In a surprise turn-around, the Governor of Wisconsin, Jim Doyle, has stated he would not oppose the legalization of Medical Marijuana in Wisconsin.

Furthermore, a live bill is currently up for co-sponsors but only until the end of TODAY at 5pm! It’s called the Jacki Rickert Medical Marijuana Act. Please act now and ask that your legislator support medical marijuana.

We need a real grass roots effort in Wisconsin to get this thing co-sponsored by the end of the day!

Gov. Jim Doyle said Wednesday he would not oppose the legalization of medicinal marijuana in Wisconsin.

At an appearance in Wausau earlier this week, Doyle spoke with reporters and commented on the decision by the U.S. Department of Justice to no longer prosecute suppliers or users of medicinal marijuana in states where its use is legal as long as state law is being followed.

Lee Sensenbrenner, spokesperson for the governor, clarified Doyle’s comments.

“As a former prosecutor, [Doyle] saw why the Justice Department would not want to devote resources to cases in which state law was being followed,” Sensenbrenner said.

“It doesn’t make a lot of sense for the United States Department of Justice to pursue people who are potentially glaucoma patients or suffering [from other] severe illnesses,” he added. “It’s probably less dangerous than [other things] a doctor can prescribe.”

According to Sensenbrenner, the governor would potentially be supportive of state legislation allowing prescribed marijuana, as long as it does not open up a “loophole” for other marijuana use. However, he said the governor will not actively push any bill through the legislature.

“That’s up to the legislature to take that up if that’s their intent,” Sensenbrenner said.

An average ISD in Texas has an alarming problem, their Children have Marijuana in their school!!!

From my alter-ego blog on our Dallas – Fort Worth NORML blog, I wrote a small rant about a local ISD poll that was taken in regards to cigarettes, alcohol, Marijuana and other drugs.

From the Dallas Morning News, Jessica Meyers, Reporters Notes:
Frisco ISD students surveyed on drug use:

Shoved between a discussion of funding streams and TAKS results at Monday’s board meeting was a glimpse into Frisco ISD’s drug war.

About 4,000 students from seventh to 10th grade responded to a survey about drug and alcohol use in the district’s schools.

Almost 20 percent reported using alcohol in the past year. About 17 percent considered alcohol a major problem in FISD and 40 percent said it was an issue. Less than 10 percent reported using marijuana or other drugs, although 660 students said they first drank between ages 10 and 13. Almost 200 students said they started using drugs at roughly the same age.

Other results:
• 22 percent of students consider drugs a major problem in FISD
• 14.6 percent said they see marijuana on campus, 16 percent see pills and 8 percent see other drugs.

In all reality, it’s easier to get Marijuana in school than alcohol or cigarettes. In fact, when polled, teens frequently admit the only place they can find alcohol or cigarettes is either from their parents or friends older than 21. In contrast, Marijuana is very easy to obtain because there isn’t a clerk asking for an ID and providing a high level of scrutiny. I don’t know how it is around the rest of the country, but in Texas, if a clerk sells alcohol or cigarettes to a minor, they go to jail. I don’t know any clerk willing to go to jail for minimum wage.

This couldn’t be more true, but not just for our ISD, but for yours. Ask a kid how hard it is to get drugs in their school, and then ask them where they get cigarettes and alcohol. One of my neighbors tells me he scores his best weed from his own kid who is in high school. Isn’t that amazing?

You need to do this, you need to ask them, you need to learn this for yourself.

Prohibitionists and the ignorant alike cry, “It’s for our children, it’s all for the kids!!” and continue to spread the word of ignorance. The truth is right in front of us, just ask them. Is the war against drugs working?

Help the children by helping us. Support and help us with the legalization of Marijuana so that it can be taxed and regulated.

Thank you for contacting me regarding the legalization of marijuana. I appreciate hearing from you on this important matter.

The United States is fighting a costly war against drugs, in terms of dollars and lives that are irrevocably changed by this modern day scourge. It is my opinion that any legalization of substances such as marijuana will undermine the ongoing efforts by the drug enforcement community to curb this epidemic that has consumed so many Americans. Marijuana is a controlled substance and legalizing or relaxing criminal penalties will only open the doors for further illegal activities.

I will continue to support efforts on the part of the federal government to interdict drug shipments into the United States, pursue individuals that violate U.S. drug laws, provide adequate treatment to individuals addicted to drugs, and support public education campaigns that warn against the perils of illegal drug use. The federal, state, and local governments must work together on all these fronts to slow the flow of drugs into the U.S. and to lower the demand in this country for illegal substances.

Again, thank you for taking time to contact me. I appreciate having the opportunity to represent you in the U.S. House of Representatives. Please feel free to visit my website (www.house.gov/burgess) or contact me with any future concerns.

Sincerely,
Michael C. Burgess, M.D.
Member of Congress

Just some quick questions, Congressman:

• How is that “epidemic curbing” been progressing, Dr. Burgess?
• What sort of illegal activities have Al Capone and the bootleggers been up to lately?
• Have you ever treated a patient for marijuana overdose?

