SAN DIEGO — Proposition 19, which would have legalized marijuana in California and subjected it to a state tax, has failed.

Prop. 19 made national headlines, but the idea had almost no backing from organizations with the funding to mount a statewide campaign.

Law enforcement groups, politicians from both major parties, and the federal government had come down hard on the idea of legalizing marijuana.

Attorney General Eric Holder said the Obama administration would overtly enforce federal drug laws in California, even if the measure passed.

Actor Zach Galifianakis famously smoked a joint on HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher” Friday night to show support for the bill.

Proposition 19 would have made it legal for adults age 21 and over to possess an ounce of marijuana and to grow a small amount of it. Local governments would also be allowed to tax it and permit commercial cultivation.

About The Author

John Guilfoil is the editor-in-chief of Blast: Boston's Online Magazine and the Blast Magazine Network. He can be reached at [email protected]. Tweet @johnguilfoil.

12 Responses

  1. Adam

    I’m so fucking tired of all the lies that the uneducated masses believe about Marijuana. Why deny me my right to smoke? If you can down liquor and kill yourself, beat your wife, be violent, and kill someone else, then why can’t I happily smoke a natural plant that makes me peaceful and serene? For fucks sake, we have receptors in OUR BRAIN made to take in cannibinoids. Our bodies are actually built to receive marijuana and yet dumbasses who have never tried it want it to remain illegal. Sad day indeed.

    Reply
    • john

      ok so i know everyone is mad about this but it its not about denying people the right to smoke its about keeping a harmful drug out of peoples hands. yes we do have recepetors for the thc in marijuana however thc is known to cause breast cancer and testicular cancer can cause liver and renal failure over extended periods of times. it cause neurons to be unable to use alpha recieves and literally makes rational thought hard. plus there are federal laws that would make marijuana illegal to smoke anyways so us passing it does nothing except allow import from mexico and cartels there were more implications to the prop than just giving people the right to smoke

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      • James

        Were you drunk when you wrote this?! First of all you have the punctuation and spelling of a seven year old. Second alcohol and tobacco rank in the top 10 most harmful drugs today. P.S, Pot is not on that list, go figure Einstein. if you want to keep a harmful drug out of the hands of people then go hold up a liquor store or boycott Phillip Morris. Please don’t go regurgitating the shit that you read in your intro to psychology book, turn off the news and fucking read a case study. Oh and your testicular cancer babble is based on findings from 369 men with testicular cancer who were “questioned” about their history of cannabis use. The results were compared with 979 men who did not have cancer. Cannabis was linked with testicular cancer independently of smoking, drinking and family history. They never tested TCH, only asked questions that did not factor in the possibilities of other related substance abuse. You are the reason that a non controlled substance is still flooding our country, but that’s not important “it cause neurons to be unable to use alpha recieves.” You my friend are an idiot.

      • Nate

        Amen to that. I didn’t actually believe morons out there still thought pot was bad. I’ve been toking forever. I toke with my dad and he’s been smoking since he was 15 and none of our family have any history of those cancers. God it pisses me off when people show they’re pussy whipped by the media. Pretty much the only reason it didn’t pass is because the brainless and dependent beast that is the masses of American society can’t produce their own thoughts or opinions on anything and rely on the least credible sources (i.e. the government and the general media) that are available to them for information. But of course, the government would never lie about anything… especially not about a drug humans have been in possession of and have used for thousands and thousands of years! Again, way to go john for showing all of us with a brain that there still are gullible morons out there such as yourself. Congratulations. Shoot yourself and rid the world of your wasted life.

  2. Michael

    The body that supported Prop19 have a statistically low voter turnout. My guess is that although it had majority support, it was feasibly impossible to pass it through.

    What happened to the hippie generation? Why did they vote this down?
    It has been a long time since the initial demonization of marijuana, yet we have not recognized the truth: people will smoke it regardless of its legality.

    If it passed, potheads would get high and celebrate.
    It failed though, and yet those same potheads will still get high.

    Why not just tax it?

    Reply
    • jeff

      Ridiculous. Even if it would have passed the Federal Government threatens the state.. Best I can figure most people thought why bother then. Seems unfair to me in a democratic republic we still get enforce a hypocritical law that wastes billions a year, and a waste that basically the entire vote was swayed by the government.. When will people wake up and realize that the people are suppose to sway the government, not the other way around. I say the vote was unfair, and i also have observed that the people of this country are just blindly handing all control of their lives to the government.

      Reply
  3. Jhank

    1. How did u expect to win if u didnt put money towards your campAign
    2. Why wasnt there mass tv adds denouceing all mj myths for all the squares that still think this stuff is bad?
    You do realize california has just flubbed on a bill that could have leaded to the end of the war on weed nation wide?
    Im really sad to call myself an american today thanks for runing it for every one else california

    Reply
  4. kungfutti

    even though prop 19 didn’t pass it doesn’t mean california doesn’t support individuals right to smoke weed it just means that 19 was a poorly written and manipulative bill that didn’t really have any safeguards against high drivers or stoned workers. I think if we have a bill that supports peoples rights while giving safety to people that don’t want to be endangered by those who abuse their rights that a weed legalization law will pass.

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  5. Jordan

    We will triumph in 2012, I am one of the few young voters to show up at the polls. The polling areas all looked like retirement homes if they looked more like a club then it would’ve passed. But yet again we let the old conservative voters choose the fate of marijuana. Stupid.

    Reply

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