How Taxing Marijuana
Shits on the Grave of Jack Herer
War Breaks Out Within
the Marijuana Legalization Movement (Part 4)
Jack Herer and Bruce Cain at the "Earth Community House"
in Detroit, Michigan. Photo taken in the early 1990's..
=======================================
Jack Herer died on April 15th, 2010 at the age of 70. He was the most important
advocate for the Re-Legalization of Marijuana, not just in the United
States but, throughout the planet. Yet even before his body grew
cold the Moneyed Drug Reform Organizations moved forward to shit on his
legacy. They did this by unanimously opting to support the
"taxation and regulation of Marijuana through the "Oaksterdam"
Initiative in California and through supporting other similar measures
in other states..
To honor his legacy we must vote against the California "Oaksterdam" initiative and demand the
untaxed, unregulated self cultivation of Marijuana for all adult
Americans. And regardless of how you vote on the California
initiative I highly recommend that you sign the MERP Petition to
legalize Marijuana "self cultivation" throughout the United States
It is exactly what Jack would have wanted. =======================================
"There must be a better way than this
We need to talk about it
They won't even let us grow a weed
It's time to shout about it"
While we can argue facts we cannot
merely fabricate our facts. And the fact of the matter is that
Jack Herer was vehemently opposed to the "taxation and regulation" of
Marijuana. And yet "tax and regulate" has become a mantra of the
Corporate Media and the Moneyed Drug Reform Organizations over the last
two years. As citizen activists for Marijuana
Re-Legalization we must demand that the self cultivation of Marijuana is
never taxed, regulated or limited. That is the least we can do to
honor his legacy. It is the way he would have wanted it. Yet
it is absolutely not what NORML, Drug Policy Alliance (DPA) and the
Marijuana Policy Project are promoting. No, they are all promoting
the monopolization, taxation and regulation of a plant that is no more
dangerous than the tomatoes in your garden.
It is also clear that President Obama
is secretly pushing for the "taxation and regulation" of Marijuana so
that the government -- the same entity that has been persecuting
Marijuana consumers for over 72 years -- can now become our new
Marijuana "Drug Dealer. The hypocrisy is deafening. And it
is not something we can afford to accept.
After you have completed reading this
article there are three things that I would like you to do:
(1) Sign the following petition by
clicking on the link below:
I first met Jack Herer in 1989 where
he was speaking at the Hash Bash in Ann Arbor, Michigan. That
evening we shared dinner at the Heidelberg Restaurant, in Ann Arbor, and
discussed Hemp history and strategies to bring Marijuana Re-Legalization
to fruition. Prior to meeting Jack I had already embarked on
publishing a magazine on drug policy and other socio-economic issues.
The magazine was "New Age Patriot" and was published from 1989 to 1997.
The last issue was published shortly after the first Medical Marijuana
Initiative, Proposition 215, passed in California in November of 1996.
Through our conversation is was clear
that we were both resolute that Marijuana should be grown as freely as
tomatoes and that it belonged to everyone on Planet Earth.
There was no way that Jack believed "self cultivation" should ever be
taxed or regulated. And that is why I am so disappointed that
NORML, DPA and MPP are insisting on moving forward with "tax and
regulate" measures that essentially prohibit "self cultivation" for all
adult Americans.
The next year I organized an event
which included speakers from diverse political organizations and
numerous bands. Jack Herer was the featured speaker at the event.
This quote was from Jack Herer's
speech at the Freedom Fest. The event occurred at
Dearborn's "Ford Field" on October 22, 1990. He was quoting, Mike Duffy,
a Detroit reporter. And he said that this:
"We're going to have to go out there every day. Our parents and
everybody forgot that there was a simple plant that could save the
Earth. And now I want you to get militant on my behalf, on Hemp's behalf
on all of us that are out there trying to get this information out
there.
Mike Duffy of the Detroit Free Press, last year (1989), wrote a line in
his introduction to the story about the "Hemp Tour" and the "Emperor."
It's one of my favorite lines. It sums up the way I feel about
Marijuana: the way that the world could be if you will join with us. And
the faster you join with us the faster it will happen. The way Mike
Duffy said it was:
"The time for reefer madness it over. The time for refer gladness should
begin."
Jack Herer at the Freedom Fest in Dearborn, Michigan (October 22, 1990).
[The "Emperor" is his reference to his underground classic about the
thousands of Agricultural, Industrial, Medicinal and Recreational uses
of Hemp (Marijuana). The name of the book was "The Emperor Wears No
Clothes"].
