tagged w/ Denver News
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By Stephen C. Webster
Friday, April 6, 2012 11:14 EDT
Colorado’s Campaign to Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol has just fired its first big advertising salvo, and it looks to be an effective one.
A new billboard unveiled Thursday by the group just blocks away from Mile High Stadium in Denver shows a smiling woman with her arms folded, next to the text: “For many reasons, I prefer… marijuana over alcohol. Does that make me a bad person? RegulateMarijuana.org.”
“That’s what we want to talk to Coloradans right now,” Betty Aldworth, advocacy director for the campaign, told Raw Story on Friday. “We’re trying to educate them about why it is that marijuana is safer than alcohol. If you look at every objective study comparing the safety of the two, you’ll see that marijuana is clearly safer than alcohol.”
Not only is the billboard near Mile High Stadium, it’s also right next to Mile High Liquors. The group said on its website that the location was optimal because it will force some drinkers to confront their bias toward marijuana users. It was also a good deal, too: the campaign told Raw Story that their sign only cost $5,000.
Their claims aren’t just a clever pitch for the drug, either: Marijuana has in fact been shown to be less addictive than alcohol, and its more enthusiastic users tend to exhibit fewer adverse health effects than alcoholics. It is also impossible to overdose on marijuana, which its adherents see as an advantage over the relative ease of alcohol poisoning.
That’s the message the campaign is trying to bring to Coloradans, and Aldworth explained that they’ve only just begun. “We’re asking volunteers to talk to their neighbors, their family members — and particularly aunts, uncles, parents and grandparents, people in the next two generations up,” she said. “Young people, for the most part, get it, they’ve seen their friends use marijuana and alcohol, and how they affect people. They understand… There is no logical reason to punish people for marijuana.”
She added that volunteers have seen “almost exclusively positive reactions so far,” but noted that their educational campaign has only just begun.
That campaign will directly support the Regulate Marijuana Like Alcohol Act, which has secured a spot on the state’s 2012 ballot. It would allow for the limited possession and cultivation of cannabis by adults age 21 and over. It would also allow the state and local governments to enact regulations on the commercial production and distribution of marijuana, as well giving local governments the option to prohibit marijuana sales altogether.
“This could be a watershed year in the decades-long struggle to end marijuana prohibition in this country,” Art Way, Colorado manager of the Drug Policy Alliance, explained in a statement. “Marijuana prohibition is counterproductive to the health and public safety of our communities. It fuels a massive, increasingly brutal underground economy, wastes billions of dollars in scarce law enforcement resources, and makes criminals out of millions of otherwise law-abiding citizens.”
It’s not yet clear if Colorado will become the first state to legalize marijuana, but that is a distinct possibility. Even moreso than California in 2010, which defeated legalization by a double digit margin, Colorado leans heavily toward favoring marijuana regulation, and lawmakers there became the first in the nation last year to begin directly licensing medical marijuana businesses. The state’s Department of Revenue has even sent a formal letter to the Drug Enforcement Agency asking that it recognize the plant’s inherent medical value.
If the old thinking holds true and these lawmakers truly are a reflection of their constituents, Colorado just may be on track to buck the trend and embrace regulation this fall.
With prior reporting by Raw Story associate editor Eric W. Dolan.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/04/06/regulate-marijuana-billboard-goes-up-near-mile-high-stadium/
"Very Coool, this is the second item I have posted this week on my home State, I do agree with this post much more than the last!!!" =)By Stephen C. Webster
Friday, April 6, 2012 11:14 EDT
Colorado’s Campaign to... more
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By David Edwards
Monday, February 13, 2012 11:40 EST
A Colorado medical marijuana grower was sentenced to six years in Illinois state prison after he was caught with a shipment of 42 pounds of marijuana in Chicago.
Former Chicago mortgage broker Ryan Bailey had moved to Colorado as a part of the “green rush” of young entrepreneurs going west to make money in the cannabis industry.
A Chicago Police sting caught Ryan Bailey in a home on the Northwest side with dozens of pounds of medical pot on March, 9 2010.
