Say it ain’t so Jose! I came across an item on Facebook tonight, which you can see in the graphic above, indicating that our favorite Assemblyman, Jose Solorio, is supporting the campaign against Prop. 19, called Public Safety First, which proposes to regulate and tax cannabis sales.
Prop. 19 would pour millions into California’s empty coffers. More importantly, it would be a first step in ending the drug war that has killed over 23,000 people in Mexico and put so many minorities in jails here in the U.S.
Check out this quote from the Drug Policy Alliance:
Although African Americans comprise only 12.2 percent of the population and 13 percent of drug users, they make up 38 percent of those arrested for drug offenses and 59 percent of those convicted of drug offenses causing critics to call the war on drugs the “New Jim Crow.” The higher arrest rates for African Americans and Latinos do not reflect a higher abuse rate in these communities but rather a law enforcement emphasis on inner city areas where drug use and sales are more likely to take place in open-air drug markets where treatment resources are scarce.
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Well! Good thing our punk-ass, mealy-mouthed politicians won’t be MAKING this decision, but just implementing it.
That’s why we still need the initiative process, guys like Solorio (and most of the legislature) sometimes need to be dragged kicking and screaming into the future, by We the People.
Gotta keep the “mota homegrown and break that Mexi cartel….eh carnal?
Thumbs down Solorio! Keeping cannabis criminalized just allows for the disproportionate imprisonments of Latinos/Blacks and keeps Prison-Industrial Profits healthy.
gabriel,
Agreed. It is disappointing. I wonder how the other elected Dems in the OC will handle this issue?
There aren’t any others. Who, Lou Correa?
I should say there aren’t any others, YET. We know Melissa is on the right side on this.
Vern,
Fox has not been good on this issue so far. I would expect Phu to be OK on this issue. Not so sure about Krom.
We are talking about marijuana decriminalization, are we not?
As far as I know, Melissa is the only major-party candidate in the county to come out in favor of it. Most won’t touch it, it seems too risky. So, I’m not sure how she has “not been good.”
I realize you’re a Tharp fan, but facts are facts…
Vern, In our debate last spring, Melissa came out AGAINST legalization. Has she changed her mind?
Ah – is this the distinction between “legalization” and “decriminalization?” Maybe we are talking oranges and tangerines. Those words are often used interchangeably.
I think we can say: Debbie is for legalization. Melissa is for decriminalization but not full legalization, which is what Prop 19 does. I think Jose is implying he’s against any change at all. But we’re all using these two words too loosely.
Both Debbie and Melissa back Prop 19.
Since it will be opposed by the CCOPA,(Prison Guards Union) the most powerful lobby in the State plus, all of Law enforcement, the medical establishment and many business and education groups. I would not expect to see any support by any elected, there might be a few across the State that may but in Orange County good luck
The majority of the voters may end up passing this and there will be a protracted court fight to follow. Most of the groups both on the Left and on the Right that have lots of cash to put into campaigns stand to lose either income or jobs if this passes.
I’m glad she changed her mind, Vern. She came out sounding pretty firmly against it in the spring. I don’t see that as flip flopping, I see it as her seeing common sense and support her decision wholeheartedly.
I still think you should vote for me, Vern. 😉
C’mon Jose, rescind your support for the “no” on the prop. It’s healthy for Californians.
Another pawn for the Drug Warriors. Representatives from major political parties have blood on their hands as a result of this 40 year domestic policy failure known as the Drug War.
If Prop 19 passes, Solorio will flip flop on this issue just like any Democrat or Republican who panders to the “refeer madenss” cabal. By the way Jose, drug dealers don’t ID.
From what I hear, Dana Rohrbacher may back Prop 19. If that happens, watch for heads to explode from all over the spectrum. Doubt he will, but it may make things interesting since he’s been somewhat 420 friendly with his support for MMJ.
Yeah, Crazy Dana – how can such a stoner also be so evil.
That’s the only time, by the way, that Rethugs break with their Party’s puritan orthodoxy – when an issue affects them or their families personally. See: Nancy Reagan and Alzheimers/stemcell; Arlen Specter and Hodgkins/stemcell; Dick Cheney and gay rights (cuz of his less-evil daughter); and Dana with the mota.
Vern. Here’s an interesting Internet comment:
The California NAACP recently endorsed Prop 19, “citing dramatic racial disparities in marijuana arrests.”
Vern.
A trip down memory lane. OC Register.
MISSION VIEJO – Authorities are calling it the largest pot bust in Orange County history.
Somehow, 18,000-20,000 marijuana plants grew undiscovered in the shadow of multimillion-dollar homes in the Stoneridge Estates, a gated community that borders O’Neill Regional Park.
Note: This is the gated community where Frank Ury lives.
There goes our 2010 campaign funding.
MOTHER LODE: An Orange County Sheriff’s investigator gathers an armload of confiscated pot. A department helicopter transported the cut plants to detectives waiting to bag and process the evidence.
LEONARD ORTIZ, THE REGISTER
Authorities discovered the pot farm Monday during a routine helicopter flyover and began ripping out the plants on Tuesday and Wednesday.
The growers had tapped into the homeowners association main water line, running an extensive irrigation system throughout the canyon to water the plants.
Orange County sheriff’s deputies found plants in seven to eight parcels, some as large as half a football field.
“This could be part of a larger cartel based on the sophistication of the irrigation system,” sheriff’s spokesman Jim Amormino said. “This is not a Mickey Mouse operation.”
Don’t really care for Dana on his other issues, but the widepsread reaction to his potential support and endorsement of Prop 19 would be interesting and fun to see. I’m not going to hold my breath to expect any support from him, but to watch the state Republican Party showing feigned disdain along with some of the Democratic drug warriors is worth the price of admission alone.
Having been around a number of stoners, Dana is the exception rather than the rule. Most stoners I know are rather peaceful and inert when they indulge in their product. If Dana was nearby, I’d watch my stash very closely. It would be interesting to do a documentary on closet stoners or drug abusers in Congress who support the Drug War. Kind of akin to the theme of “Outrage” where they profiled closeted gay members of Congress who vote against LGBT rights legislation.