cannabisnews.com: Tax Dollars Used for Ill-Conceived DEA Push Tax Dollars Used for Ill-Conceived DEA Push Posted by CN Staff on August 29, 2006 at 07:55:38 PT Editorial Source: Aurora Sentinel Colorado -- It's hardly news that Drug Enforcement Agency officials are opposed to a Colorado ballot initiative seeking to make it legal for adults to possess small amounts of marijuana.It certainly is news, however, when DEA agents admit to spending staff time, paid for by taxpayer dollars, fighting that ballot measure or any other. The Daily Camera reported Aug. 27 that DEA agent Michael Moore sent out e-mails to political consultants looking for someone to advise the federal agency how to set up a campaign against the amendment. The issue comes before voters in November and seeks to allow state residents over 21 to keep up to 1 ounce of marijuana.The wisdom of such a change in drug laws is certainly debatable. American learned hard lessons during Prohibition, mostly that it neither kept people from drinking nor persuade Americans to shun alcohol.Clearly, for all the hundreds of billions of dollars spent on fighting the so-called War on Drugs, illegal drug use seems as dangerous and pervasive as ever.It's unclear whether decriminalization of drugs such as marijuana would have any effect on American drug use or drug sales, but it's hard to argue that there's much of a black market for alcohol these days.There are many unanswered questions from this proposal that the media and voters will certainly look to the DEA to for answers. Rest assured anything the DEA says about the issue will be big news, freely disseminated as their side of the story. But any opinions from the DEA are just that.It's a given that drug-agency officials will be releasing only information that supports their position that legalizing even small amounts of marijuana would be bad for Coloradans. It could be that there would be a need for fewer DEA agents. That means current DEA would be spending time on the job paid for by taxpayers to lobby voters to keep them employed. That's wrong. Certainly DEA agents, like all Americans, enjoy the right of free speech. But here in Colorado, we've wisely limited how the government can use tax dollars to promote that free speech. Congress would do well to amend the age-old Hatch Act, which limits federal employee involvement in partisan political races, to include limits on all political questions.And DEA agents would do well to back off their ill-conceived plan against this state ballot issue so that any Hatch Act amendments are precautionary rather than justifiably punitive.Complete Title: The Sun Says: Tax Dollars Used for Ill-Conceived DEA PushNewshawk: Global_WarmingSource: Aurora Sentinel (CO)Published: August 29, 2006Copyright: 2006 Aurora SentinelContact: editor aurorasentinel.comWebsite: http://www.aurorasentinel.com/Related 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 Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help Comment #100 posted by FoM on September 06, 2006 at 18:38:52 PT Aurora Sentinel LTE: September 6, 2006 Back Off, DEAEditor:In response to the Aug. 31 editorial, "Tax dollars wrong for DEA push," the Drug Enforcement Administration facts are an oxymoron. The agency and the U.S. government are the last places to get "facts" about cannabis (kaneh bosm/marijuana). They are experts on prohibition, not cannabis. The rationale behind cannabis prohibition is and always has been based on lies; everything the DEA says about cannabis is suspect and should be researched by voters.Fact is, re-legalizing cannabis is past due, and the DEA should step aside while Colorado leads the nation back on track to obey Christ God Our Father in re-legalizing cannabis, bringing peace on earth and utilizing one of the great creations God has to offer.Stan WhiteDillon***Let Marijuana Issue Be in State's HandsEditor:Kudos to the Aurora Sentinel in its Aug. 31 editorial, "Tax dollars wrong for DEA push," for rightly criticizing the Drug Enforcement Administration's decision to use taxpayers' funds and paid staff time to campaign against Amendment 44, The Alcohol-Marijuana Equalization Initiative.Regardless of whether one favors or disapproves of Amendment 44, Colorado voters deserve the opportunity to decide this issue free from undue, federally sponsored interference.Of course, it's not surprising that the DEA would oppose any potential liberalization to the current blanket prohibition of cannabis - a policy that results in the arrest of some 750,000 Americans on marijuana charges every year and costs taxpayers between $10 billion and $12 billion annually.Nevertheless, despite this costly criminal crackdown, the US National Institute on Drug Abuse reports that 94 million Americans - that's 40 percent of the U.S. population age 12 or older - have used cannabis during their lives. It makes no sense to continue to treat nearly half of all Americans as criminals for their use of a substance that poses no greater - and arguably far fewer - health risks than alcohol. The law should reflect this reality, not deny it.Paul ArmentanoSenior policy analystNORML FoundationWashington, D.C.***Cannabis MadnessEditor:The Drug Enforcement Administration should be part of the debate. Their role in this Prohibition II is a shaky one at best and a criminal one at worst.Whether burying studies showing positive medical attributes for cannabis (1974, Medical College of Virginia, NIH study found THC slowed the growth of three kinds of cancer in mice - lung and breast cancer, and a virus-induced leukemia) or stealing medicine from patients, the DEA has subverted our principles of liberty and democracy.Prohibition II is a failure. A failure precisely because it mirrors our earlier 20th century failed attempt at prohibiting alcohol. There are many agencies of government that need upbraiding for abusive excesses committed under the guise of "protecting" our citizens against the so-called evils of pot.But, as more studies continue to appear showing not just cannabis' efficacy as a medicine, but that previously declared physical harms don't exist (Tashkin, UCLA, 2006, cannabis does not cause cancer), the glaring assault on those most able to benefit from this ancient herb (our MS patients, patients with cancer and AIDS, rheumatoid arthritis, etc.) can't be easily dismissed.It is about time the opponents of Prohibition II have a chance to publicly make their case.Allan EricksonDrug Policy Forum of Oregonhttp://aurorasentinel.com/main.asp?SectionID=16&SubSectionID=57&TM=58086.45 [ Post Comment ] Comment #99 posted by FoM on September 01, 2006 at 12:45:09 PT DankHank and Whig That's interesting. I never got into Sci-Fi very much. I really liked Raiders of the Lost Ark. That's a cool picture. I look up at space and see stars and the moon but when I see a show about ocean life I become transfixed on it's wonder. Whig you could be right. I don't know but it worries me the direction we are going. [ Post Comment ] Comment #98 posted by dankhank on September 01, 2006 at 09:29:51 PT Eye of God ... I bounced one of the many emails I get asking to send forward and usually ignore 'cause I like it and it remind me of a very good SciFi novel, "The Mote In God's Eye," by Larry Niven.for some odd reason everything bounced, 'cept the photo ... so here it is ...The novel was really very good, and twenty years later a decent sequel appeared ...http://www.wordtinker.com/The%20Eye%20of%20God.jpghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mote_in_God's_Eyehas spoilers so don't read if you would like to check out the novel. [ Post Comment ] Comment #97 posted by whig on August 31, 2006 at 15:05:23 PT FoM They want to bankrupt us to prevent socialism from working. [ Post Comment ] Comment #96 posted by FoM on August 31, 2006 at 11:33:03 PT museman I don't really know how to prepare for the worst. I think we will see an economic crash here because our debt to creditors is about equal with what the government takes in. That's not good. That means soon more will be going to other countries for interest on borrowed money then taxes can take in. That will be the reason for our economic collapse I think. We should try to be able to live without dependency on our system to keep us alive. We personally could be self sufficient except for needing a way to pump water and a generator would do that as long as their was fuel to power a generator. If the power fails can we live, heat our house, cook and survive is what I ask myself. Sharing phone numbers with people that we trust is a good thing in case the Internet goes down. If only CNews went down I have a board made for an emergency and you have a board. I know that Iran isn't going to listen and Bush doesn't take it very well when a country doesn't listen so who knows what will happen. Bush has a strong belief in his power to expect respect but I don't think he will be getting anymore respect after the