IT'S TIME TO TOUGHEN POT LAWS

FEEL-GOOD THEORY is rubbing up against reality. San Francisco is
finally cracking down on its runaway pot-club industry.

Dispelling the clouds of wishful thinking has taken far too long. The
medical-marijuana cause and the city's trusting belief system have
needed a wake-up call for months.

After initial jousting, Mayor Gavin Newsom and city supervisors, with
board member Ross Mirkarimi doing the heavy lifting, are close to
agreement on ending a chaotic, even dangerous, pot scene.

San Francisco, along with the rest of California, voted in favor of
the palliative use of marijuana as a painkiller. But this humane
intention can be subverted too easily, a fact proven by the 35-odd
clubs operating here with no limits.

After months of talks, the mayor and supervisors are close to
agreement on a package of rules that should knock down this number,
tops in the state.

The new plan will limit location and operations and provide city
oversight. For starters, medical-marijuana outlets can't be near
schools and residential areas. Because this restriction will push pot
clubs to the far reaches of the city, a buyer will be allowed up to a
half-pound of weed per purchase to save on repeated trips. Think eight
one-ounce baggies per visit, an amount that shouldn't inconvenience
any buyer.

If that rule sounds generous, consider a tougher one. A club operator
will be run through the full made-in-San Francisco regulatory gantlet
of a half-dozen red-tape agencies, departments, hearings and
disability access requirements to obtain an operating permit. This
includes a police check on pot-club employees and a fire inspection if
customers want to light up on the premises.

The general effect, it's predicted, should shave down the number of
clubs. If that happens, there should be fewer annoyed neighbors,
concerned police and sidewalk drug dealers stocking up outside pot
clubs. At the same time, the city's 8,000 registered pot patients (can
there really be that many?) will have a chance to buy their preferred
painkiller.

Set against all this rule-making is a larger reality. Marijuana is
still illegal, at least under federal law which makes no allowances
for medical use. The city's tolerant and humane approach assumes a
legal world that doesn't exist.

In June, federal drug authorities reminded the city of this basic fact
when teams raided three outlets, seized 9,300 plants and indicted 19.
The message was clear: Flouting the law brings consequences.

Now that San Francisco is moving to clean up its act, it will be
interesting to see if the plan will get a fair chance to work. A drug
that soothes suffering for so many patients should be available.
Alongside this belief, the city should set clear boundaries on pot
selling. If the laws prove too lax or aren't enforced conscientiously,
then the trouble will continue.