Two weeks ago, we launched our new organization, the Coalition for Cannabis Policy Reform (CCPR), to bring citizens together to work toward legalizing marijuana in2012.
Already, thousands of people like you have stood up and pledged their support for going back to the ballot next year.
With that kind of support, I am confident that we can win. Together, we’re going to build this organization, brick by brick, and lay the foundation for an even stronger grassroots movement — but we need your help to do it.
That’s why, today, we are launching our Founding Members program. With a contribution of $25 or more, we’ll place your name on your own personalized virtual brick on our website’s Founders Wall, publicly recognizing you as a Founding Member of the Coalition for Cannabis Policy Reform.
To recognize friends like you, we’re building a virtual brick wall, symbolizing the support we have for cannabis policy reform.
Each brick represents a supporter of the cause, with his or her name engraved on the front, along with a personalized comment. Our virtual wall will let the world know everyone who is a part of this new effort from the very start.
Every contribution counts. If we build our virtual wall with just 1,000 bricks, we’ll have already raised $25,000 for our cause.
Will you buy your own personalized brick right now — so we can add your name to our Founding Member wall?
Your contribution to CCPR will help us build the movement we need to end cannabis prohibition in California. Together, we can lead the nation to a more sensible drug policy — brick by brick.
We are extremely grateful for your support.
Dale Jones
Chair
Coalition for Cannabis Policy Reform
The One Hitters are already kicking the Drug War’s ass — now they want to beat the drug warriors in a softball game
Once again, the softball team representing the Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) has backed out of playing a softball game against the One Hitters, a team consisting of members of several drug policy reform organizations and others who want to end the “War On Drugs.”
A game between the two teams had been scheduled for May 25, but the ONDCP Czardinals chickened out shortly after scheduling the game, with ONDCP public liaison coordinator Quinn Staudt claiming an “accidental double-booking.”
This is not the first time the Czardinals have refused to play the One Hitters.
The One Hitters dominate the Congressional Softball League
In six years, the team of drug warriors has managed to find one lame reason or another to avoid taking the field against the One Hitters, made up of individuals dedicated to reforming the out-of-date and ineffectual policies promoted by the ONDCP.
This behavior is being mimicked on the national stage by the ONDCP as well, according to the reformers.
While Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske claimed he would no longer use the rhetoric of a “War On Drugs” and President Obama said he wants to treat drug abuse more as a health problem than a criminal justice issue, little has been seen in the way of action in that direction.
The President has also said he does not support the legalization of any drug — even marijuana — despite the inarguable damage marijuana prohibition does to society, individual users, medical patients that benefit from cannabis treatments, governmental budgets, and respect for the rule of law.
“It is really disappointing that the ONDCP not only refuses to have an honest debate with drug policy reformers about the absolute failure of drug prohibition, but also keeps ducking out of softball games with us,” said One Hitters team captain Jacob Berg.
“We think it would be a great opportunity to advance the discussion between drug law reformers and the people ostensibly in charge of drug policy in this country,” Berg said. “I wonder if they are afraid to have that conversation.”
“The drug czar said ‘legalization’ isn’t in his vocabulary, but it’s just a friendly softball game!” Berg said.
The One Hitters still hope that Czardinals will put aside ideological differences and accept their invitation to play a softball game this summer on the National Mall in Washington, D.C.
Photo: Anastacia Cosner
The mighty One Hitters strike fear into the hearts of the ONDCP Czardinals and drug warriors everywhere.
Tommy Chong is a legend among stoners. The Canadian-American comedian, actor and musician, well known for his stereotypical portrayals of hippie-era pot smokers, turns 73 years old today. He was born May 24, 1938 in Edmonton, Alberta.
Chong is most widely known for his involvement in the Cheech & Chong comedy duo, which recorded a series of albums and then filmed a series of movies centered around marijuana-related humor. He also became well known for playing the hippie character “Leo” on Fox’s That 70s Show.