invasion of Iraq. I remember when I saw the first bombs drop on Iraq I said to myself well he did it and now it's over. I'm not afraid but just posting my opinion. [ Post Comment ] Comment #95 posted by museman on August 31, 2006 at 11:11:20 PT FoM "Plan for the worst but have faith it won't happen."I don't know how I would handle it if I was put in that position of losing a child. I thank the Great Spirit almost every day that I haven't.I've been 'planning for the worst' since my 'visionary' experiences began at a very young age. In fact at some point I had to 'stop planning' because no matter what I planned, or how much of a contingency I thought I was prepared for, it was never enough, and with lousy timing. I found however that if I had enough faith, the basics were always covered.I am a firm believer in Providence and Grace. However, I find it hard to apply that equation to some of the things happening in the world, and surely count my blessings that even with my 'American poverty' I/we are in rather good shape in comparison to so many who suffer so much in the world.If the infrastructure fails, and internet goes down, emails won't do us any good. If the physical phone lines are still up and powered (they have independent 12v power supplies) there is a way to 'dial up' the ip address of individual computers,-if they are known. I'd like to have some prepared knowledge and 'how-tos' ready for such a situation.I have solar backup, with a 1500 watt inverter, so I could power my computer/s. My system has suffered a lot of attrition over the years though. [ Post Comment ] Comment #94 posted by Hope on August 31, 2006 at 10:53:09 PT Comment 91 explains your super-human dedication to the task.Thanks, thanks, thanks. [ Post Comment ] Comment #93 posted by FoM on August 31, 2006 at 10:43:38 PT Hope I think you're right. It isn't an issue with Kapt. [ Post Comment ] Comment #92 posted by Hope on August 31, 2006 at 10:40:58 PT Whig, I don't think Kap is worried about it. He is agnostic, I think. (He'll correct me, if I'm wrong.) [ Post Comment ] Comment #91 posted by FoM on August 31, 2006 at 10:39:23 PT museman I believe we are all here together for a purpose. When my son passed away I said a little prayer. Our lives up to the time when my son passed away was as bad as any person's life could get. We almost lost our home and my son wasn't going to make it. When we made it thru it all it was a miracle. I then wanted to thank God for getting us thru that horrible time. I said if He made a way for me I would do what He would have me to do and money wouldn't be an issue. That's why we're here today. We need to have each others e-mail addresses and phone numbers so if they took the Internet down we wouldn't be scattered. Plan for the worst but have faith it won't happen. [ Post Comment ] Comment #90 posted by Hope on August 31, 2006 at 10:38:24 PT Whig I was thinking have ATF, sometimes known as BATF, or BATFE or the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms. Sometimes known as Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives.Most commonly, referred to as ATF. But it could just as easily be B(Bureau)of A(alchol) T (tobacco) D (drugs) F (firearms) and sometimes E (explosives).They could be BATDF&E...is what I was thinking.I'm terrible at acronyms...I think is what they're called with just letters. Terrible!Which reminds me, if a person were wearing BDUs what would they be wearing? [ Post Comment ] Comment #89 posted by museman on August 31, 2006 at 10:29:25 PT Kap You are so right about FoM and this site. Compared to some of you on this site, I am just a 'newbe' - and like you said the intelligence that is reflected here is mindboggling sometimes! This is the most meaningful forum I have ever seen, and sometimes I feel like I know all of you very well, and almost picture you in my minds eye while reading.If the infrastrucrure goes down, and the internet with it, I will miss this the most.But in the meantime, "Power to the People!" [ Post Comment ] Comment #88 posted by whig on August 31, 2006 at 00:06:01 PT kaptinemo You will be blessed, and well loved. Don't fear for your immortality. Whatever you have done in the past, if you have sincerely repented of it, you will be forgiven. And do not fear that you shall have no chance at doing so, but do what you can when you can. [ Post Comment ] Comment #87 posted by whig on August 30, 2006 at 23:57:51 PT Hope ATF&E is a tax collection agency, part of the Treasury Department. DEA enforces prohibition laws against untaxable contraband. [ Post Comment ] Comment #86 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 20:57:39 PT Kaptinemo Can I say that I think the world of you? Cause I do. [ Post Comment ] Comment #85 posted by kaptinemo on August 30, 2006 at 20:33:31 PT: Hope, I'm no one's hero And I sure am no saint. If I truly believed in Hell, I'd also have to believe my ticket for the high-speed bullet-train bound for Gehenna Station is already punched. I was trained to do some frightful things...and, as we used to say, when I was young and dumb and full of c**, used to pray for the opportunity to get to use that training. I was lucky to survive my own stupidity and hopefully gained some wisdom. I am no one's leader. Instead, I urge all to become leaders. There is an old Buddhist saying: If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him! What that means is, don't follow someone else around seeking enlightenment, for if you do, you will never develop your own abilities, and always be a follower. IMHO, many leaders of our movement, present and future, are right here, now. You don't salute me; I salute you, all of you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #84 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 20:32:14 PT Hope Thank you. You know what Stick is to me? He's my best friend. [ Post Comment ] Comment #83 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 20:25:35 PT Stick is quite a man, in my book, FoM. You're very blessed to have him, no doubt. And we're blessed that you do, too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #82 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 20:19:35 PT Hope If I didn't have Stick supporting me in all I try to do I couldn't do it. He has never once even hinted that I should quit or change directions or anything. He wants me to keep going onward and upward. [ Post Comment ] Comment #81 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 20:18:33 PT And Thanks, Kaptinemo. I feel like you just gave me a fresh, new set of "marching" orders. [ Post Comment ] Comment #80 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 20:12:02 PT I hope so, Kaptinemo. I hope so. "I think the Founders would have been proud, for I find their spirit here."And you're so right about Stick. It's easy to see and remember all FoM does...but we tend to forget what Stick has done for us all by being there for FoM.Thank you, Stick! We appreciate you!And of course, FoM, you surely know that we appreciate you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #79 posted by ekim on August 30, 2006 at 20:09:50 PT good going kapt what you say seems to be going on now in CA with Rnold doing the green thing.working with the dems seems that a limit on greenhouse emmissions will be put into effect, putting some distance between w and the terminatorheck even w was saying today that we must get good batteries for the hybreds so we can get the first 40 miles off the electric.I do have every hope that Arnold leading the country with a billion in stem cell reasearch will seek out the help of Ed up in S.F. on growing some of the strains that will be needed as more and more of the fellow golden staters find releif from achs and pains.Here in Kalamazoo Mi the Apjohn company has been working with the fda to get GW --cannabis spray on the market here they are in phase three trials -- yes i said here-- does that ring a bell as where we live and work and pay taxes and raise our familys and have fun. But look at this ----we been told by the govt that cannabis has no med value for the last generation. just think a whole generation of humans being told something would harm them when just the opposite was true. but get this there is more we the most free people on the planet or so w is sayen -----we cant even grow cannabis for our own med we must by only the great plant from elsewhere we are not allowed to grow and help one another.this is the question all those who want a vote will have to anwser loud and clear http://www.minorml.org [ Post Comment ] Comment #78 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 20:07:17 PT kaptinemo That has to be one of the finest compliments I have ever received. Thank you. I believe that this is what I am suppose to do. I do not know why I am suppose to do it just that I must. I don't know if anything will ever change in my lifetime but what I think is CNews's real purpose