Hi,

We're in the process of upgrading, expanding and deepening our Universal Life
Churh work. We'd like your involvement, to whatever degree large or small, in
any way that attracts you or is feasible for you.

If you have time and interest to volunteer we have many tasks that need doing.
Most of them require no special skills, of if there are any new skills involved
we'd be glad to teach, and glad to learn from you.

Some of the work is simple deskwork: it can be reading, writing, research,
upgrading webpages, doing graphics, communicating by email, keeping records,
etc.

Some of it more creative, or more people oriented.

Some of it requires being in contact with people who serve in various structures
of the State or the Church, or in the world of Business.

Other parts of the work are mindless (boring) tasks, but some people love to
just turn on some music and do mindless work - it's a meditative form of
therapy. Especially if we can experience it as labour of love.


If you have any time at all to spare, we'd love to have your participation as a
volunteer. We can use you even if all you can spare is ten minutes a week, or
five minutes a day.


We've set it so that this letter gets mailed automatically to all new members
and once a month to all enrolled members. We hope you'll give it thought, and
give it your best intentions.

We'd love to hear from you!
Please drop us a note - write "ulc volunteer" in the Subject line and we'll get
in touch with you right away.

Write to:
petros@...
or
ttetpos@...
or
sue_scandale@...

We look forward to hearing from you,
Thanks!

ULC Volunteers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Music Festival 2010























This event is open to the public - Contact glccmusicfest@... for more
details








To the members of our community we are pleased to announce the 1st Annual Great
Lakes Compassion Club Music Fest to be held at the Willow Ranch in Lacota,
Michigan July 30 – August 1, 2010. This venue sits on 43 beautiful acres of
land which has been kept natural and pristine. The Willow Ranch staff is
experienced in hosting this type of event. They are friendly, caring, and
professional which makes this venue a perfect choice.
It is also with great pleasure for us to announce the endorsement from Michigan
NORML and Reverend Steve Thompson and Lou Vierling. Both Steve and Lou have
previously attended events at the Willow Ranch and have every full confidence in
the venue and the GLCC event organizers.
Many guest speakers are scheduled to attend this event. Representatives from
MMMA, Tim Beck representing the ASA, John Targowski will speak on the Michigan
Medical Marijuana Law, Adam Brook the organizer of the Hash Bash in Ann Arbor,
and John Sinclair just to name a few. Dr. David Crocker from Michigan Holistic
Health will be seeing pre-qualified patients on site as well as answering
questions. We will be providing a 40 foot x 120 foot big top tent with tables
and chairs to accommodate 450+ guests which will include a stage for the guest
speakers to use. We will also be providing a medication tent for any card
carrying patients, you must show your card to enter the tent.
There will be many great bands of different genre for your entertainment.
Howling Diablos, Sleeper Cell, Refeerman, Chef Chris, Great Divide, Sista Otis,
John Sinclair, The Orbitsons, Covert Operations, Cowboy Messiah, Echoes of Pink
Floyd, and many more. There will be a variety of music to ensure everyone enjoys
their favorite type of music.
The Great Lakes Compassion Club is looking forward to bring a positive,
educational, informative participation in the wonderful event we have planned.
United we will put together an outstanding event for all who attend. During this
event we will also be having a special fundraiser for the Make a Wish
Foundation.
So we ask you to come and join us in beautiful west Michigan for this wonderful
event. The Willow Ranch Event Center is located 10 miles from the clear blue
waters of Lake Michigan with its sandy white beaches and rolling sand dunes. The
event offers FREE camping to ticket holders (children 12 and under are free).
Bring your tents, RV’s (RV spots are limited and must be reserved, there is an
additional $20 fee for an RV campsite), or trailer, and lawn chairs. Bring your
grills, cook over the campfire, or choose from the food vendors that will be at
the event. The camp sites do not have electricity or running water, but the
Willow Ranch does have handicap accessible restrooms and showers.
For those who prefer not to camp, there are many major hotel chains within 8 –
10 miles of the event center. If you should choose to stay offsite, be sure to
have your ticket stubs for reentry. The Great Lakes Compassion Club and Willow
Ranch Event Center hope you join in the fun of a great weekend filled with
music, food, friends, and an all around great time. This event will be one of
the major fun events of the summer for all those who attend the Great Lakes
Compassion Club Music Fest 2010. Tickets for this event are available NOW!
Save your ticket stubs! On Saturday, July 31 we will be drawing for door prizes
starting around 9:00 pm. We have many useful and unique items to give away, such
as: Vaporizers, grinders, T-shirts, 420 jars, scopes, and much more!
Contact Clark at: glccmusicfest@... for more information and details.












Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

From: http://CyprusIndyMedia.org
~~~~~~~~~~

It used to be Red Theology, now it's Green
(please read it online if possible, enjoy the images and add your comments):
http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2010/07/it-used-to-be-red-theology-now-its.h\
tml
~~~~~~~~


It used to be Red Theology, now it's Green

Liberation Theology is a variety of social-spiritual activism that
sprung up in recent decades within many of the Establishment churches,
but most notably among Catholics in Central and South America where even
Bishops joined in with revolutionary socialist forces to pursue social
reform, justice AND spiritual salvation. The current Pope made his
career by climbing up the ladder of success while fighting against this
"Red Menace" within the Church, working to purge, combat, neutralize and
discredit all of its gains and "satanic" influences.

And now the shock from the BP Oil Spill is stimulating another variety
of Theology among the Establishment - is it a true movement for social
and spiritual transformation? Or one designed precisely to co-opt and
neutralize pre-emptively any such mass movement? It's too soon to tell,
but the mainstream media seem to be seizing on reports like the one
below, excitedly dropping buzzwords like "Green Religion" or
"Eco-Theology" as if they have just discovered the wheel.

Do they not know that Nature, the totality of All that exists, is the
largest single Temple in the Universe, a Sacred and Divine Singularity
that is self-aware and comprised of condensed Consciousness embodied as
Matter, Energy and Life? The Sacred and Divine All,
{All is One, Love is All, Love is Law, Alla's Won}
the conscious Universe, is precisely structured so that the
architectural relationship of the Universal Consciousness to the
individual personal consciousness is just as the Islamic theological
concept of Fitrah (Fitra) describes:

"...that at the basic foundation of our existence as entities we are
all creatures of the Law of Love, creatures of the All, creatures of
Allah, of All Love. And that becoming a spiritual person is simply a
process of remembering all of that again, and honoring our true nature."
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Universal_Life_Church/message/2255

Nature-worship, Pantheism, Hinduism, Paganism, and many "official" and
"unofficial" contemporary and ancient traditional spiritual Paths honour
and embrace that knowledge. Oh, but it's so hard to remember!

Petros Evdokas, petros@...
________
Please have a look at the article reproduced below - many thanks to
Yiannis M. for the image.

Green religion movement hopes spill wins converts
From:
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2010/07/07/business-energy-financial-impact-us-re\
l-religion-today_7748825.html?boxes=Homepagebusinessnews


Green religion movement hopes spill wins converts
By JOHN FLESHER, AP Environmental Writer
Wed Jul 7, 2010


NEW ORLEANS – Where would Jesus drill?

Religious leaders who consider environmental protection a godly mission
are making the Gulf of Mexico oil spill a rallying cry, hoping it
inspires people of faith to support cleaner energy while changing their
personal lives to consume less and contemplate more.

"This is one of those rare moments when you can really focus people's
attention on what's happening to God's creation," said Walt Grazer, head
of the National Religious Partnership for the Environment.

Activists in the movement often described as "green religion" or
"eco-theology" are using blogs and news conferences to get the word out.
Some are visiting the Gulf, inspecting oil-spattered wetlands and
praying with idled fishermen and other victims.

And believers in the stricken coastal regions are looking at the
consequences of the oil's reach and asking what good can come out of it.

During worship services on a recent Sunday, pastor Eddie Painter of
Barataria Baptist Church in the fishing village of Lafitte told his
congregation a silver lining in the tragedy might be renewed government
commitment to restoring the region's battered coastal marshlands.

"I actually didn't think I would be as deeply affected as I was by
seeing oil in the water, the birds with oil stains, the marsh grass that
had turned a shiny brown," said the Rev. Jim Ball of the Evangelical
Environmental Network, who recently toured Louisiana's Barataria Bay by
boat.

Another delegation was scheduled to arrive in New Orleans on Tuesday for
an interfaith prayer service and tour. Among the participants are Jim
Wallis of the progressive Christian group Sojourners and Rabbi David N.
Saperstein of the Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism. Both have
served on President Barack Obama's Advisory Council on Faith-Based and
Neighborhood Partnerships.

Their appearance is being coordinated with the Sierra Club, which has
forged alliances with organized religion since its former director, Carl
Pope, acknowledged in a 1997 speech the environmental movement had erred
by shunning such ties.

"Different people have credibility with different segments of the
population," said Lindsey Moseley, the group's Washington
representative. "The oil spill is ultimately a matter of values, which
for many people are rooted in deeply held religious beliefs."

Organizations including the National Council of Churches and the U.S.
Conference of Catholic Bishops have issued statements calling for
soul-searching. Some are providing ecologically themed online resources
— prayers, liturgy, scripture readings — for use in worship services.

"We have used God's creation without regard for the impact our rapacity
had on the other creatures with whom we share our earthly home," reads a
model prayer on the Council of Churches' website.

The push for an ecological Great Awakening since the oil spill began in
April has come from liberals as well as theologically conservative
groups such as the Evangelical Environmental Network, which previously
sponsored an ad campaign with the slogan "What Would Jesus Drive?" that
called for more fuel-efficient vehicles.

In a resolution this month, the Southern Baptist Convention declared
that humanity's "God-given dominion over the creation is not unlimited,
as though we were gods and not creatures" and called for "energy
policies based on prudence, conservation, accountability and safety."

"Caring for creation is an extension of loving your neighbor as
yourself," said Russell Moore, dean of Southern Baptist Seminary in
Louisville, Ky., who wrote the statement.

Disagreements persist, especially over public policies like
climate-change legislation.

Painter, the Lafitte preacher, criticized the Obama administration's
fight for a moratorium on offshore drilling, saying it would worsen
unemployment in the struggling community.

"I think we're called to be good stewards of God's creation," said
Painter, who's also a part-time crab fisherman. "But I have no patience
with people who are using the situation to push a political agenda."

But some scholars say their response to the oil spill at least suggests
an emerging agreement that environmental issues are fair game in houses
of worship where they were long ignored.

"Very few of the world's religions were making any statements about the
environment 20 years ago, and now virtually all of them have," said Mary
Evelyn Tucker, a historian of religion and founder of Yale University's
Forum on Religion and Ecology. "The challenge is to put them into practice."

Even people with no specific religious beliefs are recognizing a
spiritual dimension in the Gulf tragedy and taking a deeper look at
their energy use, Tucker said.

"There is a yearning for meaning and purpose and being able to
contribute to something larger than ourselves," she said.

The disaster may help replace longstanding divisions based on dogma or
culture with "a new kind of consensus that isn't liberal or
conservative, left or right, but focuses on stewardship of creation,
care for the poor and accountability for corporate leaders," Wallis said.

