If you believe Mike Ruppert (ex DEA officer) in "THE TRUTH & LIES OF 9/11"
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8797525979024486145
a huge part of the US economy is supported by the traffic of drugs... Declaring something illegal, makes it rare, which makes it expensive, which makes it very profitable...

As an end note, since the poppy production in Afghanistan is doing great (thanks to NATO's invasion):
http://www.spie REMOVEME gel.de/international/world/0,1518,473933,00.html

PS: The 60 characters word limit is not very practical for URLs...

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I usually read every AlterNet piece before I post a comment. No need to this time (although I will, eventually). The fact is: I cannot believe that we're still having this argument in 2007! We all have known at least 100 people in our lives who have died as the result of too much alcohol or nicotine cunsumption. Tell you what: I'll give anyone here $1000 if they can come up with the name of even one person who has died as the result of too much pot. Not only do I not know of such a case, I'm not aware of it happening in all recorded human history! What's wrong with these people?

Tom Degan
Goshen, NY
"The Rant" by Tom Degan

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Dennis Kucinich supports the decriminalization of marijuana. For more information, see http://www2.kucinich.us/issues/marijuana_decrim.php.

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...until Nylon rope was invented.

Know your history.
Re-legalize.

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For starters I fully support the decriminalisation of all drugs; prohibition doesn't work, and can never work. It's just a way of financing police and other USG repression.

Having said that, marijuana these days is a very different beast from what it was 30 years ago. Selective breeding and the extensive use of hydroponics have produced skunk, which is many times stronger than old-fashioned Mary J - in fact some strains are stronger than cocaine.

It's been demonstrated that skunk usage can lead easily and quickly to extreme psychotic reactions, and if you're going to attempt to write an even-handed article on marijuana usage you have to include comment on the downside of these genetically enhanced versions.

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Marijuana should be legal for many reasons, but chief among them is the fact that marijuana is the one substance for which there is no consumable dose that will make one unconscious, convulsive, comatose or dead. No other drug -- over-the-counter, prescription or otherwise -- can make that claim.

Marijuana is the only safe drug. It alone will not make one miss work, have a hangover, deplete a bank account, desert a family, or suffer any of the ill effects of other substances.

Constitutionally, the federal government has no delegated power to regulate the cultivation and use of marijuana wholly within the borders of a state. A state could legally do that if the voters didn't object, but the federal government truly exceeds its legal reach by doing so. Eventually, it will be brought to task for this and made to desist. Marbury v Madison: a law repugnant to the Constitution is no law at all.

The Commerce Clause delegates to the federal government the power to regulate interstate commerce (economic activity between different states), not intrastate commerce (economic activity within the borders of any one state). The Controlled Substances Act and similar federal drug laws take their authority from the Commerce Clause -- the government acknowledges that. This is where the policy battle must be waged.

To that end, it is irrelevant whether marijuana has any medical or other value beyond the value ascribed to it by the people who use it for their own reasons. It is the Commerce Clause authority rug that must be pulled out from under federal marijuana prohibition.

Even so, there is value in educating the populace as to the medical and other benefits of marijuana as public opinion will have an important role to play in legalization.

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it is often grown inside houses or other buildings using massive amounts of electricity (an excessive light bill is often the giveaway).

Of course the (wealthy) brewers and distillers wouldn't want us to be able to grow our own self-medication in natural sunlight, would they?

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There is no chance for leglization as long as the Religious Right holds power in the U.S. The drug war is a religious war, the last Inquistion. For the fundamentalists, drugs are not chemicals that simply intoxicate people: They are demons that enslave the soul. The fundmentalists distinguish the illegal drugs from alcohol and tobacco by saying that the illegal drugs--in particular marijuana--are mind altering substances. Alcohol and tobacco may make you a stumbling, coughing wreck of a human being, but they do not affect your mind, which is to say your soul. And for them, the fundamentalists, saving the soul is far more important than saving the lives of the half million or so who die every year from alcohol and tobacco. And the drug war gives the fundamentalists the pleasure in life they love the most--inflicting pain and punishment upon those that enjoy the sensual pleasures. Nothing irks the fundamentalists more than the knowledge that someone somewhere is enjoying the pleasures of the flesh--among them the pleasures of a drug high. And combine that with the possiblity that a hidden sinner may be enjoying a drug high while committing a sexual sin, and it's simply more than they can stand--PUNISHEMENT MUST BE IMPOSED! GOD DEMANDS NOTHING LESS! Over the centuries the fundamentalists have had taken from them the fun of burning witches and forcing loose women to wear a scarlett "A" on their dresses. Do not expect them to give up without a fight their pleasure in imprisoning for decades those that want to get high on something other than Jesus. And don't forget, if marijuana is legalized, white virgins will be drugged and seduced by black jazz musicians. That was the original excuse back in the thirties.

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May I humbly submit for your consideration my top ten reasons hemp should be legal.
1. George Bush
2. Dick Cheney
3. Global War on Humanity
4. Corrupt Officals
5. Unhealthful Environment
6.Can't overdose on it
7.Creates Peace
8.Quells violent tempers
9.Safer than alchohol
10. The most theraputically active substance known to man
We allow people to make their own wiskey for personal use.The very substance that's caused more premature deaths,rapes,murders,fights and unwanted pregnancies.
The only bad side effect from letting those who smoke to grow their own.....Sudden Outbreak of Peace.
Draft Jeffrey7 for Prez

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It's clear this person doesn't know the subject at hand. The "tell" that he's getting his information second-hand is when he states that modern strains of marijuana can be "...stronger than cocaine."

