|
Server : Apache/2.4.62 System : FreeBSD fbsdweb2.web.rcn.net 14.1-RELEASE FreeBSD 14.1-RELEASE releng/14.1-n267679-10e31f0946d8 GENERIC amd64 User : www ( 80) PHP Version : 8.3.8 Disable Function : NONE Directory : /domains/jrwi/Essays/ |
Upload File : |
<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml"
xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office"
xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word"
xmlns:st1="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=windows-1252">
<meta name=ProgId content=Word.Document>
<meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 10">
<meta name=Originator content="Microsoft Word 10">
<link rel=File-List
href="Prohibition-A%20Lesson%20not%20Learned_files/filelist.xml">
<title>Prohibition Essay</title>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="Street"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="address"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="country-region"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="State"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="City"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="place"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="PlaceType"/>
<o:SmartTagType namespaceuri="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags"
name="PlaceName"/>
<!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:DocumentProperties>
<o:Author>me</o:Author>
<o:Template>Normal</o:Template>
<o:LastAuthor>i</o:LastAuthor>
<o:Revision>2</o:Revision>
<o:TotalTime>3199</o:TotalTime>
<o:Created>2011-06-10T00:59:00Z</o:Created>
<o:LastSaved>2011-06-10T00:59:00Z</o:LastSaved>
<o:Pages>1</o:Pages>
<o:Words>6021</o:Words>
<o:Characters>34326</o:Characters>
<o:Company>Slimey</o:Company>
<o:Lines>286</o:Lines>
<o:Paragraphs>80</o:Paragraphs>
<o:CharactersWithSpaces>40267</o:CharactersWithSpaces>
<o:Version>10.4219</o:Version>
</o:DocumentProperties>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<w:WordDocument>
<w:SpellingState>Clean</w:SpellingState>
<w:GrammarState>Clean</w:GrammarState>
<w:Compatibility>
<w:BreakWrappedTables/>
<w:SnapToGridInCell/>
<w:WrapTextWithPunct/>
<w:UseAsianBreakRules/>
</w:Compatibility>
<w:DocumentVariables>
<w:dgnword-docGUID>{6CD88B59-64FE-4CB1-9BED-68CC0C53B4F9}</w:dgnword-docGUID>
<w:dgnword-eventsink>9396008</w:dgnword-eventsink>
</w:DocumentVariables>
<w:BrowserLevel>MicrosoftInternetExplorer4</w:BrowserLevel>
</w:WordDocument>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if !mso]><object
classid="clsid:38481807-CA0E-42D2-BF39-B33AF135CC4D" id=ieooui></object>
<style>
st1\:*{behavior:url(#ieooui) }
</style>
<![endif]-->
<style>
<!--
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{mso-style-parent:"";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
p.MsoCommentText, li.MsoCommentText, div.MsoCommentText
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
span.MsoCommentReference
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-ansi-font-size:8.0pt;
mso-bidi-font-size:8.0pt;}
p.MsoTitle, li.MsoTitle, div.MsoTitle
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-align:center;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:16.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
p.MsoBodyTextIndent, li.MsoBodyTextIndent, div.MsoBodyTextIndent
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
text-indent:.25in;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:12.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";}
p.MsoCommentSubject, li.MsoCommentSubject, div.MsoCommentSubject
{mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"Comment Text";
mso-style-next:"Comment Text";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";
mso-fareast-font-family:"Times New Roman";
font-weight:bold;}
@page Section1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in;
mso-header-margin:.5in;
mso-footer-margin:.5in;
mso-paper-source:0;}
div.Section1
{page:Section1;}
-->
</style>
<!--[if gte mso 10]>
<style>
/* Style Definitions */
table.MsoNormalTable
{mso-style-name:"Table Normal";
mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0;
mso-tstyle-colband-size:0;
mso-style-noshow:yes;
mso-style-parent:"";
mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt;
mso-para-margin:0in;
mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt;
mso-pagination:widow-orphan;
font-size:10.0pt;
font-family:"Times New Roman";}
</style>
<![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="16386"/>
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1"/>
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]-->
</head>
<body lang=EN-US style='tab-interval:.5in'>
<div class=Section1>
<p class=MsoTitle><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Prohibition: A Lesson
Not Learned</p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoNormal align=center style='text-align:center'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>My first experience with cannabis occurred in the
U.S. Navy when I was a 22 year old hospital corpsman. One day one of my Mexican
friends, who smoked the dried weed known as �pot�, recommended that I try it.
