THE TRUTH ABOUT MARIJUANA - PART SIX - THE LINES IN THE SAND ARE DRAWN :-

[Revised for spelling and clarity of intent, June 28, 8:30PM, 2013.]

Here is an interesting (highly recommended) article to start my "Truth About Marijuana" - Part Six:

Drug War Demonizes People

By Adrian Grenier, Special to CNN

But then, who the hell cares? The lines are now drawn in the sand... no matter what I say, no matter what Adrian Grenier says, no matter what anyone says, everyone knows their own truth about marijuana. A truth based on some 83+ years of propaganda, bogeyman stories of children lured to their death by drug crazed killers and youth led to waste because someone drugged them with a marijuana cigarette and they went on to crave heroin, cocaine and meth, to a life of crime, theft and murder to get their fix. 

Marijuana is the hooker down the street, the promiscuous teacher, the bad guy or girl next door. Bob Dylan sang, the song, Everyone Must Get Stoned and perhaps this means everyone must be enticed to comnit a criminal act, one that you won't be able to escape; one that leads you down the road of destruction and a life of doing nothing, hiding in your basement playing video games, seeking addictive drugs, illicit sex and rock and roll.

Yeah, it all makes sense! Though not really.

Many years ago, when I was in my early 20's, I knew a guy with long straggly hair, thin as a toothpick who was an artist who famously played spoons - yeah, kitchen spoons. And that was his name too, Spoons. He used marijuana, and so did I then.  I have no idea how old the guy was, whether he'd served combat duty in Vietnam, or nearly died of a heart-attack; all I knew is he was unconventional and odd and he used marijuana. He seemed to me to be burned out, and I wondered to myself, will that be me in ten years? It scared me!

What a fucking vicious joke, I finally found out, played on me at the time! That I really believed in that crap back then, that use of marijuana would turn me into a burn-out.

AND this was before DARE ever raised it's snake-like head to haunt children. Or me.

There are not many of us that weren't seriously affected back in the 1970's by the Charles Manson murders, the Beatles and their song, Helter Skelter, allegedly based upon those murders - and those drug crazed murders.

But seriously, in the 30 years I used cannabis, aka marijuana, I worked (full-time), had a life (a good life), saw my grades improve (a lot) in college and saw my life bloom and found myself prospering; not once have I met a marijuana user bent on harming others or who was into the violence such as DARE would have you believe, as our federal government would have you believe.

Not once did I meet a fellow cannabis user that their only motivation was to shy away and waste away in their basement, to drop out of society (though our laws made many do exactly that through criminal arrest records and incarceration). What I saw were creative, intelligent, techno wizards, artists and writers who not only cared about life, but were motivated to do good and their very best.

After the last time I saw Spoons, I moved on with my life and after a sort time, I never gave burn-out a second thought; until I turned 50, that is, eight years ago. It was then my connections to buy cannabis dried up. So I took to drinking rum, vodka and beer, in excess.

Until that time I drank one beer a day, or maybe two, and less than half a joint a day for spiritual and therapeutic reasons.

But at 50, suddenly I watched as the world around me believed that using a plant like cannabis was a sin, but that drinking and prescription drug(s) abuse was okay. Hell, even hanging games for a rush was deemed relatively okay compared to cannabis use. The feds War on Cannabis was turning out to be like no other war. It was a war implementing mind-games, the kind stalkers use.

As we speak, I received a e-mail recently from my state senator, Sen. Kelly Ayotte, espousing a new Senate bill:

The Hoeven-Corker Border Surge Amendment:

 Dear Friends, (she writes),
Yesterday, the Senate voted overwhelmingly to begin debate on a "border surge" amendment to the immigration bill that would finally secure our southern border and stop future waves of illegal immigration.  The tough border security provisions in the Hoeven-Corker amendment double the number of border security agents at the southern border, double the amount of border fencing, and ensure that the best border surveillance and security technology is in place.  The measure also requires full implementation of E-Verify, further discouraging illegal immigration by making it nearly impossible to work in the U.S. illegally.  I encourage you to read the below Myth vs. Fact section, which includes facts about what this amendment does and counters some of the false information you may have heard.

