This is My World

I went to the bar tonight.  Not to rock my beer gut, I just wanted to have a couple beers and engage in conversation.  See, when you live in the country, you can go days without talking to people.  Sometimes, human interaction is important to maintain sanity. 

So I was at the Hide Away in Tell City having a good conversation with an old friend.  It was actually an interesting topic and I intend to share it with you.

We were talking about how beer can relieve physical pain. I said that if it wasn’t so hard on my liver I would probably just drink beer instead of taking pain pills that my doctor gave me.  Then, I thought about what I had said, and we compared beer to the strong pain pills (Percocet, Lortab, etc) that doctors prescribe. 

When I walked into that bar, I was limping because my back hurt.  After a couple of beers I started walking straight because the pain actually eased in my back.  It was basically the same effect as if I were to take a Percocet.  In both instances, beer and Percocet, I felt a little buzzed but the pain was almost gone. 

So,  why should I take Percocet (or a different prescribed narcotic) when a couple beers has the same effect?  That’s a good question.  Both beer and Percocet are hard on your liver.  They both affect your ability to drive or operate heavy machinery.  With Percocet you feel high, with beer it’s called buzzed.  High and buzzed are basically the same feeling.  Your inhibitions will be lowered either way.  They both relieve the same pain. 

To be honest, I would prefer beer.  Beer is cheaper and tastes better.  If you control yourself while drinking beer, you are less likely to become addicted than if you were taking Percocet.  You can also share your beer with your friend without breaking the law.  Beer is easier on my stomach than Percocet, Lortab, or other narcotics are.  Beer also doesn’t make me constipated.  Yep, from my point of view, beer is definitely a better option for pain relief than prescription narcotics. 

San Quentin State Prison in California is located in the San Francisco Bay Area.  It has a beautiful ocean view and houses 5,300 of California’s toughest inmates.  Because of the universities and number of volunteers in the area, the inmates have access to a variety of rehabilitation programs and are able to attend college. 

Well, like many of California’s jails and prisons, San Quentin is over crowded.  To complicate matters even more, the State of California is broke.  So, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to sell the prison to anyone who wants to buy it for $2 million. 

The plan is to spend $1 million to build a new prison.  The state would then profit $1 million.  This of course makes sense on paper.  However, as anyone else in the world know, just because it looks good on paper doesn’t mean it’ll actually work in practice. 

See the problem is that while they would be constructing a new prison, the 5,300 inmates that occupy the current one would be temporarily relocated to other already over crowded facilities.  This would cause more violence and other issues in the other prisons.

I know times are tough, but selling a prison isn’t the answer.  However, I do recall a story a while back where Mr. Schwarzenegger wanted to legalize marijuana to be able to tax it and collect revenue.  Now, that would be a better idea.

Today is Monday.  After another safe and peaceful weekend in rural Perry County, I commence to reading the Evansville Courier.  Another attempted break-in is in the headlines.  This time a man woke up to find another Evansville man pointing a gun at his two kids after after they answered the door.  The man jumped up and tackled the would be robber.  Somehow the robber shot himself in the hand during the scuffle.  Then, when he tried to run away a neighbor pinned him until police arrived. 

Wow! That’s a good neighbor. 

Anyway, I was reading the comment section and discovered this comment by maclee4427:

“Boy I tell ya. This thing with all of the home robberies are becoming way too common, it’s to the point you have to have a gun in hand just to answer ringing or knocking at your door. That’s why I keep my handgun loaded and close by at all times. The world is getting crazier than ever, crime is running rampant in our community. They need to release some of the potheads so they have room for all of these violent offenders. I am very glad this man and his two children are alive, and hopefully the kids will not be scarred with fear from all of this. It could have and probably would have turned out very different if dad had not fought back, and praise to the neighbor who answered the call of the children crying for help.”

This commenter brought up a good point when he said,  “They need to release some of the potheads so they have room for all of these violent offenders.”

The would-be robber will probably only get probation, maybe a slap on the hand.  However, most marijuana dealers get jail time when they are caught.  Please refer to my story Marijuana: Curing Cancer since 1975 for my opinion on marijuana.  Jails wouldn’t be so over crowded if the government would just legalize marijuana.

A truck going from Arizona to New York was searched at a routine scales stop on I-70 near Terre Haute, Indiana today.  Police brought out the search dogs and found 6 bales of marijuana hidden in the honey dew melon boxes.  In total police confiscated 133 lbs of marijuana and $4,000 in cash.

If they’d just legalize it, there wouldn’t be these types of packing mistakes.  Businesses would be able to have well marked packaging saying what is marijuana and what is melons.  It was be taxed like other goods and the government would start making money from it instead of spending money trying to prevent something. 

For a stronger case on legalizing marijuana please visit my story called “Marijuana, Curing Cancer Since 1975.”

Marijuana, weed, pot, mj, mary jane, and ganja are all different names for the same thing.  Since before I was born, the government has been using television, radio, and school systems to convince young people that marijuana is bad for you.  Well, I’m an adult now and I have been doing my own research. 

