cannabisnews.com: Feds Ordered To Halt Pot Raids










  Feds Ordered To Halt Pot Raids

Posted by CN Staff on December 17, 2003 at 07:47:33 PT
By Josh Richman, Staff Writer 
Source: Oakland Tribune  

U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft and Drug Enforcement Administration chief Asa Hutchinson should be temporarily barred from treating medical marijuana patients as criminals, a federal appeals court ruled Tuesday. Lawyers for the plaintiffs -- a medical marijuana patient from Oakland, two unnamed Oakland growers who supply her and an Oroville patient who grows her own -- called the 2-1 ruling a major victory.
"We feel we've been vindicated after a long, hard effort," said Oakland attorney Robert Raich, both a lawyer for and husband of Oakland plaintiff Angel McClary Raich. He said his wife "was jubilant, absolutely elated" and will "take a deep sigh of relief knowing she will finally be safe," no longer fearing she'll be denied medicine she needs to stay alive. Boston University Law Professor Randy Barnett, who argued the case to the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, called this "a tremendous victory on behalf of suffering people" and proof "that federalism is not just a doctrine for political conservatives." The ruling sends the case back to U.S. District Judge Martin Jenkins of San Francisco, ordering him to issue a preliminary injunction blocking more raids until the case is tried. But the Justice Department, which doesn't comment on pending cases, could ask that Tuesday's ruling be reviewed by a larger 9th Circuit panel or by the U.S. Supreme Court. Angel Raich, Diane Monson of Oroville and the two "John Doe" growers sued Ashcroft and Hutchinson in October 2002 after a series of DEA raids against medical marijuana patients and providers. California is among 10 states with laws allowing medical marijuana use, but the federal Controlled Substances Act still bans the drug for all purposes. Raich has said she uses marijuana to combat scoliosis, temporomandibular joint disease, endometriosis, fibromyalgia, a uterine fibroid tumor and a rotator cuff injury. She also has an inoperable brain tumor and suffers post-traumatic stress disorder from childhood abuse and nonepileptic seizures. Monson's home was raided in August 2002. Local sheriff's deputies and a local prosecutor agreed her six marijuana plants were within county guidelines under state law, but DEA agents took the plants without charging her with any crime. The lawsuit claimed that the U.S. Constitution's commerce clause lets federal law regulate only interstate commerce, and that Californians' medical marijuana use neither crosses state lines nor is commerce. Jenkins in March refused to enjoin the raids, saying the plaintiffs hadn't shown sufficient likelihood that they would prevail at trial. But 9th Circuit Judge Harry Pregerson, writing for himself and Circuit Judge Richard Paez, overturned that ruling Tuesday, finding the plaintiffs likely to succeed in proving the federal law, as applied to them, is an unconstitutional use of Congress' com-merce clause authority. "We find that the appellants' class of activities -- the intrastate, noncommercial cultivation, possession and use of marijuana for personal medical purposes on the advice of a physician -- is, in fact, different in kind from drug trafficking," he In this case, a doctor's recommendation eliminates the health, safety and policy concerns usually associated with drug abuse, he wrote, and this cultivation, possession and use "does not involve sale, exchange, or distribution." So, he wrote, the federal law's application in this case fails constitutional tests set by recent U.S. Supreme Court precedent, and letting the raids continue will create a "significant hardship" for the plaintiffs.Senior Circuit Judge C. Arlen Beam dissented from Tuesday's ruling, citing the 1942 case of an Ohio wheat farmer fined for growing too much wheat for personal use in violation of a federal law meant to control the wheat market's extreme supply and price fluctuations. In this case, Beam wrote, the Controlled Substances Act "clearly reaches plaintiffs' activities, even though they grow, or take delivery of marijuana grown by surrogates, for personal consumption as medicine in the home as permitted by California, but not federal, law."Note: Appellate judges rule case fighting for medical marijuana has merit.Source: Oakland Tribune (CA)Author:  Josh Richman, Staff WriterPublished: Wednesday, December 17, 2003 Copyright: 2003 MediaNews Group, Inc. Contact: triblet angnewspapers.com Website: http://www.oaklandtribune.com/Related Articles & Web Sites:Raich v. Ashcroft in PDFhttp://freedomtoexhale.com/ruling.pdfMedicinal Cannabis Research Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/research.htmCourt Boosts Medical Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17979.shtmlMajor Ruling Favors Medical Marijuanahttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread17977.shtml

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Comment #25 posted by yippierevolutionary on December 18, 2003 at 07:45:50 PT
Mayan
What I was saying was it doesn't matter how much evidence there is. You can have the "smoking gun" (that term is used for everything these days) and it won't matter. The people at the top are above the law.