Frankly, I'm damned opposed to building walls along the Mexican border! Why not the Canadian border? Did any of the 9/11 terrorists enter through Mexico? No they did not. Two came through Canada, however, no walls are being pushed along our Canadian border. So what gives?

What gives is, since the early 1930's, we've also been at war with Mexico and those immigrants seeking a better life north of the border. What is coincidental is these Mexicans used and grow cannabis/marijuana. What happened is in 1937 the Marihuana Tax Act outlawed the stuff, to target those Mexicans and attempt to stem the flow of immigrants, and to target Black Jazz musicians who allegedly were seducing and having sex with our White women.

The Marihuana Tax Act obviously failed to stop the flow of "illegal" immigrants from Mexico. Instead it created the body-snatcher's invasion comedy called "Reefer Madness", which ultimately was ruled unconstitutional by the US Supreme Court, and led to President Nixon's infamous, War on Drugs, and (First Lady) Nancy Reagan's, "Just Say NO"... except that it excluded saying NO to alcohol, tobacco and other legal madness.

So now, today, 20,000 addition border agents will soon be added to the 20,000 agents that already patrol the border between Mexico and the US, along with the additional building of several hundreds of miles of more wall, pedestrian walls, as they're called. And for what purpose? The Berlin Wall was a pedestrian wall too, and one of President Reagan's famous quotes was "Tear It Down".

The number one goal of the wall, I surmise is stopping the influx of cannabis from Mexico, the number two goal is stopping the prohibited influx of cannabis from Mexico, and the number three goal is impressing Americans that the federal government is tough on illegal immigration and marijuana from Mexico.

If cannabis were legal in the US, as I believe it should be, Mexican's could legally grow cannabis, export it, and it could become their billion dollar lifeline to increased prosperity and a decline in the illegal immigrants seeking that better life in the US. 

But instead, what do we have today? Troops and walls... the DOJ raiding state medical marijuana dispensaries, national wire-tapping, IRS targeting of special interest tea-party groups, drones spying over America, inequality based on cannabis discrimination, firms and companies that profit from drug testing and, social cleansing, by way of drug tests, primarily for those who prefer cannabis over alcohol ... only cannabis metabolites remain in the body for up to or exceeding 30 days, while alcohol, or even heroin disappear within a day or two. The rational is, cannabis is the gateway drug... and society needs to be cleansed of that gateway population. So where does it end?

It doesn't. The fact is, the truth about marijuana is that it is especially profitable to the US Government, the alcohol and tobacco industry, the penal system and Big Pharma.

So yes, the lines are drawn in the sand. I think people believe mostly I think what they were raised to believe, so yes, to many, marijuana is still the enemy, the destroyer of youth. By that logic, I am indeed the Angel Gabriel...here writing on my blog.

Yes, angels do write blogs these days.


Sp please, if you're one of the over 50% of the American public who believes there's reason to accept cannabis, tell your elected officials you're damn sick of this bullshit and it's time to stop building walls and time to stop spying on Americans and it's time to legalize cannabis so people can realize what peace and freedom are like.

The Truth About Marijuana - do you believe you think you know what it is? I sure hope so, because our future depends on you knowing the truth. At the rate we're going, a nuclear bomb is nothing compared to what the feds can do to stop the legalization of a plant that brings peace and love, and not war.

After 80 years fighting Mexican immigration, do you really believe building walls and militarizing the Mexican border is necessary?

Why didn't they think of this prior to the terrorist attacks of 9/11? Why was a wall never on their list prior to then?

It's because, marijuana comes from Mexico and prior to 9/11 the feds felt they had the American public sufficiently scared of marijuana... until 20 states decided to legalize it in some form or fashion.

Think about it, that's all I ask. Why a wall, now???

THE TRUTH ABOUT MARIJUANA - PART FIVE: PRESIDENT LINCOLN'S: "EMANCIPAPATON PROCLAMATION".

Wow do we as a society have the wrong information to live our lives. I didn't really expect mind control so early in our history but I accept I was wrong on that.

Much about our current society is under assault, subject to mind control.

I was raised reading Science Fiction. Yeah, it was fiction, but it held meaning...

It's more than we can say about the modern day society that has become a reality.

