Pubdate: Sun, 19 Jun 2005 Source: San Diego Union Tribune (CA) Copyright: 2005 Union-Tribune Publishing Co. Contact: http://www.uniontrib.com/ Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/386 Author: Robert Brown Note: Does not print LTEs from outside it's circulation area. THE HIGH COURT, HIGH TEENS AND STATE LAW ON MARIJUANA I hope that this Supreme Court ruling on medical marijuana is a wake-up call for San Diego. In his opinion for the majority, Justice John Paul Stevens states that "the exemption for cultivation by patients and caregivers can only increase the supply of marijuana in the California market." That is very accurate. I drove by a marijuana dispensary one day and saw a bunch of kids standing around just outside the entrance. It looked like a teen center. Yet the owner has plans for seven more dispensaries soon. I sincerely hope that this ruling puts people like him out of business. I have a teenage son and have seen the devastation marijuana use causes to families. I have seen some of my son's friends lose all interest in things they were once passionate about; friends, family life, sports and school is no longer important to them. Is our city going to continue to ignore that it is enabling this known harmful substance to be so easily in the hands of kids? Robert Brown, Oceanside - --- MAP posted-by: Derek