cannabisnews.com: Council Holds Nose, Puts Pot on Nov. Ballot





Council Holds Nose, Puts Pot on Nov. Ballot
Posted by CN Staff on August 21, 2007 at 06:04:47 PT
By Stuart Steers, Rocky Mountain News
Source: Rocky Mountain News
Colorado -- Voters will decide this fall on a ballot initiative that would make possession of small amounts of marijuana the "lowest law enforcement priority" of Denver police, the City Council decided Monday night. Most council members oppose the measure, but a pro-marijuana group forced their hand after gathering enough signatures to put it to a vote.
"A number of us will be voting to put something on the ballot we won't be supporting ourselves," said Councilwoman Jeanne Robb. Earlier this month the council considered enacting the ordinance, rather than referring it to voters, as part of a legal maneuver to get it thrown out by the courts. Council members decided not to do that, but they say the initiative, if approved by voters, still could be overturned by a judge. The group SAFER, sponsors of the ballot initiative, also authored a successful 2005 ballot initiative that legalized the possession of small amounts of marijuana by adults in Denver. State law, however, still prohibits marijuana use, and Denver police continue to arrest people for possession. SAFER, which turned in thousands of signatures to get a spot on the November ballot, hopes the proposed ordinance will change that. "We're pleased it's going to the voters," said Mason Tvert, director of SAFER. City officials were stunned by the success of the 2005 initiative and they've vowed to fight SAFER's latest effort. Mayor John Hickenlooper and most other elected officials are expected to campaign against the proposal. "I want to issue a challenge to those pushing this initiative," said council President Michael Hancock. "I hope you'll go and spend time with the children abandoned and left behind by drug-addicted parents. I guarantee you'll find marijuana is a gateway drug to harsher addictions." That brought a sharp response from Tvert, who spoke to reporters outside council chambers. He accused council members and Hickenlooper of hypocrisy, since most of them drink. "Alcohol contributes more to death and destruction than any other substance," said Tvert. "They are alcohol users opposed to people using a different drug." SAFER is sponsoring the initiative out of frustration, Tvert said. The group says that arrests for marijuana possession have risen in Denver since 2005, even though voters changed local law. "Why are we issuing citations to adults using a drug less harmful than alcohol?" asked Tvert. "We're forced to run this initiative because they don't respect the will of the people." Several council members said they doubted the initiative would be upheld by the courts, even if it is approved by voters. Since Colorado marijuana law hasn't changed, Denver would still have to enforce the state prohibition, they said. "We don't want to subvert the will of the voters, but there are questionable legal grounds for this initiative," said Councilman Doug Linkhart. What's next for the pot initiative? • Denver City Council will hold a public hearing on the measure at 5:30 p.m. Monday. • Denver voters will consider the proposal in November. Note: Plan would make small amounts the 'lowest' priority.Source: Rocky Mountain News (Denver, CO)Author:    Stuart Steers, Rocky Mountain NewsPublished: August 21, 2007 Copyright: 2007 Denver Publishing Co.Contact: letters rockymountainnews.comWebsite: http://www.rockymountainnews.com/Related Article & Web Site:Safer Choicehttp://www.saferchoice.org/Council Lets Pot Measure Move Toward Votehttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread23273.shtmlCannabisNews -- Cannabis Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/cannabis.shtml 
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Comment #32 posted by FoM on August 27, 2007 at 12:34:16 PT
Related Article: Hypocrisy on Pot?
http://www.thedenverdailynews.com/?page=details&id=6512
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Comment #31 posted by whig on August 24, 2007 at 08:51:54 PT
Please don't throw me into that briar patch!
Mason Tvert is teh awesome.
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Comment #30 posted by FoM on August 24, 2007 at 06:32:04 PT
Related Article from The Denver Post
Pro-Marijuana Group Wants To Pull Initiative in Return for City Promise***Too late, a city attorney says, as the issue takes another twist in its journey to the ballot.By George Merritt, Denver Post Staff WriterAugust 24, 2007The marijuana interest group that was furious last week because the Denver City Council did not like its initiative is now ticked off that the city won't let the group kill it. Citizens for a Safer Denver collected more than 10,000 signatures to place an initiative on the November ballot asking voters to make marijuana possession the "lowest law enforcement priority" in Denver. But Thursday the group offered to spike the initiative if the city would agree not to ticket people for marijuana possession during the 2008 Democratic National Convention and state that pot is less harmful that booze. So far, there are no takers. "Absolutely not," Councilman Charlie Brown said. "I think it's a publicity stunt." Snipped:Complete Article: http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_6703531
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Comment #29 posted by john wayne on August 22, 2007 at 18:58:52 PT
mog bites dan
Aah yes, the merciless people "force" the poor puritan legislator's hands. Horrors! 
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Comment #28 posted by The GCW on August 22, 2007 at 17:19:48 PT
Mayor John Hickenlooper has conflict of interest.
