Mountain Views News          Saturday, September 3, 2011

GOOD FOOD & DRINK

10

Nature & The Environment

 Mountain Views News Saturday, September 3, 2011 

TABLE FOR TWO by Peter Dills

SHOWDOWN AT THE BEANTOWN CORRAL

DAY TRIPPING’ IN ANAHEIM

A followup to his Marijuana column of August 
27 - by Christopher Nyerges

OK, folks, it looks like an explanation is in order 
about my marijuana article from the August 27 
issue. A few of you contacted me personally, and 
I got a few emails. But the big showdown came 
when I was cornered at Beantown with the Steve 
the resident artist on one side, and Urban Nature 
Girl Helen on the other side, giving me a piece of 
their minds. 

They weren’t challenging me about my 
facts, exactly, but mostly about the way I said 
it. They know me well, and they felt I would be 
misunderstood from the way the article was 
written.

I wrote that if you smoke marijuana, you’re 
choosing to be an idiot. OK, that was a bit over the 
top, and it never helps to clarify issues by using 
anything that seems to be a personal attack. So I 
apologize for that one. 

My column was inspired by my conversation 
with a mother who was exasperated by her two 
teens’ use of marijuana, and their defiance in 
using it at the home. Thus, my opinion piece 
was liberally spiked with my random bursts of 
subjectivity, the likes of which brings few people 
to my point of view, and allows most readers to 
assume I am a frothing-at-the-mouth, ranting 
lunatic, or a judgmental fool. 

 

So here are a few clarifications on what I wrote. 

 

Regarding “medical marijuana,” I did not 
intend to imply that the “medical use” is a joke 
and that there is no valid medical use. It’s the 
phony claims for medical need that I perceive as 
a deception. 

It seems there are probably more legitimate 
users of marijuana for medical uses than I 
believe. Granted, I am an advocate of using little 
or no medicines (legal or illegal), since the body is 
designed to heal itself. And though there may be 
other medical alternatives to marijuana, the fact 
that some people gain relief from their symptoms 
would justify its use. 

So what percentage of folks who buy marijuana 
from the pharmacies are “legitimate users.” This 
is not an easy figure to ascertain. I spoke to several 
folks who run medical marijuana 
pharmacies, I received estimates in 
the range of “under 5%” to “around 
20%” to “50%” of those who have 
a legitimate medical need. It is so 
easy to get the medical marijuana 
card that it is hard to quantify 
“legitimate.” But after talking to 
several people, my sense is that the 
legitimate users are about 25% of 
the buyers. That estimate is a lot 
higher than my estimated one in a 
thousand (from last week’s column). 
Still, even by the proponents’ best 
estimates, that means there are a lot 
of users out there who simply want 
to get high. 

However, my comment on why the 
larger legitimate pharmacies don’t 
carry marijuana was incomplete. 
The simple answer is that the larger 
pharmacies are following federal 
law, not the state’s voted legality of marijuana. 
Federal law typically trumps local laws. 

Is there more crime at the medical marijuana 
shops, as I inferred? Police records suggest that 
7-11s get robbed more often than the medical 
marijuana shops, and criminals go where there’s 
cash. The medical marijuana shops also deal 
in cash, so they’re targets. It’s about cash, not 
marijuana.

Due to the prevalence of alcohol in our society, 
and its legality, I would agree that legalizing 
marijuana would also decrease the criminal 
aspects of marijuana trade, and possibly reduce 
the power of the cartels which kill so many. But 
the flip-side is that some fear legality would 
encourage more “recreational” marijuana use.

Re: hemp. It’s a great fibre with many good uses, 
and farmers should be allowed to grow it for fibre. 
But I wasn’t talking about legitimate hemp-for-
fibre farmers or hemp-for-fibre promoters. What 
I dislike is that some marijuana smokers hide 
behind the many good uses of hemp, when in fact, 
what they really want to do is get high. (By the 
way, many people don’t realize that both “hemp” 
and “marijuana” are just common names for the 
same plant, Cannabis sativa. The key difference 
is that marijuana has been cultivated to get an 
increased THC content).