In 2003, Chong — as a highly visible and successful symbol of the stoner lifestyle — was targeted by two American investigations code-named Operation Pipe Dreams and Operation Headhunter. He was charged for his part in financing and promoting Chong Glass/Nice Dreams, a company started by his son Paris.
Chong’s case never went to trial; instead he accepted a plea agreement with the office of the U.S. Attorney for Western Pennsylvania, in which he admitted to distributing 7,500 bongs and water pipes on the Internet. He agreed to the guilty plea in exchange for non-prosecution of his wife, Shelby, and his son.
He was sentenced to nine months in prison, a fine of $20,000, forfeiture of $103,514, and the loss of all merchandise seized in the raid on his business. He served his sentence at the Taft Correctional Institution, being released on July 7, 2004.
The entire episode was chronicled in the award-winning 2006 documentary film a/k/a Tommy Chong. He wrote about his experiences in prison and his interest in meditation in his 2006 book, The I Chong: Meditations From The Joint.
The federal government refuses to reclassify marijuana as medicine — despite the fact that it has sent Irv Rosenfeld and a handful of other patients hundreds of joints a month for close to 30 years.
A coalition of medical marijuana advocacy groups and patients filed suit Monday in D.C. Circuit Court to compel the Obama Administration to answer a nine-year-old petition to reclassify medical marijuana.
The Coalition for Rescheduling Cannabis (CRC) has never received an answer to its 2002 petition, despite a formal recommendation in 2006 from the Department of Health and Human Services to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which is unfortunately the final arbiter in the rescheduling process.
As recently as July 2010, the DEA issued a 54-page “Position on Marijuana,” but failed to even mention the pending CRC petition.
Plaintiffs in the case include the CRC, Americans for Safe Access (ASA), Patients Out of Time, as well as individually named patients, one of whom is listed on the CRC petition but died in 2005.
“The federal government’s strategy has been delay, delay, delay,” said Joe Elford, chief counsel of ASA and lead counsel on the writ. “It is far past time for the government to answer our rescheduling petition, but unfortunately we’ve been forced to go to court in order to get resolution.”
Joe Elford, ASA: “The federal government’s strategy has been delay, delay, delay. It is far past time for the government to answer our rescheduling petition”
The writ of mandamus filed on Monday accuses the government of unreasonable delay in violation of the Administrative Procedures Act. A previous cannabis (marijuana) rescheduling petition filed in 1972 were unanswered for 22 years before being denied.
The writ argues that cannabis is not a dangerous drug and that ample evidence of its therapeutic value based on scientific studies in the United States and around the world.
“Despite numerous peer-reviewed scientific studies establishing the marijuana is effective” in treating numerous medical conditions, the government “continues to deprive seriously ill persons of this needed, and often life-saving therapy by maintaining marijuana as a Schedcule I substance,” according to the writ.
The writ calls out the government for unlawfully failing to answer the petition despite an Inter-Agency Advisory issued by the Food and Drug Administration in 2006 and “almost five years after receiving a 41-page memorandum from HHS stating its scientific evaluation and recommendations.”
The federal government maintains its Schedule I classification of marijuana even as it gives out hundreds of federal joints every month to a handful of patients — which it has done since 1976, when it created the Investigational New Drug Compassionate Access Program.
Every month, the federal government still sends tins of 300 joints each to the four surviving patients of the original program, which suspended accepting new patients after President George H.W. Bush realized in the early 1990s that a wave of HIV/AIDS patients was on the way.
Steph Sherer, ASA: “Adhering to an outdated public policy that ignores science has created a war zone for doctors and their patients who are seeking to use cannabis therapeutics”
The two largest physician groups in the country — the American Medical Association and the American College of Physicians — have both called on the federal government to review marijuana’s status as a Schedule I substance with “no accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.”
The National Cancer Institute, a part of the National Institutes for Health, added cannabis to its website earlier this year as a Complementary Alternative Medicine (CAM) and recognized that “Cannabis has been used for medicinal purposes for thousands of years prior to its current status as an illegal substance.”
