cannabisnews.com: Festival Celebrates Hemp, Also Stirs Political Pot





Festival Celebrates Hemp, Also Stirs Political Pot
Posted by CN Staff on August 22, 2004 at 07:12:01 PT
By Tan Vinh, Seattle Times Staff Reporter
Source: Seattle Times 
Amid the bong sales, the drug-reform speeches and a certain aroma that permeated the annual pro-marijuana festival yesterday, Hempfest was also a venue for another cause: getting John Kerry to the White House. Regulars who attend the two-day festival to hear the usual cry of "legalize marijuana" also found organizers campaigning to get pot users to vote for Kerry.About 100 Democratic activists passed out Kerry/Edwards buttons and stickers and tried to register voters yesterday at the 13th annual gathering at Myrtle Edwards Park along Seattle's waterfront.
With an expected 150,000 visitors over two days, Hempfest is billed as one of the world's largest pro-marijuana rallies. As organizers see it, that's a gold mine for Kerry, since the crowd is largely anti-President Bush. Said Hempfest spokesman Dominic Holden, "Bush has had a disastrous drug policy — criminalizing sick and dying people who need medical marijuana and campaigning against citizen initiatives to implement drug-law reforms." Organizers set a goal of signing up thousands of new voters. Some Kerry supporters also were recruiting campaign volunteers. A Kerry campaign spokesman said the efforts were orchestrated by independent groups that are not associated with the official Kerry campaign. Walter Duncan, a 32-year-old graduate student and a Kerry supporter, decided to pick up a clipboard and sign up voters because "this is going to be a close election ... and this would be a good place to find" Kerry supporters. Chris Martino, 35, a Kerry volunteer from Seattle, signed up 15 new voters within an hour. "It's not exactly an evangelical Christian group. It's a left-leaning crowd," he said. Hempfest's milelong stretch of booths features vendors selling anti-Bush T-shirts, bumper stickers and signs reading "Smoke Bush." The event also drew campaigns for Ralph Nader and the Libertarian ticket. Hempfest organizers said the event's political overtone underscores the clout that pot smokers have, as evidenced by the passage of I-75, the initiative that made marijuana the city's lowest law-enforcement priority. The initiative was approved by 58 percent of Seattle voters last September. Source: Seattle Times (WA)Author: Tan Vinh, Seattle Times Staff ReporterPublished: Sunday, August 22, 2004 Copyright: 2004 The Seattle Times CompanyContact: opinion seatimes.comWebsite: http://www.seattletimes.com/Related Articles & Web Site:Seattle Hempfesthttp://www.seattlehempfest.com/The Drug Issue: 2004 Hempfest Highlightshttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19375.shtmlMarijuana Rights Group Uniting Behind Kerry http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19366.shtmlMarijuana Measure Called Effective by Supporters http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread19354.shtml 
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Comment #13 posted by Virgil on August 22, 2004 at 11:34:21 PT
Remembering Lehder
It was Lehder that first provided this link concerning a new book by Chomsky at Cnews- http://www.word-power.co.uk/catalogue/1583225900 These words seem to be relevant to the first comments of this thread.Q: You've said that we as citizens should not speak truth to power but, instead, to people. Shouldn't we do both? Could you speak more on this subject?CHOMSKY: This is a reference to about the only thing on which I find I disagree with my Quaker friends. On every practical activity I usually agree with them, but I do disagree with them about their slogan of speaking truth to power. First of all, power already knows the truth. They don't need to hear it from us. Secondly, it's a waste of time. Furthermore, it's the wrong audience. You have to speak truth to the people who will dismantle and overthrow and constrain power. Furthermore, I don't like the phrase "speak truth to." We don't know the truth. At least I don't.We should join with the kind of people who are willing to commit themselves to overthrow power, and listen to them. They often know a lot more than we do. And join with them to carry out the right kinds of activities. Should you also speak truth to power? If you feel like it, but I don't see a lot of point. I'm not interested in telling the people around Bush what they already know. 
