OUNCE OF PREVENTION?

The proposal to decriminalize marijuana has an unlikely backer: a
board member of one of the state's biggest auto insurers.

Attorney Tom Kiley, one of the top proponents of Question 2, is a
board member for Arbella Insurance. Opponents say the proposal, which
would make possession of an ounce of pot punishable by a fine, will
lead to more high drivers.

Kiley denied sending a mixed message. "I don't see any potential
conflict issues there at all," he said. "The law that I wrote does
nothing to change the way we deal with people operating under the
influence of marijuana."

Cape & Islands District Attorney Michael O'Keefe, a foe of the
decriminalization effort, thinks otherwise. "The idea of having
someone high on marijuana and driving an automobile is simply an
invitation to disaster," he said.

In addition to writing the law, Kiley's law firm has been paid
$33,000 to work for Question 2 by the Committee for Sensible
Marijuana Policy, records show.

Booze Ad Gets Booed

The race between state Rep. Paul Kujawski (D-Webster) and his
Republican opponent, Kevin Kuros, has turned nasty with the surfacing
of an anonymous mailing mocking Kujawski's high-profile 2004
drunken-driving bust.

The mailer, which Kuros denies having a hand in, features a red fire
hydrant with these words: "Even dogs know where its appropriate to
relieve themselves. But State Representative Paul Kujawski, well . . ."

On the other side, the mailer reports on the DUI bust, during which
Kujawski was allegedly urinating in front of a cop.

The flyer, which was mailed across the district, says it is "not
authorized by any candidate or political committee." It has a smiling
picture of the lawmaker with a bubble above him saying: "Everyone has
a few too many sometimes."

"I find it offensive. I find it insulting. And I find it cowardly,"
Kujawski told the Worcester Telegram. "And I'm going to hold my
opponent directly responsible."

Kuros told the paper he had nothing to do with it the flyer and
called it "way out of bounds."