Moore, a native of "God-fearing, pro-defense, Republican-voting" Biloxi,
Miss., said the creation care message is resonating in his home state as
oil spoils its Gulf coastline and batters its economy.

For progressive believers, it's an easy sell. But many conservatives
consider eco-theology a distraction from the church's primary mission of
winning souls — or even a stalking horse for socialism or earth worship.

In Louisiana, where loyalty to the oil and gas industry remains strong
despite the BP disaster, opposition to fossil fuels sometimes doesn't go
over well.

"God put the oil there. He put it there for us to take dominion over and
use responsibly," said Gene Mills, director of the Louisiana Family Forum.

Ball said it's understandable that some believers would embrace creation
stewardship in theory while resisting specific measures that change
their way of life. But making fundamental change is what religious
commitment is all about, he added.

"As Christians we have the freedom to do God's will," he said. "We're
not helpless, we're not hopeless."

___

National Religious Partnership for the Environment: http://www.nrpe.org/

Evangelical Environmental Network: http://creationcare.org/

Religious Action Center of Reform Judaism: http://rac.org/

Sojourners: http://www.sojo.net/

~~~~~~~~~~~~

The article above was also published at:
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/us_rel_religion_today;_ylt=Aj9YPTZbZkNxDVTy1G
3yLVRllpd4;_ylu=X3oDMTE2Y2FzajFtBHBvcwMzBHNlYwN5bi1yLWItbGVmd
ARzbGsDLWdyZWVucmVsaWdp

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

How much stress can Mother Earth take before she breaks? We're on the verge of
finding out. Catastrophic collapse of the global life-supporting biosphere is
already underway. Everywhere we turn we experience warning signs, far too
numerous to list here. Is there anything we can do about the situation? The
answer is a resounding YES !!! We can learn to live a sustainable lifestyle, one
which not only does not pollute the planet but also heals it. Nobody is going to
do this sacred work for you. Yet, with the help of the Great Spirit there is a
way we can do it together. Let me explain �

A major reorganization of human civilization is overdue. The way we live, do
business with each other, and relate to nature can be reformed and restructured
from the grassroots up. There are many groups who are working along these lines
but few who have the resources necessary to make much of a dent in the machinery
of corporate industry and the media owned by it. Don't worry. While there is
little power in small groups, when they work together for mutual aid and
support, they create synergy, where the whole is greater than the sum of the
parts. Do you get where I'm going here? By working together cooperatively,
without losing individual sovereignty, we may form a larger entity than anyone
thought possible, one which has the financial power to shift reality in favor of
sustainable lifestyles. All we need to do is make the connections within and
without.

What does this "reorganization of human civilization" look like? How does it
function? What part does the individual play within it? Who is in charge? What
is it's legal structure? Does it provide me with a job? How much does it cost?
Yes, these questions (and others) are valid, important, worth answering. One
thing is certain: "insanity is doing the same thing over and over again
expecting different results". We are not interested in repeating past mistakes,
duplicating previous errors, or tearing down the current civilization since it
is already doing that to itself. Rather, we are concerned with living in
alignment with nature and maintaining a high level of civilization in the
process, something worth passing on to future generations.

So, what works? How does one "pool resources for mutual aid and support" without
being swallowed up by corporate controlled government or sucked into a crazy
cult? The answer is simple, so simple that most people simply overlook it or, if
they notice, they don't believe it is possible. Yet, the answer is not only
possible, it is actually the only way it works together, the only way we can put
our puzzle pieces together. We have to love one another. The guide to how to do
this is built in. All the great religions of the world point to the same place
and it has nothing to do with anything or anybody in the external world. They
all say that the answer is within. What does that mean?

We do not live above, below, or to the left or right of reality. We live within
it. That's why we have to "turn within" if we want results. Do you attempt to
communicate with the Great Spirit/god/dess (whatever you call the whole of which
we are a part)? Do you pray, meditate, reflect, and pay attention? What does
this metaphysical stuff have to do with "pooling resources" or the
"reorganization of human civilization"? You might turn within and ask yourself
that question. Atheists are not excluded. All we need are people who can read
the code as written in the heart, the one which reveals the truth and points
each of us in our correct direction. Scary, isn't it? What if we are all the
same being inhabiting many bodies and the problems we encounter are caused by
those who do not follow the instructions found within?

We know the type. We resemble the type. Everyone I know, myself included, has a
difficult time trusting anyone else enough to love them with all one's heart.
You know what I mean. Most of us have a difficult time trusting the message of
our heart, let alone another person. That's because our bodies and senses keep
telling us that we are alone in the physical world, fending for ourselves by
hook or crook, trying to keep our bodies alive and have as much fun as we can
before we croak, and doing it in a competitive "dog eat dog" culture. Whew! No
wonder so many people give up on the Great Spirit. How could any loving deity
allow the horrors of the world to exist?  Sorry folks but the truth is that WE
ARE THE HANDS of the One Whole of which we are all a part. There is only one
Master Puzzle that needs to be put together to make the new whole, the one which
is sustainable.

What does your puzzle piece consist of? What mission are you encoded with? What
is your Craft of Life? I'm asking you to go past the job description which
defines your current lifestyle, beyond the personas you might play games with,
further than a snide comment or a ego-driven exclamation. I'm asking you to ask
yourself what you are really here on the planet to do and then SHARE THE ANSWER.
What do you have to lose? The herd is already falling off the cliff. You don't
want to go there too - do you?

Every Child is a Star! Love is the Law of the emerging AEON
Friend of the elves, Jade Dragon

aeonlaunch@...
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/sustainablelifestyles
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/andorprojex
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/todespace
http://www.faeriehillfarm.com
http://www.holytode.com

Jade Dragon, friends,

There's a phrase in Jade Dragon's letter that touched me in a particular
way and I'd really like to express my thanks for it.

It's this:
"What if we are all the same being inhabiting many bodies... ?"
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Universal_Life_Church/message/2469

Every second spent pondering this question leads to mind-blowing
repercussions - thank you!

The phrase is all once a succinct theology; a science fiction scenario;
a trans-mythological alternative biological history of the species; a
foundation for a morality codex from another dimension; and Absolutely True.

It prompted me to look up more of the materials published by Jade Dragon
on the links at the bottom of the letter, and there I found even more
gems: the presence of Lady Dragonfly, music, herbs, ecology, a plan by
which to live and evolve, special concerns on personal growth, hedonism,
love, play, sexuality and much more.

I'd like to encourage everyone to look through these links in Dragon's
letter:
http://www.faeriehillfarm.com
http://www.holytode.com

Thank you!
Petros
_________

les evenchick wrote:
> I have created the following FACEBOOK group.
>
> Please join and help promote it:
> "Boycott JP Morgan Chase 28% owner of BP Oil"
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=132134473493722#!/group.php?gid=1321344734\
93722&v=wall


> When you log in to FACEBOOK just type in the title in the search bar
> at the top of the page and you will go to the group.
>
>
> Les Evenchick, New Orleans

---------------------

Thank you for this initiative Les!
I just now went and joined the group.

Financial ownership and control of the Imperial Corporations that are
destroying the planet is always the dark side of Ecology activism that
hardly anyone ever wants to deal with. But how would any of these vile
and disgusting Corporations ever be able to function even for a day
while they continue to poison and destroy the Earth, if it weren't for
the major Banks behind them?

Ecologists, Greens, Environmentalists of all colours are seldom ever
interested in dealing with the real source of power behind these
Corporations. Finance Capital had been identified by Lenin even as early
as at the turn of the last century as THE emerging power among
capitalists, the true foundation and main pillar of the global Empire.

JP Morgan's and Rockefeller's "wings" of global Capital have been known
for more than a century now to be at the core of the global US-based
Imperium.

There's a bank on almost every corner in all the big cities, and several
banks in the center of every donwntown in the world. Easy targets for
all sorts of radical Green, Red, Black actions, propaganda, educational
events, promotions, protests and Direct Action.

Thank you!
Petros
_________

Regulation & taxation of cannabis is the ONLY right thing to do......END
PROHIBITION NOW!!
 
http://www.redding.com/news/2010/jul/18/science-is-clear-why-arent-we-paying-att\
ention/


By Paul Armentano

Posted July 18, 2010 at midnight

The Record Searchlight’s call for further scientific study on the safety and
efficacy of marijuana (editorial, Tuesday) as a medicine is commendable, but
hardly goes far enough. The real challenge is demanding that pundits,
politicians, and the media actually pay attention to the research that is
presently available.

For example, in February investigators from the University of California Center
for Medicinal Cannabis Research publicly announced the findings of a series of
randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials on the medical utility of inhaled
cannabis. The studies, which for the first time in over two decades utilized the
standardized FDA clinical trail design, concluded that marijuana ought to be a
“first line treatment” for patients with neuropathy and other serious
illnesses.

Among the numerous studies conducted by the center, four assessed smoked
marijuana’s ability to alleviate neuropathic pain, a notoriously difficult to
treat type of nerve-pain associated with cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, spinal cord
injury, and many other debilitating conditions. Each of the trials found that
cannabis consistently reduced patients’ pain levels to a degree that was as
good or better than currently available medications.

Another study conducted by the center’s investigators assessed the use of
marijuana as a treatment for patients suffering from multiple sclerosis. That
study determined that “smoked cannabis was superior to placebo in reducing
spasticity and pain in patients with MS, and provided some benefit beyond
currently prescribed treatments.”

Yet another clinical trial challenged the long-held myth that smoking cannabis
damages the immune system. Researchers found that, contrary to popular opinion,
inhaled marijuana fails to suppress human immune function. “There was no
evidence of acute impairment of immune function,” investigators reported.

Around the globe similarly controlled trials are also taking place. Most
recently, a review by researchers in Germany reported that since 2005 there have
been 37 controlled studies assessing the safety and efficacy of marijuana and
its naturally occurring compounds, involved a total of 2,563 subjects. By
contrast, most FDA-approved drugs go through far fewer trials involving far
fewer subjects.

According to a recent meta-analysis published in the scientific journal
Medicinal Research Reviews, “Research on the chemistry and pharmacology of
cannabinoids (the uniquely active compounds in the marijuana plant) and
endocannabinoids (receptors in the human body that interact with these
cannabinoids) has reached enormous proportions.” A keyword search on the
search engine PubMed proves this point, revealing over 2,700 separate papers
published on cannabis in 2009 and another 900 published just this year alone.

Two notable preclinical trials appeared in press just last week. Researchers at
the State University of New York in Syracuse reported in the journal
Pharmacology that the administration of the plant cannabinoids delta-8-THC and
delta-9-THC halted cellular respiration and tumor growth in human oral cancer
cells. Specifically, investigators reported that cannabinoids were a “potent
inhibitor” of Tu183 human cancer cells, a notoriously difficult to treat type
of oral cancer.

A separate preclinical study published online last week in the journal Cell
Communication and Signaling reported that the administration of the
non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol increases adult neurogenesis (the
active production of new neurons) in laboratory animals. Authors speculated that
cannabis’ pro-neurogenic effects may explain why the plant appears to be
useful in the treatment of certain neurodegenerative disorders like
Alzheimer’s disease or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Predictably, neither the
editors of the Record Searchlight nor any other mainstream U.S. publication felt
compelled to report on these results.

Ultimately, calls for further research ring hollow if so few decision-makers are
willing to acknowledge the abundant scientific evidence that is already out
there.

