Measure B in Mendocino County: What It Means For the Rest of Us

So there's a ballot measure in Mendocino County (Northern California) to change the limit for personal marijuana growth from 25 plants to 6 plants.

(waiting period for classroom to quiet down with the Cheech and Chong references)

I'm posting the story for two reasons. First is that the Federal government has continued to force itself on people at the local level, which should get conservatives' blood boiling - California allows medical marijuana, and Mendocino allows recreational marijuana. Problem solving and change often begins when citizens at the local level take the lead, even if the Federal government doesn't like it (they never do).

The second reason is to show that when human freedom of choice is expanded, it rarely leads to the gates of hell opening and the collapse of civilization. And if it was too much - as it was in the opinion of many in Mendocino County - you can reel it back in too. People have been allowed to have 25 plants per person up in Mendocino for years, and the kinds of problems the Measure B people are talking about are air-quality complaints from too much smoke coming from certain houses, and occasional fence-climbing break-ins to get at the stuff growing in the backyard. But somehow, no total breakdown in civil order and criminals ruling the streets. Amazing!

No word on whether polls in Mendocino will close at 4:20 pm that day. Zing!