All my life I had read bad things about narcotics (sleep inducing drugs) from
government sources and news articles but since my friend appeared perfectly
normal, I became curious to know more about it. For the next six months I read
articles both pro and con and observed the behavior of other corpsmen that I
knew smoked pot. I decided to try it once to see what the fuss was about. On a
Friday night a small group of us got together and smoked a $10 baggie (one
ounce) of Mexican ditch weed. When the event ended I was disappointed because
nothing happened. A week later I tried once again to experience the effect and
this time I discovered it was more fun and less toxic than alcohol - with no
hangover.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span>As the
months passed, I began to smoke regularly and thought nothing of it. Before
long, guess what? I forgot that marijuana was illegal. My nonchalant attitude
soon led me to purchase a pound from a Mexican source for $80 and sell half to
other smokers at $10 an ounce. This allowed me to enjoy my pot for free.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>One day a
member of the maintenance department changed the filter on my barracks air
conditioner and found my bong (water pipe) inside. He took it to security and
triggered an investigation. Eventually they nailed me for thoughtlessly selling
an ounce to a snitch which led to my arrest and court-martial. After they
established my guilt, I took a ride to the <st1:place><st1:PlaceName>Naval</st1:PlaceName>
<st1:PlaceName>Correctional</st1:PlaceName> <st1:PlaceType>Center</st1:PlaceType></st1:place>
in <st1:place><st1:City>Corpus Christi</st1:City>, <st1:State>Texas</st1:State></st1:place>
to share 60 days of unpleasantness with other druggies. The sign over the
entrance read "Enter to learn, Depart to serve." When the cell door
closed behind me I realized for the first time the trouble I was in, and yet my
conscience told me I had done nothing wrong. In my opinion marijuana was less
dangerous than alcohol - which was legal. At that moment my belief that the
government was always right began to change. I realized that <b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>a single person or group of persons in
power</b> could claim the right to tell me what I could put into my body.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Three weeks into my 60 day sentence, I threatened to
commit suicide and the CO (Commanding Officer) of the hospital ordered my
release. Afterwards, the navy awarded me an honorable discharge for my four
years of satisfactory service, which was nice of them. On the long drive home
to Massachusetts, however, I had time to think about my experience with the
marijuana laws and decided that: (1) Smoking the dried blossoms and leaves of
the cannabis plant for pleasure was not a crime, and (2) I would have to do
better at hiding my source of pleasure from the authorities.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>As a
civilian, I now realized that selling pot was a bad idea but I saw no reason
why I shouldn�t grow my own and smoke it for six more years. Finally, at age
30, I had become bored with the effect and decided to move on to better things.
I became a health food addict, started a repair business with assistance from
my brother, and replaced pot smoking with Zen meditation. For the next thirty
years I forgot about pot - but I never forgot the confusion, pain and anger I
felt while doing hard labor under the hot <st1:State><st1:place>Texas</st1:place></st1:State>
sun.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>When Richard
Milhous Nixon, launched his drug war in 1970, I did not pay much attention to
his hard-line speeches against people like me. I did not know that he liked to
puff on cigars and drink rum cokes and dry martinis while he partied with his
political friends. I vaguely remember that he dismissed the findings of his own
<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>Schafer
Commission</i></b> when its members recommended the immediate decriminalization
of marijuana.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>I understand
now that Nixon played the hard-core prohibitionist to get votes. He ran on a
platform of law and order and promised the American people to get tough on
lawbreakers - meaning pot smokers. Every politician after Nixon knew that words
like "tough on crime" and "tough on drugs" in the campaign
speech got you elected every time. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span>Those who
supported Nixon's drug policy tried and failed for thirty-seven years to get
rid of cannabis; instead it made cannabis the second most popular drug in <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>!
The constant headlines about drug arrests, piles of drug money, police
corruption, tougher laws and escalating violence makes great copy. Movies,
books, and newspaper articles about winning a war against people that used and
sold illicit drugs provide exciting and stimulating <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>entertainment</b>. Sadly the effort failed for the same reason the war
on alcohol failed � we Americans like to make our own decisions about what we
put in our bodies, regardless of people like Nixon and Anslinger.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Before the war began, cannabis was a well known
extract and tincture containing 80% alcohol that was sold over the counter in
drug stores across the country. <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>Cannabis
Extract</b> was registered in the U.S. Pharmacopeia as a medicine. Men, women
and children took this extract from the �Devil�s Weed� for a variety of
ailments.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The Mexican version of the cannabis plant called
�marijuana� arrived in <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
at the turn of the century, in the pockets of Mexican migrant farm workers. At
first the Mexicans were welcomed as a source of cheap labor but when their
numbers increased and jobs became scarce, resentment began to flare. Local
residents began to complain to the police and their politicians to do something
about the migrant workers and their behavior under the influence of this
intoxicating �locoweed�. In response to these complaints, states and
communities along the Mexican border passed laws against cannabis and jailed
Mexicans who had it in their possession.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Before long, other state representatives in Congress
took notice of the crackdown and began to pass their own laws against
marijuana. Eventually, the movement to stop the Mexican immigration and halt
the spread of marijuana reached the Federal level. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'><span style='font-size:16.0pt'>Conspiracy Theory<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>In 1937, Henry J. Anslinger, chief of the FBN, the
Federal Narcotics Bureau had suffered a setback in manpower after the repeal of
the 1920 Volstead Act. With the sudden drop in the number of bootleggers, Harry
had fewer criminal to pursue, a shrinking crew of agents, and fear that his
department could lose funding from Congress. What he needed were more criminals
to justify his budget.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>While
Anslinger searched for more reasons to arrest people, American newspaper baron,
William Randolph Hearst, looked for ways to increase his fortune in the
newspaper business. Hearst had already purchased 800,000 acres of prime
forestland in <st1:country-region><st1:place>Mexico</st1:place></st1:country-region>
and invested in a patented process for turning wood pulp into paper.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>The
industrial hemp industry, which was in decline at the time, would have provided
him with more pulp per acre than trees, but the hemp stalks were broken down by
hand, a time-consuming and costly job. When George Schleicher introduced the
ill-fated Decorticator in 1917 which would speed up the process and save trees,
Hearst realized he had to act fast to protect his investment. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>While Hearst thought of ways to get rid of
industrial hemp, the Pharmaceutical Industry lobbied Congress to get rid of
patent medicines. Many of these concoctions contained cannabis extracts and
