A SIMPLE ANSWER TO POT CONFUSION

There is one sure-fire way to end all the confusion over conflicting
marijuana laws. Legalize it.

Sammamish just placed a moratorium on collective medical marijuana
growing operations because the state and the feds have different ideas
about what should be allowed and they don't want to be caught in the
middle. It was a prudent response to a confusing situation.

Meanwhile King County has decided not to bother with any sort of
regulation. So Sammamish residents -- with the proper medical
documentation -- can head over to a friend's house in, say, Klahanie
and grow all the pot they want.

Whether or not they can bring it back into the city becomes a bit of a
grey area.

All of this is just absurd.

In 1992, "inhaling" was an important distinction that caused a ruckus
for then-candidate Bill Clinton. In 2008, Barack Obama admitted he
inhaled and nobody cared anymore.

We've come a long way in popular opinion and its time for the laws to
catch up.

The arguments for legalizing have all been made ad nauseam, but some
are worth repeating. Prohibition doesn't work, nor will it. Marijuana
is available to anyone who wants it and prohibition creates a black
market. Licensing and regulation could improve safety, free law
enforcement for more important tasks and generate tax revenue.

Contrary to anti-marijuana propaganda, it's not a gateway drug. Some
lives have been ruined by it, yes, but making it illegal didn't stop
that from happening. Legalizing it might allow people who need
addiction help to seek treatment without fear of prosecution.

And for the majority, smoking marijuana is nothing more than a
recreational pastime. Today's retirees came of age in the 60s, and if
they didn't smoke a joint then, they probably have friends who did.
Few are potheads today.

The incremental steps toward legalization have created a patchwork of
confusing and contradictory laws. Citizens are left in the middle,
with their ability to smoke dependant on which side of a municipal
boundary they happen to be standing on.

Just legalize it already.