cannabisnews.com: Man Jailed for Pot Use is Willing To Fight Again





Man Jailed for Pot Use is Willing To Fight Again
Posted by CN Staff on August 19, 2003 at 08:23:28 PT
By Denny Walsh -- Bee Staff Writer
Source: Sacramento Bee 
B. E. Smith went to war for his country. He went to prison for what he believes is the right of sick Californians to use marijuana. Now, the 56-year-old Smith is an independent candidate for governor in the Oct. 7 special election, saying he wants to "fight for the common people."As much as anyone in the crowded field, Smith symbolizes the candidates not in it for a cheap thrill or their 15 minutes of fame; the ones committed to a set of beliefs they feel would serve the people well.
The battle-tested Vietnam veteran is convinced the state needs him or someone like him -- someone he would call a "stand-up guy."Smith promised to use the power of the governor's office to pardon "anyone convicted of a victimless crime," such as growing, selling or using marijuana for medicinal purposes -- actions for which he was convicted in federal court in 1999.He vowed to seek rollbacks "of the outrageous energy contracts the last two governors have saddled us with." And he said he would spend at least two nights a month in the home of a family "with little or no political clout, or in a prison or jail cell" and hold town hall meetings to hear "the cries and pleas and problems" of people not represented by lobbyists in Sacramento."These are people that the governor needs to be in touch with, to listen to, to represent," Smith said. "When the governor extends a hand to someone, it should not be for money."The tall, lean native of rural Alabama loves a good joke but fixes a listener with an unnerving, Clint Eastwood-like stare when his talk turns serious.His friend, actor and political activist Woody Harrelson, refers to Smith as "my mentor" and "the last free man I know."At 17, Smith dropped out of high school and joined the Army. He was deployed in 1967 as a combat infantryman in northern South Vietnam, where he served as a point man in a reconnaissance patrol unit and as an "identifier," scrutinizing new arrivals so their remains could be identified in case they were killed without identification.Snipped: Complete Article: http://www.sacbee.com/content/politics/ca/election/story/7248130p-8193221c.htmlSource: Sacramento Bee (CA)Author: Denny Walsh -- Bee Staff WriterPublished:  Monday, August 18, 2003Copyright: 2003 The Sacramento BeeContact: opinion sacbee.comWebsite: http://www.sacbee.com/CannabisNews Medical Marijuana Archiveshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/list/medical.shtml
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Comment #19 posted by FoM on August 27, 2003 at 20:35:20 PT
herbdoc215
I wanted to mention one more thing. I respect Richard Cowan. I don't know people from MPP. I have emailed and talked to Nicholas from NORML and I like him. I don't belong to any organization. I don't know what they do or don't do. My work is a volunteer effort and the money issues aren't something I think about. I think by my isolation from money issues I don't get upset about some things. My goal is to do my best to help readers be aware of what news is happening that I feel is important for us to know. There is plenty of news to read so I try to be selective so CNews can be a learning tool for others like it is for me. I really hope the problems within the organizations can be solved. I want to be able to retire someday. I don't want this dragging on for many more years for everyones sake. I'm keeping my fingers crossed and am hoping for the best for everyone.
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Comment #18 posted by FoM on August 27, 2003 at 08:35:49 PT
herbdoc215
All I can say is I hope that the problems between the organizations can be worked out. We can't afford to have division or we will get set back once again. Hopefully they will get together and solve their differences for the overall sake of the movement. We need to pull together even at the sake of our own feelings. I have plenty of feelings about what I believe is wrong but I won't talk about them. I think that is best.
