The Tie of M to Anything?

One of the many things that have been politicized for awhile is the legalization of marijuana coupled with the current drug war issue.  Actually, there does not seem to be much issue here... we have been TOLD it (marijuana) is bad and that it (marijuana) will continue to be illegal.  Yet more and more states find the question on the ballot and more often than not medical marijuana is finding favor with the voters.

The big scary that has been put out there, over and over, is that M leads to other harsher drugs.  While that was debunked long ago it remains one of the large bugaboos perpetually paraded out to warn us of M's legalization in any way.

ANNUAL AMERICAN DEATHS CAUSED BY DRUGS

TOBACCO - 400,000

ALCOHOL - 100,000

ALL LEGAL DRUGS - 20,000

ALL ILLEGAL DRUGS - 15,000

CAFFEINE - 2,000

ASPIRIN - 500

MARIJUANA - 0

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Source: United States government...

National Institute on Drug Abuse,

Bureau of Mortality Statistics

The more we study (to death) M's action and potential the clearer it is that there must have been some other motivation to the banning of M.  I don't now recall exactly where I saw a presentation on the political history of M in America but I recall the essence of the presentation.  It was that the ban was instituted to control "certain" people in the population and to arrest with impunity those the authorities "needed" a reason to arrest where no other reason existed.  Think racial over & under tones.

For another take on all this:

Legalizing Marijuana

Villification

A recent FB exchange after I posted the above:

• Jeffrey Craig Simon Almost ALL of the media is owned by a few mega-huge corporations. They of course have a "right" bias. The GOP strategy is to tell a lie, then repeat it over and over and over again, until people begin to think it must be true....but it is still a lie. Tons of research shows the media has a center to right bias.
  

  Monday at 12:10pm ·
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  Cleat Edmonson Yes!! That's it exactly. It just gets harder to talk to the brainwashed bunch when they repeat this particular lie over and over again.
  

  Monday at 4:40pm ·
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  Michael Dodd You guys really think that the GOP is despicable don't you? Does that mean that individual Republicans are despicable or just ignorant fools?
  

  18 hours ago ·
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  Cleat Edmonson It means there is a trade off that we are no longer willing to ignore. Your straw argument is not real... there are always more than two choices. And, yes, for the most part what the "party" has become IS despicable, Mike, since there is no longer a willingness to work with or actually negotiate with others. That's pretty much why I can no longer be a Republican.
  

  17 hours ago ·
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  Michael Dodd
  

  What I am saying is that I am offended by your lumping most Republicans together (and I certainly am a Republican) as a brainwashed bunch (your words). Whatever, to mention a few things that the "liberal media" didn't bother to cover much, was Obama's ties with Ayers and Wright and Alinsky's book. Is that all a bunch of lies? You should be specific when you refer to the lies. Remember what Wittgenstein always said: "examples, we need examples." When you say that the GOP won't negotiate with the Democrat party, you should, if possible, give the point of view of the GOP, as certainly the GOP should do when giving their opponents point of view. I grant you that my argument was a straw man, something Obama uses quite frequently. You may despise George Bush but at least he gave his political opponents credit for honestly disagreeing with him, rather than do as Obama always does, accuse his opponents of playing politics when they don't agree with him, always putting hiimself in the position of the righteous one, the serious one. I believe it can be difficult to talk about politics; passions run high, and there is good reason for that. We disagree about some really important things: what the nature and aims of our country should be, how government should function, whether liberty or security is more important, or how we can balance those two ideas. I don't think Democrats or liberals or progressives are despicable by nature. I've known you for more than 30 years now, and have always esteemed you for quite a few reasons. You surprise me by your political views but I know you can do a lot better than sound so intemperate. 
  15 hours ago ·
  
  
  
  

   