Paul Armentano is the deputy director of NORML, the National Organization for
the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and he is the co-author of the book “Marijuana
Is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink?” He lives in Vallejo.
#################################################################












 
 
Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Please take a few moments and send this to your reps and news media contacts!!













Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Sun, 7/18/10, Rev. Steven B. Thompson <BenziecountyNORML@...>
wrote:


From: Rev. Steven B. Thompson <BenziecountyNORML@...>
Subject: [THC-Ministry Yahoo group] The Science Is Clear, So Why Aren't We
Paying Attention??!!
To: danscripps@..., senator_levin@...,
senjallen@..., senmmcmanus@..., "Senator Debbie
Stabenow" <senator@...>
Cc: minorml-talk@...
Date: Sunday, July 18, 2010, 1:03 PM


 







Regulation & taxation of cannabis is the ONLY right thing to do......END
PROHIBITION NOW!!
 
http://www.redding. com/news/ 2010/jul/ 18/science- is-clear- why-arent-
we-paying- attention/


By Paul Armentano

Posted July 18, 2010 at midnight

The Record Searchlight’s call for further scientific study on the safety and
efficacy of marijuana (editorial, Tuesday) as a medicine is commendable, but
hardly goes far enough. The real challenge is demanding that pundits,
politicians, and the media actually pay attention to the research that is
presently available.

For example, in February investigators from the University of California Center
for Medicinal Cannabis Research publicly announced the findings of a series of
randomized, placebo-controlled clinical trials on the medical utility of inhaled
cannabis. The studies, which for the first time in over two decades utilized the
standardized FDA clinical trail design, concluded that marijuana ought to be a
“first line treatment” for patients with neuropathy and other serious
illnesses.

Among the numerous studies conducted by the center, four assessed smoked
marijuana’s ability to alleviate neuropathic pain, a notoriously difficult to
treat type of nerve-pain associated with cancer, diabetes, HIV/AIDS, spinal cord
injury, and many other debilitating conditions. Each of the trials found that
cannabis consistently reduced patients’ pain levels to a degree that was as
good or better than currently available medications.

Another study conducted by the center’s investigators assessed the use of
marijuana as a treatment for patients suffering from multiple sclerosis. That
study determined that “smoked cannabis was superior to placebo in reducing
spasticity and pain in patients with MS, and provided some benefit beyond
currently prescribed treatments.”

Yet another clinical trial challenged the long-held myth that smoking cannabis
damages the immune system. Researchers found that, contrary to popular opinion,
inhaled marijuana fails to suppress human immune function. “There was no
evidence of acute impairment of immune function,” investigators reported.

Around the globe similarly controlled trials are also taking place. Most
recently, a review by researchers in Germany reported that since 2005 there have
been 37 controlled studies assessing the safety and efficacy of marijuana and
its naturally occurring compounds, involved a total of 2,563 subjects. By
contrast, most FDA-approved drugs go through far fewer trials involving far
fewer subjects.

According to a recent meta-analysis published in the scientific journal
Medicinal Research Reviews, “Research on the chemistry and pharmacology of
cannabinoids (the uniquely active compounds in the marijuana plant) and
endocannabinoids (receptors in the human body that interact with these
cannabinoids) has reached enormous proportions.” A keyword search on the
search engine PubMed proves this point, revealing over 2,700 separate papers
published on cannabis in 2009 and another 900 published just this year alone.

Two notable preclinical trials appeared in press just last week. Researchers at
the State University of New York in Syracuse reported in the journal
Pharmacology that the administration of the plant cannabinoids delta-8-THC and
delta-9-THC halted cellular respiration and tumor growth in human oral cancer
cells. Specifically, investigators reported that cannabinoids were a “potent
inhibitor” of Tu183 human cancer cells, a notoriously difficult to treat type
of oral cancer.

A separate preclinical study published online last week in the journal Cell
Communication and Signaling reported that the administration of the
non-psychoactive cannabinoid cannabidiol increases adult neurogenesis (the
active production of new neurons) in laboratory animals. Authors speculated that
cannabis’ pro-neurogenic effects may explain why the plant appears to be
useful in the treatment of certain neurodegenerative disorders like
Alzheimer’s disease or Lou Gehrig’s disease. Predictably, neither the
editors of the Record Searchlight nor any other mainstream U.S. publication felt
compelled to report on these results.

Ultimately, calls for further research ring hollow if so few decision-makers are
willing to acknowledge the abundant scientific evidence that is already out
there.

Paul Armentano is the deputy director of NORML, the National Organization for
the Reform of Marijuana Laws, and he is the co-author of the book “Marijuana
Is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink?” He lives in Vallejo.
############ ######### ######### ######### ######### ######### ########












 
 
Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executiv e Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml. org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 










[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

FYI.....let everyone know!! President Obama,tear down this prohibition wall!! It
is already crumbling!!













Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Sat, 7/24/10, Richard Lake <rlake@...> wrote:


From: Richard Lake <rlake@...>
Subject: [affiliates] US: V.A. Easing Rules for Users of Medical Marijuana
To: "NORML Affiliates" <affiliates@...>
Date: Saturday, July 24, 2010, 5:27 AM


Address messages for this group to 'affiliates@...'
---



Newshawk: Kirk
Pubdate: Sat, 24 Jul 2010
Source: New York Times (NY)
Page: A1, Front Page
Webpage: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/24/health/policy/24veterans.html
Copyright: 2010 The New York Times Company
Contact: letters@...
Website: http://www.nytimes.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
Author: Dan Frosch
Cited: Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access
http://www.veteransformedicalmarijuana.org/
Referenced: The letter to Mr. Krawitz http://drugsense.org/url/qWkiEgE5
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?253 (Cannabis - Medicinal - U.S.)

V.A. EASING RULES FOR USERS OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA

DENVER -- The Department of Veterans Affairs will formally allow patients
treated at its hospitals and clinics to use medical marijuana in states where it
is legal, a policy clarification that veterans have sought for several years.

A department directive, expected to take effect next week, resolves the conflict
in veterans facilities between federal law, which outlaws marijuana, and the 14
states that allow medicinal use of the drug, effectively deferring to the
states.

The policy will not permit department doctors to prescribe marijuana. But it
will address the concern of many patients who use the drug that they could lose
access to their prescription pain medication if caught.

Under department rules, veterans can be denied pain medications if they are
found to be using illegal drugs. Until now, the department had no written
exception for medical marijuana.

This has led many patients to distrust their doctors, veterans say. With doctors
and patients pressing the veterans department for formal guidance, agency
officials began drafting a policy last fall.

"When states start legalizing marijuana we are put in a bit of a unique position
because as a federal agency, we are beholden to federal law," said Dr. Robert
Jesse, the principal deputy under secretary for health in the veterans
department.

At the same time, Dr. Jesse said, "We didn't want patients who were legally
using marijuana to be administratively denied access to pain management
programs."

The new, written policy applies only to veterans using medical marijuana in
states where it is legal. Doctors may still modify a veteran's treatment plan if
the veteran is using marijuana, or decide not to prescribe pain medicine
altogether if there is a risk of a drug interaction. But that decision will be
made on a case-by-case basis, not as blanket policy, Dr. Jesse said.

Though veterans of the Vietnam War were the first group to use marijuana widely
for medical purposes, the population of veterans using it now spans generations,
said Michael Krawitz, executive director of Veterans for Medical Marijuana
Access, which worked with the department on formulating a policy.

Veterans, some of whom have been at the forefront of the medical marijuana
movement, praised the department's decision. They say cannabis helps soothe
physical and psychological pain and can alleviate the side effects of some
treatments.

"By creating a directive on medical marijuana, the V.A. ensures that throughout
its vast hospital network, it will be well understood that legal medical
marijuana use will not be the basis for the denial of services," Mr. Krawitz
said.

Although the Obama administration has not embraced medical marijuana, last
October, in a policy shift, the Justice Department announced that it would not
prosecute people who used or distributed it in states where it was legal.

Laura Sweeney, a spokeswoman for the Justice Department, would not comment
spefically on the veterans department policy. "What we have said in the past,
and what we have said for a while, is that we are going to focus our federal
resources on large scale drug traffickers," she said. "We are not going to focus
on individual cancer patients or something of the like."

Many clinicians already prescribe pain medication to veterans who use medical
marijuana, as there was no rule explicitly prohibiting them from doing so,
despite the federal marijuana laws.

Advocates of medical marijuana use say that in the past, the patchwork of
veterans hospitals and clinics around the country were sometimes unclear how to
deal with veterans who needed pain medications and were legally using medical
marijuana. The department's emphasis on keeping patients off illegal drugs and
from abusing their medication "gave many practitioners the feeling that they are
supposed to police marijuana out of the system," Mr. Krawitz said.

"Many medical-marijuana-using veterans have just abandoned the V.A. hospital
system completely for this reason," he said, "and others that stay in the system
feel that they are not able to trust that their doctor will be working in their
best interests."

In rare cases, veterans have been told that they need to stop using marijuana,
even if it is legal, or risk losing their prescription medicine, Mr. Krawitz
said.

David Fox, 58, an Army veteran from Pompey's Pillar, Mont., uses medical
marijuana legally to help quiet the pain he experiences from neuropathy, a nerve
disorder. But he said he was told this year by a doctor at a veterans' clinic in
Billings that if he did not stop using marijuana, he would no longer get the
pain medication he was also prescribed.

A letter written to Mr. Fox in April from Robin Korogi, the director of the
veterans health care system in Montana, explained that the department did not
want to prescribe pain medicine in combination with marijuana because there was
no evidence that marijuana worked for noncancer patients and because the
combination was unsafe.

"In those states where medical marijuana is legal, the patient will need to make
a choice as to which medication they choose to use for their chronic pain," Ms.
Korogi wrote. "However, it is not medically appropriate to expect that a V.A.
physician will prescribe narcotics while the patient is taking marijuana."

Mr. Fox was shocked by the decision, he said.

"I felt literally abandoned," he said. "I still needed my pain meds. I thought
they were supposed to treat you. It was devastating for me."

Mr. Fox, who said that at one point he was weaning himself off his pain
medication for fear of running out, has held one-man protests in front of the
clinic, carrying signs that read "Abandoned by V.A., Refused Treatment."

Veterans officials would not comment on specific cases, citing medical privacy
laws.

This month, Dr. Robert A. Petzel, the under secretary for health for the
veterans department, sent a letter to Mr. Krawitz laying out the department's
policy. If a veteran obtains and uses medical marijuana in accordance with state
law, Dr. Petzel wrote, he should not be precluded from receiving opioids for
pain management at a veterans facility.

Dr. Petzel also said that pain management agreements between clinicians and
patients, which are used as guidelines for courses of treatment, "should draw a
clear distinction between the use of illegal drugs, and legal medical
marijuana."

Dr. Jesse, the veterans department official, said that formalizing rules on
medical marijuana would eliminate any future confusion and keep patients from
being squeezed between state and federal law.

Steve Fox, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project,
which favors the legal regulation of the drug, called the decision historic. "We
now have a branch of the federal government accepting marijuana as a legal
medicine," he said.

But Mr. Fox said he wished the policy had been extended to veterans who lived in
states where medical marijuana was not legal.

He said it was critical that the veterans department make its guidelines clear
to patients and medical staff members, something officials said they planned on
doing in coming weeks.

Said Dr. Jesse, "The whole goal of issuing a national policy is to make sure we
have uniformity across the system."







[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks Steve, this is a step in the right direction.

