Somebody think of the children! Vote Yes on Prop. 19

Are you from California? Are you worried about your Kids?
Then, this November, vote YES to Prop. 19.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g29WZuhD8OY&feature=sub

Why Women should support drug policy reform

Jack Cole used to be an undercover narcotics officer for the New Jersey State policy.

Here he explains why women should support drug policy reform. Please watch and get involved.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zGy-j2AjqN0

Warning to the Conservative Party; leave people alone and get the Government out of their lives

Despite not being its leader for a number of years, the quiet man of the Tory party, Iain Duncan-Smith appears to be able to exert an amount of influence on its social policy.

Hence winning the battle over Welfare reform with George Osbourne. Whilst Duncan-Smith continues to advocate Marriage Tax Allowances, and after trawling through old copies of The Economist, they have this warning:

The Economist 16-12-2006 p36
“But real life is messy and real people are complicated. The Tories should tread very warily indeed.”

Wise words - I wish the government would get out of our lives on many issues. Marriage just being one of them.

Woman's magazine gets the message: Marie Claire

Women will be an important demographic in changing attitudes to our War on Drugs.

Isnt it time to end the failed policy called prohibition?

http://www.marieclaire.co.uk/news/thebigdebate/502923/should-cannabis-be-sold-alongside-alcohol-and-cigarettes.html

A Great Tshirt - Cops Say Legalise Drugs

LEAP - a great organisation. They say yes to prop. 19 too.
http://www.leap.cc/cms/index.php

"Touching the Void" by Joe Simpson

A long long time ago when LBR was wee, he was given a vintage Eagle book as a Christmas present. For the non initiated The Eagle’s hey day was during the 1950s and was a comic full of derring do. Heroism, war, individual courage, occasional true story but always boys own stuff. And of course, it was full of disillusional post-imperial angst as the British Empire withered away in the wake of the Second World War.

Reading Touching the Void brought back memories of those younger days. Not just the content of the story, but also the illustrations. They really are remarkably similar to that Boys own style.

Still Simpson is a man to be admired. Written in 1988, which is really surprising as I thought the story was much more recent. The book is well written, and it is a cracking film too.

Mens Magazine gets the message.

Notice I refer to Esquire as a 'Men's magazine' rather than a specialist gentleman's publication. Which would mean something completely different.

Anyway - here is a link I found;
http://www.esquire.com/the-side/richardson-report/drug-war-facts-090109?click=main_sr

The headline says: "A Radical Solution to End the Drug War: Legalize Everything." LBR has a question though: is it me, or is opinion beginning to change in favour of drug policy reform?

Wise words from the Judge: Make Pot Boring

LBR asks all Californians to vote YES on prop 19.

Judge James Gray says it all:

http://judgejamesgray.blogspot.com/2010/10/lets-make-pot-boring-by-judge-jim-gray.html

"Fatherland" by Robert Harris

The hardboiled detective meets 1984. This is Harris’ best book – and that is really saying something. Any book that manages a Clausewitzian quote (and not the obvious example as can be seen on the “Telling it like it is” page of this blog) will keep us realists happy.

It would be interesting to know how much this book influenced, if at all, Michael Chabon’s “The Yiddish Policemans Union” and Stephen Fry’s “Making History”. Like 1984, If you read this book, just be thankful it isn’t true.