Monday, June 06, 2005
You'll Feel Better When You're in Heaven, But Dope-Smokers Go to Hell
Of all the pandering stunts John Ashcroft engaged in as Attorney General, his desire to prosecute medical marijuana users always struck me as one of the worst. Never mind the inconsistency of an unreconstructed Confederate arguing for federal intervention in a state issue. What's worse is the jackbooted intrusion by the feds into the lives of people with cancer or AIDS, who already have more than enough to worry about. Yet the Supremes voted 6-3 today that federal laws banning medical marijuana take precedence over the laws legalizing it in 10 states (Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington).
John Paul Stevens wrote the majority opinion, but he suggested that all was not bleak for medical marijuana's future. "More important than these legal avenues is the democratic process, in which the voices of voters allied with these respondents may one day be heard in the halls of Congress." In other words, don't worry--Congress could, after all, legalize medical marijuana.
One wonders what Mr. Justice Stevens is smoking. Medical marijuana won't have a chance at being legalized by an American Congress until after the Rapture.
Most Appalling Product of the Year: The rubber-wristband craze, which began with the yellow Lance Armstrong "livestrong" bands, clearly jumped the shark a long time ago, but this is the worst example I've seen yet.
(This post appears in a slightly different form at Best of the Blogs.)
Of all the pandering stunts John Ashcroft engaged in as Attorney General, his desire to prosecute medical marijuana users always struck me as one of the worst. Never mind the inconsistency of an unreconstructed Confederate arguing for federal intervention in a state issue. What's worse is the jackbooted intrusion by the feds into the lives of people with cancer or AIDS, who already have more than enough to worry about. Yet the Supremes voted 6-3 today that federal laws banning medical marijuana take precedence over the laws legalizing it in 10 states (Alaska, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Vermont and Washington).
John Paul Stevens wrote the majority opinion, but he suggested that all was not bleak for medical marijuana's future. "More important than these legal avenues is the democratic process, in which the voices of voters allied with these respondents may one day be heard in the halls of Congress." In other words, don't worry--Congress could, after all, legalize medical marijuana.
One wonders what Mr. Justice Stevens is smoking. Medical marijuana won't have a chance at being legalized by an American Congress until after the Rapture.
Most Appalling Product of the Year: The rubber-wristband craze, which began with the yellow Lance Armstrong "livestrong" bands, clearly jumped the shark a long time ago, but this is the worst example I've seen yet.
(This post appears in a slightly different form at Best of the Blogs.)
