Governor Schwarzenegger Signs Bill to Reduce Marijuana Penalties in California

[kpete]

Source: Salem News

Oct-01-2010 01:46printcomments
Governor Schwarzenegger Signs Bill to Reduce Marijuana Penalties in California
Bonnie King Salem-News.com

The new bill changes marijuana possession of less than an ounce to an infraction.
Schwarzenegger marijuana
Salem-News.com

(SACRAMENTO) - From California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, on September 30, 2010.

To the Members of the California State Senate:

I am signing Senate Bill 1449.

This bill changes the crime of possession of less than an ounce of marijuana from a misdemeanor punishable only by a $100 fine to an infraction punishable by a $100 fine. Under existing law, jail time cannot be imposed, probation cannot be ordered, nor can the base fine exceed $100 for someone convicted of this crime.

I am opposed to decriminalizing the possession and recreational use of marijuana and oppose Proposition 19, which is on the November ballot.

Unfortunately, Proposition 19 is a deeply flawed measure that, if passed, will adversely impact California’s businesses without bringing in the tax revenues to the state promised by its proponents.

Read more: http://www.salem-news.com/articles/october012010/schwarzenegger-marijuana.php

[PoliticAverse]

1. Arnold's reaction to the bill...

[Kolesar]

6. arnold%20smoking%20weed.jpg

wow. What was that from?

[PoliticAverse]

7. Pumping Iron

From the documentary movie _Pumping Iron_:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pqep14L2f7k&has_verified=1

[Kolesar]

9. Thanks, I will watch it later

No Youtube in the cube.

[Politicalboi]

35. LOL!

That's when pot was goooood! You can see it in his eyes.

[alfredo]

55. At that time body builders were heavy into PCP. One of my

friends was a top competitor in the sport, knew all the top people including Arnold. He told me about the use of PCP and that it was widespread in the gyms. So that doobie might have been dusted. They called it Angel Dust and it really messed you up.

Muscle heads really partied hard.

[j420norcal]

33. HA HA Classic

I saw the tag for this when reading the main post, and even before I scrolled down I knew it was going to be this picture.

Nice

[ixion]

2. "will adversely impact California’s businesses"

Yeah, the ones who profit off of marijuana being illegal. :grr:

[pattmarty]

24. AND, liquor.

[ixion]

29. Big Alcohol is a Big Member of the aforementioned group...one of the biggest, in fact

who consistently lobby for continued marijuana prohibition.

[ensho]

3. super, first time I've given him props.

nt

[Kolesar]

5. The other California issue this year

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=115x259676

[reggie the dog]

4. cool

just a month and a half before it becomes fully legal

[PoliticAverse]

8. Not quite

It will still be illegal at the Federal Level.

[krabigirl]

10. Meh..

[L0oniX]

11. Well that will give the FBI something else to do besides busting anti war protesters.

[PoliticAverse]

13. It's the DEA and they're already busy at it...

http://dailycaller.com/2010/09/13/speak-no-evil-dea-doj-stay-mum-on-medical-marijuana-raids/print/#ixzz0zPnGmPFi

"Despite campaign promises to the contrary, the Department of Justice under President Barack Obama and Attorney General Eric Holder hasn’t stopped raiding marijuana dispensaries operating in states where sale of the drug is legal for medical purposes. But the DOJ has demonstrated one marked change now that it’s under Democratic control: The department has stopped publicizing medical marijuana raids, both by requesting that more cases be sealed under court order and by refusing to distribute press releases."

[uncle ray]

14. you quote an inaccurate statement.

it was not promised that ALL raids would stop in medical states, it was promised that no raids would happen on those operating within their state's laws, and that is exactly what has happened. much to the dismay of the conservative types around colorado who want all the green crosses shut down. the rhetoric has not just changes, so has their actions. you cannot go anywhere in Denver or Colorado Springs without seeing the effect of a major shift in policy. there are approximately 1000 medical marijuana related businesses registered with the state and operating openly in colorado right now. that was not the case two years ago.