is deeper then that. It has to do with all of you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #77 posted by kaptinemo on August 30, 2006 at 19:50:40 PT: FoM, it's you and Stick who should be lauded Without you all, and all you've done for all these years, we probably wouldn't have gotten as far as we have. The movement owes a lot to you and your literally solitary efforts to maintain this site for us. Some who post here have no idea that you don't receive anything for doing so. Or that you are largely on your own support-wise. If they did, they might have even greater appreciation for what you do.I know for a fact that not only media wonks (smell the coffee yet, guys?) but, in perhaps the most backhanded compliment possible, our opponents regularly monitor this site. Would they do that if they didn't have an excellent reason? No.I came here because I was so tired of all the juvenile "Wow, man, I'm so stoooooned!" nonsense that seemed to constitute most pro-cannabis sites. Here, I found people who think. Like finding a bottle of pure cold glacier water after being forced to drink bilge. And I'm not the only one who sought this place out: Observer, Hope, AOLBites, MuseMan, RunRuff (one more year, you can make it!) Lombar, Whig, GPH, The GCW (I haven't forgotten him and never will), OSam, G_W, Afterburner, so many, so very many, when they write, you can see the intelligence, like a white-hot wire whipping through darkness of this ugly time in our history. I think the Founders would have been proud, for I find their spirit here. But it wouldn't have happened without you two. Thank you both. [ Post Comment ] Comment #76 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 19:25:11 PT Kaptinemo was one of my first, and enduring, heroes in this war against the war.No doubt.He's taught me so much and served as such as great example.I'm always happy to salute my Kaptin...Kaptinemo. [ Post Comment ] Comment #75 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 19:20:32 PT Ain't that the truth, Kap? "...wear your enemy down with slow, grinding effort,..."Someone said something early on about the DEA having shot themselves in the foot with this one. If the Camera had it right...the DEA is going to lose a lot of blood through this self inflicted wound. We don't need a DEA. Just adding a D to ATF&E would be a lot more sensible.I have always wondered how tobacco and alcohol got thrown in there with firearms and explosives. Seems like they should have been seperate...and I sure don't see why drugs wouldn't be with the alcohol and tobacco. [ Post Comment ] Comment #74 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 19:12:28 PT kaptinemo You have been here a long time. You're what I call good people. You and Whig are the only people who have ever visited us. I'm glad we met. [ Post Comment ] Comment #73 posted by kaptinemo on August 30, 2006 at 19:02:51 PT: Whig, Re: #21 few know that better than I do You will please note, I often use adjectives like 'rhetorical' or 'political' immediately before words like 'battle' or 'war'. That way, no one on the opposite side can accuse us of fomenting violence or insurrection against the (insert ironic laughter) 'lawful government' of the US. Which has seen fit to initiate unlawful wars a third of the way around the planet against forreigners and one against peaceful cannabists here, for dubious if not outright fraudulent reasons, so who's being 'lawful'?I pick my words - and my fights - carefully. But as my instructors used to say, I let our opponents make the first move. Let them be the obvious aggressors, as that perforce requires them to move off balance. As the DEA has been here. The most recent word is the DEA is backpedalling furiously about it's announcement to hire mercs to be their mouthpieces. They have been surprised at the mostly negative and critical response in the local papers, a response that has caught them with their their bureaucratic pants down. They truly weren't expecting the backlash, and are now retreating into denying they ever said what was originally reported. Such disarray is heartening, for the theme which has been hammered here for years - the DrugWar is an expensive botch we can longer afford to pay for - has finally reached the ears of the public via the media. So has the bit about the Hatch Act, which has been mentioned here, on and off, for the past 5 years. (And you have to ask the question: Where else were those subjects mentioned? At first, nowhere else but here. What does that tell you?)I was trained in unconventional warfare by the best there was. And one thing you learn about guerilla warfare is to wear your enemy down with slow, grinding effort, until the weak point is reached and resistance collapses into chaos. That takes time. I have been posting here since 1999, and seen posters come and go, disappointed because change did not happen fast enough. I too get disheartened, sometimes, but...I know we'll win in the end, if only by fiscal attrition - like I said, we can't pay for this DrugWar any more. What's happening in Colorado signals a turning point. Awareness about the dirty tactic of using taxpayer dollars to defeat popular referenda is on the public's radar screen, and they're mad as Hell about it. The DEA has been shown to be incompetent in their clumsy attempt to insert themselves into the political process there and they are now experiencing that chaos. It pays to be persistant, no? [ Post Comment ] Comment #72 posted by whig on August 30, 2006 at 15:13:02 PT Hope Yes, and I can be a pain-in-the-you-know brother. :) [ Post Comment ] Comment #71 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 13:25:50 PT It's so much of who I am because of that "because it's the most important thing I've ever had to do."So I guess "sounding" motherly happens more than I'd like it to because it's been so much of who I am. [ Post Comment ] Comment #70 posted by museman on August 30, 2006 at 13:24:15 PT Hope Me too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #69 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 13:23:38 PT Maybe I come across as a "bossy" big sister. Sorry, if I do. [ Post Comment ] Comment #68 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 13:22:22 PT Museman *smile*I really hope your envisioning comes true. I really, really do. So much! [ Post Comment ] Comment #67 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 13:20:42 PT Actually...no...not in a mothering sense... "I know that you love me and you want to protect me."I'm just trying to hear what your views are.Mothering is important to me...but I try to only mother my own children and grandchildren, but I can't help sounding mothering...which is only one letter away from smothering...because it's the most important thing I've ever had to do.I wouldn't do that to your mother...usurp her position, I mean.My love for you is more a sister love than a mother love. Mothering is sooooo hard that I don't have enough of it go around. But I love being your sister. [ Post Comment ] Comment #66 posted by museman on August 30, 2006 at 13:19:46 PT Hope "I really just want all the illegality of using the plant to be gotten rid of and stored away in history under "Old superstitions and hatreds people USED to have."I've had visions of being a very old man telling tales to children about 'the days that used to be.' Of the wondrous but terrible things that man did before the change. [ Post Comment ] Comment #65 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 13:13:23 PT Now that I'm understanding more about what a sacrament actually is... it seems cool enough to me that you could see the use of the gift of cannabis in a sacramental way.Actually, I can definitely see it. It's not spooky at all. It's just a different way of thinking about something and sort of a different approach to your activities of faith and fellowship.I could see dark, smoky places and long robes and funny hats, and symbols, and altars and strange ceremonies and stuff. That was bothering me.Thanks for bothering to get me clear on this.And yes...you should be allowed to use it legally as a part of your faith since you undoubtably see it that way.I really just want all the illegality of using the plant to be gotten rid of and stored away in history under "Old superstitions and hatreds people USED to have." [ Post Comment ] Comment #64 posted by whig on August 30, 2006 at 13:00:39 PT museman As a metaphor, "this generation" means those now living. [ Post Comment ] Comment #63 posted by museman on August 30, 2006 at 12:20:41 PT sacrament, messianic 'brotherhood', and MJ I am so glad to know that the idea of cannabis as a sacrament is finally taking hold. The first time I got busted, I tried real hard to establish my freedom of religion with MJ as my main sacrament. Lots of laughs but no-one, including my fellow tokers was willing to go there.Whig is absolutely right about it."