cannabisnews.com: NIC Club Formed to Fight for Legalization of Pot





NIC Club Formed to Fight for Legalization of Pot
Posted by FoM on April 19, 2000 at 18:22:58 PT
Club's goal is to gather 38,000 signatures
Source: Spokane.net
Coeur d'Alene: Aside from a few jokes about baking brownies and "joint" legislation, the second meeting of the Legalization of Marijuana Club tackled serious issues Tuesday.The North Idaho College student group's main goal is to draft a statewide initiative to legalize marijuana. That will require gathering 38,000 signatures by June 4.
"We don't have much time left this semester so we're going to hit it hard and heavy," club Vice President Bill Canepa said. The club president is Dan Sheckler, who also serves as NIC's student body president.The club signed up about 20 new members Tuesday, bringing the total number to 40."That's one of the larger clubs on campus already. We're pretty pleased with the immediacy with which people are signing up," Sheckler said.College President Michael Burke said the college has a "very clear" policy dealing with student drug use. He does not expect this club will threaten that policy."The club has been formed to promote a political position," he said. "That is different than advocating for using drugs."I believe their bylaws include a statement that they plan to adhere to all existing state and federal laws," he said.Tuesday night, Coeur d'Alene's City Council passed a resolution to send a letter to NIC trustees, stating that the city does not support the legalization of marijuana or any other illegal drug.That resolution fell short of a proposal by Councilman Ron Edinger. He wanted the city to request the NIC trustees to prevent the formation of the marijuana club."It's important that we not set an example by having a marijuana club start in the city of Coeur d'Alene," Edinger said.About 25 students attended Tuesday's meeting, held at noon in the student union building. They entered the Driftwood Bay Room to the sounds of Bob Marley tunes.Club Treasurer Bryan Dillon warned students not to bring drugs or paraphernalia to the meetings and not to say anything that might "incriminate any of us. We want to do this right," Dillon said.The club's first planned event will be a bake sale on Thursday, beginning at 10 a.m., in front of the student union building. Canepa warned students not to put drugs in anything they bake."Please, please, please be smart," Canepa said. "We need to establish ourselves as a legitimate club."To do that, the week-old club needs approval by NIC's Interclub Council. That could happen as soon as Tuesday, when the ICC holds a noon meeting in the student union building. If approved, the club would be eligible for student fee money.Student body Vice President Bridget Burns heads the ICC. She said the club has fulfilled most of the requirements, but still needs to submit a constitution."There's no reason they shouldn't be recognized," Burns said. She added that the student government supports student involvement, regardless of the issues promoted."Student activism is good. Student apathy is bad," Burns said.Sheckler said club members were motivated by a desire to see marijuana taken out of the hands of drug dealers and regulated by the government.He said the state of Idaho has an enormous prison population and that it costs the state $18,447 per year to house a prisoner. Some 22 percent of those prisoners are jailed on substance-related charges, Sheckler said."I think we're wasting a lot of money putting people in prison for nonviolent crimes when we don't have enough money to build schools," Sheckler said.He said he'd like to see marijuana treated like alcohol -- that is, sold in state-sanctioned establishments and taxed. That, he said, would "put the financial liability of using marijuana on drug users."Club members also stressed the medicinal uses of marijuana and the use of industrial hemp as a potential agricultural crop for the state's farmers.Not everyone is cheering the club's goals."I personally don't think it's a good idea," said Kootenai County Deputy Prosecutor Jim Reierson, who has tried drug cases for more than 12 years. "Legalizing marijuana is not going to eliminate the crime problem. People think if it's legalized, there won't be any more crime. In my opinion, it has the potential for making drug use more acceptable. I don't think anyone in law enforcement is going to be in favor of it."By Alison Boggs - Staff WriterPublished: April 19, 2000Copyright: Spokane.netCannabisNews Articles On Legalization:http://google.com/search?lc=&num=10&q=cannabisnews+legalization+site:cannabisnews.com
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Comment #5 posted by mungojelly on April 20, 2000 at 08:08:56 PT:
it makes as much sense as
It makes as much sense as "legalizing drugs won't take the illegality out of them"... I guess the point they're trying to make is that drug laws are not just something we made up, as we evil legalizers would have people believe. They were handed down to us from God Above. They probably think that if marijuana was legalized, marijuana users would still go to jail, just because That's The Way Things Are And They Will Never Change. 
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Comment #4 posted by Alexandre Oeming on April 20, 2000 at 07:07:31 PT:
Shocking stupidity
>"I personally don't think it's a good idea," said Kootenai County Deputy Prosecutor Jim Reierson, who has tried drug cases for more than 12 years.Gee, there's a shock. A moron that gets his paycheck from prosecuting consenual adult victimless crimes doesn't want to get off the gravy train. Get a hobby.>"Legalizing marijuana is not going to eliminate the crime problem.Find me one sane person that advocates the repeal of MJ prohibition that also says it's going to "eliminate the crime problem," whatever that means.>People think if it's legalized, there won't be any more crime.As Kanabys said, this guy is exaggerating the perceived problem to pull the wool over the sheeps' eyes. Never trust someone to tell the truth when their livlihood depends on them not seeing and definitely not telling the truth.>In my opinion, it has the potential for making drug use more acceptable.And by that same logic, keeping our current state of abject hypocrisy w/booze and cigs legal is encouraging youngsters to become tobacco addicts and OD on booze b/c they see it as "acceptable" and godforbid, "safe". As Bugs Bunny so often said, "What a maroon.">I don't think anyone in law enforcement is going to be in favor of it."More shocking developments. Why would a pig want to hunt down some violent felon that might fight back or even SHOOT back when they can just bag friendly and nonviolent pot smokers and then get accomodations up the yinyang for helping to make society a better place? Some days, i wish i were as stoopid as the drug warriors. Blissful existence must sure be nice.
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Comment #3 posted by Kanabys on April 20, 2000 at 06:52:49 PT:
to elaborate
To add to freedom fighters thoughts, I really don't think anyone fighting for the legalization of cannabis thinks that ALL freakin' crime is gonna go away if it [cannabis] is legalized!! Cum on, gimma a break. That's one of the antis' biggest tools, exaggerate everything to make it seem worse. I hate that, it's nothing but lies. And for this reierson's info, quite a few cop depts around the country do support reform of the MJ laws. Another idiot anti.....
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Comment #2 posted by freedom fighter on April 19, 2000 at 19:43:59 PT
how do you know?
"I personally don't think it's a good idea," said Kootenai County Deputy Prosecutor Jim Reierson, who has tried drug cases for more than 12 years. "Legalizing marijuana is not going to eliminate the crime problem. People think if it's legalized, there won't be any more crime. In my opinion, it has the potential for making drug use more acceptable. I don't think anyone in law enforcement is going to be in favor of it."
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Comment #1 posted by freedom fighter on April 19, 2000 at 19:42:37 PT
How do you
"I personally don't think it's a good idea," said Kootenai County Deputy Prosecutor Jim Reierson, who has tried drug cases for more than 12 years. "Legalizing marijuana is not going to eliminate the crime problem. People think if it's legalized, there won't be any more crime. In my opinion, it has the potential for making drug use more acceptable. I don't think anyone in law enforcement is going to be in favor of it."
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