Tag Archives: marijuana prohibition

Government Mandated Drug Testing Is Wrong

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Since the laws governing use and sale of marijuana have been largely ignored, our government found other ways to punish those they could not catch and prosecute. They coerce employers into bypassing the need for a warrant to search a person by mandating drug testing as a condition of employment. For the government to randomly test people for drug use, drug testing would be an unconstitutional invasion of privacy, but by the government mandating that all businesses that do business with the federal government, drug test as a condition of employment, they get away with forcing us to submit to drug testing or being punished through denied employment. Don’t get me wrong, I do not condone or want to encourage drug use on the job, but the urine test for marijuana does not determine if a person is under the influence, only that they have used marijuana in the last few days. Saliva tests for detecting marijuana are a much better determination of the tested person actually being under the influence than a urine test. The saliva test detects marijuana use from 2 to 24 hours while the urine test detects marijuana metabolites up to 30 days or more in chronic users. There is actually a urine test for alcohol that can tell if a person has had a drink in the last 80 hours, but no one seems interested in using that test, except the probation or parole authorities. I really don’t care what employers want to do as far as drug testing. Employers should be able to determine what is acceptable behavior in their employees. If they want to prohibit alcohol, drugs, tobacco use or even obesity, it is fine with me. What bothers me is for the federal government to mandate drug testing through legislation, as a way to punish those they can’t catch and prosecute. Denied employment punishes the whole family. If the only way to tell if a person has used marijuana is to send their urine to a lab, is the marijuana use really a problem?

The Journal of Global Drug Policy and Practice study of drug testing in the workplace, indicates that significant benefits are achieved through random and post accident drug testing of individuals such as increased productivity, lower accident rates and lower absenteeism. What is not clear from the study, is how much marijuana use influences those statistics when in aggregate with alcohol and other illicit drugs. It is also worth noting that all the people conducting the study, work in the drug testing field as professionals, although they all signed a no conflict of interest declaration. http://www.globaldrugpolicy.org/Issues/Vol%205%20Issue%204/Basic-11-22Efficacy%20Study%20Publication%20Final.pdf

The Joseph Rowntree Foundation study, Drug Testing In The Workplace  by The Independent Inquiry into Drug Testing at Work drew starkly different results. Among their conclusions are that alcohol is likely a much stronger influence on job safety than illegal drugs and there is no justification for drug testing in the workplace as a means of policing the private behavior of employees. It also points out that many factors have an impact on safety and productivity such as bad working conditions, sleeping and health problems, excessive workloads and work-related stress. It also points out the flaws in workplace drug testing such as drug testing is not an indicator of current intoxication and that empowering employers to investigate and punish private behavior is in conflict with liberal-democratic values. http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/drug-testing-workplacesummary-conclusions-independent-inquiry-drug-testing-work

While I think we can all agree that people working under the influence of drugs can be a hazard not only to themselves but also others. Tests that indicate a person being under the influence would be a much better way to police unwanted activity in the workplace.

Randy Johnson

http://www.ehow.com/about_5434202_information-urine-alcohol-test.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drug_test

The War Against People Who Use Marijuana Is Horrible and Hateful

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As a parent, I can tell you there is nothing worse you could do to a person than to take away their children, especially if the offended person has not endangered or harmed their children. There is nothing about marijuana cultivation that makes it any more hazardous than growing melons or tomatoes. In fact there are a whole lot of plants that are far more dangerous than marijuana such as wisteria, castor beans, poinsettia, and hemlock yet no one is trying to keep us from planting them and certainly not taking children away because of a flower garden. This action stems from hatred of marijuana and people who choose marijuana as a medicine or a safer alternative to alcohol. There is no science to back up the claims that marijuana poses a danger to children. Homes are full of real hazards such as hot water, knives and cleaning products that are far more of a threat to children than marijuana. The only logical reason to use marijuana as a reason to take someones children is hatred. Hatred of marijuana and the people who use it. Marijuana is the safest recreational drug on the planet, yet people’s lives are being ruined and their families torn apart, not because marijuana is harmful to children but because of hatred. I do believe that one day in the not to distant future, people will remember the war against marijuana as a hate crime, driven by government propaganda and greed, with no scientific basis for their claims. Our government has hidden the truth about marijuana’s efficacy as a medicine and the fact that it is far safer than alcohol or tobacco. Greed and hatred can be the only reasons to continue this failed and unjust war against American citizens, because there is just no evidence that would show marijuana to be any more of a danger to children than to have beer in the refrigerator. Our politicians should be ashamed of supporting this horrible travesty of justice.

States that have legalized marijuana for medicinal purposes have seen a 9% reduction in traffic fatalities. U.S. DEA Administrative Law Judge Francis Young stated that marijuana is the safest therapeutically active substance known to man, far safer than many of the foods we currently consume such as potatoes. More people die drinking too much water than from marijuana use. Most products we consume have a LD50 number that lists how much of that product must be consumed to cause a lethal overdose in 50% of test animals. Salt, alcohol, and a large number of over the counter medicines such as aspirin and Tylenol have lethal dosages that can be held in one hand. Marijauana’s LD50 number would be on the order of 40,000 joints. One study that our government would flaunt several years ago was that marijuana caused brain damage. It took High Times Magazine years and a law suit to obtain the details of the study used as evidence for this blatantly false statement. The methodology of this study was extremely flawed. Another claim that I remember was that marijuana use would make mens breasts grow. Really? And then there is the gateway theory which has no study to support it. It was simply a question posed to convicts about illegal drug use and most say that the first illegal drug used was marijuana, but if you ask whether they used alcohol or tobacco before any marijuana use, you would see that alcohol and tobacco fit perfectly as gateway drugs too. I’m pretty sure you could make green beans the gateway drug if you asked the right question.The latest propaganda about marijuana states that marijuana causes schizophrenia. Actually the study states that a causal relationship is observed, but not enough evidence exists to determine if marijuana brings out latent schizophrenia or if schizophrenic people gravitate to marijuana. Also reported recently is that marijuana lowers the Intelligence Quotient in its users. I have read several studies that say this is not true. The marijuana haters will say anything and don’t care that it is not true as long as it furthers their cause of continuing this stupid war on marijuana and ruining the lives of those that get in the way. What a horrible and hateful way to treat your fellow Americans.

Randy Johnson

http://reason.com/reasontv/2013/05/16/parents-pot-and-prohibition-daisys-story

http://www.webmd.com/mental-health/news/20030701/heavy-marijuana-use-doesnt-damage-brain

http://www.sciencealert.com.au/news/20080506-17437-2.html

http://scienceblogs.com/speakeasyscience/2010/02/17/a-lethal-dose-of-water/

http://ftp.iza.org/dp6112.pdf

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/library/mj_overdose.htm

http://drugwarfacts.org/cms/Gateway_Theory#sthash.HkbICWPV.dpbs

http://www.ukcia.org/research/gateway.php

http://www.cannabisculture.com/content/2011/02/09/False-Link-Between-Marijuana-and-Mental-Illness

http://mentalhealth.about.com/od/schizophrenia/a/potsz.htm

http://healthland.time.com/2013/01/15/new-research-questions-marijuanas-impact-in-lowering-iq/

Marijuana Makes People Thinner

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A new study released my the American Journal of Medicine reports that those who use marijuana are thinner than those who do not. No explanation was cited although marijuana users have a 16% lower fasting insulin level and a higher caloric intake. Some how, one of the compounds or a combination of them improve metabolism in users of marijuana. Dr. Stuart Weiss, a professor and endocrinologist at the NYU School Of Medicine said that certain compounds from marijuana could be isolated and put into a pill to eliminate the toxic nature of marijuana. Already marijuana is one of the least toxic substances people consume so I assume they want to eliminate the high (my favorite part)  and the smoking part of the marijuana experience. I guess they are unfamiliar with cannabis edibles and vaporizers. Once again, our governments steadfast view that marijuana has no medicinal value, has come up short.