...when I say that I believe we are Christ. Even those of us who aren't yet aware of it. He has returned in the flesh, in our flesh, not as a single person that can be killed, but as a whole generation."I will testify to this truth. My life experience, as well as aquired and accumulated knowledge has been focussed on this one important revelation.There are a few historical/biblical references to this concept, but -to save anyone the trouble of searching- there are no 'aceptable religious beliefs' (as defined by the U.S. Gov for example, and the Xtian church) that confirm any such declaration.The 'Collective Messiah' as I like to refer to it has been a point of discussion amongst the underground Spiritual Revolution for about 50 years, starting in some rather obscure 'sects' and 'cults'. The word 'Mytrea' means this.When whig refers to 'this generation' I am sure he is speaking more of this time, than a specific 'generation'. I can see at least 3, maybe 4 present generations who have the opportunity to 'get on board.'There is an ongoing effort by certain members of the power elite, to keep this knowledge from becoming widely discussed, shared, or manifest. VietNam was a polgrom against this possibilty. Iraq, and Afghanistan are the current setup to weed out possible good men and women from the collective consiousness. The drug war was created as a means to locate, document, and control through various means, any possible people who might achieve this understanding. Paranoia can have a real source, 'conspiracy theories' can be real. Once I feared for the safety of my young family, and changed my associations, location, and habits, all because of those efforts to destroy the embryonic being which is our 'collective 'christ' consciousness'.The forces and minions that serve lies and misdirection appear to be quite strong, and alas, up to the point where sufficient numbers move into the understanding and awareness, they will have their way. We can 'fight the good fight' as in this battle for justice and sanity with our given herb and sacrament, and even maybe win a few, but the war- which is an ancient one of light and darkness- will only be defeated when humanity 'spiritually' grows up.The good news, is that the 'embryo' of Spirit that we saw from afar, tasted in psychedelic demonstration, hoped for in blindness but still in faith, that embryo has been born. We now all stand on the threshold of things unimagineable.Those who would have stopped this, have succeded (in their own minds and manipulations) for so long, they are not aware that they have lost, and as whig said they cannot destroy it anymore by eliminating persons.The reason why carefully, lovingly cultivated cannabis is sacred to this cause, is because it is an important key that unlocks certain bio-chemical programs -like organic software- that allows one to percieve the larger prespectives of reality and time. Through the meditative and respectful use of cannabis, the universe can be viewed in all it's glory, and the mind can be released from some of the binding tensions placed there as deliberate limitations by the powers and pricipalities through false knowledge-taught in schools, and in church.Whigs statement of cannabis as a tool to 'transubstantuate' is a mystical statement. I believe it to be true. There are other tools, and I have tried them all -including eastern techniques of meditation- I have eliminated the "necessity" of all but this one; the Sacred Herb. [ Post Comment ] Comment #62 posted by whig on August 30, 2006 at 10:43:50 PT Hope #49 Oddly I'm more comfortable talking about my religious beliefs here on CNews as long as they are welcome than on the cannablog. The reason is I feel like putting text on cannablog is more of a pedestal for me, and I don't want to be talking to you from a pulpit. That would be horrible.I know that you love me and you want to protect me. You are very mothering and I am a grown man, however. I have a mother in Pittsburgh who wouldn't understand any of what I say, so thank you. You are my ally and my friend and you have a spirit in your belly that does not stop. [ Post Comment ] Comment #61 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 10:26:03 PT Also when you get right down to it...the idea of "sacraments" is a man thing, except for me, the baptism and remembrance of Him proscribed in scriptures. (Baptism...I don't believe it "saves"...it's an outward sign, a ceremony, that you go through to make a public admission of your belief.) It's, beyond those two (for me) what a human decides is "sacred" to him or as a sort of rule withing his idea of religion.Now I'm going to confuse myself again.Ok.I believe that we are all "sacraments". You are all sacred and sanctified, to me. As far as ceremonies...I'd just have to say I only am into the baptism and communion ones. Although I like weddings. [ Post Comment ] Comment #60 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 10:17:53 PT Thank you, both! I guess I was raised as a non-sacramental believer is why it seems a kind of foreign concept. I do, I think, understand "sanctification"...and know, in myself, that cannabis can be sanctified. I've thanked Him myself for it...therefore it, to me, and to God, I believe, became sanctified..."by the word of God and prayer".On the other hand...when Wikipedia says, "...a visible symbol or reminder of invisible grace." I'd have to agree that the gift of cannabis could certainly be, rightfully, considered a sacrament to someone.After reading this, I've come to the conclusion that my whole life...all of your lives...are sacraments. Make that Sacrament with a captital S."...a visible symbol or reminder of invisible grace."I'm not very ceremonial about anything that...but I'm cool with that.Our entire existence is a sacrament.Right? [ Post Comment ] Comment #59 posted by Truth on August 30, 2006 at 09:40:57 PT it says.... Sacred From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to: navigation, search For the game released in 2004, go to Sacred (game). "Reverence" redirects here. For the Faithless album, see Reverence (album). Look up Sacred in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.In various religions, sacred (from Latin, sacer, "untouchable") or "holy", objects, places or concepts are believed by followers to be intimately connected with the supernatural, or divinity, and are thus greatly revered. For example, some pagans consider the Earth sacred, while Roman Catholics consider the transubstantiated host sacred. Reverence is the "deep respect and veneration for some thing, place, or person regarded as having a sacred or exalted character." OEDAnalogously, the word "sacred" is also sometimes used in regard to items highly esteemed by secular institutions or individuals. For instance, a United States citizen might say that they consider the Stars and Stripes to be sacred [ Post Comment ] Comment #58 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 09:38:33 PT Hope Does this help?http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sacrament [ Post Comment ] Comment #57 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 09:25:21 PT I feel kind of stupid, as I should, disagreeing about something that I don't even for sure know what it means. [ Post Comment ] Comment #56 posted by Truth on August 30, 2006 at 09:23:51 PT 365 days A year will pass fairly quick and you'll be back together.WoHoo!!!Shame on the folks that caged Runruff. [ Post Comment ] Comment #55 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 09:23:35 PT Will somebody tell me what "sacramental" means? [ Post Comment ] Comment #54 posted by Truth on August 30, 2006 at 09:23:25 PT 365 days A year will pass fairly quick and you'll be back together.WoHoo!!!Shame on the folks that caged Runruff. [ Post Comment ] Comment #53 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 09:22:36 PT FoM I mentioned your handle...FoM...not your name. Dang...I wish I could pull my foot out of this quagmire...or is that quagmire my mouth?Like I've said before...I keep them flavored...chocolate and vanilla...so it's not so nasty...because I usually have one foot or the other in my mouth. [ Post Comment ] Comment #52 posted by Truth on August 30, 2006 at 09:21:55 PT whig "If you ask me whether I really truly consider cannabis sacramental -- I absolutely, positively, without pause or reservation, do."Amen, brother [ Post Comment ] Comment #51 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 09:18:49 PT Hope I didn't even noticed you mentioned my name. It's really ok. Please don't think twice about it. [ Post Comment ] Comment #50 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 09:17:59 PT Runruff's wife. Another year! A bracelet!We are governed by crazy people! [ Post Comment ] Comment #49 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 09:16:01 PT Sorry FoM... After I'd done it, I realized I shouldn't have mentioned