POT DEBATE ENTERS NEW DIMENSION

A California think tank is giving "New York State of Mind" a whole new meaning.

Amid the debate over marijuana, the Center for Cognitive Liberty & Ethics,
a nonprofit group devoted to the "right of each individual to think
independently and to use the full spectrum of his or her mind," has thrown
a new twist into the state's pot debate: Criminalizing even the
recreational use of marijuana is an assault on free speech and free thought.

A report by attorney Richard Glen Boire, a CCLE analyst, says anti-pot laws
are "equivalent to prior restraint on consciousness, an act even more
disfavored under the First Amendment than a prior restraint on speech."

Boire's report, sent to lawmakers, acknowledges the state's interest in
regulating people's behavior if it presents "a clear and present danger to
others," but said there is "no legitimate interest, and no authority to
limit the ranges of and types of consciousness that a citizen is permitted
to experience."

The report comes as lawmakers are considering a bill to legalize pot for
medical use, not as far as CCLE would like to go, but "an act of compassion
for sick and injured people," says the group. In the war of words over how
much taxpayers are paying for the war of words over the state budget, it
seems more and more players are using public resources to be heard.

[REMAINDER OF ARTICLE DEALING WITH NON-DRUG POLICY TOPICS NOT ARCHIVED]