Posterous theme by Cory Watilo

kjones's posterous thoughts


Things that I need out of my head that somebody else may have interest in.

Cannabis is so much more than a plant.

For many, it is nearly impossible to understand my "nearly religious" dedication to Cannabis. For many of those, it's plainly an addiction, demanding sympathy, pity, and likely rehab, or God.
To some, it's obsession, and to many it's just annoying. But, to most, no matter how they justify My "problem" so that they can make sense of it in their own judgment, It's just a waste of my time, and an excuse to get high.

Why would I continue to beat this proverbial "dead horse"? Because it isn't dead.

Look. Most of you couldn't care any less about if I smoke pot or not. Or if I go to church, or wear my seat-belt. Or really even if I go out and beat the hell out of some guy in a bar (as long as it doesn't effect you). In all reality, some would prefer, and even encourage, I go out and let off some steam in violence. It would be fine to talk in front of your kids about kicking some ass, but mention Pot and everybody takes a deep breath, aghast.

Well, Cannabis isn't my "religion", but it is representative of much of what I believe. Philosophically, this representation is vast and almost perfectly metaphorical to life at every level. For one minute, or however long it takes you to read this, forget about, "drugs". Lets take a look at the plant, the history, all the uses, and the laws and perceptions we live with daily. 

Now here's the problem, as I see it. I could talk about the plant and how it can be exploited for food, fuel, medicine, and recreation. How it can create jobs, and support community and economy in ways that most of us can't even imagine. I could go onto explain how the inept arrogance of eradication efforts, directly represent the negligence with which we view the earth, and each other. How those efforts are demonstrative of an illogical societal model that in sociological study probably couldn't even survive 200 years without revolution. I could talk about how inhuman it is to lock people up for personal choices, that in no logical way can be be defined as "causative" of any harm, if any effect at all, on anybody else. I could regurgitate facts for hours about how the negative effects of eradication efforts far outweigh the illusion of "investment". I could draw comparisons to corn, broccoli, almonds, peanuts, and even fish, to demonstrate clearly known Nutritional competitiveness. I could further extrapolate facts from government and present business numbers from around the world, to convince you of the textile value, and bolster agricultural value. I could demonstrate how agriculture directly influences economy. Then how the overall economy effects taxes. I could show how, medical expenses, systems, and services, could be more productive and less lethal, though likely less profitable. I could define "Trade Deficit" and "Resolution", and provide some pretty convincing numbers towards the latter. I could even talk about direct religious affiliation, and the "freedom of religion" in our country, or as a human right. I could tell you directly how your rights, your property, your children, your religion, your finances, and even your vehicles, are, or could be, directly effected a single plant. One or more of these, may also be because of the direct effects on your job. I could go on and on about your human, or even legal, or constitutional rights, and how a plant influences them. I could go into how education, through deception, is compromised, and demonstrate a pretty strong psychological model placing a plant at the cause of our nations educational failures. I could go onto how that directly influences economy, educational standards, and overall faith in the educational system. Which definitely can be causative of tax rates. I could talk about environmental implications of a renewable resource that is cheaper and more versatile than oil, and the direct effects of such a resource on economy, and again your taxes. Then I could directly demonstrate how that resource could directly effect the product market, where you spend all of your "discretionary" spending.

I really could go on for days with beautiful and overwhelming facts, backed with credentials far beyond acceptable in any field, if I could just be talking about anything but Cannabis. Interesting to me, that many of the issues that are neglected when it comes to cannabis, are the same issues many of you find offensive in personal conversations. So, you don't want to talk about your personal finances with others, and you won't hear how (oohhh) pot, effects them. You don't want to talk personally about religion, but to believe in pot is simply condemnable. You don't want to talk about how you should raise your kids differently, but think there is no psychological effect of deception on our youth. Man, if Jesus Christ, ever did return, Christians would have him locked up and medicated as insane. If you don't want your kids to be addicts, teach them self-accountability and that addiction is nothing more than the easiest excuse for giving up. If you don't want your kids to be unhappy, teach them to always strive toward a goal, as opposed to away from anything. If you want your kids to be honorable, you must honor the truth, no matter how inconvenient.

