The Mount Calvary Christian Center turned out its congregation on Sunday for a big protest against Uncle Ike's, the new legal weed store in the Central District, as reported in yesterday's Morning News. Rallying the crowd with a bullhorn, Pastor Reggie Witherspoon said Washington's legal pot law needs to be changed in order to distance churches from pot shops.

How does Ian Eisenberg, who lives in Leschi and owns Uncle Ike's, respond? "We can sell legal pot and they can stage a legal protest," he says. "That’s what makes America great!"

He adds: "The pastor seems to think we got some kind of special zoning change for the shop. It is hard to understand where this kind of thing is coming from. I don’t know how to disprove a negative."

On this, Eisenberg is right. CHS Seattle suggested that Seattle's rules about the locations of marijuana establishments are unclear. They're not. The city's Department of Planning and Development says pot shop owners should read up on state law, not city law, to make sure their businesses aren't too close to parks or schools. And there's nothing in relevant portions of the state or city code about churches.

Witherspoon did not respond to a message seeking comment.