When you read this article as it was written, you can easily detect the bias the so-called-journalist who wrote into it. If you were to transpose the word Marijuana with Coors or Budweiser, and the word smoking with the word drinking instead, you’ll easily see the difference too.

INDIANAPOLIS — Police have arrested a couple allegedly caught smoking marijuana while waiting in the drive-through line at an Arby’s restaurant with their 1-year-old in the back seat.

A restaurant employee noticed the aroma late Friday and called 911, then had the couple wait for their order of chicken as police sped to the scene.

Officer Brian Silcox said he smelled marijuana while approaching the car. He said both 27-year-old Marshall Chatman and 25-year-old Constance Payne told officers Chatman had been smoking a cigar.

Police also said a loaded handgun was found in the car.

Chatman and Payne were arrested on charges of neglect of a dependent. Chatman also was arrested on a marijuana possession charge. Child welfare officials took custody of the baby.

The couple’s first court appearance is scheduled for Wednesday.

It was idiotic for that family to smoke Marijuana while visiting a drive-thru, but it is reprehensible for the company Arby’s to have people arrested simply for smelling like Cannabis and buying their products.

The Manager represents the Arby’s brand and their policies, and it was the Manager of Arby’s who called and worked with law enforcement to have this couple placed in custody. Since the manager is an authorized representative from Corporate Arby’s, it became pseudo corporate Arby’s policy that people who smell like Marijuana need to be arrested.

How many late night tokers have frequented Arby’s over the last 30 plus years to satisfy a munchie craving? How much money does Arby’s make every quarter by serving people who choose a safer alternative?

The bottom line, if you are medicated or medicating and have the munchies – don’t go to Arby’s or they will call the police on you.

[Like I needed an excuse to not visit Arby's.  Anybody so desperate for customers they have to call a roast beef sandwich a "roastburger" doesn't deserve cannabis dollars anyway. -- "R"R]

You can’t escape the headlines; recently a cornucopia of athletes have been in the headlines relating to Marijuana. Some in possession, others test positive in urine tests, and others are photographed with a bong like Olympic swimming champion Michael Phelps.

In this particular article, two Oklahoma State football players were arrested for Marijuana possession. As you read this article and my opinion, try and put yourself or one of your children in the place of one of these young men.

Stillwater Newspress - Two Oklahoma State football players — sophomore Jamal Mosley and freshman Dexter Pratt — have been charged with one count each of misdemeanor possession of marijuana in court documents filed on Wednesday.

Both players were charged on June 17 and arraignment for both is scheduled for July 29.

OSU media relations said Thursday that OSU head coach Mike Gundy is out of town and would have no immediate comment on the situation and that information on the situation would likely come within the next few days.

Mosely, a tight end, is expected to battle for the starting spot while Pratt was one of the top incoming recruits for the Cowboys at running back. There has been talk of Pratt redshirting with Kendall Hunter and Keith Toston expected to see much of the playing time.

Police records said that both players possessed and controlled within a residence a small plastic bag containing what appeared to be, and subsequently field tested positive as a small amount of marijuana.

Most people will probably snicker after reading this and move onto more important things in their lives. But, for these athletes, their dilemma has just got started.

Because they are college students, they will probably lose their college loan, and also any scholarship they may have earned. You see, these athletes signed a contract with their university which allows them to compete in athletics. The contract specifies each athlete will support NCAA rules and regulations.

Let’s see what the NCAA requires when one fails a drug test:

NCAA Positive Test Result
If the NCAA tests you for the banned drugs listed in Bylaw 31.2.3.1 and you test positive, you will lose a season of competition in all sports if the season of competition has not yet begun for you. If the season of competition has begun, you will lose one full season of competition in all sports – i.e. remaining contests in the current season and contests in the following season up to the time that you were declared ineligible in the previous year.

Now let’s not forget these guys live in a state with extremely draconian Marijuana laws. The article didn’t mention the quantity the athletes were charged with, but assuming it was a smaller amount, the laws leave a great deal of discretion to the judge. They could receive any amount in fines and up to 1 year in prison for simply choosing a safer alternative. Is this the message we want to send our children as they approach college?

There is a really good chance that one or both of them will have to leave his college dreams behind and go to work. Since they have a drug conviction, the only jobs they can find are the kind of jobs that you and I don’t want to do. Over time they see their friends succeed financially, and it’s only logical to conclude that some people in their position have turned to selling drugs. Why not? The rationalization is that society has already made them outcasts and the only way to make an appropriate income means selling contraband or committing crimes.

In comparison, college binge drinking is a worse offense, although tolerated by universities a great deal more than Marijuana use.

