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  1. Ani L. Schwartz

    MPP ACTION OPPORTUNITY:

    TELL CONGRESS: STOP THWARTING D.C.'S MEDICAL MARIJUANA LAW

    EDITABLE LETTER

    in CRIMINAL JUSTICE

    Suggested by Ani L. Schwartz on 02/24/2009 @ 01:48PM PT

  2. jeffrey C oldman

    donate to the norml.org ad campaign!!

    Nicholas Warino said... I think if any politician seriously tried to move to legalize pot, it would unlikely to be damaging at all to his career. There would be plenty of far-right, family values types screaming on TV about it, but all that would do would be to highlight the ridiculousness of their arguments. This subject never gets talked about seriously on TV and such, so I don’t think a lot of the public is actually thinking about the issue seriously. There really isn’t a very good argument for our current policy on marijuana or any policy that resembles it.

    I’m a big liberal/lefty type for the most part, but unless there’s a clear and large social harm by an activity (not merely individual harm), then the government should allow it. The government can heavily tax it (while avoiding creating a black market), and regulate its sales to be limited adults, and can even regulate its advertisement, but I think that should be the limit of the government’s role.

    Sure, heavy or irresponsible use of marijuana is unhealthy, but so are a lot of things: television, videogames, food, the internet, sex, not to mention alcohol and cigarettes. As an example, I had a friend who became addicted to World of Warcraft. He lost his job and put on a couple hundred pounds. His weight is eventually going to cost the state a lot of money. Any social harms from marijuana use is pretty limited and certainly would be far from the worst thing that’s currently legal and would be more than offset by tax revenue, as well as the real amusement it provides to a lot of responsible people.

    I’d also argue that marijuana as an illegal substance is MORE of a social harm than as a legal substance. We spend a lot of money on enforcing its illegality, we use up a lot of jail space, and it’s a nice revenue stream for criminals.

    Our current policy on marijuana is clearly irrational and arbitrary. If we deem that marijuana is harmful enough for it to be illegal, that we should have a much bigger nanny state, and I think most people agree that such a thing is wrong. Not only is it fundamentally wrong, but it’s also ineffective.

    Suggested by jeffrey C oldman on 02/24/2009 @ 11:49AM PT

  3. William Fleisher

    http://www.latimes.com/news/local/politics/cal/la-me-pottax24-2009feb24,0,3858677.story
    california people contact your represenatives!

    Suggested by William Fleisher on 02/24/2009 @ 10:59AM PT

  4. C B

    This is by far the best news I have heard for a long time.  The following post is from mpp.com.  Unite around this and show your support for this legislation if you live in California, or the bill will die off.  Let them know what you and all 60% of the backers of Marijuana Legalization in California think.  

       California state Assemblyman Tom Ammiano (D-San Francisco) today announced the introduction of legislation to tax and regulate marijuana in a manner similar to alcoholic beverages. The bill, the first of its kind ever introduced in California, would create a regulatory structure similar to that used for beer, wine, and liquor, permitting taxed sales to adults while barring sales to or possession by those under 21.

           Estimates based on federal government statistics have shown marijuana to be California’s top cash crop, valued at approximately $14 billion in 2006 — nearly twice the combined value of the state’s number two and three crops, vegetables ($5.7 billion) and grapes ($2.6 billion) — in spite of massive “eradication” efforts that wipe out an average of nearly 36,000 cultivation sites per year without making a dent in this underground industry.          Ammiano introduced the measure at a San Francisco press conference this morning, saying, “With the state in the midst of an historic economic crisis, the move towards regulating and taxing marijuana is simply common sense. This legislation would generate much needed revenue for the state, restrict access to only those over 21, end the environmental damage to our public lands from illicit crops, and improve public safety by redirecting law enforcement efforts to more serious crimes,” said Ammiano. “California has the opportunity to be the first state in the nation to enact a smart, responsible public policy for the control and regulation of marijuana.”               “It is simply nonsensical that California’s largest agricultural industry is completely unregulated and untaxed,” said Marijuana Policy Project California policy director Aaron Smith, who also spoke at the news conference. “With our state in an ongoing fiscal crisis — and no one believes the new budget is the end of California’s financial woes — it’s time to bring this major piece of our economy into the light of day.”             Independent experts from around the world, from President Nixon’s National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse in 1972 to a Canadian Senate special committee in 2002, have long contended that criminalizing marijuana users makes little sense, given that marijuana is less addictive, much less toxic, and far less likely to induce aggression or violence than alcohol. For example, in an article in the December 2008 Canadian Journal of Psychiatry, Australian researcher Stephen Kisely noted that “penalties bear little relation to the actual harm associated with cannabis.”  

