Arizona Massacre: The New Reefer Madness



What is it with everyone’s obsession to try to find someone or something to blame for the Tucson shootout other than the evil nutcase himself, Jared Loughner?

Sure there are plenty of would have, could have, should have’s, but excuse the cliché, hindsight is always 20-20.

Now, in part due to Barack Obama’s wonderful address, the blame is sliding away from feeble attempts in the media to pin the murders on conservatives and talk radio. Now it’s time for the conservatives to play the blame game along with the believers in the “drug free America” crows to take their stab at it.

Marijuana caused Loughner to go nuts and kill. Common sense alone would tell a right minded person, this is preposterous. If Marijuana were capable of causing such an extreme degree of drug induced psychosis there would be many more episodes of pot smokers gone berzerko and blasting innocent citizens.

It’s probably not too surprising that folks who engage in dangerous anti-social behavior would smoke weed. The way they see the world laws have no meaning so if society admonishes against pot smoking, it must be pretty cool to puff.

Just as there is a rush to create new gun laws, now there’s some who want to create new drug/gun laws. Gun owners should have to take drug tests to own a firearm and if one is convicted of drug possession, that person would forfeit his right to own guns. Okay, we probably don’t want folks stoned out of their mind carrying guns – but ditto for those who had a bad day at the office, drank a few beers, or had a bad argument with the wife.

The issue is mental illness and our society is doing a terrible job dealing with such unfortunate people.

By the 21st century, it’s hard to believe that so many still seek to continue marijuana possession. There’s nothing Washington, DC or in statehouses around the country can do that will keep people from smoking pot. The consequences of illegal marijuana are obvious. The horrors along our southern border and below it have much to do with the value of the cash crop marijuana represents and the huge profits satisfying its high demand in US society.

Legalize marijuana, tax it, put the tax money toward bailing out the debt and perhaps also helping to finance medical reform. Doing so would dry up the black market. If the black market were eliminated, perhaps laws could be enacted that would make it illegal for the mentally ill with certain conditions to purchase marijuana – such could be recorded on their driver’s license or suitable ID required to buy marijuana and alcohol.

Marijuana reform requires a little bit of bold thinking out of the box and one hell of a lot of common sense. In the meantime, what went wrong with Jared Loughner will become clearer for all to see. The left will never let a good crisis go to waist. Everything that appears to threaten public safety becomes another excuse to enact more laws to micromanage everything, and we must always look for boogy men beside the real culprits.

The blame game is as insane.


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More Marijuana Madness

Need more reasons to legalize marijuana? Here are two articles that show the insanity of what’s going on right now for financial reasons.

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/07/03/strapped-police-turn-marijuana-busts-cash/

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2010/07/in-search-of-cash-long-beach-looks-to-tax-marijuana.html


How fascinating it is that the California budget crisis has brought the issue of marijuana legalization to the forefront. In one case, we see an article from Fox News where the police are conducting more pot busts to gain Federal funds. We then see an article from the Los Angeles Times where the California community of Long Beach seeks to tax marijuana to raise funds. Meanwhile, in recent weeks, we’ve seen the issue of illegal immigration and the lawlessness along the Arizona border bring to light the lawlessness the drug trade has created south of the border in Mexico and how that drug activity is spilling into the southwestern United States as smugglers illegally cross the border to places where the drug trade has set up shop in our country. When we think of alcohol prohibition we see images of Al Capone, the murderous organized crime in Chicago, where the well-meaning intent to save society from a desired substance that can be harmful created dangerous and highly destructive side consequences. The parallels to the lawlessness in the southwest are overwhelming. Likewise, on any given night in many major cities, odds are better than not a young black man will die the victim of drug related shootings. While many of these murders involve trafficking cocaine and heroin, they also point to the high stakes game the so-called drug war has created, a war that has only intensified since such talk began decades ago.

We are not going to argue that marijuana is harmless. It’s is. Marijuana is an intoxicant which can impair judgment and compulsive users can lead pretty worthless lives or subject themselves to numerous health problems as the inhalation of a thick gooey substance which marijuana smoke produces causes many of the same adverse effects as tobacco. However, from the late 60’s forward, marijuana smoking has become a part of middle class American life. How many people went to college in the 1970’s and didn’t smoke pot for at least a short period of time?