According to Mothers Against Drunk Drivers

* 54 percent of binge drinking college students black out and forget what they did or where they were at some point in the year. For students who don’t binge drink, the number was 25 percent.
* 48 percent of the alcohol consumed at a 4 year college is consumed by an underage student.
* 44 percent of students report symptoms of alcohol abuse and dependency
* 25 percent of students say they have faced academic consequences (missing class, getting a bad grade, etc.) as a result of drinking.
* On average, students who have more than 5 drinks per occasion have a GPA that is half a grade lower than the GPA for other students.

A little non-toxic Marijuana isn’t going to hurt you, but alcohol may kill you and you might just take a few people with you when you slam your car head-on into someone else.

Think for just a moment; our standing President admitted he had used Marijuana earlier in his life. The only difference between these young men and our current standing president is they got caught, he didn’t. Does that sound fair to you?

Mr. President, can you take just a moment of your time to address the growing number of Americans who are clamoring to get your support for Marijuana legalization? I know you think it’s really funny, but people are going to prison and lives are being ruined every day because you can’t stop laughing long enough to be a real president. Step up, your constituents are demanding it.

During nearly a quarter of a century of military service, much of which I spent in either the desert or the jungle, I incurred a series of injuries that cause me to have seizures. To date, I have had 4 seizures and 1 grand mal. I separate the two, because if you are familiar with seizures, there is a difference. I’m fortunate that I’ve only had 1 grand mal, many of those who suffer from seizures only have grand mals. Those are the grand daddy of all seizures – and one usually doesn’t wake up from one of those for a very long time, assuming they survive.

I’m retired from military service, so I receive my care from a private physician (thanks to private health insurance) but the only drug they can dispense for my seizures is some form of opium. I would probably be OK with the some form of opium, but for me – it’s like drinking 12 ounces of whiskey and then trying to go to work. Could you imagine trying to work while drunk off your ass on 12 ounces of Cuban rum? To make matters worse, I live in Texas where if one utters the words, “Medical Marijuana” they might be arrested.

In Texas, it’s illegal to discuss Marijuana with your physician. Simply having a positive and honest conversation may cost him his license to practice medicine. He knows me, and he knows I use Cannabis to keep my seizures at bay, but he can’t discuss it with me. That first awkward conversation kind of went this,

Dr: If you won’t take hydrocodone then I don’t have anything else that won’t cause the same symptoms.

Me: I can’t work on hydrocodone, ergo, I won’t be able to make my house payment and take care of my children.

Dr: What do you want to do?

Me: I have been using Cannabis successfully for almost 1 year and I haven’t had a single seizure since I started.

Dr: Well, I am not allowed to respond. I would be more concerned about the consequences with getting caught. If you are concerned about providing for your family, then you should reconsider. If you are caught, then you won’t be able to make your house payment and take care of your children.

Me: With Hydrocodone, it’s a guarantee. Maybe – just maybe – I can continue to get away with this until it’s either legal, or I can afford to move to another state – or you find a cure for me.

Dr: I’m prohibited by law with discussing anything regarding Medical Marijuana with you. I would love to ask you a litany of questions including dosage, type of use, but understand, my hands are tied but I’m glad you found an herbal remedy to help control the seizures.

[Dudemaster, I'm hoping you can press your doctor as to what law he thinks he's breaking.  The Conant v. Walters decision made it clear that government cannot intrude on a doctor's First Amendment right to discuss any form of medical care with his patient.  Maybe he's got some clause in his contract with his clinic, hospital (he's not a VA doc, so the federal law doesn't apply), or malpractice insurance. --"R"R]

While surfing the web, I came across one of Dr. Phil Leveque’s posts (I love his posts) as he talks about the usefulness of Cannabis as it relates to Seizures. It simply confirms something I already knew, and many of you have learned, Marijuana can help control seizures.

Dr. Phil Leveque Salem-News.com

(MOLALLA, Ore.) – I must thank the Oregonian, even with my left hand. Thy supply me with medical marijuana stories I could not dream up by myself.

On June 17th 2009 they published that now EMT’s could inject anti-seizure drugs, which are valium type drugs Lorazepam and Midazolam which given soon enough will stop the seizure and save the life, into seizure victims without permission from anybody.

Well, yes, this is a good idea because seizures can be lethal and otherwise very dangerous for the powerful thrashing of the patient and helpers and bystanders. We have 50,000 + cases per year.

The Oregonian has been continually insidiously skeptical about medical marijuana despite the fact that Oregon has the MOST successful program in the U.S. with about 22 thousand patients using it successfully for every kind of disease they can think of which obviously isn’t many. Their snide remarks about “JUST GETTING HIGH” no longer has any validity. Besides that 3000 doctors in Oregon are signing applications – marijuana works very well for seizures.

Their SEIZURE remarks require positive debate and correction. All of the standard drugs are brain depressants. In other words they make a patient slow where good brain function is necessary.

Marijuana was discovered to be effective against seizures more than one hundred years ago and it doesn’t make victims feel stupid as do most anti-seizure drugs. One of the most important features of marijuana is that if the victim inhales the VAPOR or smoke the good effects are within seconds. This is very important.