[earcandle]

56. Fuck! That is terrible. What do they have against pot? It is not as harmful as alcohol.

And doesn't make people mean.  It mellows them out.  It should
be prescribed for some folks. Should replace some meds. 

That is why, huh?  They don't want to lose a piece of the
revenue streams from their pharmaceuticals. 

There is enough of all of it to go around for everyone.  

[Mike Marble]

16. Yeah. Let's see the DEA arrest 3 million California pot smokers.

[indimuse]

12. yaaaahoooooo!!

KNR!

[Drops_not_Dope]

15. LEGALIZE

NOW

[PoliticAverse]

17. Tipping point

We seem to be at a tipping point right now.

[David Zephyr]

18. The only thing criminal about marijuana are the laws regarding marijuana.

Kudos to Arnold on this.

[proteus_lives]

19. Arnie does things I like and things I hate.

Just like when he was in the movies.

[katty]

20. I am signing senate bill 1449: done! now everyone pls light up

[dogday]

21. Smoke em if you got em but it will cost ya if the state finds out.

Still trying to generate some revenue off of pot, but this does make it somewhat like a parking ticket.

One thing I did not see is whether or not the judge can order drug counseling? just curious :shrug:

[defendandprotect]

22. What's changing this right wing horror into a good guy .... ??? What's going on ????

[krabigirl]

41. He lives in Santa Monica. It's not like he ever was an uber-fundie or something.

[defendandprotect]

44. He wasn't???? Plus the homophobic "girlie-man" ... and his treatment of women ...???

Also fond of Nazi 'chick' accessories ...

Arnold Schwarzenegger appeared on the Time Magazine Cover (June 25, 2007 issue) with Michael Bloomberg, the Jewish mayor of New York, wearing a Nazi chic belt buckle with a symbol that resembles a certain Nazi SS insignia, the SS Totenkopf.


Schwarzenegger loves the Nazi look of his belt buckle and how it provokes people when he dresses like a Nazi in the International media. He knew it produced a minor scandal when he wore it on the cover of Time Magazine. As if to make sure that we know that he knows that it symbolizes Nazism, he wore it again nine months later in the March 2008 issue of Esquire Magazine.


This is an English translation of a Falter Article about Arnold Schwarzenegger wearing a Totenkopf (Death’s Head) Ring on a trip to his home town in Graz, Austria. Falter is a weekly news magazine published in Vienna. This is not a professional translation, but gives you a good idea about what took place there. That he wore a Totenkopf Ring to apparently provoke the politicians in his home town, with whom he had had a dispute over enforcement of the death penalty, suggests that he knows full well that the Totenkopf can be perceived as a Nazi symbol.


Schwarzenegger’s Father, a Brown Shirt and Nazi

A son is, of course, not guilty of the sins of the father. But most fathers do pass some values and attitudes to their sons and it is worthwhile to consider what kind of attitudes Arnold Schwarzenegger’s father had that the son may have learned from him. USA Today reported here that his father applied to join the Nazi party on March 1, 1938, about two weeks before Austria was annexed and while it was still illegal in Austria. There is some confusion about when his application was accepted. It may not have been accepted until 1941, about the time he joined the Wehrmacht.However nearly a year after he applied to join the Nazi party, he joined the Brown Shirts (or SA), also called Nazi Storm Troopers. That means he was not just a member of the Nazi party, who may have joined for social reasons. No one joined the Brown Shirts, just because they wanted a better career or to help feed their family. They were the street fighters that fought opponents of the Nazi Dictatorship in the streets and rounded up “Undesirables” to be shipped off to concentration camps. It means that he was a fanatical supporter of the Nazi cause, who wanted to actively support the takeover at that time of Austria by the Nazi Reich and the elimination of Jews and others considered to be “undesirables by the Nazis.

And, then again ....

