Disqus - Latest Comments for TheGardener

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Oliver Stone's Thinking Of Getting In The Marijuana Business

TheGardener — Wed, 27 Jun 2012 08:37:01 -0000

The thought of Oliver Stone doing a movie about cannabis prohibition has been haunting me all night. It's perfect. There's manipulation, greed, passion, danger, racism, power struggles, corruption, corporate manipulation, politics, personal freedoms, and history to jump back and forth into... the list goes on and on. And it's all real. I hope he will hear/see this idea and consider its potential.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - This Is What A Drug War Looks Like When It's Dying

TheGardener — Mon, 25 Jun 2012 22:49:01 -0000

Thanks for raising the rescheduling point, Tony. Based on the following, she could have easily blamed the DHHS but I'd suspect those big orgs have each others backs.

[Docket No. DEA-352N] Denial of Petition To Initiate Proceedings To Reschedule Marijuana:http://www.deadiversion.usd...

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Texas Democratic Party Supports Marijuana Decriminalization

TheGardener — Sat, 23 Jun 2012 15:40:10 -0000

Agree. But the absence of a related piece on TotT RE: those two clips is curious. Maybe Steve can't stop laughing and jumping up and down long enough to pen the thing.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Poll Shows 74% of Americans Support Medical Marijuana

TheGardener — Thu, 17 May 2012 08:47:25 -0000

I'm feeling the same way. It's very telling when you have the issue under your microscope for an extended time. On the upside, this prohibition is under attack from many directions now, more than ever in history, and more people are open to learning about it every hour. From industrial hemp to medical cannabis to personal use (not a fan of the "recreational" label, myself -- basketball is recreation to me) the ripples are growing into waves and some people near the seem to be getting the message that their jobs (and hidden opportunities) will soon be at stake, as wrongdoings are exposed for what they are. People are quickly becoming more comfortable about speaking about this issue. Now is the time to be exposing as many as you can to this.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - We Can Legalize Cannabis Now

TheGardener — Fri, 23 Mar 2012 22:00:53 -0000

Kudos to you Mr. Platshorn for setting your sights on the senior population and skillfully presenting this to them. So many of them could use a little affordable herbal relaxation and also enjoy the gardening hobby at the same time. Many seniors realize they were lied to about cannabis.

Have you considered kickstarter.com for a grass roots funding source on the creative side? I've seen some things work out well there.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - CA County Taking Away Children Of Medical Cannabis Patients

TheGardener — Sun, 18 Mar 2012 12:49:32 -0000

Horrible. I can't believe we pay people to do this.

It's system abuse. System Abuse has reached epidemic proportions. The
system is highly addictive and a gateway to stronger and greater crimes
against humanity. You only need to abuse the system one time, and you
are hooked. Systers, as they are known, should be jailed like
Substance Abusers, where we can save them from their moral
shortcomings, rehabilitate them, get some of our cash back, and release
them as productive members of society. They don't want to be system
abusers but the abuse makes their life more enjoyable, justifying their
jobs and all. What we really need is someone in authority to declare
and implement a real war on system abuse. That's a war where I'd like
to see my tax dollars go. System abuse is epidemic and ruining
families every day.

Apologies for the sarcasm but the irony is sickening.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Firm Dedicates $100 Million Funding Facility To Medical Cannabis

TheGardener — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 08:39:13 -0000

I'm probably just getting old. I've spent decades thinking a
groundswell of voters could put an end to this and I still have hope
for that. I am all for a voting success over this corporate model,
please don't get me wrong. And I encourage everyone to vote. But when
California mustered the numbers on 19, even those voters started
breaking up into factions voting against each other and much of that
was over money, and the haves vs the have-nots, as I understand it.
Honestly, I didn't see that coming.

And I completely agree that activism and voting have fueled the
progress so far. But I also see a systematic dismantling of that
progress from the top right now. It's hard for me to believe that
there isn't some big corporate money behind all that. The people
spoke, and voted, and won, and it's starting not to matter.

