Medical Marijuana Week & ASA CA Weekly Alert

*Medical Marijuana Week 2006:
**
Saturday, February 11th, Geyserville: Sonoma County ASA Kickoff Party
Saturday, February 11th, Hollywood: LA ASA Kick Off Meeting for MMJ Week
Sunday, February 12th, San Fernando Valley: LA ASA Art Auction & Party
Monday, February 13th, San Francisco: California Marijuana Party's Art Party
Tuesday, February 14th, San Francisco: Spread the Love Valentines' Seed
Planting
Wednesday, February 15th, San Francisco: 215's 10 Year Anniversary Party
Wednesday, February 15th, San Diego: Celebrating Freedom 215 Party
Thursday, February 16th, Oakland: Medical Marijuana Film Fest
Friday, February 17th, San Francisco: Comedy Night
Saturday, February 18th, San Francisco: SF Medical Cannabis Town Hall
Saturday, February 18th, Los Angeles: Rally to Surround LAPD with Compassion
Sunday, February 19th, San Francisco: Medical Marijuana University
Sunday, February 19th, Hollywood: ASA Legal Training

Other Upcoming Events & Hearings:

Sunday, February 12th, Fairfield: Solano Patients' Group Meeting
Tuesday, February 14th, Sonora: Tuolumne County to Vote to Join Lawsuit
to Overturn Prop 215
Thursday, February 16th, Oakland: Public Hearings for Potential Medical
Cannabis Dispensaries
Thursday, February 16th, South San Francisco: City Council to Vote on
Restricting Medical Cannabis Cultivation
Saturday, February 25th, Dos Palos: Merced County Patients Coalition Meeting
Monday, February 27th, Riverbank: City Council to Consider Regulating or
Banning Dispensaries

*

*Medical Marijuana Week 2006*

*Saturday, February 11th, Geyserville: Sonoma County ASA Kickoff Party*

Isis Oasis <http://www.isisoasis.org/>
20889 Geyserville Ave. on Hwy 128

2:15 p.m.- late in the night
$25 includes food and drink ticket
$10 off with patient ID card
For more info, call (707) 332-6556

*Saturday, February 11th, Hollywood: LA ASA Kick Off Meeting for MMJ Week*

Kick off medical marijuana week with the LA ASA Organizational Meeting,
Saturday, Feb. 11th, from 2-4pm at the Hollywood Lutheran Church,
located at 1733 N. New Hampshire Ave., just west of Vermont Ave. and
north of Hollywood Blvd. We will be organizing for the LAPD Rally on
Feb. 18th, in addition to other upcoming events for medical marijuana
week, Feb. 11th through Feb. 19th. Now's an awesome time to get active
and join in the fun!

For more info call Seth 951.522.1110

*Sunday, February 12th, San Fernando Valley: LA ASA Art Party
*

LA ASA is having an Art Party to make banners, signs and t-shirts for
the Rally to "Surround LAPD with Compassion." We're going to wear red
t-shirts with our conditions written on them in white to show our
solidarity as patients caught in the crossfire.

Art parties are a great way to meet other activists and get more
involved. Hope to see you there!

For more info call Ana at 323.707.8027

*Monday, February 13th, San Francisco: California Marijuana Party's Art
Auction & Party*

Mon. 2/13, 7pm
California Marijuana Party <http://california.usmjparty.com/>
Headquarters & Bookstore
223a 9th St. @ Howard in San Francisco

Come enjoy marijuana inspired artwork, glass, clothing, books, up for
auction (proceeds going to charitable cause), food, drinks, music and
more...

Suggested $10 donation

Contact: Tony Bowles - (415) 283-7404

*Tuesday, February 14th, San Francisco: Spread the Love Valentines' Seed
Planting*

Hippie Hill near Childrens' Playground
Golden Gate Park in San Francisco
2:15 p.m.

*Wednesday, February 15th, San Francisco:
215's 10 Year Anniversary Party*

Join ASA SF & Axis of Love in a night of Hemp Ales, Cuban food and music
you can groove to! Featuring local icons DJ Beatnok, Topshelf, Edub,
Defwax, The Writers Guild, DNAE Beats, plus special Guest MCs. Funds to
benefit The Green Fund, a joint project to help patients in need to
obtain State Medical Cannabis Identification Cards.

Community Awards Ceremony at 9:00p.m.

El Rincon
2700 16th Street @ Harrison in San Francisco
8 p.m.
$10 general admission
$6 with patient ID card

*Wednesday, February 15th, San Diego: Celebrating Freedom 215 Party*

Presented by San Diego Americans for Safe Access <http://sdasa.4mg.com/>
& SD NORML

Featuring Ed Rosenthal, guest speakers, entertainment, Compassion Awards
& more!