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    Cleat Edmonson
    

    Mike, so much of what you say is untrue!! It is hard to start... especially in this venue. Your take on Obama is seriously flawed. It has consistently been the Repub's who have twisted the who did what to whom in the current wranglings. Obama often cites the differences and acknowledges those differences saying that the Repub's need to offer a solution not simply attack an offered plan or, worse, an offered compromise. GWB and his crowd turned evil... but the worst of the offenders are Tea Party thugs. And, yes, I do say evil. The agenda there is pathetically linked to that of a libertarian (that would be antithetical to traditional republican values) run Koch brothers agenda. The most distorted view of how the country should run is from the likes of the Fox newsers and I have been pummeled into an intolerant view of how much of that sort of nonsense I can listen to. Remember, here we started with Noam Chomsky's exposure of the myth of the liberal media. Really?? It has been demonstrated over and over that the media is not particularly liberal. It is equally demonstrable that the media IS tilted to the right. Republicans aren't despicable individually... but, republican commentators are projecting despicable values and the tea party group are not part of any republican party I can be part of. You are correct that we have known each other for a long time and I am saddened that you are offended by what I think. I will save examples for the blog when I restart it in a bit.
    
    

    So, here is where the rubber meets the road.  Examples: is it examples of right leaning media that is called for?  Is it examples of Republican lies that are in need of examples?

    
    

    From where I sit it is a problem of where to start... there are so many examples of both.  Just yesterday the House Speaker, John Boehner (R), called on the President to solve the dead lock in Congress!!  Can we say, "It is not within the powers of the office of President to do that"??  At every opportunity Senator Mitch McConnell (R) has said that there cannot be a win for anything that the President has asked for from the Legislative branch.  Generally deflecting from their inactivity to pronounce any problem an Obama problem.  This is not just politics.  More later.

Uncorrupting the System

Koch brothers $$$ behind The Pledge

In pondering the question of the Grover Norquist problem I have been getting closer to seeing the bullying as something that is larger than the money he represents.  I mean, he IS all about wielding that wad of cash to “Primary” those running for elected positions.  As he says, he doesn’t directly threaten them (the politicians), he just notes that if those running either don’t sign on to his pledge or go against what his pledge stands for he will carry the message to the voter so that the voter may act.  He said something like this on CBS's 60 Minutes with a smirk on his face and his ego stuck way out in front of the camera.

The first problem is I don’t like bullies.  The second problem is that Norquist represents everything bad that money has done to our political system.  The idea that one person can so thoroughly subvert the system is the opposite of what democracy is and what it stands for.  By extension, it means also that we (this country) no longer have the moral high ground to tell other countries about democracy.  This also means that old boy Grover has access to OUR representatives that normal people do not have.  That he can threaten is a large problem and will not, has refused to, release our elected officials when they have asked him to release them.  To say that, forever, there is no need to raise revenues through taxes is absurd on its face.  Some of these pledges date back to the early 1990’s!!  Over twenty years have come and gone and to imply that nothing has changed… simply stupid.

It hit me recently that what is needed is a short cut to release our politicians from this absurd burden of enforcement by Americans for Prosperity and Grover Norquist.  It’s simple, really, we declare victory and go home… well not exactly.  What The Grover and his ego holds over each politician is money.  He tells them that if they veer from the pledge in even the slightest degree his organization will “Primary” the politician.  It is the ability to use his hidden money to put up opposing candidates of the same party against the incumbent representative.  Here I mean to say that the money is hidden because Norquist’s organization does not have to disclose where the funding comes from!!  That’s right, there is NO disclosure.  The threat would be meaningless if we could GET THE MONEY OUT OF POLITICS.

There is a massive movement afoot to have ONLY publicly funded elections.  If that becomes law and there are penalties, felony conviction assured, for any who either give or take, money or trade outside of the public funding then Norquist goes poof and disappears.

In the meantime here is a release for any who have signed onto and come to regret that decision to join the Norquist pledge:

Pledge for the American Process

Date: ________________

I, ______________, have determined of my own cognizance that the group Americans for Prosperity and specifically Grover Norquist has misled the country through its pledge to accept no present or future tax increases.  This pledge has crippled the political process and debased the people elected to represent their constituency.  As such, I, ________________, do hereby renounce and rescind my former pledge to the Americans for Prosperity.  As a free agent in the process of democracy I now re-pledge my fealty to my constituents and my country.  I agree to pursue the best interests of the United States of America and to listen to and work for those individuals who elected me.

