Pubdate: Sun, 26 Mar 2006 Source: Santa Cruz Sentinel (CA) Copyright: 2006 Santa Cruz Sentinel Contact: http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/news/edit/form.htm Website: http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/394 Author: Karol Delmar Note: Karol Delmar lives in Santa Cruz. Cited: Santa Cruz Citizens for a Sensible Marijuana Policy http://www.taxandregulate.org/sc06/santacruz06.htm Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Marijuana - Medicinal) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/decrim.htm (Decrim/Legalization) Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/opinion.htm (Opinion) S.C. SHOULD NOT STAND FOR 'STONER CITY' Some time ago, a medical marijuana clinic was opened in Santa Cruz with the stated intention of giving compassionate help to people with debilitating medical conditions who have symptoms that were not relieved by any other medication. And there are such people. As time went on, the amount of marijuana that a person could get at any one time was increased. As for oversight -- is there any at all? How are these people running the dispensary accountable? Recently, another individual has applied to open still another dispensary, possibly in the Harvey West area. There are not that many people who have debilitating conditions that can't be helped by any other means. Why should we have another place? And then recently, a group called Santa Cruz Citizens for a Sensible Marijuana Policy was formed to declare their defeat in the drug war by seeking to decriminalize marijuana usage. Their petition calls for making marijuana "investigations, citations, arrests, property seizures, and prosecutions for adult marijuana offenses in the city of Santa Cruz's lowest law enforcement priority," according to their flier, and seeks to establish as policy for city officials to cry out for liberalizing changes in state and federal marijuana laws. The claimed benefit would be to free up police to fight real crimes, violent and serious crimes. And meanwhile, up at UCSC, they celebrate openly a pot smoke-out day in the spring. Let's look at the other side of the coin. A person under the influence of pot is an impaired driver. Ask someone who has lost a family member to a drug-impaired driver if the police should fight more violent and serious crimes than this? Ask a kid who has lost her mom to drugs and who is living in a foster home what a violent and serious crime is. Ask serious and violent addicts what drug they started out on. Ask the teacher who is trying to teach when there is a kid in class who is sitting there stoned. Ask the family members who go to Narc-Anon if pot is all that nonserious and nonviolent in its effects. Ask the people who have suffered home invasions by desperate addicts looking for pot, if they did not endure a serious and violent crime. Ask the hikers who have inadvertently stumbled on a pot farm way up in the woods if their lives were not in danger. Still another thought. Since there will always be rapes, shouldn't we just decriminalize rape? Same logic. Let's declare war on decriminalizing dope. City Council, let's start tightening up on that dispensary. Citizens of Santa Cruz, just declare that we are not Stoner City. Chancellor Denton, UCSC should be a place of learning, academic excellence and character development to be world-changing, not stoned out Doper City. Police Department, thanks for trying to make our city a safe place to live in spite of the dopers. - --- MAP posted-by: Richard Lake