It is not like cocaine so it can't be stronger or weaker than cocaine. It's not the same drug, nor in the same pharmacological family. It has different effects than cocaine and is often used in a different manner for this reason. That the government has classified it with narcotics goes not make it a narcotic nor are it's effects truly narcotic (soporific?).

On a recent television news report I saw a prosecutor attempt to discredit a witness who was a pot smoker by questioning what she "saw" on the night in question. "You smoked some pot" he said (I paraphrase) "Don't you see things when you're on pot?"

No one "sees things" when they're stoned on pot. Though the drug does make cheeseburgers look real good.

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Regarding point number 9, American is the only country (well, besides Mexico) that calls cannabis, marijuana. That comes from the early 20th century around the time of "Reefer Madness" to connect the "dangers" of cannabis to Mexican immigrants and stir up us white folks against it. The same way heroin was used to criminalize African-Americans. It's a racist term and should not be used, especially by those seeking to legitimize weed.

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There are just two reasons why cannabis will never be legal, money and power. Many industries are threatened by hemp. The paper industry, for example, makes a lot of money turning old growth forests into paper. If hemp were legal the paper industry would have to replace a good chunk of infrastructure or face competition from much cheaper hemp paper. The private prison industry makes great gobs of money by keeping large numbers of people in prison. These industries and more give large bribes (perfectly legally) to politicians in order to preserve their profits.

On the other hand many organizations benefit directly from our current drug laws. Drug laws are very good for the police since they make it possible to arrest and jail anyone at any time (at least as long as the victim isn't rich or well connected). Drug laws and disenfranchisement are perfect for suppressing the black vote, ensuring that at least Republicans will always support them. And of course politicians always want to look tough, and throwing lots of people in jail does that.

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American policy regarding the cannabis plant will fall of its own economic weight. There are too many good reasons to welcome this useful plant into the mainstream of agricultural production.

In the end, people will grow their own pot, buy it in the health food store and grocery, weave it into natural fiber garments, and be relieved that the climate of fear in America has been lessened.

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I'm honestly not trying to be an ass, I'm not attacking anyone individually, I'm trying to be brutally honest.
The very best thing 90% of marijuana smokers could do for the cause is shut the hell up.
Find the literate, articulate few and let them do our speaking for us.
Every "dude", "man", "like", every rebel yell, is a step backwards.
Look up a few real facts, memorize them, then look up a few more. try to tie things together, LEARN, a stupid soldier gets shot down, a smart soldier survives and triumphs.
If you have something intelligent to say, say it, if you don't, then shut up.

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Great article. We need to continue to put pressure on our Congressmen to respond to this issue. We all know the "War on drugs" is a joke, that Big Pharma wants to be the only game in town, that prescription drugs are far more deadly than cannabis, that they're in bed with the FDA. Consumers need to maintain their freedom to use herbs if they want to, including cannabis. (The last time I looked, poppy seeds weren't illegal). We need to go back to growing hemp, like the rest of the country. The benefits of this amazing plant need to be tapped, before the U.S. totally contaminates our food supply. (http://www.organic-nature-news.com/facts-about-hemp.html)

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marijuana is still illegal, because we the smokers haven't pushed the issue hard enough. Being vocal to each other is singing to the choir, We don't bring it up outside of our own circles so none smokers don't care. Just as were afraid to take the subject to the street,to church, to work, to other social circles, so is the politician afraid to bring it to debate or write a bill on it. It is up to us to let them know that it would not be political suicide to decriminalize it. home of the brave,yeah right.

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The #1 reason to legalize cannabis is because God say's so, and #2, it will save our freegin planet. Not only is cannabis the most useful plant on the planet and can supply us with over 25,000 ecologically friendly products, from paper, plastics, paints, varnishes, textiles, pressed board, foods, fuels, and many medicines, but it is also a must for true spirituality. Whether called Kaneh bosm, Cannabis, Haoma, Hemp, Taima, Ma, or another, it has been the key to human spiritual development.
In 1936 a Polish Anthropologist named Sula Benet discovered that in the original Hebrew of the Old Testament the word "kaneh bosm" was translated as calamus or fragrant cane by the Greeks when they first rendered the Books in the 3rd century BC and propagated as such in all later translations. Benet contended through her research and etymological comparison the proper translation is cannabis. In 1980 the Hebrew Institute of Jerusalem confirmed her claim that "kaneh bosm" is indeed cannabis.
In Exodus 30:23 God instructs Moses to use 250 shekels of "kaneh bosm" in the oil to anoint all Kings, Priests, and Prophets, for all generations, including Jesus and today. The title Christ means literally covered in oil, "Anointed". Kaneh is also listed as an incense tree in Song of Songs 4:14. The mistake was repeated in Isaiah 43:24, Jeremiah 6:20, and Ezekiel 27:19. There are 141 references to anointing and 145 for burning incense in the standard Bible.
The Word "kaneh bosm" and the discovery of the Gnostic Gospels at Nag Hammadi Egypt in 1945 after being buried in the sand for 1600 years reveal that the True Christians of Jesus day were in fact "Anointed Ones". Jesus came to make Anointed Priests of all men. In the Bible, 1 John 2:18-29, John tells of of many antichrist and mentions several times the Anointing that teaches the Truth, and that the Anointing is real and not counterfeit. John the Baptist claimed that while he Baptized with water, Jesus would baptize with fire and the Holy Spirit, (1 Samuel 16:13). The Gnostic Gospel of Philip say's; "there is water in water, there is fire in Chrism." And again it say's; "The "Chrism" is superior to Baptism, for it is from the word "Chrism" that we have been called "Christians", certainly not because of the word Baptism. And it is because of the "Chrism" that the "Christ" has his name. For the Father anointed the Son, and the Son anointed the Apostles, and the Apostles anointed us. He who has been anointed possesses everything. He possesses the Resurrection, the Light, the Cross, the Holy Spirit. The Father gave him this in the Bridal chamber. He merely accepted the gift. The Father was in the Son and the Son in the Father. This is the Kingdom of Heaven."
The word antichrist that John warns us of means literally, "opposed to or against anointed", and anointed is "to pour oil upon as in a relgious ceremony". Therefore having done considerable research on the subject it seems that the antichrist John warns of was indeed successful at watering down the Truth of Christianity, and that is why the world is in the sad shape it is today. If the Truth of Christ has been hidden then we are actually living according to the will of antichrist, the counterfeit spirit. It all looks really good, but in truth it isn't really. We have no way to compare. While this may seem crazy, I beg anyone to put it to the test. I have yet to find a man that can Biblically deny it. Not a Pastor, Policeman, Judge, or Doctor. They can say that they don't believe it, but the Book and our Constitution give us the Right to Worship the God of our Understanding, and the God of Truth loves Kaneh bosm!
We can all continue to play games with Corporate America at the cost to our freedoms and health, or those with eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts that understand can stand up and say "Game Over", God has spoken.
Peace!!!

