Presidential Contender Jill Stein issues Major Statement on Marijuana (to Mark 4/20) — by NormanB (“Deviations from the Norm”)

Green Party Presidential candidate Jill Stein’s campaign just issued a bold statement on Marijuana and hemp policy, released today, to mark the 4/20 Marijuana-smoking holiday. Here’s her statement in its entirety, followed by my supplemental information.

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Stein challenges Obama on marijuana policy

Posted by Jill Stein for President on April 22, 2012

In a speech to tens of thousands of marijuana reform advocates at the 420 rally in Denver, Colorado, Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein took the Obama administration to task for its continuing assault on medical marijuana clinics in California, Colorado and other states.

Dr. Stein, a physician and public health advocate, noted that hundreds of thousands of patients suffering from chronic pain and cancers are benefiting from the availability of medical marijuana under state laws. She said that one of her first actions as President would be to “order the DEA and the Justice Department to cease and desist all attempts to harass or prosecute medical marijuana clinics or other legitimate marijuana-related businesses that are operating under state laws.”

Stein advocates regulating marijuana in a similar way to alcohol, and has long supported legalization of that drug. According to Stein, this would prevent billions of dollars in profits from pouring into the black market, and would greatly reduce the violence associated with illegal marijuana sales. She feels it would also reduce underage marijuana use, as well as allowing the commercial operations to pay appropriate taxes, thus helping to balance budgets and fund programs to reduce drug abuse.

Stein noted that the DEA has placed marijuana in the most dangerous category of drugs (Schedule 1) along with heroin and LSD. Stein said that she would direct DEA to remove marijuana from Schedule 1 and place it in a more appropriate category as determined by medical science.

According to Stein, “President Obama promised to use a science-based approach to public policy. But when it comes to marijuana, he has continued the unscientific policies of George Bush, and has even gone far beyond Bush in his attacks upon medical marijuana clinics. He supports the irrational classification of marijuana in the most dangerous drug category, and he supports the ban on commercial hemp growing. This is mania-based policy, not science-based policy.”

Stein criticized President Obama for promoting a George W. Bush appointee, Michele Leonhart, to be head of the Drug Enforcement Agency. According to Stein, Leonhart has a history of “overzealous” attacks on legitimate drug use, and has been behind the attacks on medical marijuana. “The President promised us change, but in promoting Michele Leonhart he gave us more of the same. One of the first things I would do as President would be to fire Michele Leonhart.”

Stein has toured the country calling for a Green New Deal that would create 25 million sustainable jobs to end unemployment in America, and shift to a new, more democratic economy and politics. “As part of this, I want to see a thriving commercial hemp industry providing food, fiber, and other products from the hemp plant. This will be good for the environment and good for our economy. A win/win solution is within reach if we can just shake off the Bush/Obama past and embrace a rational, effective drug policy for the 21st century.”

http://www.jillstein.org/stein_calls_for_legalization_at_420_rally

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In December, when Jill Stein’s Presidential candidacy had just begun, here at FireDogLake.com, I wrote and published a similar, even more detailed statement on Marijuana from her campaign. It was withdrawn 10 hours later for logistical reasons, but that information’s dissemination may have (partially?) triggered one very important national development:

A plank of that December Marijuana platform called for the release of Marijuana/hemp Political Prisoners, including longtime Medical Rights activist Dana Beal of the Youth International Party. Hours after Presidential candidate Jill Stein demanded Dana Beal’s release [through my words in this column], a judge ordered him released. While the article and its demand were still posted, Dana was brought before a judge. He was prepared. He made an impassioned self-defense. Then he had a heart attack.

Beal was rushed to the hospital for a multiple-bypass operation. Soon, the judge ordered his release. Here are some things that the judge may have considered in making that decision:

~ Jill Stein, at the time President Obama’s only actual clear opponent, had apparently demanded his release;

~ Billionaire activist/philanthropist George Soros [according to Beal's defense] now intended to financially support Beal’s efforts to end people’s addictions to Heroin and other drugs with Ibogaine (Many addicts find that their physical cravings are gone after one Ibogaine experience, and that mental reliance on their substance of choice has been ‘restructured’ away as well);

~ Dana made a damn good speech – it’s out there on the net;

~ It was cheaper for the state to have the newly-operated-on Dana Beal out of custody while he was still recuperating from the surgery and in need of so much medical help.

This is my own independent opinion now, not from the Stein campaign: Dana Beal is a true hero. Millions of people are going to die from Multiple Sclerosis, AIDS, ALS, Skin Cancer, and many other maladies over the next few years. Many or most of those deaths could be long delayed and the patients’ suffering relieved with medical Cannabis. These Americans do not deserve to die simply because our President and others in our Government discriminate against them and lie about the safety of Marijuana, while accepting money from the herb’s competitors: Oil, Natural Gas, Plastics, Pipe Lines, Fracking, Pharmaceuticals, Tobacco, financiers, and so on.

Dana Beal acted to defend these unfortunate medical patients that our Government is trying to kill by withholding their medicine. We can all see by now that in this case, Dana Beal is correct and truthful, while Barack Obama’s Government is lying for money in order to hurt American citizens. As I type this, Showtime is showing the documentary Square Grouper, informing us that 80% of the citizens of Everglades City, Florida, were sent to Federal Prison for Marijuana. This is Madness.

Dana Beal is now scheduled to be sentenced for carrying medical Marijuana on December 29. When trials or sentencing are scheduled between Christmas and New Years, it’s because the Government is trying to Cover Up what it’s doing in the trial. In this case, it looks like the Obama Administration’s DEA intends to make an example of Heroic Political Prisoner Dana Beal!

Do you think that Dana Beal didn’t know that he would become a Political Prisoner?! I’m confident his friends, and people he’d just met, warned him every day for decades that he was going to be arrested for his political activities. Many times he was. He’s already locked up again, awaiting sentencing. Does anybody know what has happened to the rest of the Yippies? Here’s a hint: Lots of them became Political Prisoners too, or worse. Dana Beal was doing the right thing, the courageous thing. He did the dangerous thing, in order to help people who are suffering horribly. Don’t let him be locked away for it!

Some MS patients cans still walk today because they smoked medical Marijuana. Our Government’s efforts in cases like this will end their ambulatory days earlier, as well as their lives.