Medical marijuana has now been legalized in 16 states and the District of Columbia, and has an overwhelming 80 percent approval rating among Americans, according to several polls.
In an 1988 ruling on a prior rescheduling petition, the DEA’s own Administrative Law Judge Francis Young recommended in favor of reclassification, saying “Marijuana, in its natural form, is one of the safest therapeutically active substances known to man.”
A formal rejection of the CRC petition would enable the group to challenge in court the government’s assertion that marijuana has no medical value.
“Adhering to outdated public policy that ignores science has created a war zone for doctors and their patients who are seeking to use cannabis therapeutics,” said Steph Sherer, executive director of ASA and a plaintiff in the writ.
“The Obama Administration’s refusal to act on this petition is an irresponsible stalling tactic,” added Jon Gettman, who filed the rescheduling petition on behalf of the CRC.
A synthetic form of THC, the main psychoactive ingredient in the cannabis plant, is currently classified as a Schedule III substance for its use in a prescribed pill trademarked as Marinol®. The pill goes off-patent this year and companies vying to sell generic versions are petitioning the government to also reclassify the more economical, naturally derived THC (from the plant itself) to Schedule III as well.
The rescheduling process involves federal agencies such as the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), HHS, and DEA. On average, it takes six months from HHS review to final action, but it’s been almost five years since HHS issued its recommendation on the CRC petition — more than twice as long as any other rescheduling petition reviewed since 2002.
Cheech & Chong are one of the most famous comedy duos in history. At their peak in the 1970s, they represented the mainstream embodiment of the attitudes and lifestyles of the underground drug culture. Much like W.C. Fields shot to fame by making alcohol the focus of his act, the duo of Richard “Cheech” Marin and Tommy Chong emerged from a cloud of pot smoke, simultaneously lauding and lampooning the stoner community that became the team’s most ardent supporters. It was a tried and true recipe for success that still proves popular—as presently evidenced by the comedic action series Project 420, where being a pothead is all part of a day’s work for three CIA narcotic research scientists. While Cheech & Chong were derided by critics and dismissed by the general populace, the team’s stature as counterculture heroes was, and remains, unquestioned. For both aging hippies and dazed-and-confused teens, their comedy defined an era. And now, nearly half a century after they first hit the stage together, their live performances, comedy albums and movies continue to entertain a new generation. They are legends, and here are eight reasons why:
1. Cheech & Chong are better than boobies
After entering show business as a guitarist in a rock band, Tommy Chong (who also operated his inherited family business: a topless bar) established City Works in Toronto, a wild improvisational troupe later joined by Richard “Cheech” Marin, who had just moved to Canada from California. When City Works dissolved, Cheech & Chong continued as a duo, performing at Chong’s club, which (as I mentioned) featured topless dancers.
Prior to the comedy club boom of the early ‘80’s, it was not uncommon for comedians to perform in strip clubs (that’s also how Jay Leno got his start). Of course, with big beautiful breasts bouncing all about, it was much more difficult for a comic to captivate the audience. I mean, c’mon, we’re talking fun-bags here, folks. So, when a comedian could distract a crowd’s attention away from the ladies, it was pretty clear they were funny. Cheech & Chong had no problem stealing the spotlight from the headlights. Whenever they took the stage, boobs took a backseat to their outrageous bits.
2. “Dave’s not here.”
Aside from their live performances and movies, Cheech & Chong albums were part of what made the two men great in the eyes of their fans. Basically, the albums were recordings of live stand up routines, jokes, and skits. The albums still continue to be a huge part of what make them great.
On their self-titled debut album, the sketch “Waiting for Dave” is perhaps their most famous and is largely responsible for helping garner their widespread popularity. The outrageous, circular routine (owing a debt to comedians Bob & Ray) was actually ad-libbed by Chong, which confused and angered Cheech, thus making the performance all the more memorable because of it’s uproarious (and little-known) authenticity.
