U-T WRITERS SHOULD SPARK UP

We can't let the Union-Tribune's Tuesday editorial on the city's proposed
medical marijuana guidelines go without commentary.

Suggesting that the city should shelve the guidelines until research tells
us definitively that marijuana has medicinal value ignores the available
data-anecdotal and otherwise-that already tells us it does. It's nothing
more than a tactic aimed at further stalling full implementation of Prop.
215, the state's voter-approved medical marijuana law.

We're pleased that City Council on Tuesday finally made the guidelines law,
but we're disappointed that Councilmembers Scott Peters and Charles Lewis
forced Councilmember Toni Atkins to add language barring ill minors from
benefitting from medicinal marijuana. That was a blatant cave-in to the
hysterical people in the audience at Tuesday's meeting who fear
implementation of Prop. 215 will turn their children into raving lunatic
criminals.

As for the U-T's editorial writers, CityBeat recommends they get together,
put some nice jazz in the CD player-perhaps some Miles Davis or John
Coltrane-role a couple of fatties, chill out and sample what they're so
fearful of. The likely result is some far more rational editorials on the
topic.