Alcohol is legal. Marijuana is not. Alcohol causes huge medical, personal, and societal problems. Who wouldn’t rather be around someone who smoked too much pot as opposed to a person who consumed too much alcohol?

With marijuana being illegal, those who desire a “buzz” are forced into dealing with the black market, the drug trade. In such a world, the drug dealers are highly motivated if they are more than just the casual pot dealer to sell drugs like heroin, crack, and cocaine that are much easier to smuggle and produce higher profits.

The notion that marijuana is a gateway drug, that somehow it has some kind of mysterious property that makes users crave harder drugs is bunk. The vast majority of pot smokers never take another intoxicating substance other than possibly alcohol. The argument is as silly as drinking water leads to alcoholism. If anything, the doom and gloom propaganda itself encourages exploration of more dangerous drugs. If folks constantly see ads and announcements that promote the notion, marijuana is a killer weed and in their personal experience, they see folks smoking pot appear to suffer no ill effects, then why should they believe similar pronouncements about the horrible drugs that almost certainly cause harm right from the first dose?

Marijuana legalization is something that surely should have happened at least 30 years ago yet is society any closer to doing so today?

Sure, some states have legalized marijuana for medical use. Others have decried that enforcement against those who possess only enough for personal consumption will not be arrested, but there seems to be no heart to legalize the drug, set up a process for its sale, and to tax it.

A movement is afoot in California to legalize marijuana as a result of the state’s severe financial difficulties. Desperate times result in desperate measures. This is not the right motive for doing the right thing. However, states can do what they chose, as long as marijuana remains prohibited by the Federal Government, problems will persist. Like so many other issues, our elected officials exhibit pure cowardice in dealing with a controversial issue. There are plenty of special interest groups that will continue to stir up the sentiment against taking the bold step to do something right.

Legalize marijuana and get the high volume drug out of the black market and into the consumer market. How much will that reduce the amount of drug traffic and perhaps inhibit demand for harder drugs. Besides that, law enforcement and health authorities could then devote full energy to dealing with serious drug addiction.

It’s long past time for Americans to stop being hypocritical on this issue and support the right decision. The right decision is legalization of marijuana setting up a regulated, taxable market for its sale.

Maryland Legislature to Consider Medical Marijuana

It’s time for Maryland to make the important first step and remove legal restrictions against the medical sale and use of marijuana. Legislation was introduced Tuesday to finally accomplish this much overdue action that would make Maryland the 15th state to do so.

Delegate Dan Morhaim (Dem. Baltimore County), an emergency room physician and Senator David Brinkley (Rep. Frederick County) introduced the bills in their respective bodies to overturn current prohibitions.

While this legislation does not end the absurd prohibition against marijuana for regular adult consumption where it could be licensed, sold, and taxed like alcohol, this is a meaningful first step that can provide comfort and ease pain for those who are suffering from chronic conditions for which current drugs are harmful or not effective.

We encourage Maryland do the right thing and take the first step toward legalizing marijuana. This action is long overdue.

Cops Kick Butt in Rehobeth, Delaware

At a time when supposedly municipal funds are stretched thin and surely there are other problems worthy of law enforcements effort, it's disturbing to a story like this one reported by WBAL radio in Baltimore, just another pot bust, no quantities mentioned, in Rehobeth, Delaware's most popular beach resort. Question, just how far away from where this bust took place was the nearest liquor store?

Here's the story: http://wbal.com/apps/news/templates/story.aspx?articleid=23944&zoneid=24&utm_source=rss

A-Fraud?

WHOA! Stop the presses. Alex Rodriguez is coming forward not only acknowledging that he used performance enhancers in 2003, but also for the two previous seasons, 2001 and 2002. Given the dope drenched environment the Texas Rangers were at that time, who could be surprised, but don't we somehow always hope for the best?

Let's hope so, because the alternative is so much worse.