Matthew 13:11-23, 1 John 2:18-29, Psalm 133

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Historical quiz time: What two things came out of prohibition?

The mafia and NASCAR. The mafia, as they made plenty of money on illegal booze. NASCAR? Yes, the boys who "ran shine" did, later on, get together to race and compete. Imagine that, eh?

What happened when prohibition was lifted? Shiners went out of business. Can't compete against Seagram, Annheiser-Busch, Jack Daniels, now can you? The mafia moved on to other areas of illegality. NASCAR got sponsors.

Granted, alcohol addiction is a very bad disease, and why we don't recognize such as a disease baffles me. These days, we have loads of other addictions: Crack, coke, grass, meth, whatever. Oh, and these are all illegal, of course.

"Gee, how do we stop all this?"

One, you eliminate the profitability of it. Let's face hard, cold facts: Nobody makes meth because they like the product, and how can you? You ever deal with anhydrous ammonia? I'd prefer smoking around gas tanks. Yet, some take such a risk, and why?

I call it the "duh" factor: You get some help, a few hundred in chemicals, and eventually, you turn all that into $100,000 return. Gee, what stocks pay like that? What job pays like that?

See, that's why drugs are so neat to so many: Sure, there's a high risk involved, but the lure of the huge profit margin sings her siren song. Hence, we have cartels, dealers, distributors, runners, an entire manufacturing network, that, at last I read, made more income than Exxon-Mobil.

So, why not legalize grass, meth, crack, coke, the whole nine yards? Despite many going "OH MY GOD!"....imagine the results:

-WHAT meth labs? Meth will cost far less, and be safer, in accordance to FDA regs of course....

-The prices, due to high-speed manufacturers coming into the market will destroy all the cartels, just like Seagrams, Annheiser-Busch and others wiped out the shiners.

Oh, yes, we'll still have dopers. We may well have LESS of them...because those who distribute...will disappear, or, go legit and open a drug store.

It's the profit angle that makes it work. We just don't realize this. So, legalize it. There. End of crack dealers, end of meth labs, end of smuggling. End of high profitability.

Imagine then pocketing the difference...in having less crowded jails, less full prisons, and how about those billions we waste pretending we're doing something about it? Gee, what could we do with all that leftover money? Hmm. Health care?

The mind boggles....

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Too bad all the reasons listed are contradicted by the reality of big money industry that is making a bundle on dope now, just the way things are. The prison industry loves dope dealers and users: most of them are passive and not expensive to keep. The pharma industry is not going to allow millions to self medicate (and the medicinal benefits of dope will be immediately obvious to millions) when these folks are hooked now on expensive designer concoctions to control what ails you. The alcohol industry? Let's not get into that. Who do you think the "criminal gangs" making all this money are, the "Taliban"? Sorry dear, EVERYBODY is making money on dope, friend and foe alike. The "war on drugs" would lose its purpose if dope were legalized. There are 100,000 people in the US whose jobs depend on the WOD. Silly rabbits. Suppressing dope is big business in the US. And since when did common sense and the greatest good ever influence a politician?

By the way: I don't smoke dope, drink alcohol, eat sugar, meat, fowl, refined carbohydrates or processed food. I am 100% sober 100% of the time and I am perfectly happy. I really don't give a crap about the sad-ass dope smokers of this country. It's illegal: if you use it, you deserve to go to jail. If you want to waste your life doping it up, move to a civilized country like the Netherlands. It ain't gonna happen here, OK, so you might as well obey the law, and shut up. Philip J Tramdack

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The one and only reason canabis should be legalized is that it grows naturally.
We should not suffer any government arrogant enough to declare any naturally growing plant illegal. In the entire history of governments, there has never been a better example of insufferable arrogance than this nation's declaration of marijuana as "illegal". What's next? Oak trees? How about oleander which has a poisonous sap? Why not poison ivy? Why not insanity!!!?
Why not tell the law makers to piss off? Get religion and private money out of our elections!

