Sunday, June 17, 2012

President Obama's Message of "Don't get caught"



Recently I found this meme on Facebook, and it got a reaction out of me. I got to thinking just how true and profound it really was. All it would of taken is one arrest, and our present time would be completely different.


I sat in front of my computer, smoking a joint, and watched the smoke dispersing into the room as I exhale. I starting thinking deeper into it,  wondering what would have happened if a young Barack Obama/Barry Sotero was hanging out with his friends, having a good time, and ended up getting busted with an ounce of cannabis. .



I took another hit off my pipe, looking around the room, bothering nobody, and wondered why almost a million people a year were going to get arrested for cannabis. A million dreamers aspirations of lifetime goals and possibilities thrown aside.  The day after a drug bust they wake up to a new life, with a new label, a criminal.

The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over, and expecting to get a different result. The war on cannabis has proven to be the epitome of insanity.

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I had an idea for a meme, and it went viral. Within a few hours it had gotten shared to tens of thousands of people on Facebook! The icing on the cake though, was when I started seeing people I don't even know, tweeting it directly to Barack Obama. I have had a great time time reading peoples perspectives on it, and I can tell that it kind of touched a nerve. 



Anyways I think I had made a pretty good point with it. That being the blatant hypocrisy our President has committed by continuing to ignore the peoples desire to end the war on cannabis. It was good enough for him to do it, flippantly bragging about it to look all hip and shit. Why can't he do the right thing and just put his pen on a piece of paper and reschedule cannabis. Why should more and more people be busted for what he is guilty of doing himself?


 
Considering the ratio of blacks getting arrested compared to whites is staggering. He is so frigging lucky he had never gotten arrested.  In every single state in the United States, except for one, (Hawaii) more blacks are arrested than whites.

Marijuana Possession Arrest Rates by State and Race (2006)


So what kind of choice is a person supposed to have come November? A hypocrite, or the 250 million dollar man?  I don't care for republicans at all. For one reason the Republicans have traditionally opposed cannabis reform, the majority of them view it as being soft on criminals.

 I read in The New York Times, that Manhattan district attorney, Cyrus R. Vance Jr., said that half of the 6,200 people who were charged with low-level marijuana possession last year in Manhattan had never been arrested before.


No one wants our politicians, or our police to be soft on criminals. Instead of considering someone who is arrested for the first time in their life because of cannabis a criminal....Why not consider them just a person? We already incarcerate more people than any other country in the world, so why should we just exasperate the problem further?

......................................................................................

On another note, I read today where a local law enforcement have gone so far out of their way to get a cannabis arrest.They used constant surveillance of a hydroponic shop to go after people who purchased there. Taking tag numbers and looking up addresses, then fabricating tips to search homes.
"Narcotics detectives pursuing indoor pot farmers have been put on leave, accused of breaking the law and lying to judges. Prosecutors have had to drop charges."
Pinellas Sheriff's Race Clouded By Marijuana Busts
The question I have to ask is. What motivated these police officers to lie to a judge, just to set someone up for a cannabis charge? What is motivating the police to go so far to violate someone's civil liberties by invading their privacy,  and profiling people based simply by where they shopped? 
I can only guess it is by pressure from their commanders to specifically target cannabis users so they can acquire Federal Subsidies set aside for quotas of cannabis arrests. How much is it up to now for a local police department? A million bucks?...More?
Maybe our police are getting a sick thrill out of taking a persons home and assets away from them in a seizure, and selling them at police auctions.
Cannabis has never killed anyone, but law enforcement treats cannabis users like criminals, and somehow they should be public enemy number one, and they have no problem lying to a judge to convict someone.
The tired excuse of we don't make the laws we just enforce them, rings hollow to someone when police go out of their way to oppose cannabis reform. Mainly for financial reasons instead of what would be best for our communities.
Look at the bigger picture,  our countries DEA,  ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders in Mexico, and an American Border Patrol Agent. 
Of course the head of the DEA, Eric Holder, denies any accountability. He has gone so far as to lying to congress about medical marijuana raids. Denying any prior knowledge of the organization he runs of selling guns to drug cartels. Eric Holder is more slippery than a greased pig at a fair. What really is funny is his response to these allegations. Basically discounting congressional concerns and saying it is nothing but partisan politics.  I'm not a republican or a democrat, I'm just a concerned citizen wanting to know just how far a government agency will go  just to keep getting a blank check every year.
The DEA lying with a straight face over their assertion that cannabis has no medicinal value, over the past 40 years has made them feel invulnerable to any other lie they wish to fabricate.  Yet they are the government so they automatically get a free pass. So from the top down, from the DEA to local law enforcement, Americans are having its enforcers of justice lie to congress, lie to judges, and imprisoning people everyday.
How are we supposed to trust the police, when it seems like they will do anything to imprison us, and make us criminals over a plant? Like I said, cannabis has never killed anyone, or ruined anyone's life. Only the results of cannabis prohibition has caused that.

Look at the big picture. Our own DEA, ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders. Including a Border Patrol Agent.