I appreciate the civil discussion, Swazi.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Firm Dedicates $100 Million Funding Facility To Medical Cannabis

TheGardener — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 01:07:00 -0000

Valid concerns, but if the company could also offer an opportunity to hedge (financially) against some of the nasty scenarios by investing in them, if they are to grow that big and profitable.

"Once you get that big, you start being able to control lots of related things, like lobbyists, laws, labor rules, etc."

One major obstacle has been effecting change in laws, especially at the federal level. It sure seems like the people we hire to handle that take their direction from corporations now -- through lobbyists -- not from people like us out here voting and bitching and calling them about how we want things to be. So if we assume laws need to change to favor cannabis for these evil corporations to thrive, then can't we also assume it is in their best interest to first grease the wheels in the accepted fashion?

Some might argue that's a short-sided view and you might be right. But we're talking about a sharp 25 year cannabis activist with business experience at the helm here. Sure, she could get the axe as CEO at any time but here's a chance to support a passionate cannabis activist getting into business, as opposed to a future onslaught of business activists getting into cannabis. And that only happens if our complaining and voting finally clears a safe path for them somehow over the next 50 years or so.

I've never met Cheryl Shuman but what I've read about her over the years, I appreciate.

Here's what I know. I can go down the street to one single store and buy a shopping cart full of booze, smokes, and enough drugs to kill an animal weighing several hundred pounds (pretty sure, untested actually). They'll all kill the shit out of me too but it's not a problem. I can wheel my cart out of there, right past the officer in his squad car, wave, be polite, with my only worry being that wobbly wheel on my overloaded cart. Conversely, I can also make my own beer or wine at home if I want to, or roll my own smokes, or use legal herbal remedies and nobody is hovering around wanting to put me in jail for any of those things either. It's not just coincidence.

The fixes are in. It comes from the corporations, imho. And the fallout might not be as apocalyptic as it seems on the surface. Connoisseurs could also end up with many options beyond the nasty mass produced 'King of Buds' -- who, btw, sells boxes of their product for 15 bucks and still has plenty of cash to keep the wheels well-greased and also to sponsor most major sporting events in this country.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - R.I. Governor Slams Obama's Medical Marijuana Crackdown

TheGardener — Tue, 21 Feb 2012 20:58:30 -0000

Agreed. I don't know anything else about him but have to give Gov. Chafee credit for speaking out on this. Sure would be nice if other governors cared as much about their citizens to speak up. Seems for some, the higher up the political food-chain they advance, the more they realize just how neutered they got along the way. It sucks, politics, payoffs, trade-offs, influence. The citizens are left to deal with the fallout and expense of nobody with the guts to fix this.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - My 86-Year-Old Mom Gave Me This Weed Piggy Bank For Xmas

TheGardener — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 22:40:46 -0000

...and you could put your weeeed in there.

Best wishes to your mom!

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Hey, Arkansas: Are You Ready To Legalize Medical Marijuana?

TheGardener — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 20:55:56 -0000

Perfect year for this, Arkansas. In your honor, now playing:
Black Oak Arkansas ☮When Electricity Came To Arkansas and Dixie UNCUT
http://www.youtube.com/watc...

Damn, them was the days, eh friends? (you know who you are)

As much fun as we had, we really kinda screwed up letting this prohibition go on 75 years and get all bolstered by these big industries who benefit from it. But we ain't dead yet. We've got a few elections and protests left in us. And NOW we have the Internet and instant communication with like-minded people. Real Scary Shit (RSS). Let's get it together, communicate with our friends, act, and leave something better to our kids and grandkids.

If cannabis will work for them as medicine, instead of or better than some patented pill, then by God they should have worry-free access to it. And if we do this now, in every state we can, some of our own generation will benefit, too.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Medical Marijuana Resolution Now In Florida Legislature

TheGardener — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 22:02:00 -0000

Oh, how I wish everyone in the country over the age of 60 could read and seriously consider what you just wrote. And with the right strain they could also be laughing their "hemorrhoidal backsides" off.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Why Does DEA Quote Toke Signals Marijuana Review In Warrant?

TheGardener — Wed, 16 Nov 2011 20:32:12 -0000

Looks to me like this is a shot across the bow in regard to "advertising", which accompanied the recent threats toward property owners renting to dispensaries, etc. Your words got dragged in.