opium and sold well across the drug store counter.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The third player in the loop was the Cotton
Industry. Since hemp fiber makes exceptionally strong clothing, it competed
with cotton, which was softer but less durable.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>The fourth
player was the Chemical Industry (Monsanto), which supplied the fertilizers and
insecticides for the cotton industry. If hemp mechanization created a new
market, it could hurt these two industries because hemp is a hardy weed. It
needs little fertilizer, resists insects, and stops erosion.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The fifth player that wanted cannabis out of the
picture was the Alcohol Industry. After Prohibition failed, beer, wine and
liquor had made a comeback and marijuana was increasing in popularity among a
small number of users - mostly minorities.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>The, sixth
industry, DuPont, had invested much money in petroleum-based materials such as
nylon and plastic and wanted no competition from hemp fiber.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The conspiracy theory proposes that these six industries
had a mutual interest in the removal of cannabis/hemp from the market.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>When first
approached by his uncle-in-law and Secretary of the Treasury, Andrew Mellon,
and then Hearst, and Dupont, Harry Anslinger had little interest in cannabis.
His happiness came from narcotic and alcohol busts and the pursuit of violent
criminals. However, after the repeal of the Volstead Act, many former
prohibition agents transferred to his department and needed jobs. Under
pressure from these wealthy and influential men, Harry agreed to look into the
problem.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>What Harry found in his investigation was a task far
beyond the means of his small department. He discovered the hemp weed grew on
farmland all over the country. It was impossible to wipe out the plant, which farmers
had grown since 1619 for its fiber and seed. He also discovered cannabis came
in two versions - industrial hemp and cannabis sativa. The active ingredient of
the sativa strain called THC was a common ingredient in medicines sold in drug
stores and pharmacies across <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
for over fifty years.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>With this in
mind, Harry knew he could never get rid of the plant with an honest approach.
The solution was to launch a campaign of fear and disinformation - to educate
Americans about the dangers of the "killer weed."</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>90 Million Criminals in Ninety Seconds<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>In 1937, most Americans had never heard the word
"marihuana" or understood that hemp and marihuana were different
strains of the same plant. A small percentage knew about hemp � rope
manufacturers, bird seed distributors, and farmers - but the word,
"marihuana" was a <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>Mexican word</b>
and carried a different meaning. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>When Harry presented his Marihuana Tax Act before
the Ways and Means committee, he had kept the existence of the bill as quiet as
possible. He knew that farmers, physicians, and companies that used cannabis
products would fight the bill if given a chance to organize against it. His
strongest opponent, the American Medical Association, knew nothing about
Harry's bill until two days before it reached the committee.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>When the Speaker of the House, Sam Rayburn received
the approved bill and called for a debate, a representative from <st1:State><st1:place>New
York</st1:place></st1:State> stood and asked for an explanation of the bill's
purpose. Mr. Rayburn replied, "I don't know. It has something to do with a
thing called marihuana. I think it is a narcotic of some kind."</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>This same representative again asked if the AMA
supported the bill. A member of the committee, a future Supreme Court Justice -
stood and announced that the AMA lawyer, Dr. Woodward, had approved it
"one hundred percent!" This <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>bald
faced lie </b>satisfied the<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> </b>Republicans
and ended further questions. With no challenge from the industries that used
cannabis products, the Speaker called for a vote.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Thus, on a hot, humid, Friday afternoon in August
with not many people left on the floor, an ignorant Congress voted on the bill.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>When the speaker tallied the votes, the bill passed.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>In addition
to other restrictions, the new law bill required hemp farmers to pay a
one-dollar per acre tax and purchase a license from the Treasury Department
with severe penalties if they failed to comply. Harry had used the Treasury
Department to turn the bill into a tax issue because he couldn't find any
support in the Justice Department. When the farmers approached the Treasury
Department later to inquire about a license, the agency turned them away. It
was all a trick to remove the plant from American soil and punish those who
manufactured it or used it.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The new Marijuana Tax Act made it illegal for anyone
to grow, prescribe or use cannabis without a license or without paying a tax. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>With the hemp industry in <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
virtually destroyed, Harry and his agents set out to catch jazz musicians and
�darkies� he knew smoked the dried weed they called �reefer� - for fun. When he
caught them, he locked them up for tax evasion.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'><span style='font-size:16.0pt'>Dirty Harry Hates Jazz<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Before he became the Federal expert on marijuana,
Harry noticed some of the criminals he had arrested for violent crimes, smoked
hand-rolled cigarettes that contained the leaves and flower buds of the
cannabis plant. He began to search the Hearst newspapers for stories that
linked reefers to violent crime.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>A funny thing happened to him during the early years
of his anti-marihuana campaign. No matter how many letters he wrote, he had
difficulty persuading police departments across the country to enforce his new
Federal marijuana law. It appears they had their own priorities and their
limited budgets that did not include filling their jails with Harry�s marijuana
smokers. In frustration, Harry decided to create the conditions that would
force the issue. He began to write his own stories in the Hearst newspapers
that sensationalized violent criminals and women of moral decay under the
influence of marijuana.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>The lurid
tales of drug addiction, violence, and murder captured the public's attention
and popularized this new "killer drug", marihuana. A string of low
budget films played in the theatres including, "Reefer Madness," in
which the actors smoked joints, went mad, and killed each other. A flood of
radio announcements warned parents against a stranger offering a marijuana
cigarette to their child. Harry personally traveled the country giving talks to
parents groups. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Within a few years, the public <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>knew</b> that one puff from a marijuana cigarette led to addiction,
psychosis, violent crime, moral decay, and death. Americans who read the
sensational stories in the Hearst publications or listened to the public safety
announcements on the radio accepted Harry�s ravings as truth.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>The UN Banishes Cannabis from the Earth<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Harry's twenty five year media blitz against
cannabis was an enormous success. The police organized sting operations and
herded thousands of African and Mexican Americans into jails and prisons. Some
of those caught included celebrities like Louis Armstrong and Robert Mitchum.