How ironic it is that reports have surfaced that Alex “A-Rod” Rodriguez used steroids according to multiple sources while playing for the Texas Rangers. At the time, it was not explicitly forbidden by Major League Baseball, but some administrations of such drugs is legal. Others are not. It wasn’t that long ago that Major League Baseball saw A-Rod as the night in shining armor who would eventually surpass Barry Bond’s homerun record removing his tarnish from the record books. Now, even if the allegations against “Pay-Rod” or “A-Fraud” are never substantiated, the innuendoes and rumors will persist, and should he reach the mark for that ultimate achievement their will at least be angry and suspicious whispers.

Let’s not get caught up in the legalize and lawyer speak on this issue. Taking steroids except for specific medical treatments where such therapy is appropriate as deemed by an ethical and responsible doctor is absolutely, positively wrong. Using steroids to enhance one’s performance ability in sports is dishonest and immoral. While we might be somewhat sympathetic to someone like Andy Pettite who admitted his use immediately saying he used the drugs to help him overcome an injury more rapidly or Orioles second baseman Brian Roberts who said he did so once as a young player being duped by peer pressure at a time the Orioles locker room was dripping with drugs, these are substances that cause severe long term consequences for users. Have people forgotten the horrible death and long painful struggle former Oakland Raiders star, Lyle Alzado, suffered from thanks to his steroid use?

How ironic it is that this story should surface the same year that Michael Phelps was shown taking a powerful puff of marijuana from a bong.

How does a parent have a sensible discussion on drugs with this insanity going on? Marijuana really isn’t that bad, but don’t use it because if you get caught the legal consequences could ruin your life. Well, you can buy things that are legal, but they can really mess up your body and cause horrible problems in the future. Some might opt for a zero tolerance stance, but any kid with an IQ above 85 can see the hypocrisy of that.

With hypocrisy being one of the key words, and all the insane moralizing, double standards, and mixed messages, the best thing adults can do with young people is just be honest. Talk about the subject as openly and truthfully as possible. It’s hard to talk to kids about the legal hassles of marijuana prohibition when respect for the law is one of the core values parents should stress, but teenaged kids should be trusted to understand that, as we’ve written earlier, just because something is illegal doesn’t make it wrong and likewise not everything that is wrong is illegal. While our political institutions are worthy of respect, the people who serve in those offices are just as human as anybody else and must earn our respect. We’ve had good presidents and bad presidents, and only we as people can change that for the better.

When one thinks these issues through honestly and openly, none of them are that complicated. Getting the political establishment to behave likewise and respond appropriately is a whole different discussion.

YOKEL SOUTH CAROLINA SHERIFF MAY SEEK LEGAL ACTION AGAINST PHELPS

Can it get any more stupid? For whatever reason, Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott sure sounds like a world class ASSHOLE! Either he's trying to make a name for himself, is playing the good old boy macho tough guy "nobody gets away with this in mah town!," or even scarier he feels he is duty bound and this is the right thing for him to do.

In Sheriff Yahoo's own words: "This case is no different than any other case. This one might be a lot easier since we have photographs of someone using drugs and a partial confession. It's a relatively easy case once we can determine where the crime occurred."

Here's the article we almost had to know was coming.

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,487304,00.html

Enough already. Leave the kid alone. Legalize pot. Cut out the f**king hypocrisy and idiotic pompous moralizing. Weed is illegal. Beer is not. Millions if not billions of dollars are wasted, not to mention resources, enforcing this archaic and stupid law. How much of our border problems would be solved if this moronic law were overtuned.

It's the 21st century, America! WAKE UP! While no man is above the law, no law is above the people. If there were ever a time to get our priorities straight it is NOW!!!

More on Michael, One Day Later

American Hypocrisy 101: Olympic Gold and Acapulco Gold

Surely, it will be the fodder of talk shows, editorial pages, sports columns, and water cooler and lunch room chit chat at the office all week, but damnit, the Michael Phelps situation IS NO BIG DEAL!!!

I feel sorry for his mom who has the unfortunate job of being a middle school principal in Baltimore County with its insane “zero tolerance” policy which runs kids out of school for a little reefer as if they were carry a loaded gun or selling heroin or crack cocaine. Of course, this zero tolerance extends to aspirin or Tylenol too and will probably extend to Coke and Pepsi once the nutrition Nazis rule that caffeine and sugar is a dangerous drug too.

Mrs. Phelps sure must have a lot of explaining to do when kids being kids will ask the typical "emperor's new clothes" kind of questions on the subject.