--- In Universal_Life_Church@yahoogroups.com, "Rev. Steven B. Thompson"
<BenziecountyNORML@...> wrote:
>
> FYI.....let everyone know!! President Obama,tear down this prohibition wall!!
It is already crumbling!!
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
> Michigan NORML
> 6215 Smeltzer Rd.
> Benzonia,MI 49616
> (231) 882-4496
> www.minorml.org 
>                                 
>
>  ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'
>
>
>
>  
>
> --- On Sat, 7/24/10, Richard Lake <rlake@...> wrote:
>
>
> From: Richard Lake <rlake@...>
> Subject: [affiliates] US: V.A. Easing Rules for Users of Medical Marijuana
> To: "NORML Affiliates" <affiliates@...>
> Date: Saturday, July 24, 2010, 5:27 AM
>
>
> Address messages for this group to 'affiliates@...'
> ---
>
>
>
> Newshawk: Kirk
> Pubdate: Sat, 24 Jul 2010
> Source: New York Times (NY)
> Page: A1, Front Page
> Webpage: http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/24/health/policy/24veterans.html
> Copyright: 2010 The New York Times Company
> Contact: letters@...
> Website: http://www.nytimes.com/
> Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/298
> Author: Dan Frosch
> Cited: Veterans for Medical Marijuana Access
http://www.veteransformedicalmarijuana.org/
> Referenced: The letter to Mr. Krawitz http://drugsense.org/url/qWkiEgE5
> Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/find?253 (Cannabis - Medicinal - U.S.)
>
> V.A. EASING RULES FOR USERS OF MEDICAL MARIJUANA
>
> DENVER -- The Department of Veterans Affairs will formally allow patients
treated at its hospitals and clinics to use medical marijuana in states where it
is legal, a policy clarification that veterans have sought for several years.
>
> A department directive, expected to take effect next week, resolves the
conflict in veterans facilities between federal law, which outlaws marijuana,
and the 14 states that allow medicinal use of the drug, effectively deferring to
the states.
>
> The policy will not permit department doctors to prescribe marijuana. But it
will address the concern of many patients who use the drug that they could lose
access to their prescription pain medication if caught.
>
> Under department rules, veterans can be denied pain medications if they are
found to be using illegal drugs. Until now, the department had no written
exception for medical marijuana.
>
> This has led many patients to distrust their doctors, veterans say. With
doctors and patients pressing the veterans department for formal guidance,
agency officials began drafting a policy last fall.
>
> "When states start legalizing marijuana we are put in a bit of a unique
position because as a federal agency, we are beholden to federal law," said Dr.
Robert Jesse, the principal deputy under secretary for health in the veterans
department.
>
> At the same time, Dr. Jesse said, "We didn't want patients who were legally
using marijuana to be administratively denied access to pain management
programs."
>
> The new, written policy applies only to veterans using medical marijuana in
states where it is legal. Doctors may still modify a veteran's treatment plan if
the veteran is using marijuana, or decide not to prescribe pain medicine
altogether if there is a risk of a drug interaction. But that decision will be
made on a case-by-case basis, not as blanket policy, Dr. Jesse said.
>
> Though veterans of the Vietnam War were the first group to use marijuana
widely for medical purposes, the population of veterans using it now spans
generations, said Michael Krawitz, executive director of Veterans for Medical
Marijuana Access, which worked with the department on formulating a policy.
>
> Veterans, some of whom have been at the forefront of the medical marijuana
movement, praised the department's decision. They say cannabis helps soothe
physical and psychological pain and can alleviate the side effects of some
treatments.
>
> "By creating a directive on medical marijuana, the V.A. ensures that
throughout its vast hospital network, it will be well understood that legal
medical marijuana use will not be the basis for the denial of services," Mr.
Krawitz said.
>
> Although the Obama administration has not embraced medical marijuana, last
October, in a policy shift, the Justice Department announced that it would not
prosecute people who used or distributed it in states where it was legal.
>
> Laura Sweeney, a spokeswoman for the Justice Department, would not comment
spefically on the veterans department policy. "What we have said in the past,
and what we have said for a while, is that we are going to focus our federal
resources on large scale drug traffickers," she said. "We are not going to focus
on individual cancer patients or something of the like."
>
> Many clinicians already prescribe pain medication to veterans who use medical
marijuana, as there was no rule explicitly prohibiting them from doing so,
despite the federal marijuana laws.
>
> Advocates of medical marijuana use say that in the past, the patchwork of
veterans hospitals and clinics around the country were sometimes unclear how to
deal with veterans who needed pain medications and were legally using medical
marijuana. The department's emphasis on keeping patients off illegal drugs and
from abusing their medication "gave many practitioners the feeling that they are
supposed to police marijuana out of the system," Mr. Krawitz said.
>
> "Many medical-marijuana-using veterans have just abandoned the V.A. hospital
system completely for this reason," he said, "and others that stay in the system
feel that they are not able to trust that their doctor will be working in their
best interests."
>
> In rare cases, veterans have been told that they need to stop using marijuana,
even if it is legal, or risk losing their prescription medicine, Mr. Krawitz
said.
>
> David Fox, 58, an Army veteran from Pompey's Pillar, Mont., uses medical
marijuana legally to help quiet the pain he experiences from neuropathy, a nerve
disorder. But he said he was told this year by a doctor at a veterans' clinic in
Billings that if he did not stop using marijuana, he would no longer get the
pain medication he was also prescribed.
>
> A letter written to Mr. Fox in April from Robin Korogi, the director of the
veterans health care system in Montana, explained that the department did not
want to prescribe pain medicine in combination with marijuana because there was
no evidence that marijuana worked for noncancer patients and because the
combination was unsafe.
>
> "In those states where medical marijuana is legal, the patient will need to
make a choice as to which medication they choose to use for their chronic pain,"
Ms. Korogi wrote. "However, it is not medically appropriate to expect that a
V.A. physician will prescribe narcotics while the patient is taking marijuana."
>
> Mr. Fox was shocked by the decision, he said.
>
> "I felt literally abandoned," he said. "I still needed my pain meds. I thought
they were supposed to treat you. It was devastating for me."
>
> Mr. Fox, who said that at one point he was weaning himself off his pain
medication for fear of running out, has held one-man protests in front of the
clinic, carrying signs that read "Abandoned by V.A., Refused Treatment."
>
> Veterans officials would not comment on specific cases, citing medical privacy
laws.
>
> This month, Dr. Robert A. Petzel, the under secretary for health for the
veterans department, sent a letter to Mr. Krawitz laying out the department's
policy. If a veteran obtains and uses medical marijuana in accordance with state
law, Dr. Petzel wrote, he should not be precluded from receiving opioids for
pain management at a veterans facility.
>
> Dr. Petzel also said that pain management agreements between clinicians and
patients, which are used as guidelines for courses of treatment, "should draw a
clear distinction between the use of illegal drugs, and legal medical
marijuana."
>
> Dr. Jesse, the veterans department official, said that formalizing rules on
medical marijuana would eliminate any future confusion and keep patients from
being squeezed between state and federal law.
>
> Steve Fox, director of government relations for the Marijuana Policy Project,
which favors the legal regulation of the drug, called the decision historic. "We
now have a branch of the federal government accepting marijuana as a legal
medicine," he said.
>
> But Mr. Fox said he wished the policy had been extended to veterans who lived
in states where medical marijuana was not legal.
>
> He said it was critical that the veterans department make its guidelines clear
to patients and medical staff members, something officials said they planned on
doing in coming weeks.
>
> Said Dr. Jesse, "The whole goal of issuing a national policy is to make sure
we have uniformity across the system."
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

Hi,

We're in the process of upgrading, expanding and deepening our Universal Life
Churh work. We'd like your involvement, to whatever degree large or small, in
any way that attracts you or is feasible for you.

If you have time and interest to volunteer we have many tasks that need doing.
Most of them require no special skills, of if there are any new skills involved
we'd be glad to teach, and glad to learn from you.

Some of the work is simple deskwork: it can be reading, writing, research,
upgrading webpages, doing graphics, communicating by email, keeping records,
etc.

Some of it more creative, or more people oriented.

Some of it requires being in contact with people who serve in various structures
of the State or the Church, or in the world of Business.

Other parts of the work are mindless (boring) tasks, but some people love to
just turn on some music and do mindless work - it's a meditative form of
therapy. Especially if we can experience it as labour of love.


If you have any time at all to spare, we'd love to have your participation as a
volunteer. We can use you even if all you can spare is ten minutes a week, or
five minutes a day.


We've set it so that this letter gets mailed automatically to all new members
and once a month to all enrolled members. We hope you'll give it thought, and
give it your best intentions.

We'd love to hear from you!
Please drop us a note - write "ulc volunteer" in the Subject line and we'll get
in touch with you right away.

Write to:
petros@...
or
ttetpos@...
or
sue_scandale@...

We look forward to hearing from you,
Thanks!

ULC Volunteers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

-------- Original Message --------
Subject:  Fear Paralyzes U.S. Muslim 'Leaders'
Date:  Tue, 03 Aug 2010
From:  The Wisdom Fund <listserve@...>
Reply-To:  staff@...
To:  <petros@...>



*THE WISDOM FUND
TWF.org*


August 3, 2010


*Fear Paralyzes U.S. Muslim 'Leaders'
http://www.twf.org/News/Y2010/0803-Fear.html **


Citing the thoroughly debunked, official account of 9/11 as gospel,
anti-Muslim bigots and opportunists rally around opposition to an
Islamic Center near Ground Zero in New York

By Enver Masud
*
-- The number of Americans who do not believe the official account of
9/11 is increasing

-- Paralyzed by fear, Muslim 'leaders' silent on 9/11

-- Ground Zero Islamic Center controversy -- a unique opportunity lost

-- ADAMS Center officials say they 'cannot legally provide a platform'
for discussion of 9/11

-- America's foreign policy establishment created the Islamic threat to
advance its interests

-- The silence of Muslim 'leaders' is inexcusable, risks driving some to
violence


*FULL TEXT
http://www.twf.org/News/Y2010/0803-Fear.html
REPRINT PERMISSION GRANTED provided that you cite source and print full text
*

---
*FREE E-Books: **THE WAR ON ISLAM and 9/11 UNVEILED
<http://www.twf.org/Library/FREEbooks.pdf>*
<http://www.twf.org/Library/FREEbooks.pdf>**
<http://www.twf.org/Library/FREEbooks.pdf>


-----------------------

Enver, thank you for this post. It absolutely amazes me that the same
"tea partiers" that tout the constitution have been at the forefront of
the fight against the Islamic center near ground zero. How hippocritical
can they be? To brand the 9/11 "attack" on all Muslims, even patriotic,
United States citizens, is absurd.  Yet this absurdity is promoted by
many of the evangelical right. Any serious religious scholar knows that
Islam and Judaism (and hence Christianity) share common roots. The
universal force responsible for all creation does not distinguish
between the words used to refer to him/her. Allah = Yawheh = God = Brama
etc. Asalam Alaikum = peace be with you and so may it be for all of
God's children regardless of creed, culture or color.
--- In Universal_Life_Church@yahoogroups.com, Petros Evdokas
<petros@...> wrote:
>
>
>
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject:  Fear Paralyzes U.S. Muslim 'Leaders'
> Date:  Tue, 03 Aug 2010
> From:  The Wisdom Fund listserve@...
> Reply-To:  staff@...
> To:  petros@...
>
>
>
> *THE WISDOM FUND
> TWF.org*
>
>
> August 3, 2010
>
>
> *Fear Paralyzes U.S. Muslim 'Leaders'
> http://www.twf.org/News/Y2010/0803-Fear.html **
>
>
> Citing the thoroughly debunked, official account of 9/11 as gospel,
> anti-Muslim bigots and opportunists rally around opposition to an
> Islamic Center near Ground Zero in New York
>
> By Enver Masud
> *
> -- The number of Americans who do not believe the official account of
> 9/11 is increasing
>
> -- Paralyzed by fear, Muslim 'leaders' silent on 9/11
>
> -- Ground Zero Islamic Center controversy -- a unique opportunity lost
>
> -- ADAMS Center officials say they 'cannot legally provide a platform'
> for discussion of 9/11
>
> -- America's foreign policy establishment created the Islamic threat
to
> advance its interests
>
> -- The silence of Muslim 'leaders' is inexcusable, risks driving some
to
> violence
>
>
> *FULL TEXT
> http://www.twf.org/News/Y2010/0803-Fear.html
> REPRINT PERMISSION GRANTED provided that you cite source and print
full text
> *
>
> ---
> *FREE E-Books: **THE WAR ON ISLAM and 9/11 UNVEILED
> <http://www.twf.org/Library/FREEbooks.pdf>*
> <http://www.twf.org/Library/FREEbooks.pdf>**
> <http://www.twf.org/Library/FREEbooks.pdf>
>
>
> -----------------------
>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

From: http://CyprusIndyMedia.org
~~~~~~~~~~