In the wake of these successful crackdowns, Harry lobbied for and received more
tax money from Congress to expand his Bureau of Narcotics. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Harry's campaign to destroy the "devil's
weed" became a common news headline and made him a powerful figure in the
government. It also made cannabis the new �<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>forbidden</b>
<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>fruit</b>� in the illegal drug market.
The passage of tough new laws increased its value and attracted more dealers,
which in turn triggered Congress to pass more and tougher laws. Harry campaign
to stamp out cannabis became a gold mine for growers and smugglers.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The black market in cannabis attracted entrepreneurs
from all over the world who wanted to ship their product to eager American
consumers. As the shipments increased, the Government hired more agents to
patrol the borders and pilots to spray poison from planes on cannabis fields in
<st1:country-region><st1:place>Mexico</st1:place></st1:country-region>, <st1:City><st1:place>Columbia</st1:place></st1:City>,
<st1:place><st1:City>South America</st1:City>, <st1:country-region>Afghanistan</st1:country-region></st1:place>,
etc. Over the next quarter century, Harry's ultimate dream of leading a global
attack against the most useful plant in the world became a reality. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Harry achieved final victory in 1961, when he
pressured United Nations delegates into signing the <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>Uniform Narcotics Act</b>. The new law made it illegal for anyone on
the planet to grow or possess cannabis/hemp/marijuana in any form. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>After thirty-three years of unrelenting effort,
Harry took his place in history as the first global Drug Czar. The campaign was
an official success on paper but in reality the production and consumption of
cannabis continued, unabated<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'><span style='font-size:16.0pt'>The Policy of Harm Reduction<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><span style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>For decades, the US Government allowed the tobacco
and alcohol industries to glorify their product on television and in magazines
with no warnings of addiction, cancer and heart attacks. When the dangers
became officially recognized, the Government did not arrest users but responded
with warnings and restrictions which reduced cigarette smoking by fifty
percent. Patches and gums also appeared in the marketplace to help people quit.
</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>On the heels of its success against tobacco smoke,
prohibitionists placed the spotlight of public awareness on smoked marijuana.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>carcinogens</b>
in cannabis smoke became the newest reason to put people in jail. Federal
narcotics agents and local police could arrest you, confiscate your bank
account and property, send your children to social services, and lock you up in
prison - to prevent lung cancer.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Recent studies have again confirmed that smoked
marijuana poses little if any risk of lung cancer. In fact, increasing the
potency of cannabis reduces<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> </b>the
amount of smoke needed to reach the desired level of pleasure.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The next attack involved the potency of the drug.
Prohibitionists argue that today's marijuana (skunk) is too dangerous for
people to smoke, meaning smokers cannot be trusted to regulate (titrate) their
degree of intoxication. If this is true then <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>no one can be trusted</b> with any mood altering substance. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>We have
reached a low point in our history where our lawmakers pass a steady stream of
criminally invasive measures against people they are supposed to serve and
protect. Somewhere in the past, I remember hearing that a person�s home was a
castle - a sanctuary - and that home invasions, phone tapping and interception
of mail was a serious matter that required a warrant. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>In the recent past, I watched a public service
message on television that warned against the danger of drug use but did not
specify which drug to avoid or why it was dangerous. In the ad, a teenage girl
raises a frying pan over her head and brings it down with extreme force on a
chicken egg. Afterwards, she holds up the bottom of the pan so I can see the
gooey mess drip off the bottom. The message: "This is your brain on
drugs."</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>After I
stopped laughing, I watched the girl smash everything within reach and I
wondered how much of my tax money went to waste on that. A more effective ad
would show teenagers addicted to heroin or crystal meth with rotting teeth and
ugly infections from dirty needles. That kind of exposure would discourage me
from experimenting with <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>�hard�</b> drugs
like crack and heroin but not necessarily with <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>�soft�</b> drugs like pot, mushrooms, and peyote.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Prohibitionists have made serious blunders in their
campaign to create a so called drug-free <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>.