That being said, the hypocrisy of America is on display, BIG TIME!

Be honest, how many people younger than sixty five have not at least tried marijuana and probably smoked it at least socially if they went to college in the late 60’s into the 1980’s and probably since then.

How many people have never taken the wheel of an automobile after consuming too much alcohol?

How many people have not driven at least fifteen miles over the speed limit? Yeah, it was a wide open country road and the speed limit was 30 mph. We hear yah.

How many people have purchased something in Delaware or some other state that doesn’t charge sales tax and not declared it when returning to their high tax states like Maryland and Pennsylvania?

How many people have neglected to do something necessary in servicing their cars or tweaked a little something to avoid pollution controls?

How many people have disposed of something that’s not supposed to be put in the garbage? What did you do with that old CRT monitor when you got a flat screen panel for instance?

Let he who is without sin cast the first stone. It’s unfortunate we live in a culture that is governed more with the ethos of “Don’t get caught” than “Do the right thing” but let’s face it, laws come from our fellow man. They are not the divine orders of a supreme being. Some laws should never be broken, period. Others, well, it’s a personal decision and weighing the consequences of one’s behavior knowing that one’s reputation will be on the line for any illegal digressions.

Face it, most people have certain laws they chose to ignore and have all kinds of rationalizations for breaking the law.

Be clear on something, breaking the law does not mean someone is doing something wrong, just something illegal. But let’s be real, many laws that folks casually disregard are ones that simply are hard to justify being on the books. From 1974 until common sense set in, the national speed limit was 55 mph. People voted for revocation of that law with their right foot on the accelerator. Yes, we should be law-abiding citizens, but our country was founded on articulating the citizen’s duty to deal with government that becomes too intrusive.

Were marijuana legal, no one would be forced to smoke pot. It would probably be subject to the same smoking bans as cigarette smoking. Likewise, driving under the influence would be essentially the same as consuming alcohol. There would be company policies forbidding pot smoking by employees whose jobs involve public or personal safety likewise drug testing would be in place to ensure compliance.

Parents could probably discuss drug use a lot more intelligently removing the hypocritical barrier imposed by drug laws.

How to handle more dangerous drugs is a much tougher issue because there is no question that drugs like cocaine, LSD, and heroin can be extremely dangerous, but suppose marijuana were legal and enforcement efforts were devoted to the less popular but more dangerous drugs, could those efforts eradicate those scourges to society?

This writer has no idea, but thinks it would help some.

In the meantime, Michael Phelps’ stupid decision to party in the midst of folks he didn’t know and trust is causing a silly debate where the answer is clear.

Finally, recognize that this campaign that we have been supporting since “Right Minded Fellow’s” inception is from a voice that is essentially conservative on most issues. First, for us, conservative is an outlook not a dogma. Ultimately, what policies, values, and procedures are most beneficial to mankind should prevail regardless of whether they are liberal, conservative, Christian, or secular. We’ll be quick to concede, it’s mighty hard to argue with the wisdom of the Bible or the U.S. Constitution.

Our conservatism has a strong libertarian slant to it. While the libertarian philosophy is appealing on the surface, many of its assumptions crumble when realizing we live in a society of millions of individuals and simple pragmatism shows pure libertarianism would result in anarchy. That being said, conservatives need to heed more toward their libertarian impulses than holier-than-thou, flag waving, chest-pounding, lock ‘em up dogma, and realize that the legalization of marijuana is also a sensible belief for conservatives too.

Do conservatives not believe in less government intrusion, individual responsibility and freedom? Do conservatives not hate the concept of a “nanny” state? Do we not criticize the government over reaching its boundaries?

If you are conservative and believe the correct answer to those questions is “yes” then legalizing marijuana is also an issue conservatives can and must embrace.

It’s 2009 folks, not 1966. It might have been shocking when the world found out the Rolling Stones and Beatles smoked pot. By the end of the decade, the spicy aroma of marijuana filled college dorms and rock concert arenas around the world.

Michael Phelps is just who he is, and for this writer, this marijuana episode just makes him a little more human. That’s fine with me.

Give Michael a Break!!!!

