GOODY TWO SHOES: The Proposition of Unintended Consequences
In the 10 years since Californians voted in Proposition 215 to become the first state to grant residents the right to use marijuana for medicinal purposes, more than 250 dispensaries, delivery services and patient collectives - 120 of them just in Los Angeles County - have sprouted like weeds to service the 200,000 tokers with doctor's notes, reports the Los Angeles Times.
But the groundbreaking Compassionate Use Act was fuzzy on exactly how Californians would get the drug, prompting “cannabis capitalist” Kevin Reed, 32, to open up a 300-square-foot San Francisco storefront that, “on a good day” saw “$30,000 in business … walk through the black, steel-gated front door.”
Oddly enough, while owners of the stately Victorian homes in the area liked the idea of people having access to medical marijuana – getting dosed in their neighborhood, not so much:
They grumbled about customers double-parking, blocking driveways, flipping off homeowners. Aromatic smoke wafted. …
Neighbors watched some youthful customers emerge and share their wares with friends, high-fiving all around. A few reportedly harassed some eighth-grade schoolgirls. One patient was robbed at gunpoint. Crime worries grew. …
Neighborhood critics said they were all for cannabis compassion, but not this free-for-all. Proposition 215 encouraged government planning for safe and affordable distribution, but it didn't mention pot clubs.
"No reasonable person would have gathered that they were voting on setting up marijuana stores back in 1996," said
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