Randy Johnson

http://newyork.cbslocal.com/2013/05/16/study-smoking-marijuana-could-make-you-thinner/

http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(13)00313-6/fulltext

http://www.amjmed.com/article/S0002-9343(13)00200-3/fulltext

Marijuana Does Not Make Us A Danger To Children

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I love my children. They are grown now and have moved away and begun their own lives as adults, but that love endures. Still, I would gladly give my life to preserve theirs. Anything that I have will always be at their disposal. My limited wealth, my home, any possession or time that I may have is theirs for the asking. I feel the same way about any future grandchildren that God may bless me with. Their family is my family. I can think of no worse punishment for a parent, than taking away their children.

While I realize it is sometimes necessary to remove children from families to prevent further abuse of children from errant parents, it should only be done as a last resort, and only after justification in a court of law. I also understand that sometimes obvious physical or sexual abuse would necessitate a preemptive removal of children to prevent further abuse, but there still must be a presumption of innocence until proven guilty in court.

All too often possession or use of marijuana has been used as an excuse to remove children from a parents custody to further punish marijuana users by harming their family. Would society accept children being removed from the family if wine or beer was found in the refrigerator, or if one of the parents actually drank the alcohol? When one considers that alcohol has a much stronger association with domestic violence and irresponsible activity than marijuana, it makes more sense to remove children from homes where alcohol is present, but that is rarely the case. Our Congress and President insist on continuing this failed war on marijuana. They claim it is no longer called a war, but the only thing that has changed is an increase in the use of paramilitary style raids on medical marijuana distributors and others accused of selling marijuana. The laws governing the use and sale of marijuana are largely ignored, because they are unjust laws, built on lies, racial intolerance and greed. But for those unfortunate enough to come to the attention of authorities, the punishment is severe and vengeful, where laws were written to punish marijuana use even further by declaring any marijuana possession a danger to children, and any possession of a firearm or ammunition an automatic felony.

There are many things in most homes that can pose a risk for children. Knives, hot water, bleach, stoves and electricity just scratch the surface. Children in homes where marijuana is consumed are in no more danger than in homes where beer or wine is consumed. Taking people’s children away is a pretty severe punishment for using marijuana as medicine or choosing a safer alternative to alcohol.

Randy Johnson

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/25/boise-police-seize-children-of-marijuana

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/16/hakken-couple-could-face-life-sentences

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/09/josh-hakken-man-who-kidnapped-kids-after

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/10/hakkens-back-in-us-custody-children-retu

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/04/anti-government-couple-who-abducted-thei

http://www.today.com/health/parents-police-removed-our-child-after-we-sought-second-medical-6C9708419

http://www.connecticutdcfwatch.com/8×11.pdf

http://reason.com/blog/2013/05/02/colorado-legislators-drop-plans-to-cance

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/2013/01/12/drug-violence-is-increasing-exponentially/

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/laws-built-on-lies/

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/2012/08/08/197/

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/2012/07/29/marijuana-is-safer-than-alcohol-or-tobacco/

http://bjs.gov/content/pub/pdf/VRITHED.PDF

Marijuana And Money

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In their effort to forge laws governing marijuana sales in Colorado, legislators are debating about the amount of taxes that should be associated with the sale. Colorado House of Representatives wants a 15% excise tax and a 10 or 15% tax on all sales in addition to the 2.9% state sales tax and any local taxes. Other cost relayed to the consumer will include the high licensing and application fees associated with starting a marijuana distribution center. Other legislative efforts that will continue to drive up costs are the rule governing that 70% of all marijuana sold must be grown by the distributor and no more than 30% may be furnished to another distributor. Also the legislators are considering limiting the amount of marijuana that can be sold and limiting the number of distributors state-wide which could create a shortage of legally sold marijuana. Shortages of supply would tend to drive the cost to consumers higher.

With taxes on sold marijuana approaching 30 to 35% it will be difficult to keep costs low enough to discourage a black market for marijuana. Brick and mortar stores have the added cost of a building, with all of its associated cost such as mortgage or rent, electricity, water, insurance and wages paid to a staff. Citizens of Colorado are allowed to grow their own marijuana and the profits of black market sales will be just too tempting for some to pass up, especially if the legal market is unable to meet demand.

Another problem facing marijuana distributors in Colorado is the continued prohibition of marijuana at the federal level. Since marijuana is still illegal by US law, it is difficult to find banks and insurance companies to do business with the distributors, forcing them into a cash only business with elaborate security systems. I’m sure the Federal government would not allow armed security in a business selling marijuana according to the Gun Control Act. This leads to increased security risks associated with robberies and burglaries and makes it difficult to obtain financing for startup and operating expenses. In addition the Federal Government has a long history of circumventing the will of the people by raiding marijuana distributors and confiscating their assets and property and incarcerating the owners.

All of these things combined make black market marijuana more appealing and profitable while making legal marijuana more expensive and easier targets for the Feds.

http://www.coloradoan.com/viewart/20130430/NEWS11/304300007/Marijuana-taxes-prove-sticking-point-Colorado

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/29/colorado-legislators-pile-on-pot-restric

http://money.cnn.com/2013/04/29/smallbusiness/marijuana-cash/index.html

http://reason.com/blog/2013/04/30/if-high-cigarette-taxes-fuel-a-booming-b

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gun_Control_Act_of_1968

Randy Johnson

Federal Law Complicates State Job Protection Laws

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According to an article in the Huffington Post, the Colorado Court of Appeals has ruled that the Colorado law preventing employers from terminating employees for activities off the job that are legal, such as the use of tobacco does not apply to medical marijuana patients. Although medical marijuana is legal in Colorado, the court determined that Federal prohibition prevents job protection under the state law. Similar problems have been addressed in other states with similar results. Arizona may be the only state that protects medical marijuana patients employment with a caveat, the protected employment must not harm the employers Federal contract or license. Federal law requires any business that does business with the Federal Government to provide a drug free workplace and have a drug testing program. The Federal law also complicates insurance agreements with employers because many insurance policies exclude claims where illegal activity is involved. Even if an employee’s job status was protected under state law, an on the job injury might not be covered by the employers insurance policy because of the Federal prohibition of marijuana.

I’m really not in favor of laws preventing employers from terminating employees for what ever reason they see fit. If I were an employer, I wouldn’t want people telling me who I could or could not hire or fire. That in itself is against the principles of freedom and is hostile to business. Isn’t the legalization of marijuana about personal freedom? Shouldn’t that freedom apply equally to everyone, including employers?

Just another good reason to remove marijuana from the Controlled Substance Act and let states sort out the legalization of marijuana. The will of the people is being circumvented by the obstructionists in Washington, who believe we should all live by their edict.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/25/colo-court-says-no-job-pr_n_3156072.html

Randy Johnson

The Church Should Support Marijuana Legalization But Discourage It’s Use

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You may think this is a wrong-headed notion but please hear me out. I am a Christian and have studied this idea for a number of years. First of all God intended for man to have free will. Without free will, love means nothing. Only when love is given freely without reservation is it of any benefit, not only to us, but also as love for God. If you could sum up the message in the New Testament, it would be to “Love God with all your heart and to love others as you love yourself”. There is no love in prohibiting marijuana. People who use it medicinally are denied relief and those who use it for other reasons face fines and incarceration, are denied employment and considered a danger to their own children. Marijuana prohibition was perpetuated with a series of lies and misinformation and that practice continues today, with our government hiding the truth about marijuana and refusing to acknowledge any benefits from the drug. Did you know the federal government owns patents on marijuana that describe in detail how marijuana is an effective drug to combat cancer and have known this for decades. They do not release this information because it doesn’t fit the agenda of protecting big business from competition or loss from marijuana and hemp. You may say that using marijuana is sin and separates us from God, but where are the scriptures to support that belief. Alcohol and marijuana are both used for roughly the same reasons, as a social catalyst, for recreation, for relaxation, as medication, for celebration and as a sacrament. Several references found throughout the Bible indicate that alcohol was used in celebration, for self medication, to ease pain and as a sacrament. The first recorded miracle by Jesus was turning water into wine at a wedding celebration. Clearly the bible says that drunkenness is a sin, but what about responsible use?