With all this in mind, my point that I was trying 
to convey was that it is good and desirable to be 
clear-thinking, and to always be fully in charge 
of your mental and physical faculties. This basic 
principle is a good survival tactic in all situations. 

I am content to leave the legal and medical 
issues to others. Free individuals should always 
choose to be free of anything that might curtail 
their full ability to function in all realms of 
“survival.” 

I see that my reactive state of mind when I 
wrote the original article didn’t fully convey what 
I intended. 

Please accept my apologies if I had inadvertently 
offended any of you. And thank you Steve and 
Helen for caring enough about me to encourage me 
to write this clarification. 

Christopher Nyereges

 
As a boy I couldn’t sleep at night in the anticipation 
of going to Disneyland in the morning. But 
I have discovered there is so much more to the 
city famous for Moose ears then that. Anaheim, 
now the tenth largest city in California, began in 
1857 as a colony of German farmers and vintners. 
Founding member George Hansen surveyed the 
original 200 acres which now comprises the city's 
downtown area, bounded by North, South, East 
and West streets. The city's name is a composition 
of "Ana" from the nearby Santa Ana river and 
"heim," German for home. Those early pioneers 
considered this location their "home by the river."

 On a recent voyage to Anaheim Stadium to 
watch the Angels play Baseball I stopped at Clancy’s 
Club House, a restaurant that has something 
for everyone. Clancy’s Clubhouse offers up an 
energetic sports-themed eatery with a hometown 
feel that is ‘reimagining the classics.’ Clancy’s reintroduces 
the notion of everyday value, serving 
American comfort food and a wide selection of 
brews on tap. Menu items include signature entrees, 
steaks, fresh fish, hearty burgers, homemade 
chili and a variety of salads. 

 At Clancy’s they like to say, “Start with a beer, 
stay for the food, located one half block south 
of the Anaheim Convention Center and approximately 
one block from Disneyland and surrounded 
by dozens of local hotels it is well within walking 
distance of anywhere in the Anaheim Resort 
complex. Yet, Clancy’s welcomes visiting guests, 
hometown locals and sports fanatics’ a like under 
one roof. Enjoy your favorite sporting event on 
one of the 36 large plasma TVs, shoot some billiards 
or relax with friends over a cocktail, a beer 
or a specialty martini. Chef Francisco Rincon is 
changing guests’ perceptions of a sports bar by 
building a menu that focuses on using sustainable 
products and ingredients from local farms 
whenever possible. Soups, sauces, and dressings 
are prepared in house daily from their own recipes. 
This ‘urban kitchen’ offers a wide selection of 
tasty appetizers from the ‘starting lineup’ including 
wings, fries, and flatbreads.

 Also available are gourmet burgers, hot dogs and 
fried chicken. For the ‘main event’ there’s a selection 
of fresh fish, chicken dishes, Prime steaks, 
and on weekends slow

roasted Prime Rib. Pastas and other classic comfort 
foods such as Yankee Pot Roast, Chicken Pot 
Pie, Liver and Onions, and Meatloaf round out 
the menu. Clancy’s also has brought back the 
Blue Plate Special of yesteryear for some good 
hometown values as well. A selection of desserts 
offers a delicious way to finish off your meal like 
the Clubhouse Bread Pudding with a signature 
Bourbon Vanilla Bean Sauce.

Clancy’s has a full bar as well as a wide selection 
of domestic and imported draft and bottled beers 
and a broad selection of domestic and imported 
fine wines available by the glass and

bottle. Specialty Martinis, white and red wine are 
available.

Clancy’s Club House 2191 S. Harbor Blvd. Anaheim 
CA (714) 750-7500. Join me every Saturday 
and Sunday Night at 7 PM on Charter Channel 
101. thechefknows@yahoo.com


............
............
..........
......................................
....................................
....................................
..............................
..............................................................
..........................
YoGamaDreNew students only.
Limited time offer.
..................................................................................................
.................................................................................................. 
Unique, Personalized Events & Celebrations 
Contact us for a FREE Consultation & Quote 
www.SoozEvents.com Sue Cook 626.253.1323