What I am getting at here is that I do believe in this plant almost religiously, but more important to me, and I wish you would realize, is how much I believe in you. I do smoke pot, and I do that now. I could do that quietly behind closed doors, just like many have for longer than I have been alive, and none of you would really care one way or the other, but then who is going to convince you to legalize it? Who else is going to provide for your family when you can't? Who is going to pay you, when our country produces nothing? Who is going to pay for the expensive, and honestly, dis-functional, drugs from the "morally corrupt" pharmaceutical companies, when you don't have a job and there is no medicaid? Who is going to convince you I am right, before you have no choice but to understand? What's it gonna take? What is it that can allow you to see how this one incredibly versatile plant really only has negative effects on your life right now, because of your negative views of it?

If you don't want to hear it, don't listen, but it's your ass too. When they ask if you have anything on you that you are not supposed to have, it's your rights about to be violated. (they already got me.)

I would give you all a million dollars if I could without hurting my own sustenance. Well, I can't do that, but I can do all I can to legalize cannabis, which will change far more than who smokes a joint.

If your still reading, Namaste',
If your not, Namaste'

Peace to all.

People: 62% for / 38% against. Representatives(?): 37% for / 63% against. United States of America 2011?

What the...............
    This at the same time marijuana and Medical marijuana are saturating mainstream shows, often as passive non-emotional and almost unacknowledged, normal behavior. When marijuana dons the screen in a prime time show these days, it isn't gang related or fear based representation against. More often it is incidental to further the normality of a character, or as a token through which a story line point may be made more apparent.

Weeds, catered to a niche in the beginning, and very well may still. As one in that Niche, I may miss that here. However, Harry's Law (NBC), Parenthood (NBC), Fairly Legal (USA), and numerous others this season, are competitive Prime-time shows using this issue to further their ratings. And it's working. Or, at least I am inclined to believe it is because of the increase of frequency and the pure nature of broadcast television as a business. There are always shows and producers willing to push the limits of acceptability for an episode or two, breaching taboo topics for the shock factor. But these shows are being far more subtle and not promoting the issue before the air date, which most shows do when they are exploiting the shock factor angle of high emotion issues.

I know there are other shows doing the same thing, Please show your respect in the comments for those shows. I will be sure to check them out.

Back on point. If society is not freaking out about Cannabis anymore, then how can we allow our government to? This is the height of irrational fear. How can politicians protect their offices and the people at the same time when they are working with inaccurate beliefs? Don't let them choose, make make them follow or let them starve. (ok, maybe not starve, but let them find real jobs in the real world).
       Sadly, though voting is a right and obligation in a democracy, It seems the time has come that any vote can be Muted with repercussion. So I ask you all, NOW WHAT?

NORML t-shirt design contest and promotion concept.

This is an idea I have for a membership drive and fundraiser.

Using the site groupon.com to sell more than x as a tipping point to innitiate the sale, every buyer gets to vote on which shirt will be produced for this years promotion.

First: NORML needs a place for all the art work to be submitted for the vote. A small prize and full recognition can be offered to the arrest who wins by vote of all buyers.
Next: a national groupon offer can be created. Here is my suggestion roughly. If 10000 shirts are sold. The deal become active. Each groupon ( I think) has a unique identifier that will be used by each buyer to cast their vote for which shirt they think should be the NORML 2011 groupon member drive shirt. Each buyer should also be paying for one year membership in their closest NORML chapter and the national NORML also.

The price should be set at a crazy low level to fully exploit the reach of this annual program. This price should be just enough to cover production and the highly discounted membership, with a little profit if any.

This is not so much to raise funds in my mind, but awareness and networking. As membership grows there will be opportunity for more cash concious fundraising with a broader base.