One is the term <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>"controlled
substance�</b>. A controlled substance is legal, regulated, and taxed.
Marijuana is not a controlled substance. The Marijuana Tax Act turned marijuana
from a controlled substance sold over the counter and taxed, into an �illegal�
substance - grown, distributed, and consumed in an unregulated market.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Another blunder is the belief that arrest is a
"deterrent" to stop people from smoking marijuana. When you consider
the number of arrests over the last 75 years, marijuana should have disappeared
long ago; instead, the arrests have only increased the drug's popularity and
price. The fear of arrest does not work, because the drug raid is usually
unexpected. Growers and users do not believe it can happen to them. The usual
pot smoker cannot see anything wrong with smoking and does not understand why
the Federal Government should get involved. It is only when the front door
flies off the hinges and a DEA agent slams you to the floor with a gun to your
head, that you discover your error.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The majority of Americans support a �live and let
live� policy unless someone breaks the social contract by damaging property or
causing injury. In that case, you can expect consequences. When someone becomes
a public nuisance or inflicts self-injury, intervention may also become necessary
- but aside from that, our homes are supposed to be a place of privacy. The
police cannot enter without a warrant based on probable cause and signed by a
judge. This is Constitutional Law established by our Founding Fathers.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The term <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>"harm
reduction"</b> is a term used by prohibitionists to override Thomas
Jefferson�s defense of inalienable rights. Harm reduction means the Federal
Government decides what I can put in my own body.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span>If the
Government is so committed to harm reduction, why not declare a war on obesity?
Ban all fatty food ads on television. Arrest fat people and put them on a
prison diet to prevent diabetes - a deadly disease.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Some of us actually believe we have the right to
choose what we do with our own bodies. Religious people believe the opposite -
that my body belongs to God and not me - and Prohibitionists believe that my
body belongs to them � to test for drugs. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>I have always believed that <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>I</b> <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>am my body </b>- which
means <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>my body belongs to me.</b> The
government must ask permission to inspect me and the answer is always no.
Prohibition is a form of religious Fundamentalism and violates the separation
between church and state.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Under Federal scheduling, the DEA has criminalized
anyone in possession of drugs not manufactured by the licensed pharmaceutical
industry or prescribed by a doctor. This is a well-intentioned program, but in
reality, far more people die from legal drugs such as alcohol, tobacco, and
pharmaceuticals than the drugs sold by street vendors. Oddly enough, the
substance the DEA hates and fears the most � pot � as far as we know has never
killed anyone.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>On paper, the
DEA, FDA, and other Federal agencies keep a tight rein on cannabis and its THC
byproducts. Under the law, cannabis is right where it belongs in Schedule 1,<b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> next</b> <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>to heroin</b>. The reason is clear. Cannabis is a dangerous
mind-altering drug with no medical value and a high probability of abuse. The
Temperance Society preached the same warning about alcohol - a dangerous,
mind-altering drug that causes violence, criminality, and death.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>On the other hand, licensed pharmaceutical companies
deliver truckloads of Ritalin for kids who have difficulty paying attention in
class. Ritalin is a psycho stimulant that speeds up the nervous system. The
short-term effects for kids allergic to Ritalin can include nervousness and
insomnia, loss of appetite, nausea and vomiting, dizziness, palpitations,
headaches, changes in heart rate and blood pressure, skin rashes and itching,
abdominal pain, weight loss, and digestive problems, toxic psychosis, psychotic
episodes, drug dependence syndrome and severe depressions upon withdrawal. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>This new, synthetic, children's drug is in Schedule
II - <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>less</b> dangerous than cannabis.
The long term effect of Ritalin (Speed) is not known.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span>On the other hand, cannabis has a long
history of medical and recreational use that dates back thousands of years.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>A Failed Drug War without End<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>A century of persecution has had little impact on
the world�s most valuable plant. Here's why:</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>Cannabis is a
weed</b>. Anyone can grow it indoors in a closet with compact fluorescent or
LED (low wattage) lights or outdoors in a pot or garden plot. New strains
appear on the market � some as small as twelve inches high with a 60 day life
cycle. These are much harder for drug warriors to discover than the twelve to
twenty footers Mexican drug gangs farm in our state and national forests.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Each new
generation of young people are eager to try out the<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'> forbidden fruit</b>, because the authorities have turned it into an<b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> exciting, dangerous, and profitable</b> <b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>game</b>. Cannabis prohibition is a popular
topic. It triggers arguments over personal freedom, religion, cultural and
racial differences, political power, money, and the right to pursue happiness.
It pits individuals against the state and the states against the Federal
Government. It turns peace officers into drug dealers and drug dealers into
terrorists. It pits governments against one another and against International
Law. It reveals that one person�s truth is another person's lie.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�� </span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The vision of a drug-free <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
has driven Congress to borrow sixty nine billion dollars each year from a
bankrupt treasury to hunt down and arrest a million Americans. Future tax
dollars collected from the unborn funds drug testing and unwarranted searches
of vehicles, individuals, and homes.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Corporate <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
is well on its way to becoming a bankrupt police state. Our Government has
violated the sovereignty of many countries abroad and incurred the hostility of
much of the world. We have the most citizens in prison per capita and the
greatest loss of privacy, thanks to the Patriot Act and the War against Drugs.
