Rep. Michael C. Burgess (R-TX) on Marijuana Law Reform

Thank you for contacting me regarding marijuana legislation that is pending in the United States House of Representatives. I appreciate hearing from you on this important matter. 

The United Slates is fighting a costly war against drugs-in term or 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 dhug 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.

And this note from the letter writter / Stasher being “represented” by Michael C. Burgess:

I wrote a nice letter to my Congressional Representative, Michael Burgess, asking him to support positive Marijuana legislation. As a recently retired and disabled veteran from the Gulf War (among many other campaigns I fought in during my 21 years with the U.S. Military), it is my right to contact my congressman. Unfortunately, Representative Burgess doesn’t see it that way. (I included his response attached to this Email)

Within 3 hours of faxing a letter and calling Mr. Burgess’ office in DC, I had a visit from 3 police officers who drove to my house from my local municipal police department of Flower Mound. They informed me that harassing my congressman was a crime, and that if I didn’t cease from contacting him ever again, they would arrest me.

1 nice letter, and one nice phone call to our congressman = Arrest and incarceration.

This America is the land of the brave, but NOT the land of the free. We are not free to contact our elected representatives any longer, it isn’t a ‘right’ (according to the Flower Mound police department and subsequent calls to Burgess’ office ). I mailed a letter to Nancy Pelosi’s office explaining what had occurred and provided the letter I had written to the congressman. The police department flatly refused to give me a copy of the police report (I suspect there was never one generated), and the police chief flatly refused to even talk to me, but I was warned by the dispatcher who was attending the desk that if I perused the issue, I would find myself on the wrong side of jail bars very quickly. That’s “Texas Politics”…… The winners pat each other on the back and threaten incarceration for those who disagree.

As a disabled and retired Veteran, I am truly ASHAMED of my country and what is has become. I’m not even a pot smoker, I just believe in the rights, freedoms, and liberties of all Americans and happen to believe that Marijuana should be as freely available as cigarettes and alcohol.

Here’s the “harrassment” Rep. Burgess suffered:

To the Honorable Michael Burgess, MD, United States House of Representatives,

I served more than 20 years for the United States Navy in many capacities and in many conflicts. I am a veteran of the Persian Gulf War; I served time in Bosnia during the ethnic cleansing defending ethnic Albanians; I served in Panama during operation Just Cause and I was ultimately found unfit for duty and was required to retire after a serious injury in the War in Iraq. I served 20 years away from home, sacrificing my marriage & my children fighting for the rights and for the freedoms which I desired to experience upon my return in 2007. Upon my return, I have been disappointed by the illusion of freedom. The age old disagreement that freedom in the United States of America has been lost to corporate mongers and a dispassionate government is true.

It is my sincere hope that I did not serve in vein. It is my prayer that 27 of the closest friends whom I have served with did not die for a lie. You can make a difference because you are serving my district. As my representative, I implore you to take my message to congress and be honorable, be courageous, and be a leader among men in a nation filled with ignorance. I’m writing today to urge your support for H.R. 5843, an “Act to Remove Federal Penalties for Personal Use of Marijuana by Responsible Adults,” which seeks to eliminate federal penalties for the possession and non-for-profit distribution of small amounts of cannabis.

Specifically, the bill would eliminate federal penalties prohibiting the personal use and possession of up to 100 grams (3 1/2 ounces) of marijuana, and for the not-for-profit transfers of up to one ounce of cannabis. This common sense change will ensure that adults who possess small quantities of cannabis for their own personal use will no longer be subject to arrest or prosecution, or the emotional, social, and financial hardships that follow.

Otherwise law-abiding citizens who use marijuana responsibly are not part of the crime problem, and we must stop treating them like criminals. In 2006, the last year for which national data is available, law enforcement arrested over 829,000 persons for marijuana violations – the highest annual total ever recorded. Of those arrested, approximately 90 percent were charged with minor marijuana possession only.

