MEASURE G WON'T LEGALIZE MARIJUANA USE

Proponents and opponents of Measure G can agree on one thing - it won't
make marijuana legal.

"It's illegal now and it will be illegal after the measure" passes,"
District Attorney Norm Vroman said during a panel discussion on Measure G
Thursday night at the Ukiah Civic Center.

The discussion included two proponents and two opponents of the measure,
which directs county officials to make arrests and prosecutions of personal
marijuana use a low priority. Possession of 25 or fewer marijuana plants is
considered personal-use amounts under the measure.

The proponents of Measure G were former county Supervisor John Pinches and
Dr. Peter Keegan. The opponents were Ukiah Unified School District
Superintendent Gary Brawley and Anderson Valley Advertiser publisher Bruce
Anderson.

Vroman and Sheriff Tony Craver participated in the forum to provide law
enforcement's point of view on the measure's legality.

While he signed the petition to put Measure G on the ballot, Craver said he
has concerns about its likely passage.

He said he worries people will start growing marijuana, thinking it's
legal, if the measure passes.

"That will create problems for us," Craver said.

He said law enforcement officers are sworn to uphold the laws of the state,
which means they will continue to arrest people growing marijuana unless
it's for medicinal use, which is legal in California, more or less.

Vroman and Craver said the arrest and prosecution of small "mom and pop"
cultivators already is a low priority because their departments have
neither the manpower nor the funds to pursue them.

Law enforcement officials don't seek out small producers, but if they come
across them, they are required by law to arrest them, Craver said.

Vroman said his office currently is handling around 90 marijuana-related cases.

Nevertheless, Keegan argued that Measure G is a first step in the process
of legalizing marijuana.

"Let's start to make the journey," he said.

Keegan said marijuana is a relatively harmless drug compared with alcohol
and cigarettes.

Used in moderation, it can give a "pleasant sense of well-being," he said.

And yes, "uncontrolled giggling has been reported," Keegan said.

He said he's also not concerned about teenagers using marijuana at parties
as long as they don't smoke and drive.

Used in moderation, it shouldn't affect their grades, Keegan said.

"In fact, you can smoke marijuana and be the president of the United
States," he said, in reference to President Clinton's admission that he
tried marijuana.

"You mean if you don't inhale," Brawley quipped, noting that was part of
the confession.

Anderson said Keegan is misguided.

Comparing marijuana with alcohol or other drugs "misses the point
entirely," he said.

"It's not a harmless drug," Anderson said.

He said students don't need any more "stupefying" chemicals in their lives.

"We don't need those kinds of drugs when we already have a government,"
Anderson said.

Brawley agreed, saying students shouldn't use any drugs, including cigarettes.

Anderson said he's also angry the Green Party, to which he belongs, is
promoting a measure that has no legal standing and is full of illegal and
erroneous directives.

He said the party should instead be working on efforts that have teeth and
that involve environmental issues.

"People were clearly under the influence when they drafted this
initiative," Anderson said.

Pinches said he doesn't like the idea of kids using any drugs, but he
supports the legalization of marijuana because prohibition has only served
to drive up prices, making it a big, dangerous business.

In the last 30 years, "we've driven up the price of marijuana higher than
the price of gold," he said.

The Attorney General last week, however, said the price of choice marijuana
is around $4,000 a pound, $400 a pound less than gold.

Pinches said the price would drop if prosecutions stopped.

He also said the money saved by not chasing after marijuana would be better
spent on schools and hospitals.

Pinches said rednecks who oppose marijuana's legalization should think of
it in terms of their right to own guns.

"The right to smoke a joint in your house should be a basic constitutional
right," he said.