San Diego Medical Marijuana Patients Fight It Out

People are getting democratic out there. It's nice to see.

In an update to San Diego City Council’s attempt to ban medical marijuana, an ordinance which passed easily in council in March, it appears that local advocates have made something happen. Yep, San Diego 6 news is reporting that a San Diego medical marijuana dispensary petition has successfully gathered more than 46,000 signatures AGAINST the ordinance, meaning City Council has no choice but to listen to its constituents. A successful veto petition requires 31,000 signatures, in case you didn’t know, so it’s pleasing to see that these guys went well above the call of duty here.

If there is one thing about the medical marijuana debate, it’s that it has strong forces on BOTH sides of it. On one side, you have a lot of motivated medical patients looking to unlock themselves from the economic racketeering of Big Pharma, and on the other side, well, not really sure about that side. The idea that legal medical marijuana is bad seems to feature pretty stale arguments, while the pro side (fights crime by destroying the black market, creates revenues and jobs within the community, is by nature far less damaging than tobacco or alcohol) continues to have the logic of the deal sewn up. Of course, when have American politics ever been logical.

Still, glad to see the people standing up and using the system to fight City Council, as opposed to the usual vice-versa. San Diego as a bastion of democratic action? Who would’ve thunk it?