The confiscation laws have triggered greed and corruption among public
officials and law enforcement.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Former DEA
head, Karen Tandy recently announced that her agency, the DEA, had almost
achieved self-sufficiency thanks to the confiscation laws. According to Tandy,
if her agents tear your house apart and find a single seed, then you, and all
your property belongs to her agency.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Before
Congress approved confiscation, which targeted only <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>drug</b> <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>dealers</b>, the
privacy of the home was sacrosanct. Then Congress decided confiscation was a
peachy idea because it reduced the financial burden on the Treasury - a cost-saving
measure that destroyed privacy.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Some people
believe that only those involved with illegal drugs need worry about these
tough new measures. This is not true. Anyone "associated" in any way
with the plant - be it through a family member, a friend, a car stop, a wrong
address on a package delivery or a telephone conversation, everyone is a
suspect. No one is above suspicion.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The financial rewards and excitement of home
invasions are so addictive to DEA agents and local police, they sometimes
"<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>testi-lie</b>" in court to
protect "their" newly acquired property. Law enforcement officers
collect points for each arrest, which add up to promotions. If you are the
mistaken target of one of their 50,000 home invasions, you <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>cannot prosecute them</b> for violations of your civil rights. Further,
do not look for an apology from them for tearing your house apart. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Another enlightened idea is to treat teen offenders
as adults and send them to a "drug free environment" in federal
prison. Federal prisons are 80% full of drug offenders who have access to drugs
smuggled in by prison staff. Beatings, rapes, and stabbings take place in the
overcrowded prison environment. This a good place for a teenager who sells a
$5.00 joint to an undercover officer to receive a quality education.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The escalating cost of building more prisons and
filling them with pot smokers funnels scarce tax dollars to law enforcement and
the prison industry instead of supporting education and treatment centers. Each
cell delivers $20,000 - $40,000 tax dollars a year to the <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>privatized</b> prison industry. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>DEA chief Karen Tandy, and Drug Czar John Walters,
believes that an estimated twenty million pot smokers in the <st1:country-region><st1:place>United
States</st1:place></st1:country-region>, most of them peaceful, law-abiding
citizens, belong in prison. As a rising tide of non-violent users file in
through the front gate, murderers, child molesters, and rapists walk out the
back to make room. This is not an exaggeration.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent> </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent> </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>It's About Money and Power<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>DEA statistics show that a century of persecuting people
for manufacturing, distributing and using substances outlawed by Congress has
weakened democracy and strengthened organized crime. Taxpayers lose interest in
wars that cost too much and go on for too long. Congress made the same mistake
with alcohol in 1920 by focusing only on the expected benefits and disregarding
the collateral damage.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span>With the best of
intentions, it passed an unenforceable law, which spawned a huge crime
wave<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The man most responsible for the American failure to
regulate and tax cannabis was Henry J. Anslinger, a tough railroad cop and
former prohibition agent whose racism far outweighed his respect for the Fourth
Amendment of the Constitution. The Fourth Amendment guarantees, "The right
of the people to be secure in their houses, papers, and effects against
unreasonable searches and seizures." The Declaration of Independence
guarantees us the �<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>inalienable"</b>
right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.� Harry had little
interest in these protections and lied to Congress so he could arrest those he
hated - "Negroes, Hispanics, Filipinos, and entertainers in the jazz
industry �members of the degenerate races." </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Drug lords, police unions, prison lobbyists, drug
testing companies, the pharmaceutical industry, the DEA, cotton and chemical
conglomerates, HMO's, insurance companies and parent's organizations
enthusiastically support the <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>�idea�</b>
of a drug free America without considering the cost. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Despite White House drug Czar's claim that <b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>�drug users finance terrorism�,</b> it is
actually Prohibition that creates and finances terrorism. Without Prohibition,
cannabis plants, coca bushes and opium poppies are just weeds that anyone can
grow. The way to finance an army of terrorists is through the covert production
and distribution of a forbidden substance that is in demand. The CIA did this
in <st1:place>South America</st1:place> and some people believe the late Osama
bin Laden raised cash by trafficking in heroin. Incidentally, after a drug
financed revolution succeeds, the new leaders prohibit drugs and execute drug
dealers that are not loyal supporters or family members. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>The Truth about Cannabis<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The only way the Government will repeal drug
Prohibition is through pressure from grass roots organizations coupled with a
collapse of the monetary system. When the money stream (credit) dries up,
politicians will begin talking about taxing marijuana.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span>Many web sites have form letters ready for
concerned citizens to sign and send in to lawmakers. Congressional legislators
and senators count the number of these letters before they decide an issue. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>If you use the Net to do the research, you will
discover that cannabis is the most valuable plant on earth. The potential of
industrial hemp for food, medicine, fuel, clothing, paper, fiber, construction
material, and erosion control is well documented. The psychoactive strains,
cannabis indica, and cannabis sativa have a history of medical and recreational
use that dates back thousands of years. Smoked or vaporized cannabis flowers
contain mood-altering chemicals that heighten awareness, produce euphoria,
intoxicate, or relax the user. Some people claim to have spiritual experiences.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>For those who
use marijuana for medical reasons it stimulates appetite, controls nausea,
reduces pain, helps with depression glaucoma and ease the muscle spasms of
multiple sclerosis.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Under US Federal Law, all of this is felony crime.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Some people may discover they are allergic to THC
and experience a bad reaction the first time they try it or even after years of
heavy use. Others may panic at the perceptual changes and struggle to end the
experience. If this happens to you, apply common sense - stop using cannabis. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Experimenters fall into five groups - the medical
user, the one-time experimenter, the occasional user, regular user, and the
heavy (chronic) user.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Society appears most tolerant of the medical user,
and less so of recreational users. The regular user and the chronics are most
likely to get into trouble. I have read that roughly ten percent of heavy users
reach the limits of what their body can assimilate and experience an allergic
reaction. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>What this means is cannabis is not a harmless drug.
