Category Archives: drug war

Zero to Hero-Day (16)- 17: Focusing on Formatting

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Oh well, I still haven’t come up with anything to say about the assignment for Day 16 (prompt: reputation). So I never did write a post on the subject.

Reading the assignment for Day 17, I have already looked at quite a few of other Zero to Hero participants and commented on some of their posts. I really enjoyed reading some of the very different takes on that one subject. It sure brings to the forefront the beauty of blogging, that even tho we are all here and all doing pretty much the same thing, there is still SO much variety! 🙂

OK, since I didn’t do a post on the prompt, I am going to write a post today about something else. 😉

And, to follow along with the challenge, I will use 2 (or more) of the suggested formatting tools (“block quotes, preformatting, or an ordered or unordered list”).

I'm not really sure what is meant by 'preformatting'. 
So I guess I'll just write a little bit til I can see what happens.

Here we go. It doesn't really seem to do much of anything. Changes the 
font and looks like it cuts off the space I can write in a little bit. 
Also makes a black space around my writing while I have the 'preformatted'
box checked.

OK, so that’s that. I learned something new. 🙂

Since today is a holiday here in the US, it’s Martin Luther King Jr Day, I thought I would share some of my favorite quotes of his. Also using the ‘blockquotes’ formatting tool.

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Freedom is never voluntarily given by the oppressor; it must be demanded by the oppressed.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

When you are right you cannot be too radical; when you are wrong, you cannot be too conservative.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

I really like all 3 of those quotes. I have always been a fierce believer in freedom in all its forms and hold the fact that our governments entire purpose is to uphold individual liberty as our greatest accomplishment here in the USA.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.–That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed,…

Declaration of Independence

I am SO sad to see what has been happening here in the last few years.

What happened to all those people who were around back when Martin Luther King Jr was out protesting against the wrongs of society? Why aren’t those people STILL trying???

Things have surely NOT been fixed! Obama is NOT the answer.

I was pretty young back in the 60’s when Martin Luther King Jr was around in person, but I read a lot. I read a lot of history and politics and social studies, etc. I think people were trying to create a more free, more just, more peaceful and prosperous society.

WTF happened??? The people who were protesting back then are the ones in power now. People like the Clintons for instance. They grew up and now they are the ones upholding all the same old crap they used to fight so hard against! 🙁

Things like…

  1. the War on (some) Drugs
  2. (Unjust) Foreign Wars
  3. Big Government
  4. Big Business
  5. The SYSTEM

It makes me sad to see how many people just don’t get any of the things I try to bring to their attention. Things like why it’s so bad that we have given up our freedom and liberty for the TSA, NSA, NDAA, PATRIOT ACT, FACTA, etc, etc, etc. Never-ending big government information gathering and CONTROL of every tiny little aspect of life here in this ONCE free country.

I just don’t understand how a once free people (and we were SO much more free even when I was a kid) can give up so much and not even seem to care. Most people I talk to think it’s somehow a GOOD thing.

Have they never read or seen George Orwells 1984? or Animal Farm? Or any of the numerous other books describing how power ALWAYS corrupts? Or how lack of privacy (spy programs) turns society into a dreary, bleak, isolated, sad, destructive, sick mess that eventually sucks dry every bit of human decency, compassion and creativity?

I wonder what will it take? What will have to happen for people to WAKE UP and take back THEIR lives and their freedoms? I sure don’t know but I hope with all my heart and soul it will happen soon, before we have to go through another total collapse of civilization.

We ARE all in the same boat together. We only have one planet (unless we can hurry the hell up and get ourselves to Mars PDQ)! It’s a global civilization now and for better or worse, we do all influence each other now in numerous ways. I hope I can be a force on the side of peace and freedom.

I hope this blog can help. 🙂

Frog in Hot Water

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The Tribal Mentality.

tribalmentality

Here’s another excellent article from The Dollar Vigilante. It was written by Latin America Editor Adil Elias (check the link, you can read it in English or Spanish). I’ve subscribed to TDV for a while now and I always enjoy reading their articles. I like to hear from all of their writers and enjoy hearing about their adventures.

Sometimes reading a post makes me laugh, sometimes it makes me cry (seriously), sometimes it infuriates me, but it always holds my attention and makes me think.

It usually makes me think about how the HELL did we allow our freedom to disappear? Yes, the foreigners still flock here, they believe our propaganda. And yes, we are better off and more free here than if we lived in Somalia or North Korea. But we have lost SO MUCH. We were once the envy of the world. Now, not so much. 🙁

I know what’s happening, it’s like the story about the frog in a pot of boiling water. Throw him in when the waters at room temperature and he’s just fine with it. Turn up the heat very gradually and by the time the water’s hot enough to concern him, it’s too late and we have frog legs for dinner.

That is exactly what has been going on here in America with regards to our freedom. I know in some ways our freedom has been increasing. I can say that about communications for example. In lots of ways, things have improved in the last 100 years. We have telephone, fax, mobile phones, TV, computers, and internet.

All of those things have given us so many choices and improved our lives. Those things have increased our personal liberty. But that same technology is also being used against us in a lot of different ways.

Most people paid no attention to the fact that the US government has been increasingly violating our privacy. Edward Snowden took huge risks to break the news (again, since nobody paid attention any of the other times these spy programs have been reported).

No one had any major problem with the FBI wiretapping criminals, but now the ‘authorities’ capture EVERY SINGLE PHONE CALL from EVERY SINGLE ONE OF US! Same with everything you ever do or ever have done online. Same with tracking everywhere you go and everything you do. Everything you buy and everything you read. What you do at home and who you do it with.

We are living in a world to rival the worst nightmares of George Orwell and Franz Kafka. Yes, seriously! We have the technology, the money and the means to allow ‘our’ leaders to transgress against us in the most invasive ways.

1984 was supposed to be a WARNING, not a road map!!!

