cannabisnews.com: State By State Legalization Destined for Chaos










  State By State Legalization Destined for Chaos

Posted by CN Staff on August 29, 2006 at 06:53:52 PT
By Chris Najmi, RW Contributing Writer 
Source: Retriever Weekly 

Colorado -- Last February, a ballot initiative known as the Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative was introduced in the state of Colorado. The text of this ballot initiative states the following: “Shall there be an amendment to section 18-18-406 (1) of the Colorado revised statutes making legal the possession of one ounce or less of marijuana for any person twenty-one years of age or older?” This initiative is something of a slap in the face to the federal government. The Controlled Substances Act (CSA) of 1970 establishes how possession, manufacture, and distribution of drugs are to be regulated by the federal government.
The CSA classifies marijuana as a schedule 1 controlled substance, the penalties for possession/distribution range from 5 years imprisonment for possession, to life sentences for multiple trafficking charges. If there were a constitutional scholar in the room, they might point out that nowhere in the Constitution is this an expressed power of the federal government and therefore by the 10th amendment drug enforcement should be a power reserved to the states. Although there is a debate to be made here, (we’ll get to that in a moment) the CSA spells out precisely why it is the federal governments responsibility to regulate drugs. Namely that intrastate drug distribution is associated with distribution/transport across state lines and moreover, drugs produced and distributed intrastate are indistinguishable from drugs produced and distributed interstate. Since it is the federal government's duty to regulate interstate commerce, it is therefore the federal government's duty to regulate drug possession, distribution and manufacture. Subsequently, the state of Colorado has no right to de-criminalize marijuana possession since it is not their job to regulate drugs. Now, to re-examine that debate we touched on above. If the people and politicians of Colorado really want to de-criminalize marijuana possession, they need to start at the CSA. Several ways to do this would range from trying to demonstrate marijuana’s medical benefits to get its schedule changed, to filing suit against the U.S. government as was done in Raich v. Ashcroft (wherein the Supreme Court decided in favor of the U.S. government that the CSA was an allowed use of the commerce clause), to crafting a constitutional amendment that assigns the job of drug regulation explicitly to the states. Good luck, by the way, trying to get 50 separate states to create anything that looks even vaguely like a consistent drug regulation code. All of the above methods of attacking the CSA have the advantage of being legal, and the advantage of confronting the real issue of government regulation rather than the symptom of marijuana. Furthermore, there are several practical reasons why Colorado should not introduce a ballot initiative like this in their state. Assuming that it passes, it would lure a percentage of the state’s population into a false sense of security. Just because the state of Colorado chooses not to enforce the CSA, does not mean that the federal government in the form of the FBI or DEA will decide to magically ignore Colorado’s marijuana users/dealers as they continue their war on drugs. It will likely also introduce unintended consequences for the state of Colorado. The federal government cannot suffer the states to pick and choose which federal laws they enforce; non-uniform enforcement threatens the consistency that a federal regulation hopes to bring to the matter. It is possible that the federal government might do something like deny Colorado highway funds until Colorado decides to start enforcing the CSA again. To conclude, the ballot initiative in Colorado, although perhaps well meaning, is ill-conceived. The state of Colorado has no authority to de-criminalize any sort of drug use and as such should remove the ballot initiative without vote. Chris Najmi is the SGA Director of Financial Services who enjoys taking hard stances on issues in order to create a little controversy. Source: Retriever Weekly (UMBC, MD Edu)Author: Chris Najmi, Retriever Weekly Contributing WriterPublished: Tuesday, August 29, 2006Copyright: 2006 The Retriever WeeklyWebsite: http://trw.umbc.edu/Contact: editorinchief trw.umbc.eduRelated Articles & Web Site:Safer Choicehttp://www.saferchoice.org/Denver DEA Rep: Don't Legalize Ithttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22107.shtmlLegalizing Pot Would Hurt Kids, and Here's Whyhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22106.shtmlColorado Voters To Consider MJ Legalizationhttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread22097.shtml

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Comment #34 posted by afterburner on August 29, 2006 at 19:26:52 PT
Max Flowers #6 
Right on, Max. Wean the calf. Time to grow-up America! Whatever happened to rugged individualism and 'yankee' ingenuity. Rediscover America!