Deuteronomy 14:26

Psalms 104:15

Proverbs 13:5

Proverbs 20:1

Proverbs 23:21

Proverbs 31:4-7

Joel 2:19

Joel 3:18

Amos 9:14

Matthew 9:17

Mark 7:14-23

Luke 5:37-39

Luke 10:27

Luke 10:34

John 2:3-10

John 13:34

Acts 2:13

Romans 14:21

1 Corinthians 6:9-11

1 Corinthians 10:31

Galatians 5:19-21

Ephesians 5:18

Timothy 3:8

Timothy 5:23

Titus 2

Matthew 11:19

Luke 7:34

U.S. Government patent on marijuana  http://patft.uspto.gov/netacgi/nph-Parser?Sect1=PTO1&Sect2=HITOFF&d=PALL&p=1&u=%2Fnetahtml%2FPTO%2Fsrchnum.htm&r=1&f=G&l=50&s1=6630507.PN.&OS=PN/6630507&RS=PN/6630507

http://patients4medicalmarijuana.wordpress.com/2010/01/04/marijuana-cures-cancer-us-government-has-known-since-1974/#comment-14964

Evidence is growing and statistics show that marijuana is a far safer alternative to alcohol. People want to feel better, that is the whole premise for self medication. We self medicate with over the counter medications for the most part now, but 100 years ago home remedies and patent medicines were the norm. Many of these patent medicines contained heroin, cocaine, opium, cannabis or alcohol and were readily available. Still today there is a large market for homeopathic medicines and herbs and hundreds of books written to help us find the correct dietary supplement to cure what ails us. There is little evidence that this type of self medication was harmful to society then or now. The highest estimate I have found of deaths caused by all illegal drug use per year was only 17,000 deaths. The deaths associated with alcohol are at 70,000+, not counting its association with traffic fatalities, murders and domestic violence. The deaths caused by prescription drug use, including med errors and misuse, are over 200,000 a year and tobacco kills 450,000 people a year. Overeating and lack of exercise kills 350,000 people a year. The book “Cause of Death”, lists 3 deaths cause by consumption of cannabis. Marijuana has been shown to be very promising in treating pain, spasms, wasting and even cancer. States that have legalized marijuana for medicinal use have seen a 9% decrease in traffic fatalities. The fear campaign waged against hemp and marijuana was perpetuated with lies and the truth was hidden. The reported harm to individuals and to society from marijuana use, has been grossly overstated by our government and most of the harm associated with marijuana use, is a direct result of prohibition and not caused by marijuana.  If God really wanted hemp and marijuana to be illegal, would he have needed to hide the truth to accomplish that mission?

Cause Of Death, edited by Jack Mingo, Erin Barrett and Lucy Autrey Wison

http://drugwarfacts.org/cms/?q=node/30#sthash.YAU01DAL.dpbs

http://medicalmarijuana.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=000145

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/laws-built-on-lies/

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/2012/07/29/marijuana-is-safer-than-alcohol-or-tobacco/

https://itsmycountrytoo.org/2012/08/08/197/

http://ftp.iza.org/dp6112.pdf

Marijuana, like anything else can be abused. Many of you have heard that marijuana decreases motivation and I have found that to be true when used excessively, but the same could be said for television or alcohol. Like alcohol, I believe marijuana’s use should be age appropriate and regulated by ID checks for purchase. Like alcohol use, maturity has a strong bearing on the degree of abuse. Children just aren’t that good at controlling their urges, but many adults share the same problem. Giving a source of never-ending chocolate to a child would be a bad choice as most children would eat nothing but chocolate, yet as adults purchasing our own food, we have that option, but we choose other more nutritious food for the most part. That is where maturity comes in and we all mature at different rates and to different degrees. Some people never learn to make good decisions, but as a society we let them make those choices for the most part, as long as they do no harm to others.

Education is a much better option to help others lead a better life than prohibition. Prohibition robs people of free will and creates unregulated markets and crime where none should exist. Prohibition is a perfect tool to control 3 year olds who lack the reasoning and skills necessary to be self-sufficient, but as we mature and develop our capacity for reasoning and become self-sufficient, prohibition becomes a burden and even hateful when used to deny employment, the right to raise our children or when we face incarceration and fines and property we worked and paid for is confiscated. Prohibition of marijuana makes criminals out of people for choosing a safer, less harmful drug than alcohol. With an estimated 20,000,000 Americans currently using marijuana, it is very likely someone you love uses marijuana. We shop with you and dine in restaurants with you. You see us picking up our kids at school and at games and sporting events and at the movies. We blend in because we’re just like the rest of society, working, paying our bills and trying to raise our children as best we can. All we really want is to live in peace with society, yet federal law prohibits this and Congress doles out tax money and military equipment for local law enforcement to conduct paramilitary raids on homes of people accused of selling marijuana.

I can’t say that God approves of marijuana. I simply do not know and as far as I have found in scripture, the Bible is silent on this issue. Certainly abuse of marijuana would be sinful, but so is abuse of alcohol and arguably, anything done to an excess. We all have obligations and responsibilities, to ourselves, to our families, and to society, but most importantly to God. The bible stresses that we are to love one another as ourselves. To support laws, such as the prohibition of marijuana, that are based on misinformation, and motivated by greed, racial intolerance and hatred, is in direct opposition to the message of Jesus Christ. Regardless of whether use of marijuana is sinful, prohibition is a hateful way to treat people and it denies people free will.

Marijuana’s use should be discouraged because it is a drug that has a strong likelihood of abuse, and I would say that any use of marijuana that keeps us from meeting our obligations and responsibilities, to ourselves, to society, to our family or to God as abuse and sinful. Indifference to injustice and the harm it causes others is sinful as well, and it does nothing to advance Christianity.

Randy Johnson

LEAP Testifies For Marijuana Legalization In New Hampshire

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Cheshire County Prison Superintendent Richard Van Wickler’s testimony about marijuana legalization is very refreshing. Richard Van Wickler is a member of LEAP “Law Enforcement Against Prohibition” and was representing LEAP at this meeting to discuss HB492, a bill calling for legalization of marijuana in New Hampshire. Van Winkler presented a very straight forward testimony, presented good evidence to support his views and rebutted some of the incorrect propaganda presented as facts by the anti-marijuana groups, such as the gateway theory and the fact that there is simply no study ever conducted that agrees with the gateway theory. He also explains how legalization is a much better approach to the marijuana issue because decriminalization leaves the criminal supply chain in place and does not address the violence associated with an unregulated market. Legalization puts drug dealers out of business and makes it more difficult for minors to obtain marijuana similar to the carding of people buying alcohol or tobacco. LEAP presents a very logical, compassionate and just plan for legalization of marijuana that discourages all drug use, while protecting our freedom and reducing crime and violence in America. An added benefit would be the restoration of the close relationship we should all have with law enforcement, when it is no longer us against them. I applaud the members of LEAP that have chosen to stand for a common sense drug policy in this country.

