Think about it...

It is amazing to me that these articles often stongly imply to me that the kind of behaviour they are describing is the result of alcohol abuse. Often it is mentioned that a person had crashed a car or killed someone and that alcohol and drugs had been found in his body. Yet the public seem to read these undisguised reports as having been due to cannabis.

The writers of such articles know precisely what they are doing. By describing the negative social effects of alcohol and and mentioning cannabis in the same paragraph the herb gets a sticky coating of guilt-by-association. And each time they do it - they have as much time as they need, the corporate advertisers know it takes time, and they have as many square miles of paper or looping news channels as they need - a little more of the bullshit sticks.

Cannabis activists need some journalists on our side to use their tactics in order to silence the prohibitionists. I'm talking about journalists who could put articles in some high profile places. If you are a journalist and support the cause we need you to outsmart your editors and get some good anti-propaganda in the national papers. You must hate to see the kind of article above even more than the rest of us because you can see how easily they trick the public using this shoddy and yet effective propaganda.

" Safer than what?

They imply that it's a safer recreational drug than alcohol. But that's a problematical comparison in itself. The very definition of "safer" is subjective. Stoned is stoned, man. Doesn't matter how you get there, a brain running on mind-altering chemicals isn't safe by any standard. "

Hello mR. rICE, have you ever inhaled, you mention 'subjective, as if you speak with some kind of authority, what is your authority?

Have you 'inhaled?

Mind Altering..that has its own set of problems..

Imagine that there was a way to communicate with God, I mean truly, a way that was better than 'prayer, would that be considered 'mind altering?

I think that mR. rICE has swallowed too much vioxx and has a good prescription plan.

I would much rather focus on old john pp w, of the ondcpee, sure his urine stains can be found on the face of mR. rICE.

Happy New Year

Cannabis will forever grow in this world, long after 'we 'all are forgotten and the birds and the bees will continue to do their thing..

gw

That part about the Night has me a little confused, I thought the Night was a child of God in Infinite Mystery, oh well, hope you and all the good folks here are well in the new year and through these holidays.

Russia is threatening to shut off gas flow to the Ukraine. This would affect the EU's supply of gas. Apparantly, most of these countries have allowed theirselves to be in such a position where their fuel supplies are on such a tenuous link. Not only is it from such a narrow source, but it is a foreign source of energy that is sucseptible to being shut off. Not a good idea.

America is choosing a dictatorship over freedom. That's what choosing safety over freedom is. Dictatorships have a low crime rate historically. And, we seem to have a nation stupid enough to believe that the domestic wire tapping is okay. Dumbasses. As if the government could save anyone. Just think what a wonderful job they did in Katrina's wake.

Oil producing countries are at max production, with little margin for error. And demand is growing globally with China and India being major players in the world game. And of course, we are doing nothing to make our consumption less. In short, we are looking at high prices all over with oil affecting all aspects of our economy.

The gap between rich and poor is growing. And also, apparantly the gap between the poverty line and the middle class as well. Poverty is naturally the growing part.

I have heard that North Korea's number one crop is now hemp. I don't know for sure, but it is from a good source. Would be a sensible decision. And what of China's hemp crop status? Anyone have an idea? And also Canada recieves little attention in that area. Especially since the Emery incident. And what of that?

Creationists are still on their stupid little political agenda. Hey, if you can control the church, you control the masses. Give me all your todays for a tomorrow I have no say over. That is the church mantra. Bite me. We are all the leaders of our own beliefs. Who is able to understand the mind of God? Not a human, that's for sure. We are so incredibly small and insignificant. One day, we may evolve to a point where we are worthy of note, but I doubt that day will be seen in the next million years or so.

Our debt ceiling is cause for concern as well. We will hit that 8 plus trillion ceiling somewhere in Feb. If we don't raise it, supposedly all kind of horrible things will happen. I could care less. They will only be postponed by a rise in the ceiling. Poor fiscal control won't be saved by raising credit limits.