your name. Whig...I did not mean to offend you...or let you down in any way...I just meant to make it clear that I believed differently. I think. I don't think I said that you were wrong in your beliefs...that just I believed differently.Surely you know that I love you! Surely! But it wouldn't be the first time I came off as a hateful person...when I had no intention of doing that.If we need to discuss this further...perhaps we should take it to the Cannablog. Marsh isn't interested in our thoughts or disagreements and he's probably on the verge of backhanding us both.Like I said, I'm not even sure what a sacrament is...much less what it means to you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #48 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 09:10:19 PT runruffswife I know this is an eternity for the both of you. I wish I had magic keys to turn the lock on his cell and let him be home with you sooner. One day at a time is really hard I know. [ Post Comment ] Comment #47 posted by runruffswife on August 30, 2006 at 09:07:38 PT realeased soon? FOM, He told me the other day that they said he will be going home to wear an ankle bracelet August 31, 2007. So, another year. As I take a deep breath. And the bracelet part is to complete the sentence, but at least he'll be home. So, after tomorrow my friends, it is the Runruff 365 day countdown. I think of all the days and nights between now and then, and then I pray for grace. [ Post Comment ] Comment #46 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 09:05:38 PT Hope and Whig I took a look at the thread but the only thing I really noticed was the use of words. I do not think of Cannabis as a Sacrament and I don't believe I am God or Christ or anything. I have a very basic faith and I am way too set in my ways to change how I feel. I personally want the laws changed because they are immoral laws. Locking up people for using a God given plant is wrong. [ Post Comment ] Comment #45 posted by runruffswife on August 30, 2006 at 09:02:53 PT RBG, Toke, Hope, FOM Thank you. Runruff and myself are determined to make the best of these circumstances. He isn't getting paid for working, they just work him in the kitchen 14 hours a day, no pay. He is also teaching yoga, and for that I think he gets paid, I don't know? I am so warmed by the knowledge that he is spreading light in there through him just being himself and through the practice of yoga. But it sickens me too that the government is using him and the others for their gain. You guys are great. He and I totally feel your friendship and prayers and love and support. Thank you with all my heart. Love Love Love [ Post Comment ] Comment #44 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 08:07:48 PT Runruff's wife Same here. Not a day goes by that I'm not stung with grief with what the government is doing to our Runruff...and you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #43 posted by FoM on August 30, 2006 at 07:54:59 PT runruffswife It's really good to hear from you. I hope that Jerry will be released soon. The both of you are never far my thoughts. [ Post Comment ] Comment #42 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 07:03:54 PT Runruff's wife.... Thank you. [ Post Comment ] Comment #41 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 07:02:03 PT Whig... I'm sorry. I really am. It was that "our sacrament" statement that "whoofed" me out there. "Sacrament" is a rather spooky word to me, anyway. I don't get it, really. But I did feel like you were including me and I'm sorry that I "blindsided" you. I'm not clear on what you mean, I guess, about Christ having returned. I have no doubt that the Spirit of Christ dwells in us...for a fact. I don't think that any of us is the Christ, though. Anyway, forgive me for my "short shrift". Not a word...but I can't think what the right word is right now.I love you and I know you are "afire" with your zeal and I know that all in all it will lead to glorifying the truth.As I've had to do before in my life, I have to say...I'm sorry I seemed to jump out at you....and I don't even understand what you are trying to say. I haven't checked Marsh's blog...maybe you could make me understand better, where you're coming from over there...before Gloovins, and Max and the rest of those who are bored or irritated with our "nuttiness", start wishing we'd get in that "box" to "rot" and get off the keyboard. [ Post Comment ] Comment #40 posted by Hope on August 30, 2006 at 06:43:40 PT Whig I haven't even read what you said yet...I just saw the word "blindsided". When I woke up this morning I realized I'd done what was my worst habit as a mother and as a person. I kind of "verklempted" on you, then...asked you what you did. Now I'm sorry, before I even realized how stunned you are.My worst...I think, inclination.Now I'm going to read and see how badly I messed up.*deep breath* [ Post Comment ] Comment #39 posted by mayan on August 30, 2006 at 06:00:24 PT Related DEA education vs. lobbying: http://www.denverpost.com/opinion/ci_4256408From the above linked article..."Jeffrey Sweetin, special agent in charge of the Denver office, disputes many points in the story. The agent, Michael Moore, didn't write the e-mail, he said. It didn't come from a DOJ address. The group does not have $10,000. And Moore's name was used as a contact without his consent, according to Sweetin." More denial...Pot Could Become Legal In Two Months: http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/9759073/detail.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #38 posted by Toker00 on August 30, 2006 at 05:27:47 PT FoM/CSNY/runruff'swife Hope you had a wonderful time last night. Sorry I won't get to make the show. Tell us about it. Kual T-shirts?Linda, I watched Let My People Grow again yesterday. I truly hope Jerry makes another movie. It will be powerful.Strength. Toke. [ Post Comment ] Comment #37 posted by BGreen on August 30, 2006 at 00:31:36 PT Thanks for the update, runruffswife It's good hearing from you, and it's good hearing that runruff is surviving in spite of his circumstances.It's really disgusting the way they use prisoners as slave labor. I had a friend in jail for cannabis who was forced to work in a chicken processing plant, gutting chickens for less than a dollar per hour.I'm so f#( ing sick of people saying all I care about is "just getting high," when all I really care about is stopping my innocent, caring and non-violent friends from being snatched away from their families and jobs to work as forced slave laborers.God bless you and runruff. Mrs. Green and I have a lot of love in our hearts for you both.The Reverend Bud Green [ Post Comment ] Comment #36 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 23:54:01 PT Hope I'm just saying I got blindsided there because you didn't just disagree you dismissed what I was saying and suggested I didn't really mean it on someone else's board where I couldn't properly respond and then I felt kind of defeated for the moment because Marsh can ignore what I said because it obviously according to you isn't what I could possibly really believe.Now that was a long sentence. And a whine. And I'm sorry. Because you are truly a wonder, and you shine. I just felt it was better to say what I was thinking than not. [ Post Comment ] Comment #35 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 23:48:04 PT Hope I'm more comfortable saying that I am part of the Second Church of Christ, than suggesting any perfection on my part. I just want to be clear about that. I believe the sacrament of the eucharist (cannabis) is to transubstantiate ourselves, to become Christ. Cannabis is not the Christ, but it is the conveyance that we use, and Cannabis is what has returned as the body, the eucharist. I can say this so many different ways and it may sound like so much babble to you if you don't understand what I'm relating. If you don't see it you don't and I can't show it to you.I don't want to offend you or anyone else, but I try to explain myself so there is less misunderstanding. [ Post Comment ] Comment #34 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 23:37:00 PT Hope I have to say this too, because you challenged it and I don't want to leave you with the idea that I don't really mean it when I say that I believe we are Christ. Even those of us who aren't yet aware of it. He has returned in the flesh, in our flesh, not as a single person that can be killed, but as a whole generation.When did it happen? I don't know the hour or the day. It happened. We started waking up.Ask Nuevo Mexican, or The Green Collar Worker. When he calls himself Christ Stan he is not joking.You can believe we are crazy. That's your privilege. [ Post Comment ] Comment #33 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 23:23:22 PT Hope Regarding comments on Marsh's site...If I mis-spoke in some way to give you offense, please