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Everyone should feel the same for Salvia Divorinum, being as how it's going to be illegal starting in 2008. It has never had anyone get hurt under the influence, and it's completely safe. So why it's going the other way now is way beyond me.... We need to stand together against these social atrocities.

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this fact alone means that there is an ulterior motive at work..and as long as that motive exists..factual arguments against prohibition are futile...

the ulterior motive is of course the power of the executive branch and the profits of its campaign sponsors ..the prison-military-industrial-complex.. nylon rope manufacturers (big oil).. and big pharma...overshadowing all this is the moralism that ppl exist to serve the economy and not the other way around.. which is a morality that obviously precludes consumer choices such as marijuana...

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In the southern part of Ohio the national and state forests are prime growing areas, but in the middle of the state we have no such forests. We must use the farmers land to grow our smoke. Actually I prefer this to woodland weed as the ground is prepared for you and it suits the cultivation of herb perfectly. The PH for corn is right on and you often get free fertilization also. The corn field is also advantageous over the woodlands for the lack of animals such as deer which also love weed. All you have to do is have your plants started by late April, wait for the corn to be planted and get to about four to six inches tall,at which time the farmer sprays herbicide. After about a week or so or a couple of good rainfalls,voilà, it's weed planting time. I have grown on smaller family farms and the hobby farmers. I even paid a farmer I knew once for the use of his cropland. He knew I got high and mentioned being in sad financial shape due to the low price of traditional crops. I made him a generous offer to allow me to grow on his land. I did all the tending of the crop and told him if the law found the weed all he had to do was feign ignorance with a little anger at those drug growers thrown in and he would suffer no consequences from Johnie Law. It worked great. I was able to supply my friends and family with high quality,low cost herbage and he made some tax free cash too.I prefer to plant on a moonlit night to avoid the use of flashlights. I try to pick fields away from the farmers house, preferably on sparsely or uninhabited roads. Finding the fields the fall before is a good policy. Usually corn will follow soy beans in the rotation of crops. A couple of times during the season you need to go out to check on it and fertilize. What you do is simply carry a box of your favorite fertilizer be it Miracle-Gro, or whichever. I use Miracle Gro during the growing season. I use Maxi Crop for my starts which is made from kelp. It is easy on the plants and you can't hardly over fertilize. You can use this all season also as it is an excellent fertilizer,all natural and organic. You just take the handy enclosed measuring scoop and scatter 1 scoop at the base of each plant. The next time it rains, your plants are given a boost and you aren't even there. Be sure to rough up the soil slightly or use your finger or a stick and poke some holes around the plants so the fertilizer doesn't wash away in case it rains hard. Also you should try to cultivate the lower growing varieties of plants. Nothing is more of a give-away to your herb garden than ten or twelve foot plants waving in the wind when the sheriff helicopters are overhead. Keep them spaced out twenty or more feet, not in rows, no real pattern to your plantings. If it looks like common weeds growing there is less chance of discovery. Keep an eye on the fields around harvest time. You can usually grow an excellent crop of ganja and get in and out safely if, you are cautious and don't beat a path to it by visiting your patch unnecessarily. Sometimes you can't find it by site but if you grow a good quality weed you will smell it before you see it. You have to get to the weed before the farmer harvests his crop. Nothing is worse than going to your field to harvest your bud,only to find the farmer already chopped it up with his combine. Well I hope I haven't given away any trade secrets here and I'm not trying to encourage anyone to break the law, but if you choose to try your hand at it a few tips can't hurt.If we all grow our own this country will be a better place to live. I do advocate taking all the seeds you have which aren't of the quality required for your personal crop and scattering them around the countryside or even in towns. Take a tablespoon full and throw them in your city's flower garden in front of the county court house. Those traffic islands would look good with a few marijuana specimen plants mixed in with the geraniums and impatiens. Happy gardening America

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Like it or not when you smoke pot you are smoking and all the bans against smoking make any smoking a thing of the past.

It's too bad people didn't fight all the smoking bans when they had a chance...

Skyrider

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One of the earlier comments claimed that new cannabis is genetically modified to be 'stonger than cocaine'... what nonsense!

30 years ago, there was hashish, which is just concentrated THC-rich glands from the hemp plant. It was just as strong then as it is now.

There is a truth to this, but I doubt it's one that cannabis prohibition advocates want to hear. During alcohol prohibition, the only kind of alcohol anyone could get was the strongest proof - because of shipping issues. A keg of beer has a lot less alcohol in it than a keg of whiskey, after all.

Prohibition naturally leads to people only selling the most concentrated form of product - that's why opium is converted to morphine or heroin before being snuck across borders; that's why coca leaf is converted to cocaine - etc. etc.

There are milder strains of cannabis, as well as cured leaf, that have far milder effects than what are known as 'medicinal strains'. Powerful cannabis strains are perfect for medical use - only one or two puffs is needed to get the medical effect, meaning less residue ends up in the lungs. Smoking through a water pipe also vastly reduces any particle intake.

In a rational world, one could choose what was appropriate - as is the case with alcohol. One can have a beer, or a glass of wine, or brandy. Moderation is the key, right?

The claim that 'cannabis leads to psychotic reactions' is also BS - some people have psychotic reactions after having a glass or two of beer, after all. Some people should not drink, and some people should not smoke cannabis - to each their own.