Knowing Jack, as I did, I can assure
you that when he talked about "reefer gladness" he was alluding to a
newly emancipated "Hemp Nation" where everyone would be able to grow all
the Marijuana they wished to grow. He never wanted to see
Marijuana "taxed and regulated."
And he was unwavering in this
commitment till they day he died. This was crystal clear to me
from our correspondence over the next twenty years. It was crystal
clear from all of his writing and speeches. And it was
explicitly stated in the CCHH Initiative, which he authored and was
hoping to get onto the California ballot in 2010.
Unfortunately the heart attack that he suffered, at the Oregon Hemp
Stalk festival in October of 2009, prevented him from following through
with the initiative.
But just minutes before being
silenced, by what would become a fatal heart attack, he made one of his
most blistering attacks on those that would "tax and regulate" his
plant. And here is the transcript of what he said in this famous
speech at "Hemp Stalk:"
I don't want to f**king give
the United States government one f**king dollar of taxes. I think that
they should go to f**king jail for getting you and me and 20 million
people getting arrested for pot. It is the safest thing you can do in
the universe. And that is what we are going to do in California. Okay?
Come over to my booth, over there, and I will see you next time."
In this video
Jack Herer vehemently denounced the attempts by the Cannabusiness
community to push for the government taxation and regulation of our
Marijuana during his speech at the HempStalk Festival in Oregon (09/12/2009).
Unfortunately he suffered a heart attack shortly after delivering what
could become his most important speech.
At the vey least I want to hear the
heads of NORML, DPA and MPP (Allen St. Pierre, Ethan Nadleman and Rob
Kampia) admit that they, in no way, support the "self cultivation" of
Marijuana that Jack had envisioned. At the very most I want them
to join us in passing the MERP Model Nationally, so that every Adult
American can "self cultivate" without any form of taxation, regulation
or limitation. It is what Jack would have wanted. And I have
a standing challenge to debate with the heads of all three organizations
on the merits of the MERP Model. To this date I have had no
takers.
The Betrayal of
Jack Herer's Vision for Marijuana Re-Legalization
I believe the last time I talked to
Jack was through a phone conversation around 2008. We talked about
many things. We talked about how we were both opposed to the
Medical Marijuana strategy that began with the passage of Proposition
215 in 1996. We had hoped that it would be a "stepping stone"
towards complete legalization. But we were fearful that the
"Medical Strategy" would result in attempts to monopolize production
while not making it available to all adults. And we both agreed
that our fears had already been realized.
We also discussed our suspicions that
big backers, such as George Soros, had hijacked the movement toward full
legalization. This was a suspicion shared by many other elders in
the Re-Legalization movement around the same time and to this very day.
You can learn more about the details and evidence of these suspicions by
accessing the many articles and videos at MERP Headquarters.
But we were both undeterred.
Jack was hammering out the language for what would become the
"California Cannabis Hemp & Health Initiative" (CCHH), to be launched in
California. And I was hammering out the language for a national
strategy to legalize Marijuana "self cultivation." And that has
since become known and the MERP Strategy for Marijuana "Self
Cultivation."
Despite Jack Herer's status, as the
most internationally revered figure in the Marijuana Re-Legalization
movement, the Moneyed Organizations (NORML, DPA and MPP) have always
treated Jack as if he were a "red headed step child of the movement."
This has always angered me. And Jack was none to happy about it
either.
The proof of this is undeniable.
Because despite the insistence, of groups like NORML, the Moneyed Drug
Reform Organizations have only paid "lip service" to the vision of
untaxed self cultivation. Instead every damn one of them have
committed to a "tax and regulate" model that is increasingly working
toward the complete prohibition of any form of self cultivation.
The proof of these accusations can be
found in the Arizona and California proposals that will be put up for
vote in November 2010. MPP crossed the line by launching the
Arizona initiative which will prohibit any "self cultivation" unless the
patient lives more than 25 miles from a dispensary. It is obvious
that, in time, no one in Arizona will be able to "self cultivate."
And this is the first MPP-sponsored Medical Marijuana Initiative that
imposes such restrictions. In all of the 13 previous initiatives
patients and caregivers could grow at least 12 plants and caregivers
could grow as many as 60 plants if they took on 5 patients.
The California "Oaksterdam"
initiative essentially does the same thing by restricting "self
cultivation" to a "5 by 5" space: a mere 25 square feet. It is
formally known as "The Regulate, Control and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 "
A typical home grower is going to want to have a few mother plants,
clones, plants in vegetative stage and plants in flowering stage.
There is no way you can practically do this in a 25 square foot space.
