rules

By STEVEN GREENHUT

To the extent that anyone still thinks about the former Soviet Union and its satellite communist states, they understandably think about the suffocating oppression – the Berlin Wall, the gulags, the KGB, the political prisoners, the persecution of religious people and minorities. Yet, in talking to refugees from that nightmarish world, it's clear that one of the worst aspects of communism was the endless waiting in line, the ceaseless bureaucracy and the incomprehensible rules and regulations that governed every aspect of everyday life.

Despite some real assaults on civil liberties in America (by Republican and Democratic administrations alike), Americans aren't facing too many serious dangers of the first kind mentioned above. But, as government expands its reach, we are facing bigger lines, additional nonsensical rules and more bureaucracy. You can barely do anything these days without getting approval from the authorities these days, and this touches on even the smallest, most inconsequential areas of our existence.

By Tom Fudge

Patients with a doctor's recommendation can legally possess and smoke marijuana in California for medical purposes. But where do they get their pot? The recent crackdown on marijuana dispensaries in San Diego has raised questions about legality of growing it and selling it. KPBS Reporter Tom Fudge spoke with two people who run marijuana cooperatives in San Diego.

California law says patients and caregivers can form collectives or cooperatives to cultivate marijuana for medical purposes. And that's what Josh Bilben says he's doing. He says he's providing a place for patients, who don't grow, to get medication from people who do.