A drug-sniffing dog had located a box with Tupperware containers filled with 42 pounds of weed at a UPS facility, according to The Chicago Sun-Times. Labels on the package indicated it had been shipped from a California law firm to a design company in Chicago.
An undercover officer posing as a UPS worker delivered it to the home, where it was signed for by Jason Duda. Authorities claim that Bailey had paid Duda $200 to accept the package.
After obtaining a search warrant, police allegedly found Bailey in the home holding a package of marijuana, which he quickly tossed into a box.
“Some people in the industry have gotten lucky,” he told the Sun-Times last year. “Other guys like me have gotten caught in the system.”
Bailey is being held in Stateville Correctional Center after being sentenced to six years last week, CBS Chicago reported.
He also faces separate charges in Colorado where he is accused of growing more than 670 marijuana plants.
Under Colorado law, medical marijuana patients can grow up to six plants for personal use. “Caregivers” can grow additional plants for up to five other patients.
North Metro Task Force commander Jerry Peters said there was some wiggle room in the law that could allow patients to grow more plants if they can demonstrate a need.
“But six people could not possibly consume 670 plants in a month,” he added.
Bailey’s wife, Amber Cook, operates the Grass Roots Organica marijuana dispensary in a small Denver home. She is not accused of any wrongdoing.
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2012/02/13/colorado-medical-marijuana-grower-sentenced-to-six-years/
"Awww Bailey, I thought you lived in Texas???" LOL!!! =)By David Edwards
Monday, February 13, 2012 11:40 EST
A Colorado medical marijuana... more
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DENVER - Colorado authorities are treading lightly as they deal with protesters who have marched or camped out on state and local parks as part of a nationwide protest against corporate greed.
So far, mostly peaceful protests have been held or planned in Denver, Colorado Springs, Longmont, Boulder, Aspen and Fort Collins.
A spokesman for the Colorado Springs protesters said they met with police on Tuesday and tried to make their case, but police warned they would enforce the law.
Colorado Springs Police spokesman Sgt. Steve Noblitt said there have been only a dozen or so campers at a downtown park and that no ultimatums have been issued.
On Wednesday afternoon, the protestors went to the State Capitol and hand-delivered a letter asking Gov. John Hickenlooper not to evict them from the park.
http://www.9news.com/rss/article.aspx?storyid=224203
"Please check Link to see even more of the protests and the Police reaction... I dropped by there today and around 2 pm, there were many protestors, I dropped back by around 3:30 pm and most were at a General Assembly... I did make it a point to take pictures of me and my step daughters..."
It seems that on Friday after more police officers than protestors showed up, that many protestors were arrested as the others began a March down the 16th street Mall... I am not buying Hickenloopers Lame Ass reasons to remove the protestors, and will never spend another dollar at the "Wynkoop Brewery", who he was part owner of and has filled his pockets from....DENVER - Colorado authorities are treading lightly as they deal with protesters who... more
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Some students and parents were posting on Facebook to vent their frustration at having to go to school when temperatures were forecast to be around 12-below zero at 7 a.m.
Most of the other large school districts in the metro area decided to stay closed for a second day, noting that it was going to be too cold for students who have to take the bus.
Denver Public Schools' decision to hold classes Wednesday was being criticized by some parents and students, especially after news that school buses ran 10-15 minutes late because of the cold and one elementary school had no heat.
Sixteen out of the 435 students enrolled at Smith Elementary had to brave the cold inside the classrooms when the school's boiler went out Wednesday morning.
Only about 16 students remained at the school, where the majority of students walk to school or are dropped off.
Some of the district's 330 buses didn't start Wednesday morning because of the cold weather, and also some bus drivers had called in sick. Although DPS had backup buses and backup drivers to cover the routes, there was still a delay of 10-15 minutes across the board, a school bus driver said.
One school bus even broke down on the way to way to its last stop, 7NEWS reporter Amanda Kost said.
The bus driver and the one middle school student who were on the stranded bus had to sit and wait for about 20 minutes -- without heat because the engine was stalled -- before another school bus arrived to rescue them.