Van Winkler’s testimony can be seen here, about 17 minutes.  http://www.leap.cc/richard-van-wickler-testifies-for-marijuana-legalization/

http://www.leap.cc/

Thanks

Randy Johnson

President Obama and Congress Should Stop This War

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The war against marijuana should end immediately and here is why. The laws against marijuana use were first proposed under the guise of racial intolerance and trumped-up fear of an imaginary plague of harm to society. Horror stories were given prominence in Randolph Hearst’s national array of newspapers, largely because of his hatred of Mexicans and to protect his vast holdings of timber land for pulp and paper production from competition with hemp. The Dupont empire was also in favor of marijuana prohibition because it was competition for their newly developed synthetic fiber, Nylon. Nylon could be used as fiber in the production of explosives which was the mainstay of Dupont at that time. The cellulose fiber in explosives had previously been hemp. Also in favor of prohibition was Rockefeller and Standard Oil, because it was a competition for the new oil and gas industry as hemp oil could be replaced in most applications with petroleum products. The cotton industry also profited by the elimination of hemp as a source for fiber to make clothing. http://www.jackherer.com/thebook/chapter-four/

Newly appointed head of the Bureau of Narcotics, Harry J. Anslinger would testify before Congress of the horrors happening across the country associated with marijuana use. He would read the stories from Hearst’s newspapers aloud before Congress as testimony of the need for federal intervention. Largely unknown or ignored was the fact that cannabis patent medicines and elixirs had been a large part of the pharmacopeia in America for almost 100 years without any health problems arising from its use. If any problems were associated with cannabis they were not mentioned in the medical journals of the time. Hemp had been a mainstay for agriculture and society for thousands of years with a myriad of different uses from food and shelter to clothing. Remnants of the propaganda of that era, such as the classic film Reefer Madness can be seen at web sites like.

http://archive.org/details/reefer_madness1938

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reefer_madness

http://www.druglibrary.org/prohibitionresults4.htm

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/Library/studies/studies.htm

http://www.jackherer.com/thebook/

Fear gained traction as an unwitting public who were unfamiliar with the name marijuana were being told horrendous stories of crime and violence against white people by marijuana crazed minorities. It was an easy sell to America, which was still deeply mired in racial intolerance at the time and women had just acquired the right to vote barely two decades before. As America became entrenched in this fear of the marijuana plague, the propaganda campaign continued and even today our government refuses to acknowledge any benefits associated with marijuana use, only acknowledging the studies and anecdotal evidence that support the belief that marijuana is harmful to individuals and society. While I don’t believe that marijuana is harmless, it is certainly not as harmful as the two legal recreational drugs alcohol and tobacco. The harm to society and to individuals from marijuana use has been grossly overstated by our government which has poured over a trillion dollars into this failed and unjust war against Americans to protect big business from loss or competition with marijuana and hemp. This racially biased, unjust war against us continues today and it should end immediately. It is still supported by the same industries and now others such as the prison industry, the drug testing industry, the alcohol industry and the vast array of drug treatment centers across the country that are asking Congress to crack down on Colorado and Washington for allowing legal marijuana within their own state. And let’s not forget the DEA, with its multi-billion dollar annual budget and all the power and influence that money can buy. It is hard to surrender that much power and influence to a kinder and gentler society, after all the drug war is a very large employer. Laws that were voted in by free people are still forbidden and enforced by federal mandate.
That gets me to the next issue.

I mentioned in a previous article that all members of Congress take an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States. Well they have failed miserably at that task. The Constitution lays the foundation for a nation of states to govern themselves under a guiding law that preserves basic freedoms and human rights. Our Declaration of Independence describes rights granted by God that are unalienable by man and the Constitution goes further to list some of our rights in the Bill of Rights. The Federal Governments job or function was to provide for common defense and regulate interstate commerce to prevent states from unfair advantage over other states. Its other function is to protect our rights as defined in the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution from all enemies foreign and domestic which is where they have failed. As far as marijuana prohibition is concerned, The right to self medicate and the right to celebrate life had been a legal right for thousands of years before marijuana and alcohol prohibition. While the unjust war against alcohol was wisely abandoned, the war against marijuana users and their supply continues under the guise of public safety. We have been persecuted with denied employment and government assistance for housing and education, denied the right to adopt children. We have also been prosecuted and punished by Congress with laws mandating drug testing by employers, incarceration and fines and we were stripped of our 2nd ammendment right to keep and bear arms without trial or justification. Our 4th ammendment rights against illegal searches as described in the Constitution, about a search warrant being issued by a judge of law have been circumvented to allow game wardens, housing inspectors and child welfare officers the authority to search without warrants and now the Supreme Court has given that authority to dogs. Am I the only American that finds that troubling?

What our 5th and 6th ammendment rights, the right to appear in a court of law and face our accusers and the right to a speedy trial with a jury of our peers. Our President now believes he has the authority to use drones to kill Americans without trial and to detain Americans indefinitely without trial.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/31/obama-defense-bill_n_1177836.html

http://reason.com/blog/2013/03/20/looks-like-shifting-the-cias-drone-progr

How about our right to keep and bear arms. That is our 2nd amendment right and yet the Federal Government has and allowed states to make a mockery of that right. Our right to keep and bear arms should be the same in any state or territory of these United States just like our right to worship and our freedom of speech. Congress, The President and The Supreme Court should insist on the same. Another basic right that our government has failed to protect is our 5th ammendment right to own property. Never should the government be able to take property from an individual and sell it to another individual for profit in the name of eminent domain. Only real public needs such as right of ways or military needs should be secured by eminent domain laws. Taxes beyond the sale of property are a direct assault on that right as the Government believes they own the land and everything on it. Having to pay a periodical tax to continue to own property gives credence to the thought that all property belongs to the government.

http://www.citypaper.net/blogs/nakedcity/Property-owners-protest-eminent-domain-in-Kensington-.html

https://www.legalzoom.com/us-law/supreme-court/supreme-court-series-i-eminent

What about our 4th ammendment rights of privacy, where government surveillance of our e-mail and cell phones has become common? We are on the verge of surveillance capabilities that most Americans never even dreamed of and our freedom is in serious jeopardy. Our freedom should not now or ever have been for sale to protect the profits of the rich. Marijuana prohibition is on the front lines of this war against freedom waged on Americans by our own governmnet. Lets get back to the task of preserving freedom and the Constitution.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legal_history_of_cannabis_in_the_United_States

http://www.marijuanahistory.org/history-of-marijuana-prohibition-in-united-states

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/Library/studies/vlr/vlrtoc.htm

http://www.drugwarrant.com/articles/why-is-marijuana-illegal/

http://www.jackherer.com/thebook/

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/steve-bloom/legalization-or-bust-a-br_b_775684.html

http://reason.com/blog/2013/03/05/totally-disinterested-drug-warriors-dema

http://reason.com/blog/2013/02/08/a-group-of-drug-war-profiteers-are-askin

Randy Johnson

I Don’t Believe That Dogs Should Be Used To Authorize Searches

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Not long ago, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled unanimously that signals from a dog constitutes reasonable search. Traditionally that task has been the sole responsibility of judges of law by issuing a warrant. Our Constitution says that searches are only to be conducted upon probable cause supported by oath or affirmation and defining the place to be searched and the person or things to be seized. http://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/supreme-court-sides-with-drug-sniffing-dog/2013/02/19/1d9f7414-7aac-11e2-82e8-61a46c2cde3d_story.html

Dogs have an amazing ability to smell things that people cannot. They can detect odors hundreds of times better than us and use that keen sense to track animals or humans, detect contraband material, and have even been known to detect cancer with surprising accuracy. But they are not human and do not have the capacity for judgement that is required, not only by our Constitution but also demanded by their task. Peoples lives hang in the balance of the decision of a dog that is mostly focused on pleasing his master. They can’t swear an oath or testify to details about what they are thinking or smelling. Molecular scanners on the other hand, exceed the potential for detection than that of dogs. They are capable of detecting similar things as good as a dog but from 50 meters away and give a printable detail of what they detected. http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/bill_of_rights_transcript.html  http://washington.cbslocal.com/2012/07/11/new-homeland-security-laser-scanner-reads-people-at-molecular-level/

