Nullification at Work The Ballot Drive to Legalize Pot in California Begins

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When a state u201Cnullifies” a federal law, it is proclaiming that the law in question is void and inoperative, or u201Cnon-effective,” within the boundaries of that state; or, in other words, not a law as far as that state is concerned.

While the media of late tends to focus on the new crop of states resisting DC with legislation on firearms and health care, they almost always miss, or ignore, what I consider to be some of the greatest and most effective state resistance to federal power – marijuana activism.

According to our friends at NORML, there are now 13 states who are openly resisting federal laws on medical marijuana. And now my home state of California is on the verge of taking it to the next level – full legalization.

According to a report in the SF Chronicle:

Two prominent East Bay marijuana advocates got clearance from the state today to try to put a pot-legalization initiative on the November 2010 California ballot.

This isn’t your run-of-the-mill “medical marijuana” bill – that’s already legal in CA. If approved by voters, the bill would:

allow anyone over 21 to possess or grow marijuana for personal use. It would allow each local government to decide whether to tax and regulate marijuana sales.

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October 3, 2009