Michael Phelps, the Olympian, who went on to achieve even more Olympic metals, is still scorned due to reputed use of marijuana.  You won't ever see him on a Kellogg's cereal box, not in the near future.

Imagine if sex were illegal without a government issued ID Card, a card you could only have if you were married by a licensed justice of the peace or minister of a church. Imagine if the penalty for this crime was called Fornication. It wasn't so long ago this was actually a crime - yeah hard to believe but it was. Now imagine that you're a man, and you fornicate with a woman. Yeah, I'm sure it felt good, as the man you got a pretty intense rush. And imagine if you got caught?

It was pretty common for the man to either get off completely, or perhaps, based on family connections he might have had a bit more of a problem.

For the woman however it was a serious criminal act. History is full of stories of women branded for life, imprisoned, or even executed. In some countries today this is still true. Not exactly fair is it?

First, sex between adults is very good for a person's health. Second, who is the government to enact laws telling two adults they are forbidden to have sex?

Today, unless you're a voluntary member of some devout faith, it is obviously none of the government's business if you fornicate. But still, this type of crime was actively enforced until relatively recently, into the 1970's.

Fornication laws were in effect until at least the 1960's. Society didn't faze them out until the 1970's. Think about it!

Imagine if possession, use or growing tomatoes was illegal?

It was, back in the 1600's and I'm told Sir Walter Raleigh was arrested for the crime of "growing tomatoes. The law was based on the fact that tomatoes are red. And red is the color the church paints of the devil. Not a far-fetched idea then that tomatoes were morally wrong, illegal and pertained to crime.

Healthy for you, yes, but not around the 1600's.

Then, in 1863, President Lincoln's (in)famous "Emancipation Proclamation":

It Stunned the America!

The history:

In 1863 President Abraham Lincoln pressed and passed the Emancipation Proclamation Act. In essence this freed people with dark skin. President Lincoln was not proud or supportive of human slavery. However the Emancipation Proclamation Act was not entirely a result of President Lincoln's sympathies towards and opposition to Black slavery. Facts be known, Lincoln had plans to send all Blacks back to Africa.

Fact remains he abhorred slavery and despite his plans, felt Black people were human. Hard to imagine that "civil rights for Blacks" wouldn't happen for real until the 1960's. That the idea that skin color changed the person was believed and tolerated. Unfortunately, it still is.

The Emancipation Proclamation was more than an act to free Blacks, it was a military decision, precise and focused. President Lincoln was smart! He may have been a back-woods lawyer but he was very smart! What was one of the things that kept the North from winning the Civil war? It was that the south had an abundant supply of hemp.

For reference purposes, today hemp is known as marijuana. The hemp plant - cannabis sativa or cannabis indica, where the sativa variety was generally the source for hemp fibers, used to make rope and other fabrics.

Look at the poster for the Emancipation Proclamation Act, and what do you see? Under Abrahan Lincoln's image do you see the cannabis leaf impressions? Yes, that is hemp/marijuana. That poster is for real. The truth is that unless Lincoln cut off the South's supply of hemp, the civil war could not be won. Free Blacks, and the workforce the south depended on would be gone. There would be no slaves to tend to the hemp.

The Civil War was won by the North and today we thrive under the principle of an undivided nation. Yet today, still hemp/marijuana/cannabis/ganja plays a role in politics. Farmers are forbidden to grow hemp. Spiritual persons respecting the virtue of cannabis are forbidden use. Persons needing cannabis for health are predominately denied use, despite 19 states with legalized programs allowing use of cannabis.

Over 70% of persons arrested for possession of ganja are Black. Regardless, of skin color, too many people in America suffer from discrimination due to past legal issues regarding cannabis. I myself am a criminal because I was busted in possession of a pipe I found, used at a wedding celebration and found by police in my car after a bogus traffic stop.

It doesn't take much intelligence to realize that continuing prohibition of cannabis/ganja/marijuana/hemp is bad for people and our society. Yet it continues with the federal government unwilling to bend, and staying overall quiet while it wages a war on those states that have legalized cannabis.