It is true that pure cannabis, smoked or eaten in a recipe never killed anyone
directly, but it can lead to complications if mixed with other chemicals. The
long-term exposure of lung tissue to cannabis smoke is not healthy. This is not
a reason to outlaw cannabis but it does justify a warning.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>I recently read an article, about a number of young
Israelis who traveled through <st1:country-region><st1:place>India</st1:place></st1:country-region>
and purchased cannabis from street vendors. Some of them suffered terrifying
hallucinations, and became deathly sick after they smoked it. Some entered the
hospital for treatment of mental illness.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Its
unfortunate smokers are forced to do business with unregulated street vendors
that are free to lace cannabis with other chemicals. If the buyer knew
beforehand the purity and potency of the product, these tragedies would all but
disappear.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Polls indicate that 75% of Americans who smoke pot
lose interest and quit by age thirty. If this is true, Prohibition is
pointless.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>The Turning of the Tide<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The Nixon/Anslinger war on people who use cannabis
or any other drug for non medical reasons is a dismal failure. Those who
support a drug war policy offer the following reasons why we must purge
ourselves of this evil scourge.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It has no medical value. (<i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'>Cannabis was listed as a medicine in the U.S. Pharmacopeia until 1943
when mounting pressure from Anslinger�s campaign forced it out.</i>)</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It weakens the immune system. (<i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'>As does a lack of sleep and severe stress</i>.)</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It is physically addictive. (<i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'>For a small percentage of users, yes, and to a much lesser degree than
tobacco or alcohol.)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Its potency has increased since the 60�s. (<i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>With more potency, <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>less</b></i><b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> <i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>smoke</i></b><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'> is drawn into the lungs to achieve the desired effect.)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It has a high potential for abuse. <i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>(Anything that stimulates the release of
endorphins (pleasure molecules) in the brain has a high potential for abuse.)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Long-term use leads to loss of memory and mental
illness. <i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>(Yes, short-term memory loss
occurs <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>while</b> under the influence.<b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'> The possibility of mental illness exists
in approximately 10% of abusers</b>. Some people are allergic to marijuana and
should not use it. Some people have a preexisting condition that is helped or
aggravated by THC.)</i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It is a gateway to more dangerous drugs. (<i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>Yes and so is alcohol, tobacco, prescription
pills, bad marriages, war, and mental illness. Many who use heroin are also
addicted to tobacco. If tobacco came first did tobacco lead to heroin? Probably</i>)</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It impairs decision-making. (This is a no-brainer
and we all know the answer. Live and act responsibly.)</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Heavy users develop anti-motivation syndrome. <i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>(Some do and some do not. There is a long
list of great achievers who abused drugs. In any case, abstinence is always the
cure for any drug related problem.)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>It can produce irreversible changes in the brain.<i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'> (Brain scans and imaging technology show
changes within the brain from using, tobacco, alcohol, herbal supplements,
prescription drugs, coffee, etc; or from trauma in ones life, like a jail
sentence and confiscation of one's property. Even with this new technology,
nobody knows what these changes mean. A century ago, criminologists claimed
they could spot a demented individual by the size and shape of the skull.)<o:p></o:p></i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Marijuana alters reality<i style='mso-bidi-font-style:
normal'>.</i> <i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'>(This is the one that
lawmakers fear the most; the questioning of reality.<b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'> Is the world I see, inside my head, or out there? Is it real or a
dream? Where does it come from? Who should be my guide in this place? God,
religious leaders, government, police, parents - or me? Who? </b></i><b
style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'><i style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><span
style='font-size:14.0pt'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span></span></i></b><i
style='mso-bidi-font-style:normal'><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span></i></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>Keep in mind
that when alcohol Prohibition failed, liquor stores reopened and the black
market folded. <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
returned to the days before as Herbert Hoover put it �Our country has
deliberately undertaken a great social and economic experiment, noble in motive
and far re4aching in purpose.� </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>The key to
re-legalizing cannabis is through statewide medical marijuana initiatives. Many
lawmakers who publicly oppose medical marijuana may want legal access to it one
day. If legal, synthetic, prescription drugs fail to provide the same degree of
relief, then <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>medical pot, </b>should be
an option. Use whatever works, especially if it's free and you cannot afford
the high cost of prescription medicine. Those who can't tolerate smoke can
inhale vapor from a plastic bag attached to a <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>vaporizer</b> or prepare it with food. There are thousands of recipes.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The majority of Americans today are at odds with the
Federal Government�s enforcement of Prohibition because it violates the
time-honored American spirit of freedom. It is unconstitutional for Congress to
abolish freedom of choice and create a police state to keep cannabis away from