That brings us to the real moral dilemma. This type of technology will not go away. It will only get better and more portable. We may be able to slow the acceptance of this technology and surveillance, but we can’t uninvent it. Eventually it will be accepted as reasonable search without warrant and as evidence in court and will be as acceptable as fingerprints and DNA evidence. Its like the invention of gunpowder or nuclear weapons. You just can’t put the genie back in the bottle. These detectors can already tell what you ate for breakfast, whether your are armed or carrying drugs. The direction our government seems to be heading is for more surveillance and more control of our lives. If we are going to live with this close of surveillance and loss of privacy, do we really want a government that is so intrusive into how we live our lives? I would be a lot less concerned about this loss of privacy and protections from illegal searches if our government was actively trying to protect our rights, but they are not. Already our federal government has put all school children on a diet. It went so far that parents are being told what must be mandatory items in box lunches brought from home. Local governments have been banning all sorts of things from large sugary drinks and cloths lines and even home gardens. America is on the verge of financial collapse with millions of people out of work and they don’t even want us to be able to dry our cloths outdoors or plant a garden. If we don’t demand that our rights are honored, we may be in for some very dark times in the near future. We need to demand that our government protect our rights instead of taking them away

http://cnsnews.com/blog/david-james/levin-michelle-obama-new-eva-peron-her-lunch-standards-she-knows-much-i-do

.http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-04-11/news/ct-met-school-lunch-restrictions-041120110410_1_lunch-food-provider-public-school

http://righttruth.typepad.com/right_truth/2009/03/feds-to-ban-backyard-gardens.html

http://www.care2.com/causes/join-the-fight-to-legalize-clotheslines.html

http://theeconomiccollapseblog.com/archives/12-things-that-just-happened-that-show-the-next-wave-of-the-economic-collapse-is-almost-here

Marijuana prohibition is on the front lines of this assault on personal freedom. Is marijuana use so unacceptable that we as a society must use the power of the judicial system to either make users stop or remove them from society? Keep in mind this is not some form of tough love. Prohibition is a horrible and hateful thing to do to your fellow citizens. There is no kindness in using the judicial system to try to control unwanted behavior. It is designed solely to ruin people’s lives and cause suffering; physically, mentally and financially. If any of us resist this punishment, that resistance is met with force up to and including deadly force. And then there is the persecution associated with prohibition, being denied employment, legally separated and shunned by society and hated because of lies and misinformation sold to an unwitting public by our own government. Lives are destroyed for preferring a recreational drug that is safer than alcohol. There is no moral difference between alcohol use and that of marijuana, but we are demonized because of the propaganda campaign waged by our own government. There are dozens of common items we use or are exposed to every day that are more harmful or dangerous than marijuana use. Tobacco and alcohol are two good examples, but many over the counter medications such as Tylenol and aspirin kill more people than marijuana. So does salt and trans fats. Obesity kills more people than marijuana. More people die drinking water than from marijuana use and yet we demonize and punish this portion of society. A recent study citing government funded sources, determined that states that had legalized medical marijuana had a 9% reduction in traffic fatalities, but you won’t hear that from the federal government. Their agenda seems to be that of protecting favored businesses from competition or loss from legal hemp and marijuana, even if they have to stifle research and hide the truth. If you are an investor in these industries that profit from the war against marijuana, you may count this as a benefit of prohibition, but from a freedom stand point, we all loose.

http://www.cannabismd.net/mortality/

http://ftp.iza.org/dp6112.pdf

Randy Johnson

How Will Washington D.C. Respond To Legal Marijuana

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In an interview with publication Maclean’s of Canada, Gil Kerlikowske, The U.S. drug czar may have shed a little light on future federal policy concerning Colorado and Washington’s voters decision to legalize marijuana. Gil Kerlikowske said “You’ll continue to see enforcement against distributors and large-scale growers as the Justice Department has outlined. They will use their limited resources on those groups and not on going after individual users.” He went on to say that he did not see marijuana as a human or civil right issue, but as a public health issue. As the interview moved into prescription drug abuse and the influx of Canadian pharmaceuticals where he suggested tamper resistant medications that would not crush or gel when mixed with water. He also touted that our drug interdiction officers work closely with lawmakers to increase manpower in troubled areas. He is also in favor of mandatory drug rehab saying that people who go to rehab voluntarily or under court order have virtually the same success rate. Then he made what I believe is a stupid statement. Speaking about prescription drug abuse he said, “It continued to grow up until this last year at astronomical levels. More people dying of prescription drug abuse than heroin and cocaine combined. After marijuana, we see prescription drugs as the next most significant drug problem we have. It has covered every demographic, age, race, ethnicity, gender. And it’s a bit disproportionate in poor and rural areas.” If more people are dying from prescription drug abuse than heroin and meth combined, how is marijuana the most significant drug problem we have when virtually no one dies from marijuana use and the public health issue is grossly overstated. Where is the damage to society that justifies this heavy hand from the Justice Department against marijuana. I believe the message here is that we can expect more of the same from federal authorities. They will continue to ignore the will of the people, raid and prosecute growers and distributors and anyone who gains enough notoriety to deserve their attention. Also I would expect the harassment of property owners and property confiscations to continue, but it is unlikely that they would ever have the manpower to go after individual users of recreational or medical marijuana. Eric Holder is promising an official response soon. He might say something different but I don’t have a lot of hope. These changes need to come from Congress.

http://www2.macleans.ca/2013/02/11/on-the-perils-of-pot-legalization-and-how-canada-creates-drug-problems-for-the-u-s/

http://reason.com/blog/2013/02/11/obamas-own-drug-czar-is-now-publicly-cri

http://reason.com/blog/2013/02/26/eric-holder-says-doj-will-respond-to-leg

http://house.gov/

http://www.senate.gov/

http://www.whitehouse.gov/

Randy Johnson

3D Printing Of Guns Is Improving

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In an update to an article published January 18th, titled “3D Printing May Be The Key To Our Freedom” about a printed lower receiver for an AR15, Defense Distributed has improved on the initial model that failed after six shots. The improved version has fired over 600 shots without failure. Also available is a CAD file to print a 30 round magazine for AR15 style rifles. Keep in mind there are many parts for an AR15 that currently would not be feasible to print out of plastic such as the springs, barrel, upper receiver, bolt and firing pin, but these parts are not currently regulated and can be purchased through the mail without an FFL dealer. The ability to make your own gun has been within the realm of anyone who has access to a lathe and milling machine for as long as I can remember and it is perfectly legal to make a gun as long as you don’t make a gun that is currently prohibited, such as a machine gun or a short barrel shotgun. Rep. Steve Israel of New York, is currently trying to ban 3D printing of guns in anticipation of untraceable weapons that do not show up on metal scanners. Similar to the idea of eliminating nuclear weapons, stopping this technology is like trying to put the nuclear genie back in the bottle. Guns simply cannot be un-invented and any attempt to confiscate or eliminate gun ownership is destined to fail. Even if the current 3D gun files available for download could be tracked down and erased, it would not be long before someone else came up with another version. Our government’s attempt to control every aspect of our lives is starting to meet resistance in ways they never imagined. States legalizing marijuana for medicinal and recreational purposes and 3D printable guns are just the beginning. However, I am concerned about The Department of Homeland Security’s recent acquisition of 2 billion rounds of ammunition. What horrible plans do they have in store for us next? Are our elected officials so worried about maintaining control that they would use deadly force against us to stay in power? Is it too late to vote them out? I sure hope not.
http://reason.com/blog/2013/02/27/gun-control-laws-increasingly-irrelevant
http://defcad.org/
http://www.prisonplanet.com/govt-preparing-for-soviet-style-purge-of-americans.html
Randy Johnson

This Declaration Of Rights By Dan Richeson Would Be Great To Print Sign and Mail To Congress And President Obama

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Submitted on 2013/02/26 at 4:54 PM

Declaration of Rights of Cannabis Users

Mission Statement: To bring an end to cannabis prohibition in 2013 by gathering signatory members through promotion and declaring our rights through the document, “Declaration of Rights of Cannabis Users”. Giving prohibitionists reasonable opportunity to affect appropriate, timely and agreed upon change and, if necessary enforcing our rights in a peaceful way. After April 20 2013 adopting a zero tolerance for acts of brutality and injustice by prohibitionists.

The laws regarding cannabis were born on the wings of lies and pampered by propaganda such that now the tightly held belief systems are going to have to reckon with the desire of all humanity to live with dignity, free from the oppressive tyranny that ignorance and bigotry have spawned.