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Comment #33 posted by John Tyler on August 29, 2006 at 19:14:08 PT
Let the Feds do it then
Here is another angle… If the CSA say that the FEDs have exclusive authority over controlled substance regulation (via the interstate commerce clause) then, in FED reality, by this logic state drug laws don’t really matter anyway, so why have any state laws prohibiting drugs because it is a total FEDs responsibility. Local police should get out of the drug law enforcement business altogether and let the FEDs do it all.
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Comment #32 posted by cannabliss on August 29, 2006 at 18:23:04 PT
interstate commerce
On the one hand, the assertion that "drugs produced and distributed intrastate are indistinguishable from drugs produced and distributed interstate" is silly, since essentially this would mean that nothing whatsoever would be exempt from federal regulation ("you grew those tomatoes in your backyard in Illinois? I dunno, they could be Arkansas tomatoes.").On the other hand, the Supreme Court made a similarly absurd ruling back in the 1940's regarding a man growing wheat on his own land for his own use, since that would indirectly affect interstate commerce (no logic is too twisted for your government masters) - http://supct.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0317_0111_ZO.html
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Comment #31 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 18:20:15 PT
nuevo mexican
If you want an account to post articles on Cannablog, I can send an invite to your e-mail address if you want. FoM has my e-mail address so she can let me know yours if you want her to.
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Comment #30 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 18:11:48 PT
nuevo mexican
Thank you, I do not know how much of that reading is your own perspective and how much falls out of the arrangement, but each of us does our part and none is any greater than another.
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Comment #29 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 18:07:49 PT
Matthew 7:22
I don't want to overwhelm Brother Marsh with multiple replies, but this verse ought to be mentioned.
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Comment #28 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 17:50:27 PT
Brother Marsh
He speaks as one without faith, in fear of damnation. He has a sinful heart (he has said so himself) and relies upon some future state of grace to rescue him from his iniquities.
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Comment #27 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 16:51:42 PT
More Marsh comments and replies
http://marshianchronicles.com/?p=698
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Comment #26 posted by nuevo mexican on August 29, 2006 at 15:08:33 PT
Whig, the last minute Super Hero!
As a Gemini, it might be a bit nerve-wracking not to have a Cannabis Caregiver Card, as this is what you are! At least here on C-News!When you chose to claim your date of incarnation, Saturn (wisdom through limitations) and Venus, ruler of Taurus AND Libra, were in the exact same spot in the Heaveans, in the sign of Taurus, (love, money, music, art, investments, food, the garden of life!) and at the last degree, the '29th', or critical degree, where everything that hasn't been dealt with, MUST be dealt with, thus, a 'last-minute' life, where you gain popularity by your volunteerism, and you give volunteerism popularity!Not an 'easy' chart Whig, though challenge is what makes us grow, and you are in your growth phase, as you have progressed by sign into the sign of Cancer, the healer, nurturer, earth-mother, and the element of emotion and water. Difficult chart, great person, easy chart, loooser!Not always, but in 'general'!Growth comes naturally to you now, with the pains asscociated with it, and you are 23 years (23 degrees)into your progressed Cancer phase (stick and I were born that way, HA!! Over-sensitive, yet very caring).BTW, the word Cancer means 'growth'! In a positive sense!I was born with Uranus, the enlightener, awakener, and rebel, at 23 degrees Cancer, so you and I have the most powerful Astrological connection one can have, at least for this year of life, and I do find this most often in my clients' charts, so no wonder you and I are really on the same page, with the years of experience I have, yet with just as much info, different sources etc. Just adding to the 'encyclopedia of knowledge'! Or as you say, the Tree of Knowledge!I am the Son of a Gemini too! Not easy being so smart Whig, I choose emotional sensitivity, yikes! You are in that phase now, if you couldn't tell!In seven years you enter your Leo phase, much easier for a Gemini, though Cancer is great with people, helpfulness, the needs of the public, and you have massive healing powers to be used on yourself, especially through the use of your hands, which are your greatest gift, next to your brilliant, though super-quick mind. Anytime you feel you are ready to heal others, that is when you should!Sometimes you suffer for you intelligence!
