The absurd behavior of the police and prosecutors in arresting Steve and Michelle Kubby is already backfiring.

Sending 12 armed police into the home of a nationally known medical marijuana user and political activist was dumb enough.

The judge obviously wasn’t buying it, and now the Kubbys have been released without bail.

McCormick was subjected to even worse mistreatment, although he was held in a Federal facility, which are usually better than county jails.

There are two things that are going to make the Kubby case a real test for a lot of people.

First, the alleged number of plants – over 300 -- was far larger than what most people would consider necessary. After all, former AG Lungren wanted to restrict patients to only two plants or one ounce , an amount he said should be enough for 30 days. Or perhaps it was just pictures of two plants.

In fact, there is no set amount that can be said to be appropriate for all patients.

One ounce might last some people for months. For others, just a few days. Also, the THC potency of the plants can vary greatly. The problem is that there are simply too many variables for an arbitrary limit.

Also, Kubby, like McCormick, is something of an expert on the plant, and might reasonably want to do botanical research. And why not? Inasmuch as the DEAland government is not doing any such research, it is perfectly reasonable for someone like Kubby and McCormick, who have to grow their own medicine, to want to experiment.

It might seem reasonable for the either the federal or state government to set limits on how many plants someone could have, if the governments were acting in good faith to see that patients get the best medicine possible, as soon as they need it. In fact, they are doing just the opposite.

Nonetheless, the quantity will be the key issue. If there had been only a few plants, then the case would probably just be dismissed.

Meanwhile back in the real world, the narcs don’t want anyone to have medical marijuana. Period. And the Libertarians and the broader marijuana reform movement think that it should be legal. Period.

When you have bacon and eggs, the chicken in dedicated, but the pig is committed. Now the Libertarians have to go whole hog. 

Even those who are not Libertarians should recognize that the libertarians play an important role in the American political process as persistent, consistent, and usually disinterested, critics of government programs.

I call myself a libertarian, but it is probably not surprising that I think that the Libertarians have paid too little attention to the marijuana issue. (No one pays enough attention to the marijuana issue!!)

I think that there are essentially two reasons for this neglect. First, libertarians generally take the broad philosophical view that all drugs should be legal, so it is not necessary – or even appropriate -- to focus on marijuana or any single drug. I have argued otherwise, and many individual libertarians may agree with me.
See
Why Marijuana? Why Is There a Separate Marijuana Reform Movement?
Why Isn’t Just Preaching Freedom Enough?

Nonetheless, minimizing government in general is the essence of libertarianism.

The other reason is that libertarians have the same limitations and inhibitions as everyone else. The great thing about the Libertarian philosophy is that you don’t have to be an expert on marijuana – or on anything else.

Almost all libertarians are "philosophically" opposed to the marijuana laws – of course – just as they are "philosophically" opposed to laws on private adult sexual behavior. But why do we have to talk about that kind of stuff? Let’s talk about taxes, in stead. And guns! Yeah, let’s talk about guns.

In short, people like to talk about those of their freedoms that they care most about. But Kubby has forced the issue. The Libertarians have to support their own, and it doesn’t matter to them if he had three, or three hundred or three thousand plants. He should have that right.

On the other hand the "pure" medical marijuana people may find the Kubby case embarrassing, because of both the quantity -- and the libertarian argument for full legalization.

The fact is that there is nothing that they can say or do that will appease the prohibitionists or get the DEA to stop lying and claiming that they are just "front for NORML." If the lying stops, the system will collapse.

Arresting sick people for using a plant that has not been approved by Washington bureaucrats is wrong. It does not become right because the person has a certain number of plants.

However, arresting healthy people for using a plant that has not been approved by different Washington bureaucrats is also wrong. It does not become right because sick people have a special need for the plant.

There is a difference between the needs of the sick and healthy, but neither is the property of the government.

The fact is that the government cannot and will not provide realistic access to medical marijuana, and only the recognition of the rights of the people will suffice. It is not about legalizing marijuana; it is about legalizing freedom.
See
The Nation Magazine Quotes Dr. Lester Grinspoon Explaining
Why He Thinks Only Full Legalization Will Allow Proper Access to Medical Marijuana

The fact that the government will not – cannot – stop lying about marijuana means that even the libertarians are going to have to learn the truth about marijuana. But libertarians have nothing to fear from the truth.

That will be the ultimate outcome of the Kubby case -- and whatever comes next.