The bus drivers noted that it appeared to be a lot of trouble for not very many students. The most crowded bus Kost saw had about five students on board.
"There are just no kids on the school bus, no one is going to school today," one bus driver said.
"It's just too cold," driver Donna Hurtado explained.
DPS spokeswoman Kristy Armstrong said about 2,500 students rode the bus Wednesday morning. On an average day, 9,500 DPS students take the bus.
East high school had fire alarms go off twice during the day which forced students and staff outside until the all clear, without coats or any protection against the frostbite inducing temperatures.
Channel 7 report: http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/26703372/detail.html
DPS facebook: http://www.facebook.com/DenverPublicSchoolsSome students and parents were posting on Facebook to vent their frustration at having... more
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As firefighters struggle to contain the now-530-acre Church's Park Fire in Grand County, U.S. Senators Michael Bennet and Mark Udall are leading a coalition of Western Senators to procure in emergency funding to address Colorado's bark beetle epidemic.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/10/04/churchs-park-fire-prompts_n_750117.htmlAs firefighters struggle to contain the now-530-acre Church's Park Fire in Grand... more
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There are sure to be a few breweries at the upcoming Great American Beer Festival that even seasoned beer geeks won't know very well. Some of them might even be in our own backyard. If you are heading to GABF and aren't familiar with one of the breweries on this list you might want to make a mental note to stop by their booths.
http://coloradobeerweek.wordpress.com/2010/09/09/5-lesser-known-colorado-breweries-at-gabf/There are sure to be a few breweries at the upcoming Great American Beer Festival that... more
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Law enforcement officers have completed eradication operations on two separate marijuana plantations in the Pike National Forest.
The joint operation involved the Douglas County Sheriff's Office, The U.S. Forest Service, The Colorado National Guard, South Metro Fire Department, DEA and the South Metro Drug Task Force.
The first operation was conducted on Aug. 25 and the second was carried out Wednesday.
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/24932154/detail.htmlLaw enforcement officers have completed eradication operations on two separate... more
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State Senator Caught Looking at Porn During Debate
May 3rd, 2010
Austin Cassidy
The Jacksonville Observer
State Senator Mike Bennett, a Republican from Bradenton, might want to find something else to do while his colleagues are discussing actual business. It seems that Bennett was caught late last week having a look at some topless females on his laptop while other Senators were debating a controversial abortion bill.
Later in the footage it shows him watching what appears to be a video of a dog.
VIDEO of Fla. State Senator Mike Bennett Caught Looking at Porn During Debate...http://ctpatriot1970.wordpress.com/2010/05/04/fla-state-senator-mike-bennett-caught-looking-at-porn-during-debate-video/State Senator Caught Looking at Porn During Debate
May 3rd, 2010
Austin Cassidy... more
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(VIDEO) USA Gun Owners Buy 14 Million Plus Guns In 2009…More Than 21 of the Worlds Standing Armies Combined
That is 14,033,824,000 billion+ rounds of Ammo..you think that is why we have an Ammo shortage?
For Full Story and VIDEO click here...http://ctpatriot1970.wordpress.com/2010/03/06/video-usa-gun-owners-buy-14-million-plus-guns-in-2009-more-than-21-of-the-worlds-standing-armies-combined/
Washington, DC –(AmmoLand.com)- Data released by the FBI’s National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) for the year reported 14,033,824 NICS Checks for the year of 2009, a 10 percent increase in gun purchases from the 12,709,023 reported in 2008.
So far that is roughly 14,000,000+ guns bought last year!
The total is probably more as many NICS background checks cover the purchase of more than one gun at a time by individuals(VIDEO) USA Gun Owners Buy 14 Million Plus Guns In 2009…More Than 21 of the... more
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LITTLETON, Colo. – The gunman was walking through a middle school parking lot and taking shots at students with a hunting rifle as terrified teenagers ran for their lives. He had just wounded two students and seemed ready to unleash more violence when a math teacher named David Benke sprung into action.