A gift can be burdensome!Writing is another gift for you to create abundance, financial security, and will fulfill you need to articulate!I strive to emulate YOUR style of articluation, to the point, and interesting always!Seeing BOTH sides has a benefit, though you can suffer for your evenhandedness as well, giving others the 'benefit of the doubt', to your own detriment, yet in the long run, it is all good, as you are the light AND the dark, coexisting in harmony, though not always apparent to yourself or others!Born a multi-tasking Gemini, with the Moon in wise and happy workaholic Capricorn, my moon sign as well, you will succeed in life as your appear to get 'older'!So guess who has to have the 'last word'? Cap Moons!
Ha!That is pretty funny when you look at alot of these posts! Your Capricorn Moon is about gaining experience through 'the fire', so we never forget 'what we know', and have a hard time letting go of the wisdom gained through experience, yet this is not a reason for limiting experiences to avoid hardship, the stuff that makes us what we are! Embrace new versions of old actions/approaches, and mix it all up a bit for your Gemini fun! Friendship is key with you, and you are a very good friend to yourself, and others are attracted to this in you as well!You are a 'grounded Gemini', a rare 'bird'!
Common sense is second nature to you, though flights of fancy are known to grace your imagination frequently, thus boredome, and restlessness can doom you, or direct you.You make the call!The last few years look like you've been through Hell (heal) and back, with Pluto, the transformer opposite your Sun Sign, making support weak at time from others, and formidable challenges marked your life, with possible deaths, losses, and relocations bringing your body and soul to a place of Rest, and regeneration, and as the 'butterfly' energy of the Zodiac, you have shed your skin in the last few years, faced the truth, embraced it and remade yourself into your own 'new' image!Wow! Congrats!To make matters even more challenging and ultimately more rewarding, you have Jupiter, the Santa Claus/party sign opposite your Venus and Saturn, OUCH! And ALSO at the 29th degree as well! GEEZ! This gives you the ability for extreme focus, not Geminis' best suite!3 planets at 29 Degrees! Hats off to Whig!Wearing 3 Super Hero costumes all of the time must be taxing, it's as though the Universe asked for Volunteers, and you were the only one that took the 'bait'! What that must feel like, I can only imagine!On that 'opposition', Jupiter is your 'luck' or good karma, and when Saturn is opposing your Jupiter, it feels like your good luck is stifled, and it may be, though temporarily! And todouble the effect, you have Venus adding to the 'focus' or challenge. An interesting life! A real juggling act! The Universe thanks you, and we here at C-News thank you for making choices we may not have been to KEEN on making ourselves! Thus, the Heroic outcome! Not neccesarily the goal, just the side-effect! The day WILL be saved!The New Moon of October 21st, will be very powerful in your life as 4 planets will be in Libra too, including VENUS and MARS! This will restart your life, almost a brand NEW beginning, venus is Love and money, Mars represents creativity, new projects, and passion for what you are doing! On a New Moon precisely on your VENUS and Saturn, love and work, those can be re-newed in your life! New Love! New energy! New projects! New Money!No wonder you wanted a reading! Gotta run, here's to your 'choices'!If you have a specific question, relationship or otherwise, just post it here, I'll check in later!Thanks for asking
NM
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Comment #25 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 13:16:30 PT
nuevo mexican
My birth certificate does not appear to have a time of day. I can give you a precise location, however.June 11, 1971. Lat: 40.462339, Long: -79.946757I used this and the hospital address:http://www.batchgeocode.com/lookup/If you want to do it, don't sugar coat. I don't want you to say good things about me and leave out anything negative. I am who I am and there is nothing that will remain secret forever.I also realize this isn't a "cold" reading and that's perfectly fine. I'm as interested in your perceptions as in the reading itself, because it's not the tool but the intelligence behind the tool that matters.
