Cannabis Freedom

Allen St. Pierre, Executive Directory of NORML has a scathing rebuttal of the ONDCP's outrageous claims on their blog. The post is on The Hill's blog which is widely read by congressional staffers and lobbyists. Hopefully staffers at the ONDCP will stop getting invited to D.C. cocktail parties and change their tune.

Congress and the Media Should be Dubious of Office of Nat’l Drug Control Policy’s Claims: ...Cannabis cases however, notably minor possession cases, still clog the criminal justice system and are at the heart of dozens of state and federal appellate cases that have largely established less—not more—liberty and economic freedom for citizens. The gravitas of the state and federal conflict on the issue of cannabis prohibition so contentious the US Supreme Court has had to twice intervene since 2001 on the specific issue of medical access to cannabis for dying, sick and sense-threatened patients (in both cases, the court strongly deferred to Congress’ prerogative to pass anti-cannabis legislation, regardless of how illogical or devoid of compassion, reason and science).

Perhaps, having more credibility with law and order crowd, Seattle's former police chief, Norm Stamper can affect the debate with his brilliant arguments in the video below, courtesy of Reason.tv.

Possession of a plant can not only cost you your right to vote, it can also disqualify you from public service.

Commercial Appeal - Felony arrest ends Pearson's bid for Bartlett post - The Shelby County Election Commission ruled that Steve Pearson III, who filed to face Young in the Nov. 4 election, did not qualify for the race. While there were questions about Pearson's residency, a guilty plea to a felony charge of possession of 46 pounds of marijuana in 1989 was enough for the commission to disqualify Pearson, 57, from the election.

This is how they silence their political dissenters. I watched AKA Tommy Chong last night that anecdotes how they railroad non-violent pot offenders through the system, cage them, and strip them of their rights. Pot-prohibition violators are political prisoners. It's time to end this war on the American people and restore the rights of its casualties.

Due to a void I've found on the blogging scene, I'm looking for 6-10 pro-cannabis, pro-medical marijuana, pro-hemp, or anti-prohibition, however you define it, to write on this blog about once a week. If you'd like to contribute and individual piece, that's great too. If you normally write on issues other than marijuana and re-legalization on your own blog and would like to keep your pro-cannabis views separate and anonymous I can give you a forum here. If you're from Memphis, the Mid-South, or the Southeastern US, I especially want you, because there are regional issues that affect the debate here. You can email me at the address in the right-hand column or message me on my Twitter account.

I swear that any personal information you choose to divulge to me, none necessary I assure you, will never become public. The privacy of my partners will be protected by the First Amendment Freedom of the Press.

• Matt Welch at Reason asks, "Where are the Democrats on civil liberties?" Good question.
• Hicktown lawyer points out that McCain has never had to work a day in his life.
• MPD Enforcer says Memphis Police Department's disciplinary system is broken. It's certainly not effective.
• Cuban refugees take note, Junk raft made of plastic bottles sails the Pacific.
• An ABC News reporter in Denver has been arrested for videotaping Senators with lobbyist. So much for the First Amendment. I'd say a fundamental flaw of the Constitution is that it doesn't require Congress to punish those who violate it.
• Jacksonville SuperBitch Laura Capitano, calls Memphis "Nashville's dirty, drunken cousin" and slanders the Beale Street Flippers.
  

I read this news story: Morocco destroyed a 2,736 hectare cannabis farm. That's an area almost 20 times the size of Overton Park*. That's an unreal bust, and yet supply for the United States in the coming year won't be diminished. We're the country with the greatest marijuana consumption in the world.

I saw this story later: Police make large marijuana bust, police in Louisville take in 5 suspects for possessing between 200 and 500 pounds of marijuana. Why does the news media not take note of the outrageous claims of law enforcement? Repeatedly we are told about large busts of multiple hundreds of pound of cannabis, but that's not even a comet in the universe of buds smoked in this country. According to the White House's Marijuana SourceBook [PDF] I've conservatively approximated that 60,000 Memphians use cannabis. That crowd would fill the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.