Our ‘leaders’ have decided it’s right and proper that they spy on EVERYTHING WE EVER SAY OR DO or even THINK! They are even collecting our DNA!! Of course, it’s all for our ‘own good’.

Really?

And do you REALLY want to live in a society where the people ‘in charge’ have access to all that information? To be used for any purpose they desire, to sell it to whoever they feel like, or to use it against us? The way I look at it, it is OUR information, it belongs to US and I did NOT give permission for anyone to use ANY of my information other than the people I specifically give it to.

I do NOT want my location tracked with cameras in every store, bank, street corner, and public place, cel phone triangulation programs and RFID chips! I do NOT want red light cameras, toll booths, license plate scanners, and black boxes (now required to be installed in all new vehicles) tracking every trip I make!

I do NOT want every conversation I make, every comment and keystroke I make, every item I buy, every person I associate with, every book I read, every club I join, every show I watch, etc. recorded and stored for all time!

I do NOT want my medical records spread about the internet for anyone to see, just because some kid with a bug up his ass wants to pay me back. I do NOT want my credit screwed up for years because (even) one bad apple in any of the dozens of companies I deal with abuses my social security number!

I do NOT want to live in a society where people have to think about ANY of these things going in in their lives. I could not call anyplace that did that kind of thing a civilization, it is the complete opposite of a civilized society!

I do NOT want to live in a place where people censor themselves and live in fear of being caught out, violated, spied on and blackmailed over any little thing. That IS what happens when people have no respect for personal privacy. Look at the historical record.

Take a good look at Nazi Germany. Take a good look at the Soviet Union. Take a good look at the Chinese and their Great Leap Forward. There are many, many examples.

I hope you’ll read the article in the link. I really can’t do it justice. I hope you’ll think about what he says about the organization of society and the way our ‘leaders’ function. I hope more and more and more people will think it over and decide to take back their lives and their freedoms from the power hungry thugs who somehow have managed to take over almost the entire world.

We will never have a decent world until we deal with these people. We all deserve to live in a world of peace, prosperity and freedom. I see some signs of change. The internet is a huge help in spreading the word, that YES, it IS possible! Let’s make it happen!!!

Here’s to a new awakening in the new year!

23 Petty Crimes That Have Landed People in Prison for Life Without Parole

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23 Petty Crimes That Have Landed People in Prison for Life Without Parole | Mother Jones.

I just read this article from Josh Harkinson for Mother Jones and I thought it was worth passing along. It’s informing readers of a new report put out by the American Civil Liberties Union (www.aclu.org).

In this “land of the free”, we now think it’s just fine and dandy to lock people up for LIFE WITHOUT PAROLE for things like…

POSSESSING a crack pipe!

POSSESSING stolen WRENCHES!!

Shoplifting 2 jerseys from an athletics store!!!

How in the HELL can anyone justify this??? I only listed 3 of the insane things they have been doing to people lately.

Try taking a look at the book: Three Felonies A Day by Harvey Silverglate (http://harveysilverglate.com/Books/ThreeFeloniesaDay.aspx). The list is long and getting longer every day. Piss off a cop and don’t have big bucks for a good lawyer, you ARE going to spend some time in jail! I keep telling people we live in a police state now and no one ever believes me.

Well WTF do YOU call it when they will lock you up for LIFE for something as minor as ‘siphoning gas from a truck’ or OMG ‘making a drunken threat to a police officer while handcuffed to the back of a police car”???

This is where we’re at today. Most of it is because of the war on (some) drugs. Look at the list they provide, TEN out of the 23 listed ‘offenses’ are drug offenses. Six out of those 10 are for simple POSSESSION! I don’t see where simple possession of ANYTHING should be allowed to deprive someone of their liberty for even one second! Much less lock them away for LIFE.

THIS is what the war on (some) drugs has done to our once free country! It has done the same thing that alcohol prohibition started to do, but so much worse since for some odd reason we still haven’t awoken to the brainwashing ‘our’ leaders have subjected us to.

Just like during alcohol prohibition, the drugs of choice of many people were outlawed by moralistic busybodies who had NO authority to do so. Instead of minding their OWN business, they decided they just HAD to run everybody ELSE’S life since they knew SO much better how to do it. (idiots!!!)

Because of the LAW, the drugs people wanted became harder to find. Because they were harder to find, some people (‘criminals’) found ways to supply them (for a profit of course- why take a risk without a reward?). The harder the ‘law’ made it to find their drug of choice, the more profitable it became for people to supply it. Because of the risk of going around the ‘law’, the profits grew.

Profits grew til it was worth it for the REAL criminal gangs to get involved and take over those profits. The only way to settle disputes outside the legal system was to take it to the streets. Thus, the machine gun shootouts where innocent people got killed in the crossfire.

The risk of getting caught with the prohibited items (beer/wine/booze) also caused a change in peoples drinking habits. Because beer was easier for the cops to find (basically because it was stored in bigger bottles), people started switching to hard liquor which was easier to smuggle and keep hidden. This was also why you hear stories of people blinded by ‘bathtub gin’. People had to take risks to get their supply.

The SAME thing is happening now, more people started using cocaine since it was easier to get busted with pot. Cocaine was processed into crack since crack was a less risky (from the perspective of getting caught with it) form of the drug. People started switching to things like meth and now they’ve created ‘krocodile’ , a truly dangerous drug (IF news reports can be believed).

And don’t forget how the spread of mandatory drug testing has caused people to switch from marijuana to harder, more dangerous drugs since pot stays in your system for much longer (even tho it has ZERO effect on you after the first day or so).

The invention of krocodile (and other dangerous drugs) is a DIRECT consequence of the WAR on (some) drugs! All those suffering people rotting from the inside out should place the blame squarely on the pandering power hungry THUGS we call politicians for trying to stop them from getting high every once in a while on a SAFE drug like marijuana and so instead they use dangerous drugs like krocodile!