DECLARATION OF RIGHTS OF CANNABIS USERS

——————

Whereas recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world,
——————
Whereas disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people,
——————
Whereas it is essential, if man is not to be compelled to have recourse, as a last resort, to rebellion against tyranny and oppression, that human rights should be protected by the rule of law.
——————–
Whereas for too long now it has been observed that disregard and contempt for human rights has been allowed to exist in the body of politically motivated law that outlaws the possession, cultivation and use of cannabis by adults. The signatories of this Declaration wish to live in peace in this society, have been engaged in constant communication with their elected representatives individually or as part of groups. The actions of the government in this regards demonstrates continued contempt and disregard that we the undersigned feel that we have NO RECOURSE but to regard our government and some of our fellow citizens as hostile towards our declared rights and indifferent to the tyranny, oppression and terrorism that we have too long had to deal with.
——————-
Whereas by this declaration we provide the opportunity and impudence for representatives to engage in good faith negotiations which will lead to peaceful coexistence
———————
Whereas we the undersigned do hereby declare that IT IS OUR RIGHT to cultivate, possess and use cannabis AND that any law that says otherwise will be treated by us as the tool of tyranny.
———————-
Whereas we the undersigned in declaring our desire to realize our liberties and our desire to live in peace also recognize that the point is near where our rights and liberties will have to be defended.
———————-
Whereas we the undersigned are willing to do all we can to avoid conflict we hope that this WARNING also provides our fellow citizens and our representatives the impudence to also seek peace and understanding within our society.
—————-
Sincerely,

[Your name]
Dan Richeson

Freedom Brings All Kinds of Surprises

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Skulls elongated by binding that look eerily alien found in an ancient burial site in Sonora of northern Mexico are proof that people have been making strange decisions about what they do to their bodies for a long time. Today piercings, mutilations and tattoos are the rage among some young people and boob implants and liposuction and Botox for others. Vain attempts to find a niche in society.

http://t.now.msn.com/alien-like-skulls-found-in-mexican-cemetery

Truth is, we’re all looking for ways to connect with those around us. We choose activities that we believe stir interest in others and trying to create fun and play are part of how we connect. Drinking alcohol has been a large part of that process for a long time because it lowers inhibitions and makes us more outgoing. It makes social connection a little easier to initiate. But alcohol also has a darker side and not everyone who drinks is affected in that way, but anyone who has been around drinking much have seen it, ” the violent mean drunk”, which is one of the reasons many people prefer marijuana. In 40 years of using marijuana and interacting with marijuana users, I have never seen a person get violent without due provocation under the influence of just marijuana. Can people under the influence of marijuana be provoked? The answer is certainly yes, but so can those who do no drugs. For many it is just a safer alternative to alcohol. A safer way to connect with those around us.

Only when we learn to accept or at least tolerate those among us that do things we may not favor or approve of will we ever truly be free.

Randy Johnson

Where Are The Dissenters

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I have been speaking out about the legalization of marijuana for almost a year now and almost all of the comments I have received have been positive with the exception of a couple of people. I’m sure there are more people who read this blog that are opposed to my views. If you believe I am wrong, I would love to hear your reasoning. I’m not intending to start a fight but, I believe we need to have a conversation about our place in society. It can’t be that there is not enough room in this country for both of us. Prohibition harms everyone’s freedom. All we want is the right to live in peace with society. Please end the war against marijuana.

Randy Johnson

Why Do We Go To War

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A few days ago, as I ate lunch at the park in front of the Hutchinson County Veterans Memorial. I started wondering what we fight for as a nation and individually, and why we send our sons and daughters to war. Words come to mind like, duty to country, honor, national defense, and security. Today our armed forces are all voluntary, but many of the soldiers honored here were drafted into service. Does that change the reasons we fight? Society needs to be able to assemble armies in its defense, even a conscript army if needed. The survival of our nation and way of life may demand such action. We faced real threats to our sovereignty and security in WWI and WII and so did our allies, but what about Korea and Vietnam? Was our sovereignty and security in danger then, or was that just our attempt to stop communist aggression amid the Cold War? Were we able to achieve those goals? I would call Korea a partial success. South Korea is a democratic country with an economy built on free enterprise and it is prospering. But the Korean people are divided, with their kin to the north governed by a desperate and aggressive despot, who rules his people with fear and punishment. And they are technically still at war with a real threat of the violence ensuing again. If we had not maintained a military presence there, it is very likely all of Korea would be under communist control today. None of our goals were met in Vietnam with the communists taking control of Saigon as we were leaving and yet, today they are a united, peaceful people. Who decides when we go to war and what the motivations are? The reasons to go to war are never simple and may cover any variety of considerations from economics to survival but certainly the preservation of our freedom should be one of the reasons we fight. Our nation was born with a struggle for freedom from the rule of England. Our Declaration of Independence lists a number of violations of basic human rights by the King and extols our right to shed that rule in favor of self-rule as all men are created equal with rights granted to us by God and not men. This was an act of treason under English rule and those who signed that document did so knowing that it put their lives and fortunes at risk, yet those brave men and those who fought by their side, did so willingly. Our Constitution goes further describing our rights as a people, by enumerating them in the bill of rights, to ensure that government would not be able to take them away. These are important rights that ensure that we can live safely and securely among others without the worry of being governed by tyrants.

All of our servicemen take an oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic. But how many of the recent wars we have been involved in were about a threat to our Constitution or the sovereignty and security of our nation? Were we defending an ally from a threat to their sovereignty or security? Certainly if our country is attacked we should respond in defense. Even preemptive strikes against known threats are justifiable, but all acts of war have consequences. Because of the brutality of war, some of our young will always be killed or wounded. And then there are the mental scars from being witness to the horrors of war. The fear of death or injury and seeing your friends killed or injured are hard to imagine, let alone learn to live with. Just the longing for home to reunite with the ones we love tends to wear on most people. And then there is the memory of the killing of others and watching the enemy suffer or die. Is it any wonder that the suicide rate among our servicemen is so great. War is a terrible thing for both sides of any conflict and even when the hostilities end, the painful memories of war endure. War should always be a last resort.

Our Congressmen and Senators also take the same oath to support and defend the Constitution against all enemies foreign and domestic, yet rarely do they face imminent danger in their daily lives. But their responsibility to defend the Constitution is just as important because they write the laws governing all aspects of our lives. They are on the front lines of protecting our freedom in the laws that they vote for or against. Their responsibility to ensure that all laws passed, maintain our freedoms as described in the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence cannot be overstated. These  documents should be the guiding principle in all laws passed by Congress or signed into law by our President.

Often as I read the news and study current events I am reminded that not all members of Congress share the same reverence and respect for the Constitution of the United States. The recent debates about the right to keep and bear arms are a perfect example of that. Even before the Sandy Hook massacre, our right to keep and bear arms was seriously infringed and it was all done at the hand of Congress and backed up by past and current Presidents and supported by the Supreme Court. My second amendment right to keep and bear arms should be the same in any state or territory of these United States, yet our Congressional leaders have allowed a patchwork of differing laws governing our rights to bear arms to become the law of the land. Even if we follow the safe passage clause of the Firearm Owners Protection Act, we can still be in violation of state or local laws if we are delayed because of car trouble or if we are too tired to continue our journey. In order to pass through a state with restrictive firearm laws a person must unload and lock the gun in the trunk of their car and are not allowed to stop except for food and gas. Would we surrender our right to a trial by jury or our freedom of speech so easily? What about our freedom of religion? Isn’t our right to self-defense one of those rights granted by God?                          http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/926A                                                                                  And what about the tenth amendment where the powers not delegated to the United States as described in the Constitution are reserved to the states or to the people? Do our Congressional leaders understand that? Where in the Constitution do they get the power to tell states that they cannot experiment with medical marijuana laws or even recreational marijuana laws? Our Congressional leaders should be actively defending our rights, not circumventing state law to keep us under the thumb of oppression. Since Congress authorized the oath of office for all Federal employees, they should know that they are obligated to support and defend the Constitution of the United States, and our rights guaranteed in the Bill of Rights. We, as Americans, should demand and expect as much from them. Their obligation to preserve our Constitution and freedom should be no less important than that of our sons and daughters that we ask or require to risk life and limb in war.