No one could fathom the acreage of bud you would have to produce to feed the demand of the residents of our city. We are constantly bombarded with claims that the drug warriors are winning, Blue Crush?, that they're "keeping drugs of the streets", when clearly they aren't. Instead we're crowding 201 Poplar full of the fathers of our dying babies. Watch the 20/20 preview if you haven't already. If marijuana were taxed and regulated, or simply free to grow and consume the money wouldn't be going to the thugs fueling the violence.

We're giving outrageous profits to the gangsters that rule our streets and cause one of the highest homicide rates in the country. Marijuana prohibition is causing and perpetuating our problems. You just can't keep drugs out the hands of a free people. Unless you want a totalitarian state, end the marijuana prohibition.

*2,736 hectares / 342 acres = 19.77

Hot 107.1 which in the past I have regarded to be the best hip-hop station in the Dirty South, has censored the political message of Young Jeezy's new single, Crazy World. The lyric in question is toward the end of the first verse and repeated again in the second.

They want that young shit, That dumb shit,
That where ya from shit,
That ride around ya' hood all day, wit ya gun shit,
All I got to my name, is 2 bricks and one felony,
You going back to jail,
That's what my conscience keep on telling me,
I really ain't buying all that bullshit they selling me,
When the government throwing more curves than the letter C,
I said the letter C, I guess that's for correctional,
They tryin' to box me in, sit me still like a vegetable,
Goddamn another trap, I think Bush is tryin punish us,
Send a little message out to each and everyone of us,
Real G shit, well that's really unheard of,
When you get more time for sellin' dope than murder.
In this crazy world.

Along with the FCC-banned language, censors have removed the word "dope" from the emphasized line, thereby removing the political message from the song. For some young black men, for taking only economic opportunity they will ever have, the government will lock them in a cage. It is senseless that a man would be locked away for possessing and selling a plant, marijuana, that has never harmed or killed anyone.

I understand that due to the family audience broadcasters want to remove lyrics that glamorize drug use, but this time they've gone overboard. The song in no way reflects the glamorous life of a drug dealer. In cries out about the injustice faced by young black men in America. Empirical evidence from multiple studies shows that the drug war unfairly targets blacks and Hispanics. Cannabis is used by a higher percentage of whites than any ethnic minority group.

Flynn Broadcasting is owned by perpetual Republican candidate, inventor, and doctor, Memphian George Flynn. His son Shea Flinn sits on the City Council. I call on the Flinn family to ensure that the political messages of rappers heard on Hot 107.1 not be silenced. Don't reduce their message to a minstrel show for your own profit.

Below is the full, unedited version while it's still up on Youtube. Probably not safe for work if you're watching this from the air-conditioned comfort of your cubicle. People that really work for a living are probably OK.

I respect what Alex Jones does, but I don't subscribe to conspiracy chasing much because it's time consuming and unproductive. I'd rather be a voice of reason and liberty. However, I will agree, because it's well documented, that organizations like Skull and Bones, Bohemian Grove, and the Bilderberg Group exist and operate to conspire to rule us. Their symbolism exists in government and court logos, emblems, seals, etc. This is the first time I've recognized Death's Head, (a.k.a skull and crossbones, ☠) imagery in Drug Enforcement Administration patches.

I first saw an image like this on the below from Ian of Free Talk Live and FreeKeene.com. Apparently the emblem isn't widely used or it would be prevalent across the net. It does trouble me because law enforcement supposedly exists to "serve and protect" and "keep us safe." I can't count how many times I've been told I should be grateful to law enforcement for the protection the provide to me and my family. If this is the case why do they exert force like the Marines?

The Marines are not peace keepers or law enforcement, they are the nation's "shock troops*." Vice versa, the police shouldn't be shock troops, raining down death and destruction to our cities. Local, state and federal administrators shouldn't allow their law enforcement divisions to use imagery of death to intimidate the public. I'm sure my plea will fall on deaf ears.



* I highly recommend you watch Generation Kill for a rather accurate depiction of how the Marines operate, then compare it with how you'd like domestic law enforcement to behave.