Marina Mayoral Candidate Plans To Legalize Magic Mushrooms
MARINA (KPIX ) -- Now that pot will soon be legal in California, a Monterey County mayoral candidate is looking beyond marijuana to mushrooms.
The mayor's race for the small, coastal town of Marina, just got a lot more interesting, maybe even psychedelic.
Mayoral candidate Kevin saunders is calling for typical stuff like rent control, more bike paths and greenways, and of course more police officers.
He wants to pay for it all by legalizing mushrooms -- magic mushrooms, also known as psilocybins.
"If pot and alcohol is all you need, then great. I'm singing your praises," says Saunders. "It's just that for some people, it takes a stronger elixir.
Saunders says mushrooms have been simmering in the public consciousness for some time.
There's no shortage of video games and movies with characters tripping on shrooms.
But with more and more states legalizing marijuana, Saunders says now is a good a time as any to talk about magic mushrooms.
Saunders says ingesting mushrooms is helping him cope with a heroin addiction, and ward off depression.
"I also would like the opportunity to be able to use psilocybin without, one, going to jail, or have any civil criminal sanction put upon me because I choose to medicate outside the norm," he says.
And so Saunders has drafted a statewide law titled, Decriminalization of Psilocybin Initiative.
If it passes, Saunders will convert his entire marijuana grow in his garage to mushrooms, which could double his profits.
Saunders has just five months left to collect 385,000 signatures to get it on the next ballot.
At last count, they had 1000.
"And even if we fail to win, we've already won," says Saunders. "We as a society are well beyond ready for marijuana. That psilocybin, and things like DMT are upon us."
Saunders' opponent, the current mayor of Marina Bruce Delgado was not available for comment.