The Constitution does not provide the wording for this oath, leaving that to the determination of Congress.  From 1789 until 1861, this oath was, “I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support the Constitution of the United States.” During the 1860s, this oath was altered several times before Congress settled on the text used today, which is set out at 5 U. S. C. § 3331.  This oath is now taken by all federal employees, other than the President:

“I, _________, do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter.  So help me God.” http://www.supremecourt.gov/about/oath/textoftheoathsofoffice2009.aspx

The Declaration of Independence, The Constitution and the Bill of Rights   http://www.archives.gov/exhibits/charters/constitution.html

http://house.gov/

http://www.senate.gov/

http://www.whitehouse.gov/

Randy Johnson

itsmycountrytoo.org

The $100,000 Challenge by Jack Herer

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In the book “The Emperor Wears No Cloths” by Jack Herer, he presents a challenge for anyone to prove that he is wrong that hemp could meet all the world’s energy needs while reversing the greenhouse effect, stopping deforestation and providing the overall majority of all of the worlds paper and textiles, while reducing pollution, rebuilding the soil and cleaning the atmosphere. What a boastful statement. With the information available to all of us through the world-wide web, it should be easy to gather enough information to claim such a prize, except for one thing. It is very likely true when one considers how versatile and useful hemp can be. Please do not confuse hemp with marijuana in this context, I am only talking about hemp with such miniscule amounts of THC that it would be impossible to be used as a recreational drug, although it is still banned by the Controlled Substance Act and enforced by the DEA. The hemp plant has been used throughout history for cordage, textiles, paper, food and oil. It was grown by Thomas Jefferson and George Washington and was even legal tender for a period of time in the beginning of our nation. Laws were passed requiring people to grow hemp and punishments applied to those who did not comply. Benjamin Franklin started one of America’s first paper mills using hemp as the feedstock so his free press would not have top rely on England as a source for paper. Thomas Jefferson even went to great expense and faced considerable danger when he was envoy to France to acquire hemp seed from China. The Chinese so valued their hemp seed that they were protected from exportation under the penalty of death. The War of 1812 and Napoleon’s invasion of Russia were all about access to hemp. Hemp was vital to the discovery of America and the building of our nation.

Hemp seed has been used as food by virtually all people of the world up until the twentieth century. Hemp seed protein and oils are one of mankind’s most complete single food sources for human and animal nutrition. Only soybeans have a higher protein content than hemp seed, but the protein in hemp seed is 65% globulin edestine combined with albumin and it contains all the essential amino acids in ideal proportions for proper health. Hemp seed are also the highest source of essential fatty acids (linolenic and linoleic acids) in the plant kingdom. These essential fatty acids have been successfully used to treat a variety of maladies from cancer and heart disease to kidney degeneration and immune deficiency by Dr. Johanna Budwig. http://openlibrary.org/authors/OL2108784A/Johanna_Budwig

As a textile, hemp makes warmer,softer, longer wearing fabrics than cotton and does not require the fertilizers, herbicides and pesticides required to grow cotton. Hemp can be grow almost anywhere, on any soil. It is naturally resistant to insects and disease and helps to rebuild the soil. Approximately 50% of all agricultural chemicals (pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers) are used to produce cotton.

As a feed stock to make paper and building materials, hemp is superior because 1 acre of hemp produces the same amount of cellulose fiber as 4 acres of trees. This fiber can not only be made into paper but a variety of building materials such as sheathing to replace plywood and sheet rock, and beams. It can also be made into plastics such as PVC pipe. Henry Ford made a car out of hemp based plastics in the early 20th century that was said to be 10 times stronger that steel when struck with a hammer. It also ran on hemp based fuel. Isochanvre is a rediscovered building material where hemp hurds are mixed with lime and it petrified into a mineral state. A 6th to 8th century bridge has been discovered in the south of France built with this material.

As a fuel hemp can be made into charcoal that has no sulphur, biodiesel, methanol, or gasoline. Hemp is capable of producing 4 to 50 times as much cellulose fiber per acre as corn, kenaf or sugarcane for use as biomass feedstock. Hemp products can be made into virtually anything that can be made of petroleum, such as feedstocks for chemicals, plastics and lubricating oils. It’s slow drying oils were once prized for their use in paints. The results of hemp based fuel production would include the revitalization of agriculture and rural America, while making our country energy independent and reducing our carbon footprint on the earth.

Considering how useful and versatile hemp can be from its known uses and the potential in marijuana’s use as a medicine and a safer recreational drug than alcohol, it is a shame and a disgrace to our country that hemp and marijuana have been banned and its users punished and persecuted, by a prohibition perpetuated with lies and misinformation and built on racial hatred and intolerance. All in the interest of protecting a few rich people from competition with hemp and marijuana. Abraham Lincoln said “Prohibition… goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control a man’s appetite by legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not crimes… A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our government was founded.” Just imagine what we could accomplish if we stopped this madness.

The Emperor Wears No Clothes is a fascinating read and is well documented. I highly recommend this book as a reference for anyone interested in the marijuana and hemp prohibition issue. While I can no longer find any reference to the $100,000 challenge, no one has disproved what Jack wrote about in his book. “If all fossil fuels and their derivatives, as well as trees for paper and construction were banned in order to save the planet, reverse the Greenhouse Effect and stop deforestation; There is only one known annually renewable natural resource that is capable of providing the overall majority of the world’s paper and textiles; meet all the world’s transportation, industrial and home energy needs, while simultaneously reducing pollution, rebuilding the soil, and cleaning the atmosphere all at the same time. And that substance is Cannabis Hemp…Marijuana”

Thanks Jack Herer, your dedication to freedom in life will long be remembered in your death.

To purchase this book. http://a1hemp.com/ I also enjoyed the Eminem song/video.

To read this book. http://www.jackherer.com/

Randy Johnson

itsmycountrytoo.org

Meet Michele Leonhart Drug Enforcement Administrator

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This story at rawstory.com by Eric W. Dolan contains a video of The DEA Administrator being grilled about the Federal policy against marijuana.

In a grilling before the House Judiciary Subcommittee, Rep. Jared Polis of Colorado, asked Michele Leonhart if anything is more addictive or harmful than marijuana and she dodged the question several times and kept repeating that all illegal drugs are bad. Please keep in mind this is the person who is directly responsible for determining the schedule that all drugs are in and directly responsible for keeping marijuana in schedule one with heroin and LSD. Her immediate supervisor would be Attorney General Eric Holder. Also keep in mind that she as well as Eric Holder were nominated for their positions by President Obama and their policy will be a direct reflection of his if they want to keep their job. What I’m getting at is that President Obama has the authority and responsibility to stop the raids on medical marijuana that complies with state law by insisting that marijuana be rescheduled. This would also open the door for research into the efficacy of marijuana in the treatment of various diseases. How about it President Obama? Will you give us a serious answer or should we wait for the next puppet show?

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/06/20/top-dea-agent-wont-admit-heroin-more-harmful-than-marijuana/

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Michele_Leonhart

http://www.whitehouse.gov/

Randy Johnson

itsmycountrytoo.org

Will We Ever Learn To Get Along?

