MARIJUANA VOTE SENDS MESSAGE

Denver's approval of a ballot measure to legalize adult possession of
small amounts of marijuana isn't really going to decriminalize the
drug in our city, but it sends a simple message to federal and state
authorities: it wouldn't be reefer to madness to finally debate and
resolve the issue.

In the meantime, local police will enforce state laws against
possession of marijuana.

One of the seeming ironies of Election Day was that while buttoned-
down Denver was approving the marijuana measure, voters in laid back
Telluride narrowly defeated a proposal to make marijuana possession
the town marshal's lowest law-enforcement priority.

The Post urged a "no" vote on Denver's Initiative 100 because we worry
marijuana can be an entry level to harder drugs, and anyway, until
federal and state marijuana laws are amended, local legalization is
futile. And we were put off by the proponents' misleading campaign
pitch - marijuana as a way to reduce domestic violence.

The Post supports ending the 70-year-old federal ban on marijuana and
instead strictly regulating and taxing its sale. We think scarce
public resources could be put to better use fighting violent crime or
treating substance abuse. But that can't happen unless federal laws
are relaxed to allow states to regulate marijuana as they see fit.

Seattle, Oakland and a few college towns already have passed laws
making marijuana possession the lowest law-enforcement priority.
Oakland citizens also voted to require the city to develop a plan to
license and tax the sale, use and cultivation of marijuana.

The war on drugs has been as dismal a failure as Prohibition, which
banned alcohol from 1920 to 1933 but didn't keep Americans from
drinking and only increased disrespect for the law. That's not to say
we don't have some concerns about the effects of marijuana use. We
wouldn't want someone who had just lit up to get behind the wheel of a
vehicle any more than somebody who's had too much to drink.

Initiative aside, lighting up on a Denver street corner could be
costly: Colorado state law makes possession of an ounce or less a
Class 2 petty offense, punishable by a fine of up to $100.

Mason Tvert, executive director of initiative proponents Safer
Alternatives for Enjoyable Recreation, says the group will work for a
statewide marijuana initiative. Alas, as long as federal law bans
marijuana, that, too, would be just another telegram to Washington.
The message in all this is that it is time for American society to
tackle this issue and change the laws at the federal and state levels
to better reflect police priorities and contemporary reality.