Columnist Jeff German: Pro-pot forces smoking opposition

Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2002 | 11:49 a.m.

WEEKEND EDITION: Oct. 13, 2002

JOHN WALTERS did his best last week to rally the anti-marijuana troops fighting Question 9.

The nation's drug czar made a compelling case why voters should defeat the initiative that would legalize the possession of up to three ounces of marijuana and allow the state to distribute the addictive drug.

Walters not only laid out the social costs of legalizing marijuana, which is more potent today than most voters know, but also he talked about the financial costs, the legal liabilities the state would face by selling a drug known to have harmful tobacco-like side effects.

He also talked about how silly Nevada would look to the rest of the country if it became the only state to pass such a ballot question next month.

Walters was good, but he didn't seem to wake up the community.

Despite his pep talk, the anti-marijuana forces, even with the long arm of law enforcement on their side, continued to have a tough time organizing themselves and raising money.

And there was no sense of outrage from the public, as some polls showed the initiative dead even among the voters.

The pro-marijuana camp, on the other hand, led by smooth-talking Texas strategist Billy Rogers and backed with big bucks from the Marijuana Policy Project in Washington, D.C., continued to roll along.

Rogers and company so far have spent $1 million on the initiative and plan to unload another $500,000 more by Nov. 5. They've been running a first-rate campaign, promoting their position in television ads and mailers and on their website.

The anti-marijuana forces, meanwhile, have raised a mere $4,600, according to Sandy Heverly, executive director of STOP DUI.

They have not aired a single television ad or sent out any fliers. They have no website. And they just replaced their chief media spokesman after he made a couple of public gaffes.

Plans announced two weeks ago to get former Govs. Richard Bryan and Bob Miller to do television ads pooh-poohing pot are on hold because the anti-marijuana forces can't seem to find any volunteers to film the commercials.

"What's troubling them is they can't get their message out," Walters said. "They feel like the big megaphone, the big money and the big advertising is all on one side."

Walters and his federal agency, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, are in the middle of a $180 million media campaign warning parents and youths across the country about the dangers of marijuana. But only $350,000 worth of ads have been budgeted for Nevada, and most of those are running on youth-oriented networks like UPN and MTV, not the mainstream networks watched by voters.

That means the ads are likely to have little impact in the Question 9 fight.

"We've absolutely been struggling," Heverly acknowledged after the drug czar's whirlwind visit. "It's been very difficult getting people mobilized. The money is coming in slowly."

So where's the community on an issue of such importance?

The Chamber of Commerce and the Nevada Resort Association, the two groups with the financial wherewithal to help the anti-marijuana forces battle Question 9, are standing silent.

"They're not immune to the ramifications of what would happen to the community if this initiative passes," Heverly said. "They have an obligation to help us defeat it."

The chamber, however, is too busy helping Nevada Power fight Question 14, an initiative that seeks voter approval for a public takeover of the struggling utility. Chamber members believe they'll be forced to pick up millions in lost taxes if the Southern Nevada Water Authority buys Nevada Power.

The Nevada Resort Association, which represents the gaming industry, is hard at work promoting Question 10, which calls for tax increases to raise $2.7 billion to improve the roadways so more people can drive to the casinos to spend their money.

Question 9 simply hasn't been on the radar screen of these two organizations.

The chamber's Governmental Affairs Committee plans to take up the initiative this week, just days before the start of early voting on Saturday. Resort association leaders don't even want to give the issue the time of day.

This kind of apathy is not uncommon from the bottom-line business community.

Look at what happened in the 18-year fight against Yucca Mountain. The chamber and the resort association didn't get actively involved until this year -- after it appeared President Bush would steamroll a bill through Congress ordering the storage of the nation's deadly nuclear waste outside Las Vegas.

How long will business leaders wait this time before recognizing the social and monetary ills of legalizing marijuana?

Will they wait until pot users from all over the country descend on Las Vegas and raise our crime and drug addiction rates?

Will they wait until the image of this city is so soiled that tourists won't want to bring their families here?

If the nation's top drug-fighter can't wake up the community, who can?