    Suggested by C B on 02/23/2009 @ 05:51PM PT

  5. X otix

    Just got this on mySpace.. It's the best news in a long time.

    Dear NORML Friends and Supporters,



    The votes have been tallied and I'm here to announce the winners of NORML's pro-marijuana law reform ad contest!



    But, before I announce the winners, I want to:



    1) Thank the hundreds of NORML supporters who submitted a video/flash animation for consideration, acknowledge the talented top #25 contestants who made the cut for the final vote and to ALL of the winners, notably the grand prize winner!



    2) I want to share with you one of the absolutely most asked questions put to NORML's staff on a daily basis, right after 'Why is marijuana still illegal after all of these years?':

    Why don't I see NORML ads on TV advocating your sensible reform message?



    The simple reply is, funding.





    NORML's membership and donor base historically do not donate enough annually for the organization to purchase print, radio, Internet or TV advertisements. This has been the case with the organization since its inception, and vexes 99% of America's 50,000 non-profit organizations that also don't have the donated funds to purchase ad space.





    A Propitious Moment For Pot

    Bittersweetly, the confluence of a faltering economy and greater public acceptance of cannabis has recently created very attractive advertising opportunities, coupled with media companies' increasing willingness to accept pro-cannabis law reform ads presents organizations like NORML to place one or more of the winning ads from the contest on TV (or, popular Internet webpages).





    NORML has researched the cost of placing ads in numerous cable TV markets across the country, and some of these ad packages (with minimum purchase prices from $1,200-$5,000) now offer 30 second TV spots for as little as .8 cents per ad.

    That is right, 8 cents per TV ad!



    Examples of NORML cable TV buys:



    -Cable Cannabis Blitz-

    33,000, 30-second TV ads, broadcast 6AM-Midnight on cable packages during programming from ESPN, CNN, CNBC, Weather Channel, MSNBC, MTV, VH-1, BET, Animal Planet, E!, Bravo and 10 other major cable programmers for the cost of...$2,750...or approximately .08 cents/per ad! This ad package will reach an estimated 1.6 million households in 187 markets.





    That is right! NORML can now purchase TV spots for only 8 cents.





    -Women and Weed-

    Approximately 1,500, 30-second TV ads, targeting women's programming (Oxygen, Soap, Lifetime, Style, WE, etc...) for $1,200. This ad package will reach an estimated 27.5 million households in 90 major markets.

    What is the cost per ad in this package?



    80 cents per TV ad!



    -Men and Marijuana-

    Approximately 2,600, 30-second TV ads, 27.

    5 million households targeting men's programming (Comedy Central, ESPN, Speed, Versus, Sci-Fi, Golf Channel, etc...) for $4,900, which boils down to $1.88/per ad.





    Short of the long, if NORML supporters and cannabis consumers really want to see pro-cannabis law reform ads broadcast on TV, here is the opportunity to pool your resources together with ALL you like-minded friends and family who favor alternatives to prohibition laws and the high cost of cannabis by making your tax deductible donations to the NORML Foundation's earmarked funds to purchase TV and Internet advertisement space.





    'Got to get over the hump!'*

    NORML's survey and polling work indicate that a strong majority of Americans support both decriminalization and patient access to medicinal cannabis, but, frustratingly as exampled in the latest Zogby polling, only a strong plurality (44%) of Americans currently support actually taxing and controlling cannabis like alcohol and tobacco products.





    The change in presidential administrations, cannabis' popularity in the country, the outing of Michael Phelps, the record number of reform bills introduced in the states and the crushing economic crisis facing the country have collectively cast a great deal of focus on the question of ending cannabis prohibition portend that now is the best time in 30 years to widely broadcast NORML's longstanding message of cannabis law reform for responsible adult use.





    What will it take to finally move public opinion sufficiently from tacit support for legalization to majority support? For decades some law reform advocates and communication experts have argued that advertising could be the likely missing component.





    Let's find out!



    We can all afford to kick down $10 to purchase 125 TV ads, or $50 for 625 ads!



    Please make a tax-deductible donation to the NORML Foundation today in support of this important project.





    OK...for the moment we've all been waiting for...drum roll please!



