Are we as progressive as Seattle Wa., or Denver...

[Beachboy]

..Co, or even as progressive as Oakland Ca.? What I'm talking about is our coming election, and our personal rights to proper health care. Ballot question #1 "Lowest Law Enforcement Priority of Cannabis Ordinance". I say all registered Big Island voters should move to pass this bill. For people like myself who no longer has health care insurance. Cannabis offers me a form of affordable pain meds. This bill opens the door to so many other options too, most importantly the police can re-focus on real crimes.

Folks, this is almost 2009! We shouldn't even be having this conversation! We need to vote "yes" to making Cannabis a lower enforcement priority! Please people, if you support this bill don't be apathetic about voting that day. It's gonna be close, but we can get this bill passed. But it's gonna take every citizen who favors Cannabis for one reason or another to come out and vote. There is just to many people spreading lies & deception about Cannabis, and it's time that the Federal Government act accordingly. The laws on the books need to be re-examined, they are old and useless as far as I'm concerned!

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You know the only difference between Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney is ... lipstick.

[LeeE]

Bravo.

We baby boomers should have fixed this years ago.

Yes on Question 1 is a good first step.

Aloha,
Lee
http://members.cruzio.com/~lionel/event

[Beachboy]

Lee, how can we make the community aware of this bill in a positive manner? All ready I have been reading were a lot of community members still consider Cannabis a lethal drug!

I think it's high time that our federal Government re-examine our drug laws. No way should Cannabis be grouped up with Heroin or Cocaine. It's hardly in the same ballpark as these two other lethal drugs are!

There was not one death related to Marijuana use last year. Care to guess who many alcohol related deaths there were last year?

Look, it's not gonna be a cut & dry bill. There will be plenty of opposition towards making Cannabis a lesser crime. But most of the opposition will be armed with more lies & scare tactics as usual. But the real scary part will be the general ignorance of the local masses! It's time people realize that Cannabis is not lethal drug that kills our youth!

Imagine all the resources that the county can save by not pursuing Cannabis users!? I think people also need to understand that this bill is for adults, and that minors caught illegally with Cannabis will still be processed accordingly to county laws.

Quantity seems to be yet another issue with this bill. Seems that a lot of people are willing to give this bill a try. But the one sticking point for a lot seems to be the quantity that will be allowed under this bill. Let me be the first to tell you that 24 plants of any stage of growth is not that much! THe Cannabis patient/farmer will need at least this amount otherwise he or she will constantly be trying to farm their meds. People need to consider the possibility that the patient may have problems with pest( Mealy Bugs, Spider Mites, etc.,etc..),or have a large number of male plants. Male plants are no good for the Cannabis farmer/user either. So if we consider these negative possibilities, 24 plants seems a rather small number!

Which brings me back to my original question. Is the Big Island as progressive as Oakland Ca., Seattle Wa., or Denver Co.? All three of these cities passed bills making Cannabis the lowest priority!

1.) Oakland Ca.................................................: Measure Z passed with 64.3%
2.) Seattle. Wa..................................................: Intiative 75 passed with 58%
3.) Denver Co...................................................: Intiative 100 passed with 57%

All three of these cities passed their bill. But they met a lot of opposition from the misinformed & ignorant right. Just barely passing the bill. Let's not let apathy ruin our once in a lifetime chance here on the Big Island to put Cannabis where it really should be put...right in our Medicine cabinet!

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You know the only difference between Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney is ... lipstick.

[Devany]

In the entire state of California you can get medical marijuana. They have stores all over that you go to with your "prescription". There are all kinds of Doctors that are in the business of writing these prescriptions for any kind of supposed ailment. They advertise in the papers and on the Internet. However, there is still a FEDERAL drug law which can be enforced if the Feds wanted to get involved. No local cops will do anything if you have a prescription. San Francisco just started an ID Card system with a Photo ID on it for anyone using medical marijuana.

My husband asked his Dr. here(Chinese Hawaiian) for a prescription and he just laughed and said, "Oh, you just wait till you are living in Hawaii, you can grow it there and everyone has it available." OH REALLY????