All epilepsy/seizure patients will know before they have a seizure. There is a medical poem which tells them. The poem goes like this:

• The aura ———- Flashes of light
• The cry ———- Involuntary call
• The fall ———- They fall down
• The fit ———- They struggle
• The tonus ———- Stiff arms and legs
• The clonus ———- Flapping of arms and legs
• The p**s ———- Urination
• The s**t ———- Defecation

If the patient is using or uses marijuana with the Aura, it is likely they will not have the rest of the seizure.

Skeptics, like the Oregonian, will ask what is the proof of this benefit?

In Oregon about 600 seizure patients are using medical marijuana successfully. They are even willing to pay the State of Oregon and the marijuana clinics about $300 per year for the PRIVELEGE of using a medication which really works.

Let’s face it, the war on Marijuana in this country is a bloody war on the citizens of the United States, many of whom have nothing to do with Marijuana. They are simply caught in the cross fire of oppression and heavy handed tactics by unscrupulous law enforcement and run-away policies fueled by ignorant politicians who don’t really care about their own constituents.

On July 22, 2008 in Berwyn Heights, MD, the mayor of Berwyn Heights and his family were attacked by armed assailants, salaried by the sheriff’s office. They burst into their home, shot their two Labrador retrievers, Chase and Payton, even though these agents of the law knew this family had nothing to do with the Marijuana that was just delivered to their house by an overnight express company. It was part of a larger elaborate scheme they had been aware of for quite some time.

After the incident, the department investigated itself and not surprisingly, had found nothing wrong with breaking in a home that was not complicit with the marijuana deal, with guns drawn and shooting innocent family members. From their paradigm, it’s ethical, moral, and legal to break into someone’s home and shoot them.

On Monday, June 22, the mayor held a press conference and asked the federal government to intervene.

“They’ve said they’ve done nothing wrong,” Calvo said. “I didn’t sign up for this fight, but I think what we have to do now is make changes to how Prince George’s County police and Prince George’s County sheriff’s department operate.”

What happens when you catch a criminal outside of a TV store holding a television in his hand and a gun in his back pocket? He is going to say, “I didn’t do anything wrong”. These agents of the law are nothing more than a bunch of armed redneck wannabe criminals who enjoy busting into people’s houses and shooting their family members for the simple sake of a killer adrenaline rush.

Ronald Reagan said in a speech, “The nine most terrifying words in the English language are, ‘I’m from the government and I’m here to help.’” It’s unfortunate but the Mayor has learned a lesson; We live in a police state where our government, state & federal, are at war with American Citizens.

We live in a country where more than 800,000 citizens were arrested for simple Marijuana possession and more than 20,000,000 Americans toked up last year, and 60,000 people are in prisons in America on marijuana violations only. Politically speaking, more than 70% of the United States is in favor of legalized Medical Marijuana, while outright legalization is supported by more than 40% of the population!! One would believe the United States Government would be more responsive to the wants and needs of the American People and draft legislation approving and regulating a medical Marijuana program on the federal level. I suppose this would be the case if we lived in a free country.

Many of you may very well live in an area like me where the community leaders are adamantly against Marijuana in any form, including conversation. Last August, I wrote my congressman only to have three belligerent police officers knock on my door and threaten me with incarceration for writing his office. What would you do if three armed soldiers came to your door and ordered you to stop writing to your congressman asking for his support on a bill? [If you live in Texas like me, you comply or die; complaints aren't acknowledged.]

The oppression and condemnation against Cannabis users in the United States is based on bigotry and ignorance, at such a level that we generally only see in dictatorships or developing countries. For instance, look across the great pond of the Atlantic Ocean for a moment at Persia (Iran). The citizens of Iran had their election stolen by an tyrant, and when they take the streets to complain, they are beaten and shot by police. Doesn’t their plight sound similar to the plight of American cannabis users in this country? [When I typed the first draft of this blog, I gave it to a friend of mine who sits on the bench of a family court in Texas. He scoffed at my reference to the similarities between Iran and the United States, until I gave him the second draft; he is no longer laughing.]

In this long list below are just a few of the victims of the war on Cannabis, or rather, the War against American Citizens. I hope that you take the time to read each story, note the age and similarities between these people and you and your family. Anyone of these cases could have your name in them. If we, as a nation, don’t take action, then Armed American soldiers will come to your home, beat you, murder your children, lock you up in a cage, and then it will be too late.

Let’s do something about this right now. Take Action by Supporting NORML.

Support ANY organization that helps to stop the systematic murder and incarceration of Cannabis Users! Be brave, be bold, write your congressman, write your senator, write our nation’s new drug Czar, write your Governor, write the president, and most importantly, be safe. There are a number of ways that you can directly support NORML’s effective and longstanding law reform activities:

1.) Join and Support NORML/NORML Foundation
2.) Attorneys: Join NORML’s National Legal Committee
3.) Purchase a NORML-related Product
4.) Tired of anti-marijuana politicians? Consider donating to NORML’s Political Action Committee!