Seldom emphasized penalties associated with a minor marijuana conviction include probation and mandatory drug testing, loss of employment, loss of child custody, removal from subsidized housing, asset forfeiture, loss of student aid, loss of voting privileges, loss of adoption rights, and the loss of certain federal welfare benefits such as food stamps. Thousands of Americans suffer such sanctions every day – at a rate of one person every 38 seconds. Surely, our limited law enforcement r resources would be better served targeting more serious and violent crimes.

On this latter point, most Americans agree. Marijuana decriminalization currently enjoys support from the majority of Americans. According to a CNN/Time Magazine poll, 76% of US citizens favor a fine over criminal penalties for the possession of marijuana. In fact, twelve states – representing one third of the population of the United States – have already enacted various forms of marijuana decriminalization, eliminating criminal sanctions for cannabis possession. Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts are currently considering similar options.

I have a very conservative friend who is Harvard educated (military JAG) judge. During a recent lunch, we had this same conversation and he asked me, “What would our four fathers think of this situation today? I believe they would roll over in their graves”. He was unaware that he had swallowed the lie just like every other American. It is a fact that several drafts of the constitution were written on hemp paper grown on a hemp plantation similar to Thomas Jefferson’s and manufactured in Benjamin Franklin’s hemp paper mill. It was a flourishing crop in the United States until the 1930’s. As chronicled in Thomas Jefferson’s diaries, he had suggested to George Washington that he kill all of the male plants to make a stronger and better hemp crop. Quoted in Thomas Jefferson’s memoires, “Some of my finest hours have been spent on my back veranda, smoking hemp and observing as far as my eye can see.” – Thomas Jefferson 1781.

The real criminal behind this prohibition is Andrew Mellon who Hoover’s Secretary of the Treasury and DuPont’s primary investor. He appointed his nephew-in-law, Harry Anslinger, to head the Federal Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. DuPont had an agenda, destroy hemp and increase DuPont’s petrochemical based profits. They renamed the plant from Hemp to Marihuana subsequently confusing the American public. Back then, farmers typically grew hemp and knew what hemp was, but were unaware of Marihuana. The (mostly uneducated back then) American public was duped into believing that Marihuana was bad. The rest is history.

Hemp has unlimited uses! Simply look at Henry Ford’s first vehicles; they were designed to run on hemp like fuel similar to Hempoline. This product could even completely replace our foreign dependence on oil. “Hemp is of first necessity to the wealth & protection of the country.” -Thomas Jefferson

If the prohibition on hemp was finally lifted, we could help improve our economy, reduce our dependence on foreign oil, increase our tax base, create a new industry, and remove the criminal element from this product. As a leader among nations, America should be leading the charge! The most difficult opponent to this bill is the DEA and those supporters of the DEA in the capital. They confiscate homes, cars, property and auction them for profit! They will use every vehicle at their disposal to oppose this bill and intimidate anyone in the capital who opposes them. I know because I worked with DEA for more than half of my military career.

Everything I stated above is simple “FACT”. You don’t have to like it, but to ignore these facts is simpleton ignorance. I’m not advocating the decriminalization of drugs, quite the opposite. It is my opinion that we reallocate the funds we spend on ‘fighting’ Marijuana (hemp) to fighting the real fight on real narcotics. If we did not have to allocate funds to fight Marijuana offenders, we could make room in our prisons and institute longer mandatory minimums for Heroin, Cocaine, Meth, and other “killer” and “violent” drugs. We would be able to make a much larger and much more positive impact on the real drug issues of this country. I’m simply advocating the removal of the prohibition of Marijuana. Remove it from the hands of those like Al Capone, and place it in the distribution hands deemed appropriate by each state similar to alcohol.

Once again, I urge you to support the passage of H.R. 5843. It is a common sense approach that will refocus law enforcement resources on fighting violent and more serious crimes. Please support H.R. 5843 and stop arresting responsible adult marijuana consumers.

Very respectfully,

[name redacted]
United States Navy, Disabled Combat Veteran of 20 years, Retired