The truth the American government would have you believe is that ganja/hemp/marijuana/cannabis is dangerous for the public. The real truth is, consumption of cannabis is dangerous to the American government. Why that is? Well that's politics. Fortunately the US Constitution protects American Citizens from fraudulent politics, or does it?

We'll see... but it requires every American to make their voice heard. Under present tallies, that's 56% in favor of legalizing cannabis for public use like alcohol or tobacco, and over 70% for medicinal use.

Regardless... cannabis is a plant, an herb, and the federal government has no right in prohibiting this herb that has killed or injured anyone. It's not for everyone, but to prohibit it from everyone is plain wrong.

Stop The Hurt. Voice your call to free cannabis. The future of this country depends on your voice.

In 1942, after hemp had been outlawed 5 years before, because of demand for hemp due to WWII, the 4H clubs were asked to grow hemp/marijuana for the war effort. Kids were asked to grow what the federal government called marihuana.

HEMP FOR VICTORY:

THE TRUTH ABOUT MARIJUANA - PART FOUR: HOW TO GROW A CRIMINAL USING CANNABIS

Wow, for those of you out there reading my blog, let me say thank-you and add it's not easy writing a blog! Despite spell-check, which hardly ever works, there's the matter of getting the intended thought across, as intended. It's quite the challenge, there is no doubt about that.

So how do you grow a criminal?

The answer is, it's both easy and complicated.

It's easy in the sense that the majority of criminals in our society become criminals as they have a reason to use cannabis/marijuana. I prefer to call it cannabis, rather than marijuana as, in a recent post I pointed out marijuana is a derogatory term directed against Mexican's and Blacks. Might we call it ganja, as it was commonly referred to prior to the 1930's in this country.

Ganja use, whether for purposes of medicinal use or recreation is within the top three most widely used recreational drugs used in America, the other two being alcohol and tobacco, are totally legal for use. Ganja is not. This is ironic as alcohol and tobacco have no medicinal uses, and when speaking about ganja, there is a third widely popular use for it which is spiritual, of which both alcohol and tobacco have no practical use.

In fact, when speaking about ganja, people use it for medicinal, spiritual and recreational use, and in that order. Aside from a perceived psychological addiction to use of ganja, there isn't the physical addiction noted in use of alcohol or tobacco. Yet despite this fact, ganja is a Schedule One drug by federal standards which dictates it is highly addictive physically and without any medicinal value. In contrast, alcohol and tobacco which actually do not have medicinal value and are highly addictive physically are not Schedule One drugs.

Confusing and perplexing, to say the least. But the fact is, ganja use is as popular as alcohol and tobacco, and that will not change. 19 states recognize cannabis for medicinal use, and two states have now legalized ganja for recreational/spiritual use. The federal government has simply stated states "cannot do that", and CA has seen is dispensaries invaded and threatened many times by federal DEA agents. It's all part of a war staged by the federal government to keep ganja prohibited. The rational is that the federal government stands by it's claim that ganja is a Schedule One narcotic, and bases this claim on research conducted by the National Institute of Health (funded by us tax-payers).

 The irony is, that the NIH is required by law to conduct only research into detrimental effects of ganja as that is what the law states regarding anything classified as a Schedule One drug. Yet the NIH and the federal government managed to secure a patent on THC as medicine in 2003.

Mind-numbing, to say the least... but to get back to the topic of this post. How to grow a criminal?

Criminals start out as people. Some people begin to hurt other people, by abuse of other people, kidnapping others, or downright murdering them. Some of these people are determined to be insane, while others know full well they are conscious of the wrong they commit.

A majority of criminals are criminals simply because they use, grow and/or sell ganja. Think about it. It's true. Over 60% of Americans have used ganja at least once in their lifetime, and around 30-40% use it with some regularity.  All are made and become criminals even using it one time, as use of ganja is illegal. And over 70% of those charged with crimes associated with ganja are Black Americans despite the fact that use of ganja is pretty equal across the ethnic spectrum.

Recent reports indicate 1 in 3 women worldwide are subject to abuse, and 1 in 5 in America. Is this right and is it addressed by measures of reform or mental health therapy? Hardly. The fixation of "public safety" targets the use of ganja. Alcohol use contributes to a majority of incidences of physical abuse, yet on television, alcohol use is equivalent to the American dream, to a key component of socialization. This despite the fact that a vast majority of social interactions involves thee sharing of ganja, which more often than in the case of alcohol actually promotes peaceful bonding.