“We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can fly only by embracing each other.” -lucian de crescenzo

Derek Copp - shot by a cop serving a warrant for simple possession. Only little bit of Marijuana was found and Derek was lucky to survive.

John Adams - 64yrs – Shot to death during a SWAT drug raid while watching TV. The house didn’t match the description on the warrant.

Xavier Bennett - 8yrs old – Xavier was accidentally shot to death by officers in a pre-dawn drug raid during a gunfight with one of Xavier’s relatives.

Delbert Bonnar - 57yrs – Shot 8 times by police in drug raid. They were looking for his son.

Rudolfo “Rudy” Cardenas - 43yrs – Rudy was a father of five who was passing by a house targeted by narcotics officers attempting to serve a parole violation warrant and the police mistakenly thought he was the one they were there to arrest. They chased Cardenas, and he fled, apparently afraid of them (they were not uniformed). Cardenas was shot multiple times in the back. Dorothy Duckett, 78, told the Mercury News she looked out her fifth-floor window after hearing one gunshot and saw Cardenas pleading for his life. “I watched him running with his hands in the air. He kept saying, ‘Don’t shoot. Don’t shoot,’” Duckett said. “He had absolutely nothing in his hands.”

Jose Colon - 20yrs – Jose was outside the house where he had come to repay a $20 debt, when a drug raid on the house commenced. He was shot in the head by SWAT.

Troy Davis - 25yrs – During a no-knock raid to find some marijuana plants he was growing, he was shot to death in his living room. There are disputed accounts regarding whether he had a gun.

Anthony Andrew Diotaiuto - 23yrs – Anthony worked two jobs to help pay for the house he lived in with his mother. He had permit for a concealed weapon because of the areas he traveled through for his night job. Sunrise police claimed that he had sold some marijuana, and because they knew he had a legal gun, decided to use SWAT. Neighbors claim that the police did not identify themselves. Police first claimed that Anthony pointed his gun at them, and later changed their story. Regardless, Anthony was dead with 10 bullets in him, and the police found 2 ounces of marijuana.

Annie Rae Dixon - 84yrs – Bedridden with pneumonia during a drug raid. Officer kicked open her bedroom door and accidentally shot her.

Patrick Dorismond - Patrick was a security guard who wanted to become a policeman. He was off-duty and unarmed when he went out with friends. Standing on the street looking for a taxi, he was approached by undercover police who asked to buy some marijuana from him. Patrick was offended by the request (he didn’t use drugs), and a scuffle ensued. Dorismond was then shot to death by the police.

Shirley Dorsey - 56yrs – Rather than being compelled to testify against her 70-year-old boyfriend (Byron Stamate) for cultivating the medicinal cannabis she depended upon to help control her crippling back pain, Shirley Dorsey committed suicide. She saw it as the only way to prevent the forfeiture of their home and property. Despite her suicide, Stamate was sentenced to 9 months prison, and his home, cottage, and $177,000 life savings were seized.

Juan Mendoza Fernandez - 60yrs – Police found a variety of drugs when they raided the Fernandez’ home. However, Juan apparently believed he was the victim of burglars during the raid, and was shot while trying to protect his 11-year-old granddaughter. He and his wife had been married 36 years and had four children and 13 grandchildren.

Curt Ferryman - 24yrs – Undercover agents were attempting to arrest Ferryman, who was in his car and unarmed. A DEA agent walked up to his car and shot him in the head execution style as he sat in the car. No charges were ever filed.

Derek Hale - 25yrs – A medically retired (disabled) Marine Sergeant who served two tours in Iraq, was peacefully sitting on the front stoop of a house, when police in unmarked cars who had him under surveillance (believing based on his acquaintances that he might be part of a narcotics ring) pulled up and tasered him three times, causing him to go into convulsions and throw up. Because he had not gotten his hand free from his jacket quickly enough (while convulsing) an officer then shot him point blank in the chest with three .40 caliber rounds. Hale’s widow has filed a civil lawsuit.

Willie Heard - 46yrs – SWAT conducted a no-knock drug raid, complete with flash-bang grenades. Heard was shot to death in front of his wife and 16-year-old daughter who had cried for help. Fearing home invasion, he was holding an empty rifle. The raid was at the wrong house.

Clayton Helriggle - 23yrs – Clayton was shot to death while coming down the stairs during a surprise raid. He was carrying either a gun or a plastic cup, depending on the report. Less than an ounce of marijuana was found.

Esequiel Hernandez - 18yrs – Hernandez was shot and killed by a Marine sniper in camouflage who was part of a military unit conducting drug interdiction activities near the Mexican border. Esequiel was out herding his family’s goats and had taken a break to shoot at some tin cans with his antique rifle.

