HomeMy WebLinkAboutLetter received from Chris Sommers regarding the marijuana ordinance in eg0
Board of Supervisors Meeting-January 14, 2014 IF
101 4 ?Mit :,_
Chris Sommersof the 600 of Spe De
ots
Clerk puty
Members of the board, county staff,fellow citizens—good afternoon. I havr$ o en at the
previous three board meetings on the topic of the marijuana growers in Butte County. I've
consistently advocated a much more stringent ordinance to curb the negative impacts which
large marijuana grows are having here. Recent headlines should only further reinforce the dire
need to clamp down on large grows, the majority of which are for-profit.They foster a criminal
ecosystem which erodes our very safety.
It might interest folks to know of some of the personal side-effects of coming to these
meetings. It sheds some light on the character of these underworld types.The day after the
November board meeting, we had three strange occupied vehicles lurking near our residence,
nearly out of sight. You have to understand that there are no other houses within a mile and
the road shoulders are almost non-existent. Parked cars are usually broken down or suspicious.
These were the latter. Were we being checked out because of our joint appearance at the
supervisors meeting? Perhaps.
Two days after the December board meeting, my wife acquired a "follower" on her FaceBook
account. A simple web search revealed this person to be a rather notorious grower, well-known
to the authorities, with openly anarchist views, espousing the removal of government, starting
with law enforcement and supervisors. Simple web searches revealed his friends and
sympathizers,people who are frequently at odds with the law. Why is this person suddenly
stalking my wife? I guess our messages are getting across. I wonder who else here has felt like
they were being followed?
In my opinion,the pot advocates who have spoken here represent a very small fraction of the
grower crowd. These speakers have come forth and spoken in public on their own behalves.
Despite our different agendas and opinions, I respect their participation in the civic process. At
least they are willing to work within the system and operate in the daylight so to speak.
In contrast, the real trouble is caused by the countless underground growers who hide from
public eye, disrespect their neighbors, flaunt the law and create a nuisance; as well as by the
opportunists and predators who come here to prey upon them. You will not see many of them
at these meetings.
My point is, public opinion in favor of a lenient marijuana grow ordinance was manipulated by a
minority of players who represent a tiny slice of reality. I sincerely hope that the voters,
including all marijuana users, are now fully aware of the true picture—there are hordes of for-
profit growers who have no interest in medical users, or the welfare of Butte County residents.
(C , e IL , ,, -fr1 n
Do voters really want to encourage an armed and dangerous segment of society to thrive and
take up residence here?They shouldn't be swayed into blindly voting in favor of anything just
because it seems "pro marijuana."There is a growing cultural bias towards supporting any
action to legitimize pot without regard to the details or an orderly process. But it is the details
which will kill us.
Marijuana is a valuable contraband; it has a critical mass just like plutonium.You don't want too
much of it in once place or it will explode. It only takes 22 lbs of plutonium,the size of a
grapefruit, to make an atom bomb. Like plutonium,terrorists AKA armed robbers will try to
take pot by violent means for their own uses. It only takes a few pounds of pot to motivate a
bad guy to shoot someone in the face to steal their stash; or try to make honey-oil in a trailer
and start a fire.
Take it from someone who's fundamentally OK with pot: we don't need critical masses around
here. Being a pot enthusiast doesn't mean you have to relinquish your basic safety by voting
yes on anything which seems to be pro-pot. It is not cool, it is not smart,to blindly put your fate
in other people's hands just because you like pot.
Sometimes you have to move in careful steps to protect society as a whole. Even Colorado, the
test bed for legal sales of recreational marijuana, puts severe restrictions on growing. California
will probably head in that direction. But because the current state law is so vague, it is up to the
individual counties to carefully manage their local situations. We've seen what happened when
growers shaped the agenda. It is an ongoing disaster for everyone except growers. It is time to
correct the problem.
Thank you and keep up the good fight.