The people of California are getting ready to decide whether to legalize marijuana. Proposition 19 would green light the sale and distribution of pot despite the federal ban. I had a small hand in putting together a great special that we're airing Saturday night called Proposition Pot.
I don't advocate the use of marijuana. Yes I've smoked it and I inhaled but I haven't touched the stuff in more than 20 years. But with that said I think it makes sense to at the very least decriminalize its use. I think the people of California will vote 19 down but as I've already seen since moving here, doing so would really be stupid.
Medical marijuana shops are everywhere. I've seen pot plants sitting out in the sun on the decks at the apartment complex where I live. As badly as the state needs revenue streams legalizing and taxing the hell out of pot makes sense to me. Legalizing it would also help do away with the dangerous, illegal grow houses, that seem to catch fire at least once a week.
One of the sad parts of the half special that Tim Wells, Damien Espinoza, Brandon Atchison and Cristina Mendonsa put together is that we couldn't include a wonderful piece from Suzanne Phan. Suzanne and her partner Ryan Yamamoto put together a great story while vacationing in Amsterdam. Because they were off the clock, corporate rules won't allow our station to air the fruits of their labor. So I thought I should share it here.
Rink, thanks for writing this... if it weren't for your facebook post, I would not have read your blog and therefore, would not have seen the AMAZING story that Suzanne and Ryan put together.
ReplyDeleteSince I'm a Gannett employee and I've lived my entire life in the state of California, I won't bash either of them publicly in this forum. I believe in karma.
It's nice to know that we have other online avenues to share our great works with colleagues and friends -- whether ON or OFF the clock -- so that tremendous efforts like those of Ryan and Suzanne are never lost.
Sad that it has to be like this, but as a man much wiser than myself just said: "Is what it is."
Thanks for the post, the blog, and by the way, can I borrow a C-note?
B.A.