cannabisnews.com: State Initiative Next Step for Marijuana Backers










  State Initiative Next Step for Marijuana Backers

Posted by CN Staff on December 29, 2005 at 07:27:53 PT
By Alan Gathright, Rocky Mountain News  
Source: Rocky Mountain News  

Colorado -- Marijuana advocates vowed from the Capitol steps Wednesday to put a statewide measure legalizing adult pot possession on Colorado's November ballot and mobilize an army of voters to pass it. The statewide campaign is fueled by outrage over Denver authorities' rejection of Initiative 100, said Mason Tvert, campaign director for the initiative's sponsor, Safer Alternative for Enjoyable Recreation.
City voters passed the initiative in November, ostensibly making it legal for adults to possess up to 1 ounce of pot. Denver law enforcement officials, however, continue to ticket small-time pot-possession violators under state law. They always have prosecuted the vast majority of possession cases, saying that state law is unaffected by local statutes. The Colorado Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative seeks to pass a state law identical to the Denver measure, Tvert said, so Denver officials can no longer "ignore the will of the voters by hiding behind state law." Tvert acknowledged that because the initiative will only amend drug statutes, not the Colorado Constitution, state lawmakers simply could overturn its passage. But he warned that lawmakers who try "goose-stepping around the will of the people who put them in office" could find themselves voted out. The measure needs nearly 68,000 signatures to qualify for the ballot. To raise them, "we plan on bringing out an army of new voters in this state and mobilizing students across the state to get involved, collecting signatures and passing this initiative," Tvert said. He said he's sticking with the controversial campaign that apparently helped win in Denver: It argues that adults should have the right to choose marijuana as a safer alternative to alcohol, which pot advocates blame for deadly violence and car wrecks. Even critics of the I-100 campaign say Tvert tapped into rising opposition to the national war on drugs by arguing it was diverting scarce funding for police - and for fighting violent crime - to prosecute otherwise law-abiding, nonviolent pot-smoking residents. Now SAFER is drawing support for the state initiative from a 4,500-member organization of current and former narcotics agents, police chiefs, prosecutors, prison wardens, judges and federal agents. "The war on drugs has been too long and too disgustingly failed and far too destructive," said Jack Cole, executive director of the international group Law Enforcement Against Prohibition (LEAP). "Since 1970, we've spent more than a trillion dollars on this war and all we have to show for it each year is we arrest another 1.6 million people in this country for nonviolent drug offenses," said Cole. "Fully half are marijuana arrests." Cole retired as a detective lieutenant after 26 years with the New Jersey State Police. He spent 14 of those working undercover as a narcotics agent. When it comes to the SAFER initiative, Cole said, "we support them 100 percent." Colorado Attorney General John Suthers takes a sharply different view. He said law enforcement doesn't spend a great deal of resources prosecuting small pot-possession cases, and strongly opposes legalizing even small amounts of pot, calling it "a dangerous drug." Cole's fellow LEAP members have given more than 1,400 talks against drug prohibition in the past two years. "I would love to debate your attorney general," he said. "Let's talk about what drugs are dangerous and what drugs aren't: Cigarettes kill 430,000 a year in the United States. "Alcohol kills 110,000 every year . . . But there has never been a recorded case of a death from ingesting marijuana." Note: Move comes as Denver continues to cite for pot possession under state law.Source: Denver Rocky Mountain News (CO)Author:  Alan Gathright, Rocky Mountain News Published: December 29, 2005Copyright: 2005 Denver Publishing Co.Contact: letters rockymountainnews.comWebsite: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:LEAPhttp://www.leap.cc/Safer Choicehttp://www.saferchoice.org/Pro-Got Group Aims at State Law in '06http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21417.shtmlPro-Pot Group Seeks State Votehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21416.shtmlSpeakout: Time Has Come To Legalize Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread21300.shtml