In 1997, the US Veterans Affairs Scientists were researching how using marijuana affects teens.  According to their research, “Marijuana use had no significant impact on physical or mental health care utilization, health-related quality of life, or current socio-demographic characteristics.“  Basically, it didn’t hurt them.

Now that we have established that marijuana is not harmful, let’s move on to it’s benefits.  Many marijuana users I have spoken to claim marijuana relieves headaches, back and joint pain, and stomach aches.  A few people have claimed that when they are overly stressed about something, if they smoke marijuana, they calm down and can focus better on the situation at hand. 

In 1975, the Journal of the National Cancer Institute published the findings of federal researchers that were studying the effects of THC in cancer induced lab rats.  They found that the THC, found in marijuana, significantly reduced the size of tumors and prolonged the rats’ lives.  In 1994, similar research was completed with the same results. 

So, let’s move from rats to humans.  In 1997, government researchers, that had been following 65,000 cigarette smokers, marijuana smokers, and non-smokers for nearly 10 years, concluded that the lung cancer rate in marijuana smokers was actually LOWER than that of non-smokers.  Again, in May 2006, Donald Tashkin was doing research for the government and found that heavy marijuana users have a lower risk of lung cancer.

Want more recent research?  The May 2009 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation (www.jci.org) has an article called, “Active Component in Marijuana has Anti-Cancer Effects.”  After fishing through a lot of medical jargon, you’ll find that that this article states, “These findings describe a mechanism by which THC can promote the autophagic death of human and mouse cancer cells and provide evidence that cannabinoid administration may be an effective therapeutic strategy for targeting human cancers.”  That is the last sentence in the “abstract.”

So, there is still hope for a cure for cancer.  Why didn’t this make the front page of every newspaper in the United States?  I’ve spent my whole life listening to people tell me how bad marijuana is.  When I want to know why it is so bad, I find medical research that shows marijuana is not bad at all.  In fact, it’s a medical miracle provided by God in a very natural plant.  Yet, the majority of people ignore it because it’s considered a “dangerous drug.”  Well, I tell you what.  You watch someone close to you go through chemotherapy and radiation, then compare the physical dangers of that to the “dangers” of marijuana.  When you are done, tell me which you would prefer.

The Evansville Courier is has this paragraph in one of the stories on it’s website. 

“Gallatin County Sheriff Raymond M. Martin of Shawneetown, Ill., faces three counts of distribution of marijuana and two counts of carrying a firearm during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime.  Martin was named in a five-count federal complaint alleging he conspired with a confidential Drug Enforcement Administration source to distribute large quantities of marijuana.”

I wonder if the DEA agent is getting in trouble too or if it was entrapment.  See if marijuana was legal he would just be another sheriff that was also a small business owner.  Of course, it is possible he was doing his own investigation and thought the DEA agent was a distributor of marijuana and was trying to catch him in the act.  Maybe it’s just a case of who snitched first.

“A search of the residence later turned up more than 72 pounds of marijuana as well as digital scales, a handgun and numerous boxes of Ziploc bags, the affidavit said. More than $1,600 in cash found on Langley was seized.”

The Evansville Courier reported that today.  Police also found 3 more pounds in the car so that’s 75 lbs.  Authorities estimated it to be worth $75,000 dollars.  That’s $1000 a pound.  I guess the price of everything is going up. 

Anyway, the comment board was alive of legalization debates and whether or not it was actually for personal use.  For conversation sake let’s say it was for personal use: 

• First, the $1,600 in cash shows that Mr. Langley did not trust banks.  That’s understandable.  If I had that much cash, I wouldn’t trust a bank with it either.  They’d probably find some way to screw me out of it.
• Second, the digital scales really isn’t anything.  Maybe he was on Weight Watchers or something.  To calculate the number of points in home-made food you have to weigh it first.
• Third, the handgun was probably for personal protection.  A lot of people own these nowadays.  I personally prefer a 20 gage Mossberg, but to each his own.
• Fourth, with the price of everything sky-rocketing anymore, it is cheaper to buy in bulk.  I’m always running out of Ziploc bags, so I probably should buy those in bulk.  Maybe he applied the same principal to his marijuana stash. 

If this gentleman was in fact intending to distribute marijuana, only he and his buyers would actually know.  The “authorities” did not catch him in the act.  They only found his stash and discovered his distrust of banks.  If marijuana was legal and Mr. Langley was selling it, he would be considered a business man.  So, the whole story depends on your perspective.

It’s a really slow news day in this area.  The barbecue festival is going on in Owensboro, Ky so nothing else happens in my local area.  Needless to say, I got bored and found this article at www.upi.com .  I thought I would share it, so please share your opinion.  I think it will make a great conversation if people are willing to comment.

“STOCKBRIDGE, Ga., May 7 (UPI) — A Georgia man opened a package he believed to be a birthday present and discovered 36 pounds of marijuana, police said.

Henry County police said the Stockbridge man discovered the box outside his front door Tuesday morning and contacted authorities after finding the marijuana wrapped in green cellophane inside the box, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported Thursday.

Police Capt. Jason Bolton said the marijuana has an estimated street value between $36,000 and $40,000.