children. Children are in the presence of alcohol, tobacco, and prescription
drugs every day. Responsible adults do not expose children to substances that
could harm them. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The law of supply and demand says that when smokers
and drinkers have free access to their drug of choice <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>smugglers of these products go out of business.</b> Take away the
profit, and smuggling stops. Prisons lose half of their population and violent
criminals serve their full sentence. Bloated law enforcement budgets around the
world return to normal. Police can respond quickly to emergencies and solve
real crime when they stop wasting resources on crimes without victims.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The tax revenue from legal alcohol, tobacco, and
marijuana helps to pay for drug education and treatment. Americans who prefer
pot to other drugs can relax in their own homes instead of worrying about the
police breaking down the front door. A simple rule for prohibitionists to
follow is to <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:normal'>leave people alone unless
they cause trouble</b>. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Prohibition, however, will continue until a national
forum allows people to openly talk about cannabis. This is no longer <st1:country-region><st1:place>America</st1:place></st1:country-region>
when people like George H.W. Bush Sr. tell voters that public debate is not
permitted. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The United States Government must return to our
proud heritage found in the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Our founding
fathers created these documents to empower and protect American citizens from
Government intrusion. Prohibitionists have decided to play down these rights
�to save our children�. States have the authority to control drugs through
regulation, taxation, and treatment instead of allowing the Federal government
and the United Nations to create and enforce their own rules.<span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>The way to end cannabis prohibition is through the
vote. Tell candidates you will not vote for them unless they abide by the
Constitution. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>The Frog in the Pot<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-align:justify'><span style='font-size:
16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Americans are like the frog that sits in a pot of
water that slowly heats over a burner. The change in temperature is so gradual
the frog does not realize what is happening until it is too late. If that frog
suddenly felt the full heat of drug prohibition, it would instantly jump from
the pot.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Americans have lost track of how much we have
surrendered to drug warriors over the last thirty-seven years because they are
careful never to bring it to our attention. Instead, they promise to get rid of
drugs, and the only way to get rid of drugs is to get rid of privacy. The
notion of drug free society is not real but the loss of protection is real. In
the end, we will still have plenty of drugs, but no protection from Federal and
International drug policy.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>Suggested Guidelines for Re-Legalizing Marijuana<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'>����� </span>Here's how the alcohol model can work for
cannabis.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Licensed and taxed distribution through
dispensaries.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>No advertising.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>No driving under the influence.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>No Sales to Minors.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>No public nuisance. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Five plants or less, in a secure location, for one's
own personal use.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>In 1970, Congess repealed the unconstitutional 1937
Marijuana Tax Act and replaced it with The Controlled Substances Act, which
restated Anslinger�s claim that marijuana is a dangerous substance that causes
�addiction, criminality, and death�. This reshuffling of a title made it clear
that Congress believes in Prohibition even when it violates democratic
principles and corrupts the fabric of government. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span>The Federal
Government must butt out of the prohibition business and allow the states to
regulate cannabis and other drugs as they did at the turn of the century. The
power to regulate drugs was originally reserved to the states by the
Constitution and then overridden by Congress, the Supreme Court, and a string
of Presidents. The pretext the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)
and the DEA use to intervene in state drug policy is the <b style='mso-bidi-font-weight:
normal'>interstate commerce laws</b>. </p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'>Alternative Models<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><st1:country-region><st1:place>Switzerland</st1:place></st1:country-region>,
<st1:country-region><st1:place>Portugal</st1:place></st1:country-region> and
the <st1:country-region><st1:place>Netherlands</st1:place></st1:country-region>
do not enforce cannabis laws; instead they tolerate small amounts of soft drugs
for personal use and operate drug clinics for the treatment of hard drug
addicts.<span style='mso-spacerun:yes'>� </span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent>Today, the <st1:country-region><st1:place>United
States</st1:place></st1:country-region> has the largest population of
prisoners in the world. Most of them locked up for nonviolent drug offenses.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'>Sources:</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'>"The Emperor Wears No Clothes" by Jack Herer</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'>www.norml.org</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center;text-indent:
0in'>www.leap.cc<br>
www.dea.gov<br>
.</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'>James Wiley</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><st1:Street><st1:address>48
Woodland Ave</st1:address></st1:Street></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'>San Anselmo CA</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'>415-453-8715</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'>Updated May 2011</p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><span
style='mso-spacerun:yes'>�</span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent style='text-indent:0in'><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent align=center style='text-align:center'><span
style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><span style='font-size:16.0pt'><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class=MsoBodyTextIndent><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>