And if you go over that you could be facing a felony.
Unsurprisingly NORML's Allen St. Pierre gave his endorsement to the
"Oaksterdam" initiative on the eve of April 20th, 2010. And it is
also obvious that these space restrictions are intended to eventually
prohibit all "self cultivation."
Need I say more?
Honoring Jack
Herer's Legacy
Jack Herer was not just the most
revered Re-Legalization activist in the United States. He
was also the most revered Re-Legalization activist in the world.
His book, "The Emperor Wears No Clothes" has been translated into 20
languages and has sold over a half million copies since it was first
published in 1986.
We cannot just simply sit back while
these greedy Moneyed Organizations hi-jack the will of activist
community by forcing us to accept unnecessary "taxation and regulation"
of our plant. And we cannot accept a future where adults will be
restricted from simply "growing our own" Marijuana without the
encumbrances of "taxation, regulation or restrictions on the amount of
Marijuana that we can grow. That is not how Jack wanted Marijuana
Re-Legalization to be implemented.
I am recommending that all activists
do the following things to insure that Jack Herer's legacy is honored:
(1) If you live in California
please do not vote for the "Oaksterdam" initiative in November 2010.
Instead insist that Richard Lee put up the money to gather the
signatures required to get Jack's CCHH initiative on the ballot.
We must also insist that he begin speaking out against the passage of
his initiative. It has been denounced by Jack Herer, Dennis Peron,
Bruce Cain and many other elder activists.
(2) If you live in Arizona
please do not vote for the MPP Medical Marijuana Initiative.
(3) If you live in the United
States please sign the MERP Petition which will automatically send
letters to Obama, you Federal Senators and your Federal House "Member."
Already nearly 4,000 letter have been sent through the signatures of
nearly 1,000 activists. Even if you insist on voting for the
"Oaksterdam" Initiative there is no reason why you cannot concurrently
support the MERP Model.
Petition for the Immediate
Re-Legalization of Marijuana
Bruce Cain and John Sinclair Speaking
at the Hash Bash in Ann Arbor (April 3rd, 2010)
(4) If you are a member of a
drug reform organization -- including NORML, MPP and DPA -- insist that
they dedicate their support for the passage of the MERP Model through a
special Joint Session of Congress. Otherwise inform them that you
are going to withdraw from their organization.
(5) If you live outside the
United States consider revising and supporting the passage of the MERP
Model in your own country.
Let us not allow Obama, or these
Moneyed Drug Reform Organizations to delay the implementation of Jack
Herer's vision for Hemp's future on Planet Earth. And that
minimally requires that every adult should be able to grow all the
Marijuana they desire without any form of taxation, regulation or
limitation. Do not allow them to shit on the grave of Jack Herer.
Lisa "Dinga" Ling provides the
typical corporate media propaganda. As with coverage by other
national "reporters" (Lou Dobbs, Anderson Cooper etc.) this film
refuses to address the fact that without prohibition we could all grow
our Marijuana for free and the "greater good" would immediately be
served. The only thing that makes an ounce of Marijuana worth $300
to $500 an ounce is the fact that is is still illegal. Once legal
we can all grow it for free outside or for about $25 and ounce under
lights indoors.
Leave it to NORML to hang themselves. This
contains links to a plethora of "tax and regulate" media propaganda.
I challenge you to find anything in any of these presentations that
talks about adult Americans being able to "grow their own."
Please send the link to
activists throughout the planet. The translation bar should allow
this to be read in any language. The 5-Point Strategy for
Marijuana Re-Legalization should be easy to implement in any country
throughout the planet. I encourage all groups celebrating the
Global Marijuana March to make the immediate implementation of the MERP
Model a primary focus of the event.
Call President Obama and your Representatives and demand:
(1) Immediate clemency for Marc Emery and
(2) Immediate implementation of the MERP Model through an Emergency
Session of Congress, similar to what was used to pass the TARP Bailout
on October 3rd, 2008
President:
U.S. Senate switchboard:
202-224-3121
U.S. House switchboard:
(202) 225-3121
The President:
Comments: 202-456-1111.
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
Share
your views on whether Lou Dobbs should support Marijuana Re-Legalization at our
new discussion group
Anything purchased,
through the links in this column, generate revenue for New Age Citizen
and will help us achieve the policy goals discussed at this website.
In addition to the book links is the "New Age Emporium" link below.
This will take you to our comprehensive digital storefront where you can
purchase anything from books, to DVD's, to computers. This allows
you to purchase things you actually need, while helping New Age Citizen
achieve needed social change. We appreciate your support.