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Comment #24 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 13:05:28 PT
nuevo mexican
The thing is you and I can talk about this and understand one another but I will bet you that there are a lot of people, most who would not understand how we could be even making sense. That's the thing about it. You can't describe a rainbow to a blind person.I believe the Mayan civilization was based on Salvia divinorum. They charted things astrologically and made calendars that were more accurate than anything until atomic clocks came around. The long Now is coming to a point of transformation, Soon Come.
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Comment #23 posted by nuevo mexican on August 29, 2006 at 13:04:02 PT
Whig: yes I do!
for the locals, for the tourists' and for clients internationally at a web site I can email you at Cannablog!I'm not here to solicite clients by any meants, though I love everyone here! If you post your Birthdata, time, place and date Whig, I'll share your best side with our fellow posters, no worries!Thanks for your generous invite to post insights and big picture Political Astrology at Cannablog, I will be happy to contact you through Cannablog if you want privacy! LOL!Or,
as I said, I'll give you a freebie, a public reading here at C-news, (yes, I've done short readings here, thanks FOM, for your open-mindedness!) nothing too private, just helpful info to guide you through your life, since you already have the map, I help you find what ever it is you have contracted out in advance, thus the accuracy of the Stars! So be it! It is So! As above, so below, and on and on!I believe alot of us here will meet someday at a gathering at FOMs' it looks like a possibility, all of my family is back in Indy, not far from O-High-O, my fathers birth place!Son of a Buck-eye!
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Comment #22 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 12:53:32 PT
nuevo mexican 
Dance! I don't think I could sit still if I wanted to! I sure will think of you when they play RIFW!
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Comment #21 posted by nuevo mexican on August 29, 2006 at 12:50:28 PT
Whig! You God it!
Or so it appears!Yes, there is NO time, just the illusion of time passing, based on the planets turning, the Moon and Suns' Rising, so we have the illusion of time, to keep us sane, (we are in one very long moment, very, very long, an infinity, so to speak) while we use gravity to keep us tethered to this giant ball of love we call Home, or Earth (Terra, so does that makes us 'terra-ists!?!)How about sabatoging the word terrorist, which means nothing now, if not mostly referring to the bush/cheney/rumy/Israel crew poorly disguised as Osama/Saddam/Al Kinda good cop/bad cop crew.The jig is up!We are all terra-ists! Of the Earth! Be gone you death worshippers, banished to forever to being bathed in the light of love and of the light of compassion!And we know cock roaches hate the light!
Only to become part of it once the Raid Can appears!BTW, I just got to play a Concert for Peace, Cindy Sheehan canceled to go to Jordan for the new Iraqi Peace Plan, so we didn't get to meet here, she may be back though.
We played 'Rockin in the Free World' last, of course, it's always well recieved, so think of me FOM when they play that song, and notice the Drummer having the best time of all the band members.Fun with a capitol F!It is one of the best killer drum songs, especially when Pearl Jam covered it with Neil a few years back! I'd love to hear the new live version by C,S,N,and Y! Hope they let you dance, being CSNY, they should, though these days you can get thrown out of a concert for dancing, like my last Santana show, pretty bunk!
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Comment #20 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 12:47:53 PT
nuevo mexican
Do you do astrological readings on people?