For the Full Story on Hero Teacher David Benke tackling Shooter...Benke VIDEO....http://ctpatriot1970.wordpress.com/2010/02/24/video-teacher-tackles-gunman-supected-in-colorado-school-shooting/
Benke confronted the 32-year-old gunman, tackled him and pinned him to the ground with the help of another teacher, stopping what could have been a much more violent encounter in a city all too familiar with tragic school shootings. The shooting occurred less than three miles from where the Columbine High School massacre happened nearly 11 years ago.LITTLETON, Colo. – The gunman was walking through a middle school parking lot... more
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The controversial oil and gas drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, has come under congressional scrutiny lately after concerns that the mysterious fluids used in the process may contaminate drinking water and harm the environment. While Congress and the EPA in states like Texas--where high rates of leukemia in certain areas have led some to suggest a link to drilling-- are launching investigations into fracking, no such study has been required in Colorado, where local news station KDVR recently caught some shocking footage.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/02/23/colorado-drilling-operati_n_473190.htmlThe controversial oil and gas drilling technique known as hydraulic fracturing, or... more
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This spring, city contractors will fan out across this well-to-do college town to unscrew light bulbs in thousands of homes and replace them with more energy-efficient models, at taxpayer expense.
City officials never dreamed they'd have to play nanny when they set out in 2006 to make Boulder a role model in the fight against global warming. The cause seemed like a natural fit in a place where residents tend to be politically liberal and passionate about the great outdoors.
Instead, as Congress considers how to encourage Americans to conserve more energy, Boulder stands as a cautionary tale about the limits of good intentions.
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424052748704320104575015920992845334.htmlThis spring, city contractors will fan out across this well-to-do college town to... more
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"It has prompted people who are planning meetings to query us and ask, will they be safe when they come to town," said Terry Sullivan, president of Experience Colorado Springs, the city's convention and visitor's bureau.
"There have been, probably on a daily basis, an average of at least one consumer a day who has either e-mailed us or called us because they have witnessed some national attention being given to Colorado Springs" he said.
http://www.chieftain.com/articles/2010/02/12/news/latest_news/doc4b757375f251d978689475.txt"It has prompted people who are planning meetings to query us and ask, will they... more
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A standoff in the House over eliminating tax breaks for a slew of items ranging from software to soft drinks lasted late into the night Friday.
After eight hours of debate, the House had given initial approval to eight bills eliminating sales-tax exemptions. The House must approve the bills once more before they can move to the Senate.
Gov. Bill Ritter, a Democrat, wants to eliminate or suspend 13 tax exemptions and credits to generate somewhere between $125 million and $140 million for the 2010-11 fiscal year that begins in July. He also wants to speed up the expiration date for seven of the tax exemptions to March 1 in order to generate $18 million to help balance the budget in the current fiscal year.
http://www.denverpost.com/ci_14298635A standoff in the House over eliminating tax breaks for a slew of items ranging from... more
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Aurora police this month cited a 19-year-old Denver woman under the state's new texting while driving law, marking the first time in Aurora -- and likely Colorado -- officers have enforced the new ban on texting.
According to police reports, an Aurora police officer cited the woman after she crashed her car into a median or curb near Tower Road and Interstate 70 on Jan. 3.
The woman later admitted to police she crashed because she was texting and police cited her under the new law.
http://www.aurorasentinel.com/articles/2010/01/21/news/metro_aurora/doc4b589aa84d9bf627483647.txtAurora police this month cited a 19-year-old Denver woman under the state's new... more
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A Jack Russell terrier from Colorado, living temporarily in Australia with his owners, has been recognized by a pet insurance firm for triggering a "most unusual" claim.
Jack, a 10-year-old male, tangled with a large lizard Down Under and the terrier was torn up in the October scrap.
Jack's claim, submitted by his owners, Jacquelin and Lance Throneberry of Denver, was among 80,000 submitted to Veterinary Pet Insurance Company in December, said Grant Biniasz, a spokesman with the California-based firm.
http://www.denverpost.com/news/ci_14238364?source=rssA Jack Russell terrier from Colorado, living temporarily in Australia with his owners,... more
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