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Comment #24 posted by mayan on December 18, 2003 at 04:22:51 PT
Oh, Yeah...
The author of this article erred in the first paragraph. Asa Hutchinson is no longer head of the DEA. Isn't he #2 at the Department of Homeland Security now? Strange how that one slipped under the authors radar. 
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Comment #23 posted by mayan on December 18, 2003 at 04:04:28 PT
The Only Way Out...
For any 9/11 doubters out there please spend a little time on the site linked below. There are mountains upon mountains of evidence which make it clear as day. 9/11 Prior Knowledge/Government Complicity Archive:
http://www.propagandamatrix.com/archiveprior_knowledgeAlso check out Mike Ruppert's site http://copvcia.com/
 Mike Ruppert doesn't waste his time with theories or speculation. He deals only with facts.The only way out is the way in.
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Comment #22 posted by FoM on December 17, 2003 at 15:26:05 PT
Shishaldin 
I understand. That was documented fact by Jack Herer and it was good information. I hope his health is ok.
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Comment #21 posted by Shishaldin on December 17, 2003 at 15:19:38 PT
FoM, about what yippierevolutionary was saying..
I think he was referring to the conspirancy against our beloved hemp plant that was brought to light in Jack Herer's The Emperor Wears No Clothes. I'm sure there's many people even today that think Jack's a conspiracy nut, even when there's reams of verified, corroborated evidence to prove him correct. 
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Comment #20 posted by FoM on December 17, 2003 at 13:50:42 PT
yippierevolutionary 
I'm not sure I understand. 
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Comment #19 posted by yippierevolutionary on December 17, 2003 at 13:48:26 PT
FoM what about....
The Emperer Wears no Clothes?
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Comment #18 posted by yippierevolutionary on December 17, 2003 at 13:44:46 PT
Max about those WMDs
Before the war I had a bet with my friend that Saddam would not use any chemical or biological weapons during the war, personally I didn't believe he had any (my line of thinking was if a coke dealer knows that the cops are coming to raid his house he will flush it down the toilet) but I didn't want to make the bet that the coalition would not find any because I was positive they would be planted (The US has the largest stockpiles of WMD in the world, rember the Anthrax letters that was an US army strain)The important thing to remember is the power of incumbency, the democrats are trying to make Iraq their issue, but Bush controls it. Almost everything we know about The War on Terror is from official sources, journalists have what AL Franken calls a lazy bias they just sit in the press conferences and report verbatim the story Bush puts out and Americans take it as gospel truth. Hunter Thompson declared on 9/11 rightly that Full Military Censorship of the press is in action.Look at the 87 billion it was immensely unpopular why would Bush ask for such a large amount? He needed to ask for it this year before the election thats why its such a huge number to carry the occupation through november 2004. Sorry about my rantings but I have so much to say.A lot of people in the US said we shouldnt give 87 billion to the Iraqis we should use it here in the US. This is wrong for a couple of reasons. First of all we didn't give Iraqis 87 billion, 66 bilion or so is for the troops to stay to occupy, only 20 billion is in aid and its not money given to iraqis its money given to contractors for iraqis. I forget how much they gave for prisons (Why do we need to build new prisons in a country that was A POLICE STATE?????) I say we should give them 87 billion in direct aid (not for soldiers) god knows they need it, we ruined their country we should fix it. It really pisses me off Americans who were so willing to bomb Iraq and then miserly with money for food. I am getting scared for my country when I see on MSNBC Would it have been better to just have killed Saddam instead of taking him alive? And also all the people eager to torture him. When did Americans become so bloodthirsty, when did we forget about not stooping to their level?Anyway I forget what my point was except that Bush controls most of what we know about the Iraq situation and the timetable of it and he does it with the 2004 election in mind. That's not a conspiracy theory is it?