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Comment #19 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 12:21:52 PT
nuevo mexican
"I say we all pre-create our realities, and then live them out according to our own divine plan, our birth charts, and this event looks like one of those pre-concieved realities you long ago determined at your birth! Just a thought to consider!"I think there is a lot to be said for that, but I think time itself is sort of an illusion that we perceive only while we are on this temporal place. There's sort of an eternal "now" that I'm talking about.Ram Dass wrote a book called Be Here Now. It's interesting.I also understand a lot better what the writers of the Bible were doing. They were taking their perceptions of the Now and writing them down, so that they would be read and understood in the context of the later Now, which was all anticipated and here we are, Now.The first thing God ever said to me after I had taken Salvia divinorum the first time -- the next day, actually, as I was not under the immediate influence but was in a slumbering sort of migraine state, and I wrote it down then and remembered it since: There Is No Time. We Are Here Now.Something like that can seem crazy and especially if you really believe that but don't understand it. See, that's the Tree of Knowledge. Salvia divinorum. I had knowledge, but no understanding.I really do believe Salvia divinorum is the Tree of Knowledge in the same sense that I do believe Cannabis sativa is the Tree of Life. And I don't think people should take Salvia. But I wouldn't prohibit, I would say that this is the consequence of taking it and you should not do it if you don't want to lose your innocence. Once you take Salvia divinorum you are on the path and you have no perceptions or ways to navigate it. There is a reason Samael is called Blind God. Samael is an aspect of God, all are aspects, and that one is the God who does not perceive the existence of God. I hope that makes sense to you. I was a Samael, in that sense, until I saw and understood after taking Cannabis. And in the first instant that Maria explained it to me and I saw God that night.
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 12:12:16 PT
nuevo mexican 
I don't understand all that you just said but I am a Scorpio and my husband is a Cancer I think. It has been trying all day to rain. Yesterday my sister said take a rain coat and before I realized what I said I said no God won't let it rain on us. I then said that's not necessarily true. I'm weird I know. One thing I know is this is one of the most important things I have done in my life with my time. This concert tour seems almost magical.
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Comment #17 posted by nuevo mexican on August 29, 2006 at 12:00:17 PT
Happy Moon in Neil Young! I mean Scorpio!
Now isn't that an interesting co-in-cidence!OUr Scorpio FOM (and fellow water sign Cancer hubby Stick (correct me if I'm wrong) gets to see C,S,N,and NeilYOUNG while the Moon is in Scorpio, Neils' sign as well!That alone makes my day! I say we all pre-create our realities, and then live them out according to our own divine plan, our birth charts, and this event looks like one of those pre-concieved realities you long ago determined at your birth! Just a thought to consider!It makes life alot more fun if you see it a a process in which you always create the perfect outcome, regardless of how messy the 'process'!It's all pretty divine down here in the material world, even when it appears hell has met Earth, there is still music, joy, and love, if you want it, and that is the way it has always been!The Moon is only in each sign for 2 and 1/2 days, once a month, it may very well rain, as Mars is squaring Pluto today, so drive carefully everyone, this evening especially!Also, bush will trot out a new Tuesday Terror appetizer under this aspect, or a bush inspired terror theme will shadow the day, there is NEVER enough fear is there! This new Hurricane will strengthen under this, and will help bushes PR Katrina spin to flop bigtime!Change is in the air, and after a big storm, the air will be cleared!Once a huge lightning, rail and thunderstorm encirled an Allman Bros Concert in Deer Creek Indiana, and the Music itself keep the storm at bay it seemded, not a drop, amazing, though not surprising at an Allman Shroom concert!Enjoy the shows, you deserve this more than anyone I'm sure, you and Stick are the GREATEST! 
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Comment #16 posted by OverwhelmSam on August 29, 2006 at 11:59:13 PT
Total Idiot
This guy is a total idiot. He talks like the people and states have no right to regulate themselves. Hey, total loser, the federal government is not our master, it is our servant. In the eyes of the People, you sir are a traitor!
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Comment #15 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 11:38:34 PT
huh?
"The state of Colorado has no authority to de-criminalize any sort of drug use and as such should remove the ballot initiative without vote."This guy isn't advocating against voting for the ballot measure, he's advocating against the existence of the ballot measure even after it has qualified for the ballot!