Now, let's look at tobacco - the only 'genetically enhanced' drug plant that I know of - see GMO tobacco in Brazil, AP, 1997
SANTA CRUZ DO SUL, Brazil (AP) -- Freakish tobacco plants that explode from the soil in this remote river valley grow huge leaves on stalks as thick as Louisville Sluggers. The growers here call it fumo louco -Crazy tobacco.

Crazy not just because it grows so big and so fast. Crazy because it has been genetically altered by one of the world's largest tobacco companies to pack twice the nicotine of other commercially grown leaf.

Fumo louco -- the farmers' generic term for several related strains of high- nicotine tobacco -- is the offspring of a genetically altered plant created in U.S. laboratories for Brown & Williamson Tobacco Corp., the third largest U.S. cigarette maker. The seed was then secretly shipped to Brazil in violation of U.S. export law."

Tobacco kills half a million people a year. The smoke is noxious and poisonous, and stains fingers, teeth, furniture, walls, and clothing - unlike cannabis smoke. The best use for tobacco is as a powerful natural pesticide.

Purified nicotine is a virulent poison. The people who make the 'nictotine patches' have to work in space suits in a biocontainment facility in order to avoid accidental death by poisoning.

Cannabis, on the other hand, is perfectly safe - but kids shouldn't smoke it, just as kids shouldn't drink alcohol. Any kind of drug can damage the developing body and mind...

BUT that doesn't keep corporate America from drugging kids up with Ritalin, Adderall, caffeine, high fructose corn syrup, Prozac, Paxil, Zoloft, etc., now does it?

The levels of dishonesty and hypocrisy with respect to this issue are simply...astonishing. Mind-boggling levels of disinformation!

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were responsible for banning hemp. Save money, environment, security, peace, and FREEDOM !

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GUN down your Congress people and Senators and make them support it.

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Thats what it's all about, has been, is, and will be...Control.
We are not FREE people/humans,never have been, never will be...
Even in the first 3 chapters of the worlds most popular book, the Bible, during the creation period, it's about control.
Someone/something telling us what we can do or can't do....
and it has been that way ever since, big/important forces telling little/insignificant humans what to play with,whats bad for us,whats good for us,what to read,what to eat,etc.,etc.
And they all get such a big kick out of watching us argue over everything amongst ourselves....

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Marajuana is not easily controlled by the government and it can be grown anywhere which makes it even harder to control so it becomes the poster child for the ridiculous illusionary war on drugs while record crops of opium leave Afghanistan each year since we "freed" that country. What a laugh!!
The government has already been caught dealing cocaine in the Iran Contra shame.
Politicians accept huge money from the alcohol industry, a drug that has destroyed more people than cocaine yet all forms of booze are totally legal.
Big Pharma has an approved synthetic version of marajuana that is legal by prescription.
It seems that criminal charges for marajuana do nothing but overcrowd prisons which are now becoming the privatized corporate buddies with the government.
We even had ads claiming that if you smoked marajuana you were supporting terrorism. You can drink a quart of vodka, become dangerously anti social and may even kill someone in the process but you're not supporting terrorism...please
Time to wake up to the propaganda and control that is being forced on us. 1984 is here and Big Brother and the Neocon New World Order Ministry of Love is upon us.

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No Extradition for the BC3! Three Canadians face extradition to, and life imprisonment in, the United States - but they've never been there!

Donate to the defense fund! show your displeasure by supporting these international hero's of individual rights and freedoms by donating to there defense fund and take "our" battle to "your" elected representatives, to show your disapproval over the US Government's international policies of an Ally on global terrorism, and the recognition of a Sovereign Nations right to self determination, policing and enforcement of this and any issue in there own way.
Win Loose or Draw... The DEA has already won a major battle in continuing the Prohibition as the Canadian Decriminalization bill brought in under the former government of Canada was not brought before Parliament for passage and we lost major momentum on the global prohibition of this plant...
Marc Emery, Greg Williams and Michelle Rainey's cause is worthy of your support!

The Strange, Seedy Case of Marc Emery From AlterNet
The reach of US Law into the Canadian self governance "should" be decisive here, but the influence of US special interest groups on this debate is much deeper than this article implies ...and it all boils down to one thing, the money ...were theirs money theirs corruption... and those that will pull no punches in order to keep the status quo no matter international boundaries or the laws of sovereign nations... the money trail is "HUGE"

Extradition Blues From Cannabis Culture.
Why is the United States wanting to reach into a Sovereign Nation Like Canada and actually expects to successfully extradite these three Canadian citizens... the answer is simple, they are active organizers and opponents to the global prohibition of this plant, and there social activism is actually working in this country and because this group is deemed an internal US national threat because of there activities in a Country which is deemed an Allie and close friend of the US, and their activism is contradicting standing US governmental policies of prohibition internationally.
This Administrations Governmental actions internationally show immoral and disturbing trends in Global law and the Hague statutes in which the US Government refused to ratify under this current administration for obvious reasons.

Emery Fights Back, DEA expands attack From Cannabis Culture
Get the facts, organize and support a true global hero of individual rights and freedoms, write your congressional representative's and have the active interference of your government stopped before irreparable damage is done by the most inept administration the US has ever had.

Prohibition isn't just flawed as is outline by all the comments I've read on this subject on AlterNet to date, but is Constitutionally illegal on many more grounds then can be seen, nationally and internationally.

JOIN THE FIGHT AND DONATE TO A WINNABLE CAUSE, END PROHIBITION NOW
Donate to the defense fund!