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One of the problems we face on the issue of marijuana legalization is that people on both sides of the issue tend to ignore and discredit any information that does not agree with their preconceived notions about marijuana. The anti-marijuana groups, the Federal Government and several major medical organizations including the American Medical Association and the Institute of Medicine readily discount mountains of information about the efficacy of marijuana as a medicine, because as they repeat often, smoking is a crude way to administer medicine and smoking anything cannot be good for our respiratory system. This I might add is a very good argument. Many anti-marijuana groups including our government claim that almost all of the evidence supporting marijuana as medicine is anecdotal, based of the reports of people who use marijuana and that proper dosage can never be determined in a smoked product. This also is a very good argument. But as you read the DEA report titled “The DEA Position on Marijuana” you will find it also peppered with words and terms such as (may cause, could cause,  might cause and could be associated with) and lots of anecdotal information. On the other hand when people say that marijuana has never caused a death or that it is a miracle cure, it can hardly be proven and is hard to believe.  http://www.justice.gov/dea/docs/marijuana_position_2011.pdf

With literally millions of people using marijuana on a regular basis, I would be shocked to find no problems or adverse effects from marijuana use and both sides of the issue have plenty of information to present. One of the misconceptions that the Government uses is the increase in the prevalence of marijuana use, as a reason for drug dependency treatment. It is unclear how much of this is driven by people avoiding prosecution or prison by volunteering for drug rehabilitation or just to save their job. One thing is clear. The evidence presented by the government does not differentiate, but it is worth noting that marijuana dependency treatment increased as drug courts became more available.

Most things we choose to do as people come with inherent risks. When we choose our activities, we weigh those risks against the reasons we chose to participate in those activities. Sometimes we choose wisely and other times we do not. Some people have made careers out of bad decisions and prospered because of it. For example, Evel Knievel, who thrilled Americans with his dangerous dare-devil act of jumping his motorcycle and sometimes crashing spectacularly. How about the Jackass Movies where people regularly do stupid and dangerous things just for public acknowledgement or financial gain? Isn’t it odd that we will cheer someone for jumping buses with a motorcycle or riding a bicycle off a roof and then try to ruin the lives of those who choose to smoke marijuana? Isn’t it also odd that alcohol use is openly advertised and accepted and marijuana use is punished and its users shunned by society? Isn’t it also odd that we still claim to be a free people while seeking new ways to prohibit any activity we deem immoral, unhealthy, dangerous or offensive.

Ban on sack lunches. http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2011-04-11/news/ct-met-school-lunch-restrictions-041120110410_1_lunch-food-provider-public-school

Ban on cloths lines. http://www.care2.com/causes/join-the-fight-to-legalize-clotheslines.html

Ban on large sugary drinks. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21201680?ns_source=PublicRSS20-sa

Ban on tobacco use. http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/ND-measure-would-reimburse-smoking-ban-costs-4217360.php

Ban on home gardens. http://righttruth.typepad.com/right_truth/2009/03/feds-to-ban-backyard-gardens.html

Ban on low rider pants. http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2004-05-16/news/0405150320_1_louisiana-house-louisiana-legislator-ban-low-riding-pants

Ban on raw milk. http://wewantorganicfood.com/2007/10/31/healthy-raw-milk-outlawed-in-california/

Ban on lemonade stands. http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2012/05/23/beck-as-crackdowns-on-lemonade-stands-mount-kids-will-learn-to-acquiesce-to-government/

Seat belt and helmet laws. http://www.motorists.org/seat-belt-laws/busybodies

Ban on dietary advice. http://news.heartland.org/newspaper-article/2012/09/21/north-carolina-paleo-diet-blogger-locked-free-speech-fight

Challenge anyone? Type in any activity in BING or GOOGLE search followed by “ban” and see what comes up.

Only when we learn to accept people doing things that we may not like or agree with will we ever be truly free.

Randy Johnson

itsmycountrytoo.org

Drug Related Violence is Increasing Exponentially

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The Cato Institute is a public policy research organization, a think tank, dedicated to the principles of individual liberty, limited government, free markets and peace. Its scholars and analysts conduct independent, nonpartisan research on a wide range of policy issues. Highlighted in this article are a few examples of the violence on Americans at the hand of law enforcement in the failed war on drugs. Increasingly paramilitary no knock raids are used to search homes and businesses in search of illegal contraband. All too often mistakes are made where the wrong house is raided, the information about the occupants is wrong, or police or citizens die in the conflict. We have the right to use deadly force to repel home invasions. If my door was broken down at 2 or 3AM I would be inclined to try to defend my family. The justification seems to be that if no knock raids are not used, the suspects may destroy evidence. Wouldn’t shutting the water off keep people from flushing the evidence just as effectively without all the violence?                                                                                   http://www.cato.org/

In a commentary at CATO Institute written by Radley Balko titled Raiding Reality.

Is it fair to blame Congress for these types of mistakes?

I think so. Here’s why: Since the late 1980s, Congress has made a bounty of surplus military gear available to local police departments, either at steeply discounted prices, or for free. Millions of pieces of equipment have been transferred this way. Once stocked with military-grade weaponry, local police departments look for ways to put their new equipment to use. So they form SWAT teams. More drug-war incentives from Congress-this time in the form of grants for drug arrests-then induce those departments to send the SWAT team out for routine warrant service of nonviolent drug suspects.

The result? An explosion in the number of “no-knock,”forced-entry type raids in the U.S. One criminologist who’s studied the phenomenon estimates that the number of SWAT “call-outs” in the U.S. has increased from about 3,000 per year in the 1980s to more than 40,000 per year today. It’s of no coincidence that this dramatic rise began in the early 1980s, just as we began ratcheting up the War on Drugs. http://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/raiding-reality

In this video Mayor Cheye Calvo of Berwyn Heights, Maryland describes the errant SWAT drug raid on his home where his two dogs were shot.                                    http://www.cato.org/multimedia/cato-video/cheye-calvo-details-swat-raid-killed-family-dogs

This interactive map highlights some of the botched paramilitary drug raids in this country which now happen at an estimated rate of 40,000 per year. These no knock drug raids are happening all too often on the homes of nonviolent drug offenders and people mistaken to be nonviolent drug offenders.            http://www.cato.org/raidmap

http://www.cato.org/news-releases/2006/7/17/time-curb-rise-deadly-paramilitary-police-raids

An 88 year old Atlanta woman is killed in a wrong house drug raid where she believed she was being victimized in a home invasion and fired a gun at police officers who quickly shot her to death.               http://www.nytimes.com/2006/11/28/us/28atlanta.html?_r=2&ref=us&oref=slogin&

Cory Maye may have escaped the death penalty where he used a gun in what he believed was self-defense in a botched drug raid of his home. http://www.cato.org/blog/cato-policy-analyst-who-may-have-saved-mans-life

Buffalo, New York’s paramilitary SWAT team has found a use for their new toys. “Shock and Awe”. 78 people were arrested, 21 ounces of marijuana was confiscated along with 7 ounces of crack cocaine and 5 guns in the raids of almost 40 homes over a three-day period. This story highlights the way police are increasingly using other government entities such as housing and safety inspectors, Alcohol Beverage Control officers, or Game Wardens to circumvent the need for warrants to raid suspected drug dealers. So much for constitutional guarantees against illegal search and seizure.  http://www.cato.org/publications/commentary/buffalos-stampede-against-privacy

Barry Cooper, a former narcotics officer in Texas who has made countless arrests found himself in trouble when he started busting relatives and friends of politicians. He came to realize that the practice of raiding homes of people looking for drugs was wrong and felt guilty about the atrocities involved with the raids he was involved in where Mom and Dad would be dragged to jail and their children taken to Child Protective Services over a bag of pot. He has fought back releasing a video http://www.nevergetbusted.com/  and written a book, “After Prohibition”. Barry is not alone where many law enforcement officers, attorneys and judges have broken ranks and formed Law Enforcement Against Prohibition http://www.leap.cc/.

This article and video from Reason.com highlight the tragedies involved, and lives destroyed by the war on drugs. Please watch. http://reason.com/blog/2011/06/18/reasontv-replay-lindy-no-knoc

I believe it is time to end this war on drugs. Prohibition is damaging our freedom and destroying our relationship with law enforcement. Our politicians seem oblivious to the damage to society from this failed war on drugs where countless lives and families are destroyed. America only has 5% of the world’s population but we have 25% of the planets prison population. Something is terribly wrong with this approach. Please call or write to your elected officials and let them know how you feel.

http://house.gov/

http://www.senate.gov/

http://www.whitehouse.gov/

Randy Johnson

itsmycountrytoo.org