No, I am NOT trying to say that people have no responsibility for their own actions. Of course they should have it. They should be ALLOWED to have it. They should be ALLOWED to make the proper choices for THEIR lives without force and coercion.

Telling people you are going to make their choices for them, for ‘their own good’ is NOT good for them or for anybody else! And if YOU are making THEIR choices for them, then how in the hell can you say they have any real responsibility?

Of course, throughout this whole ‘experiment’ of government ‘for our own good’, the criminals were making money hand over fist. To make sure they stayed out of jail, they bribed and corrupted anyone susceptible in the system to protect them, to look the other way. Ruining our police, courts and any semblance of justice.

Another way our country was hurt by the ‘laws’ against (some) drugs was the loss of general consensus that the law was worthy of respect. HUGE numbers of people came to understand that the ‘law’ was morally wrong and just plain STUPID in addition to being exceedingly harmful to individuals and society as a whole.

The ONLY difference we are dealing with today is that we are too stupid to learn the lessons we SHOULD have from alcohol prohibition! We somehow allowed ‘our’ leaders to prohibit certain other substances. They didn’t even bother to do it legally this time. They thought they could sneak it by us in congress without any real debate and no constitutional amendment (thus NO AUTHORITY)!

The results are as expected. Worse, since we have let it go on for so long. We have not only locked up more people per capita than any other country on the face of the earth, but we have used the excuse of the war on (some) drugs to completely trash the entire constitution!

The ONLY amendment in the Bill of Rights that we have NOT thrown out the window in order to prosecute the war on (some) drugs is the one about quartering troops in your house.

Thanks to Mother Jones and the ACLU for publicizing this issue. I hope it goes viral. My post here is my attempt to help with that. I REALLY hope people will start looking at the FACTS about drugs (all drugs) and STOP being so gullible to just believe what ‘our’ leaders are spouting out.

If you haven’t figured it out by now, they do NOT have our good in mind, they are only out for themselves! They are NOT authorities, they do NOT have any special knowledge! They are politicians, therefore they are all LIARS!

4 On Your Side investigates traffic stop nightmare

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4 On Your Side investigates traffic stop nightmare | KOB.com.

Can you believe this????

You really better pay attention, this IS coming to YOUR town (if it hasn’t already). THIS is the kind of sick shit that is happening more and more every day in the land of the once free. 🙁

Everyone involved in this ‘case’ ought to have the shit sued out of them! They ought to be sent to prison for the rest of their lives! They should be sentenced to intense forms of humiliation to be performed on them EVERY SINGLE DAY for the rest of their lives for what they did to this man!

If you can’t see what the War on (some) Drugs is doing to this country, then you are just willingly blinding yourself! It’s LONG past time we put a stop to all this pure, unadulterated BULLSHIT!

There is NO excuse for these violations of our freedoms. NO DRUG could EVER be worth even the slightest bit of ANY violation of our freedoms, PERIOD! And just in case you can’t figure it out on your own, our freedoms DO include the RIGHT to possess, use and abuse ANY drug we choose!

I only WISH I had the head of the DEA in front of me right now! THAT entire agency should ALSO have to go through the same punishment I would give to the people I earlier mentioned. After all, everyone in the DEA is ALSO implicated in this case and every other case of abuse of the power of government involving the ridiculous excuse of the drug war!

It is ONLY when and if we violate the rights of some other PERSON that ANY kind of wrong has been done and so therefore that is the ONLY time society or any part of it has any damn thing to say about our RIGHT to make those choices.

I say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!

Where Does Facebook Stop and the NSA Begin?

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Where Does Facebook Stop and the NSA Begin? | Mother Jones.

Here’s another article re: the NSA. It goes right along with the one I posted yesterday (and my related rant about it). In case anyone did not realize it, it’s not only the NSA that is spying on us. As this article points out, pretty much EVERYONE is spying on us.

Facebook is just one corporation that is in cahoots with the federal government to suck up our personal information and use it (against us) for their benefit. Apparently Facebook has some kind of deal with the feds to just hand it right on over, no warrant required.

I really don’t like the fact that my information, that I am just hoping certain people to see will be collected by some giant corporation and then sold to the feds. This way the government can get around the constitution (not really- but they hope we’ll fall for it) and steal all our information without going through the bother of obeying the LAW (the constitution) and having something specific enough to look for that they can ask for and get a warrant!

Yeah, I know that when I post to Facebook everybody in the world can look at it if they want. I’m hoping that people that I know, or people with similar interests will stop by my page and join in the conversation. I’m NOT really trying to send it directly to some government goon with nothing better to do than spend his entire career illegally spying on people!

You question my calling it “illegal spying”? I call it that because they do NOT have any probable cause to look at anything I do! They do not have any warrant! ANY time the government looks at ANYTHING to do with you without probable cause and a warrant IS illegal under the constitutions 4th and 5th amendments (and others)!

I just can NOT understand why more people aren’t up in arms over this. People really don’t give a damn about the daily violations and constant erosion of their freedom. WHY? Can anybody explain this total apathy? Have Americans been THAT brainwashed, THAT terrified by their government as to allow anything and everything that same government wants to do as long as they say it’s ‘for our own good’? 🙁

Yeah, I guess Facebook might be classified as a ‘public’ space, but who says the government can sneak up and eavesdrop on a conversation you’re having among friends in the park??

It’s really the same thing.

ALL human beings have a RIGHT to privacy! It’s a basic necessity for any civilized society.

The US government was formed ONLY to PROTECT those rights we already had just because we are human beings! WHEN are people going to realize that the government is NOT doing ANY of this stuff for our own good but only for THEIR own good?

WTF is it going to take to get people to say ENOUGH IS ENOUGH?????

The NSA Review Panel Is An Even Bigger Joke Than We Previously Thought

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The NSA Review Panel Is An Even Bigger Joke Than We Previously Thought | TechCrunch.