Groupon sales are time sensitive accumulated sales to achieve bulk pricing at a one off level. Since all the cash is collected at one time, the purchase power of the group is directly extended to each buyer.

Please let me know what you think of this idea.
Peace to all.

Sent via DROID X on Verizon Wireless

Breadcrumbs: Food-Stamps

I have often been told that I should write.

 

 

Well, I really question whether anybody cares what it is that I may have to say. But, of one thing I am sure I now have a way of leaving breadcrumbs as I develop and attempt to initiate some of my ideas.

 

Tonight, I will try to address what I find highly wasteful and problematic in our food-stamp programs. OK, not all of what is wasteful, but an exponentially wasteful practice with a visible remedy within reach of reality.

FOOD STAMPS CAN NO LONGER BE USED FOR ANY FOOD WITHOUT KNOWN HIGH NUTRITIONAL VALUES.

With obesity on the rise, a growing health concern, and medicaid about out of money, why would we allow food-stamps to purchase pastries?

I wrote some shit on Facebook about this today too because it really bothers me. I don't want to deny people of anything really, but when nutrition is the intent nutrition should be the result. By buying a starving alcoholic a drink instead of a meal, you are directly contributing to their demise. But what about giving them money and the choice of how to spend it? Would it not be most beneficial to everybody to provide the nutrition as the only option?

This is not an anti-compassionate concept. It is, (as far as I can see) based in strict logic and real problems. If obesity is at epidemic levels, and obesity is a danger to ones health, and there are "foods" that do not contribute functional nutrition, or directly contribute to obesity more so than to meeting nutritional needs, then Food-stamps should just reject such products as they do cat litter.

All the processes are already in use. The technology has reached near full saturation of the market. All this takes is creating criteria for the nutritional values that will be acceptable for emergency consumption and sustainable healthy values on an indefinite basis. As an example I offer the movie "Super Size Me", in which a man eats nothing but McDonald's food for 30 days straight. The results where almost catastrophic to his health. Food-stamps won't buy a Shake at McDonald's but it will buy you a lot of crap food at the store. I say, no twinkies, white bread, ho-ho's, captain crunch, products containing Questionable preservatives or other ingredients with known negative health implications, and No Coca-cola.

Look, I don't think survival is supposed to be full of pleasure all the time, but you can't enjoy your life later if you don't have it. There is no reason for a nutritional assistance program administered by the United States Government to directly contribute to extensive growth in spending in health care also administered by the United States Government, and all paid for with working folks tax dollars.

If you "earn" your Twinkie, Eat as many as you want. But I don't buy them for myself, so I certainly don't want to do that to a starving person.
We need to apply logic and technology to our services, and look at them as co-existant and literally entangled. Food-stamps and medicare both claim to be in the same business, why aren't they in concert then? Any business with such inconsistency in mission and execution would be bankrupt and fail to exist, and yet we allow this to continue.

I believe that every part of our government should work within the same mission statement, and in concert and tight integration with all other aspects of government in only complimentary function. Meaning that any expenditure into a nutritional program, should be directly reflected in an even larger savings in caring for the eminent lack of such nutrition should it be denied.

So, what do you think?
Should Food Stamps be strictly for nutritional healthy foods? or should one on food-stamps deserve to buy any food they want without regard for nutrition or potential dangers?

I am hoping to carry this into a sort of series in which I address Legal and Government ideas I have and answers to societal political problems that I think can help. Too many can list hundreds of problems in a row about just about anything, but we need answers. Real tangible ideas to create a better reality for tomorrow. We need people to come forward with brave new ideas and be able to show how they can work, should work, and how not changing now is detrimental to the government and all the folks in office. I can't imagine how much we really spend on these programs alone, but the savings from the above program would have to be exponentially huge.

Maybe next time I will be writing about A Cashless Welfare System in which Possession of any Cash is procecutable. Stay tuned, or better yet stay involved. Rib me, push me, test me, support me, bash me to your friends, but think about the shit I say. If you want my opinions or ideas on anything, I will prolly share.

 

 

Peace to all.