Authorities said the package apparently originated from Texas and bore the man’s address but not his name. The police department said narcotics officers are working with UPS to attempt to find out who sent the package.”

According to the Evansville Courier a man named Jonah M. Sheriff was stopped by Evansville Police for not signalling.  He was also driving with a suspended license and had an outstanding writ of attachment.  So, he was going to jail anyway.  The arresting officer got a wild hair up his behind to search the car.  That’s when he found a half a pound of marijuana. 

Stuff like this happens everyday, especially in Evansville lately.  What I want to know is what was the justification for the officer to search this guy’s car?  Just because someone has a suspended license doesn’t mean they are likely to have something in the car.  This man was probably just trying to get some extra money for his family.

I was sweeping the kitchen floor earlier and my back hurt so bad that my knees were buckling.  Somehow I don’t think that’s good.  What I wouldn’t give for something that actually takes the pain away. 

I’ve had back problems for years.  I’ve also had multiple pain pills from various doctors.  Percocet makes me not care that I hurt.  Lortab makes me vomit and doesn’t work.  Ultram, Darvocet, and OTC medication just don’t work.  Flexeril makes me sleep, but I wake up still hurting and I’m drowsy the rest of the day.  And Mican gives me a bloody stool and a headache and still doesn’t work.  I’ve also had steroid injections that were $2,000 of it didn’t work.

The latest diagnoses from my specialist is “I don’t know, but take this and see if it helps.”  That’s how I found out that Lortab makes me sick. 

I can’t stand up long enough to sweep the kitchen floor or do the dishes.  Also, I can’t sit up long enough to have an office job.  My family doctor just gave me a doctor’s excuse for work that basically said I’m off work indefinitely.  And of course, everyone I know is tired of hearing about it.  That’s okay, because I’m tired of talking to insurance companies, doctors, and human resource ladies about it. 

If ya’ll have any pain relieving suggestions, please let me know and I will talk to my doctor about them.

“Clarke stated to officers that he is from Jamaica and smokes a lot of marijuana.”

This is according to the Evansville Courier and many local news channels.  A lot of people in the area are still laughing at this story.  This guy was driving around smoking marijuana.  Apparently, he had a little too much.  He fell asleep at a stop light.  When officers tried to check on him to be sure he’s okay, they smelled a strong odor of marijuana.  He had 45 grams in his pocket.  When he told officers that he was from Jamaica and smokes a lot of pot, that comfirmed it:

He was too high to drive. 

Being from Jamaica doesn’t make it okay to break American laws while you’re here.  However, this does confirm my theory that you should not smoke and drive, legal or not.

The website “wibv.com” has a story on it titled “Obama hit with marijuana question.”  With recent medical discoveries involving marijuana and Mr. Obama’s movement to a greener economy, I was curious to what he would say.  The question was,

“With over 1 out of 30 Americans controlled by the penal system, why not legalize, control, and tax marijuana to change the failed war on drugs into a money making, money saving boost to the economy? Do we really need that many victimless criminals?”

Makes sense to me.  People are going to smoke it anyway.  It less harmful than alcohol.  Why not put a tax on it?  The government could make money off of it rather than spend money on controlling it.  Legalizing it would add marijuana to the agriculture economy.  When your soil is not good for anything else, weed will still grow.  Imagine the jobs that could be created out of this. 

Apparently, that’s not what the new president meant by a greener economy, or economy growth. 

“I don’t know what that says about the online audience,” Obama said with a laugh. “The answer is no, I don’t think that’s a good strategy to grow our economy.”

He said it with a laugh.  Does that mean he’s not taking his voters seriously? I think it does.  I also feel like he’s thinks less of someone that has that opinion.  Actually, I’m slightly offended that he didn’t take the question seriously.  By the way, that’s not the first time this president has offended me.

I read the one story in my local paper that isn’t actually gossip.  Then I posted about it.  Then I wandered on over to the Evansville Courier  www.courierpress.com. There is a story in that paper about two young men about 19 years old that got busted with 130 grams of marijuana.  One of them even had a hand held scale with them.  Hmm, I wonder what they were doing.  I bet they were going to sell that. 

Anyway, the comment area of this article is currently live with a debate over whether the drug should be legal or not.  Some of the comments are longer than the actual story itself.  So I thought I would let people know of my own thoughts on the subject.

I don’t think anyone should try driving while smoking marijuana. I’ve known people that have tried this, they can’t seem to go the speed limit. They usually are driving much slower. I don’t know of anyone who has died from an overdose of marijuana.  I have known people that have successfully used it to relieve stomach aches and back pain.  Other people I have known in the past are a lot less stressed while using it.  Other than that there’s a recent discovery by scientists that the THC found in marijuana cures brain tumors in lab rats.  I hope they can apply that to humans soon, that would be a medical miracle. 

Currently, no, I do NOT use marijuana.  However,  I am sitting here in extreme pain after a cortisone injection in my back made it worse.  I am actually having thoughts that if scientists were able to isolate the pain killer in marijuana, I may try it, if it were legalized for medical use in Indiana.