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Comment #12 posted by FoM on August 22, 2004 at 11:00:01 PT
Patrick
After listening to Fogerty's Deja Vu All Over Again Steve Earles songs don't sound quite as good. We have one Steve Earle CD called Just an American Boy and we really like most of the songs on it. He is out there but he's good too.
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Comment #11 posted by FoM on August 22, 2004 at 10:40:47 PT
Patrick
I'm glad you liked the song. I can't just listen to it one time. It is so right and it's so good. F/9-11 was very good and I'm looking forward to it's release on DVD. I put songs and DVDs in my Amazon wish list and Steve Earles's The Revolution Starts Now is one I will get too. I like to get a couple CDs or DVDs at one time and it's easier to afford that way for me.http://www.artemisrecords.com/media/SteveEarle-TheRevolutionStartsNow.ramhttp://www.artemisrecords.com/media/SteveEarle-RichMansWar.ram
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Comment #10 posted by Patrick on August 22, 2004 at 10:33:02 PT
Deja Vu
FoM thanks for the song. It was really good. Almost brings tears to my eyes when I think about the Mother crying over her lost child and I flashed to the image of the war mongers in Farenheit 911 cheering the profits they'll make with this new endless war.
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Comment #9 posted by FoM on August 22, 2004 at 10:08:42 PT
Hi Patrick
It's good to see you and I hope your new computer works fine for you. If you can get this song by using Real Player or Windows Media Player you might want to listen to it and share it with your friend. War is being glamorized and when young people are bored because of no job or future the service seems like a good way. It isn't though.DEJA VU (ALL OVER AGAIN)http://www.johnfogerty.com/main.phphttp://boss.streamos.com/real/geffen/john_fogerty/audio/deja_vu_all_over_again/deja_vu_all_over_again/00_lo.ramhttp://boss.streamos.com/wmedia/geffen/john_fogerty/audio/deja_vu_all_over_again/deja_vu_all_over_again/00_lo.asx
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Comment #8 posted by Patrick on August 22, 2004 at 10:00:01 PT
Anything but Bush for 4 more
Hi FoM. I have been out of circulation for awhile, mostly because of a lack of computer. The old Windows 98 has been laid to rest for XP Pro. I hope that happens to the current administration in Washington as well. If you got to cnn.com there is a story about a guy getting fired from his company for heckling Bush at a speech and also two people were arrested for wearing "I hate Bush" t-shirts at a Pro Bush rally! Arrested??? Can you say Hitler?http://www.cnn.com/2004/US/South/08/21/heckler.fired.ap/index.htmlA friend of mine who never votes and I were discussing this election over a few bowls of chronic last night and I may have actually convinced him to vote this year to help the other half of us who want to remove Bush. He's pissed off enough that he is really worried his sons will want to go and join the military (they are glamorizing the war in my opinioin) since Bush's plan seems to be that we always be at war kids can go play cowboy and indians for real. It's our youth that are impressionable enough to join and possibly sacrifice their life without understanding all the issues or consequences of the choice. I am reminded of the Black Sabbath song War Pigs. 30+ years ago that song was about Viet Nam and how fitting and timeless it is today about the Bush White House.
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on August 22, 2004 at 09:44:31 PT
Virgil
I understand. Maybe Kerry is a drug warrior but so is Bush. Remember Dennis might have a voice since he is campaigning for Kerry now. I think Kerry stands by those who stand by him.In life we don't always get what we want but we learn to live with limitations and compromise. At least that's how my life has been. 