Ethics group named Schwarzenegger one of America's worst governors

In its April 2010 report, ethics watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington named Schwarzenegger one of 11 "worst governors" in the United States because of various ethics issues throughout Schwarzenegger's term as governor.<58><59><60> Some of Schwarzenegger's ethics lapses cited by the watchdog include:

- Used non-profit and campaign funds for personal benefit
- Built cozy relationships with special interests
- Created conflicts of interest by accepting a consulting position and doing state business with a company staffed by his former campaign aides
- Provided state jobs to friends with dubious qualifications
- Allegedly pressured government employees to change outcomes
- Did not provide adequate leadership to the state
- Vetoed bills to improve transparency in hospitals at the behest of powerful special interests<61>

[Xithras]

42. Gropenfurher has never been a "right wing horror"

Politically, he's what's called a "liberal Republican", which puts him a nosehair to the right of a Blue Dog Dem.

Practically, Arnold is conservative on business issues and taxes, but tends to be a moderate on social and environmental issues. I can tell you that most environmental groups focusing on in-state issues have actually been happier with Ahnold than they were with his predecessor. Musclebrain also formally opposed Prop 8, and has steadfastly refused to fight in support of it (conservative groups even sued him to try and force him to fight for it).

My real position on Der Guvnah has always been summed up simply as: "We could have done a lot better, but we could have done a lot worse."

In this election, I'm aiming for better.

[defendandprotect]

45. Don't agree at all with that rosy portral of Arnold .... especially if you

consider his treatment of women -- and his "girlie-man" comments --

No -- I think he's been weighing the odds of progressing further in politics in America

and doesn't see a GOP future -- therefore, the gradual slide to the left --

But, overall, I'd say he's a snake of the worst kind -- willing to do anything to become

"famous" -- or written up in history books -- according to his own statements.


PLUS ....

Ethics group named Schwarzenegger one of America's worst governors

In its April 2010 report, ethics watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington
named Schwarzenegger one of 11 "worst governors" in the United States because of various ethics issues throughout Schwarzenegger's term as governor.<58><59><60> Some of Schwarzenegger's ethics lapses cited by the watchdog include:

- Used non-profit and campaign funds for personal benefit
- Built cozy relationships with special interests
- Created conflicts of interest by accepting a consulting position and doing state business with a company staffed by his former campaign aides
- Provided state jobs to friends with dubious qualifications
- Allegedly pressured government employees to change outcomes
- Did not provide adequate leadership to the state
- Vetoed bills to improve transparency in hospitals at the behest of powerful special interests<61>

[Xithras]

47. Lol! I never said he was a liberal.

Or that he was honest, for that matter. A "Liberal Republican" is still a right winger, he's just on the left edge of their range. He's still to the right of Blue Dogs, and makes Blanche Lincoln look liberal by comparison. He's simply a moderate on social and environmental issues.

But some here have tried to equate him to a teabagger, which is really kinda silly (not in this discussion, but in many other threads over the years). His politics are nowhere near that far right.

[defendandprotect]

49. "Gropenfuhrer" ..... ???

Seemed an acknowledgment of his right wingism while at the same time denying it --

Many females have described his behavior as atrocious --

A T-bagger isn't quite a Nazi, but certainly we've watched Arnhold flirting with Nazi

trappings -- in important settings like national magazine covers.

Some say he's offered a Nazi salute in one of his body building photos.

[pattmarty]

23. Hey, what the hell can you expect from a Republican governor?.............

...........I don't want to sing this guys praises, but he at least is fucking "reasonable" on a lot of issues. I HOPE prop 19 passes AND I don't even live in Calif. The benefit to the rest of the country will be immense. PLUS, if a lot of these crazy motherfuckers "light up" this country will be a lot better off.