John Hirko - 21yrs – An unarmed man with no prior offenses was shot to death in his house by a squad of masked police. In a no-knock raid, they tossed a smoke grenade in through a window, setting the house on fire. Hirko, suspected of dealing small amounts of marijuana and cocaine, was found face down on his stairway, shot in the back while fleeing the burning building. When the fire was finally put out, officers found some marijuana seeds in an unsinged plastic bag. The Town of Bethlehem settled the resulting lawsuit for $7 million+ and an agreement to reform police department procedures and training.

Lynette Gayle Jackson - 29yrs – Shot to death in her bed by SWAT team.

Kathyrn Johnston - 88yrs – Kathryn lived in a rough neighborhood and a relative gave her a gun for protection. When she noticed men breaking through her security bars into her house she fired a shot into the ceiling. They were narcotics officers and fired 39 shots back, killing her. The police had falsified information in order to obtain a no-knock search warrant based on incorrect information from a dealer they had framed. After killing Johnson and realizing that she was completely innocent, they planted some marijuana in the basement. Eventually their stories fell apart federal and state investigations learned the truth. Additional facts have come to light that this was not an isolated incident in the Atlanta police department.

Officer Ron Jones - 29yrs – Officer Jones was in the process of serving a drug warrant, based on an informant tip. While trying to enter the rear of a duplex, he broke into the wrong apartment and was shot by the resident, Corey Maye, who had no prior record and was protecting his daughter. No drugs were found. Maye was charged with capital murder, and sentenced to death. Corey Maye was a Drug War Victim waiting to happen. Fortunately, his death sentence was eventually overturned and he is now serving life in prison.

Tony Martinez - 19yrs – Officers conducted a drug raid on a mobile home in De Valle. Martinez, who was not the target of the raid, was asleep on the couch when the raid commenced. Hearing the front door smashed open, he sat up, and was shot to death in the chest.

Peter McWilliams - 50yrs – Peter was a world-famous author and an advocate of medical marijuana, not only because he believed in it in principle, but because it was keeping him alive (he had AIDS and non-Hodgkins lymphoma). After California passed a law legalizing medical marijuana, Peter helped finance the efforts of Todd McCormick to cultivate marijuana for distribution to those who needed it for medical reasons. Federal agents got wind of his involvement, and Peter was a target for his advocacy. He was arrested, and in federal court was prevented from mentioning his medical condition or California’s law. While he was on bail awaiting sentencing, the prosecutors threatened to take away his mother’s house (used for bail) if he failed a drug test, so he stopped using the marijuana which controlled his nausea from the medications and allowed him to keep them down. He was found dead on the bathroom floor, choked to death on his own vomit.

Ismael Men a – 45yrs – Mena was killed when police barged into his house looking for drugs. They had the wrong address.

Pedro Oregon Navarro - 22yrs – Following up on a tip from a drug suspect, 6 officers crowded into a hallway outside Navarro’s bedroom. When the door opened, one officer shouted that he had a gun. Navarro’s gun was never fired, but officers fired 30 rounds, with 12 of them hitting Pedro. No drugs were found.

Cheryl Noel - 44yrs – Substitute Sunday School Teacher Cheryl Noel possessed a registered handgun, which she kept in her bedroom (9 years earlier, Cheryl has lost her 16-year-old stepdaughter in a shooting murder). On January 19, just before 5 am, police burst into her home using flash-bang grenade and battering ram looking for drugs. Both Cheryl and her husband were asleep in the master bedroom. Suddenly awake and fearing an armed intrusion, Cheryl grabbed her gun. Police kicked in the bedroom door and shot her 3 times.

Mario Paz - 65yrs – Mario was shot twice in the back in his bedroom during a SWAT raid looking for marijuana. No drugs were found.

Charmene Pickering - 27yrs – Charmene was a passenger in a car driven by a drug suspect. State troopers and DEA agents were in the process of arresting the driver when the trooper’s gun went off and hit Charmene in the neck, killing her. Both passenger and driver were unarmed.

Manuel Ramirez - and Officer Arthur P. Parga – At 2 am, police smashed down the door and rushed into the home of Manuel Ramirez, a retired golf course groundskeeper. Ramirez awoke, grabbed a pistol and shot and killed officer Arthur Parga before other officers killed him. Police were raiding the house based on a tip that drugs were on the premises, but they found no drugs.

Deputy Keith Ruiz - 36yrs – Ruiz was a husband and father who was a veteran of numerous SWAT raids. In the process of serving a drug warrant, he was trying to break down the door to a mobile home occupied by painter Edwin Delamora, his wife, and two young children. Confused by the raid at night, Delamora yelled to his wife that they were being robbed and shot through the door, killing Ruiz.

Donald P. Scott - 61yrs – Government agencies were interested in the property of this reclusive millionaire. A warrant was issued based on concocted “evidence” of supposed marijuana plantings, and a major raid was conducted with a 32-man assault team. Scott was shot to death in front of his wife. No drugs were found. A later official report found: “It is the District Attorney’s opinion that the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department was motivated, at least in part, by a desire to seize and forfeit the ranch for the government. Based in part upon the possibility of forfeiture, Spencer obtained a search warrant that was not supported by probable cause. This search warrant became Donald Scott’s death warrant.”