Our local law enforcement goes so far as to lying to judges, incarcerating people over a plant.

How are we supposed to be reassured by our police that they are not just out to put us in jail?

Like I said cannabis never killed anyone, it never ruined lives, only the results of it's prohibition has caused that.
 can only guess it is over pressure from your bosses to specifically target cannabis users so they can receive Federal Subsidies set aside for local law enforcement for quotas on cannabis arrests. How much is it up to now? A million bucks,... more?

Was it the thrill of taking someones home away from them, and all their other personal possessions so you can turn a quick buck on a sheriff's auction?

Cannabis has never killed anyone, but our law enforcement would have us believe that cannabis users are public enemy number one. Why else would they spend the majority of their time focusing on cannabis arrests?

Look at the big picture. Our own DEA, ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders. Including a Border Patrol Agent.

Our local law enforcement goes so far as to lying to judges, incarcerating people over a plant.

How are we supposed to be reassured by our police that they are not just out to put us in jail?

Like I said cannabis never killed anyone, it never ruined lives, only the results of it's prohibition has caused that.
The question I have to ask is what motivated these Police Officers to lie to a judge, just to set someone up for a cannabis charge? What is motivating them to go so far to violating peoples civil liberties by invading their privacy, based simply on where they shopped?

I can only guess it is over pressure from your bosses to specifically target cannabis users so they can receive Federal Subsidies set aside for local law enforcement for quotas on cannabis arrests. How much is it up to now? A million bucks,... more?

Was it the thrill of taking someones home away from them, and all their other personal possessions so you can turn a quick buck on a sheriff's auction?

Cannabis has never killed anyone, but our law enforcement would have us believe that cannabis users are public enemy number one. Why else would they spend the majority of their time focusing on cannabis arrests?

Look at the big picture. Our own DEA, ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders. Including a Border Patrol Agent.

Our local law enforcement goes so far as to lying to judges, incarcerating people over a plant.

How are we supposed to be reassured by our police that they are not just out to put us in jail?

Like I said cannabis never killed anyone, it never ruined lives, only the results of it's prohibition has caused that.
The question I have to ask is what motivated these Police Officers to lie to a judge, just to set someone up for a cannabis charge? What is motivating them to go so far to violating peoples civil liberties by invading their privacy, based simply on where they shopped?

I can only guess it is over pressure from your bosses to specifically target cannabis users so they can receive Federal Subsidies set aside for local law enforcement for quotas on cannabis arrests. How much is it up to now? A million bucks,... more?

Was it the thrill of taking someones home away from them, and all their other personal possessions so you can turn a quick buck on a sheriff's auction?

Cannabis has never killed anyone, but our law enforcement would have us believe that cannabis users are public enemy number one. Why else would they spend the majority of their time focusing on cannabis arrests?

Look at the big picture. Our own DEA, ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders. Including a Border Patrol Agent.

Our local law enforcement goes so far as to lying to judges, incarcerating people over a plant.

How are we supposed to be reassured by our police that they are not just out to put us in jail?

Like I said cannabis never killed anyone, it never ruined lives, only the results of it's prohibition has caused that.
The question I have to ask is what motivated these Police Officers to lie to a judge, just to set someone up for a cannabis charge? What is motivating them to go so far to violating peoples civil liberties by invading their privacy, based simply on where they shopped?

I can only guess it is over pressure from your bosses to specifically target cannabis users so they can receive Federal Subsidies set aside for local law enforcement for quotas on cannabis arrests. How much is it up to now? A million bucks,... more?

Was it the thrill of taking someones home away from them, and all their other personal possessions so you can turn a quick buck on a sheriff's auction?

Cannabis has never killed anyone, but our law enforcement would have us believe that cannabis users are public enemy number one. Why else would they spend the majority of their time focusing on cannabis arrests?

Look at the big picture. Our own DEA, ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders. Including a Border Patrol Agent.

Our local law enforcement goes so far as to lying to judges, incarcerating people over a plant.

How are we supposed to be reassured by our police that they are not just out to put us in jail?

Like I said cannabis never killed anyone, it never ruined lives, only the results of it's prohibition has caused that.

The question I have to ask is what motivated these Police Officers to lie to a judge, just to set someone up for a cannabis charge? What is motivating them to go so far to violating peoples civil liberties by invading their privacy, based simply on where they shopped?

I can only guess it is over pressure from your bosses to specifically target cannabis users so they can receive Federal Subsidies set aside for local law enforcement for quotas on cannabis arrests. How much is it up to now? A million bucks,... more?

Was it the thrill of taking someones home away from them, and all their other personal possessions so you can turn a quick buck on a sheriff's auction?

Cannabis has never killed anyone, but our law enforcement would have us believe that cannabis users are public enemy number one. Why else would they spend the majority of their time focusing on cannabis arrests?

Look at the big picture. Our own DEA, ILLEGALLY sold guns to drug cartels. The guns have been linked to over 200 murders. Including a Border Patrol Agent.

