How should one greet the reality of marijuana being legalized, and regulated by the government? I suggest that if one supports the new provision of our state Constitution, that the transition from our present liberal position to the more broadly liberal impact of the new Amendment 64 is an important transition. ..

I have worked in Boulder as an attorney in myriad roles since 1976, before the construction of the Community Justice Center, through the conversion of the jail in that building into a district attorney's office, and I still work in the building quite frequently. ..

Prohibition of marijuana doesn't benefit those prosecuted nor make the larger community any safer. It makes the community less safe by ensuring police and courts have less time to deal with real crimes like murder, rape and theft. We have seen that cuts to public safety budgets endanger both civilians and public safety professionals. ..

With the Party conventions upon us, the issue of the platforms for the two major parties becomes an item of great significance. Platforms should include realistic policy solutions rather than rhetoric justifying policies we know have failed. A good place to start is with a pragmatic approach to drug abuse in this country. Whether seen as a "liberal" issue or as an issue aligned with basic Republican principles, both parties can "do the right thing" while garnering needed votes. Polls show the voting public is ready for reform of our failed "war on drugs." It's time the parties provided leadership on the issue and advocated truly treating drugs as a public health problem rather than as a criminal matter. ..

Yesterday, former judge Leonard Frieling co-starred in a media event at the City and County Building designed to attract attention to the petition-gathering process for the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act of 2012. But while the location was great for TV, it wasn't terrific for collecting valid signatures. Frieling says many of the people he approached were tourists -- and one was none other than Secretary of State Scott Gessler. ..

In a large South American country, a farmer looks out from his veranda over his two main crops.  On the right side of the rutted dirt, row upon row of coffee are growing in the high mountain air.  To the left, coca grows in equally ordered rows.  Both crops require tending, and both require some degree of processing to yield roasted coffee beans on one side,  processed cocaine on the other. ..

Following my resignation as a Lafayette Municipal Court Associate Judge in protest of an unnecessary and drastic proposal to increase marijuana possession penalties in the City of Lafayette, some misinformed officials with the city launched an attack on my character, spurring news stories that suggested I was no longer an associate judge with the city at the time of my resignation. According to a member of the local press who requested my employment history from Lafayette Human Resource Director Pam Spring, my employment status was "active" as of Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2007. Ms. Spring also informed this individual that , while a new judge had been hired last April, I had not been replaced and retained my position with the City. It is true that I had not been called to sit on the bench for a while. As a result, the message I intended to send with my resignation is still as pertinent now as it was when this story first broke. The City hired me because they trusted my judgment, and I can no longer serve as a judge for a city willing to go to such great measures to ensure they have the ability to punish non-violent adult marijuana users more harshly than the state mandates. I do not pretend that it was a huge personal sacrifice. I am not the issue. The issue is the issue. Thus, I will be standing in opposition to this measure at a press conference Tuesday, the day on which this measure's fate will be determined. More details about this event will follow from Safer Alternative For Enjoyable Recreation (SAFER). I suspect that I will NOT attend the city council meeting on Tuesday evening. The city council SHOULD be informed of the position of the public on this issue. I suspect that they already are aware of my position, and won't benefit from hearing it again. I would be a distraction, and this story is not about me. ..