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Comment #17 posted by FoM on December 17, 2003 at 13:30:07 PT
Just a Comment
I don't believe in conspiracy theories. I don't read anything about theories because everything can be connected mostly. I try to look at what is important to help bring change to our current prohibition of cannabis. 
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Comment #16 posted by yippierevolutionary on December 17, 2003 at 13:21:23 PT
In Regards to Conspiracy Theories
There is no tool more effective in discrediting arguments than labeling them conspiracy theories. The prohibition of marijuana can only be truly understood by understanding what Jack Herer was talking about in The Emperor Wears No Clothes, but for the sake of the Cause we can't slip into what are labeled conspiracy theories IMHO of course.Do you see what I'm saying? People will not buy the conspiracy so we can only argue the reality.
The vast majority of Americans simply will not accept that Bush had anything to do with 9/11. People do not think rationally, they make decisions on emotion, no matter how much evidence and coincidences they will just not accept it. But people can accept (it is so obvious) that Bush has exploited 9/11 for craven political gain. So I think when speaking amongst ourselves, when in search of the truth it is ok. But as activists we're not going to get anywhere talking with what will automatically be labelled conspiracy theory and automatically discredited. But I am young and what do I know?For example
Bad Argument: Bush ordered the air force to stand down on 9/11Good Argument: Bush was asleep at the wheel and grossly negligent and incompetent as commander in chief on 9/11PS Nuevo Mexican I also feel that the Left is a cannibalistic movement, we nit-pick just look at the democratic candidates while the Republicans put up a solid unified wall, so I stand in Solidarity with you and say you are one of the few people who UNDERSTAND WHAT IS HAPPENING
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Comment #15 posted by Nuevo Mexican on December 17, 2003 at 12:07:27 PT
If anyone thinks bush didn't know about 911....
they're new to C-News, that's for sure!go to unansweredquestions.com for all the details!Many 'Blows' against the Empire today! (Thanks Paul Kantner for you prophetic album of yesteryear, worth checking out if you've forgotten how the Jefferson Airplane/Starship nails the 60's world view, and have been confirmed as way too accurate!Jesse Jackson leads protests in Goose Creek!NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. - The Rev. Jesse Jackson (news - web sites) led hundreds of marchers carrying signs and chanting slogans Tuesday to protest a school drug sweep in which police with guns drawn ordered students to the floor.  Critics say the raid appeared to have targeted black students, which police have denied. "What do we want? Justice! When do we want it? Now!" chanted the marchers. "Just Say No to the Police State," read one sign. "We're going to march again and again and again," Jackson told those who rallied in front of city hall. "They will get bigger and bigger until there is fairness in the land." http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/ap/20031217/ap_on_re_us/school_drug_raid_1Another TV news station covers the biggest non-covered story:The ruling by the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was a blow to the federal government in its fight against medical marijuana. The Justice Department has argued that state medical marijuana laws were trumped by federal drug laws. http://www.kfmb.com/topstory20781.htmlEd Rosenthal weighs in:9th U.S. Court protects pot patientsThe decision was a blow to the Justice Department, which argued that medical marijuana laws in nine states, including California, were trumped by the Controlled Substances Act, which outlawed the drug. California has allowed medical marijuana use on patients with a doctor's prescription since 1996. Celebrated marijuana advocate Ed Rosenthal, who was convicted of growing medical pot in Oakland, called the decision, "tremendous news for medical marijuana patients all over California." "It says that patients who are not involved in interstate commerce are not subject to the federal law and that they are doing nothing illegal," Rosenthal told The Examiner. "That means patients don't have to worry about the federal government." Rosenthal said the vast majority of medical marijuana dispensed in the Bay Area is locally grown.http://www.sfexaminer.com/templates/story.cfm?displaystory=1&storyname=121703n_court
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Comment #14 posted by jose melendez on December 17, 2003 at 12:00:02 PT
I can't prove Bush knew . . .
