Happy 420!

Peter Tosh, "Legalize It"

"Singer smoke it
And players of instruments too
Legalize it, yeah, yeah
That's the best thing you can do

Doctors smoke it
Nurses smoke it
Judges smoke it
Even the lawyers too

Legalize it - don't criticize it
Legalize it and i will advertise it"

http://www.norml.com

Introduction

NORML supports the removal of all penalties for the private possession and responsible use of marijuana by adults, including cultivation for personal use, and casual nonprofit transfers of small amounts. This policy, known as decriminalization, removes the consumer -- the marijuana smoker -- from the criminal justice system, while maintaining criminal penalties against those who sell or traffic large quantities of the drug.

In 1972, President Richard Nixon's National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse recommended that Congress adopt this policy nationally in the United States. Since then, more than a dozen government-appointed commissions in both the U.S. and abroad have recommended similar actions. None of these commissions have endorsed continuing to arrest and jail minor marijuana offenders.

Since 1973, 12 state legislatures -- Alaska, California, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Mississippi, Nebraska, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, Ohio and Oregon -- have enacted versions of marijuana decriminalization. In each of these states, marijuana users no longer face jail time (nor in most cases, arrest or criminal records) for the possession or use of small amounts of marijuana. According to national polls, voters overwhelmingly support these policies. In Oregon, voters recently reaffirmed their state's decriminalization law by a 2-1 margin in a statewide referendum.

More than 30 percent of the U.S. population lives under some form of marijuana decriminalization, and according to government and academic studies, these laws have not contributed to an increase in marijuana consumption nor negatively impacted adolescent attitudes toward drug use.

Enforcing marijuana prohibition costs taxpayers an estimated $10 billion annually and results in the arrest of more than 734,000 individuals per year -- far more than the total number of arrestees for all violent crimes combined, including murder, rape, robbery and aggravated assault. This policy is a tremendous waste of national and state criminal justice resources that should be focused on combating serious and violent crime. In addition, it invites government unnecessarily into areas of our private lives, and needlessly damages the lives and careers of hundreds of thousands of otherwise law-abiding citizens. NORML believes now, as former President Jimmy Carter told Congress in 1977, that: "Penalties against drug use should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself. Nowhere is this more clear than in the laws against the possession of marijuana in private for personal use."

Responsible Use

Marijuana is the third most popular recreational drug in America (behind only alcohol and tobacco), and has been used by nearly 80 million Americans. According to government surveys, some 20 million Americans have smoked marijuana in the past year, and more than 11 million do so regularly despite harsh laws against its use. Our public policies should reflect this reality, not deny it.

Marijuana is far less dangerous than alcohol or tobacco. Around 50,000 people die each year from alcohol poisoning. Similarly, more than 400,000 deaths each year are attributed to tobacco smoking. By comparison, marijuana is nontoxic and cannot cause death by overdose. According to the prestigious European medical journal, The Lancet, "The smoking of cannabis, even long-term, is not harmful to health. ... It would be reasonable to judge cannabis as less of a threat ... than alcohol or tobacco."
As with alcohol consumption, marijuana smoking can never be an excuse for misconduct or other improper behavior. For example, driving or operating heavy equipment while impaired from marijuana should be prohibited.

Most importantly, marijuana smoking is for adults only, and is inappropriate for children. There are many activities in our society that are permissible for adults, but forbidden for children, such as motorcycle riding, skydiving, signing contracts, getting married, drinking alcohol or smoking tobacco. However, we do not condone arresting adults who responsibly engage in these activities in order to dissuade our children from doing so. Nor can we justify arresting adult marijuana smokers on the grounds of sending a "message" to children. Our expectation and hope for young people is that they grow up to be responsible adults, and our obligation to them is to demonstrate what that means.

Legalization

NORML supports the eventual development of a legally controlled market for marijuana, where consumers could buy marijuana for personal use from a safe legal source. This policy, generally known as legalization, exists on various levels in a handful of European countries like The Netherlands and Switzerland, both of which enjoy lower rates of adolescent marijuana use than the U.S. Such a system would reduce many of the problems presently associated with the prohibition of marijuana, including the crime, corruption and violence associated with a "black market."

woot happy 4/20

Darko, I am having a Grand Opening Celebration at the 420 Cafe in Healy, tonight from 4 to 7 PST!

Right on! We will be there!

Damn I wanted to start this thread lol


HAPPY 420!!!!!!!!! wooot

Feliz 420!!! Yay....woot!!! :d

And a litle 420 history 'Straight from the Hip'

http://www.sdreader.com/php/ma_show.php?id=012904B

Where does the term 420 come from? Does it refer to a term used by California state patrol to signal pot smoking in progress? Also the term marijuana-- I know it's a girls name, but where did that originate?

-- Unsigned, out there somewhere


Gack! History from stoners. Problematic at best, man. The counterculture's recording secretary lost her pencil back in the '60s, so we've been guessing ever since. The only sure bet is that racist scaremonger Harry J. Anslinger's name is going to come up somewhere in the answer. He was the spiritual father of Reefer Madness-- director of the federal drug administration from the '30s through the '60s. But he doesn't have anything to do with 420. And it's a sad day in Matthewaliceville when High Times is our most reliable source.