tell me. I do not want to represent my beliefs as yours. I don't want to give the impression that my beliefs are universally held by people on CNews nor by FoM or you in particular.I do have to indicate a "we" when I refer to myself and others, because it is not just my own belief. If you ask me whether I really truly consider cannabis sacramental -- I absolutely, positively, without pause or reservation, do.You don't. I respect that. But please respect my beliefs too. [ Post Comment ] Comment #32 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 22:39:24 PT Link too long... http://tinyurl.com/p4soq [ Post Comment ] Comment #31 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 22:38:15 PT Dankhank Here's something to blow your mind: The United States is not a Democracy [ Post Comment ] Comment #30 posted by Dankhank on August 29, 2006 at 21:41:31 PT another drug war ... NFL dopinghttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/detail?blogid=18&entry_id=8363 [ Post Comment ] Comment #29 posted by Dankhank on August 29, 2006 at 21:28:50 PT you're welcome Whig ...glad you got it ... and are using it ...I made a bunch of them while trying to keep my DVD burner from crapping out ... it finally did ...Luckily it was still on warranty, so I am expecting a new one by mail, soon.Everyone who sees the show is amazed, but not really surprised. [ Post Comment ] Comment #28 posted by afterburner on August 29, 2006 at 21:04:03 PT IT'S NOT NEWS! It's a REVIEW of Dubious Studies! RE lombar #3IT'S NOT NEWS! It's a REVIEW of Dubious Studies!Rehashed Old News in Media Blitz by Lazy or Paid-off Journalists:6 Newspaper Articles of the Same REVIEW!:Canada: Smoking Pot Can Trigger Mental Illness, Study Shows, Calgary Herald, (28 Aug 2006) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v06/n1141/a10.html?176Canada: Studies Revive Marijuana's Connection To Mental Illness, Winnipeg Free Press, (28 Aug 2006) http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v06/n1147/a09.htmlCanada: Journal Articles Link Marijuana To Schizophrenia, The StarPhoenix, (28 Aug 2006) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v06/n1141/a03.html?176Canada: Psychiatrists Argue Dope Can Make You Crazy, Regina Leader-Post, (28 Aug 2006) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v06/n1140/a01.html?176Canada: Experts Resurrect 'Reefer Madness' As Reason To Crack down on Marijuana , Ottawa Citizen, (28 Aug 2006) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v06/n1139/a02.html?176Canada: Fears Of 'Reefer Madness' Resurrected By Epidemiologists , Montreal Gazette, (28 Aug 2006) http://www.mapinc.org/newstcl/v06/n1140/a06.html?176Excerpt:Alan Young, a criminal law expert at York University's Osgoode Hall Law School in Toronto, said linking marijuana and mental illness has been around for decades. "This is that old hobgoblin that resurfaces now and again. There's nothing new in the literature. They just keep rehashing the old literature." Young said there isn't enough of a causal link in high enough numbers for the link to be a concern. If marijuana presented a real threat, there would be an epidemic of schizophrenia. The figures show that the percentage of schizophrenics in society has remained stable, he said. "The numbers are really small considering the number of users worldwide," Young said. Canadian media, stop washing my brain! [ Post Comment ] Comment #27 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 20:50:47 PT Dankhank I meant to thank you for the DVD. I watched it the other day and that's what prompted my blog post on 9/11 truth and cannabis.http://cannablog.wordpress.com/2006/08/25/911-truth-and-cannabis/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #26 posted by ekim on August 29, 2006 at 20:49:15 PT suggestion for the ballot campaign Calling every Cannabis advocate --come to CO and give a personel plea for the ballot measure to pass.when putting a public face on the Prohibition of Cannabis ----Jack Herer must be included to speak about the concerns that GMOs present and how the great natural seed lines must be saved. www.jackherer.com the Leap events page is missing any stops in CO.between Sept and Oct. that can be changed if everyone in CO. that wants this ballot to win gets a Leap Speaker at a event. www.leap.cc/events Thank you to all who are working so hard to stop this unjust lying about the Cannabis Plant, bringing truth and compassion to the public debate.how much will DEA pay to stop Rnold from signing The Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Biomass Cellulose to Sugars technology is That statement says it all. As for China sending to much --they will never send it --now it will be used for much needed bio-fuel Ethanol.Biomass and Solar Technologies Lauded http://www.nrel.gov/news/press/2004/3404_technologies_lauded.html Monday, July 12, 2004Golden, Colo. - Two technologies developed by the U.S. Department of Energy's National Renewable Energy Laboratory are among this year's most significant innovations, as judged by Research & Development (R&D) Magazine.The Laboratory's two R&D 100 Awards for 2004 are for an innovative, lower-cost method for transforming plant material into the sugars that can be used to make fuels and chemicals, and a thin-film solar cell that produces electricity directly from sunlight, which has greater efficiency, and is lighter weight and more flexible than previous devices.This year's announcement brings to 37 the number of R&D 100 Awards garnered by NREL."Once again, the technologies developed by our Laboratory's researchers are being acknowledged for their importance to the nation," said Stan Bull, NREL associate director for science and technology. "It's particularly gratifying that the R&D 100 Awards this year include two NREL technologies that can enhance our nation's energy security and reduce our reliance on foreign sources of oil."The Enzymatic Hydrolysis of Biomass Cellulose to Sugars technology is expected to allow a wide range of biomass resources to be used to produce energy and chemicals. It is an important step toward realizing the potential of bio-refineries-in which plant and waste materials are used to produce an array of fuels and chemicals, analogous to an oil refinery today.Through this technology, the cost of converting cellulosic biomass into usable sugars can be reduced by more than 20 times per gallon of ethanol produced.The award is shared by NREL, Genencor International and Novozymes Biotech, Inc. NREL researchers who worked on this project included Michael Himmel, Jim McMillan, Dan Schell, Jody Farmer, Nancy Dowe and Rafael Nieves.Also recognized for 2004 are light and flexible thin-film copper indium gallium diselenide (CIGS) photovoltaic modules, which can be manufactured in various sizes and have a compact, foldable design that allows for easy deployment, transport and storage.As a result, the modules have twice the power-to-weight ratio, and three times the power-to-size ratio as competing products. Because of this, they are especially suited for military applications, portable power for consumer and public use, boating and other marine applications and building-related uses, such as for bus shelters and in PV-integrated roofing.The award is shared by NREL, Global Solar Energy and ITN Energy Systems. NREL researchers who worked on this project included Harin Ullal, Ken Zweibel and Bolko von Roedern.NREL is the U.S. Department of Energy's premier laboratory for renewable energy research and development and a leading laboratory for energy efficiency R&D. NREL is operated for DOE by Midwest Research Institute and Battelle.For further information contact NREL Public Affairs at (303) 275-4090.NR-3404 http://www.magiceye.com [ Post Comment ] Comment #25 posted by Dankhank on August 29, 2006 at 20:39:20 PT interesting ... This one made MSNBC. Starr attacks Bong Hits for Jesus ...http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11767029/from/RSS/Then this ...FOXNEWS ratings plummethttp://www.huffingtonpost.com/eat-the-press/2006/08/29/fox-news-ratings-take-a-_e_28292.