78 million people are set to retire over the next few years. About a third of our population. And hallelujah! They are now discovering the wonderful world of medical reform today. The confusing plans of the Bush administration is going on now. Who understands it? The pharmaceutical companies, that's who. Ka-Ching! goes the cash registers.

We have chosen to be led by our fears. That is "we" as in the people. No more Live Free or Die. It's now, please help me, I'm a scared little wussy American. Oh please help me! Bite me. I need no help from the government. I can't afford any more of that kind of help.

Iraq is a boiling point in politics now. Secret prisons are okay with Amerikans. Wiretap amerikans? Great! Long live the swastika! That's the Amerika of today. Wouldn't Jefferson hate what we have made of his dream? I know that now, I am ashamed to live here.

My nostradamus abilities are definitely crap. Cannabis is still illegal. No matter what we do, as long as we operate within the established parameters of society, Cannabis will remain illegal. Go figure. Reminds me of when the Cherokees were asking President Jackson to help save them from the state of Georgia. Save yourself people. Save yourself. That has always been the mantra of success.

Last year sucked. Overall anyway. Or did it? We are coming closer to a decision by the people. Many states and cities have fought in the voting booths. Though the victories are only political, they are necesary for our cause. Yet, there will doubtless be more violence coming. Probably for all sides. After all, this is a country where the Justice department is investigating who leaked the secret wiretapping. I think they are concerned with what else could be coming out to the public. Note they are not concerned with any civil rights violations, just who leaked it.

Censorship is dead. At least to a public that is active. Most are still ignorant and do not count though. That is their choice. They wish to remain in fear and have someone else care more about them than they do. That is what a belief in government is anyway. And it is an erroneous belief. Government is force.

In a nation that wants to put up walls on our borders, both north and south, what can you expect? And remember when we used to say the Berlin wall was unacceptable? What a joke we have become in the last few years. Luckily, we are losing our dominance over the world. But is it too late?

We have a bifurcation point building up in our country. This even balance of people who believe in domestic wiretapping brought that fact home to me in a very disheartening manner. I believe our country will continue to choose un-wisely. Just my opinion. Must be something in the water. Oh yeah, I forgot, there is LOTS of stuff in our water. But, I digress.

So much is going on in the world. I don't think that it would suprise me if we actually have a depression this year. That would be okay with me, I'm used to hard living. But, it would not be okay with the status quo. They are the ones who depend upon a delicate balance of fear. Those that write articles such as this one on the "dangers" of Cannabis.

Law enforcement is worried about their security. With reform of the drug laws, what will they do? They will definitely fight any reform. My main hope is that the letters to the editor that I keep reading which promote the ideas inherent in the Declaration of Independence keep on coming up. They speak of revolution now, maybe they will have it this year. If we have the balls for it, that is.

It is the darkness that steels the will. That has always been the case, will it be the case now? It is no guarrantee. If the metal is weak, tempering the blade will do no good. Do we have the makings of good steel in our national will? That is the question I have for this year. I am almost afraid of the answer.

Rev Jim Lunsford

First Cannabist Church

I have a premonition about 2006. It will be a year of great and sometimes violent change, but TRUTH WILL OUT as it must, more and more. FoM, I believe 2006 will *most certainly* be our year!

Oh, and to Mr. Rice, may you and your ilk wake up from your comas of fear...

Peace and Strength to you and yours!

I know some fine folks in the country who brew their own alcohol from wild berries and fruit. Not in their backyard, but in their spare room. But, I'm sure they would be able to brew it in their backyard, basement, or attic, if they wanted to. Within the legal limit, right? So what would be the difference of growing Cannabis or brewing alcohol in your back yard, basement, or attic, if you were within the legal limit, and wanted all the hassles of growing. Sure there will be connosoirs who, like with tobacco and alcohol, will create specialty Cannabis. So? Look at all the different alcohol products, tobacco products.

If that's his argument, he has none.

