Just got back from the Marley Fest on Auditorium shores, downtown Austin. Checked out the unveiling of the new Willie Nelson statue as well! Enjoy these shitty cell-phone pics of my endeavors:

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We don’t talk much about politics here, I think mostly because we’re apathetic and/or disillusioned. There are precisely two politicians I genuinely think would be appropriate leaders of our fair country. One of them is the highly polarizing Ron Paul. No, I do not think he’s the second coming of Jesus, and I definitely don’t approve of his views on church and state or abortion. But overall, there’s probably not a more sincere, consistent and honest politician that actually has a chance at becoming president.

The other is the largely unknown former governor of New Mexico: Gary Johnson. A young, active, perhaps more progressive version of Ron Paul, Johnson has gained notoriety (and respect) for having climbed Mts. Everest, Elbrus, McKinley and Kilimanjaro, performing impressive 140+ mile triathlons, and a 100 mile run through the Rocky Mountains. He also survived a 50 foot fall from a paragliding accident and treated his pain with medicinal marijuana.

No, he is not a myth, though he might sound too good to be true. He is highly vocal about his disdain for the War on Drugs, specifically the War on Marijuana. In fact, he has been firmly (and loudly) of this opinion as far back as 1999, long before the argument was part of public discourse.

Nowadays, he is trying to gain footing to stage a serious presidential run, likely in 2016. Just today an op-ed piece authored by none other than Johnson was published in Big Government – a strictly right-leaning website. In the article Johnson argues for the end of the War on Drugs, citing the fiscal, social and international benefits that could come with it. And… well, I’ll let you read it for yourself:

http://biggovernment.com/gjohnson/2012/01/16/its-time-to-end-the-war-on-drugs/#more-408344

A new survey reports that a majority of Americans support the legalization of marijuana. Angus Reid Public Opinion has found that 55% of Americans support legalization of marijuana. This is higher than both their 2009 and 2010 surveys, in which Americans favored it 53% and 52%, respectively.
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Apparently the DEA really doesn’t discriminate. I suppose this is a good thing, since blacks outnumber whites 4-1 in American jails, and they are outnumbered 6-1 in the population of the US. But once again, the lack of oversight and general lack of interest in gathering worthwhile evidence tacks on another repetitive mark under “failed police raid on innocent American’s home.” This time, however, the victim of the raid was not an average American. Where most people would have neither the time nor resources to pursue any type of restitution, this UC Hastings professor vows to take his case as far as possible. At one time even being quoted saying he will not stop until “I see [the agents'] houses sold at auction and their kids’ college tuitions taken away from them.”

While it’s fairly unlikely that any repercussions will befall the individual officers involved in this case, it is possible that the infuriated professor, Clark Freshman, will see some sort of monetary compensation. It is historically a fruitless venture to take on any wing of the American government, especially the judicial sect. And for obvious reasons. But then again, this is not the ordinary citizen, and he probably has some friends in high places. I’ll be interested to see how this one turns out.

You can view the full story here.

Hidden in a dense green forest sits the remote village of a close-knit tribe. They are a simple people, one of the few remnants of ‘uncivilized’ culture not yet blemished by well-intentioned travelers. They all work as one to hunt, gather or cook food, tend to the young and elderly and perform all the various daily tasks any tribal village must. They sing together, eat together, dance together, tend to each other’s wounds and share in every aspect of life. But there is one person whom they all must turn to, someone who possesses a quality unlike any other member.

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Well, what can I say America? You are, once again, a complete disappointment. I became disillusioned with American politics in general long ago, so to be honest it wasn’t too surprising or upsetting to find that one of the most important pieces of drug legislation was shot down by voters today. Even though I privately assumed this would happen months ago, when I first learned about Prop 19, the possible failure was an unspeakable opinion for most marijuana reform advocates.

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The headline states that the “US drug war has met none of its goals.” You mean just throwing trillions of dollars at a problem doesn’t make it go away? You mean people are going to do what they want regardless of whether or not the government says they can? You mean that a program that imprisons non-violent people does more harm than good? Who could have ever guessed? Apparently the new drug czar in our own great US of A did!

“‘In the grand scheme, it has not been successful,’ Kerlikowske told The Associated Press. ‘Forty years later, the concern about drugs and drug problems is, if anything, magnified, intensified.’” Well I’ll be damned. But, of course, there are the dissenters…

“‘To say that all the things that have been done in the war on drugs haven’t made any difference is ridiculous,’ Walters said. ‘It destroys everything we’ve done. It’s saying all the people involved in law enforcment, treatment and prevention have been wasting their time. It’s saying all these people’s work is misguided.’” Uh, Mr. Walters? That’s exactly what we’re saying. But don’t take my word for it! Read the entire article, and pass your own judgement, here.

It seems Mexico is the most drug-progressive country at the moment, and it’s for reasons I don’t think anybody would expect. For those not inclined to read, you are now allowed by law to have 5 grams of marijuana (shitty Mexican brickweed, this is maybe enough for a couple hours of fun), half a gram of cocaine, 50 milligrams of heroin, 40 milligrams of methamphetamine and 15 micrograms (barely threshold experience, if that) of LSD. You can thank the drug cartels.

Link to article found here

Really? Unfortunately, it turns out that the above claim was entirely fabricated by our government. The linked article contains a fantastic example of investigative journalism used for positive purposes, so check it out. Leave your thoughts by commenting below.

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Cannabis is less harmful than alcohol or tobacco, according to a report by a British research charity Thursday, which called for a “serious rethink” of drug policy.