I don't know if the old saying "Don't fuck with people who buy ink by the barrel." still applies but It'll be interesting to see how publications like the Seattle Weekly respond to the feds going after their (most likely already strained) ad revenues.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Show Me Cannabis: MO May Vote On Marijuana Legalization In 2012

TheGardener — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 20:25:23 -0000

I'd love to see this fly in MO. You won't see the "I gots mine" infighting which fracturing progress in some medical states. Show 'em how it's done, MO. Just pass the whole damned thing and get it over with.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Feds: California Marijuana Dispensaries Must Shut Down

TheGardener — Fri, 07 Oct 2011 19:14:49 -0000

Agreed. And the timing is perfect in some ways. This has shitstorm written all over it.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Elliott At Hempfest: Believe Science, Not Marijuana Prohibition

TheGardener — Fri, 26 Aug 2011 22:34:43 -0000

Well done, Steve. You're fighting the good fight. This next year will go a long way toward exposing the prohibitionists true agenda(s).

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Mich. Judge: Med Marijuana Law Does Not Protect Dispensaries

TheGardener — Tue, 23 Aug 2011 22:17:39 -0000

Protecting and serving -- their jobs and themselves.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Poll: 51% of Coloradans Favor Marijuana Legalization

TheGardener — Sat, 13 Aug 2011 17:43:12 -0000

Yes it does. A lot of people in CO are already content in some form, at the state level. This is why I hope an effort in a state like MO gets some traction. I'd bet you won't see a lot of in-fighting there. Just a bunch of people quietly going to the polls and voting their asses off.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - 'Kids For Cash' Judge Gets 28 Years In Prison

TheGardener — Thu, 11 Aug 2011 23:10:02 -0000

I can't even count the number of people who's eyes glaze over when I mention my frustration over corporate prisons and the business of filling them. First they're surprised, then they think I'm crazy about the business of building and filling them. This story should go viral so more people get a clue that this shit really happens. Here's an '09 story on these goons: http://www.nytimes.com/2009...

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Worth Repeating: 7 Cannabis Studies That Will Change Everything

TheGardener — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 00:10:03 -0000

This is an epic piece, Ron. And rich with links/resources. Thanks TOTT!

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Missouri Group Works To Legalize Marijuana

TheGardener — Thu, 21 Jul 2011 00:30:38 -0000

Big difference between California and Missouri (and most other
non-medical states, or states that don't happen to have an Emerald
Triangle). There are no dispensaries or organized growers protecting
their interests by convincing their customers to vote against the
proposition. It's a vacuum in MO. Tell them they can be legal AND
have a 100 square foot legal grow and they'll vote for it en masse. It
doesn't have to be all or nothing.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Worth Repeating: Humans Discover Hemp, 10,000 B.C.

TheGardener — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 22:39:07 -0000

10,000 years is such a vast expanse of time. All those people. All those generations. All that cannabis grown in so many places with such limited resources and used so extensively in its multitude of forms. It's almost as though it was SO versatile and easy to produce that someone, or some group, maybe many, needed for it to go away as an option to 'their' customers about three quarters of a century ago -- to justify 'their' product's existence in a market or something. Weird.

Or we became smarter and that's what happened.

The problem is obvious.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Israeli Nursing Home Prescribes Medical Marijuana

TheGardener — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 21:41:28 -0000

Shock! Let's see, citizens could feel better, be tranquil, AND save how many bazillions of dollars a year on pharmaceuticals and alcohol? The problem is obvious.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Reformed Nazi Twin Singers Renounce Racism; Credit Marijuana

TheGardener — Mon, 18 Jul 2011 20:05:35 -0000

Fortunately they didn't choose alcohol or this would probably be an entirely different story.

Another great piece from Steve's weedar screen.

Re: Toke of the Town - Steve Elliott ~alapoet~ - Hempsters Documentary Compellingly Explores A Movement

TheGardener — Fri, 15 Jul 2011 08:26:41 -0000

Definitely a must see! Two thumbs up. The Vietnam Vet (and business owner) in this really stands out, for me.