yeah i buy CD's, i don't like pirating things. i'm a freak.
anyways i got this CD today, and it's so crazy different from his usual stuff. i think he actually did it right though. i usually don't dig "experimental" albums but i really can get into this.
i'm hoping this bill goes through, even though i'm doubtful.
i can't get over the ignorance and the constant stating of information as though they were fact. that old lady is like "nobody doubts that if marijuana were legalized... more people would do drugs"
from my research, drug use appeared to go down in the long term in the netherlands after legalisation, so i'm not sure how everyone knows it will create more use.
i'm sick of politicians pretending that marijuana is harmful, and dodging the fact that a reasonable portion (perhaps even a majority) of productive citizens use it. if you did an anonymous poll that didn't include bible belt jesus freaks i'm guessing that well over 70% of the US is pro-legalization, or at the very least doesn't believe smoking marijuana should make you a criminal.
I'd like to take some time to get something off my chest that is really bothering me. I am from the great state of New Hampshire. In New Hampshire we have a tradition of small government and general "live free or die" (state motto for you foreigners) mentality. I am quite depressed today because NH has finally given into federal US bribes and will soon be making it a law for all people to wear a seat belt. Not only will it be made a law, but it will be made a "primary law" which means it is a law by which a police officer can detain you temporarily. (For example, in massachusetts the seatbelt law is 'secondary', meaning that a police officer in Massachusetts can not stop you in your vehicle if the only thing he observes you doing 'wrong' is not wearing a seat belt. He can only cite you for not wearing your seat belt if he has pulled you over for something else).
Now you may be thinking, Nolan, what the hell is wrong with you, wearing seat belts saves lives, why wouldn't you want to wear it?
Well, you would be correct. I always have and always will wear my seat belt. However, I personally don't believe it is the government's job to be concerned for my own personal safety when engaging in behaviours which can not harm others. Allow me to elaborate. Smoking cigarettes in your own home is legal. This action is not very safe, but if you are smoking cigarettes in your own home then it is unlikely anyone else will be harmed by this action, thus, in accordance with life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, it is not a crime. Smoking cigarettes in a crowded restaurant, sports venue, or airplane, is no longer legal. The justification for these bans is that smoking among other people exposes them to second hand smoke and thus infringes on their rights and health.
Now let's apply that to seat belts. If I am cruising around New Hampshire alone and am not wearing a seat belt, I have not infringed on anyone elses civil liberties nor have I put anyone but myself in danger. So, at what point do we allow the government to "parent" us an control our level of safety? Don't humans have the right to put themselves in danger or act in a manner they see fit so long as no one else has their freedom or health compromised? Seat belts seem like a little thing, but laws like this can create a snowball effect. I would guess that obesity causes more death in the US than people neglecting to wear seat belts, although I could be wrong. Even still, if you think it's reasonable for the government to force you to wear a seat belt, by definition, you must also think it is reasonable for the government to ration food so that people will not become obese, right?
As government gets bigger and bigger, liberty and freedom gets smaller and smaller. I think resisting small seemingly harmless things such as seat belt laws is necessary in order to avoid the snowball effect which could have serious detrimental consequences.
What do you think?
Look forward to next episode: Marijuana, the "drug" which causes zero deaths per year, infringes on no one's rights/health when consumed in a safe manner, yet still requires a few billion taxpayer dollars and about 100,000 imprisoned non-violent criminals in order to regulate, lest our society get out of control with raging relaxation and junk food consumption.
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