I'm trying to avoid conspiracy theories. About this case, after reading the actual ruling, and the accompanying dissent at:http://freedomtoexhale.com/ruling.pdf . . . I believe there may be room for Wickard v. Filburn to be overturned. Just a hunch, based on a quick reading of dissenting Judge Beam's opinion.
high school clicks
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Comment #13 posted by Max Flowers on December 17, 2003 at 11:39:56 PT
yipppierevolutionary
The scary thing is, you're probably right. I'm starting to think that every last thing that has "happened" with Bush was orchestrated by Bush and his henchmen, from the election theft forward (including 9/11). I have been wondering for several months why they had not just planted the WMDs and gotten it overwith. Now I see why---because it would have been too early. The timing serves the re-election, not the war, as the war is actually serving the re-election in a larger plan. It's not that far out if you think about it, when you know his own father is intimately familiar with CIA deception tactics and political dirty trickery.
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Comment #12 posted by yippierevolutionary on December 17, 2003 at 11:10:04 PT
Sorry to be negative on such a happy day :)
THE 9TH CIRCUIT IS THE ONLY UNCORRUPTED COURT IN AMERICA
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Comment #11 posted by yippierevolutionary on December 17, 2003 at 11:09:19 PT
I was watching TV last night and I Saw A Vision
Bushes trip to Baghdad and Saddam's capture are the begginings of the PR blitz which is going to take the Iraq issue away from the democrats. Remember this war was about winning 2004. Karl Rove's strategy is to use Iraq to DIVIDE AND CONQUER. Look what it has done, divided the democratic party nicely as well as divided the newly uniting European Union, its all part of the plan to weaken the opposition. But back to my vision. One day I woke up and Saddam was captured and according to the pundits "the left is crushed", well I am afraid that one day we will wake up and the phantom WMD will be found and the supposed anti-war candidate Dean that Rove has propped up will be "crushed". The left has set the standard so low, instead of declaring early on the fact that SADDAM WAS IN COMPLIANCE WITH UN RESOLUTIONS THAT HE DISARM the left afraid of being "unamerican" keeps saying "well I hope we find those wmds" they leave it open for bush, all he has to do is plant a barrel or two of sarin gas in a spider hole. Saddam's capture IS THE BACKSTORY TO THE PLANTED WMD, you heard it hear first mark my words
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Comment #10 posted by DevoHawk on December 17, 2003 at 09:52:13 PT
When the walls come tumblin' down;
"Senior Circuit Judge C. Arlen Beam dissented from Tuesday's ruling, citing the 1942 case of an Ohio wheat farmer fined for growing too much wheat for personal use in violation of a federal law meant to control the wheat market's extreme supply and price fluctuations."I wondered why Beam saw this case so differently from the rest. Is Beam trying to control the price fluctuations in marijuana and save a market. What market would that be? Are we to assume that Beam is protecting other people who sell marijuana? I suppose that Beam's heart is in the wallet.
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Comment #9 posted by Nuevo Mexican on December 17, 2003 at 09:46:16 PT
Pot is the enemy of the evil empire!
Terrorism, nukes, acid rain, global warming, nah, its Pot that is the MOST Feared!We will see with this decision that prohibion of cannabis is the most important brick in the wall of oppression the world has ever seen. Pot equals being black, different, long-haired-bearded, Saddam/Osamma, Muslims, etc. you get the point.(if you look different, or say something that contadicts a from a newcaster on FOX, you are scum).
