they are breaking a federal law. Getting rid of the cards altogether, I believe, is certainly allowing more freedom.
I don't approve of having pot for sale in every store, like tobacco. It just doesn't seem appealing to me at all. However, allowing people to use the pot clubs already in existence without a medical card seems very reasonable. I think each club should establish their own "member" system, with no database, and leave the government out of it.

I'm not down with seeing people smoking joints while walking down the street, just like I don't want to see someone slugging on a 5th of whisky at a bus stop. But what you do in your own house that doesn't affect me, is not my damn business in the slightest.

[Misternatural 0]

industrial hemp is legal in Vermont and we are just waiting for the Feds to legalize it nationally. I am not planting ANY until that happens. Marijuana is not far behind as I have noticed that it is being widely smoked by Doctors, Lawyers. politicians and such...shit just about everywhere I go people are smoking these days in private. It's ridiculous how this is not legal yet as tobacco cigarets continue to kill people every day. I don't smoke anymore so I really don't care personally but it would make a decent income for many more if legalized nationally, let the states choose their own policies in this regard.

Beware of the collateralizing and monetization of your desires.
D S #3.1415

[riddler 0]

Marijuana is already legal in Denver. But the cops will bust you on state charges if they want. Usually, they don't care, as long as you don't have a giant outdoor party with it.

Trapped on the surface of a sphere. XKCD

[dreamdancer 0]

Quote

The Rhode Island legislature overrode a gubernatorial veto of a medical marijuana law Tuesday afternoon by an overwhelming margin, paving the way for state-licensed medical marijuana shops to begin operating. The House voted 68-0 for the pot measure and the senate moved it minutes later by a 35-3 count.

Once the law takes effect, the state will be the first in the nation to have one officially licensed nonprofit center selling marijuana. Over time, the state will license further nonprofit dispensaries.

The bill got a boost in the state after a much publicized incident in which a pot dealer beat up a medical marijuana patient. Proponents of the bill argued that patients shouldn't have to deal with unregulated, unlicensed drug dealers, but deserved a more orderly system.

In March, New Mexico became the first state to grant a state license to a medical marijuana producer.

"We are seeing a historic shift to allowing state-licensed, regulated medical marijuana production and distribution," said Karen O'Keefe of the Marijuana Policy Project after the vote.

Legislators in Delaware, Illinois, Iowa, New Hampshire, New Jersey, North Carolina and Pennsylvania are considering similar legislation. Arizona and Maine voters may soon vote on similar initiatives.

The Rhode Island bill's passage was only made possible by President Obama's announcement that his Justice Department would not raid medical marijuana dispensaries in states where they were following the law.

http://www.alternet.org/drugreporter/140764/rhode_island_will_license_medical_marijuana_shops/

stay away from moving propellers - they bite
blue skies from thai sky adventures
good solid response-provoking keyboarding

[Rookie120 0]

So do you have an opinion on the article above or is it just more of the copy paste crap as normal?

If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck!