An excerpt from recent editorials in newspapers in the United States:
On legal marijuana:
If California voters were still under the illusion that Proposition 19 would legalize marijuana, U.S. Atty. Gen. Eric H. Holder Jr. sought to disabuse them of the notion recently. "We will vigorously enforce the (federal Controlled Substances Act) against those individuals and organizations that possess, manufacture or distribute marijuana for recreational use, even if such activities are permitted under state law," Holder wrote in a letter to nine former heads of the Drug Enforcement Administration who had lobbied the Obama administration to forcefully oppose California's overreaching ballot initiative.
Proposition 19 would allow people 21 and older to possess up to an ounce of marijuana and would authorize cultivation of cannabis plants on up to 25 square feet of land. But only under state law; under federal law, smoking a joint would still be a crime. It isn't news that federal officials oppose Proposition 19 -- President Barack Obama himself has said he's against legalizing marijuana -- but supporters of the Nov. 2 ballot measure appear to have hoped the administration would be as tolerant toward recreational users as it has been toward medicinal marijuana users. That's not going to happen. ...
-- Los Angeles Times