Four-twenty has at least 420 explanations, most bogus. No, 420 isn't copspeak or a penal code number. It's not the number of chemicals in pot, not Jerry Garcia's favorite motel room number, not the date LSD's discoverer took his first trip. What it does seem to be, sez HT, is a private, parent-proof code made up by some kids in Marin County in the early 1970s. Four-twenty was the time they all met after school to smoke dope. The mag claims to have seen letters among some of the boys from their college years with many references to 420. The Grateful Dead are credited with spreading the term's popularity. Today 4/20 is a worldwide stoners holiday. Unfortunately, it's also the anniversary of the Columbine slayings and Hitler's birthday. Whoa, dude…unfortunate coincidence, sez HT.

"Marijuana," of course, is one of dozens of Mexican Spanish slang words for weed. Also the name of a brand of cheap Mexican cigarettes from the early 1900s, though it's likely the cigs came later. No clear source there. But we know it north of the border because the aforementioned Mr. Anslinger chose to use the name "marijuana" instead of the more scientific "cannabis" in his speeches and legislation. This linked the drug directly to the Mexican and black subcultures and was Anslinger's subtle proof that herb was the cause of rape, mayhem, and the downfall of civilized America-- his mantra for 30 years.

wow, i really do learn something new everyday! Seriously had no idea about 420, thanks for the knowledge Darko!

**waves to Paris**

Huggerz,
MJ

Ladies and gentlemen, and people too stoned to know which is which, I am proud to present you Wiki, the Pedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/420_%28drug_culture%29

My "Free Weed" sign is out at Tribal Drums in Epimetheus, so go have fun today kiddies!

If anyone else wants a Free Weed sign on their lot, IM me in-world and I'll come by and put one out.

And if anyone just wants a box of Tokin' Joints, you can IM me and I'll be glad to drop one on ya...

LIBERATE THE WEED!!!

- Ace

Hey Ace can ya put one up on Urusula's 420 Cafe in Healy ? Also be sure and check events for tonight's gala/grand opening.

Why are you all celebrating Hitler's birthday? You horrible people!

Far be it for me to bad-mouth the Lindens, because I generally find them to be a great organization with great people, but...

About 6-8 weeks ago, I IM'd Robin about the possibility of renting one of the vehicle sims on 4/20. I envisioned having a bohemian, counter-culture display of vendors, along with lots of educational materials concerning marijuana.

Unfortunately, they were not interested in such a proposition.

So... I guess we'll just have to do things on our own land.

- Ace

P.S. I was driving along the Mass Pike yesterday, and there was a billboard. "5.2 million arrested for marijuana has cost us $5.4 billion. Is it worth it?". I guess the Mass Turnpike Authority is more liberated in their thinking than LL.

I'm way ahead of ya, Leck!!! I've already exchanged some IM's with Urusula.

- Ace

Yeah, because the billboards are owned and operated by the MTA

*Cough cough* Way ahead of you Darko....I took the day off! Me=Slacker

*tosses nugfetti*

Yay! Raise your hand if you celebrated already!!

*handraisehandraise*

Cheers--I hope you are all doing well. Pass it!!

Unfortunately, this year I'm going to have to limit my celebrations to tokin' the non-intoxicating digital Tokin' Joint variety. I am going to have to pee in a bottle in a couple of weeks, and have been told that it can take up to 30 days for your system to clear out.

Fortunately, this pee test is of the "one-time only" variety, and I have been given ample notice. I'm not sure why they bother because they give everyone plenty of time to clean themselves up. Maybe they're just screening out the hard-core potheads (and users of harder substances) who can't make it 30 days without.

- Ace

Ace this is for you dude! I have been SUPER STONED since 7:30am and will not be slowing down till midnight! ONE LOVE!

HAPPY 4-20! Shouldn't this be a national holiday or something???

And now, a word from our sponsors:


"Hits From the Bong" by Cypress Hill

Hits from the bong
Hits from the bong
Hits from the bong
Hits from the bong

Pick it
Pack it
Fire it up, come along
And take a hit from the bong
Put the blunt down
Just for a second
Don’t get me wrong
It’s not a new method
Inhale
Exhale
Just got an ounce in the mail
I like a blunt or a big fat cone
But my double-barrel bong
Is gettin’ me stoned
I’m skill it
There’s water inside don’t spill it
It smells like shit on the carpet
Still it
Goes down smooth when I get a clean hit
Of the skunky, phunky, smelly green shit
Sing my song
Puff all night long
As I take hits from the bong
Hits from the bong y’all

Hits from the bong
Gonna get high
Hits from the bong
Gonna get high

Hits from the bong
Gonna get high
Hits from the bong
Gonna get high

Let’s smoke that bowl
Hit the bong
And then take that finger off of that hole
Plug it
Unplug it
Don’t strain
I love you mary jane
She never complains
When I hit mary
With that flame
I light up the cherry
She’s so good to me
When I pack a fresh bowl I clean the screen
Don’t get me stirred up
The smoke, through the bubbling water
Is makin’ it pure so I got ta
Take my hit and hold it
Just like chong
I get the bowl and I reload it
Get my four-footer and bring it on
As I take hits from the bong

Hits from the bong
Gonna get high
Hits from the bong
Gonna get high

Hits from the bong
Gonna get high
Hits from the bong
Gonna get high

Hits from the bong
Gonna get high
Hits from the bong
Gonna get high

Hits from the bong
Straighten your dick out
Gonna get high

Tumbleweed ~ Afroman


-~

*PuffPuffPass*

-Ghoti

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