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Comment #17 posted by Jose Melendez on August 27, 2003 at 08:09:19 PT
freedom has nothing to fear from the truth
From slate.msn.com: The engineers "opined that by raising contrary points of view about Shuttle mission safety, they would be singled out for possible ridicule by their peers and managers."from:http://www.time.com/time/personoftheyear/2002/poyintro.htmlSherron Watkins is the Enron vice president who wrote a letter to chairman Kenneth Lay in the summer of 2001 warning him that the company's methods of accounting were improper. In January, when a congressional subcommittee investigating Enron's collapse released that letter, Watkins became a reluctant public figure, and the Year of the Whistle-Blower began. Coleen Rowley is the FBI staff attorney who caused a sensation in May with a memo to FBI Director Robert Mueller about how the bureau brushed off pleas from her Minneapolis, Minn., field office that Zacarias Moussaoui, who is now indicted as a Sept. 11 co-conspirator, was a man who must be investigated. One month later Cynthia Cooper exploded the bubble that was WorldCom when she informed its board that the company had covered up $3.8 billion in losses through the prestidigitations of phony bookkeeping.Steve Tuck, if you are certain that there is no other way to address this issue, then by all means, speak out. Work hard to focus your words in ways that help us all, my friend. Perhaps Kampia needs some prodding, if so, you are on the right path. Please try to take into account that he may also be under pressures that others do not understand . . .All I know is that I need more Richard Cowans, Rob Kampias, Peter Lewises, Mark Emeries (plural of Emery?) AND Steve Tucks to work together. It seems to me that the last two on that list were able to make amends, right? 
Note: Thanks also to FoM, Dr. Ethan Russo, Dr. Goeffery Guy, Richard Lake, Mark Greer and anyone else pushing the envelope, not just licking it!As for Joyce Nalepka, Mark Souder and John Ashcroft, well, thank you too. If you only knew how well your willful ignorance encouraged, emboldened and empowered us all . . . NPR is reporting that polyphenols in dark chocolate reduces blood pressure slightly, for those that reduce their intake of chocolate for a week prior to the study and also reduce consumption of other foods in the diet to compensate for the extra calories.It's almost like a series of commercials, drink red wine, eat dark chocolate, just ignore cannabinoids.
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Comment #16 posted by herbdoc215 on August 27, 2003 at 03:39:52 PT
This is what I meant!
FoM, I know how you don't like controversy but a real friend of the movement is getting done REAL raw...there are so MANY stories I could tell you in private about things Kampia has done not listed here much worse...BUT Richard has been the ONLY one I have seen in entire movement who walked it the way he talked it. Hell if not for him I'd be dead and me and Ken Hayes would've gotten slammed dunked in Immigra hearings and he didn't charge us a nickel for WEEKS of work not to mention feeding me with his last few dollars more times than I can count, as a quaker he's one of only two christians I have seen in my life who actually walked it the way they talked it...after NORML and Lewis lying to get Richard to resign then (he promised money to NORML if he would then gave not a penny and hired Kampia whom Dick had just fired to run whole movement????) what the hell? I put this back here to give you the decision, I want to put this on front page but I'll let you decide cause I've been trying sooo hard to respect your wishes but my brains screaming this can't be allowed to be gotten away with? With respect, Steve Tuck 
 
 Top Story: Richard Cowan Resigns from Board of NORML Foundation. The People It Helps Should Not Be Held Hostage To Rob Kampia’s Fear Of the Truth On MarijuanaNews.com 
Posted by Richard Cowan on 0000-00-00 00:00:00 
Source: 
 
Posted August 25, 2003 
(MarijuanaNews note: There are actually two NORML organizations. The original NORML is a membership based group, of which I was National Director from 1992 to 1995. It is now a “lobby.” Contributions to it are not tax deductible. And then there is the NORML Foundation, an educational organization, contributions to which are tax deductible. For the last several years I have been on the Foundation board, but not the board of the NORML “lobby.” Keith Stroup, the founder of NORML, is the National Director of the “lobby.” This a common arrangement in Washington. They share offices and some expenses, but keep separate books, etc.) August 25, 2003 
To Allen St. Pierre, national Director NORML Foundation: Dear Allen, 
It is with the greatest regret that I have concluded that I must resign from the Board of Directors of the NORML Foundation, effective immediately. I have become aware that Rob Kampia has stated the Marijuana Policy Project will not support any project with which NORML is associated, so long as I continue to tell the truth about him and MPP on MarijuanaNews.com. Under the circumstances, I could either censor myself or resign, or let important projects go unfunded. As much as I am honored to sit on the NORML Foundation Board of Directors, it was an obvious decision. Hence my resignation. It is always a great pleasure to work with you and Keith and the NORML staff, knowing that you always give the highest priority to compassion for medical cannabis patients and freedom for all marijuana users. I realize that there is no guarantee that Kampia will rise above his pettiness and stop treating the movement as his personal ego trip, but I cannot and will not be used as an excuse for his abuse of the trust of the movement. Of course, I will continue to support NORML in every way that I can, and I wish you and everyone there all the best. With warmest personal regards, Dick (MarijuanaNews note: Recently, Peter Lewis, the controlling share holder in Progressive Insurance, resigned from the board of the anti-prohibitionist group which supports the Drug Policy Alliance (the result of the merger of the Lindesmith Center and the old Drug Policy Foundation). He has apparently given control over all of his contributions to the marijuana reform movement to Rob Kampia and his MPP. 