Surprise, surprise, surprise… NOT! Did anyone really think they would do the right thing? Anybody seriously think they would stop their illegal, unconstitutional activities? Anybody actually think they would give up their chance to spy on everything and everybody in the entire world???

Just because they got caught? REALLY???

Anybody who really thought they might, just might do the right thing just because they got caught with their pants down has no inkling of how ‘our’ government really works these days.

We had just better face it, until and unless WE put a stop to this crap, they are just going to find another way to get what they want. What they want is total control over you, me, EVERYTHING and EVERYBODY in the USA (and the world if they can find a way)!

They’re well on their way to accomplishing this sick goal of theirs. They got the PATRIOT Act passed which violated every amendment of the constitution but the one about quartering troops in your home. Then they keep trying to scare the crap out of everyone so they can keep it up. Constant threats we need them to violate our freedoms to protect us from, yeah riiiiiighhhht.

Obamacare is their latest scam and a pretty good jump in their capabilities. After all, if you control someones health, their physical body, then you do pretty much control them. Is somebody going to argue against that?

I’d like to hear those arguments if anyone has one. I know there must be some supporters of this stuff out there. Unbelievable! 🙁 But polls show the majority of Americans support this stuff (illegal spying), http://techcrunch.com/2013/11/05/poll-public-supports-nsa-spying-on-their-email-neighbors-and-foreign-leaders/.

WTF has happened to America? We USED to be the most free country that ever existed and now we have flushed our freedom in the toilet. For WHAT?????

WTF are you so AFRAID of??? WHY do you let them manipulate you like this? You let them take away our hard earned freedom because of FEAR??? Or is it because of apathy? Or you’re too busy to bother? WHY are you allowing this to happen?

I would REALLY like to know. I just don’t get it.

Are You on a Government Watch List?

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  • I’m sure I’m on at least one. 😉

Civil forfeiture: The grabbing hand of the law

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Civil forfeiture: The grabbing hand of the law | The Economist.

I’m always amazed at how many people still don’t understand the way our government has changed. Our government that was formed ONLY to PROTECT our rights has somehow morphed into something intent on destroying them instead. Asset forfeiture or civil forfeiture as they call it in this article is just one particularly horrible example.

I started paying more attention to this issue years ago when I heard about a case where a man had his airplane stolen (confiscated) by the government. He spent years and thousands of dollars trying to get it back. It’s hard to fight the government when they’ve already stolen every asset you might have to pay for a lawyer to fight them with. 🙁

Since then, I’ve heard of SO many cases around the country. It’s really sad. The laws are written so that they are technically filing charges against the PROPERTY. Property is not a person. Property has no rights. Property can not defend itself. Property is guilty until proven innocent (which is VERY hard to do)!

We now have over 200 federal forfeiture statutes!! Any one of which could be used to steal everything you own. You are not likely to win any part of it back (unless you have big bucks hidden away someplace). Even then, good luck!

This article from the Economist concentrates on the Dehkos, who are fighting right now to keep their grocery store. Grocery store! Apparently the grocery store has been ‘money laundering’ for the last couple of years! Pretty obviously the grocery store is NOT guilty of anything, much less ‘money laundering’ (which is not a crime anyway since there is no victim).

This charge against the ‘grocery store’ leaves the Dehkos (who actually own/operate the store) in deep trouble. The government has already confiscated all the money they had in the bank. How hard do you think it is to run a business when all your money has just been stolen?

Thanks to the Institute for Justice (www.ij.org), the Dehkos might just have a fighting chance. They’ve stepped in to help fight government overreach and will try to help these people recover their money and their lives.

The article mentions a case involving a motel. This case was just recently settled. The Caswells spent almost 4 years fighting the attempted government theft of the property that had been in their family for generations. Thanks to the help of the Institute for Justice they were finally able to prevail. Here’s a link for more on that case http://www.ij.org/massachusetts-civil-forfeiture-release-3-15-2013. Its a pretty good example of the kinds of things going on around the country.

Sorry to say, most people in this country don’t have the help of the Institute for Justice. I wish more did. I’ve been a supporter of the IJ for years, I REALLY appreciate everything they do. Most people don’t have the resources to fight the government. So most people will lose.

It’s a legal fiction to charge the property. It is ONLY done to make it easier for the government to win its case. Cases that most probably could NOT be won if they had to play by the rules.

Take a look at some of the information posted by the Forfeiture Endangers American Rights Foundation (F.E.A.R.- www.fear.org). They’ve been at the forefront of this issue for years. They’re trying to make some very needed changes but seems they’re not making much headway. Here’s a link to a ‘position paper’ from F.E.A.R. on asset forfeiture http://www.fear.org/fposit.html.

I keep hoping that if more people only knew about all these violations of our rights. Of all the ways the government is stealing our freedoms. Of all the ways they are making our society poorer and meaner. Then people would stand up for themselves and put a stop to it. Say ‘ENOUGH IS ENOUGH’. I keep hoping…

 

Obama vs Nixon…

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Hard to believe he still hasn’t been charged with anything, he’s done a hell of a lot more to hurt this country then Nixon ever even thought of. He swore an oath to uphold the Constitution (or he SHOULD have) and he has done nothing since he’s been in office but work to destroy it. 🙁

He should have been MORE than impeached over this illegal spying. Don’t even try to tell me he didn’t know about it. He knew. Therefore he was complicit. As the leader of the Executive Branch, he was ultimately responsible. Since he was a ‘constitutional law professor’, he KNEW every bit of every one of those programs was unconstitutional (and so illegal) and it was HIS duty to destroy ALL of them! Period!!

Instead, he chose to destroy the constitution. He should be drug out of the White House on his ass, tarred and feathered and then thrown in a (regular) prison for the rest of his life! And yes, Bush should have had the same treatment for Iraq and the PATRIOT ACT. (But Obama has done NOTHING to get rid of that horrible ‘law’, and our people are STILL in Iraq and Obama could have brought ALL of them home years ago!)

