Please sign the White House petition to let Marc Emery complete his sentence in Canada
http://wh.gov/XXp9

Alcohol is significantly more harmful and more addictive than marijuana, while the prohibition on marijuana fuels criminal activity and funds organized crime. We need to contact our legislators and tell them to legalize marijuana like beer and wine.

So what do you do, close down the package stores, too? Driving and owning a car are responsibilities, not privileges. That's why there are legal documents such as licenses for this, and these can and should be taken away from folks that do not or cannot act responsibly behind the wheel. It has nothing to do with the location at which any substance that may alter driving ability is dispensed. We have a few pharmacies here in Watertown, too, such as CVS and the pharmacy at Target. Should these be closed down? I don't think so. I don't think the presence of a marijuana dispensary is going to corrupt the town. So far, package stores, bars, and restaurants that serve booze have not. In fact, many of these restaurants have fine food and attract business to the town.

We are worried about something fairly harmless as compared to the health risks from: The waitress at The New Yorker Diner wiping down the counter with a dirty rag then hand buttering the toast and touching glassware etc. with that same dirty hand or the cook using his hands to touch food after touching his face. I contacted the watertown health department inspector, but they cannot inspect the place when the diner is busy at night because they don't work late he tells me...PATHETIC!

With all of the rhetoric surrounding the marijuana debate, the concept most overlooked:

Freedom of the individual.

“…over himself, over his own body and mind, the individual is sovereign”.”
— from the essay On Liberty by John Stuart Mill

What happened to, "This is a FREE country"?

That is what we have been telling the rest of the world for decades.
Please, let us live up to it.

Lead by example.

After spending 5 years in Federal Prison for a marijuana offense,
I wrote:

Shoulda Robbed a Bank

No, it is not a treatise on disproportionate sentences.
I wrote about the escapades that led to my incarceration.
I admit, I had a great time.
No one was injured, no one was killed, firearms were not involved...there were no victims.

We were Americans pursuing happiness in our own way. Harming no one...nor their property.

That’s my contribution to helping point out just how ludicrous our pot laws truly are.
I would be honored by your review.

All card-carrying members of the DEA need to read: Shoulda Robbed a Bank
Here is one of its reviews:

5.0 out of 5 stars... If David Sedaris had written 'Catcher in the Rye'..this would be it, June 30, 2012

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Shoulda Robbed a Bank (Kindle Edition)

I have never smoked pot in my life...nor do I ever care to.
I read about this book in numerous Huffington Post comments. Thought I would read it because I know nothing about marijuana or the people involved with it. I am ecstatic that I did. Funny, Funny, Funny!!!
The chapters are like short stories. Stories about unloading boats with helicopters, close encounters with law enforcement, traveling through the jungles of South America. The chapter about the author's first time smoking marijuana made me feel like I was with him...coughing.
All of the characters were just a group of loveable, nice guys and girls. Not what I had been raised to believe...hysterical maniacs high on pot bent on death and mayhem. They were nothing like that.
If you have ever read any of David Sedaris' books, and like them...you will love Shoulda Robbed a Bank.
And the crazy things happening reminded me of Holden Caufield in 'Catcher in the Rye' and the way he staggered through life.
The way the words are put together are like nothing I have ever heard. I am sure I will use many of the sayings found in this book just to dazzle my friends. A terrific read. I love this book.

Personally I think this law is foolish and should have never been on the ballot.
But having said that..... What did the voters of Watertown say? Majority for or
majority against?

If the majority was for the law ( which I doubt) then Sideris should mind his own business and stop using his position as a minor politician in a small town to force
his personal edict on the will of the people he supposedly represents.

If this is the way it is, then why do we vote at all?

William,

Watertown voted 69% in favor of medical marijuana.

Dear Mr. Mark Sideris,
As an elected official you should respect the democratic process. Almost 69% of us Watertownies voted YES for medical marijuana with the full knowledge that a dispensary could end up in our town. Please do not try to undermine the will of the voters. And police chief Deveau should stick to police issues since this is now LEGAL in Massachusetts. Why don't you try shutting down all the liquor stores and bars in town since alchohol is much more dangerous to individuals and society than weed. Oh ya, they tried that once, it was called prohibition and it didn't work just like the drug war has been a complete unmitigated disaster. You are obviously stressed Mark. Maybe you should ask your doctor for a note so you can get some medical herb to calm yourself down!

A lot of pro-marijuana dispensary comments. Anyone agree with Mark Sideris that the town should prevent one from coming to Watetown?

That's true but still I think it is Marks responsibility to maintain the towns character. We have zoning laws in place to maintain neighborhoods' character-this isn't much different. Despite how the vote went I don't think most residents will be super happy to have pot shops in town. But we will see.

So what the other option? People who need it need to get it. If there is t a dispensary, the patients will be growing it in their homes and back yards. Sounds like an ignorant point of view frankly. Bars pose ten times the threat, then places are glorified garden ridge factories. They sell nontoxic plant life, hardly anything to worry about.

Joey, I'm just expressing my opinion as a Lifelong resident. Unfortunately it seems that when you express a differing viewpoint, people respond with rudeness and insults. I'm just trying to point out that each town has the right to decide whether or not to allow certain types of establishments...this may be one that Watertown residents don't want.

First people already drive and smoke, that isn't going to increase more people now may get caught. The medical law that was approved states that there is only 35 allowed and only so many per county. If there isn't a dispenserary in Watertown it won't stop patients from getting there prescription filled. The people voted for this!