Alberto Sepulveda - 11yrs – Alberto was killed by a shotgun blast to the back while following police orders and lying face down on the floor during a SWAT raid. He was a seventh-grader at Prescott Senior Elementary School.

Isaac Singletary - 80yrs – Isaac lived in a rough neighborhood and often brought out his gun to chase off drug dealers. So when he saw a couple of low-lifes conducting transactions on his lawn, he came out with it again and told them to get off his property. Except they were undercover narcotics officers so they shot him. Isaac managed to get a shot or two off in response, but the officers were able to finish him off.

Gary Shepherd - 45yrs – When a Kentucky drug task force came to uproot his marijuana plants in August 1993, pot-grower and Vietnam vet Gary Shepherd told them, “You will have to kill me first,” took out his rifle and sat down on his front porch. That evening he was shot dead in front of his infant son. Despite the fact that Shepherd never fired a shot and his family was pleading with authorities for negotiations, state police sharpshooters appeared from the brush without warning and opened fire when he refused to drop his rifle.

Alberta Spruill - 57yrs – Police, acting on a tip, forced their way into Spruill’s home, setting off flash grenades. She suffered a heart attack and died. It was the wrong address.

Ashley Villareal - 14yrs – Ashley went outside at night with a family friend to move their freshly washed car under shelter. DEA agents, interested in her father, were staking out the house, and believing that her father was driving, shot and killed Ashley. The agents did not have a warrant for her father. Read The Murder of Ashley.

Kenneth B. Walker  - 39yrs – Walker and three companions were pulled over in an SUV by police in a drug investigation. No drugs or weapons were found, but Walker was shot in the head. Walker was a devoted husband and father, a respected member of his church, and a 15-year middle-management employee of Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Deputy David Glisson, who killed Walker, was fired three months later for failing to cooperate in an investigation into the assassination, but was never charged.

Accelyne Williams - 75yrs – Accelyne was a retired Methodist Minister and substance abuse counselor. After an informant gave police a bad address, a SWAT raid was conducted on the minster’s home. The door was battered down, Williams was tackled to the floor and his hands tied behind his back. He died of a heart attack.

Tarika Wilson - 26yrs – Tarika was a single mother of six. Lima police executed a SWAT raid with guns drawn to arrest her boyfriend on small-time drug dealing charges. Officer Joseph Chavalia was upstairs when the sound of the other officers shooting Wilson’s dogs downstairs startled him. He killed Tarika in an execution style shooting, who was unarmed, on her knees, holding her 14-month-old son and complying with orders to get down on the floor (her son was shot twice but survived). Chavalia was cleared of any wrong-doing.

The Honorable Congressman, Dr. Ron Paul (R-TX), is one of my favorite politicians. Although I don’t always agree with him, he speaks only the truth. He wrote this article for the Free Liberal, and it is quite profound.

Moving Towards Tobacco Prohibition

Last week, another bill was passed and signed into law that takes more of our freedoms and violates the Constitution of the United States. It was, of course, done for the sake of the children, and in the name of the health of the citizenry. It’s always the case that when your liberty is seized, it is seized for your own good. Such is the condescension of Washington.

The Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act will give sweeping new powers over tobacco to the FDA. It will require everyone engaged in manufacturing, preparing, compounding, or processing tobacco to register with the FDA and be subjected to FDA inspections, which is yet another violation of the Fourth Amendment. It violates the First Amendment by allowing the FDA to restrict tobacco advertising in multiple ways, as well as an outright ban on advertising any cigarettes as light, mild or low-tar. The FDA will have the power of pre-market reviews of all new tobacco products, and will impose new user fees, meaning taxes, on manufacturers and importers of tobacco products. It will even regulate the amount of nicotine in cigarettes.

My objections to the bill are not an endorsement of tobacco. As a physician I understand the adverse health effects of this bad habit. And that is exactly how smoking should be treated – as a bad habit and a personal choice. The way to combat poor choices is through education and information. Other than ensuring that tobacco companies do not engage in force or fraud to market their products, the federal government needs to stay out of the health habits of free people. Regulations for children should be at the state level. Unfortunately, government is using its already overly intrusive financial and regulatory roles in healthcare to establish a justifiable interest in intervening in your personal lifestyle choices as well. We all need to anticipate the level of health freedom that will remain once government manages all health care in this country.

Actions in Congress such as this tobacco bill are especially disconcerting after we thought we were beginning to see some progress in drawing down the wrong-headed and failed war on drugs. A majority of Americans now think marijuana should be legal, taxed and regulated, according to a recent Zogby poll and over 70 percent are in favor of allowing medicinal use of marijuana. Bills like this take us down exactly the wrong path. Instead of gaining more freedom with marijuana, we are moving closer to prohibiting tobacco. Our prisons are already bursting with non-violent drug offenders. How long will it be before a black market in tobacco fills the prisons with non-violent cigarette smokers?

