We've been all over the marijuana clinic story here in LA. And it's nice to know we're not alone.
Newsweek features a Web exclusive story: "The Wild West of Weed: How Los Angeles became overrun with pot shops, and how it's all about to end." It profiles a man portrayed as a genuinely compassionate pot shop proprietor, and focuses on the controversy over the spread of cannabis clinics and the budding (excuse me) effort to shut them down.
At the Citywatch blog, Diana L. Chapman makes an argument for legalizing pot. She thinks the City Attorney and the County DA should focus on more pressing issues, rather than devoting resources to shutting down medical marijuana clinics.
And at OpposingViews, an uncredited writer for the Oakland-based Marijuana Policy Project concludes that LA District Attorney Steve Cooley's plan will boost profits of the Mexican drug cartels.
UPDATE: The Sunday New York Times features a big take-out on the cannabis controversy - Los Angeles Prepares for Clash Over Marijuana.
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I appreciate your detailed exploration of this issue. The segment on the cannabis cowboys and the information on the Mexican Mafia, harmful chemicals, and weapons is one more argument for legalizing marijuana. From the amount of cannabis grown it is obvious that the demand for the product is huge. It would be much more reasonable, economical, and safer for this market to be controlled by the state rather than the criminal gangs.
And today the "New York Times" and the "Boston Globe". Everybody is talking!