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it would be banned
If Aspirin were just now being discovered it would be put in the same class of drugs as morghine et al.
Yet doctors advise us to take one each day as a blood thinner to prevent heart attacks and strokes.
I have a life-threatening allergy to ASA so if I have a heart attack of stroke I am a dead duck. Is Cannabis a blood thinner?

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take a breath...

think about it... &
recognize that...
Pot Laws STEAL PROGRESSIVE VOTES & disenfranchise *independent thinkers*

think about it.


Spread Love...
... but wear the Glove!


BlueBerry Pick'n
can be found @
ThisCanadian ~~~

We, two, form a Multitude ~ Ovid.
~~~
"Silent Freedom is Freedom Silenced"

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If a person is not allowed to do to themselves what ever they wish then they are not free.
How the heck can anyone support the Constitution and the so called Drug war at the same time?
Only a hypocrite ,like Reagan, could speak of freedom and the drug war ....no true American who supports the Bill Of Rights could.

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Wouldn't have anything to do with "legal drug" lobbies would it, or the fact that it just might wake up folks that being a cog in the wheel and sitting your whole life in a office cubicle like a battery chicken may not be the best way to live your life and and "God forbid" we don't want folks to "be happy", happy people don't make good minions.

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You used some brilliant reasoning on a few of those. Here are some excerpts from my article, "The Top Ten Reasons Murder Should be Legal":
10) Prohibition of murder has failed to prevent it from happening. The government has tried to use criminal penalties to prevent murder for 230 years, yet every year nearly 20,000 people are murdered in the United States.
9) Arrests for murder disproportionately affect blacks and hispanics...
7) Legalized murder would prevent the flow of cash to organized crime gangs such as the mafia. Why hire a hitman when you can do it yourself?
3) Murder is too expensive for the justice system. We should just tax it instead. Right now it costs like $30,000 to have somebody killed. Imagine if that money went straight to the government as a tax!
1) Murderers are determined to stand up to the injustice of murder being illegal. Despite the threats of arrest--and even the death penalty--murderers continue to vanquish their foes without cause!

Yeah, I know. Marijuana use is not comparable to murder, since pot is a "victimless crime". But that's a moot point in the argument I'm making. Personally I do think it should be legalized, but you tried too hard to find 10 reasons.

Making something illegal will never stop 100% of people from doing it. Using that as an excuse to throw in the towel and stop prosecuting it would be pretty freaking stupid.

Arguments about racially disproportionate arrests are a shitty example because pretty much ALL criminal convictions are slanted towards minorities. At best, this represents racism in our legal system and has nothing to do with marijuana. Stop the racism and the marijuna arrests will go down.
I also have to wonder about the little tidbit about blacks and hispanics being arrested for smoking in plain view. It stands to reason that if they're doing it in public, and whites are doing it in the privacy of their own home, blacks and hispanics are way more likely to get caught.

Preventing the flow of cash to terrorism is a good goal, but they'd just pick up some other illegal market and capitalize on it. So a few years down the line, you'll just be using the same argument in favor of legalizing heroin or child porn or something.

Saying that it's too expensive has the same flaws as the "it happens anyhow" defense. While it's always good to save money, if pot was truly bad, we'd still have to enforce the law, regardless of the cost.
Besides, do you have any actual facts to support that assertion? The government seizes property from drug dealers and auctions it off. Sure, arresting the occasional college kid is going to lose you money, but does it cost enough to negate the money they make from the big fish?

And I'm not sure what you were getting at on the number one point. "We're determined not to give up". Good for you, but it's still illegal. Do you really expect other people to give two shits about how determined you are?
If you want the law to change, that's great. Keep promoting your cause. But just the fact that you really really really want to smoke weed isn't enough to persuade me.

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we oppose...." #6.....Development of HEMP as a valuable and diverse agricultural crop. Our trading partners in Europe and Canada can legally grow hemp. USA can import hemp products BUT not export because Americans are not allowed to grow this valuable crop because USA Drug Policy demonizes Hemp's cousin crop.

The Latest From Hemp-Brain Food, Indeed , article from the 9/01/07..Montreal Gazette.... .."its cultivation is banned in the USA, which means this country is poised to dominate the North American hemp food market."

http://www.manitobaharvest.com/faq.html

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This article implies that all people for legalizing drugs are drug users.

Cripes, stoners can be annoying.

But merely being annoying is not sufficient reason for being tossed into jail.

However, thanks to this article, non-stoners in the legalization movement will face more police harassment.

Cripes, stoners can be stupid.

But merely being annoying and stupid is not sufficient reason for being tossed into jail.

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is that MJ is a legitimate bona fide aphrodisiac. Nuff said!

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Paul. Here are some reasons why.
I wanna know what the other candidates have to say about the IRS, The "Federal" Reserve, the income tax, State's rights, undeclared illegal wars, the drug war, the free market & the return of individual liberties to the people. Also what do all the candidates say about the open borders, the Texas super corridor & the North American Union. Then there is Ron's clarion call for the US gov to return to the Constitution as the supreme law of the USA. So far the others are very silent on these critical topics. I have not heard a peep from them about going back to the US Constitution, for openers.

These issues may be more important than even the RE legalization of hemp & cannabis. Especially the repeal of the income tax amendment (never ratified in the proper time by the States), the abolition of the "Fed" & it's Gestapo, the IRS, & chucking the "Fed's" fiat currency. Has any one besides Ron called for a return to the gold standard so our near worthless money is not printed out of "thin air" with NO backing whatsoever? Didn't think so.