"As a police officer I heard these and myriad other rationalizations. And I had to arrest combative kids whose "freed" minds refused to accept that urinating in the middle of a crowded dance floor was not acceptable conduct. Or explain to a stoned kid after the wreck that driving in reverse on a one-way street is not legal, even if the car was pointed in the right direction. And I had to explain to parents that handcuffs are necessary when anyone, even their darling, believes he's Cassius Clay and tries to fight an officer twice his age and strength."

Now this sounds more like something someone on alcohol,the dangerous illicits, or pharma-poisons might do, but definitely not Cannabis users. This guy really is dumb. I'm sure a few well informed LTE's would expose his ignorance, and save the Journal Advocate from future embarrassments by his ignorant ramblings.

Happy new year, 'we are at war,

I'm about partied out. Christmas parties and get togethers and visits galore this year, plus three birthdays the last week of December. My first child was born three minutes after midnight New Years Eve...making him the first baby of the new year 1967 in our vicinity.

Thankfully, I'm not going anywhere this evening and I'm not planning on company until tomorrow afternoon. Another family together. Whew! It's been a joyful roller coast ride but I'm glad for a rest. No parties until the twelfth of January when another round of family birthdays starts.

I am content, too, today...somewhat. Every time I see where a prohibitionist of some sort doesn't want me to toke...I want to. That disturbs my contentment a little.

As an American adult, I despise being told what I can and cannot consume... even to the point of inprisonment and persecution. Maternalistic or paternalistic government is a travesty of injustice and a perversion of a true government "of the people, by the people, and for the people".

Government didn't give birth to us and it is not our parent or God. Get it the hell out of our private lives and return to us the natural freedoms given to every human born on the face of this old earth.

In the next dawn

May 'we see

Our place in this universe

May 'we become the children

Who 'minister before the table of the Lord?

Happy New Year to you and all my CannabisNews friends. I love you all very much.

Everytime I've made or gotten a drink for anyone during this busy and happy, for me, season, I've thought, "The day we can share "recreational" cannabis as easily, or even more easily, as we do "recreational" alcohol...what a fine day that will be."

I'm looking so forward to it.

Corporate Media and PNAC are good targets for this year. Public Enemies No. 1 and No. 2. These are the enemies of Cannabis law reform, also. They are the ANTIS.

Handshakes and Cannabis hits to everyone whose been active in Stopping the Insanity of War. Let's continue to shread the DEAth logic of Cannabis Prohibition and the BOGUS War of Terror. Peace symbols and bong hits to everyone else.

HAPPY 2006

As I remember, they are exceptionally oily and they have no buzz. There can be a buzz in the stems, but I've never personally known of one available in the hard seeds, past the light outer seed husk that is technically schaff, but does have a buzz.

Seeds are for eating, pressing, and planting. They don't smoke well.

Never the less, I hope the guy is cleared and the seed is at least legal to possess.

A plant. A common...or uncommon plant. A plant that grows from the earth...a natural gift to mankind. A plant that heals the body and soul...and just makes a person feel better...feel good.

It's a crime against humanity that it's made illegal to possess because of the meddling perversions writhing in the brains of the enemies of freedom and hope.

Cannabis Sativa. We have a right to grow, use, and possess this amazing plant along with all the others. We have a natural right to grow beautiful poppies, whether we use the sap or not. We have the natural right to have a coca bush growing alongside our Aloe Vera.

May our rights be restored as quickly and as soon as possible. God help us. Maybe this will be the year.

Our struggle sometimes makes me think of that old Monty Python character, the old knight warrior guy who would keep fighting relentlessly no matter how badly he appeared to be cut down. One leg? He was still hopping and fighting furiously. I've seen the times when it looked like we were hopping into battle on one leg, but we never ever gave up and we never will...and in fact we now have more "legs to stand on" than even the most hopeful of us could have ever forseen, even in our most hopeful moments.

***

December 31, 2005

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Smoking marijuana seeds is legal under Oregon law, the Oregon Court of Appeals ruled this week.

