Pubdate: Tue, 13 May 2014 Source: Chico Enterprise-Record (CA) Copyright: 2014 Ronald Angle Contact: http://www.chicoer.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/861 Note: Letters from newspaper's circulation area receive publishing priority Author: Ronald Angle JUST SAY NO TO MERKEL AND LAX MARIJUANA GROWING LAWS In a recent letter to the E-R, Andrew Merkel proclaimed that Butte County residents would be better off with him as our next Second District county supervisor. If 'better off' means that I once again have to awake every morning to the smell of ripening cannabis from residential grows in my neighborhood, he is wrong. If he means that once again my neighborhood will be overrun by pit bull dogs used as cheap security guards, he is wrong. If he means that once again I have to endure 19 hours of extreme electro-magnetic interference from illegal grow lights, he is very wrong. Let me explain. For 59 years, I have been a federally licensed amateur radio operator. I have participated in emergency disaster communications for many of those years. A while back, my communications capability was completely shut down by grow lights operating in my neighborhood. This interference is a federal crime with severe penalties. Unfortunately, we could not identify the exact source of the noise. The likelihood of these lights being part of a large indoor pot grow is very strong. Residential cannabis growing is not a victimless crime. It is not a benign mom-and-pot business. I have no problem with personal cannabis use. The Colorado model seems to be working well as a way to allow but control its production. We need a similar solution in California. Butte County does not want unrestricted backyard cannabis growing. I support Wahl on this issue and urge his re-election. - - Ronald Angle, Chico - --- MAP posted-by: Jo-D