Do you know how dangerous fractional reserve banking is to our nation's economy? Have you heard Ron speak about the hidden inflation tax caused by fiat money being over printed, which is the source of inflation? That is one reason the oil co's have lied about & manipulated the price of oil. They need to make up for what inflation has cost them.

(Fractional reserve banking: Steven Yates -- Our Money System - The Biggest Swindle in History! )

Also on the US monetary system, the "Fed" & IRS, check out the late Aaron Russo's "From Freedom To Fascism". Aaron's site also endorses Ron Paul, if I am not mistaken.

(Aaron's site)

America: Freedom to Fascism

(Link from Aaron's site)
Republic Magazine - Home

Ron Paul has addressed these. But I have not heard much on these subjects from the others. Also would any of the others go for hemp farming? Regarding cannabis & hemp, Ron says the States should decide. He also says the raids on the Cali medical cannabis dispensaries is UN Constitutional.

There is more to Ron Paul than only medical cannabis. MJ & hemp are only the tip of the Ron Paul "ice burg". He wants to reduce the size & scope of the US gov. Does Obama or any of the others talk like that?

RP is a peaceful revolutionary regarding turning the US around. Do any of the other candidates have the voting record to back up their talk? Plus he does not take money from PACs or special interests. A candidate may be ideal on one or two issues, like medical MJ, but there are many other issues that are of paramount importance. Ron hits a home run on medical MJ but also knocks the ball out the park on the other topics I list.

What other candidate can that be said about?

I don't care if a Black or a woman or a Black woman is running. If he or she had Ron's platform they would get my vote in a heartbeat!!

SamFox

Note: I put the "Fed" in quotes because it is not a legal Federal, US agency. It is owned by private bankers.

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I make no claims about the myths/facts concerning the regular use of marijuana. I personally find it to be stimulating to occasionally smoke it.

I am careful to smoke in private. When I do so, I do not drive or operate heavy machinery. I do not do it in front of children. I do not force others to assume responsibility, or face any consequences of my choice to smoke marijuana.

The use of any substance, legal or otherwise, does not change the fact that it should be used knowledgably, and responsibly.

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There are three reasons why US Government prohibit marijuana....

Reason One: Marijuana has THC-active substance, which could start a long side-effect, such as severe depression, severe mood swing, and a possible migraine. Government has been researching this marijuana for a century-plus, and it has been known as Prohibition Drug of 1906 Act, which classifies schedule A, schedule B, and schedule C drugs. Only the federal government makes those decision. No states can override the federal drug laws. In recent years, states that joins the Marijuana Legalization Protest usually allowed Federal Bureau of Investigation to round up these illegal drug users and put them in federal prison. Only 35% of those offenders who were arrested by FBI are from California, thus California don't really have safety net on their residents, thus been prosecuted and jailed for more than 10 years.

Reason Two: States attempted to decriminalized these marijuana has been overridden by the federal government, thus threatened voters to be arrested if they gave voters the current politician their retaining seat who supported legalizing marijuana. There's one example that one state put up a marijuana referendum and overwhelming rejected because of the fear of federal government will perform a massive crackdown on those illegals who obtains those marijuana. That is why we were forced to vote Republican and Democrats who supports illegalizing marijuana.

Reason Three: We have voted the same political party for 200+ years, and we have never allowed Green Party, Independent Party, Right to Life Party, etc. their presidential, congressional, governor seats because Democrat and Republican have threatened us to be arrested if we gave these candidate the victory. We have never given a chance to give victory to a Green Party or Independent Party in the national election, but we are stuck with Democrat and Republican over and over. It did indeed prevent us from voicing opinion about other candidate. If we voted other candidate from a different party and we legalized marijuana, we could be out of control. That is why marijuana is illegal to keep voters from gaining these huge massive profits. Also, I forgot to mention that giant companies always endorsed either Democrat and/or Republican to make sure Marijuana stays illegal so they can kill these people, and allow the benefits of death tax to the federal government.

If Marijuana is legal, but it will not benefit the government's pocket through death tax. Federal Government always make sure Marijauna stays illegal so they can still collect death taxes.

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There is no chance for leglization as long as the Religious Right holds power in the U.S. The drug war is a religious war, the last Inquistion. For the fundamentalists, drugs are not chemicals that simply intoxicate people: They are demons that enslave the soul. The fundmentalists distinguish the illegal drugs from alcohol and tobacco by saying that the illegal drugs--in particular marijuana--are mind altering substances.

And ain't it SOooo ironic!

The very FIRST MIRACLE that Jesus Christ performed
was the transformation of water into WINE
at the insistence of his mother during a wedding feast.

The Son of God made an INEBRIANT, an INTOXICANT
as the first show of his miraculous power.
(and hoss, you can bet it was the very finest, most righteous wine
in existence, with undoubtably a very healthy alcohol content)

PUNISHEMENT MUST BE IMPOSED! GOD DEMANDS NOTHING LESS!

Yes. YES! I absoluterly agree.

Take all the fundy whackos who dare call a beautiful creation
of God - the cannabis plant - "a DEVILWEED"
and stone 'em!
(no not THAT kind of stoning, but rather the Biblical one
with rocks and dirt clods and such)

Yep.
ANY religionists who audaciously imply that Satan the Devil
was a Co-Creator with God should be charged with BLASPHEMY
and SEVERELY PUNISHED!

God created ALL the herbs in the Plant Kingdom
and called them good and said:
"Behold, I give you every herb (to use)"...
and yet these self-righteous religious hypocrites and BLASPHEMERS
would power grab and make that herb created by God ILLEGAL
and have you thrown in a cage like a dangerous ANIMAL
for growing a plant of God and using it with all due reverence...
Why,
such G-D Morons should be publicly flogged
or
as Gregg Allman would put it:
"Tied To The Whupping Post"