3. Big Bambu included a REALLY Big Bambu
Following the success of their self-titled debut recording, Cheech & Chong released a number of other wildly successful albums, including Wedding Album, Sleeping Beauty, and Greatest Hits; but it was their second, Big Bambu, that is their most famous (it reached #2 on the Billboard charts).
Named after a brand of rolling papers, the album’s immense popularity wasn’t so much due to the record itself, but because the original packaging included a GIANT rolling paper – perfect for rolling a GIANT joint. Not surprisingly, today, the original album is considered a valuable collector’s item.
4. Cheech & Chong introduced the world to Pee-wee Herman
Formed in Los Angeles in 1974, The Groundlings is a legendary improv troupe that has produced countless stars such as Will Ferrell, Jimmy Fallon, Kathy Griffin, Lisa Kudrow, Jon Lovitz, Conan O’Brien, Phil Hartman and Paul Reubens, to name just a few. Aware of The Groundlings’ impressive stable of highly-skilled, up-and-coming comedic talent, Cheech and Chong utilized many of the group’s members in the cast of their first three movies – subtly getting them to write much of the script while only paying them and giving them screen credit for acting duties. So excited to simply be in a movie, the comedians from the Groundlings were naively accepting of this double duty for paltry compensation. And it was a good thing they did, too, because it gave the world its first on-screen glimpse of Paul Reubens as Pee-wee Herman in 1980’s Cheech & Chong’s Next Movie. (Personally, I prefer Reubens’ turn as the guy snorting booger sugar with Chong under a restaurant table in 1981’s Cheech & Chong’s Nice Dreams.)
5. Cheech & Chong got stoned with Arnold Schwarzenegger
Tommy Chong wasn’t just consumed with reefer madness, he was also addicted to weightlifting. Cheech & Chong’s second movie, Nice Dreams, even features a scene where he and Cheech (also an avid weightlifter) deliver weed to bodybuilders at Power Source Gym in Burbank, California. And in real life, the pair really did pump iron and puff pot with numerous professional bodybuilders, including legendary body sculptor/actor/politician Arnold Schwarzenegger. That’s right. The Governator loved the green, as evidenced by his celebratory “smoke” in the locker room following his unprecedented and god-like 6th-straight Mr. Olympia crown—an act caught on camera that can be seen in the epic film that launched Arnie’s career, Pumping Iron.
6. Cheech & Chong split before the act got stale
As the hedonism of the 1970s gave way to the “just say no” conservatism of the Reagan era, Cheech & Chong found little response to their trademark brand of humor. After 1984′s The Corsican Brothers, their film career ended, and in 1985, they returned to the recording studio for their swan song LP, Get Out of My Room. And with that, they thankfully dissolved their partnership. I say “thankfully” because they could have all too easily been content to tour and rake in the cash by beating a dead horse, but they didn’t. While this hurt their careers for a time, Marin enjoyed a renaissance in the middle of the 1990’s, appearing in the Robert Rodriguez films Desperado and From Dusk Till Dawn as well as a prominent supporting role in Ron Shelton’s romantic comedy Tin Cup that led to a co-starring role opposite Don Johnson in the CBS detective series Nash Bridges. Meanwhile, Chong released a line of “water pipes” (see #8) and returned to the screen, appearing in the movie Half Baked and guest starring on the popular TV program That ‘70s Show.
After settling their differences and feeling the climate was again right for their brand of comedy, the pair reunited and resumed touring in 2008.
7. Tommy Chong went to jail for his “beliefs”
In 2003, Tommy Chong was targeted by two American investigations code-named Operation Pipe Dreams and Operation Headhunter, which sought out businesses selling drug paraphernalia, (mostly bongs). Operation Pipe Dream was run from Pittsburgh. U.S. Attorney for Western Pennsylvania, Mary Beth Buchanan oversaw the case. The estimated cost of Operation Pipe Dream was over $12 million and included the resources of 2,000 law enforcement officers.
