30 Little Known Facts About America – Click here for another funny movie.

Cameron Todd maintained to his death, that he was innocent of his crimes… and even though evidence supporting his innocence was presented before his state sanctioned murder, it seems nobody with the authority to stay his execution was interested in looking at it objectively. What kind of human being sees a possibility that an innocent man is about to be put to death, and decides to do nothing?? Government bureaucrats, that’s who… after all, it was Sharon Keller who, unfortunately is still Presiding Judge in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, that said “We can’t give new trials to everyone who establishes, after conviction, that they might be innocent” .  Coupled with the misconduct charges, that alone is enough to make me lose faith in the system… and that’s only one of many issues. Justice, my ass.

“I hate drug tests. I think they’re dumb and ineffective as policy. But mostly I object on moral grounds. I don’t think it’s your boss’s business what you do at home. I don’t think it’s the government’s business what you do at home. “

Mr. Cop In The Hood… I didn’t think you existed.

Forget that the pill was one of the major reasons why women were able to step out of the traditional role of just being there to make their husbands dinner…

Forget that this is potentially lethal as it could possibly make condoms illegal if some “do-gooder” decides that sperm is also considered the “biological development of that human being”… because condoms don’t help prevent the spread of veneral disease or anything, not the least of which is AIDS…

Lastly, definitely forget that three times, the United States Supreme Court has declared that laws preventing women from getting abortions are unconstitutional (Roe v Wade) and denying couples the right to use contraception is also unconstitutional (Griswold v Connecticut and Einsenstadt v Baird).

Clever Colorado rejected a similar proposal in 2008, and the Colorado proposition was less imposing that this one.

Call me crazy, but I thought that the federal constitution automatically trumps any state constitution? Admittedly, I am ignorant to how constitutional or legislated protections of rights operate because Australia is the only western democratic country in the world that does not have a Bill of Rights, whether constitutional or Statutory… but that’s a whole other article really.

As an example, I chose to use heroin as an example, as heroin seems to be the most commonly feared illicit drug. As far as I’m concerned, if someone is sitting across a table from me injecting heroin, unless that person harms me or my property, it’s not my business nor the business of any law enforcement thug. My personal opinions of the drug or the persons actions are irrelevant, because he’s not harming me. D disagrees. D believes “softer” drugs are ok, but not heroin because of… wait for it… his morals. I call bullshit! Who are you to say that because your of your personal beliefs, I can be arrested??? * Bull.shit. (I would like to add that I am not in any way advocating heroin use… in fact, I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone, but if you choose to use it, it’s none of my business.)

D asserted that “you can’t trust people with themselves” and “what if it was your child smacking up?”. Firstly, what people do with themselves is nobody’s business. Secondly… if it was my child, I would hope that s/he would not be one of the less than 10% of people afflicted with substance abuse. If s/he was, I would hope that through regulation of the currently illegal drugs, there would be less chance of him overdosing. I would hope that we could combat the causes for the abuse through education and support – the same way support groups for alcoholism became available following the end of prohibition. I would most certainly not want my child arrested, or have the person that he voluntarily purchased the drugs from arrested. Incarceration for consensual crimes helps no one. Not the “offender” or “victim” (one and the same), and not the tax payer that suffers the burden to pay for the incarceration of these “criminals”.

If it doesn’t hurt you… mind your own business.

One of my favourite political bloggers, J.D. Tucille wrote a great article regarding the author of one of my favourite books, “Ain’t Nobody’s Business If You Do”and the topic of consensual crimes. I’m only new to the world of blogging and politics… they both say much more eloquently what I’ve been trying to. Read the article. Read the book. They’re enlightening.

The consumption and possession of weed was decriminalised in the Netherlands in the 70′s, but for some reason, these Mayors feel like the 25,000 tourists that come to their cities with money which contribute to the government coffers should go somewhere else.

The problem with this is that the Dutch government is intending to impose a system whereby short term tourists will no longer be able to buy marijuana in coffee shops  at all by restricting sale of marijuana by licensed vendors to a membership base, the application of which will take at least a couple of days to process. 

Am I the only one that can foresee this forcing legitimate coffee shop vendors to break the law to stay solvent? No doubt that a large proportion of customers at Dutch coffee shops are tourists… take away that customer base, and the business at best, makes less money than they anticipated when starting the coffee shop, and at worst, goes under. All this new restriction is going to do, is drive the marijuana trade underground like every other nanny-state country.

So much for being one of the freest free-market capitalist countries. Way to go Netherlands.