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Comment #6 posted by Virgil on August 22, 2004 at 09:38:20 PT
It is all about seeing reality
You are talking about voting. I am talking about coming to see the reality that is America. There are two kinds of people. There are those that seek an understanding of political realities throught the Internet and those that digest the the programming of a controlled media. Obviously, those that read here are in world 1 and it us that have to talk about a more true reality where we are the terrorist of the world with a CIA with a hidden budget of $3 billion and whatever drug money they can funnel and skim and a military that has weapons of global destruction.I am talking about an awakening to a reality that calls us. To say that Kerry is a drug warrior is just blunt fact that world 2 will not talk about. In world 1, we should say it often so that eventually we have allies in world 2.There is a big block of voters that will not vote because they do not think it makes any difference and in this election, it would be hard to point out any big differences except the Republicans have to own the religious right with the abortion position and all. What I say on the election is that you would have to be crazy or otherwise defective to vote for Busch. Kerry is not worthy of president as he is a war criminal also. But my main appeal is to vote. It would really be of global interest if 10 percent of the country voted for someone besides the war criminals of Bush and Kerry. If the duopoly lost 10 percent of the votes, it would show that the media programming is not holding and that people are catching on that the two party system that is but one party in reality has got to change.For me, Nader does not fit into the equation at all. Actually, I think if Pat Bucanan and the Constitutional Party is on the ticket, I will vote for him. My view is anyone but Bush or Kerry and Bucanan with an h in there somewhere is not Bush or Kerry.But really I am not talking about voting. I am talking about a clear fact. Kerry is a drug warrior and so is Congress. On voting, whatever you do please don't vote for Bush, but please vote for someone, even if Kerry is enough to turn your stomach too.
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on August 22, 2004 at 09:15:15 PT
Virgil
You tell us who you don't like but who do you like that can beat Bush? Do you want Bush for 4 more years? If you do just say so. That's ok.
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Comment #4 posted by Virgil on August 22, 2004 at 09:12:23 PT
Drug warrior describes it all
The consequences of the Nixon-era of drug warring brought us to our present conditions on the police state in America and the trampling of unalienable rights and the Constitution. The drug wars gave us reason to intervene in all of South America and everywhere else we wanted to poke our nose.We had an illegal intervention in Panama to remove Noriega because he wanted too big a cut on cocaine profits. The drug wars are an integral part of the Empire play book, just like the conquest of petro-chemicals is now. In this election we see that their can be no discussion of the War for Prohibition, because any real debate on the subject shows the ugliness of the Empire that now controls all the states through an illegal hegemony that ignores the boundaries of the Constitution on federal power.The politicians cannot talk about the drug war, so we should. The subject is right up there with the economy, environment, and the use of US military might in wars of aggression. So again I say, the very least that anyone can do for the cause of harm reduction and raising the horrors of the drug wars out of silence is to call Kerry for the drug warrior he is. Of course Congress is full of drug warriors as they are all in the service of the Empire. They too, need to be given their drug warrior medals, that they would not wear out of embarrassment, even thought they have earned them in the service of their plutocratic masters.
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Comment #3 posted by FoM on August 22, 2004 at 08:45:15 PT
Virgil
I can't read the future but I find more that I appreciate with Kerry then Bush. He isn't perfect but he is better then Bush in my opinion. Our issue is important but I am interested in more then our issue when it comes to voting for who I want to be our next President. 
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Comment #2 posted by Virgil on August 22, 2004 at 08:33:26 PT
Kerry is the professional drug warrior
Bush is an amateur compared to Kerry. If federal cannabis policy changes it will because of the courts and the spread of truth that replaces ignorance with enlightenment."We need more studies" Kerry, will not let up in the preservation of prohibition, until the opposition actually puts the drug warrior label on him and makes hime wear it. He said bring it on. The least the movement could do is call him for the drug warrior he has been and is. And why would you think another pro-Empire candidate would not be a drug warrior? Anyone that was for harm reduction would have been filtered out in process that lead up to the illusion of an election in the primaries.
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Comment #1 posted by cloud7 on August 22, 2004 at 07:39:46 PT
...
I have no problems with the Kerry campaign canvassing the HempFest for votes, but they know good and well what they are implying and I hope Kerry doesnt stab us in the back if he wins office.
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