PKK: A Ceasefire for Ramadan and the Referendum
Forty Days of Peace with Conditions that May Lead to a Truce
http://cyprusindymedia.blogspot.com/2010/08/pkk-ceasefire-for-ramadan-and.html

~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi Phil,
Very good hearing from you and I will share your website with my contacts. I did
the survey myself and chuckled at the last question. Did you know that most
folks out there that have never tried cannabis themselves, have the perception
that those that use are like falling-down drunks? I actually had
State Sen.Wayne Kuipers tell me this....we fired him in the primary. They
actually relate being high/stoned on cannabis with consuming too much alcohol
because it's the only thing that they understand. No wonder they fear us! We
need to dispel this perception. Maybe your survey will help.
 
In answer to your personal question....yes, I still perform wedding ceremonies,
but not too far from home anymore. I've married 59 couples so far since 1984.
 
Again, good hearing from you and keep in touch.














Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Wed, 8/11/10, phil kava <pkava10@...> wrote:


From: phil kava <pkava10@...>
Subject: marijuana survey
To: director@...
Date: Wednesday, August 11, 2010, 11:11 AM





Hi Steve, This is Phil Kava
We spoke last year.  I was working with professors from michigan state and
purdue, to attain a schedule one research license and establish  a national
cannabis content testing facility.  Well the DEA shot us down, even though both
of the professors had attained schedule one licensing before.  There is a
couple of reasons I am contacting you. First, I set up a website to conduct a
series of surveys on medical marijuana patients and marijuana users in general.
If you could check it out and let others know to do the same, that would be
awesome. The web address is: www.medicalmarijuanadepartment.com . 
 
There is a personal question I have for you. Do you perform wedding services? 
Please let me know.  Thanks for your time.  Look forward to hearing from
you.  Phil Kava




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Marijuana Survey Results
 
Here are some results to a few questions asked on the survey:
 
Gender:  74% male 26% female
 
Legal patient:  63% yes 37% no
 
Currently use cannabis:  96% yes 4% no
 
What is the quality of marijuana you use:  56% good green, 30% good commercial
 
Do you use to relieve symptoms from a medical condition: 85% yes, 7% no
 
History of substance abuse: 11% yes, 89% no
 
Criminal history:  15% yes, 85% no
 
Attend religious service regularly: 11% yes, 89% no
 
Are you Happy:  81% Often
 
Have children: 65% yes, 35%no
 
Perform your job normally while under influence: 89% yes
 
Democrat 22%, Republican 7%,  independent 44%
 
Do you vote: 100% yes
 
Do you believe in extraterrestrials:  44% yes, 15% no, 41% maybe
 
Do you believe in:  God 52%, Higher Power 26%, Nothingness 22%
 
How much do you consume per month:  52% use 1ounce or more.
 
Should be as legal as alcohol:  96% yes
 
Marijuana a gateway drug:  100% no 
 
Law abiding citizen: 100% yes
 
How often used in 24 hours: 11% once, 37% 2-4 times, 30% 4or more,  22% less
than once.
 
Daily use: 78%,  Weekly: 11%,  11% several times a year














Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Wed, 8/18/10, pkava10@... <pkava10@...> wrote:


From: pkava10@... <pkava10@...>
Subject: survey
To: benziecountynorml@...
Date: Wednesday, August 18, 2010, 10:09 AM


Just wanted to say Thanks again Steve,
I am starting to get more respondents to the survey.  I was very happy with the
results so far, hope you felt the same.  I don't want to be a pain in your
butt, but could you maybe do something else for me?  I have attached a letter
that I would like you to look at and, if you are okay with it, send it  to your
contacts.  I was hoping that Michigan NORML may consider putting a link to the
survey on their website.   I do not care if people are directed to my
websites, I just want to get as much data as we can from this survey.  See what
you can do.  Take Care and Thanks again, Phil Kava




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Dear Friends of Cannabis & Sympathizers,

I just signed a petition to stop Facebook's censorship - they just banned ads
for legalizing cannabis that use pot leaves. This is crazy. Can you join me and
add your name to the petition?

Click here to sign: http://action.firedoglake.com/fbcenshorshare

Just Say Now is a new organization fighting to legalize cannabis. After their
ads with their logo, which uses a pot leaf, ran more than 38 million times,
Facebook decided to flip-flop and ban the ads.

Facebook claims showing cannabis leaves is like showing "tobacco products." Yet
you can show all the alcohol you want in ads on the site!

The ads show cannabis leaves as part of a political campaign to change public
policy. Banning this image is like telling a political candidate for office that
it’s unacceptable to show the candidate’s face in advertising.

This is just wrong.  Facebook shouldn’t censor images of cannabis, especially
for people trying to end prohibition of the plant.

Click here to sign the petition to protest Facebook's censorship:

http://action.firedoglake.com/fbcenshorshare

Thanks for your support. Together, we can fight this censorship and legalize
cannabis.













Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Doesn't it piss you off....even a little, that this wasn't done in our country
first??!!
God, I LOVE CANADA!!!

http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2010/08/24/canadian-cannabis-car/#content

 











Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Newshawk: http://www.drugsense.org/donate.htm
Pubdate: Fri, 27 Aug 2010
Source: Detroit Free Press (MI)
Page: 2A
Copyright: 2010 Detroit Free Press
Contact: http://www.freep.com/article/99999999/opinion04/50926009
Website: http://www.freep.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/125
Author: Rochelle Riley, Free Press Columnist
Referenced: The decision
http://www.ca9.uscourts.gov/datastore/opinions/2010/08/12/08-30385.pdf

WE, THE PEOPLE, NEED TO PAY ATTENTION

We, the people, don't always follow court rulings.

We, the people, don't always keep up with what federal agencies are doing.

So while we, the people, aren't looking, we are losing our rights.

While we were sleeping, the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals -- which covers
California and eight other states -- decided it was OK for agents from the
federal Drug Enforcement Administration to sneak into a guy's driveway and put a
GPS tracking device under the bottom of his car. The wise judges said that the
agents did not need a warrant because the guy's driveway wasn't private.

That kind of thinking -- that you should have no expectation of privacy in your
driveway -- is now law in nine states.

The DEA agents in the case acted in 2007 in Oregon against Juan Pineda-Moreno.
They believed he was growing marijuana, so they went to his trailer and stuck a
tracker on the Jeep parked a few feet away.

And a three-judge appeals court panel said it was legal.

But worse, a second larger panel of judges upheld that ruling Wednesday. The
driveway wasn't private, they said, because strangers such as "delivery people
and neighborhood children" had access to it, according to news reports.

Cultural Elitism

Chief Judge Alex Kozinski, a Reagan conservative, was outraged by the decision
and explained in a practical dissent that the ruling was discriminatory because
only poor people had no expectation of privacy. Rich people, he said, have gates
and fences.

His common-sense dissent explains part of what is wrong with America in so many
ways.

"There's been much talk about diversity on the bench, but there's one kind of
diversity that doesn't exist," he wrote. "No truly poor people are appointed as
federal judges, or as state judges for that matter."

The kind of cultural elitism Kozinski describes defines our government and
political and socio-economic systems. Only rich people can afford to run for
office, and once they are elected, they have no idea how to help poor people.
They have no idea how poor people live.

That is how the mortgage crisis happened.

That is how the banking crisis happened.

Were Congress even partly populated by people who make $9 an hour, how many
would have allowed what was allowed by a bunch of rich guys, a few well-to-do
gals and a bunch of reps who didn't take economics in college?

An American Complaint

The California case was not about a suspected drug dealer and his trailer. It is
about whether any American can keep government agents from swarming the driveway
because it is private property, as it has long been considered to be.

Kashmir Hill wrote on abovethelaw.com that "a user's manual that's 200-plus
years old can be difficult to apply to modern technologies."

That was a brilliant way to explain the difficulty in applying early amendments
to the U.S. Constitution to the way we live now. It is why the Second Amendment
is so abused and why most people don't know what the Fourth Amendment is. The
Fourth says that "the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses,
papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be
violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause."

It says you cannot just walk up to a poor man's driveway and slap a tracking
device on his car, unless you can convince a judge that you have enough evidence
to do so.

We are not paying attention, but we are losing our rights. It is not a liberal
complaint. It is not a Tea Party complaint. It is an American complaint, an
American crisis.

And while we, the people, sleep, the crisis deepens.














Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

I left my comments!! How about you?!













Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Tue, 8/31/10, Paul Armentano <paul@...> wrote:


From: Paul Armentano <paul@...>
Subject: [affiliates] The Hill: "Proposition 19 is the right direction"
To: "NORML Affiliates" <affiliates@...>
Date: Tuesday, August 31, 2010, 2:37 PM


Address messages for this group to 'affiliates@...' ---

Colleagues,

My rebuttal to the recent charges levied by Sen. Diane Feinstein and Drug Czar
Gil Kerlikowske RE: California’s Prop. 19 appears online today in The Hill.
 Given that this is a paper of record in these folks’ backyard, my op/ed
gives folks an ideal opportunity to comment and send a message to the politicos
in Washington that their opposition is out of touch with voter sentiment.