Hemp and tobacco were staple crops for our founding fathers when our country was new. It is baffling to see how far removed from real freedom this country has become since then. Hemp, even for industrial uses, of which there are many, is illegal to grow at all. Now tobacco will have more layers of bureaucracy and interference piled on top of it. In this economy it is extremely upsetting to see this additional squeeze put on an entire industry. One has to wonder how many smaller farmers will be forced out of business because of this bill.

Let’s see if we can cast a shadow over this new reefer madness story, “Cannabis alters human DNA“.

A scientific study was recently conducted to prove some harmful use of Cannabis. The group focused their study specifically around ONE carcinogenic called Acetaldehyde which may or may not be found in burning cannabis and at unknown levels.

Acetaldehyde is an organic chemical compound and can be found in coco, coffee, fruit, wheat, (bread), and is produced by plants as part of their normal metabolism.

Acetaldehyde is toxic when applied externally for prolonged periods, an irritant, and a probable carcinogen. So what’s the big deal? It’s in my coffee, my sandwich, and my apple! It’s a naturally occurring substance. The study group claims that Cannabis has a measurable amount of Acetaldehyde inside of the smoke; and hergo, you inhale the smoke then you inhale Acetaldehyde.

What the group doesn’t tell you is that even higher levels of Acetaldehyde can be found in the air in cities around the world, and even in your own home. Are they suggesting we stop breathing? Of course not, the study was focused specifically on Marijuana and nothing else. Therefore, it’s a study taken completely out of context from the rest of the world.

Let’s put this into perspective; If you knew only the horrors of Sugar and none of the benefits, then if you were like me, would you choose to eliminate sugar from your diet entirely. The same can be said with anything that is good for you.

What really brings their study into question is this next statement:

“The smoking of 3-4 cannabis cigarettes a day is associated with the same degree of damage to bronchial mucus membranes as 20 or more tobacco cigarettes a day,” the team adds.

This last sentence demonstrates this group’s real agenda. You see, their claim is in the face of real scientific research. Just recently, UCLA pulmonologist Dr. Donald Tashkin, who has studied marijuana’s effects on the lungs for three decades, studied heavy marijuana smokers to determine whether the use led to increased risk of lung cancer and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD.

“What we found instead was no association and even a suggestion of some protective effect,” says Tashkin, whose research was the largest case-control study ever conducted. The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Tobacco smokers in the study had as much as a 21-fold increase in lung cancer risk. Cigarette smokers, too, developed COPD more often in the study, and researchers found that marijuana did not impair lung function.

Tashkin, supported by other research, concluded that the active ingredient tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, has an “anti-tumoral effect” in which “cells die earlier before they age enough to develop mutations that might lead to lung cancer.”

However, the smoke from marijuana did swell the airways and lead to a greater risk of chronic bronchitis.

“Early on, when our research appeared as if there would be a negative impact on lung health, I was opposed to legalization because I thought it would lead to increased use and that would lead to increased health effects,” Tashkin says. “But at this point, I’d be in favor of legalization. I wouldn’t encourage anybody to smoke any substances. But I don’t think it should be stigmatized as an illegal substance. Tobacco smoking causes far more harm. And in terms of an intoxicant, alcohol causes far more harm.”

This is just another reefer madness claim disseminated at the coattails of those in England who continue to sing the reefer madness song against the popular “Skunk” Marijuana. Between the lines of words, you’ll find a system that has recently propped Marijuana back up from a lower scheduled narcotic to a more serious level thus instituting more serious punishment against the citizens of Great Britain and they need a reason to keep it there. This study, along with other bogus blogs and stories will likely be used in Parliament as points of the argument.

Even after the mounting evidence that suggests this story is bogus, if you are still concerned about the carcinogenic Acetaldehyde; then vaporize and bake some cookies instead — and avoid my ham and swiss sandwich.

Back in March, 20 year old Acea Schomaker stuffed a cat into a bong and smoked it. The cat lived, and Acea was fined. Well, he finds himself in trouble with the law once more.

LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) – A young Lincoln man who acknowledged putting a hyper kitten in a homemade bong to calm it with marijuana smoke has been ticketed again on a pot charge.

Lincoln police say 20-year-old Acea (ACE-ah) Schomaker (SHOE-maker) also was cited for being a minor in possession of alcohol.

Police Capt. David Beggs say Schomaker was ticketed by officers who were called to a disturbance Saturday night. They took Schomaker to be Cornhusker Place Detox.

Beggs says officers found 1.7 grams of suspected marijuana in a plastic bag in 1 of Schomaker’s pockets.

In March, after his first brush with notoriety in the bong cat incident, Schomaker told The Associated Press that he was swearing off marijuana.

Pot doesn’t make you stupid, but some people are just too stupid to smoke pot.