Our local law enforcement goes so far as to lying to judges, incarcerating people over a plant.

How are we supposed to be reassured by our police that they are not just out to put us in jail?

Like I said cannabis never killed anyone, it never ruined lives, only the results of it's prohibition has caused that.




Thursday, June 7, 2012

How cannabis prohibitionist Rep. Frank Wolf, was bought by lobbyist

Back on May 9th, congress sent a bill to stop the DEA from spending tax money on enforcing federal laws against states who have medical marijuana. The bill was debated heatedly, and was voted against by a majority in congress.

During the debating process, one particular congressman really stood out to me in particular. That was Republican Representative Frank Wolf, of Virgina's 10th District.




Representative Frank Wolf basically stuck to parroting all the talking points of cannabis prohibitionist for the past 70 years, interjecting miscellaneous straw man arguments along the way.  He questioned the boundaries of states rights, stating, "If a state said that sex trafficking is okay, would we honor that and say that we are not gonna protect? I would hope not. States in the past have done things that were not good for this country."  He also touched on the pill mill problems in Florida, stating "We talk about doctors, the number of doctors that were ripping off people with oxycontin - the number of doctors [that would be] devasting. You could go down to Broward County, in Florida, and go into some of these pain clinics -- There are buses coming down, and planes coming down, to buy it, and doctors are writing prescriptions. So we are going to hide behind it and just say doctors are?  The number of doctors that ruin young people on oxycontin. .. that whereby they died, they died! Instead they hide behind a "doctor says" [and] that that means it's okay .."

We might be able to agree that the pain management policies are being abused, but the fact remains that people with legitimate pain are roped into the mix and are being treated like criminals.  Many of the people who are traveling by buses and planes to Florida are going there because they are unable to get proper pain management alternatives in their home states, so they are forced to be scrutinized unfairly just to be able to receive treatment.

The comparison of states rights to use cannabis, and the problem with Florida's pill mills only exemplifies the need for states to have other alternatives for treatment.

I personally experienced a close friend go through quite an ordeal with pain management in Florida. She got into a car accident and sought a legal way to help cope with their pain. At first the doctors had trouble locating her injury and they did not want to prescribe pain killers, even though her pain was very real and excruciating. Eventually the doctors were able to pinpoint the problem and finally starting her on a precription of oxycodone.
One of the procedures utilized to locate her pain, in turn, elevated her pain and her prescription was increased.  She became fearful of building up a tolerance against the medication - or worse, she feared she may become addicted.  Her doctor placated her fears with a proverbial "pat on the head". Within several months, despite addressing these concerns with her doctor, she did end up addicted, and eventually had to find an alternative to the oxycodone.  After spending time in drug rehabilitation she is now on methadone - probably for the rest of her life.  To this day, her health has been seriously affected as a result of using the only legal way to find relief from her injuries.

Perhaps it's time we search for alternatives?  

Medication errors harming millions

As a modern nation we have the responsibility to provide access to the best treatment available. There needs to be more than just highly addictive and expensive pills to provide needed relief for pain. By not giving people the legal choice for an alternative to pain pills when something else is available is wrong.

17 states recognize the medical efficacy of cannabis and they do not suffer the same problems Florida does with it's addiction to pill mills. Why? They have an legal alternative. An alternative that is extremely less addictive, and with substantially less lethal side effects.

Unfortunately, our government put a red X over those 17 states and targeted attacks against the people who voted for the right to be able to use medicinal cannabis, spending billions of dollars, arresting, and seizing assets, of the people providing access to medicinal cannabis.

After watching this debate in congress, I started wondering whether Representative Frank Wolf was influenced by lobbyists, and started doing some in depth research into who has invested in his campaigns since he was elected. What I found honestly was not surprising.

Here is my evidence that Representative Frank Wolf is nothing more than a bought out talking head for cannabis prohibitionist.

5 special interest groups that help keep cannabis illegal

The 5 special interest groups that keep cannabis illegal are: Police Unions, Private Prisons Corporations, Alcohol and Beer Companies, Pharmaceutical Corporations, and Prison Guard Unions.

Representative Frank Wolf has received campaign contributions from at least 6 contributors on the list.

Representative Frank Wolf's full list of donors. 

Corporate Prisons:
 CORRECTIONS CORPORATION OF AMERICA POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE   

Pharmaceutical:
 BRISTOL-MYERS SQUIBB CO. EMPLOYEE PAC 
 ELI LILLY AND COMPANY POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE
  NATIONAL COMMUNITY PHARMACISTS ASSOCIATION - PAC
 PFIZER INC. PAC

Drug Testing:
 QUEST DIAGNOSTICS INCORPORATED POLITICAL ACTION COMMITTEE

So you see, this is a prime example of how lobbyists have bought and paid for Representative Frank Wolf. The good news is, he is running for re-election this year.

Running against Representative Frank Wolf is Jeff Barnett. Unfortunately, I have been unable to determine if he is worth endorsing due to the fact I couldn't find any information on his stand regarding current drug policies.
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