“It's time to reject the drug czar's tired rhetoric, and abandon the failed
federal policy of criminal marijuana prohibition. Let's stop ceding control of
this market to unregulated, untaxed criminal enterprises and put it in the hands
of licensed businesses. Let's stop sanctioning adults for private behavior that
is engaged in absent of harm to others. Let's begin to regulate the use,
production, and distribution of pot like alcohol -- complete with common sense
controls regarding who can legally produce it, who can legally distribute it,
who can legally consume its, and under what circumstances is its use lawfully
permitted. Proposition 19 is a first step in this direction.”

Comments on The Hill are moderated, but they will appear online.  Comments may
be left here:
<http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/lawmaker-news/116577-proposition-19-is-t\
he-right-direction#thecomments-form-message>

Regards,
--
Paul Armentano
Deputy Director
NORML | NORML Foundation
paul@...

Please join me at ‘Just Say Now!’, NORML’s 39 Annual National Conference
in Portland Oregon, September 9-11, 2010. For online registration,
accommodations, speakers & schedule, expo tables and conference sponsorship
opportunities, check out http://www.norml.org/conference.



 
<http://thehill.com/blogs/congress-blog/lawmaker-news/116577-proposition-19-is-t\
he-right-direction>

Proposition 19 is the right direction

By Paul Armentano     - 08/31/10 11:35 AM ET

Drug Czar Gil Kerlikowske, along with five previous drug czars (including former
'high roller' William Bennett), recently penned an op/ed in the Los Angeles
Times condemning California’s Proposition 19 , The Regulate, Control & Tax
Cannabis Initiative of 2010. It is no surprise that America's present and former
drug czars oppose the passage of Prop. 19. After all, the drug czar is required
by law "to oppose any attempt to legalize the use of a substance that is listed
in schedule I of section 202 of the Controlled Substances Act." In other words,
it would actually be illegal for President Obama's drug czar, Gil Kerlikowske,
to voice an opinion that didn't publicly condemn the measure. Predictably, the
czars' opposition is out of step with voter sentiment on the issue -- which
according to the latest polltracker.com data shows Californians supporting the
measure 51 percent to 37 percent.

So just what would Prop. 19 do?

According to an assessment by the independent California Legislative Analyst's
Office , the immediate effect of the measure would be to allow adults age 21 and
older to possess and grow limited amounts of marijuana in the privacy of their
own home. The agency estimates that halting the prosecution of these minor
marijuana offenses would save state and local governments "several tens of
millions of dollars annually," and enable law enforcement to reprioritize
resources toward other criminal activities.

The longer-term impact of Proposition 19 would be to enable "local governments
to adopt ordinances and regulations regarding commercial marijuana-related
activities." These activities would include taxing and licensing establishments
to produce and dispense marijuana to persons 21 and older. By doing so, "state
and local governments could eventually collect hundreds of millions of dollars
annually in additional revenues," the office estimates.

Predictably, critics of Proposition 19 have tried to paint a much more
foreboding picture. For example, California senior Sen. Dianne Feinstein claims
that the measure is "a jumbled legal nightmare that will make our highways, our
workplaces and our communities less safe."

Not so, says the Legislative Analyst's Office, which calls Feinstein's fears
about pending workplace and roadway calamities unfounded. States the office:
"(T)he measure would not change existing laws that prohibit driving under the
influence of drugs or that prohibit possessing marijuana on the grounds of
elementary, middle, and high schools. "... (E)mployers would retain existing
rights to address consumption of marijuana that impairs an employee's job
performance."

Sen Feinstein and the drug czars' other primary claim -- that Proposition 19
will dramatically increase consumption and cost the state millions in health and
social costs -- ring equally hollow.

Right now virtually anyone in California who wishes to obtain or consume
marijuana can do so, and it is hard to believe that adults who presently abstain
from cannabis would no longer do so simply because certain restrictions on its
use were lifted. In fact, in the years following Californians decision to
legalize the medical use of marijuana in 1996, the state has seen a dramatic
decline in marijuana use by young people.

Finally, unlike alcohol and tobacco -- two legal but deadly products --
marijuana's estimated social costs are minimal.

According to a 2009 report by the Canadian Centre on Substance Abuse,
health-related costs per user are eight times higher for drinkers than they are
for those who use cannabis and are more than 40 times higher for tobacco
smokers. It states, "In terms of (health-related) costs per user:
tobacco-related health costs are over $800 per user, alcohol-related health
costs are much lower at $165 per user, and cannabis-related health costs are the
lowest at $20 per user."

A previous analysis commissioned by the World Health Organization agreed,
stating, "On existing patterns of use, cannabis poses a much less serious public
health problem than is currently posed by alcohol and tobacco in Western
societies."

So then why are Sen. Feinstein and the drug czars so worried about adults
consuming it in the privacy of their own home?

California lawmakers criminalized the possession and use of marijuana in 1913 --
a full 24 years before the federal government enacted prohibition. Yet right now
in California, the state Board of Equalization reports that some 400,000 use
marijuana daily. Self-evidently, cannabis is here to stay.

It's time to reject the drug czar's tired rhetoric, and abandon the failed
federal policy of criminal marijuana prohibition. Let's stop ceding control of
this market to unregulated, untaxed criminal enterprises and put it in the hands
of licensed businesses. Let's stop sanctioning adults for private behavior that
is engaged in absent of harm to others. Let's begin to regulate the use,
production, and distribution of pot like alcohol -- complete with common sense
controls regarding who can legally produce it, who can legally distribute it,
who can legally consume its, and under what circumstances is its use lawfully
permitted. Proposition 19 is a first step in this direction.


Paul Armentano is the Deputy Director of NORML, the National Organization for
the Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) , and is the co-author of the book
Marijuana Is Safer: So Why Are We Driving People to Drink? 





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Hi,

We're in the process of upgrading, expanding and deepening our Universal Life
Churh work. We'd like your involvement, to whatever degree large or small, in
any way that attracts you or is feasible for you.

If you have time and interest to volunteer we have many tasks that need doing.
Most of them require no special skills, of if there are any new skills involved
we'd be glad to teach, and glad to learn from you.

Some of the work is simple deskwork: it can be reading, writing, research,
upgrading webpages, doing graphics, communicating by email, keeping records,
etc.

Some of it more creative, or more people oriented.

Some of it requires being in contact with people who serve in various structures
of the State or the Church, or in the world of Business.

Other parts of the work are mindless (boring) tasks, but some people love to
just turn on some music and do mindless work - it's a meditative form of
therapy. Especially if we can experience it as labour of love.


If you have any time at all to spare, we'd love to have your participation as a
volunteer. We can use you even if all you can spare is ten minutes a week, or
five minutes a day.


We've set it so that this letter gets mailed automatically to all new members
and once a month to all enrolled members. We hope you'll give it thought, and
give it your best intentions.

We'd love to hear from you!
Please drop us a note - write "ulc volunteer" in the Subject line and we'll get
in touch with you right away.

Write to:
petros@...
or
ttetpos@...
or
sue_scandale@...

We look forward to hearing from you,
Thanks!

ULC Volunteers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

My occasional doubts that Amerikkkan Fascism is Pure, Concentrated Evil
at its core, that it embodies Conscious Malevolence, in other words is
purely satanic, are entirely blown aside when I read news items like this.

Petros
_______


Top US commander: Burning Quran endangers troops
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100907/ap_on_re_as/as_afghanistan

By KIMBERLY DOZIER, Associated Press, Sep. 7, 2010

KABUL, Afghanistan – The top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan
warned Tuesday an American church's threat to burn copies of the Muslim
holy book could endanger U.S. troops in the country and Americans worldwide.

Meanwhile, NATO reported the death of an American service member in an
insurgent attack in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday.

The comments from Gen. David Petraeus followed a protest Monday by
hundreds of Afghans over the plans by Gainesville, Florida-based Dove
World Outreach Center — a small, evangelical Christian church that
espouses anti-Islam philosophy — to burn copies of the Quran on church
grounds to mark the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on the United
States that provoked the Afghan war.

"Images of the burning of a Quran would undoubtedly be used by
extremists in Afghanistan — and around the world — to inflame public
opinion and incite violence," Petraeus said in an e-mail to The
Associated Press.

Muslims consider the Quran to be the word of God and insist it be
treated with the utmost respect, along with any printed material
containing its verses or the name of Allah or the Prophet Muhammad. Any
intentional damage or show of disrespect to the Quran is deeply offensive.

In 2005, 15 people died and scores were wounded in riots in Afghanistan
sparked by a story in Newsweek magazine alleging interrogators at the
U.S. detention center in Guantanamo Bay placed copies of the Quran in
washrooms and flushed one down the toilet to get inmates to talk.
Newsweek later retracted the story.

Responding to Petraeus' comments, Dove World Outreach Center's senior
pastor Terry Jones acknowledged Petraeus' concerns as legitimate.

"Still, we feel that it is time for America to quit apologizing for our
actions and bowing to kings," Jones said in a statement released by his
church. "We must send a clear message to the radical element of Islam.
We will no longer be controlled and dominated by their fears and
threats. It is time for America to return to being America."

The church, which made headlines last year after distributing T-shirts
that said "Islam is of the Devil," has been denied a permit to set a
bonfire but has vowed to proceed with the burning. The congregation's
website estimates it has about 50 members, but the church has leveraged
the Internet with a Facebook page and blog devoted to its Quran-burning
plans.

The American's death brings to at least six the number of U.S. forces
killed in Afghanistan this month, along with at least four other
non-American members of the international coalition.

Engagements with insurgents are rising along with the addition of
another 30,000 U.S. troops, bringing the total number of international
forces in the country to more than 140,000.

At least 322 U.S. troops have died in Afghanistan so far this year,
exceeding the previous annual record of 304 for all of 2009, according
to an AP count.

Petraeus is asking for 2,000 more trainers and field troops for the
international force, NATO officials said Monday. It was unclear how many
would be Americans.

Also Tuesday, authorities confirmed the ambush killing of a district
chief by suspected insurgents in the northern province of Baghlan on
Monday afternoon. Nahrin district chief Rahmad Sror Joshan Pool was on
his way home after a memorial service for slain anti-Soviet guerrilla
leader Ahmad Shah Massoud when rocket-propelled grenades hit his
vehicle, setting it on fire, said provincial spokesman Mahmood Haqmal.

Pool's bodyguard was also killed in the attack, and one militant died
and two were wounded in the ensuing fire fight with police, Haqmal said.

Five children were killed and five wounded in Yaya Khil district in the
southern province of Paktika when an insurgent rocket fired at an Afghan
army base hit a home Monday evening, provincial government spokesman
Mokhlais Afghan said.

Kidnappers also seized two electoral workers and their two drivers in
the western province of Ghor, according to deputy provincial police
chief Ahmad Khan Bashir. Insurgents have waged a campaign of violence
and intimidation to prevent Afghans from voting, especially in rural
areas, while some pre-election violence has also been blamed on
rivalries among the candidates.