    Over 6,000 online voters cast their single ballots for their top three contest submissions, to view the winners of NORML's $10,000 cash prize contest for best pro-cannabis law reform ads, click here: http://norml.
    org/index. cfm?Group_ID=7810.





    Let's start a nationwide 'cannabis conversation', please donate in support of placing NORML's ads on TV and the Internet, let's get over the hump and achieve real cannabis law reforms as soon as possible.





    Thanks in advance for your support and kind regards,



    -Allen St.

    Pierre

    Executive Director

    NORML / NORML Foundation

    Washington, D.C.



    director@norml.
    org



    *Ode to James Brown, the Godfather of Soul!

    Suggested by X otix on 02/21/2009 @ 09:19AM PT

  6. ronald neloms

    Repeal the marijuana tax act of 1937. Let NORML, or MPP set the new regulation for medical and recreational use. That's from age to how much. We as a people don't have time and money to waste on a failed prohibition with the conditions we are in now in America.

    Suggested by ronald neloms on 02/20/2009 @ 06:43PM PT

  7. C B

    I think that everyone who reads this needs to realize that right now the best start for this solution is to do what Mikey Johnson suggested.  Everyone, even if you think you can't, needs to try an get in contact with someone you think could help this.  Starting with small groups will reach out to countless numbers of people, and the people who support this have passion and understanding of the true lies the government has told.  Talk to anyone, and a true movement will start. 

    Suggested by C B on 02/19/2009 @ 04:16PM PT

  8. Ani L. Schwartz

    EDITABLE PETITION to Obama & other fed pols::: (go to) = (>)
    > Causes
    > Criminal Justice
    > Actions
    > Legalize marijuana/bring peace and end the drug war!
    (currently on page 4 in chronological sequence)

    Suggested by Ani L. Schwartz on 02/18/2009 @ 04:20PM PT

  9. mikey johnson

    At this point we need to be making ourselves more and more prominent in the public eye. The longer this goes on the more vocal we become. We currently need be using media outlets like High Times, Myspace and YouTube, as well as local television and newspaper, to organize and promote large, well organized rallies in cities all across America throughout this year and into next year. As well as promoting the hell out of existing events like Seattle Hempfest, Ann Arbor’s Hash Bash, Denver’s 420 Rally and the Global Marijuana March. I feel fitting locations for a rally would be Tallahassee, FL (to bring attention to the murder of Rachel Hoffman and the circumstances that led up to it) and Columbia, SC (site of the infamous Michael Phelps picture). Eventually every week a different city will see thousands of citizens take to its streets in support of pot law reform. The call will become deafening.

     

    We should be working to establish chapters of NORML or other cannabis reform groups in every state, every city, and every collage campus as possible. We need these groups in place to help change state and local anti-marijuana laws. We need people working from the local level all the way up to the federal level all together. Meaning we need organization. Groups like the MPP, LEAP and NORML need to be escalating the war on the war on drugs. And everyone that really wants to see legalization as a reality need to donate SOMETHING to one or more of these groups. People can’t be expected to donate and not see anything come of it but these groups can’t be expected to make something happen or paint a positive public picture of us without the money to fuel it all. So it is up to us to fund these groups so our story can be told. These large rallies would be a great fund raising opportunity for cannabis reform groups.

     

    We also should be making an effort to tie our idea in with the others that were voted on here. More than half of the top 10 are ideas that the cannabis issue in one way or another has a direct impact on. We need to make the general public see the whole picture. This isn’t about stoners getting high. This is about health care. This is about civil liberties. This is about public safety. This is about green materials and energy. If you don’t smoke pot you still have a stake in this. We need to show the supporters of these other ideas how the war on drugs harms them.

     

    Suggested by mikey johnson on 02/18/2009 @ 01:38PM PT

  10. Ani L. Schwartz

    ACTION OPPORTUNITY:  
         Dear Friends, I would like to invite you to Tell President Obama what  the 5 "most pressing issues" are, in your view. Imagine yourself as President and tell us where you would lead the nation in 2009. CLICK HERE: www.DemocracyforAmerica.com/PresidentYou 
           I also invite you to Go to > CAUSES, go to > STOP GENOCIDE, go to > ACTIONS go to > the SPEAK OUT TO END CORPORATE PERSONHOOD pledge > where I will also continue to post more action opportunities. Sorry I am not yet able to provide you with a direct link to this page yet. Please tell your friends. Thanks, Ani

    Suggested by Ani L. Schwartz on 02/17/2009 @ 10:24PM PT

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