So doesn't Mayor John Hickenlooper have a conflict of interest?????????????????What a dirty toilet.
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Comment #27 posted by The GCW on August 22, 2007 at 17:17:37 PT
! John Hickenlooper owns a brewery !
By the way,,,  *Mayor John Hickenlooper owns a brewery in Denver!!!!!!!!!1For the Denver Mayor to stop persecuting cannabis - brew sales go down down DOWN.And the boozer knows it!!!http://www.wynkoop.com/beerdrinker/bd2004.htmDON'T BUY HIS PRODUCTS OR ANY BEER PRODUCTS FROM CANNABIS PROHIBITIONISTS!!!!!!!
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Comment #26 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 21:28:20 PT
afterburner
Thank you. Alcohol can be so darn bad.
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Comment #25 posted by Hope on August 21, 2007 at 21:07:19 PT
Yes...Treeanna
Thanks...I voted, too.
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Comment #24 posted by afterburner on August 21, 2007 at 20:25:54 PT
No More Free Ride for Alcohol Pushers 
Alcohol is a dream-killer. Alcohol is "liquid guilt." 
Alcohol should be labelled with graphic warnings showing the dangers of excessive alcohol consumption, like tobacco has been in some countries. For example (with gruesome pictures): Excessive consumption of alcohol causes car accidents. Excessive consumption of alcohol causes domestic violence. Excessive consumption of alcohol causes cirrhosis of the liver. Excessive consumption of alcohol destroys brain cells. Some countries have passed legislation to require graphic warnings on cigarette packages. The U.S. government is considering passing similar legislation. Editorials: Making cigarette-pack warnings more graphic a good idea. SUMMARY: Congress is considering a plan to mimic Canada's in-your-face photo advisories. MaineToday.com | Portland Press Herald / Maine Sunday Telegram. July 30, 2007 http://pressherald.mainetoday.com/story.php?id=123535&ac=PHedi&com_full=1Australians have been trying to get warnings on alcohol for quite a while. The following article from 2005 is a good example. Community Alcohol Action Network: CAAN - GrogWatch 2005 - GrogWatch - 24 October, 2005 http://www.caan.adf.org.au/newsletter.asp?ContentId=t10242005MADD, do your duty. Go beyond drunk driving, about which you have successfully educated the public. Focus on the health risks of excessive alcohol consumption. Focus on domestic violence and the high percentage of alcohol abuse in such cases. Do it for the children. Some of them don't know that alcohol kills brain cells. With alcohol advertisements romanticizing strong drink in the form of "coolers," our young people are becoming binge drinkers with all the attendant risks of poor judgment, injury and death. Young people pay attention to simple graphic facts, like turning off lights to help prevent global warming. Give them the graphic labels they need to make wiser choices regarding alcohol consumption.So much energy, human resources and tax dollars are wasted on demonizing cannabis, that benign plant with a long history of centuries of medical use. Cannabis, given by God as medicine. Yet, governments have squandered scarce resources for almost a century, causing many politicians to deny that cannabis indeed has any medical uses. It's high time to stop this destructive campaign against medical cannabis. It's time to reveal that alcohol producers are major opponents of cannabis law reform. It's time to make alcohol producers responsible for the damages their products do to society in the hands of careless and uninformed members of society. We don't want a return to alcohol prohibition. We want informed citizens making responsible choices. Good work, Mason Tvert, tell it like it is: those alcohol users hate the smell of cannabis, but they don't examine the dangers of their own drug of choice, alcohol. 
Children learn drinking from adults:
For too long, society has let overindulgence and its resulting bad behaviour go unchecked.
August 20, 2007. 
Deborah Orr.
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/Opinions/article/236265Excerpt: "The vast encroachment of underage drinking into the social lives of younger and younger people displays a horrible overlap between the follies of adults and the erosion of childhood. Grown-ups are behaving like adolescents, and children are aping their immature elders in all kinds of disturbing ways. Our generational boundaries are utterly confused. Alcohol is a useful case in point."
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Comment #23 posted by mayan on August 21, 2007 at 18:27:04 PT
Denverites
They have already spoken.THE WAY OUT IS THE WAY IN...History Channel Hit Piece: Dirty Tricks, Malicious Lies & Journalistic Fraud:
http://tinyurl.com/3xk9j3Viewers See History Channel 9/11 Special As Straw Man Hit Piece:
http://prisonplanet.com/articles/august2007/210807_hit_piece.htm"You got shortchanged on this History Channel program...."
http://www.911blogger.com/node/10769History Channel 9/11 Hit Piece Ignores WTC 7 (video):
http://prisonplanet.com/articles/august2007/210807Hit.htmFormer Chief of NIST's Fire Science Division Calls for Independent Review of World Trade Center Investigation:
http://www.opednews.com/articles/genera_alan_mil_070820_former_chief_of_nist.htmBarrett-Brown Debate Feedback: 
http://mujca.com/barrettbrownfeedback.htm9/11 WAS AN INSIDE JOB - OUR NATION IS IN PERIL:
http://www.911sharethetruth.com/
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Comment #22 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 17:48:14 PT
Dankhank
Weeds is strange but it is funny. I have no idea where it is going but I look forward to more episodes. As far as women and men smoking I never thought of it as one way or the other.