I can’t think of ANY other reason he’s still in office and has evaded the trouble that even Clinton had except that Obama is ‘black’. Yeah, I know, I’m going to be accused of racism. Well, accuse away…

I know I’m not a racist and that anyone who brings that up is only doing it because they have nothing else to say. They have NO rational argument to make, so they start calling names. All those high hopes for our first black president from so many people. Obama has sure given the shaft to the next few dozen blacks who might want to run. It’ll take a LONG time to get rid of his ‘legacy’. I only hope this country can survive the rest of his term. 🙁

I am SO sad to see what has become of my once great country. ALL of our presidents for the last few decades (at least) have been working overtime to destroy that history but Obama is the one in there now and he needs to GO before he’s allowed to do any more damage!

Addiction?

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I’ve been enjoying a blog conversation on The Culture Monk blog. It started with his post ‘Oreos & Cocaine…REALLY???'( http://culturemonk.com/2013/10/20/oreos-cocaine-really/). There’s been an interesting bunch of comments on his post and I’ve joined in.

I think its a neat coincidence that I got that article in my email that I posted on here yesterday about scientists who think they might have found a cure for addiction of all types (http://captjillsjourneys.wordpress.com/2013/10/20/is-this-chemical-a-cure-for-marijuana-addiction/). I got it in time to add to that blog conversation. 

Now this morning, I saw another post on the mindhacks blog about how the original study that started the conversation was probably not really the big deal the media made it out to be (http://mindhacks.com/2013/10/17/scraping-the-bottom-of-the-biscuit-barrel/#comment-79421). Surprise, surprise. 😉

They had a link in their post to a post on Reason.com that really makes a lot of sense to me (http://reason.com/blog/2013/10/16/researchers-show-that-cocaine-and-heroin). I’ve subscribed to their magazine for years and I’ve always liked the way they approach things. This is just one more example of some ‘reasonable’ thinking on the issue of addiction.

I think it’s great how we can use all these resources to have a worldwide conversation about all kinds of things. News and research at our fingertips. Isn’t it great! 😉

 

Is This Chemical a Cure For Marijuana Addiction?

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Is This Chemical a Cure For Marijuana Addiction? | Surprising Science.

Oh boy! Let the ‘authorities’ get ahold of this stuff and it’ll be all over. We’ll all be doped into shambling zombies with no ounce of joy left to our lives. All for our own good (of course). 🙁

I’m pretty damn sure marijuana is NOT addicting! It just does not fit the definition of addiction. It’s been around forever and there would probably be ZERO negative results if we weren’t on a prohibitionist rampage against it!

Remember, it WAS legal here and anyone who wanted to could and DID use it up until the congress fraudulently banned it starting in the late 1930s. There was NO problem with it until Nixon ramped up the War on (some) Drugs in the 1970s.

Throwing people out of schools, jobs, their homes, etc because a drug test found a few NANOGRAMS of THC is NOT proof of addiction!!! It’s a circular argument, ‘they’re addicted because they have a problem with pot (they lost their jobs, etc)’, NOT!! They do NOT have a problem with pot, they have a problem with the LAW!

I don’t doubt that some people are addicted to some things. Some people are actually even harmed by their addictions. Most people are NOT addicted physically to anything really, but it suits the people in charge to say so. Once again, they take away OUR responsibility and OUR choices.

But lots of people do have emotional/psychological addictions to all kinds of things. Love, sex, adrenaline junkies like skydiving or race car driving, food addicts, drug addicts, alcoholics, smokers, etc.

There are always so many people out there who just can’t stand to see anyone else having fun! WHY? Why the hell can’t I smoke some weed if I feel like it? What the hell is wrong if I choose pot over booze? We already had a hell of a fight over alcohol prohibition and we FINALLY came to our senses and ‘let’ people drink again.

WHY can’t we come to the proper conclusion that we need to do the same thing with all the other drugs that people choose to use? WHY do so many people think THEY know best?

Most of the people who are supposedly addicted are only classed that way because something ‘interfered with their life’. I’ve seen the AA questionnaire on ‘you may be an alcoholic’, yeah, we ALL may be alcoholics if that’s the standard!

I remember thinking about one question, do you ever drink alone? My aunt drank a glass of wine with her dinner every night, she lived alone, according to AA that meant she was an alcoholic!

I have been arrested for DWI. According to the standards, that means I’m an alcoholic. I have a ‘problem with alcohol’, well NO I don’t have a problem with alcohol, I DO have a problem with COPS!

Because of that supposed “problem” with alcohol, I have been held back from many promotions, even my ability to travel has been cut off! I was recently informed by the CBP that because of my conviction, I can not be considered “low-risk”. Now what the HELL does a conviction for DWI have to do with being able to travel through the fast lane at the airport?????

Now, those controlling type people will have one more tool to use against those of us who would LIKE to be able to enjoy our lives without puritanical interference. Scientists have found that ‘kynurenic acid’ can be used to basically negate the effects of dopamine.

Dopamine is associated with the ‘pleasure center’ of the brain. When you are enjoying yourself, your dopamine levels increase. They also increase when you are using alcohol, marijuana, cocaine, etc. They also increase while you enjoy a good meal, when you have sex, when you do ANYTHING pleasurable.

I don’t know about you all, but I think we should all be able to take our pleasures any way we can! As long as you don’t hurt anybody else, you should be able to do ANYTHING you want! That DOES include getting high, on WHATEVER you choose to do the trick!

I can just imagine the horror stories to come if/(when) they start using this stuff on people. We’ll all be doped up like a bunch of zombies to treat our ‘addictions’, this stuff will be used to block any pleasure from our brains. Tone us down just enough so we can keep on being good little workers, but we’ll never be able to go out and have a good time on Friday night again, we just don’t know what’s good for us (and THEY do).