___

Associated Press writers Slobodan Lekic in Brussels, Travis Reed in
Miami, and Amir Shah in Kabul contributed to this report.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

First of all, Pat and I would like to thank the scheduled performers for booking
to play the following three events, thank them profusely for believing in the
"greater dream" and playing for a pittance in order to make the manifestation of
that dream possible. Make sure you visit our festival web pages and click on the
links to the performers' websites and check these folk out. Purchase some of
their music! They are our real heroes, our "guitar army", the vanguard of peace
and sustainability, the harmonic concordance around which all three festivals
spin.

2011 festival pages (please visit):
http://www.faeriehillfarm.com/BSAAMF.html
http://www.faeriehillfarm.com/LLF.html
http://www.faeriehillfarm.com/AHMC.html

Special note: One more festival is in the works: Faerie Freak Jam - October
28-30, 2011 - all-adult All Hallows "push the limit" masquerade festival. We'll
be including more info in later updates. We are looking for appropriate magickal
musicians and performance artists for this wild event. If you think you fit, be
in touch. We will be booking acts soon.

So - What is the "greater dream" mentioned above? Here is what we are raising
money for, donating 25% of the gross proceeds of three fests to: ANDOR, the
"propagator sanctuary", a community owned and operated permanent festival site,
built from scratch to provide exactly what we all need when we come together.
ANDOR is not only going to be a great place for festivals, it's also going to be
an education center, a training ground for sustainable practices, and a funding
source for another "propagator sanctuary" and then a series of  smaller
ecovillages (urban & rural) where the Earth Tribes can settle and live a life in
harmony with each other and nature. We're going to turn our accumulated waste
into methane and use that to power the generators, augmenting the photovoltaic
panels and wind turbines we plan to erect. We're going to permaculture the
environment. Yes, ANDOR will be off-grid, on it's own, and capable of supporting
itself without polluting the planet in the process. There is not enough room
here to provide all the details. Some of it is on our web pages and the in-depth
eco-technical discussion happens in our yahoo group:
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/andorprojex

Interesting and important details:

SPIRITUALITY - What we care about is that you respect yourself, your neighbors
and the land on which these festivals are being held and the people who are
providing it for our use. Native American pow wows have taken place here. Our
central stage is located at the center of the pow wow grounds. Another stage is
located in the round house, constructed by the same folks. This isn't a place to
trash yourself, each other, or the environment around you. Please be peaceful,
friendly, kind, and considerate. Love is the Law. Everyone is a star! Remember:
we are all one family �

EVENING JAMS - All three fests will feature evening jam sessions. Scheduled
performances will be during the day. At the Black Swan Alternative Arts & Music
Fest this is a big deal - the central focus of the fest (see info on website).
At Lady Liberty and Acoustic Harmony the jam sessions will take on another form.
In all cases, you don't have to be a booked and scheduled performer to jam with
us! Bring your instruments (acoustic & electric). Bring your hand drums and
other percussion. There is room for you in the circle.

WORKSHOPS - We are seeking qualified workshop  presenters. If you have something
practical and sustainable to teach we would like to hear from you ASAP. Workshop
presenters get in free in exchange for holding 2, 1 hour workshops and/or
discussion circles. Please provide us with a promo-ready single paragraph
synopsis of your workshop(s) plus any hot links to your online web pages. It
could be two different workshops or the same one on two different days. Also,
let us know which fest you wish to present at and, if you have one, attach a
picture of yourself that we can use on the website. Send to aeonlaunch@...
and we'll get back with you quickly.

ARTISTS - Art (all types) is welcome at our festivals. We encourage artists to
makes displays, stage art happenings, and vend their wares. We have space for
all kinds of art including video productions, costumes, paintings, drama,
interactive exhibits - you name it. Do you have something in mind that you wish
to run by us? Feel free to drop us  a note at aeonlaunch@... so that we
can discuss the possibilities.

VENDING - If you plan to vend non-food merchandise and/or hand-made goods/crafts
at any of the above festivals, please register/purchase your ticket soon and,
after doing so, send us a self-promo blurb with hot links to your online site
and we'll add it to the website. Let us know which fest you have purchased
tickets to when you email aeonlaunch@... and remember: there are no extra
fees for vending - but food vending is taboo. The site owners have that covered
(see below). You may vend at your encampment or on vendor row (see "camping
areas" below)

FOOD - Bring your own or purchase at the on-site restaurant run by the site
owners. They have very reasonable/fair prices and want to know what you would
like to eat. Send your food suggestions and requests to: aeonlaunch@... �
There will be ICE available, made on site from fresh spring water.

DISHES & RECYCLING - No trash! No cig butts on the ground (pocket them if you
smoke). Don't bring trash and, if you do, bring a trash bag so it can go home
with you. We have stations set up for recycling bottles and cans and recyclable
plastics. Paper can be burnt in the fire pits. Garbage can be placed in the
compost pile but no trash bins! Maybe you shouldn't have brought that junk it in
the first place (hint hint). To avoid using wasteful disposables - BRING A
PLATE, CUP, & EATING UTENSILS. There is a dishwashing station set up by the
restaurant and one by the shower house. Please use them.

CAMPING AREAS -  We have divided the festival site into several areas:

1) VENDOR ROW - camping at site (no electric)  - or - with electric ($20 extra)
- email us to see if any powered spaces are still open (register early to
reserve space).
2) LIMITED RV - 24 sites with electricity ($20 extra) - email us to see if any
powered spaces are still open (register early to reserve space). These are
located around the central circle/stage.
3) VAN, BUS, & CAMPER FIELD - Need to camp out of your vehicle? This area is for
you and it is adjacent to the fire gate of the main circle/stage so you won`t
miss the show.
4) PERFORMER/ARTIST CAMP - Wooded campsites set back behind the Round House
performance area. This area is for musicians and artists. There are fire pits
(firewood available on site), water stations, and electric hook-ups available
($20 extra). You can off-load your vehicle then park in the parking area nearby.
5) PEACEFUL WOODLAND TENTING - If you need to sleep at night, camp here. It is
the quietest and most peaceful camping area, a short walk from the rest of the
festival. You can off-load your vehicle then park in the parking area nearby.
There are fire pits (firewood available on site) and water stations, nice big
trees for daytime shading, and electric hook-ups available ($20 extra).
6) LAKESIDE SUBSTANCE FREE ZONE - We've set aside an area for the folks who wish
to camp where no alcohol is consumed and where smoking is not allowed. If you
want to camp in this area, just ask where it is when you arrive.

PERFORMANCE SITES - We have three primary performance areas at the festivals:

1) INDOOR LOUNGE - open during the afternoon as a cool space and staging area
for workshops, video productions & films, and for acoustic performers (there is
a powered stage here).
2) ROUND HOUSE - at the Black Swan AAMF this is the late night DJ/remix dance
party zone (starts at midnight) - at Lady Liberty and Acoustic Harmony, the
round house will be one of the workshop areas and an evening jam session center.
3) MAIN CIRCLE STAGE - 360 degree sound system - this is "big band space" during
the day and "community jam space" in the evening. This is the place for hooping,
poi spinning, bubble blowing, dancing, and evening light shows.

NO PETS POLICY - no negotiation - just don't bring any. If you have a legitimate
seeing eye dog we need to know that before hand. This is a site owner policy.

Hope to see many of you in attendance! These events will a joy to experience
with you.

Many blessings,
Terry & Patricia Kok
aeonlaunch@...

I am sorry for sending out so many emails today, but I have been getting caught
up from being in Ohio and I feel that this one is very important. It even has
former MINORML ED,Mr.Tim Beck speaking at the end. Every cannabis reform
activist should be a member of ACLU. I have been for years. God bless em!!













Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Tue, 9/14/10, Eric VanDussen <ericlvandussen@...> wrote:


From: Eric VanDussen <ericlvandussen@...>
Subject: ACLU speech on MMMA at Waterford Area Compassion Club
To:
Date: Tuesday, September 14, 2010, 4:32 PM



Watch American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) Attorney Dan Korobkin speak about
Michigan's Medical Marijuana Act at the Waterford Area Compassion Club on
September 11, 2010. -
http://www.upnorthmedia.org/watchupnorthtv.asp?SDBFid=2327#vid




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

9/11 families, others rally in favor of NYC mosque
http://www.hurriyetdailynews.com/n.php?n=911-families-others-rally-in-favor-of-n\
yc-mosque-2010-08-26
Thursday, August 26, 2010


NEW YORK – The Associated Press
Supporters of a mosque planned to be built in New York carry signs. AFP
photo

Supporters of a mosque planned to be built in New York carry signs. AFP
photo

The planned mosque and Islamic center blocks from the World Trade Center
site got a new boost Wednesday from a coalition of supporters that
includes families of Sept. 11, 2001, victims.

New York Neighbors for American Values rallied for the first time at a
municipal building near the World Trade Center site. "I lost a
23-year-old son, a paramedic who gave his life saving Americans and
their values," Talat Hamdani said, and supporting the Islamic center and
mosque "has nothing to do with religion. It has to do with standing up
for our human rights, including freedom of religion."

Among the nearly 2,800 people killed when the World Trade Center was
attacked in 2001 were more than 30 Muslims, she noted. Opponents of the
Islamic center project argue it's insensitive to the families and
memories of Sept. 11 victims to build a mosque so close. Supporters cite
freedom of religion.

The new coalition was started by members of 40 civic and religious
organizations that "spontaneously called each other, because we had the
feeling that something very negative was happening," said Susan Lerner,
executive director of the New York office of the watchdog group Common
Cause.

The controversy was triggered by "irresponsible politicians" using it as
an election issue, she said. Names mentioned at the rally included
former House Speaker Newt Gingrich, a Republican, and the
highest-ranking Democrat in the Senate, Majority Leader Harry Reid.

Gingrich has suggested that building the mosque near the World Trade
Center site is akin to putting a Nazi sign "next to the Holocaust
Museum." Reid has broken ranks with President Barack Obama by saying he
thinks the mosque should be built elsewhere.

Coalition members are now contacting officials, asking them to support
the project as a reflection of religious freedom and diversity, and the
rejection of "crude stereotypes meant to frighten and divide us."

They plan a candlelight vigil on Sept. 10, the eve of the ninth Sept. 11
anniversary. "This is not just about Muslims; this is about who we are
as Americans," said Lerner, adding that to oppose the Islamic center is
"a slippery slope. There will always be people who are offended standing
next to people who are different from others."

Rabbi Arthur Waskow, director of New York's Shalom Center, said the
project will show the world a form of Islam that espouses peace - not
the Islam of the terrorists. "It is right; it is wise to build it," he
told hundreds of people gathered under the arches of Manhattan's
Municipal Building, a short walk from the World Trade Center site.