 
It is a War Nixon started to end the counter-culture,( and as Bush One started the 60's with the CIA dosing prostitutes with acid, inadvertently, but nevertheless, this war on Cannabis has back-fired). And now, it is Cannabis that threatens to take the whole bush war shebang down, as the Beatles John Lennon was equally feared as possibly helping Nixon lose his chance for re-election. It is that simple! Once the boogeyman of 'Pot' is destroyed as MYTH, the emporer will truly be revealed as naked, false, and most of all, a mass manipulation of the people of the world.Where is John now? Where is Wellstone? These voices must be and usually are silenced by the big bush gang boys.This info has been out there for years, most here are familiar with the detailsStill haven't seen any coverage of this gargantuan decision on the News, the Cali Court decision, not even a ticker across the bottom of the screen, I hope it's being reported and I'm just missing it.Please post any reporting other than Newspapers.I'm sure Amy Goodman will bring it up, on DemocracyNow.org though. I hope you watch transcripts or just turn on channel 9415 FOM and all! If you haven't watched Amy (the FOM of RealNews broadcasting, you both deserve awards for bravery and dedication in the face of bush! Shes on 3 times a day (repeats).Thats the equivalent to standing up to Hitler, (not a stretch folks, don't even argue this one bushlickers, Jesse V and I call lies LIES!)Todays other Victories over the bush administration:Judge strikes down Bush plan for snowmobiling in Yellowstonehttp://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2003/12/16/national2004EST0700.DTLTake the poll, (should medimarijuana be legal
(this appears to be the first TV station to carry the news:
78% say yes so far!http://www.thebostonchannel.com/health/2710210/detail.htmlbushes photoop upstaged by forces of the unknown (weather/terrorism/God?) Someone up there is raining on his Saddamite parade!Rain Delays Flight Re-Enactment in N.C.http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=519&ncid=716&e=3&u=/ap/20031217/ap_on_re_us/first_flightSomething we can all do to boot bush, Register Americans to vote, especially our pot-smoking, non-voting friends, you just might have a few, (more like and Alcapolco Gold MINE!)Door by Door
Progressives hit the streets in massive voter outreachElection Day is a year away and the Democrats don’t yet have a presidential nominee, but for labor activists, environmentalists, pro-choice advocates and other progressives, the battle for the White House is well under way.About a dozen groups—backed by the likes of Emily’s List, the AFL-CIO, the Sierra Club and MoveOn.org—are quietly building an infrastructure to undertake the most extensive door-to-door grassroots voter contact operation in U.S. history. Its potential to turn the election already is well understood on both sides: Longtime activists say they haven’t felt this energized in decades—and Republicans are using congressional hearings to shut down the operation or steal directly from its playbook.http://www.inthesetimes.com/comments.php?id=486_0_1_0_MWho do you agree with Dennis or bush:Kucinich Gives Spirited Defense of Gay Marriage 
Democratic Hopeful Chides His Rivals for Equivocating 
 
by Carla Marinucci http://www.commondreams.org/headlines03/1217-07.htm 
Bush Says He Could Back Gay Marriage Ban 
 
http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=544&u=/ap/20031217/ap_on_go_pr_wh/bush_interview_2&printer=1Fox News Show Mocks Cincinnati Police BeatingNorthStar Calls on Readers to Respondhttp://www.thenorthstarnetwork.com/news/opinion/182411-1.html
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Comment #8 posted by E_Johnson on December 17, 2003 at 09:20:12 PT
This is so educational
As a lifetime liberal Democrat this has opened my eyes quite a bit to the advantages of conservative ideology.And how wonderful it is that we do have three separate branches of government that can do battle with each other.And here is something:"Senior Circuit Judge C. Arlen Beam dissented from Tuesday's ruling, citing the 1942 case of an Ohio wheat farmer fined for growing too much wheat for personal use in violation of a federal law meant to control the wheat market's extreme supply and price fluctuations."I used to think it was good to make sure food prices were stable and always cheap but isn't an overabundance of cheap grain part of the reason why America is facing an obesity problem?
