Should Marijuana Be Legal for Religious Purposes?

Eliyahu Federman  

 
Medical marijuana is spreading in acceptance, with Illinois this month becoming the 20th state to legalize medical marijuana.
This week a Federal court judge ruled that religion can be used as a defense in a marijuana distribution charge. But so far no states have legalized religious marijuana use, even though there is compelling reason to do so.
People consume alcohol for religious reasons, especially Jews. At least 25 states even allow minors to consume alcohol for religious purposes. So why not legalize marijuana for legitimate religious purposes?
Various world religions include the practice of ritual drinking of alcohol. Christians drink communion wine. Jews drink Kiddush wine, Passover Seder wine, and consume alcohol on festivals such as Purim where the tradition is to celebrate by drinking until one can’t distinguish Haman (our enemy) and Mordecai (our hero).
 
Full Article:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/eliyahu-federman/should-religious-marijuan_b_3749742.html

Seattle Police to Hand Out Doritos – Not Tickets – at Hempfest

By Scott Gacek
Seattle Police to Hand Out Doritos – Not Tickets – at Hempfest
 
SEATTLE, WA — For years, Seattle police have looked the other way as thousands of people openly smoke marijuana on the Seattle waterfront for three days during Hempfest, the largest annual gathering of marijuana smokers in the world.  That was before voters passed I-502 last November, legalizing the possession of marijuana by adults in Washington State.
Public consumption of marijuana in Washington remains illegal, but police don’t plan on handing out tickets at this weekend’s event as thousands of marijuana supporters celebrate legalized marijuana by openly toking on the Seattle waterfront. Instead, they will be passing out bags of Doritos with legal information about the new law.
 
Full Article:
http://www.thedailychronic.net/2013/25252/seattle-police-to-hand-out-doritos-not-tickets-at-hempfest/#!

New York City Comptroller John Liu calls for legalized pot in NYC

Associated Press
 
NEW YORK — New York City Comptroller John Liu is proposing a historic overhaul of the city’s marijuana laws, believing that legalizing medical marijuana and allowing adults to possess an ounce of pot for recreational use would pump more than $400 million into the city’s coffers.
The sweeping change, which would put New York at the forefront of a growing national debate over use of the drug, calls for recreational marijuana to be regulated and taxed like alcohol and tobacco.
 
Full Article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/APbf5563883a774f6f94ad71f2449837f4.html

Roger Christie allowed to use religious defense

By JOHN BURNETT – Tribune-Herald staff writer
 
A Hilo cannabis minister who’s been jailed for three years without bail while awaiting trial will be able to use religion as a defense to federal marijuana distribution charges.
U.S. District Judge Leslie Kobayashi ruled during a July 31 status conference that Roger Christie and his wife, Share, “may rely upon their religious beliefs to counter the element of ‘intent to distribute’ in … charges alleged against them,” Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael Kawahara wrote in a motion requesting reconsideration or clarification of that ruling.
 
Full Article:
http://hawaiitribune-herald.com/sections/news/local-news/christie-allowed-use-religious-defense.html

Eric Holder unveils new reforms aimed at curbing US prison population

 in Washington and  in New York
Eric Holder

Holder said mandatory minimum sentences “breed disrespect for the system … they do not serve public safety. Photograph: Matt Rourke/AP
The US government took the first tentative steps toward tackling its 1.5m-strong prison population on Monday by announcing that minor drug dealers would be spared the mandatory minimum sentences that have previously locked up many for a decade or more.
Reversing years of toughening political rhetoric in Washington, attorney general Eric Holder declared that levels of incarceration at federal, state and local levels had become both “ineffective and unsustainable.”
The Department of Justice will now instruct prosecutors to side-step federal sentencing rules by not recording the amount of drugs found on non-violent dealers not associated with larger gangs or cartels.
“Our system is in many ways broken,” Holder told the American Bar Association in San Francisco. “As the so-called war on drugs enters its fifth decade we need to ask whether it has been fully effective and usher in a new approach.”
“Too many Americans go to too many prisons for far too long and for no truly good law enforcement reason,” he said, adding later: “We cannot simply prosecute or incarcerate our way to becoming a safer country.”
 
Full Article:
http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/aug/12/eric-holder-smart-crime-reform-us-prisons

Holder vows to end war on drugs, cites racial imbalance in ‘unintended consequences’

BY 
 
In a recent interview with NPR , Attorney General Eric Holder admitted to having finally seen the light: America is locking up too many of its citizens, especially its black and brown citizens. Holder is set to announce what he described as “major changes” in the entire incarceration process within a week’s time. His special focus and emphasis is on the putative “War on Drugs.”
From the interview: “The war on drugs is now 30, 40 years old. There have been a lot of unintended consequences. There’s been a decimation of certain communities, in particular communities of color.” (Emphasis added).
Holder’s sudden shift in attitude, approach, and drug policy follows several meetings with prison and drug reform groups. Dr. Boyce Watkins of Syracuse University and YourBlackWorld.com, together with entertainment mogul Russell Simmons, recently presented an open letter to the Obama Admistration  signed by 175 celebrities, activists and scholars demanding an end to the so-called war on drugs.
 
Full Article:
http://www.allvoices.com/contributed-news/15158608-attorney-general-holder-vows-to-end-racist-war-on-drugs

Crooked Judges Want Your Kids for Cash


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While Ed was out on quads with his friends, they came upon a fawn who was lost. The only one who could pick it up was Ed.
 
Edward “Ed” Kenzakoski was a strong guy. He was an all-star wrestler going into his senior year at James M. Coughlin High School in Wilkes-Barre, PA and was actively scouted since 9th grade. He was expecting to take the state title and hopefully the scholarships would follow. He had a fair amount of friends, and was a thoughtful young man who had a bit of a tough guy reputation because he was quiet and muscular in stature. Although he rarely let people in, he was very affected by the world and other people’s feelings. Though he had some close friends from childhood, he cherished hiking with his dog and often told his mother he wanted to have his own island. His favorite outdoor sport was ice fishing, and when it was cold enough, that’s where one would most likely find him.
 
Full Article:
http://www.ladybud.com/2013/04/18/crooked-judges-want-your-kids-for-cash/