See
NORML and A Strategy for the Legalization of Cannabis. Crunch Time for Freedom. That Applies to MarijuanaNews.Even if Kampia did not have a disastrous track record in Nevada and elsewhere, and even if he had not narked NORML after I fired him with cause when I was National Director of NORML, the fact is that he simply lacks the maturity, integrity and experience to have the power that Peter Lewis’ money gives him in a movement that is as starved for funding as the marijuana reform movement is today. 
See 
Their Liars Beat Our Liars. Freedom Has Nothing to Fear from the Truth, But Much To Fear From Those Who Think That the End Justifies The Means. Analysis By Richard Cowan Now I know that many of my friends will say that there should be no infighting in the movement, because we have too many problems with our “real enemies.” First, let me assure you that I am pulling my punches and saying far less than I could… for the sake of the movement. Second, as Patrick Henry said, “Men may cry, ‘Peace, Peace’ – but there is no peace.” For quite sometime it has been clear that Rob has been waging war on NORML – first with the approval of his original funders at Lindesmith and elsewhere, and now with Lewis’s approval. 
See
2002 NORML Conference Biggest and Best Ever. Reaching “Critical Mass”? And Time for the Movement to Take a Critical Look at Itself. Lewis is an enormously successful businessman, a major philanthropist and great patron of the arts, but if he ran Progressive Insurance the way he is attempting to run the marijuana reform movement, his competitor Geico would be a much bigger company. Although I am of the opinion that how Lewis spends his money is his own business, I recall that George Soros once said that he realized that some of his philanthropies had done more harm than good. Obviously, Soros had only the best of intentions, but he took responsibility for the consequences of his mistakes. Moreover, if I were alone in my opinion of Kampia, I would have just resigned quietly and let it go at that. But most of the leaders of the anti-prohibitionist movement share my view that Peter Lewis is making an enormous mistake. Unfortunately, many of them are dependent on Kampia’s grace and favor for the survival of their organizations, or hope to be, and so they cannot speak out. Let me make very clear that I do not fault them for that. They have fiduciary responsibilities to their organizations. (Been there; done that. In fact, I think that I have a fiduciary responsibility to resign from the NORML Foundation board.) They have to make payroll, and that is very difficult these days. I don’t blame anyone who takes money from Kampia, and I stand ready to help in any projects funded by MPP, anonymously and pro bono, of course, so Kampia cannot object and cut off the funding. However, I hope that Peter Lewis will contact these good people – including MPP staffers – directly and confidentially, so that he can understand what is going on. Finally, although I have had my own “differences” with Lewis, at least he is doing something. There are so many other very rich marijuana smokers out there who are doing little or nothing to help. The real reason that Lewis is doing so much damage to the marijuana reform movement is because no one else of any real wealth is doing anything to help it. As Burke said, “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is for enough good men to do nothing.” Of course, it may be better to do nothing than to do the wrong thing for the right reason, but that still does not excuse those who simply do nothing. But all that I can do is tell the truth… and some people just can’t stand that.) See
My version of “Because I got high….” By Richard Cowan
 
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Comment #15 posted by FoM on August 20, 2003 at 09:42:30 PT
Wrong Thread
I meant to put my comment on this thread.http://www.cannabisnews.com/news/thread17111.shtml
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on August 20, 2003 at 09:38:37 PT
No Longer Can Cannabis Be Schedule I
All this news today shows Cannabis has medicinal value. Will they be required to change it's Schedule?
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Comment #13 posted by E_Johnson on August 20, 2003 at 09:24:58 PT
MPP and intra-movement politics
Well, I'm reading some history now and all the early Christians hated each other too. Nowadays you have to be a hardcore religious scholar to figure out why. It will be that way too some day with this movement. Maybe in a few hundred years hehehehe. 
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 18:55:25 PT
Rainbow
I'm sorry to read that. 