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 11:23:27 PT
Max Flowers 
The only reason I think they go is to get in a huff and stand up and say hey look at me I love Bush and walk out during Let's Impeach the President because they are Republicans and they seem terribly emotional. 
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Comment #13 posted by Max Flowers on August 29, 2006 at 11:18:08 PT
FoM 
That's so silly, that republicans walk out during that song. Why do they go at all, knowing they will have to walk out? How absurd!
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 09:34:08 PT
Max Flowers and Truth
We will see the final show on September 10th too. Since both of these shows are not too far we had to do it more then one time. I think this tour will be the best tour CSNY ever had and that's saying a lot. They will be releasing a DVD and CD of this tour around Christmas so that will be great. Live music is so darn good. 
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 09:26:39 PT
BGreen
We have been redoing our whole house and next year we will have plenty of room to have a nice gathering. I wish we could see CSNY all of us all together but I know that is impossible. Maybe they will do a tour again next year since this one is so well received except by the few republicans that have gone to the concert. They get a little mad when Let's Impeach The President starts playing. They walk out then but no one cares.
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 09:23:05 PT
Hope
We have been working so hard this summer it will be a wonderful experience. It could pour down and it wouldn't make me feel bad. This concert will help me to keep going and to keep fighting for what is right and good. It's almost like going to a retreat for me.
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Comment #9 posted by BGreen on August 29, 2006 at 09:20:23 PT
That's so exciting, FoM
Mrs. Green and I would have driven up and joined you at one of these concerts if we hadn't planned this Amsterdam trip. Mrs. Green is just as bummed as I am.We will get together sometime in the near future. We just have to meet you and Stick.The Reverend Bud Green
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Comment #8 posted by Truth on August 29, 2006 at 09:14:41 PT
Max
I think the DEA describes that odor as "stench".
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Comment #7 posted by Max Flowers on August 29, 2006 at 09:12:33 PT
FoM
Here's hoping you have a great time, and I know you will. I also know the air there is going to smell sweet and fragrant!
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Comment #6 posted by Max Flowers on August 29, 2006 at 09:10:53 PT
A couple of responses
The federal government cannot suffer the states to pick and choose which federal laws they enforce; non-uniform enforcement threatens the consistency that a federal regulation hopes to bring to the matter.Let's be real. In this matter (the so-called war on drugs), federal regulation has already proven to be hopeless, ineffectual and a massive waste of money decades ago.It is possible that the federal government might do something like deny Colorado highway funds until Colorado decides to start enforcing the CSA again.The obvious answer to this, if they do it, is to regulate cannabis, sell it and collect a significant tax on it, some or all of which would be allocated to those highway funds which the feds would childishly withhold.In my view, this calf-and-teat relationship is what holds states back so much from being all they could be. Why can't states just do for themselves and swear off of federal money? In every case where they are dependent on it, I bet they could figure out a way to do it for themselves if they would just think for themselves in independent terms. Besides, after the unprecedented megadisaster of the Bush "presidency", there is little money left in federal coffers anyway.  
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Comment #5 posted by Truth on August 29, 2006 at 09:00:59 PT
Neil
Wish I was going. One show wasn't enough.
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Comment #4 posted by Hope on August 29, 2006 at 08:51:02 PT
Oh, Fom! That's right!
Today's the day!"Good day...Sunshine!"
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Comment #3 posted by Hope on August 29, 2006 at 08:48:44 PT
Does this guy know what he's talking about?
"Subsequently, the state of Colorado has no right to de-criminalize marijuana possession since it is not their job to regulate drugs."Then why are people so often prosecuted by State law and locked in state prisons?
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 08:48:10 PT
Truth
I just have to say this. I am so happy. Tonight we will be seeing CSNY. It looked like rain and I yelled outside No Rain, No Rain, No Rain and guess what? The sun is shining.
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Comment #1 posted by Truth on August 29, 2006 at 08:28:39 PT
We the people....
rule by majority.Get over it.
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