Council OKs smoking pot in WAMM tent – San Jose Mercury News
SANTA CRUZ — Medical marijuana patients will once again be allowed to smoke dope in San Lorenzo Park this Saturday, after city leaders temporarily lifted a smoking ban to allow for a festival celebrating the medicinal herb.The decision came after testimony from more than 20 patients who reasoned and pleaded with the Santa Cruz City Council to allow them to inhale their medication while partaking in Wo/Men’s Alliance for Medical Marijuana’s annual WAMMfest. Some accused council members of growing old and more conservative, while others said Santa Cruz was losing both its compassion and its weirdness.
The catch, however, is that the ban was not lifted for the entire park. Instead, those with a medical marijuana identification card only will be allowed to smoke inside a tent designated for that purpose.
Council members approved the proposal on a 5-1 vote, with Councilwoman Lynn Robinson voting against the measure and Mayor Ryan Coonerty absent.
Robinson said she does not like making exceptions to rules that the city requires everyone else to follow.
Imagine if you were in charge of a city park and there was a festival going on, but before anyone could enter, they were tested to see if they were on any painkillers like oxycodone or acetominophen, or on any mood stabilizers like Prozac or Xanax. And if they were on any of these drugs, they’re not allowed to attend.
Councilwoman Robinson believes that WAMM was asking for an exception to a rule that everyone else follows. But that rule was a rule against smoking in the park – tobacco or cannabis. Since there is no “medical tobacco”, then the ban was against “recreational smoking”.
WAMM didn’t ask for that; they asked that their members would be allowed to be and get medicated. Everyone else who goes to that park is allowed to be under the influence or take their legally-ingested medication; why should medical marijuana patients be any different? If a healthy person was at the event and got a headache, they’d be allowed to take an aspirin in plain view; why can’t the legal medical marijuana patient take their medicine?
Again, it’s that untenable dichotomy between “legal sick person” and “illegal healthy person” when it comes to marijuana, and the patients have to fight and scratch and beg to be allowed to medicate hidden from view in a tent, lest sensitive public eyes unwittingly see someone smoking weed. Until marijuana is legal for all, patients will continue to be “separate but equal” in public accomodations.
Yes, JD, that’s true. But then I have to get into my rant about how insane we’ve gotten about banning tobacco smoking everywhere…
I think there should be some room in a 52-week park schedule to have one weekend where the marijuana smokers can impose their second-hand toke on the park. I’d grant the same right to a group that wants to put on “Cigar Fest” or something.
Point taken. However, we must admit that smoking our medication is different from orally taking medication in a public park. Smoking discretely is one thing, but imposing our second-hand toke on others is just as rude as when cigarette smokers do it. So, why not smoke before the event? Or, imbibe in edibles there.
Then again, the idea of a tent in which to hot box with hundreds of others does not sound too bad to me either!
Cheers,
jd
I hope the city of Santa Cruz doesnt use the “tent” against the WAMM event next year by saying, “wide spread cannabis use was seen in the park” due to the medical tent and event. Thus, not allowing next years permit for the event to carry on.
Hmmmm this kinda sounds familiar…..