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I have noticed another very important reason to decriminalize MJ: The Forfeiture Laws have created an environment of distrust that trashes the neighborliness that I used to know as a kid. If my home, car, etc. can be confiscated because I have a roach in the ashtray, I am waaaay less likely to invite a neighbor to drop in for a visit. They just might have judgments about my use of MJ and call the police -- who might have nothing safer or more profitable to do than take my stuff....

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nm

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genesis 1 vrs 11&12 cannabis/hemp/marijuana...is/are seed yielding herbs
and have been blessed and called good by GOD
those who call cannabis/hemp evil are hypocrits and blaspheme their god
or the bible and the whole religion surrounding it are a lie
in my opinion it cannot be both ways
not sure about anybody else but i am tired of lies,,and double talk and double standards

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"If the excessive profits for marijuana sales were ended through legalization..."

I understand that the author is trying to say that removing the profit incentive from sales of marijuana would decrease the drug's attraction for teens. However it is naive to think that legalizing marijuana would end the excessive profits made from it's sale. the profits would simply be given to Big Business instead of individual entrepreneurs. Decriminalizing marijuana requires much more societal change than simply passing a bill and pretending that then everything will be better for black and hispanic kids in the US.

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That's right. Think of what a wonderful world it would be if all people were encouraged to smoke pot for a year or so in their early/mid 20's. A world with calmer and more accepting people could go a long way...
Think about it. A new way to peace?

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Legalization of marijuana is a double edged sword. It's understandble that people should have the choice to use the drug, much like tobaco or alcohol, but too much use of marijuana can have harmful effects to society. We don't want society to become completly "chill."

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Every point in this article was right on. It's crazy that we still deal with this issue on a daily basis when while waiting for this process to occur taxation of pot could be helping improve quality of governmental programs to get real harmful drugs off the streets & away from kids. I agree with the other gentleman about wanting proof of someone who has died from marijuana related circumstances when every day in the news people are dying in alcohol & hard drug related incidences. I say keep up the fight for legalization if only to prove that the things that are bad for us that are legal need to be more closely scrutinized even than those that are illegal.

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The morons (and assholes) claiming pot smoking doesn't cause cancer are every bit as moronic and wrong and in some cases, duplicitous as those who claimed cigarette smoking was "good" and "healthy" for you throughout the 20th century.

Big tobacco is behind the legalization of pot... do the math and follow the blood money.

As far as I'm concerned, smoke it if you got it; you'll be dead a lot quicker and the human race will be a lot smarter. Just don't dare to take me or mine or anyone else with you; then we're going to have a problem with your "freedom" to murder.

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When I first started my wayward trip into altering my consciousness, pot was the most logical drug to take because, after all, it was non-addicting and much less toxic than alcohol and nicotine. However, because of perhaps a pre-disposition towards addiction as well as an undiagnosed mental disorder, pot became something I had to have. I was always high, smoked all day, stole from my folks to cop a nickle bag and was totally unwilling to see how my initial impulse to lead an alternative lifestyle and stick it to the squares had turned into a full blown addiction.
I want to make it clear that my experience has been just that-my experience. I'm aware there are many users of marijuana that haven't and won't experience the deleterious effects that I have. I don't want to come off as a former drug addict who's now on a secular evangelical crusade to save todays' youth from the evils of the wicked weed. I do want to state how important it is when discussing this that one neither has to be totally for or totally against the issue of legalization. I think our society is still ruled from its puritanical roots and most of the deviancy that's created is a reaction to this suppresion of our basic desires. If we began to move towards a more tolerant reality, than the efficacy of legalizing marijuana usage would become apparent. What might also become apparent is the need to have rehabilitation on demand instead of an overcrowded prison system which is draining the very resources we need to create such a system.
Anyway, I've been in recovery from active addiction for 4 years and change and would love to hear what you folks think about this.

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The Partnership for a Drug Free America is majority funded by the Alcohol, Tobacco and Prescription Drug Industries. Why? Because they would have to compete with God's Green Herb and they know from the hippie 60's that when given a choice, most people smoke God's Green Herb and only use alcohol moderately instead of getting drunk. The Green Herb is so much better to smoke than tobacco there is no question Big Tobacco has never supported pot smokers right to smoke The Green Herb.
Most important of all, marijuana can not be patented. It is the safest therapeutic drug available and a major competitive threat to pills that kill while helping at best only 25% of the people who take pills. That is why doctors prescribe variations of different drugs because each version's efficacy is limited to so few people. Marijuana never killed anyone in all of recorded history. Aspirin kills 100 or more a year. There is no evil to God's Green Herb that God gave man twice in the 6 days of creation and Noah was specially given The Green Herb after the Flood. Linen is mentioned over 100 times in the Bible. Hemp makes the best linen and hemp is what was used by Jesus for his clothing. But today historians try to tell us the linen is made solely from flax. Wrong. Revisionist history. The Mummies all have traces of hashish in them. The Kings and Pharos were all stoners.
IM
Beleteshazzar

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what if everyone stood up to the bullshit and started smoking it blatantly and freely in public. i'm serious about this, if you believe in your heart that it's not wrong, then why not? they cant arrest everyone. if millions of people started smoking without fear then theres nothing the fascist pigs could do about it. power to the people

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