[Lint Head]

25. Come on Arnud you are a Democrat! Come on over, the water's fine.

[PoliticAverse]

28. "Arnold Considered Party Switch"

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-02-23/arnold-considered-party-switch/

[LittleGirl]

31. You are so "a Democrat Arnold !!!!" Come on, Man

Admit it. You are a damn Democrat from Austria. You know it, I know it, just admit now. You have LEFT THE Republican party and gone to the BEST SIDE.

Be good Arnold. Keep it up. You are one of us.
The water is fine.

[SteveM]

26. When one side dominates on a social/culture war issue, you can afford...

to make favorable reforms; the other side (Democrats) have been so cowed on this issue, they wouldn't have the credibility or power to reform the law. I mean, you don't wanna be known as soft-on-drugs, do you?

The GOP has considerable potential to secure younger "independent" voters by using the same issue they pounded Democrats with, only in a different manner.

[PoliticAverse]

27. Nixon

"Only Nixon could go to China".

[SteveM]

30. Why, he certainly was not "soft on mari-, er, communism."

[RainDog]

50. Nixon could have decriminalized more than 30 years ago...and should have

but he wanted to make himself look like a "law and order" candidate and he hated the "Jews" he blamed for recommending decriminalization and he hated the anti-war demonstrators that smoked it, and, apparently, he hated the Vietnam Veterans who used it to cope with the aftereffects of that imperial crusade.

So, Nixon, fuck you very much for 30 plus years of bullshit. It's nice to see another Californian undo some of the damage Nixon (and Reagan after him) did to this nation.

CA - vote YES on 19!

Make History!!

[AllyCat]

32. Well, it's a start.

[Dark]

34. This is probably a stop gap to decrease support for Prop 19. "See, we already made it virtually

legal. Why not just leave it at that."

Bull shit. LEGALIZE it

[Jackpine Radical]

39. up. I posted the same thought without seeing your post.

[Dark]

52. It happens. I think we're right.

Legalizing marijuana is the first step to true drug law reform.

[glitch]

53. Likewise for his health care reforms. They know Brown won't veto single payer

little pre-emption. Looks like Arnie doesn't think Meg will win.

[Ikonoklast]

36. I'm going long on Twinky and Cheetos futures.

=Profit!

[Politicalboi]

37. Yippie Skippie

Here is the Cowboy Ahhnold in his first Amereikan mooovie

[martymar64]

40. Ann Margaret

yeah!

[Jackpine Radical]

38. This seems to be a ploy to undermine Prop 19.

It won't work.

I'd give odds on P19 passing.

[Xithras]

43. I wouldn't bet money on Prop 19 passing. It's really too close to call.

The last numbers I saw on it put support at 52%, but the "Undecided" group was at 7% and there was a 4% margin of error. "Undecided" voters, statistically, tend to be older and middle class, two groups that have moderate voting records. It's likely that a majority of that 7% will end up on the "No" side on voting day.

Prop 19, at this point, really is too close to call.

[defendandprotect]

46. Also depends on whether or not you're all voting on computers or have your votes

counted by computers!!

Meanwhile, elites will have a special interest in keeping the Drug Wars going --

[Mike Marble]

51. The polls have pretty consistently shown it leading.

But only a couple have it over 50%, and that's a scary sign.

I'm kind of counting on some "unlikely voters" showing up next month. Hell, people showed up during the primary election wanting to vote for it!

[Bonobo]

48. Wow, he should tell our POTUS how good it feels not to be a total hypocrite on the issue! nt

[TexasObserver]

54. recommend

[earcandle]

57. I hope it all passes and the Feds get on the same page with the people.

Aren't the fed and the state supposed to duke it on and then
inform the people?  Why do people need to live with two
different laws?  I think this is unconstitutional that the
feds can arrest us for something the state condones.  It
doesn't seem right.

On a good note:  I am glad the governor understands his
constituents and their preferences.  Now figure out how to
stop the feds from acting like this, please. Or will this be
an excuse to bring in the AIF? 

Yuk...hope not. 

[Name removed]

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