Signed: ______________________

With a Sense of Protest:

This linked story is a straightforward indication of a low information person in a position of authority.  A lot of shame goes to those who hired Lt. Pike (& his ilk) to be anywhere near the young people of this nation.

Lt. Pike gets the A$$hole of the Year Award

Seriously, the U C Davis police force deals with students every day and THIS is what they came up with?  Lt. Pike should resign and await his criminal prosecution and civil claims.  Beyond stupid.

Flavor of the Month & Thought of the Century.

If you look at the field of Republican Candidates the latest to rise in the polls (sort of) is Newt Gingrich.  Here's a little story about this guy and his rather bizarre past (never have liked him much):

Newt as a wasteland.

Beyond that there is this thought; a very dangerous thought.  What may be needed to dig us out of the political morass we are in is a Constitutional Convention (CC).  It is something that is allowed (even called for in some circumstances) to correct large ills should our system ever encounter problems it cannot fix otherwise.  I submit that we may well be at that juncture now.

Before we call for this action we need to understand that once called for the sky is the limit on what can happen.  That is, there may well be multiple ways in which this process can be manipulated and corrupted just as the current system has been.  We might well need a form of internet voting for the CC so that we have a direct voice in this process.  This following TED talk is an example of what is possible that cannot be tampered with:

eVoting without Fraud

We need this to change the process and fix a few things that are seriously broken. A CC can then take up as many suggestions as we can create and tear down the problems to be rebuilt as we wish.

Here are some thoughts on what we can change:

1.  Corporations are not people.  A person is a Natural Person and can never be a corporation or other than a Natural Person.

2.  All elections are publicly financed, period.  Any contributor or recipient stepping outside of this system (by contribution of either cash or trade) is subject to arrest for a Felony and can be jailed (mandatory) for long periods of time in regular (not special) prisons.

3.  All politicians are subject to recall at anytime after their third (or sixth or ninth) month in office.

4.  There would be a National Initiative process available once a year (or X years) and that wording for that initiative must undergo scrutiny by a select panel that must adhere to strict rules for clear understandability and no intent to subvert the intent of the initiative.  The number of signatures required to have an initiative on the ballot must be X% of all eligible voters on a State by State basis.

5.  Reinstate Glass/Steagall and, perhaps, other regulations (broadcast Fairness Doctrine comes to mind) as is deemed helpful in keeping factual content in our news sources.

6.  There are no corporations that are too big to fail.  A death penalty for corporations can be imposed through some legal proceeding that reviews pollution, fraud and other offenses.  Officers of corporations have only limited immunity from prosecution for their acts and the acts of companies they run.

7.  Make a Constitutional Convention mandatory every 30 or 50 years. 

The list can be very lengthy but not all ideas would probably pass.  In fact. I have lots and lots of ideas on what might be included but by now you get the idea.  Pick the things that are broken right now and save others for later via the regular but fixed process. 

The conversation needs to be national in scope and there needs to be a time limit on how long it would go on before items would be brought to a vote (via internet) of the People (not by Representatives).  Get the money out of politics and get the lobbyists out of the process.

Occupy the City Council

In Portland, Oregon and across the river in Vancouver, Washington occupiers have noticed something.  The city governments have contracts with Wells Fargo bank for services.  That is, both cities store their (our) money in the bank and write checks every day from those accounts.

The light has gone on and the protesters have begun a move to demand that governments put the money with regional banks and credit unions.  This massive control, because of the way the banking world works and is intertwined, would not completely keep the money out of the banks BUT it would keep it all on a short leash.  It would also show the cities how much control they have on and over the bank's policies.

In pondering this idea I have to admit that there IS a huge attraction to it.  Occupy the City Councils and demand monetary change that is controlled locally.  I guess I am okay with that.

Use Your Imagination

So, imagine your 84 year old mother or grandmother was supportive of the Occupy Movement and decided to visit the closest Park;

Seattle woman, 84, is pepper sprayed.

Joining the Occupy Movement should not be putting your life or health on the line but it is until the Occupy Movement takes down the Oligarchy and gets fair treatment by the system.

Get the money out of politics.  Get the lobbyists out of Washington.  Get the justice system back to non-activist judges.  Take down the barriers to economic fairness.