 

 

East Coast / West Coast Rivalry Changes Tactics. Will MA Legalize First?

Today, while listening to the video on this page at Mikecann.net, I learned about legislation that has been filed to LEGALIZE MARIJUANA in the state of Massachusetts in 2011.

An Act to regulate and tax the cannabis industry. filed 1/10/2011 by Ellen Story, officially puts the East Coast on the map and in the fight to lead the new Green Rush of Marijuana legalization.

So check it out there, or if it is actually showing above this, listen to it here. Breaking news from within the movement, get in the know. The world really is changing.
Peace to all.

Acts of dedication.

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It may come as no surprise that I hate to shovel. Not just because I'm bitchy, but it's like work, and it hurts for days. But, I guess dedication is my biggest physical asset 'cause as I sit here in almost meditative exhaustion with humming pain, I think "what a man will do for his bike.".
Yeah that and "ohhhh..... what the fuck was I thinking? Would I have worked so fuckin hard for a woman?"...

Marijuana use during pregnancy, DOES NOT RAISE HEALTH RISK to infant.

OK, maybe a little bit of sensationalism in the headline, but if that upset you, wait until you read the real study I am referring to. This is no small study. As "A longitudinal study of 6356 adolescents, age 12, who completed a semi-structured interview for psychotic symptoms in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) birth cohort.": they looked at the effects of Alcohol, tobacco, and cannabis use in pregnant women, and it's effects on the child.

Though, some Americans may be less inclined to believe international science than home-baked truth, this study has already been accepted and used in reference by Prestigious American Medical Journals.

This will piss some people off, but smoking pot during pregnancy, showed no increase in risks that were being studied. Whereas, both alcohol and tobacco where associated with many increased risks, Cannabis (marijuana, pot, bud, kind, or whatever you want to call it), came out ahead on all counts.

Don't get to excited though as a proponent, this is not an end all study of prenatal use of marijuana. And, it didn't address physical health risks associated with any substance, but it sure is another telling study of the safety of Cannabis.

Please take the time to get properly informed. So many who think they know shit, are just talking shit and don't even know it. It's pathetic, but many still believe that cannabis is "toxic" though by definition it is not. Cannabis is not "Poisonous", as is synonymous with "Toxic", because it has never killed anybody, and likely won't. Toxins and poisons have ill effects and can kill you. IF really think you know about marijuana, or really want to, or even want to find science to show that cannabis is the worst thing on earth, Granny Storm Crow's MMJ Reference List Jan.2010 will shock you. This woman is amazing. As a younger woman she found herself surprised by some information about pot, started digging, and it seems she hasn't stopped. Now, her list is a premier repository of hundreds of studies on cannabis that have all been organized by points of interest. Can Marijuana cure cancer? Which Cancer? Granny shows so many cancer cannabis studies, we need to be more specific. How 'bout laziness? we all know pot is guilty of this...............right? Well, read this study by Dr. Mitch Earleywine,PHD of SUNY Albany. Somehow they found that lazy people are lazy, and stoners are just people.
Dr. Mitch Earleywine, is also a regular guest and takes live questions about the science of Cannabis, on NORML Show Live every Wednesday.

Get informed and fight for knowledge. Our country spends more to fight marijuana than to educate the children we attest to be protecting. This has to change.
Peace to all.

8 hours, 20 feet. Jan. 19, 2011

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So, I live in upstate NY, for those of you who don't know, and here, it snows. Not 20 feet in eight hours, but it really does snow.
I started shoveling at about 6:00 am this morning, and now, at 2:00 pm, I can finally get my uncovered car to the road. Which is why I titled this entry what I did, and I wish it had only been 20 feet to the road. I used 20 because it kinda had a rythm to it. 8 hours, 20 feet.

This small pleasure and releif will surely be short lived as it is now snowing again. (or still? It's so hard to tell sometimes.)

Well, I just wanted to try to post from my phone and, kinda, document my torture. But, I'm not sure how to post pics from here. Yet.