Several coalition members noted that the mosque site's developer, Sharif
el-Gamal, modeled it after the Jewish Community Center on Manhattan's
Upper West Side. It serves anyone who wishes to participate, they said,
and so will the Muslim center.

~~~~~~~~~~~

This from Bill Piper of Drug Policy Alliance. Please take a moment to make this
call if you want to help end Cannabis Prohibition.













Rev.Steven B.Thompson,Executive Director
Michigan NORML
6215 Smeltzer Rd.
Benzonia,MI 49616
(231) 882-4496
www.minorml.org 
                                

 ‘Yes We Cannabis!!'



 

--- On Thu, 9/23/10, Bill Piper, DPA <actionfeedback@...> wrote:


From: Bill Piper, DPA <actionfeedback@...>
Subject: Your Phone Call Worked; Now We Need One More
To: director@...
Date: Thursday, September 23, 2010, 12:30 PM









Having trouble reading this email? View it on our website.








 
Dear Rev.Steven,
So many of you called Speaker Pelosi's office in opposition to The Drug
Trafficking Safe Harbor Elimination Act that it shut down her voicemail system.
Democrats got the point, and pulled the bill from the legislative schedule. We
believe it is dead. Had it not been for your calls, the bill would have passed.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
Since your phone calls to Speaker Pelosi worked, we hope you will now call
Majority Leader Harry Reid. As you may know, we've been working with Senator Jim
Webb on a bill that would establish a national commission to make
recommendations for reforming U.S. drug policy. That bill has already passed the
House. And it has also passed the Senate Judiciary Committee. The last step is
passing it on the Senate floor.
Only Harry Reid can schedule it for a floor vote. We believe if enough people
call him, he will feel the pressure and schedule it for a vote. The clock is
ticking (the Senate will soon adjourn to go campaigning). Please take a minute
to call his office.
PLEASE
Call Majority Leader Harry Reid at 202-224-3542. When you hear the Senator's
recording, you can press 1 to speak to a staff member, or press 2 to leave a
message.  You can say something like: "I'm calling to urge the Majority Leader
to schedule a vote on the National Criminal Justice Commission Act. It is vital
that this commission be established right away. Our prisons are overflowing with
nonviolent drug offenders. It is time to reform the U.S. criminal justice system
and this commission will help with that."
Additional Talking Points:
• The war on drugs has led to an astonishing and unacceptable increase in the
number of Americans behind bars. The commission has the potential to make the
criminal justice system more fair and effective and reduce the social harms
caused by the drug war.

• Because of our failed drug policies, families are torn apart every day, and
communities of color have been disproportionately impacted.
• We need to stop wasting law enforcement resources on non-violent drug
offenses.  It's time to fix drug laws that are based on politics instead of
public safety.
Thanks for your continuous help! After you call Majority Leader Reid, please let
me know how it goes by replying to this email.
Sincerely,
Bill Piper
Director, Office of National Affairs
Drug Policy Alliance

You have received this email because director@... is a member of the
Drug Policy Alliance mailing list. You can unsubscribe from this mailing list or
modify or change your mailing list subscriptions at any time. For subscription
problems please contact Jeanette Irwin, Director, Internet Communications
jirwin@..., 202.216.0035.

nonprofit software




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Friends,

The two news items below are "from out of this world". Hardly anyone who
is involved with politics or social issues has a functunial worldview or
conceptual framework to comprehend them, utilize them, make something
good of them.

There's a perennial itch of an awareness in the back of our minds and
hearts though, within all of us, some sort of instinctual knowledge that
these news items belong very close to the truth of all that matters.

I'll be sharing some more commentary with you in future articles about
these subjects.
Petros
__________


'We saw a bright glowing object like an eye': U.S. airman's startling
testimony about UFO encounter near UK nuclear base
--Retired officers call on Government to tell public the truth
--Deactivation of nuclear weapons 'is a message' to human race
28 Sep 2010
An ex-U.S. air force chief has given an astonishing account of an
encounter with a UFO at an air force base in Suffolk. Charles Halt is
one of a number of senior former airmen who went public today over
claims that UFOs had tampered with nuclear missiles in the U.S. and the
UK. Mr Halt, who retired in 1991, told a press conference that he was
working at RAF Bentwater near Rendelsham in Suffolk in 1980 when he had
the terrifying encounter.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1315620/US-airman-Charles-Halts-U\
FO-testimony-encounter-near-UK-nuclear-base.html

UN 'to appoint space ambassador to greet alien visitors'
26 Sep 2010
A space ambassador could be appointed by the United Nations to act as
the first point of contact for aliens trying to communicate with Earth.
Mazlan Othman, a Malaysian astrophysicist, is set to be tasked with
co-ordinating humanity’s response if and when extraterrestrials make
contact. Aliens who landed on earth and asked: "Take me to your leader"
would be directed to Mrs Othman. She will set out the details of her
proposed new role at a Royal Society conference in Buckinghamshire next
week.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/8025832/UN-to-appoint-space-ambassador-\
to-greet-alien-visitors.html

~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi,

We're in the process of upgrading, expanding and deepening our Universal Life
Churh work. We'd like your involvement, to whatever degree large or small, in
any way that attracts you or is feasible for you.

If you have time and interest to volunteer we have many tasks that need doing.
Most of them require no special skills, of if there are any new skills involved
we'd be glad to teach, and glad to learn from you.

Some of the work is simple deskwork: it can be reading, writing, research,
upgrading webpages, doing graphics, communicating by email, keeping records,
etc.

Some of it more creative, or more people oriented.

Some of it requires being in contact with people who serve in various structures
of the State or the Church, or in the world of Business.

Other parts of the work are mindless (boring) tasks, but some people love to
just turn on some music and do mindless work - it's a meditative form of
therapy. Especially if we can experience it as labour of love.


If you have any time at all to spare, we'd love to have your participation as a
volunteer. We can use you even if all you can spare is ten minutes a week, or
five minutes a day.


We've set it so that this letter gets mailed automatically to all new members
and once a month to all enrolled members. We hope you'll give it thought, and
give it your best intentions.

We'd love to hear from you!
Please drop us a note - write "ulc volunteer" in the Subject line and we'll get
in touch with you right away.

Write to:
petros@...
or
ttetpos@...
or
sue_scandale@...

We look forward to hearing from you,
Thanks!

ULC Volunteers
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Friends,

A curious little news item that reveals so much...

We hardly ever hear or see public admissions from the "business class"
(ie. ruling class) or from its media that the large religious and church
enterprises are all about profits. The little news item below is a fine
example of reality, even if it concerns only a drop, a tiny hint of the
vast sea of HUMONGOUS financial interests and FOR-PROFIT operations
which comprise all of the large churches and religious operations.

Anyone who has ever spent any time being involved with large churches
and religious organizations can attest to that: it's all about profits.
Faith is only a marketing vehicle to ensure that the faithful will
provide both an army of producers and an army of consumers.

The point here is not about "large" religions being "bad" and "small"
supposedly "good". It's about religion as business, versus religion
(faith, spirituality) as a path to the Divine. There's a world of a
difference, and actually the two paths go different directions.

The entirety of humanity's history can be easily interpreted as being
driven by the conflict between those two forces: the "church as a
business venture" clique, versus those who experience the spiritual as
an actual path to oneness with Spirit.

Please read the news below: "good for the soul".
Petros
_______


Bible.com investor sues company for lack of profit
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20101021/od_nm/us_biblecom_lawsuit



Bible.com investor sues company for lack of profit
Reuters – Thu Oct 21, 2010

WILMINGTON, Delaware (Reuters) – A shareholder of Bible.com Inc sued the
company's board members, accusing the ordained ministers of failing to
profit from the "goldmine" potential of the namesake Internet property,
according to a lawsuit.

James Solakian filed the lawsuit in Delaware's Chancery Court against
the board of Bible.com for breaching their duty by refusing to sell the
site or run the company in a profitable way.

The lawsuit cites a valuation done by a potential purchaser that
estimated bible.com could be worth more than dictionary.com, which
recently sold for more than $100 million.

The domain name was registered by Roy Spencer "Bud" Miller, an Arizona
minister who secured it in 1996 for $50. Soon after, he was offered
$100,000 for the location, according to court documents.

Miller refused, stating he was entrusted to run the site for a sacred
purpose, according to court documents.

Miller, along with his wife Betty, brought in a marketing firm to help
them develop the site. They raised money by forming Bible.com Inc and
issuing stock.

The company's business plan stated "it is the goal of the board of
directors of Bible.com to become very, very profitable," according to
court documents. The business was also to be governed in accordance with
Christian business principles.

Solakian acquired 28 percent of the company's equity in 2001 as part of
a way of settling a $400,000 business debt.

That set off a battle for control of the company and the board decided
to suspend development of the site until resolving the problem of
Solakian's involvement.

Bible.com currently features a crowded mix of advertisements as well as
a verse of the day -- "Do not follow the crowd in doing wrong" -- and
offers links for Biblical answers to questions on voting and masturbation.

Betty Miller declined to comment because she said she had not seen the
lawsuit.

The case is James R Solakian v Roy Spencer Miller, Betty Miller, Andrew
Miller, Stacy Fornara, Edward Cude and Michael Magnant and Bible.com
Inc, Delaware Chancery Court, No. 5911.

(Reporting by Tom Hals; Editing by Gary Hill)

 Dear Friends,



This article by Denver lawyer Rob Corry is worth reading.

It is about the Obama administration and medical marihuana.

Begin forwarded message:
>
> Subject:  The Audacity of Dope
>
>
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-j-corry-jr/wont-get-fooled-again-oba_b_7583\
89.html
>
>
> Robert J. Corry, Jr.
> Attorney at Law
> 600 Seventeenth Street
> Suite 2800 South Tower
> Denver, Colorado 80202

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is Keith Stroup's (founder of NORML) reply:
 
> Robert:
>
> I think you under-value the importance of the Ogden memo and the 
> difference between President Bush and President Obama on the pot 
> issue. We would not now be seeing  states licensing dispensaries in 
> state after state but for the change in administrations and Obama’s 
> willingness to keep the federal government on the sidelines. And 
> that may change again should we elect a more conservative president 
> who opposes medical marijuana.
>
> I share your regret that change has not come more quickly on the 
> federal level, and your impatience. And I see signs that give me 
> hope and encouragement that we should  finally change federal law 
> and policy in the not so distant future. But it will not be 
> tomorrow, even if we throw a fit. So let’s find a more realistic 
> political goal for the first Obama administration.
>
> Also, we should pick our enemies carefully, and I do not see Obama 
> as our enemy. He is someone who had smoked marijuana and who has 
> written about it favorably, and we are far better with someone who 
> has enjoyed marijuana in that office than with someone in that 
> office who has not. And I retain hope that we might make some 
> significant progress on the federal level under the Obama 
> administration.
>
> But I acknowledge that most of the political action on the marijuana 
> issue will continue to occur at the state level, with both 
> legislation and voter initiatives. At some point we will have a 
> consensus and the Congress will feel obliged to join the states, but 
> for now it is largely a topic for the state capitols.
>
> Your outrage is acknowledged and appreciated and I am surely glad 
> that you are on our side.
>
> Frankly, I am surprised you limit your outrage primarily to the 
> medical use issue. I think it is more important that we legalize and 
> regulate the responsible use of marijuana by adults, regardless of 
> why they are smoking, since the over-whelming majority of those who 
> smoke marijuana in America are not medical users. But I understand 
> that seriously ill patients deserve to be at the front of the line.
>
> Let’s all look forward to what appears to be an earth-shattering 
> event in CA this November 2, when voters may well legalize the use 
> of marijuana. As goes California, so goes the nation!
>
> Regards,
>
> Keith





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