Balboa Park
President's Way & Park Blvd. in San Diego

6:00-10:30 p.m.
$10 general admission
$5 for documented patients

*
Thursday, February 16th, Oakland: Medical Marijuana Film Fest*

Featuring:

Pain Killer, starring Clifton Powell, from Ray
Pressure Drop, shown at over 20 film festivals worldwide
How to Roll a Joint
The Green Cross
Show Me the Good Stuff
Leaves of Green

Parkway Theater <http://www.picturepubpizza.com/>
1834 Park Blvd. in Oakland

9:15 p.m.
$7 general admission

*Friday, February 17th, San Francisco: Cannabis Comedy Night*

A Benefit for San Francisco Americans for Safe Access

All-Star comedians will have you in stitches! Performances by Kevin
Avery (opened for Dave Chappelle), Tony Sparks, Ali Wong, Chris Garcia,
Stu Kosh, Stroi, Samantha Chance, Phillip Watson, Julian Vance and
Brandon Stone.

El Rio
3158 Mission St. @ Cesar Chavez
Doors open 7:00 pm
Show starts 7:30
World Music Djs after 9:30

21 and over
$15 general admission
$8 patients w/cards or recommendations

*
Saturday, February 18th, San Francisco: SF Medical Cannabis Town Hall*

What every patient should know about local laws and regulations.
Speakers include Ross Mirkarimi, Kamala Harris, and someone from the
Department of Public Health.

Unitarian Universalist Church
1187 Franklin Street in San Francisco

2-3p.m Town Hall
3-4p.m. ASA SF Reception--meet the players!
FREE!

*Saturday, February 18th, Los Angeles: Rally to Surround LAPD with
Compassion*

We'll be rallying around the Parker Center, LAPD Headquarters, on
Saturday, Feb. 18th from 12-1pm. Stand up for medical marijuana during
medical marijuana week and show the LAPD the need for compassion with
medical marijuana and the seriously ill patients who need it. Look for
more information on the rally coming soon. This is an important,
not-to-be-missed event! See you there!

If you want to get more involved beforehand, call Amanda at 310.279.7424

*Sunday, February 19th, San Francisco:
Medical Marijuana University--Sponsored by the Activism & Social Change
Program of New College*

Get your degree in THC! Four 1 hour courses sure to enrich your
knowledge of medical cannabis.

12:00 p.m. Research Seminar presented by Jahan Marcu
1:00 p.m. Legal Seminar presented by Joe Elford, ASA Chief Counsel
2:00 p.m. Medical Seminar presented by R Stephen Ellis M.D.
3:00 p.m.Cultivation seminar by Ed Rosenthal

New College of California
Cultural Center
766 Valencia
12-4 p.m.
FREE!

Call (415) 794-6432 for more info

*Sunday, February 19th, Hollywood: ASA Legal Training*

Join ASA activists for a FREE Legal Training on Sunday, Feb. 19th from
1-4pm at the California Patients Groups, located at 6208 Santa Monica
Blvd. @ El Centro in Hollywood. This training is a must for all patients
and caregivers. Come learn how to handle encounters with law enforcement
to protect your freedom and your right to safe access.

Until marijuana is rescheduled federally, your rights can easily be
abused by law enforcement. Be smart! Know your rights!

*
*
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*
Other Upcoming Events & Hearings:

*
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*
Sunday, February 12th, Fairfield: Solano Patients' Group Meeting*

From the Compassionate Coalition:

Solano Patients' group will meet on Sunday, February 12th, at 12 noon,
at 3516 Nantucket, in Fairfield, California. This group meets on Sunday
at noon every two weeks. SPG is embarking on an ambitious campaign to
speak at 7 separate City Council meetings in 7 weeks, regarding medical
marijuana rights. Their itinerary:

February 7th, 7pm - Vacaville City Council - 650 Merchant Street, Vacaville
February 16th, 7pm - Rio Vista City Council - Rio Vista City Hall, 1
Main Street, Rio Vista
February 21st, 5:30pm - Suisun City Council - 701 Civic Center Blvd,
Suisun City
February 21st, 7pm- Fairfield City Council - 1000 Webster Street, Fairfield
February 28th, 7pm - Vallejo City Council - 555 Santa Clara Street, Vallejo
March 7th, 7:30pm - Benicia City Council - 250 East L Street, Benicia
March 14th, 7pm - Dixon City Council - 600 East A Street, Dixon

For information on the Solano Patients' Group please contact:
Linda - 510-684-8321
Galen - 415-573-8362
http://www.solanopatientsgroup.org <http://www.solanopatientsgroup.org>

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*Tuesday, February 14th, Sonora: Tuolumne County to Vote to Join Lawsuit
to Overturn Prop 215

*From Aaron Smith:

I just got word that Tuolumne County will be voting next Tuesday on
whether or not to join San Diego and San Bernardino in the lawsuit
against the State of California which is an attempt to overturn
proposition 215. The suit has been lodged because San Diego is claiming
that California's medical marijuana laws are preempted by the federal
Controlled Substances Act, this is a fallacy because in a Federalist
system of government, state law is allowed to conflict with federal law.
It would be a great misappropriation of Tuolumne County's limited
resources to entangle itself in this costly lawsuit against the state
which is not based on any legitimate legal grounds.