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Comment #7 posted by jose melendez on December 17, 2003 at 09:05:38 PT
re: illegal extraction, prosecute persecutors
from: http://www.mapinc.org/sknews/v03/n1910/a08.html?101 " . . . The Kubby case in California was rather complex legally.  They were  acquittedon all of the marijuana charges on which the search warrant was  based, butthe judge nonetheless upheld the validity of the search.   During the search the police claimed to have found an unusably small  quantity of psilocybin mushroom and peyote cactus in a canister in a  drawerin the guest bedroom.  Inasmuch as Steve has written a book on  psychedelicsit is plausible but unproven that they belong to him, but here  is where (it) gets weird.   He was not convicted of possession the natural substances which the police  claimed to have found, but of possession of psilocyn and mescaline, the  active ingredients which the police extracted in their lab. "Read that last line again, and someone with a law degree please tell me, is it not ILLEGAL for a prosecutor to, say, cook down some cocaine, in order to obtain harsher (cruel, not unusual) crack penalties? Betcha some white folks would stand up for their rights if the criminalizers started waging war on us with THAT tactic!see also: http://www.kubby.com/
books not bullets
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Comment #6 posted by FoM on December 17, 2003 at 08:40:27 PT
darwin
I don't think I know the answers to a few of your questions but I'll try to comment about the Kubbys. It wasn't medical marijuana but mushrooms or peyote I think that was the problem. They were acquitted in the medical marijuana part of their case.
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Comment #5 posted by Dark Star on December 17, 2003 at 08:39:02 PT
Just the Beginning
The fat lady of drug prohibition has not sung yet! You can count on the Feds to hit this early and hit it hard. They will get a preliminary injunction of some kind to put it all on hold, and then appeal to the Supremes.This case was tailor-made to gut the Controlled Substances Act and challenge the commerce clause. It this doesn't work (and I'd have to say I still doubt that it will ultimately), it would be hard to imagine a more compelling challenge.Even if the Feds don't win, it is another slap in the face for Ashcroft and the Neo-Con Nazis. An inexorable process toward freedom continues. 
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Comment #4 posted by darwin on December 17, 2003 at 08:33:49 PT
Steve Kubby
Does this mean that Steve Kubby could come back to California and be protected by the law? Does Ed Rosenthal's record get wiped clean? He was forbidden from mentioning "Medical use" in his trial. Can patients now claim a medical defense, when up to now they were not allowed to mention it? The legal picture of this is not very clear, (at least to me). Seems to me, the government could save millions in legal fees if they'd just bite the bullet and take cannabis off schedule 1.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on December 17, 2003 at 08:30:36 PT
Dr. Russo
I remember when you did that! This is good news. I wonder what the Feds will do now. 
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Comment #2 posted by Ethan Russo MD on December 17, 2003 at 08:25:57 PT
Amicus Curiae
I filed an amicus curiae brief in this case:http://raich-v-ashcroft.com/mpprderamicus.pdfI also examined Angel, and her records, and it is clear that all possible medical avenues were tried to treat her conditions without relief. Only clinical cannabis helped.
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Comment #1 posted by SystemGoneDown on December 17, 2003 at 08:21:18 PT:
We're Taking em' Down!!! 
...and I love it. I never knew something as slight as medical marijuana poses such a deep but little-known threat to the dictators that we call the U.S. federal government. Medical Marijuana is getting backed by their own damn judges. This is great. It's almost 2004, it's about time that people saw the injustice of marijuana prohibition. Great day, I think I'll drink to this, and hopefully one day I'll be able to smoke out in front of a punk ass cop, and he won't be able to do shiznotta! Smoke on Americans, in the words of Bob Marley "Stand up for your Rights"
 
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