WOW! 🙁 And I thought Brave New World was only science fiction. 🙁

Why We Test for Drugs & Alcohol

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Why We Test for Drugs & Alcohol.

This is the first study I’ve ever seen on IF these tests do ANYTHING. I think some of the premises are false. Such as: using the post accident rates to determine if any drugs or alcohol were involved in the accident.

Just like in the Exxon Valdez incident, these figures can be totally misleading. As found after that investigation, Captain Hazelwood had NOTHING to do with that accident, so even if he WAS totally wasted, the accident had NOTHING to do with it,( if he was or if he wasn’t drinking). The fact that he had a couple of drinks simply allowed Exxon to use him as a scapegoat and get away with the FACT that it was THEIR policies which REALLY caused that accident.

I REALLY hate the fact that we use the excuse that someone, somewhere might be doing (some) drugs, to strip away the rights of millions of innocent people. There is NO authority in the constitution for either the outlawing of (some) drugs OR any sort of random drug testing to be forced on us by the federal government!

Is it worth stripping the 4th amendment, the 5th amendment from the constitution to allow these tests? Is it worth forgetting about the 9th and 10th amendments to even allow the federal government to have ANY say-so about what we choose to put into OUR bodies?? I say NO, I say HELL NO!!!

It is NEVER worth it to give up our rights! Not for ANY reason. And the fact that they haven’t even tried to show any kind of proof that their stupid rules do ANY good at all up until this just shows that they could give a flying f*&k!

Why in the heck are they even in charge of licensing us in the first place? Who the hell gave the federal government the authority to tell me if I can go to work, who I can work for, what hoops I have to jump through in order to apply for a job??? I sure as hell can’t find anything about that in the constitution. It’s NOT there. So, in fact, every single licensing law is unconstitutional and void!

Lets get the companies and the sailors together on this and eliminate the government out of the mix! Now would be a great time since they are ‘shut down” (yeah, riiiight- I only wish they really were)!

Lets come up with a scheme that would actually be sensible and affordable to the people actually involved (instead of a bunch of clueless bureaucrats). Maybe we could stop all our ships from moving overseas and get some jobs back for American sailors if we did that.

Too bad now we have to deal with the IMO. Maybe ALL the sailors around the world should get together on this. I’m sure they realize there is no one in any governmental position anywhere worldwide that is actually on THEIR side. Its always all about the money and we (sailors) don’t have any. ;-(

More Shutdowns, Please: The Pro-Democracy Case for an Obamacare Crisis

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More Shutdowns, Please: The Pro-Democracy Case for an Obamacare Crisis | Laissez-Faire Bookstore.

As usual the government is trying to scare us into going along with its desires. The fact that its desires are almost all completely unconstitutional is not something we peons are supposed to ever think about. The FACT that our government is ONLY authorized to do certain very strictly limited functions is never brought up for serious discussion. We are only here to keep on shelling out our hard earned dollars to pay for all the ridiculous things ‘our leaders’ decide is best for us.

You ever notice that every time they talk about what will happen if they have to suffer any kind of minuscule budget cut (or even a cut in the rise in spending), they always threaten the people who need it most? It’s always the social security checks that won’t show up, never the funding for the ridiculous amounts of spending on mini-tanks for small town SWAT teams so they can continue to fight the war on (some) drugs. Never the pork projects they waste billions on every year. Never the corporate welfare they hand out like candy at Halloween to anybody that figures out how to ask.

I say, hell yes! Lets shut it down! NOW!! Let the people see once again that yes, they CAN function very well without all the things the federal government supposedly does for them. Too bad they won’t really be shutting down anything except what will cause you and me some inconvenience and probably major annoyance. They won’t even be laying off any federal workers, they’ll just get to stay home- WITH PAY!

How about lets get rid of Obamacare?! It’s nothing but a very expensive sop to the insurance companies. I guarantee you it will NOT be any benefit to the general public including me and you! It WILL eventually break the country! While we’re at it, let’s stop ALL the wars we are involved in, including the most stupid of them all… the war on (some) drugs!

Do those 2 things and we can all sit back with a sigh of relief. We can start over to maybe, just maybe, start thinking rationally about what would REALLY help solve our problems with health care (and everything else) in this country. Take some time to THINK about real solutions instead of having this crap shoved down our throats that ‘our leaders’ admit they never even LOOKED at it, much less took any time to think about it!

It is NOT worth trying to fix it. It can’t BE fixed. It is rotten at its core!! Best thing to do is stop wasting time, energy, money to save an obviously terrible program and instead come up with something that at least has a POSSIBILITY of working out.

Yeah, shut it down!

Beating Swords into Solar Panels

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Beating Swords into Solar Panels – Politics – Utne Reader.

Well, there’s a lot in this article I disagree with, but I sure as hell agree that we can and should start dismantling our military-industrial(-prison) complex. It has become so big and bloated, it’s corrupting our politicians and its lobbyists have convinced “our leaders” that we MUST continue to spend billions to imprison people for decades for possession of a plant(??!!), or to blow up people in foreign countries rather than take care of our own people here.

We do NOT need to keep spending those billions- no,trillions!- of dollars to keep our country safe! There is no other country in the world today that can even come close to our military capabilities. WHY do we keep on building more, more, more???

It’s simple, the defense (at home and abroad) industries make billions (trillions) of dollars off our FEAR and ignorance. They will keep on spending millions to convince “our leaders” that they need to keep on spending our tax dollars on the military-industrial-prison complex.

Those ‘leaders’ will not ever think to actually CUT military (or prison) spending. Oh, NO!! They might lose a few jobs in their district. Those people who would be affected by a military operation closing down will be screaming bloody murder.

Maybe they might actually be better off if we weren’t spending trillions on military crap! Or locking people up for trivial BS! Their taxes might go down so they could have a better standard of living if we stopped spending so much on the military.