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Comment #21 posted by Dankhank on August 21, 2007 at 17:18:19 PT
weeds and stuff ...
yes, me too ... I like the show, it's getting strange but I will flow with it, I think it is still and important show ...and I love it ...here's an interesting point of interest on Cannabis consumption ...http://alternet.org/blogs/peek/#60371
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Comment #20 posted by Storm Crow on August 21, 2007 at 16:58:27 PT
Latest on that poll on Oregon MMJ ...
41.6% - Make it stricter46.6% - Make it looser11.8% - Fine as it is
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Comment #19 posted by ekim on August 21, 2007 at 12:46:23 PT
Weeds creator now on NPR
Talk of the Nation is interviewing Ginsy Kohand ( sic) 
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 12:16:23 PT
List of Top Party Schools
1. West Virginia University2. University of Mississippi3. University of Texas, Austin4. University of Florida5. University of Georgia6. Penn State University7. University of New Hampshire8. Indiana University, Bloomington9. Ohio University, Athens10. University of California, Santa Barbara11. Randolph-Macon College, Va.12. University of Iowa13. Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge14. University of Maryland, College Park15. University of Tennessee, Knoxville16. University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign17. Arizona State University18. Florida State University19. University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa20. State University of New York, Albany
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Comment #17 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 12:14:04 PT
Top 20 Party Schools
http://cbs2chicago.com/topstories/local_story_233132910.html#party
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Comment #16 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 11:21:23 PT
Dankhank
I really liked the second episode of Weeds last night. It is getting so strange but it is still very funny.
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Comment #15 posted by Dankhank on August 21, 2007 at 10:07:43 PT
voted ...
:-)thanks Treanna
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Comment #14 posted by Toker00 on August 21, 2007 at 09:47:16 PT
Treeanna
Voted.273 votes.41.8% Yes, make it stricter.43.8% Yes, make it looser.14.7% No, it works now.Toke.
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Comment #13 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 09:11:48 PT
Hope
No I think it would kill me to meet him. LOL! I'd die of shock. I'll listen and learn from his music but stay a safe distance so I don't emplode!
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Comment #12 posted by Hope on August 21, 2007 at 08:59:31 PT
FoM comment 8
Congratulations! I'm happy for you.It would be great for you to meet him someday.
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 08:49:10 PT
Treeanna
I like polls too. I appreciate your finding it. We are having very rainy weather and my satellite isn't working all the time so I can't even find news articles very well. It helps me so much and thanks again. 
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Comment #10 posted by Treeanna on August 21, 2007 at 08:38:42 PT
Always good to help :)
Thanks!I like it when polls get posted here and all over the web. This was my first chance to contribute one, though, I think :)
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 07:37:56 PT
Treeanna 
I voted thanks.
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 07:34:49 PT
Hope
This is just me being happy not about news. Neil Young and Crazy Horse ( I think ) will start a tour in October. I think they will come into our area because we have a lot of Neil fans. For me there is nothing better then a Neil Young concert. Yippie!
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Comment #7 posted by Treeanna on August 21, 2007 at 07:32:47 PT
Pollin S. OR newspaper
Hey, guys.Do us a bit of a favor and go here to vote on a poll :)http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/section?category=NEWS
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Comment #6 posted by Hope on August 21, 2007 at 07:22:44 PT
"Holds nose"
It's kind of a shame they don't cover their mouths, too. Long enough that there would be need to elect some less fascist council members. 
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Comment #5 posted by Hope on August 21, 2007 at 07:19:54 PT
Health and Human Services
This got me to thinking again about how Health and Human Services could end this kind of injustice.Health and Human Services. What a joke that name is under the circumstances of cannabis prohibition.
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Comment #4 posted by potpal on August 21, 2007 at 07:15:51 PT
Council nose nothing
Something tells me that majority of constituentcy has to hold their nose every time they have to vote for Council.
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Comment #3 posted by Hope on August 21, 2007 at 07:15:36 PT
This article....
The sleaziness of the council to be hoping to pervert the will of the people is disgusting.
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Comment #2 posted by Hope on August 21, 2007 at 07:09:16 PT
Comment 1
That article is so misleading. Even the accompanying photographs are misleading. They are really talking about a "standardized extract". Sativa spray, probably.
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on August 21, 2007 at 06:26:03 PT
Germany Allows Patient Legal Use of Cannabis 
August 21, 2007A patient suffering from multiple sclerosis has been legally allowed to buy cannabis at the pharmacy under strict conditions. It's the first time Germany has permitted the use of marijuana for medicinal purposes.Complete Article: http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,2746463,00.html
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