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Comment #19 posted by runruff on December 29, 2005 at 11:30:58 PT:
Who's William Wallace?
He is Braveheart. Longshanks is the nickname of Edward 1 King of England and "Slayer of Scots". He was a very bad man. Like the Hitler of his day, 1280 AD.I'm holding up well. I'm giving the hell.
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 11:21:02 PT
runruff
That was kind of you thanks even though I don't know who William Wallace is. He must be a Basketball player. I hope you are holding up ok. I know the holidays had to have been hard for you.
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Comment #17 posted by runruff on December 29, 2005 at 11:15:47 PT:
FoM
You are a virtual William Wallace in the cyber world in the battle against the Longshanks of prohibition. Seven feet tall at least!
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 10:22:10 PT
Toker00
Thanks for the poll update. I watched the video and Colorado Attorney General John Suthers said that this is just a push to legalize DRUGS. Not drugs and they should stop getting away with saying that. Drugs are Drugs and Cannabis is Cannabis an herb.
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Comment #15 posted by Toker00 on December 29, 2005 at 10:12:49 PT
Survey
Just wanted to bump this up. This video is good, too. Survey is listed under video.http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/5691676/detail.html1488 votes 72% yes28% noWage peace on war. END CANNABIS PROHIBITION NOW!
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:47:03 PT
OverwhelmSam
That was very kind of you to say. Thank you. I never really felt short because I rode very big horses and got to look down on people. When I got off a horse I felt really short though. LOL!
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Comment #13 posted by OverwhelmSam on December 29, 2005 at 08:43:04 PT
FoM
Not to worry, at CannabisNews you're 10 Feet Tall. Realistically, I think 5'2" to 5'8" is a socially respectable height for a woman in today's Society. If you were 3'6" on the otherhand, you would have to carry a ballon around in the crowd. 
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:32:26 PT
OverwhelmSam
I really am not very big. I'm grinning and went and found the song Short People. I always thought this song was so funny.Short People Lyrics: http://tinyurl.com/awwyo
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Comment #11 posted by ekim on December 29, 2005 at 08:30:58 PT
"I would love to debate your attorney general,&quo
Jack A. Cole
State Police Undercover Officer
jackacole leap.cc (781) 393-6985 www.leap.cc "This is Not a War on Drugs - it's a War on People."
 Jack Cole knows about the war on drugs from several perspectives. Cole retired as a Detective Lieutenant after a 26-year career with the New Jersey State Police. For twelve of those years Cole worked as an undercover narcotics officer. His investigations spanned the spectrum of possible cases, from street drug users and mid-level drug dealers in New Jersey to international "billion-dollar" drug trafficking organizations. Cole ended his undercover career living nearly two years in Boston and New York City, posing as a fugitive drug dealer wanted for murder, while tracking members of a terrorist organization that robbed banks, planted bombs in corporate headquarters, court-houses, police stations, and airplanes and ultimately murdered a New Jersey State Trooper. After retiring, Cole dealt with the emotional residue left from his participation in the unjust war on drugs by working to reform current drug policy. He moved to Boston to continue his education. Cole holds a B.A. in Criminal Justice and a Masters degree in Public Policy. Currently writing his dissertation for the Public Policy Ph.D. Program at the University of Massachusetts, his major focus is on the issues of race and gender bias, brutality and corruption in law enforcement. Cole believes ending drug prohibition will go a long way toward correcting those problems. A national and international speaker, Cole has taught courses to police recruits and veteran officers on ethics, integrity, moral decision-making, and the detrimental effects of racial profiling. He has spoken about drug policy: in colleges and universities; on many radio programs; and at conferences across the United States; and he has addressed the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium, on the subject of US drug policy.Cole is passionate in his belief that the drug war is steeped in racism, that it is needlessly destroying the lives of young people, and that it is corrupting our police. Cole's discussions give his audience an alternative prospective of the US war on drugs from the view of a veteran drug-warrior turned against the war. 
http://www.leap.cc/events
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Comment #10 posted by OverwhelmSam on December 29, 2005 at 08:29:53 PT
FoM
I think 5'2" and 108 is still fairly slender. At least I wouldn't have to bend over to hug you, I could just pick you up. :D
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:23:04 PT
OverwhelmSam
You see I'm only 3 feet 6 inches! LOL! No I'm 5' 2''I'm one of those short people got nobody. Short people have no reason to live! LOL!
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Comment #8 posted by OverwhelmSam on December 29, 2005 at 08:19:13 PT
Only 108?
You're a tiny little person. I weigh almost twice that, but I'm sure I'm taller and stockier than you are.
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:15:23 PT
OverwhelmSam 
I'm like you are. I weigh 108 now and I feel it's diet time after the holidays. I have an exercize machine I use during the winter. I put on my head phones turn on Neil and Keep on Rockin in the Free World!
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Comment #6 posted by OverwhelmSam on December 29, 2005 at 08:11:27 PT
FoM
I too watch my calories like a hawk and go to the Gym just about everyday. I have a personal standard and can't stand to be even a few pounds overweight. I also know that food taste delicious when I'm under the influence of THC, but I drink water and refrain from eating at those times - but only because it's hard to stop once I start - and I'll have to drop my daily calorie intake for a week and put in some extra hours at the Gym. Not a good trade off.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:11:00 PT
Video
The video was very good.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:07:23 PT

SAFER Colorado Wants Pot Legalized Statewide
Video: http://cbs4denver.com/local/local_story_362235637.html
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on December 29, 2005 at 08:03:02 PT

OverwhelmSam
I try really hard to keep my weight down and one of the things I hated when I drank alcohol (besides all the nasty side effects) was all the idol calories. Cannabis doesn't add calories. That's a good thing. Alcohol can make a person mean but Cannabis only makes a person grin and smile a little more.
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Comment #1 posted by OverwhelmSam on December 29, 2005 at 07:59:13 PT

SAFER Alternative to Alcohol
He said law enforcement doesn't spend a great deal of resources prosecuting small pot-possession cases, and strongly opposes legalizing even small amounts of pot, calling it "a dangerous drug." More dangerous than alcohol? Not even.I like the safer than alcohol position because just about everyone has seen the ravages of alcohol, but you hardly ever hear of a marijuana user starting a fight in a bar or committing date rape like people do under the influence of alcohol.But I also like the position that it helps people to relax in this tense world and helps those of us who are older feel young again. It would be great to combine these two points with the safer than alcohol position.
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