So how exactly does ganja create criminals? As Ex-First Lady Nancy Reagan once said, "Just Say No". Why can't Americans just say no to drugs?  Well, maybe they can, but maybe our perception as to what to say "no" to is flawed.

Federal law implies, and many states concur, that ganja is a manufactured substance, a manufactured drug. This means that it is not a substance that occurs naturally. It implies it is grown in a lab, like meth or heroin.

Anyone who grows ganja is manufacturing it. That is the logic. Anyone who uses it is using a substance that was manufactured in a lab. Use of the substance is illegal as the federal government claims this manufactured substance is highly addictive and dangerous, with zero medicinal value. The federal government denies any benefit from use of ganja for spiritual, recreational, medicinal use. Federal law dictates that the National Institute of Health paid for by our taxes cannot research any benefits from the use of cannabis as medicine or ganja as a safe recreational substance or spiritual plant. Because, according to federal law it is not a plant, it is a manufactured product.

People are made criminals who use or manufacture this substance.

Wow. So who invented marijuana? Who was the scientist that created this substance so dangerous to humankind that people become criminals after using it one time?

After 40 years of personal research into this question, the answer to this question is undeniable.

God created ganja/cannabis/marijuana/hemp/pot/reefer. The same God that on the on all our money "Is Trusted". NOTE: on the reverse of all money printed or coined in the US is the motto "In God We Trust". When a President of the US takes office they swear on a Bible to uphold the US Constitution and the Bill of Rights. This is the same God that invented cannabis/ganja/marijuana/hemp.

The answer to how to grow a criminal is through God... which is truly ironic... in the Old Testament of the Bible God gave all the plants of the earth to humankind. This included ganja. It didn't include alcohol as alcohol must be manufactured through a fermentation process, and it doesn't include modern day tobacco cigarettes as they are manufactured using additives and secret recipes. Ganja is wholly natural... it grows in earth, whether from the ground or in a grow facility it is a plant that grows naturally and is used in an unadulterated form.

It is also used to grow criminals. Whether this is right or wrong well that depends on federal and state laws. As to whether ganja is dangerous? No one has died from direct use of it in millennium of use, And the users are generally docile and respectable people, and there is no proof whatsoever that it leads to harder substances or promotes harm to living beings. It appears the only purpose for laws prohibiting use of ganja/cannabis are to grow criminals. And the reason a nation would want to grow criminals must be for profit. Ganja prohibition yields great profit, at the expense of us citizens.

Drink up and smoke your processed tobacco... take your pharmaceutical vitamins and other pills. But stay off the grass! Trespassers be warned!

Next Post - Marijuana and the Emancipation Proclamation - "Hemp For Victory!"

THE TRUTH ABOUT MARIJUANA - PART THREE: THE PSYCHOLOGY OF CREATING A VICTIM

NH soon to become the 19th state to legalize medical marijuana use with Governor Hassan's public statement she now approves of the changes to HB 573.

Let us pause to pray.

I am not one to pray, but I do so for two reasons. 1) there are those in NH who desperately benefit from this new law.  2) The new law, although desperately needed, is a farce.

Still, the governor's decision is leap-years ahead of former governor Lynch's attitude towards cannabis. But that's like saying, "the earth is flat, but it has mountains and valleys, so we the state of NH recognize there are now mountains and valleys and the earth is simply flat.

Omitted from HB 573 is the option for patients to grow there own; legal protection for possession for at least 19 months until the state has established 4 dispensaries, and inclusion of individuals suffering PTSD and other debilitating symptoms that respond well to cannabis therapy/medication use.

Many of the patients in need may not be around 19 months from now, and many of those excluded will not have an opportunity to experience life as a freedom.

However I can't fault governor Hassan completely as I've read the state laws in neighboring New England states and they are at best daunting to understand. The most notable fault with the laws are the exclusion of psychiatrists and psychologists. In the majority of cases, a patient must have been a patient of an MD for a period of a year, of which in general patients see a psychiatrist for far less than a year, and psychologists don't appear to factor into a medical decision.