For now, if you have a plow and feel charitable, give me a call please. Or email.
PEACE

 

OH, and I just descovered that what I post here I post to Facebook. Hmmmmm. May have to remedy that.

 

Community, Values, Business, and Cannabis.

OK. It's been a really long time since I have really written anything at all, but this is stickin' in my head so I gotta get it out.

I was watching Youtube.com using the Youtube Remote app on my Droid X, killing time and boredom, when I saw this video about TimeBanking. (Click here)

So I did a search for "Hour Exchange", which lead me to a search for "Time Banking". I ended up at this site, Timebanks.org.
They seem to be similar to a National Time Bank. And all of this seems very interesting to me.

I am seeing many signs of communal reorganization using technology. Like Minded Unification, often without regard to geographic restrictions. People are getting together to make life...................... hmmmmm... Better?

I do think "Better" is fitting, These are some interesting times, and I can't wait to see what comes.

I'll tell you one thing though, I think NORML and all the marijuana groups should have a TimeBank 420. I could have used this for a lawyer once or twice. But, more to the point: If I could swap hours, with primarily like minded others, And know that I could offer to smoke with them after they plow my driveway, or as we talk about a design project they want to do for their business, then I would use this service almost exclusively for all my service needs. Add a rating similar to, or with integration of, Angieslist.org, and this could be the makings of a surprisingly strong and stable movement.

OK, I will try to get back to more on this soon. I'm thinking there is room for this in the Capital Region of NY, and they need a NORML Chapter too. Killing a few birds with one stone could be a match made right. The Capital Region Time Bank of Kindness - Where every activity is passively activist, and actively Kind.

Peace to all.              Hope the embed worked, but if not, Hey!!

Wisdom from Childs Play

Immigration is a pretty big issue for this country as evidenced here (http://www.thefoxnation.com/illegal-immigration/2010/03/09/senate-pushes-biometric-id-cards-all-Americans), which I find utterly offensive.
 
In consideration of this issue I have come up with a unique answer to ensure that Immigration policy manifests a safe and prosperous nation.
 
What kind of Immigrants do we really want here? Is it enough to be educated in their home country as to how to fill out immigration papers and take advantage of our systems? Would we prefer the type of Immigrant that has truly risked everything to come to our country and live in freedom with dedication to it's constitution? I prefer the latter!! Just because you are semi-literate and like our country, that should not be enough. I personally like the ones that have packed in over the border with nothing. Prepared to die for a better life rather than live the way they had been. I think we should ship them back, but I like the dedication and motivation displayed.
 
Remember Capture the Flag? What a great immigration policy.
 
Let's put a Flag, a hospital, and the immigration office, precisely at the center of The United States of America.
 
Then, issue world wide notice of our brand new policy. Anybody who can get to the flag and touch the pole can then apply to be permitted to stay. They can get immediate medical attention, and all the programs that present immigrants take advantage of, and get them all with utmost respect.
 
Minor catch though, every American will be issued the responsibility to protect the flag at any cost. Most won't, and that's fine, but the foreigners who wish to be welcomed here will be of the highest quality with real American spirit. If we get'em before they touch the pole, we just take them to the border and toss them over. NO medical care, no comfy flight home on an American owned plane using American financed fuel. No water or food. But, hey, they may get a closer start on the second try, than the first. Isn't that compassionate?
 
If they make it, bloody, dehydrated, unable  to speak English, dragging broken limbs and family, then they will get all the benefits of somebody applying for citizenship today. We will offer assistance and translation, English lessons, and medical care, but still no guarantee of approval. We will get them healthy enough to give them a good shot at success if accepted, or set back over the border for a second try.
 
These new Americans will be some of the most dedicated we have ever seen. With pure and utter respect for our lifestyle, and dedication to our freedom. They will understand better than most American raised people, what a great country we live in, and will have proven it.
 
I am available to help write this legislation, so feel free to send a limo and bring me to DC.
 
I so look forward to comments on this.
Peace!

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