If people actually followed the suggestion in the article and converted that military spending to spending on something useful (productive) instead, they might actually be SO much better off, they might enjoy making something that HELPS the world instead of destroying it. They might enjoy having more peace and prosperity around the planet. They might enjoy having more money to spend when (if) the US ever gets around to lowering taxes like they should as a byproduct of cutting military spending.

I can’t even imagine all the fantastic things the people who work now on military projects could come up with if they were turned loose into the commercial/civilian marketplace. Wow! Just think of all the cool things they would come up with. These are intelligent, determined, educated people we’re talking about! How about all the good that would come from allowing all those people we lock up for victimless ‘crimes’ (possession, gambling, prostitution, etc) just get on with their lives instead of locking them up and so ruining their (and their families) lives forever?

The article focuses on environmental projects, stopping global warming, etc. Sure, they might eventually be able to make a dent in that. There is just SO much they could be working on to help make things better instead of finding more ways to destroy everything.

Yeah, I’m sure the military people (law enforcement too) probably think they’re out there fighting to save the world. I know they get told that they’re ‘fighting for our freedom’ here. All I can say to that is… why the heck do they always enlist YOUNG people to do all the dirty work???

Probably because by the time they grow up a little and spend a little time learning the truth, they won’t go fight someone else’s battles for them anymore! They finally figure out they’re only being USED to make money for somebody in the background. Anyone who really believes ‘our’ military is fighting for our freedom is surely needing to do a bit more thinking about things.

I could say a LOT more about that, but I’ll leave off by saying this: if they’re fighting for OUR freedom, they’re doing a pretty shitty job of it! We’ve lost a HELL of a lot of OUR freedom since 9-11!!! All those stupid wars (including the drug war) we’ve got involved in since then haven’t saved one tiny iota of OUR freedom! So, maybe, just maybe, all you cops and military people ought to just rethink your basic assumptions.

Constitution Day: Celebrate it by Learning to Enforce It

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Constitution Day: Celebrate it by Learning to Enforce It | Tenth Amendment Center

Constitution Day, September 17, 2013. Today is the day to celebrate the document which we hold responsible for ‘giving us our freedom’. If I was home, I would probably be trying to have some sort of party with my friends from our local Campaign for Liberty meetup group ( http://www.meetup.com/ronpaul-773/).

I’d like to be able to celebrate, but I find it hard now to find any reasons to celebrate. I feel a wake is more in order…

We have NOTHING left of the 4th amendment. Even before Edward Snowdens’ breaking the news of ‘our’ governments’ all encompassing spy programs, we had to put up with the DEA, TSA, IRS, FBI, etc. “Our” government has not paid the slightest attention to the 4th amendment for decades.

The 5th amendment has been totally trashed since we started using the ridiculous idea that ‘property’ is guilty and so can be stolen without even any charges being filed against the owner of said property. The government has been stealing BILLIONS of dollars worth of cash and real property using the tactic of ‘civil asset forfeiture’ for years-(check out the Institute for Justice on some of these cases www.ij.org). The (illegal, unconstitutional) drug war has done in the 5th amendment.

The 9th and 10th amendments were also victims of the war on (some) drugs. If anyone had ever paid any attention to either of those (9th- rights retained by the people)(10th- rights retained by the states), then there never could have been any drug war to begin with.

The 6th, 7th and 8th amendments were also victims of the war on (some) drugs. Because of the HUGE amount of people being arrested with no real crime committed, the justice system in this country has been completely corrupted and destroyed. Some ‘free’ country we are with more people in prison than anywhere else in the world by far! 🙁

The 2nd amendment is on the way out. With all the restrictions we have already on a RIGHT that “shall not be infringed”, it’s getting to be almost impossible for a law abiding citizen to “keep and bear arms”. The media works the public into a frenzy every time some nut job gets a hold of a gun and goes on a rampage. Hey, why not try to stop the crazies and not the rest of us??? Why not let the rest of us take out said nut job if he does manage to get hold of a gun??? These guys aren’t crazy enough to try their shit anyplace they might run into ARMED citizens! Who the hell said we have to get a permit to exercise a RIGHT??? A right NEVER needs any kind of permit in order to exercise it! Period!

When I get going on this stuff people always bring up the 1st amendment. Yeah, OK, we still have freedom of speech and freedom of religion. Yeah, I guess as long as you’re not a Rastafarian, or a Mormon, or OMG a Satanist!!! 😉 Of course the religious right says their rights are being infringed on too (by the atheists)- yep, that’s what they say. So, the freedom of religion is being eroded pretty badly too. You can still speak freely, except at work, or on a college campus, or unless you want to criticize the TSA for their bullshit NAZI tactics in the airport. It’s NOT freedom if you have to censor yourself!  

Almost forgot about the 1st amendments guarantee of freedom of the press. Yeah, that mention of censorship reminded me. Freedom of the press, yeah right- they’re now all owned by the same big corporations and do NOT work in any way for our freedom. Sure, you have freedom of the press- if you have enough money to buy a major newspaper or TV station. Sure, that’s real freedom for the people. 

So out of the first 10 amendments- our Bill of RIGHTS (which were NOT given to us by anyone- including any government!)- we can honestly say we have ONE left (the 3rd). I’m not aware of any soldiers being quartered in anyones’ houses (yet). One out of 10!

One out of 10??!! And no one seems to care. 🙁 I agree with the linked article, we need to do all we can right now, before it goes any further, and put a stop to this constant violation of our rights.

It is not going to happen in the ballot box (yes, if you can vote for a libertarian, then do- the rest of them aren’t worth the bother!). I hope it doesn’t have to happen through the cartridge box! Who wants that to happen??? We would be outgunned in a NY minute! We need to EDUCATE, we need to individually stand up and do whatever we can. NULLIFY!