MD's or Physician's assistants are not well versed on psychological needs of a patient, and that appears to be intentional in most states with regards to medical marijuana laws. MD's also have a general stricter sense of medicine and are more likely to prescribe a pharmaceutical, meaning a pill, rather than a plant, whatever it's called. Granted, rumor has it that in states like CA there are plenty of MD's willing to "prescribe" marijuana to patients for everything from a sprained finger to cancer. However the truth is, most MD's take their job seriously, and if they prescribe cannabis it's from a medical standpoint that it benefits the patient, not that is provides what in street-terms is "a fix".

Expecting my doctor for example to approve medical cannabis for approved use is like expecting him to approve green tea or apple juice to prevent illness. Doctors these days simply don't deal well with alternative medicines or, aside from general terms, nutrition, they deal with diagnostics and pharmaceutical drugs.

Case in point... for PTSD I took Prozac for over a year, but the side effects were worst than the benefits , so I attempted to wean myself off from the Prozac per my doctors recommendations. Unfortunately I had become addicted, and I was unable to wean myself off from the Prozac without disturbing withdrawal symptoms that were quite uncomfortable, similar to sand-paper/head-rushes rubbing against my brain that left me reeling.

I read where a plant called kanna acted naturally as an SSRI, asked my doctor if I could try it and he said sure. He didn't know anything about it, which isn't unexpected, didn't document my use of kanna to relieve the withdrawal symptoms - it was a plant, and doctors don't as a whole concern themselves with plants, they prescribe pills. As a side-note, he had nothing in the way of a pill to alleviate my withdrawal symptoms. If the kanna didn't work, I was basically screwed. But it did work. It proved to be my way out of my addiction to Prozac which he also didn't document.

Essentially, he was powerless from a pharmaceutical point of view to alleviate my dependence on Prozac, and was simply happy to hear when I told him that the kanna worked. Over the next couple of moths I weaned myself off daily use of the kanna.

If kanna had been illegal, or required state approval he would not have approved. Simply because physicians today are not educated in herbal medicines. Had a psychiatrist or or psychologist considered my problem, they would most likely have approved of it, haven't met one yet opposed to cannabis or other medicinal plants.

For the patient it creates a dilemma... one called lying to your doctor.

The vast majority of people I have known would never admit to their doctor they used illegal drugs. They would be more likely to admit it to their therapist. Considering the medical profession, when a patient feels the need to lie a victim is created.

I drink a lot of beer... well, not a lot, but a lot... the amount I admit I drink is different if I'm talking to my MD compared to my therapist. Considering I have PTSD, anxiety, and other past experiences that affect me my therapist feels cannabis would be better for me than alcohol. My MD believes cannabis is out of the question, and that a pill to curb my alcohol dependence is preferable. I feel more comfortable with cannabis, as I know from experience it lacks serious side effects and it was effective for 35 years, when I didn't drink more than a beer or two a day. And pills scare me. Pot doesn't.

While using cannabis daily for 35 years I thrived... I was very social, earned three degrees and my gpa increased. I excelled at whatever job I had. For the past 8 years, cannabis free, it's been all down-hill. During those 8 years I tried Prozac... I tried Stratera, and other drugs prescribed by MD's. All were a disaster.

Cannabis works for me, but it's against the law, and in many of the now 19 states legalizing cannabis for medical use I would not be eligible. The primary reason is my MD would prefer to try me on another pharmaceutical. Against my wishes. But they don't prescribe plants, nor recognize them as medicine.

So as much as I'm happy to see NH become the 19th state to legalize medical "marijuana", I'm extremely disappointed.

What the state of NH and other states fails to recognize is the rights of the individual to use plants as they prefer. I don't mean derivatives or synthetics as in heroin, meth or crack; I mean as in an herbal alternative of which cannabis is a definite example.

No one dies from cannabis use, moderation is easy to somewhat difficult depending on the individual, but compared to alcohol, tobacco, and pharmaceutics it's a slam dunk... cannabis is more like coffee... some drink a cup a day where others drink several, but at the end of the day, the worst one experiences is the jitters.

In my next post... creating a criminal... or should I say "growing one"?