Chong was charged for his part in financing and promoting Chong Glass/Nice Dreams, a company started by his son Paris. Chong’s case never went to trial, instead Chong accepted a plea agreement with the United States Attorney for Western Pennsylvania’s Office in which he admitted to distributing 7,500 bongs and water pipes on the Internet through Nice Dreams. Chong agreed to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to distribute drug paraphernalia in exchange for non-prosecution of his wife, Shelby, and his son, Paris. Chong fully cooperated with the government and was the first of the Operation Pipe Dreams defendants to plead guilty.
At Chong’s sentencing, Assistant U.S. Attorney for Western Pennsylvania, Mary McKeen Houghton stated in her sentencing arguments that Tommy Chong “used his public image to promote this crime” and marketed his products to children. U.S. Attorney Mary Beth Buchanan also was present at the sentencing in Pittsburgh and released a statement to the press stating, “There are consequences for violating the law, even if the violator is a well-known entertainer like Thomas Chong.”
While Chong argued for community service and home detention at his sentencing, the district judge, Arthur J. Schwab, denied his requests and sentenced him to 9 months in federal prison, a fine of $20,000, forfeiture of $103,514, and the loss of all merchandise seized during the raid of his business. Chong served his sentence at the Taft Correctional Institution from October 8, 2003 to July 7, 2004. The entire episode was chronicled in a/k/a Tommy Chong, the 2006, award-winning documentary by Josh Gilbert.
8. Cheech Marin (surprisingly) served as a role model
A third-generation Mexican American, Richard “Cheech” Marin became famous for smoking dope, but he wasn’t one. And even though his Cheech & Chong character was anything but a role model, his overall career served as an early example of success for Latinos in Hollywood.
For his work, Cheech has been recognized on behalf of Latinos by the Imagen Foundation Creative Achievement Award and by the National Council of La Raza and Kraft Foods ALMA Community Service Award. In 2007, he received an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts for his contributions to the creative arts from Otis College of Art and Design as well as the inaugural Legacy Award for Arts Advocacy from the Smithsonian Latino Center. He currently serves on the boards of the Smithsonian Latino Center and the Hispanic Scholarship Fund, as well as contributing a great deal of time and energy to promoting Chicano art.
While visiting friendly Dockside Cooperative in the Seattle suburb of Fremont (“the Center of the Universe”), I noticed one welcome innovation that budtender Aaron told me is very helpful in allowing patients to find the strains that work best for them: sampler packs.
Dockside has sampler packs of both sativa strains and indicas, as well as 50/50 packs with four strains of each. Seen in the photo above is a Sativa Sampler Pack I got at Dockside today.
Dude, I haven’t been this excited since my mom would bring home Variety Packs of cereal.
Sampler packs are available for $85 each, which is a bargain considering you get a gram each of eight strains; four of the eight strains go for $15 a gram and the other four go for $12 a gram — that’s $108 worth of medicine for just $85.
Additionally, they have the best selection of edibles I’ve ever seen in Seattle: not just the regular sweets like Rice Krispie treats, cupcakes and brownies, but also savory snacks like lasagna, soups, burritos and even beef jerky.
Two kinds of tinctures, in both glycerin- and alcohol-based formulas, are available, as are numerous topicals, including salve, muscle rubs, bath salts, and foot balm. It’s worthy of note that The Cure tinctures are made with Rick Simpson oil and are quite potent indeed, at $30 a bottle.
Concentrates include honey oil, bubble hash and kief. Kief pills (containing kief in a base of coconut oil) are available at $5 apiece, three for $10.
END OF STOCK SALE!! All 10*gs are now 8*! Both 8*gs are now 5*!! Don't forget about our edible specials & glass… wp.me/p1r6rh-1bG1 year ago
END OF STOCK SALE!! All 10*gs are now 8*! Both 8*gs are now 5*!! Don't forget about our edible specials & glass specials! Stop by before 10p 1 year ago
