ATTN: Green Acres no more…..

[Halfman]

Here’s something that made national news this week from my neck of the woods:

The owner of Rainbow Farms, a campground that is renowned for hosting Hemp Fest and sponsoring several other pro-legalization get-togethers, and his roommate were shot and killed this week by both state and federal authorities after a five day standoff.

(you can check the Web for their names, I will not use them here out of respect). This all began last Friday, at least the standoff end of it. The owner, who as you could imagine, has been under high scrutiny by Michigan State and local poelease for a long time over their activities, failed to appear for a court hearing on gun and drug charges. As you folks in the U.S. know, police cannot come on your property without cause and they cannot search without a warrant. The owner didn’t see fit to pay property tax, giving the county sheriff reason to breach the privacy zone. Additionally, they came in and took the roommate’s 12 year old son into foster care, ahead of the standoff. The owner, enraged, holed himself up on the campground and began setting fire to his own buidlings. Eventually, he came outside with a long rifle and the reports said he pointed a long rifle at an FBI "observer". With one shot, the owner was killed by the fed. The first killing happened on Labor Day.

On Tuesday of this week, the roommate had arranged to see his son before turning himself in. The roommate’s mother was also en route from Tennessee at the time, in hopes of bringing an end to the madness. She never made it and the kid didn’t get there fast enough either. The report shows the roommate, with all of these things pending, came out of a burning building with a long rifle of his own and supposedly pointed it at a state trooper. Only one shot later, the roommate was dead.

From what I heard, Ann Curry of the NBC morning news show, Today, gave this some time on one of their broadcasts this week. If anyone out there has heard about this and wants to offer an opinion, please do.

I think the two guys unneccesarily martryed themselves without considering two things. The first would be political efficacy. If they had truly done their homework and considered what their individual sacrifices would be remembered as with the circumstances that enveloped their end of things, they would be alive today. I am personally for medicinal and commercial usage of marijuana and hemp products. But acts like this, to me do exactly the opposite of what is intended. If I coupled labeling theory in with blaming the victim, you can see these folks acted in accordance with how authorities viewed them. Unfortunately, the actions the two manifested as a result of being pegged reinforced the idea that they were in the wrong.

The second prob I have is that these two, in their zeal and conviction for just cause, failed to consider who, besides themselves and the people they represented, would be thrust in harm’s way: namely their own families. That kid will never have another biodad. The parents and various relatives of the deceased cannot hope to get back, even through the most vigorous of actions, their kin. No one wins here, I am afraid.

PS Allison, Liono will not let us talk on his thread till Urlacher makes a Batch of baked goods. What do you think about that?

[AGAP]

Hey Halfman,

Definitely with you on the legalization/medicinal use of THC. Canada has started some federally funded grow operations, one up in a mine where I am from…they are making a mint off t’shirt sales. We have a Virology lab here, security is set at level 4 as they study all kind of nasty deadly virus and zombie material. The grow op up north here is a level 7, makes no sense at all to have a much higher security level for the low level plant they are growing [img]images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img] Still a lot of things to be worked out in our distribution/possession license scheme. People are still getting busted for possession/grows when they are licensed to use [img]images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img] Heres hoping they work out the kinks and the law/police get on board and admit that some good can come out of the use of the "demon drug"

That standoff deal is such a waste on so many levels. Two dead, families destroyed… [img]images/smiles/icon_confused.gif[/img]

Allison [img]images/smiles/icon_wink.gif[/img]

I saw Jarons rules, I can understand his need to have a safe place where the reality of the situation can’t get to him [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img] Must be hard being a cryons fan, if he needs that space to feel good about football cool by me…I won’t give him a hard time…yet [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] Urlacher is the all american boy, don’t think he is up for baking some goods for any cryons fans [img]images/smiles/icon_razz.gif[/img] Picking up the NFL Ticket set up in the morning….soooo excited its finally time for football. Go BEARS [img]images/smiles/icon_biggrin.gif[/img]

[Author]

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