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #24 posted by rchandar on August 29, 2006 at 19:23:57 PT: i did tell you so... ahem. Now that this is happening I encourage Coloradans who are in favor of the measure, or are sponsoring the measure, to make sure that their ad campaign is competitive with the one that the DEA will present. Now is the time to present a strong campaign, not merely to potsmokers but also to lay people who will see the benefit of eliminating penalties. [ Post Comment ] Comment #23 posted by runruffswife on August 29, 2006 at 19:14:19 PT O.T. - Runruff: word from the Inside Hi Friends, Just wanted to say hi and let you know that Runruff and I appreciate everyone's love and support during this time. Runruff called today and was only able to talk for 6 minutes. He said the BOP (Bureau of Prisons)is making him work 14 hour days every day. 14 hours on 10 hours off. Hey, I thought my husband was sent 3000 miles from home to this facility because he's a cardiac patient. The BOP is more concerned about keeping slave labor alive in America. He's taking it all in stride while staying focused on coming home a lot sooner than a lot of other guys he's met. He thanks you for your letters and contributions to his commissary account. I thank you too. Love Love Love. [ Post Comment ] Comment #22 posted by afterburner on August 29, 2006 at 19:08:42 PT lombar #15 & kaptinemo #18 'Forget your troubles and dance' http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/22/thread22101.shtml#15 Them Belly Full (But We Hungry) http://www.bobmarley.com/songs/songs.cgi?thembelly Time Tough -- Toots & the Maytals http://maytals.net/lyrics/177.html [ Post Comment ] Comment #21 posted by mayan on August 29, 2006 at 18:23:52 PT Just Say No To DEAth They are becoming increasingly desperate because they know that the wheels are falling off of their precious little drug war gravy train! 9/11 Truth will take down these fascists once and for all! THE WAY OUT IS THE WAY IN...Lynch calls teacher's theories crazy as UNH stands behind 9/11 prof: http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?articleId=57e4f5af-1d2a-4ecf-a57a-119902a00513Pay No Attention to The Soldier Saying the Government is Lying about 9-11: http://pcapostate.blogspot.com/2006/08/pay-no-attention-to-soldier-saying.htmlConfessions of a Controlled Demolition Convert: http://oldamericancentury.com/albanese_010.htmCutting-edge 9/11 research coming to National Press Club: http://www.total911.info/2006/08/cutting-edge-911-research-coming-to.htmlAlex Jones & Jim Marrs "TerrorStorm" speeches: http://911blogger.com/node/2352Twenty Things We Now Know Five Years After 9/11: http://www.crisispapers.org/essays6w/twentythings.htm [ Post Comment ] Comment #20 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 17:03:43 PT kaptinemo/gw If you will take up the sword, you will surely die by the sword. [ Post Comment ] Comment #19 posted by global_warming on August 29, 2006 at 15:56:52 PT cAPTAIN , YOU ARE TOO KIND A swift kick in the ass is what all these do gooders deserve, kick them in their bloody asses, kick them until they come to their senses, the time has come,Hallelujah [ Post Comment ] Comment #18 posted by kaptinemo on August 29, 2006 at 14:48:32 PT: OSam is right: The first shot across the bow "Congress would do well to amend the age-old Hatch Act, which limits federal employee involvement in partisan political races, to include limits on all political questions. And DEA agents would do well to back off their ill-conceived plan against this state ballot issue so that any Hatch Act amendments are precautionary rather than justifiably punitive.This editorial is a warning. I'm hoping, I really, really am, that the arrogant DEA won't listen. This is the equivalent of waving a red cape in their face, and they're bound to have the blood drop from their brains to their balls when they get mad about it. I can just see it: "How dare the People threaten their public, uh, er, umm ser-, ser-, serv..." They can't bring themselves to recall that they are supposed to be public SERVANTS, not masters spending OUR money to feather THEIR financial nests! People who've had their way for a long time, regardless of legality, tend to think that they will always have the upper hand. But the times, they are indeed a-changin'...There has been a growing anger against incumbents, against 'machine politics'and against the arrogance that goes along with it. Senator Lieberman was the first to feel that anger, and others are finding themselves in the gunsights. No more 'business as usual', no more contempt by the governors for the governed. The writing's on the wall. The politicians are running scared now...as they always should have been. Times are getting tight, hard...and mean. The emerging attitide of the public towards politicians is evidence of that. If they don't want to find out just how mean, they'll begin to conduct 'the People's business' as they always were supposed to.How does this affect us? They are forced to listen now. Now, if they dare to compare us to murderers and child molestors, they do so at their political peril. For beside the home-coming veterans who've realized this Administration has used and abused them and then abandoned them, the unemployed unable to get work in the chosen field due to outsourcing, etc. , we too have reason to be angry. And, if suggestions such as the one regarding revamping the Hatch Act are voiced, again and again and again, the pols will be far more likely to take it seriously now. IMHO this is the tack we should take as well (as pointing out, as we have had for years before the media 'discovered' the issue, just how much of the taxpayer's money has been wasted.) The confluence of forces that brought us close to almost achieving the relegalization of cannabis is once again taking shape, as they do every few decades. This time, the pols must listen respectively instead of titter or mock...or face campaigns to unseat them in favor of those who will listen. I will keep repeating this until we win or I die: we, amongst all those who have been marginalized, comprise the largest voting bloc in existence. We cannot be divided easily, for we know the Beast's tricks and it's wiles and resist them. We've heard every one of their lines, and are ready to give truth for lie, round for round, shell for shell. They want a fight in the arena of public opinion? All to the better, for our facts are unassailable.So, please, DEA, keep it up. Hire your mercenary consultants with our tax dollars. The fact that you've hired those mercs at all shows your contempt for the democratic process is in-the-bone. If you want those bureaucratic bones broken, by all means...bring it on! [ Post Comment ] Comment #17 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 12:49:56 PT lombar If we wanted to buy our house now we couldn't afford it. We built it ourselves and that is why we were able to do it. We did the labor back when we started out in 79 with our place. Hammers, nails, plywood and everything. We got a FHA loan for our first house which helped us to get established. We lived in it for 7 years. FHA loans down here really can help a poor family to get a home. [ Post Comment ] Comment #16 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 12:32:03 PT OverwhelmSam We always lose in war.Peace and love is the only way. [ Post Comment ] Comment #15 posted by lombar on August 29, 2006 at 12:23:45 PT Homes are so expensive... Where I live, the average split level 4 bedroom home is selling for $500,000. When you are a renter, you never seem to aquire enough equity because rents and taxes are too high... unless you make lots of money... and the easiest way to do that is via the black market.It really sucks that a person with nothing here in Canada can get a doctor whereas so many hard working Americans cannot even afford one. Letting actuary tables dictate who is or is not worthy is pretty abhorrent to me.For a few years I have been thinking that the US people should be wanting a system like ours while our governments have been undermining the universality of health care for decades pushing us into privatisation because they are the richest canadians or just agents thereof and would be 'positioned' to profit immensly because they are writing laws. We are being forced to what none of us really want.. I better stop listening to Alex Jones ... I already believed that the masses should be waving their torches and pitchforks and demanding a stop to the way things are going!We are serfs upon the corporate landscape, commodities to drive consumption. Greed has overinflated everything, fiat currency systems are frauds, the drug laws are criminal, wrong is right, war is peace...They worry that cannabis causes schizophrenia.. maybe its just the mixed mass-delusions and patterns of madness and suffering that rips at our souls. The 'state' is a shifting sand of mixed messages, laws for some, and misplaced morality, hardly anyone has a clue besides what is coming on TV tonight... TV probably causes more mental illness than any joint or pound of cannabis ever will.I think it more likely the maze of flaming hoops and outright lies-for-profit that drive people nuts. Virtue and honor is lost to the authorities and until it is regained, they are all discredited. The lack of respect for authority will be the downfall of the 'rule of law'. A fire the is fanned by cannabis prohibition. [ Post Comment ] Comment #14 posted by OverwhelmSam on August 29, 2006 at 12:18:19 PT The Federal Government Against the States We are nearing the tipping point where states across the country will begin legalizaing marijuana for adults as an alternative to the devistation caused by alcohol and tobacco. The Federal Government's