Pubdate: Fri, 01 Feb 2008
Source: Daily Californian, The (UC Berkeley, CA Edu)
Copyright: 2008 The Daily Californian
Contact:  http://www.dailycal.org/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/597
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/mmj.htm (Cannabis - Medicinal)
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?115 (Cannabis - California)

BLOWING SMOKE

The city's promise not to cooperate with federal drug  raids means
little without a concrete plan to accompany  it.

They don't pass out coupons on Telegraph or sport neon  signs above
their doors, but they're nevertheless a  Berkeley staple. Windows
shuttered, bouncers at the  door-they're your friendly local medical
marijuana  dispensaries, and the City Council wants you to know it 
has their backs.

In response to Drug Enforcement Agency raids on Bay  Area
dispensaries, the Council this week voted to  declare the city a
"sanctuary" for medical marijuana,  pledging noncooperation with
federal raids.

The decision is an accurate reflection of local views. Eighty-five
percent of Berkeley voters supported the  1996 state proposition that
legalized medicinal  marijuana-not that the city needs statistics to
back  its pot-friendly credentials.

What's more relevant is that the city measure is consistent with the
decision reached at the state level. The consequences of that
vote-and the legal  implications of individual states flouting
national  drug policy-are issues beyond the purview of the Council
members. Their job is to honor the wishes of  the constituents they
serve and the state government to which they report.

It's a job only half done. Grand pronouncements of disregard for
federal law are a surefire crowd-pleaser in a city where it's easier
to window-shop for bongs  than flower vases. But simply declaring
support for  medicinal marijuana in a state that's already gone much 
further than that is essentially redundant.

The recent vote fits a long and tired pattern of grandstanding and
empty gestures. If the Council is  truly concerned about ensuring
users' access, it should  establish clear procedures to be followed in
the event  that federal authorities turn their attention to local 
dispensaries. If it lacks the initiative or resources to do so-and
we're putting our money on the DEA if push comes to shove-then the
measure is nothing but bluster.  And you can't smoke that.
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MAP posted-by: Larry Seguin