Aloha au i Hawai`i,
devany

Devany Vickery-Davidson
East Bay Potters
www.eastbaypotters.com

[gtill]

I agree with the above, but I believe the 20 somthing ounces in posession will be a problem, as a pound plus could be too easy to infer commercial. Half or even 1/4 of that would be more feasible, plus a limit on plant numbers to mabe 12.

[Beachboy]

come on man 24 plants is barely enough! The majority of people grow what is termed "90 day wonder Weed"(short season). These plants barely grow larger than four feet in height,an yield in the neighborhood of 1/2 ounce to one ounce at best. Do the math. At 24 plants, that's not much of a harvest!

20 ounces gonna be a problem,..for who? 2 ounces, 20 ounces, 200 ounces, what's the big deal for the mature adult? Remember this law is for people over 21 yrs of age!

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You know the only difference between Sarah Palin and Dick Cheney is ... lipstick.

[David M]

Any one know how much fuel saving not flying the green harvest air farce?
While I don't condone drug abuse, I do think the anti MJ efforts here have been not only counter productive, but even detrimental with respect to ICE et al.

David

Ninole Resident

[missydog1]

Agreed, David

My husband who was here in Hilo over 30 years ago, saw with his own eyes the transformation of local guys who were extremely hostile to haoles with the intro to pakalolo. Before that the guys drank beer and routinely looked for fights. Getting beaten up for the heck of it was not some scare story, it happened regularly.

Then, with the coming of the flyovers and restrictions on pakalolo, people turned to ice who may not have ... in all ways a more fearsome drug that is responsible for people doing some horrific crimes ... look at the guy on Oahu who burned his relatives up, kids getting dropped from freeway overpasses ... it is bad ****.

When will "they" figure out people who want to abuse substances are going to find a way, so let those people have access to pot, which makes people more peaceful and non-aggressive.

The only crimes pot causes are because it is value because it's illegal, whereas ice users become violent and psychotic.

For those who don't want to abuse but to alleviate pain, let them, please.
Personally I find pot increases anxiety and it's not a good pain med for me, but I know it is for other people.

[Bob Orts]

Just remember, some people who supported the people's vote on this measure do not support the actual measure. They supported giving the people the say.

[LeeE]

Beachboy,

Yes, excellent points and I understand your concerns. Richard Cowen of marijuananews.com likes to comment that marijuana prohibition is the result of "bad journalism".

A dishonest mainstream press is definitely a problem all around.

Andrea Tischler asked me to let folks know that they are looking for people to wave signs on election day.

Here's a link to the "Yes on Question 1" site, <http://projectpeacefulsky.org/proposed-ordinance-lowest-law-enforcement-priority-of-cannabis/>.

Perhaps they are organizing door to door campaigning?

Letters to the editors always help, imho.

Also, maybe call everyone you know, especially people in need of accurate information presented in a relevant context, which you certainly do well.

I've wracked my brain for years trying to think of effective ways to get accurate, incredible credible information to the general public. Without a legitimate free press it's very difficult, as most people still get their information from the msm, rather than the internet.

I'd email the lowest priority website and see if they could enlist your aid in any public awareness projects they may have going.

If you'd like to see how this issue is unfolding, as it continues to unfold, you might enjoy <mapinc.org> or <marijuananews.com>. Both great sites, one reporting national and international news stories updated hourly and the other one, one of the best for enlightened, frequently very funny and always brilliant pieces by Mr. Cowen, plus news stories, vids, blogs and much more.

Most folks probably don't know that cancer patients, like miracle case/cancer survivor Steve Kubby (former Libertarian candidate for both Governor of California and pro level athlete), has for twenty five years kept his "always" fatal (except in his case) of adrenal cancer at bay using no "medicines" and smoking one pound of his own super potent cannabis every month.

The reported cancer curing cannabis oil featured in CBC's tv special, "Run From the Cure" (also on youtube.com) mentions that it takes one pound of cannabis buds to make one ounce of the oil his doctors and the docs in his town say has cured over fifty people of their cancers and diabetes.

That whole thing about amounts of pot is just one of the distortions that Prohibition has injected into our society. When the war on marijuana smokers ends, people's knowledge will expand and mature accordingly, imho.

Diminishing the meth (and maybe even the alcohol) plague by making it easier for people to make the safer choice would be nice too!

Ciao and thanks for the great thread!