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Comment #11 posted by Rainbow on August 19, 2003 at 17:50:22 PT
Not sure
MPP just turned the folks in Wisconsin down for help in getting their marijuana law passed.It has a pretty good chance of getting passed and it is too bad they could not see fit to help the Wisconsin gang.Rainbow
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 12:42:43 PT
herbdoc215 
I didn't think you minded people making money. You were venting I'll call it. Todays thought on why it would be nice to have Cannabis legal. This is off the wall but I thought of this a few times today for no reason except I saw P. Allen Smith show a field of beautiful red rose type flowers and it made me think of this. Wouldn't it be pretty to see cannabis plants grown for their beauty too? Cannabis deserves much more credit for its versatility then we can imagine.
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Comment #9 posted by herbdoc215 on August 19, 2003 at 12:36:15 PT
I'm not against people making money either???
Sorry if I made that impression, I just get upset with the tactics some groups use and the people others try to get their money from is all...also it would help if I really thought those people involved was doing it for any other reason than lining their own pockets. Makes me wonder just how many people REALLY want to change the "status quo". Peace, Steve Tuck
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Comment #8 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 12:27:05 PT
herbdoc215
I don't mind people making money. That's not an issue with me. My issue was respect for all of you. That's very important to me. You are people with lives and concerns. I look at it that way.
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Comment #7 posted by herbdoc215 on August 19, 2003 at 12:20:29 PT
Hell FoM, I heard at HempFest MPP was PAYING 
people to go around and collect e-mail address's...one big fat US buck apiece also, maybe they think we are a big fatt flower ready to be plucked (suckers in tobaccy country) to apy that much! Thanks FoM for standing up for us and not selling us out! I've watched way to many of my friends and people I admire be bought off already...seems like we've become a commodity. Hell with Peter Lewis giving MPP money faster than they can waste it why should we honest front line fighters give to folks sitting in Washington living it up money, anybody here know what Kampia made last year?? Hell even Nadelman is paying >50,000 for his assistant I hear, sure does pay to be a Washington warrior! All the while good people work their asses off for the money some of these organizations throw around on Quixotic bs. Just my opinion from the Hointewrlands where I've been banished for actually trying to make a difference, get what I get I guess but I sure don't need Kampia begging for my last two cents! Peace, Steven Tuck
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 12:16:17 PT
An Update
I received a nice email back from MPP and they understand. That makes me happy. Now I feel better.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 12:02:47 PT
DeVoHawk 
Thank you. I really take everything I do here very seriously and I know I must drive some people a little crazy but I don't mean too. I try to be more conservative when it comes to certain things. 
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Comment #4 posted by DeVoHawk on August 19, 2003 at 11:47:34 PT:
Thank You (who was that masked woman)
I would gladly give my name to MPP if they do not already have it but I believe that you not giving out that information is the correct thing.This is exactly what we are fighting for, the right to make a choice for ourselves. You are always on top of things in a good way.Thank you for all the work you do. No matter what my mood I can always count on you and I can not say that about many people even family members.Devo: Freedom of Choicevictim of collision on the open sea, 
nobody ever said that life was free, 
sink swim go down with the ship, 
but use your freedom of choice, i say it again in the land of the free, 
use your freedom of choice, 
in ancient rome there was a poem, 
about a dog who had two bones, 
he picked at one he licked the other, 
he went in circles till he dropped dead, 
freedom of choice is what you got, 
freedom of choice is what you want, then if you got it you don't want it, 
seems to be the rule of thumb, 
don't be tricked by what you see, 
you got two ways to go, 
i'll say it again in the land of the free, 
use your freedom of choice, 
freedom of choice, 
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 11:25:36 PT
Jose
That's not a bad idea but I can't put a link on CNews because I don't know how. 
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Comment #2 posted by Jose Melendez on August 19, 2003 at 11:22:22 PT
suggestion
You could put up a link to a page on mpp where folks can opt in for placement on the email list. Often such forms are set up to require name, address fields . . .
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Comment #1 posted by FoM on August 19, 2003 at 10:54:13 PT
Question for CNews 
I was contacted by MPP and they are interested in information to help them develop their contacts. I can't do it. I've given it a lot of thought and I'm just not comfortable without permission from all registered people. I hope I did the right thing. Thanks for any advice.
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