The supervisors will also be voting on whether or not to implement the
California medical marijuana ID card program. The ID cards would be
voluntary for patients and caregivers to obtain through the county and
would serve to further protect them from arrest. Please call and email
your supervisor immediately urging them not to join the lawsuit and to
immediately implement the ID card program, as required by state law.

Also, it would be greatly beneficial to get as many patients and
activists out to the board meeting as possible. Please come show your
support for medical marijuana and the California ID card program. If you
want additional information about the meeting, feel free to contact me at:

fa_smith [at] yahoo.com or
(707) 291-0076.

Board Meeting Time and Location:
Tuesday, Feb. 14th at 9:00am
Tuolumne County Administration Center
2 S. Green Street
Sonora, California 95370

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*Thursday, February 16th, Oakland: Public Hearings for Potential Medical
Cannabis Dispensaries

*The City of Oakland will be holding public hearings for four potential
dispensary operators. (There are two permits that are up for grabs in
Oakland currently.)

Please come out and use this as an opportunity to speak out against
Oakland's onerous proximity restrictions on medical cannabis
dispensaries. Currently, the ordinance reads:
/
"Dispensary is not within One thousand (1000) feet, unless the City
Manager or his/her designee in their discretion determines that the
location will not impact the peace and order and welfare of the public,
of a public or private school or a public library or youth center
(serving youth 18 and under), or parks and recreation facilities or
residential zone or another Dispensary." (Section 5.80.020)
/
Looking at the map of Oakland, the only places dispensaries can locate
are extremely inconvenient and inaccessible to patients. Ask the city to
lower the proximity restriction or drop some of the land uses from the
proximity restriction. Oakland patients need dispensaries to be
accessible by public transit!

The hearing will be held at 3:00 p.m.
Hearing Room 2
1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza
Oakland, CA
(Accessible by 12th Street BART)

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*Thursday, February 16th, South San Francisco: City Council to Vote on
Restricting Medical Cannabis CULTIVATION

*The City of South San Francisco is holding a public hearing for
AMENDING THEIR MUNICIPAL CODE TO ADD CHAPTER 20.65 RESTRICTING THE
LOCATIONS OF AND REQUIRING SECURITY FOR THE CULTIVATION OF MEDICAL
MARIJUANA.

Please come out to support patient cultivation!

The meeting will be held on February 16 @ 7:30 pm. 33 Arroyo drive,
South San Francisco.

The agenda for the meeting is not posted on their website yet, but
hopefully will be later in the week. You can check it out here:
http://www.ci.ssf.ca.us/council/agenda.asp

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*Saturday, February 25th, Dos Palos: Merced County Patients Coalition
Meeting*

From Nick Osborne:

Topics for the agenda include: court support- organizing-website
material and content- donations-clothes drive for February. The meeting
will begin at 1:30pm, on February 25th, 2006.

Contact Nick Osborne, MCPC Representative, for more info: 209-261-5758,
Nick [at] Compassionatecoalition.org http://www.merccountypc.com

The address fro the meeting is:
8859 West Almond ST.
Dos Palos Ca,93620
Merced County

Please join us and help support the POWs, and others who need our
support and encouragement to keep up the good fight in this ridiculous
"War on Drugs" aka," War on the Sick". Dustin Costa, Joe Fortt, Steve
Kubby, Thunder Rector, and others can not be forgotten, and should not be.

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*
**Monday, February 27th, Riverbank: City Council to Consider Regulating
or Banning Dispensaries

*The City of Riverbank is considering regulating or banning
dispensaries. The mayor is concerned, due to recent bans and moratoriums
passed in surrounding localities: "I don't want Riverbank getting
hammered because all the other doors in the county are closed."

We know that this fear is unfounded and call on the patient community to
speak out at this hearing. Ask the council to consider regulating
dispensaries, instead of banning them, either permanently or
temporarily. Please visit our website for talking points on ordinances,
moratoriums and bans:
http://safeaccessnow.org/article.php?list=type&type=212

The Riverbank City Council scheduled the study session on medical
marijuana and the draft massage ordinance for its Feb. 27 meeting. The
council is scheduled to have a 6:30 p.m. study session and 7 p.m.
meeting. It will be in the council chamber, 6707 Third St, Riverbank, CA.

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--
Rebecca Saltzman
Field Coordinator
Americans for Safe Access
p (510) 251-1856
f (510) 251-2036
http://www.safeaccessnow.org