I want the government people to get the hell out of my life, and yours.  And the only way that’s going to happen is if we work together to nullify all of them into oblivion….Murry Rothbard

With this post, I feel like I’ve done what I can to help today. Make an effort… check out a couple of websites for groups that support the ideals of the Constitution. Here are a few to get started…

www.theadvocates.org The Advocates for Self Government

www.downsizedc.org Downsize DC

www.ij.org Institute for Justice

www.isil.org International Society for Individual Liberty

www.lp.org Libertarian Party

 

19 Real Sinister Conspiracies That Actually Happened

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19 Real Sinister Conspiracies That Actually Happened | Cracked.com.

OK, I did get this from Cracked but I’ve seen a lot of this stuff before. I didn’t know about ALL of these, but I did already know about quite a few. The Lusitania for instance. The syphilis. Bikini Atoll. Caligula. The DEA/CIA thing. Tobacco.The  Shah of Iran. DeBeers diamonds.

All of those have come to my attention for one reason or another in the past. I wasn’t even really looking for anything specific. I’m sure if anyone wants to look up this stuff, they can find plenty of evidence. Now that we have the internet it should be much easier.

Does the name calling (tin-hat conspiracy theorist) really prevent so many people from believing in the truth of this stuff?? I think it probably does.

Comments?

Light it Up: Another Weed Ship Goes Up in Smoke

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Light it Up: Another Weed Ship Goes Up in Smoke | gCaptain

Wow! What’s going on in Tanzania lately?? Have they taken over from Columbia or Hawaii as the worlds leading pot producer or something?

For the 2nd time in a week, a Tanzanian flag ship has been lit on fire to avoid being caught and charged with smuggling marijuana. This time, the French are the ones chasing them down.

But again it looks like its the house burning instead of the cargo holds.

I wonder how many fishermen are hanging out in the smoke trail along with the French Navy?  😉

Organizations, Activists Lining Up To Sue Against NSA Surveillance

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Organizations, Activists Lining Up To Sue Against NSA Surveillance : PersonalLiberty™.

I’m thrilled to see this lawsuit moving forward. In the case of First Unitarian Church of Los Angeles vs NSA, the court will be considering if it will allow the illegal, unconstitutional spy programs of the NSA (and other) goons to continue.

I would LOVE to see the courts throw this out and tell the NSA to shut its doors forever. I’m happy to see so many groups join in with the Electronic Frontier Foundation, the National Lawyers Guild, Patient Privacy Rights, and many others to fight for our rights. I wish them complete success.

I have to say I have my doubts anything will really change even IF they manage to win a total victory in court. The people who work for these agencies have been brainwashed to believe that by trampling on our constitutional rights they will somehow save the country. Instead they destroy it with their police state tactics. 🙁

Update on M/V Gold Star

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Here’s an update on the Gold Star. The ship with the cargo of $80 million or so in hash/marijuana/weed. This one has a video to watch.

It looks like an ‘exciting’ chase. At least for the authorities. I can’t see how anybody could still be on the ship. Maybe there’s still someone in the engine room? The entire house is in flames! Looks a little strange to me. I have no idea what hash is worth these days but the cargo holds look empty…

.http://www.maritime-executive.com/article/Video-Smugglers-Set-Ship-on-Fire-in-Mediterranean-2013-09-09/

Growing US Police State: War on Drugs

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Growing US Police State: War on Drugs.

Here’s another excellent article from Global Wealth Protection (GWP). This one written by Paul Seymour. Its a good reflection on how far we’ve come from once being the land of the free, to becoming a police state. Besides wasting over $90 BILLION (just in the US) to prevent people from living their lives the way they choose, we have restricted ALL of our lives and turned this country into a full-fledged police state! Don’t believe me? Watch the video!

MV Gold Star Becomes Epic Cannabis Campfire Off Malta

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MV Gold Star Becomes Epic Cannabis Campfire Off Malta | gCaptain

Interesting story. Wondering just how they got their estimate? Before or after they hung out downwind for a while??

The Double Standard of Smoking Marijuana

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The Double Standard of Smoking Marijuana – Arts & Culture – Utne Reader.

This is an article from Utne Reader on a new book, “Marijuana is Safer”. Well, duh, YES, it IS! MUCH safer! I could say I can’t believe how we have spent so much time, effort, money, to keep it illegal in this “free” country. But I do believe it since I know the history of how it was made illegal in the first place.

Federal marijuana prohibition is the direct cause of the continual violations of our 1st, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th amendments and the filling up of our prisons. First of all, the prohibition was not legally passed by congress like alcohol prohibition was. They did not make any constitutional amendment to make marijuana illegal. Instead, they listened to the lobbyists for DuPont, Hearst and their puppet doctor. Congress was bought off by those who just plain didn’t want the competition that the marijuana plants (and hemp) would give their companies making paper from trees and artificial fibers such as nylon. Watch the movie “Hemp for Victory” (put out by the federal government to encourage farmers to grow the weed to help with the war effort) and you will get an idea of just how useful the marijuana (and hemp) plants are. Of course, the prejudice they stirred up against blacks and Hispanics didn’t hurt any either.

I want to know, how many MILLIONS of people do we have to put in prison, how many lives to we have to completely destroy? before we will come to our senses and legalize weed??? I am going to come out and say it, it is a RIGHT! Rights which we enjoy not only under our constitution, (which only says our federal government was formed to PROTECT those natural rights we had BEFORE there was ever any government), rights we have due to the fact that we are human beings. We have allowed “our” government to get its foot in the door, due to prejudice and greed, and of course FEAR, and now we are paying the price. They have used this so-called War on Drugs, which is really a war on US, to take away our rights and destroy our country. 

I am sick and tired of having to listen to people who don’t know what they’re talking about tell us all that we need to continue the ‘drug war’. NO, we do NOT! We need to STOP it asap! I hope lots of people will read this book and learn the truth about the issues, STOP listening to the politicians, they do NOT do anything that is not in THEIR interests, they do NOT represent US anymore, if they ever did.