Reefer Madness (Again)

Here we go again, the tabloid trade does what it does best, find celebrities in compromising situations and exploits them accordingly. The photo doesn’t lie, Olympic hero, all-American Boy, and lovable down-to-earth nerd, Michael Phelps was caught taking a bong hit.

Was Michael Phelps silly to do so?
Of course he was.

Is it a big deal or should this diminish his star power in any way?
Absolutely not.

Will he pay a price for this and maybe lose some very lucrative endorsements?
CERTAINLY

Will there be a lot of moralizing, hand-ringing, and pompous expressions of outrage from everybody from the moral conservatives to the so-called progressive crowd who would prohibit orange juice if its sugar content were too high?
You can bet on it.

Can anything short of the Obama daughters getting caught red-handed smoking pot in the White House ever get the conservation started to legalize marijuana and end all this insanity be realistically expected to happen in the foreseeable future?
Hell no.

Michael Phelps acknowledged that, yes, he was toking on a bong, but he carefully avoided admitting he was smoking marijuana. At very worst, he is guilty of nothing more than being 23 years old and doing what is the unofficial pastime of young people that age, PARTYING. While such behavior can lead to bad things, like driving while intoxicated and various other problems generally associated more with alcohol consumption than pot smoking, let he is without sin, cast the first stone. The Baby Boomer Generation, the shameless originators of the “ME culture,” now in late middle age will surely be seen saying stuff like, “How could this happen?” “How could this kid be so stupid?” and on and on with more nonsense, can most of them deny what they were doing in the late 60’s and through the whole 1970’s?

Most people under the age of 65 who say they have never tried marijuana (much less smoked it for some period of time) are more likely lying than telling the truth.

The correct reaction to the revelation to Michael Phelps being shown doing a bong hit should be, “SO WHAT?”

However, in a larger context, this should be one more illustration that the continued illegal status of marijuana is a joke. That making ordinary folks who enjoy the pleasure of a little buzz criminals is beyond insane. The consequences and costs to society of continued prohibition of marijuana is infinitely more harmful than any of the known harms of smoking pot pose to society. That just as the prohibition against alcohol created all kinds of unintended consequences as normal citizens desiring a drink would find their way to imbue, so does the criminalization of a funny little plant people can grow in all fifty states. The legends of Al Capone and organized crime that created slaughter fields in cities like Chicago are seen today on city street corners across the land. The problem is, in both situations, since the market is run by criminals, the criminals deal in other commodities far more harmful than bathtub gin or a nickel bag of Mary Jane.

Is smoking marajuana a good idea?

Hell no, but we condone lots of things that aren't good ideas that are far worse, and as for guilty pleasures, how much worse can a few puffs of pot be compared to a glass of wine, a big juicy steak, or driving 15 miles over the speed limit, all behaviors that go on every day that only the most self-righteous on certain pursuits would get upset over. Let's be real, a few puffs of marajuana is a lot like a glass of wine. It's relaxing, loosens up the inhibitions, and helps put all the hornet's nest of the day-to-day grind behind.

The big argument the anti-drug crowd tries to use to terrify the public about marijuana use being so deadly dangerous is that smoking pot leads to the use of harder drugs. Let’s be real. Is there anything in one substance that can lead for a craving of another substance? Are folks who enjoy a mild buzz going to want to explore what it is like to be tripping their brains out? NO-NO-NO

There are two reasons the few marijuana users go on to use more dangerous drugs. First is their reaction to the big lie. From the time they were little kids, they have been told repeatedly, marijuana is dangerous and many of the alleged harms are pure lies that by the time they are in middle school will be well aware of being false. Having heard the constant drumbeat of marijuana being so awful and seeing with their own eyes that it is not, then how bad can the things that are really dangerous LSD, heroin, crystal meth, and prescription drugs be any worse? If society lies about marijuana, how can anyone trust that the real dangers are real dangers? Second, given the market place for drugs is an illicit point-of-sale, the same fellow who can sell an ounce of pot can surely also sell a few tabs of acid, a couple grams of cocaine, or a few shots of smack. The profit margin for the dealers is higher for the more dangerous drugs. They are also easier to distribute because the product is more concentrated and harder to detect. It is much more advantageous to sell something that is easier to conceal. Besides that, it is also a benefit to sell a substance that will almost guarantee repeat customers as nobody’s going to go through horrible withdrawals for not getting the marijuana he or she desires, but cocaine and heroin are highly addictive, and for the dealer, it is mighty nice to have customers who are locked in for life. Just ask the tobacco industry. Ooops, their product is very harmful but very legal despite recent measures to protect the rest of us from the stench, irritation, and possible health consequences of their public consumption of their stinking habit.