only alternatives, legalize and regulate marijuana at the Federal Level, or Civil War - Feds v. States/People. Either scenerio is a winner for us munchkins. [ Post Comment ] Comment #13 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 12:00:12 PT Cross-posted http://cannablog.wordpress.com/2006/08/29/health-care/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #12 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 11:58:16 PT whig Our friend who had a Liver Transplant and then a Stroke had good company insurance. His company insurance ran out. People raised money to help him. It's very sad to think of being very sick and basically left to die. That's what it really is. The VA is helping him now. [ Post Comment ] Comment #11 posted by whig on August 29, 2006 at 11:51:04 PT FoM There should be guaranteed issue health coverage for everyone regardless of ability to pay or medical condition. I don't care if it's single payer and in fact it's probably better if it isn't, because if the single payer does a bad job of administering their system there is no where else to go. Think of Republicans running the entire health system.I have coverage again because I was able to qualify for a guaranteed issue policy, and I have to have it because without medicine I will be very sick, and it literally costs a quarter million dollars a year for my medicine.I know some people think that it's unfair they should have to pay more for coverage when they are healthy and other people are so expensive to treat. Wouldn't it save money to just not provide coverage that people can't afford? No, because even healthy people get sick sometimes and you never know whether it will be something that you can't afford no matter how much you might hope otherwise. When people are sick and untreated they cannot lead productive lives and they become more of a financial burden, not less. Plus what is the economic cost of suffering itself?The way I look at it is that everyone should be treated as well as they treat others, and if you think treating people with coldness and unconcern is appropriate then this is the standard by which you should expect to be treated. How much is it worth to you to be treated well? So that's what we should do.My problem with the government is due to it not only failing to help people in need, but actively persecuting people who need help. I don't think I can be part of a system which does that, and I can't be happy to have them in charge of anything until they stop that.Here is something I wrote about my thoughts yesterday:http://cannablog.wordpress.com/2006/08/28/good-government/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #10 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 11:16:34 PT lombar My husband and I have worked our whole lives for our little home and land. All we ever wanted was to live in the country away from the rat race. I am uninsurable and won't go to a doctor because if something was wrong with me I wouldn't be able to afford a treatment. If we had rented all our lives it wouldn't be as big of an issue. If that's the way it is why bother to try to get a home? [ Post Comment ] Comment #9 posted by lombar on August 29, 2006 at 11:09:16 PT FoM .. you can see why we Canadians who are NOT sellout corporate prostitute-our-so-called-family-values-for-a-better-bottom-line oppose all moves towards private health care. Agreements like NAFTA and other WTO treaties have been slowly forcing the government out of anything that helps the people. Because of the 'rules' our so-called representatives have agreed too, Canada gave the contract for our census to Lockheed-Martin(they provided the software), basically letting a company that makes weapons of mass destruction have all our personal data and we are to trust the word of those who make murder a business that they won't betray our trust? Why isn't anyone OUTRAGED at this nonsense! Then I have to listen to the likes of Randy White bleat out nonsense about cannabis. Sick Of It. The law books are the only books that need burning right about now.Any privatisation leads to a for-profit system. Dare I hope that US investors would not buy up all the health care infrastructure given the chance?Anti-americanism in Canada is wholly misguided. It should be turned towards the vote whores that keep giving Canada away. The witch hunters who persecute the peaceful, the ignorant who create such misery, who live in the dark and think it light... it is sickening. The issue of Cannabis, if one studies it, shows that we pay little more than lip service to the notion of freedom. We have laws plied upon laws that serve big money over the people. The private for-profit health care system is another tool to enslave people via the fiat currency system. Everyone needs a doctor once in a while. How can we say we value life so highly but not if you can't pay? [ Post Comment ] Comment #8 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 11:00:55 PT ekim AB is coming down for the final concert not tonight. I just wanted to mention that but it's no big thing. I am getting ready by cranking up LWW right now. LITP is playing now! LOL! [ Post Comment ] Comment #7 posted by ekim on August 29, 2006 at 10:54:00 PT have a great time tonight FoM--AB the more voters read here and other sites about the med value of cannabis the more pressure will be on those that want our vote, just like the farmers are re-learning how many products cannabis is able to make.so everyone can help educate by asking the want-tabees just where they stand on these and many more issues.we are handing out dvds with the leap promo and hemp for victory to any that will watch it. Like Dankhank and his med library and so many others -- just copy a story here and pass it on to someone -- people are hungry for information and this site is very helpfull. http://www.leap.cc/events [ Post Comment ] Comment #6 posted by FoM on August 29, 2006 at 10:36:53 PT ekim I really don't understand why we don't have universal health care. So many people lose everything they have worked for their whole lives in the end. I've seen it happen and it is very sad. [ Post Comment ] Comment #5 posted by unkat27 on August 29, 2006 at 10:26:09 PT Fleecing Americans for the Slaughter-House What's the big deal?So, the DEA is wasting tax-payer money so that they can save their tax-payer funded jobs so that they can continue to waste tax-payer money destroying innocent people's lives.DEA chiefs are smirking just like their CIC, thinking, "It's like taking candy from a baby! HA!"The DEA are all crooks, just like their hero Harry Anslinger was. Anslinger collaborated with industry giants to outlaw Mj [ Post Comment ] Comment #4 posted by ekim on August 29, 2006 at 10:10:24 PT health care is impacting not just the poor HAS CANADA GOT THE CURE? Holly Dressel, YES! Magazine Since 1970, Canada has had a publicly funded, single-payer health system. Today, all Canadians are equally healthy, regardless of income. http://www.alternet.org/story/40951/ [ Post Comment ] Comment #3 posted by lombar on August 29, 2006 at 09:02:31 PT They've ressurected reefer madness ...here in Canada. It is obvious that the conservative government is pushing a big crackdown. It will try to re-assert its authority (and fail) simply because the harshness of the law does not affect usage patterns. Nope, the only thing they will do is irritate everyone with failed backwards policies. Then again, that has been the purpose of spending the surplus. We have what is known as transfer payments from the Federal Government to the provinces. In the last 2 decades, the transfer payments have been severly reduced, supposedly to pay the debt (whole 'nuther con). Money that used to be spent on public health care and schools will now be spent on police and prisons. In practical terms, the Government of Canada stopped building hospitals and schools to build jails. The conservatives are not fiscally responsible at all, they are wasting billions telling me how to live and behave... cos' they can go blow a dead goat.. they have NO RIGHT at all to persecute cannabis users...none.They should study the mental illness that keeps people hating cannabis and its users. Politicians seem to become unreasonable and even hateful, prejudice is still ok for cannabis users... our drug policies are schizophrenic. Canada: Smoking Pot Can Trigger Mental Illness, Study Shows [ Post Comment ] Comment #2 posted by Truth on August 29, 2006 at 08:12:55 PT cheaters never prosper DEA,Cheating, and taking away someone elses freedom, as a result, can only bring bad karma. How about doing something good and honest. NBC showed a line of pedophiles waiting to get at out children. Go get them. [ Post Comment ] Comment #1 posted by goneposthole on August 29, 2006 at 08:03:46 PT The DEA ... prepares to shoot itself in the foot... again... this time in Colorado. 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