The things in my head go 'round and 'round

I got asked this question the other day. By someone older than I. And it made me happy, that this person was going to finally vote, and they didn’t want to screw it up.

November 4th is Election Day. It is a Tuesday. Check for when your polls open, and get out and vote. Please. I am asking nicely, because there are many important issues out there.

The Presidency is one of those important issues.

In Michigan they are voting on either adopting a Medical Marijuana law, along with a stem cell law. Both very important issues.

That you need to vote on. At this point it doesn’t matter which side you are on, just vote. Please.

I am asking nicely again.

Namaste.

Read this article from the Norml Blog, and thought you might like it as well?

VP Candidate Courts “Joe Six Pack,” But Says “Joe Doobie” Should Be In Jail

October 3rd, 2008 By: Paul Armentano, NORML Deputy Director

Last night’s Vice Presidential debate featured nary a word about drug policy, but did show — inadvertently — how American culture promotes booze while simultaneously stigmatizing cannabis.

In what was no doubt a deliberate effort to appeal to so-called “Middle-America, working-class voters,” Republican Vice Presidential candidate Sarah Palin affectionately invoked the term “Joe Six Pack” — a phrase that despite its literal connotation (The typical American is an alcoholic) is nevertheless championed in the American lexicon.

Now just imagine for a moment that instead of proactively reaching out to “Joe Six Pack,” Governor Palin instead invoked the phrase “Joe Doobie” in a similarly veiled attempt to court those millions of Americans who use cannabis responsibly (a voting block that arguably dwarfs the number of Americans who put away a six pack of beer each evening).

Of course, I don’t have to tell you what would have happened. We already know. Ms. Palin’s political aspirations would have been torpedoed faster than you can say “Anheuser-Busch.” Yet there’s not a political commentator, lawmaker, drug educator, DARE officer, or MADD spokesperson out there who has any objection to the implication that America’s working class are a bunch of simple-minded boozers.

The hypocrisy is enough to drive me to drink.

Flint, Michigan passed a Medical Marijuana Law back in 2007. This is an article taken from the Flint Journal.

“The city of Flint, MI, voted to allow patients in need to have access to medical marijuana. The Saginaw News reported on March 4, 2007 (“Flint Pot Vote Raises Awareness”) that “By a 1,777-1,101 vote, Flint became the fifth Michigan city to approve legally puffing pot for health reasons. Use remains illegal under state and federal law. Officials reminded Flint residents not to start loading up their hookah pipes — or face the consequences. Other Michigan cities that have approved medical pot-use measures are Ann Arbor, Detroit, Ferndale and Traverse City. Lansing is the next target, says NORML, a pro-marijuana outfit, and the goal is to get a medical dope initiative on the statewide ballot. Medical marijuana use is legal in 11 states.”

According to the News, “Whether marijuana is safer or a more effective painkiller than, say, OxyContin is debatable, but some users think so. Cancer patients who have tried it say pot works best at inducing appetite. It has beneficial uses, and we’re sympathetic to those who use it legally. The biggest fear coming from law enforcement circles is that legalized medical marijuana use could lead to additional abuse and wider recreational use. Yet the abuse of prescription drugs, the International Narcotics Control Board said last week, is about to exceed the use of “practically all illicit drugs with the exception of cannibis.” The board, an offshoot of the United Nations, said the number of Americans abusing prescription drugs nearly doubled between 1992 and 2003, to 15.1 million from 7.8 million people.”

The News noted that “A free and compassionate society ought to understand common sense trumps perceptions of a drug that may be less dangerous than prescriptions. It’s time to take a deep breath — inhale — and place sick people ahead of ideology. The Flint vote and the others before it indicate that more people realize marijuana, like other drugs used properly, is not always evil.”

I find this pretty interesting. Any comments?

Namaste.