One thing that is for certain, our society’s current approach to marijuana usage is ridiculous. A program of half-assed enforcement which generally results in a slap-on-the-wrist to most but results in unbelievably harsh incarceration for others particularly where the “three strikes” law comes into play does nothing but waste vitally needed law enforcement resources and makes the whole criminal justice system look arbitrary and ridiculous skewed especially against the less fortunate in society who don’t have the resources to work the legal system.

Legalized and taxed marijuana is the only sane answer. The cost to produce, distribute, and sell marijuana is practically nothing – think of the cost of produce at the grocery store. Surely, marijuana should cost far more than an ounce of oregano (which McCormick sells for a small fortune). Perhaps, realistically, after taxes, suppose a quarter ounce of marijuana cost about the same as a case of the national big brands of beer: Budweiser, Coors, and Miller Lite, somewhere between $15.00 and $20.00. The seller would certainly make a nice profit if their markup took the total cost of goods to around $5.00. The rest would all go to the government.

Imagine how this would redefine the concept of “getting wasted.” While the goal of the increased tax receipts resulting from the legal sale of marijuana should be to reduce the tax burden on the highly overtaxed citizens and businesses of the United States with some set-asides for health care and substance abuse treatment, give the government more money to spend, especially in today’s world, sadly this golden opportunity, a new revenue source to the Feds would be surely wasted. Look no further than Nancy Pelosi’s Democratic Party’s idea of a stimulus package, which is mostly giveaways to all the usual suspects that are the bread and butter of their party’s base.

The real benefit, knowing how irresponsible congress is with any money to spend, would be the ability to reallocate the resources currently dedicated to marijuana prohibition. The courts would be freed of unnecessary trials and prosecution of marijuana cases. Law enforcement could be redirected to illegal immigration, the war on terrorism, and other illicit trade.

Michael Phelps is just as good a fellow as he was before this seemingly embarrassing photo surfaced. His mistake was more not being aware of just how public his every move is than that as a young man in his twenties he might have puffed on a little bit of reefer.

Part of the irony of this situation is that Michael’s mom is a principal in Baltimore County Public Schools that has had an aggressive antidrug policy in effect for thirty years. Any student caught using marijuana is removed from the regular day school program, in essence expelled, for the remainder of the school year. This is the same penalty for being caught with a weapon, assaulting a fellow classmate or a teacher, and stealing or vandalizing school property. It is also the same punishment for a girl who might get caught with pepper spray in her purse for self protection, possessing a nail file or clippers (possible weapon), aspirin, Tylenol, ibuprofen, or any variety of legal over-the-counter cold medicines (some kids might take too much, be allergic, or try to pedal such medicine as something illicit). For a school system in rapid decline as Baltimore County’s schools are in many places and are struggling with their arms tied to teach any kind of values thanks to political correctness and the ACLU, where cussing out teachers generally results in the teacher being held to account for what he or she did to provoke such conduct and nothing happens to the student but an honor student gets expelled for having pepper spray since she works at night and has to cross a dangerous parking lot to get to and from her mode of transportation and place of work, what message does that send to kids who are trying to prepare for their futures? The hypocrisy and mixed signals are overwhelming. Add to that the natural tendencies for adolescent rebellion, its little wonder kids are having so much trouble with their schoolwork, and we continue to see reports of such outrageous behavior by some kids who are driven mad by the process.

The legalization of marijuana is one small but bold step toward making justice in America make more sense. It will surely help not hurt teenage kids as things are usually better dealt with when they can be brought out in the open and not kept a big secret.

Will Michael Phelps’ little boo-boo help bring this issue into sharper focus? Probably not, but we will continue to speak out on this issue as a horrible waste of society’s resources and a horrible abuse of the reach of the long arm of the law.

We love you and support you Michael! Don’t let the bastards get to you!