George Mull opposed Proposition 19. Steve DeAngelo campaigned for it. Which made it all the more interesting at the recent CalNORML conference in Berkeley, where both said that medical cannabis distribution in California is — and I’m paraphrasing here — a total fucking mess. Mull is a Sacramento attorney who represents several NorCal collectives, and their struggles in assorted cities and [...]
The Drug Policy Alliance gets top billing today in our belated video coverage of CalNORML’s marijuana reform conference in Berkeley. Ethan Nadelmann, DPA’s founder and executive director, and California director Stephen Gutwillig both possess a keen understanding of the political process, and their thoughts on legalization in 2012 deserve special attention. First and foremost is understanding that political compromises will be [...]
This weekend’s CalNORML reform conference in Berkeley sold out, prompting organizers to promise a larger venue next time. Their agenda was plenty big enough already, with complex issues facing medical cannabis advocates and proponents of legal, non-medical use. (Click here for CalNORML video coverage.) Steph Sherer, the national director of Americans for Safe Access, called for more civil discourse after Prop. [...]
After taking a serious look at legalizing marijuana, California voters in early returns Tuesday appeared to be rejecting Proposition 19, which would have made the state the first to allow the drug to be sold for recreational use. According to a state exit poll, the measure drew strong support from voters under 25 years old, as the campaign had hoped, but [...]
Days before a landmark ballot decision on marijuana in the Golden State, California voters appear to be changing their minds about legalizing pot for recreational use. A new California Field Poll shows Proposition 19 is losing 49 percent to 42 percent, less than a month after a September survey showed it winning by the exact margin. The reversal in attitudes comes [...]
The Drug Policy Action Committee backing California’s Proposition 19 is spending some of the $1 million it just got from George Soros to target legal pot supporters who are devotees of comedians John Stewart and Stephen Colbert. The political action committee, backed by the Drug Policy Alliance, began purchasing spots Thursday on Comedy Central’s The Daily Show with John Stewart and [...]
BERKELEY — As Californians weigh whether to legalize marijuana statewide, many cash-strapped cities across the state will also consider ballot measures to tax on the drug. Even if voters don’t legalize pot for recreational use, cities from Sacramento to San Jose could still come away from Election Day with a hefty new source of revenue from taxes on medical marijuana, Marcus [...]