Pendleton resident Cameron Scott Beers, 27, was arrested in 2002 for driving under the influence and possession of less than one ounce of marijuana, an infraction.

In his defense, Beers' lawyers argued that he should never have been convicted because he only had marijuana seeds on him.

State law only prohibits possession of leaves, stems and flowers.

The Court of Appeals considered whether legislators might have omitted seeds inadvertently.

But the court rejected that idea after noting that lawmakers had included seeds elsewhere in state law.

David T. McDonald, a Portland attorney who has handled a lot of marijuana cases, said the ruling appeared to clear the way for legal seed-smoking, at least under state law.

Copyright: 2005 Associated Press

Information from: The Oregonian, http://www.oregonlive.com

1-202-737-0002 Dem line call in. do not have the Gop and third party numbers.

nytimes has story on willie nelson and biofuel

last year the hemp food sales more than doubled.

This year, I've seen the words 'prohibition' and 'prohibitionist' used to describe the antis finally adopted by the media (with all the historical inferrences that both words imply - FAILURE). This year, government watchdog groups and citizen versions of the same have both given black eyes to the ONDCP for being unable to justify the fiscal cost to the Republic of the War on Some Drugs. ONDCP's propaganda budget has been cut, and the wailing and gnashing of teeth that caused was covered by a brave face that's sweating bullets. Because government agencies are like haemophiliacs when they get lacerated. Once the precedent has been set, and the first cut made successfully, more cuts can be made, causing more 'bleeding' until the agency is either eliminated or subsumed by another (big fish eating little).

ONDCP is a inherently poisonous fish, which by the bureaucratically 'unsexy' and impossible nature of its' mission cannot be swallowed without sickening the swallower. Which is also why the FBI wants no part of DEA; they want no part of a job which is becoming increasingly less popular, not to mention demonstrably impossible. A fact which anyone who monitors DEAWatch http://members.aol.com/deawatch/daily.htm can attest has led to morale at DEA being lower than the proverbial whale manure. I wish I could say it pains me, but it most certainly doesn't.

Yes, we have setbacks. But we bounce right back, and stronger yet. For all their brave noises, the prohibs make them as they fearfully keep their eyes on us and let their backsides guide them towards the exit.

***

Off Topic:

I am so happy for Neil Young. The LA Times voted the song When God Made Me a top song for 2005. Go Neil!

December 31, 2005

CRITIC'S NOTEBOOK

Finally, songs that move us

Presenting Calendar's annual countdown of the year's 10 most memorable singles or individual album tracks.

By Robert Hilburn, Times Staff Writer

For all the dizzy exuberance of songs about gold diggers and candy shops, pop music was in an unusually reflective mood during 2005. In fact, songwriters such as Neil Young and Mary Gauthier gave us some of the smartest and most moving musical commentaries in ages.

No wonder.

Given the years of debate over such issues as the Iraq war, "my God is better than your God" and gay rights, an outpouring of thoughtful, soul-searching topical songs is long overdue.

The best of them are spotlighted in Calendar's annual New Year's Eve countdown of the year's 10 most memorable singles or individual album tracks.

Topping the list is Young's "When God Made Me," a true sermon for these times and a song in the idealistic, brotherhood spirit of John Lennon's "Imagine."

The opening lines:

Was he thinkin' about my country

Or the color of my skin?

Was he thinkin' about my religion

And the way I worshiped him?

Did he create just me in his image

Or every living thing?

When God made me.

Obviously, Mr. Rice is ignorant of the 1999 IoM study which found no such thing as 'marijuana (sic) addiction'. I'd be inclined to hand him another pistol to shoot himself in the foot with, but the season reminds us of the philosophical reasons why we should not take advantage of those whom Nature has cheated in the logic department.

Making statements such as he has without corroboration certainly causes me to believe he suffers from such a sad condition. It's an invitation to be dragged to the intellectual woodpile for a much needed drubbing. But no matter; an excellent cure for this sad condition may be available: