Commentary #2

     US.Government published “Marijuana and It’s Affects” late last month, and while I agree with a portion of the article, I’m concerned by the rest of it and how it paints the legalization of marijuana in a negative light.

     I do agree that taxing it could help alleviate some of the debt the state has, while also bringing in extra revenue to be used for the benefit of the state and its citizens. But I don’t agree that people should be concerned with the health risks it poses. There are so many more things out there that are worse for you like caffeine and trans fats, and people take in all those by the gobs full every day. In my opinion I think legalizing marijuana and having it regulated if anything, would make it harder for minors to get their hands on. I know that when I was growing up it was always harder to get beer and cigarettes as opposed to some “pot,” because beer and cigs were legal and regulated.

     In my research, the tests that have been conducted to see if marijuana is indeed an addictive drug have all come back negative, and not one shows any indication of the user at any point becoming addicted to “weed.” There were no signs that the body or mind ever suffered from the daily use of marijuana. When in fact there were tests done on the bodies of alcoholics and long-term cigarette smokers that all concluded that there were serious health issues that came from the continuing use of either alcohol or tobacco. All of which are legal, so tell me……why can’t “pot” be?

The Greening Of America

         20 years ago it was absurd to think that marijuana would ever become an acceptable part of American life, much like cigarettes or alcohol have become.  But as people are getting educated on the fact that marijuana can cause less harm when compared to those effects of alcohol or tobacco, it’s rapidly making strides to becoming legal and regulated.

          I guess you can say it started back in the late 90’s, when California passed proposition 215 which made marijuana legal for medicinal purposes. After prop. 215 passed in 1996, other states soon then followed, first with Alaska, Oregon, and Washington all passing laws in 1998 making the use of medical marijuana legal. Rounding out the 20^th century with Maine passing with 61% of the vote in favor for the use of medical marijuana in 1999.

          These states paved the way not only for other states to adopt and pass laws for the use of medical marijuana but also the decriminalization of pot. The decriminalization of pot was huge, because it made possession of certain amounts of weed punishable only by fines, where before there was a certainty of jail time to be served. 

          The passing of laws making medical marijuana legal and the decriminalization of weed has had a major impact on this nation leading us to where we are at now. It has been a long time coming, but the legalization of pot has come full circle with 2 states passing laws making the use of marijuana not only for medical purposes but also recreational use completely legal. In 2012, Colorado and Washington are the first 2 states that legalized the recreational use and sales of marijuana. However, the use of pot is still illegal in the eyes of the federal government making the push for a federally adopted law very sought after.

          Before we can get to that point of a federal legalization of pot, we need more states to jump on board and legalize the recreational use and sales of marijuana. With the legalization, also comes regulation of pot. Meaning pot can and will be taxed, bringing a much needed source of revenue to these states. New revenue means better “everything,”……improved roads, new schools, more teachers, police, medics, and firefighters, not to mention improved social services. So it’ll be in these states’ interests to legalize the use of marijuana for the good of its citizens. Although I think that we are still at least a decade away from all the states following in the footsteps of Colorado and Washington, we are much closer to that day than we have ever been.

Heads-Up

Zina brings up a very good point with the report "Big, Hot, Cheap, and Right" earlier this month on the National Lone Soldier. When ever I think about the future I see automation taking care of a lot of everyday jobs, but I never bothered to think about what happened to the previous workers of all these jobs. Having all this automation will cause thousands and possibly millions to be unemployed! So being educated and having skills that will be pertinent to the time will be extremely useful! Educating our young now with skills and knowledge that will be relevant for the future is what she's trying to relay to us. So watch out, the future is now and a lot of Americans aren't properly equipped to handle what tomorrow will bring.

What the H%LL Is a Gerrymander?

     The word gerrymander has roots that can be traced all the way back to the early 1800's, where it came to be known as a sneaky strategic move made by politicians to keep power within their own political party. While the origins of gerrymandering go way back, the practice of it is still alive and well. Although the history of gerrymandering is relevant, it is not important to the basis of this argument. What is important is the purpose behind gerrymandering and the benefits it provides to the ones that are using it.

     In simplest terms, gerrymandering is the redrawing of election districts in a way that it favors whichever party that the one who is doing the drawing belongs to. The two goals of gerrymandering are to maximize the effect of supporters' votes, and to minimize the effect of opponents' votes. This seems to be a very sneaky tactic used to gain and control power. How can this be going on you ask?

     I would think something like this would be very illegal, but unfortunately it is legal to do this. But can there be a way that instead of favoring any given political party it favors the nation and its people. It is often said that we give our politicians too much power but I don’t remember giving anybody anything in the least that resembled power.  So why is it they have what seems to be this divine power to do with what they like? If in fact we gave this power to our representatives, I think it’s time we take the power back.

     Some states have begun this striping of authority from certain politicians and giving it to non-partisan redistricting commissions. By doing this, these states are insuring that the election districts stay as equal as can be and do not a favor any one political party or candidate. While some states are jumping on board, we as a nation need all the states to be on the same page in order for our social and economic systems to thrive in a world that is hungry for change and progress.

Who Stole the Cookie...?

     Have it be your utilities, where you bank, where you shop for groceries, or even the gas you purchase for your automobile, there is no question that you're going to have to get what you need from somewhere. And when that "somewhere" is owned by an individual or group that owns other similar "somewheres", it's hard not to pay the asking price. Especially when all the rates are fairly similar and all the rates are similarly high, with no one else in the game who can give you what you need.
     This is a monopoly, and this is what's happening to smaller banks in this nation. It's becoming harder and harder to be a small bank in this time and age and be successful. When the larger banks around are swallowing up the "little guys", then setting the "price" on rates for mortgages and loans just to have the customer default and have their property seized and taken away from them. This makes the economy poorer and really only benefits those who own the banks and the government governing over these banks.
     What Mr. Cox is saying, is that there is a whole lot of robbing going on and the ones doing the robbing are at the tippy top of the government and Wall Street. The deeds belonging to millions of Americans that have been foreclosed on and evicted are now being passed over to the troubled asset relief program, where they are being re-sold for nearly 20 cents on the dollar, right back to the very same banks that were receiving 100 cents on the dollar previously from the original owner. These properties are being sold with zero interest and nothing down. However, if no profit is generated within the first 2 years of the the property being re-sold, the government promises a rebate on the purchase price the bank paid. And if there is a profit, the government wants a cut from that, making the rich even richer.
     I understand what Mr. Cox is trying to say, the fact that the government should be held on "trial for high crimes and misdemeanors" for "recklessly" destroying the housing and job market, as well as the banking industry. Lord knows I agree, along with a good percentage of Americans, but I think the blame lies with more than just the few that were mentioned. And in fact I think that it also lies with us - the everyday average joe. The same folks that decide to go out and purchase a new home, even though they knew the market wasn't as good as the government made it out to be. Or the people who lose their job and don't have the motivation to go out and find an another job. While I do believe that there's a large part that's out of our hands, I think we as Americans can try a little harder.

Modern Day Witch Hunts a-Brewing

Andrew P. Napolitano is the senior judicial analyst at Fox News Channel, and a former judge of the Superior Court of New Jersey. Despite the nation being preoccupied with the governmental shutdown, Judge Napolitano is trying to open the eyes of those of us that are not that tuned into into whats currently going on, perhaps even at this very minute as you're reading this!

What he's trying to say, is that with the ongoing consent of the Obama administration, and following the direct authorization from the United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, the NSA continues to spy on Americans. The United States Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court, otherwise know as the FISA court, is made up of federal judges administratively approving in secret the wishes of the government. It was learned last week in a serious discussion, that certain members of the government, all of which shall remain NAMELESS, discussed that it is more likely than not that the FISA court has permitted the NSA to seize not only Internet and phone records - including texting and email records, but also credit card and utility records, banking records, social media records and digital images contained in emails.

General warrants are warrants that do not include anything specific about any particular place or person/s, rather gives the bearer the authority to look into whatever and whomever it is they want to look into. He states that with the continued non opposition, the FISA courts will continue to issue these general warrants so that the NSA can continue the monitoring of America. 

He argues that what the FISA court and what the NSA are doing is unconstitutional and can lead to a modern day witch hunt. With no one to oppose them, who can draw the line on how far they can take this spying. With over 4,500 federal crimes that one can be charged with, it's not a matter of "if" but more so "when" you will be charged with something, if this "Big Brother" state continues to oversee. Lavrenti Beria - the Chief of Secret Police for Stalin, said “Show me the man and I will find you the crime.” It is often shown through the pages of history that a government on a witch hunt, unconstrained by law or Constitution, will not stop until it can brand someone as a witch.

Now, I understand the main reason behind this "spying", and I must agree that certain steps must be taken to insure the protection and safety of our nation and its people from foreign and domestic threats. But I don't agree that these steps can be made at the costs of our liberties and our God given privacy's. I agree with Judge Napolitano when he says that it is unconstitutional what the FISA courts and the NSA are doing. I think he's not only trying inform the uninformed, but also posing a question to the top office holders to the lower blue collar workers and everyone in between......does anybody really want the government do to know every little piece of information about you that they can just take without your permission? I for one most certainly do not want that from my government! Instead I think we deserve the opposite, a government that tells the people EVERYTHING and holds no secrets! I think the judge says it best when he says, "And when the government knows all, and doesn’t like what it knows, we will have an authoritarian state far more odious than any history has ever known".

Stopgap Bill Can Affect You.....

Late morning Friday, Sept. 20, 2013, USA Today published an article titled "House passes spending bill that defunds 'Obamacare'". The U.S. House approved a stopgap spending bill aimed at dismantling the president's health care law, however it does face opposition from the Senate and a possible veto from President Obama himself. The bill itself extends the current rate of government spending at $986 billion a year. Without a resolution on the stopgap spending bill, the federal government will face a shut down at the beginning of October. If the federal government does in fact shut down, some governmental programs will continue going while others will stop operating. To see a more detailed list of such governmental programs, please read the article from USA Today.