current event blog/mmj CA vs. Feds

*** The four U.S. attorneys in California have announced intent of a major federal crackdown on medical marijuana dispensaries. Hundreds of letters have been issued to landlords warning about the upcoming prosecution. Letters have also been issued to banks to close the accounts of dispensary owners. This is seemingly controversial because Obama announced during his campaign that patients who were following state law would not be prosecuted. The attorneys announced that most of the targets would be in Southern California, especially in San Diego, where there is likely to be less resistance. An official announcement is to be made by the attorneys in Sacramento this upcoming Friday. This is obviously a perfect example of conflict between states and the federal government, as marijuana use has some legal status in California (among other states), but remains a felony nationally.
I believe that the federal government has wasted a copious amount of resources in combating the use of cannabis. I believe that states should maintain the right to determine substance laws, and that the feds have overstepped their boundaries. I think that it is childish of federal agents to continue to combat the growing acceptance of the cannabis industry, rather that incorporating it into a potentially beneficial aspect of our economy. Our government has far more important issues to address than persecuting marijuana use in a state in which nearly 50 percent of voters favor legalization.

Immigration/DREAM act

Immigration policy is yet another issue that our government has to tackle. Last week, California passed what is known as the DREAM act. This act will allow immigrants who entered the United States illegally as minors the ability to receive state funds to attend college. This act is basically a California version of Obama's DREAM Act. Obama's bill would have provided illegal immigrants who entered the country as minors, or who have completed college or service in the military a means by which to become U.S. citizens. I believe that this bill would have solved a lot of problems in people's lives, and provided a means for many hard working, productive individuals to become fully legitimized members of our country. I think it's unfortunate that the DREAM Act was not passed. However, I think it is good that California has found a way to provide aspiring immigrants with equal opportunities to education.

Now, I think readers should be reminded that these students will only receive funds if they have been accepted into college. I am pretty sure it is hard to get into any college if your legal status cannot be verified.. It is obvious that these students are dedicated to bettering the quality of their lives. Although I think that this is a good plan, I believe it should provide some means of a path to citizenship. An example of this would be if students were provided with limited funds and an extended visa, as long as the individual promised to apply for citizenship once completing college. Regardless, I think that more efforts should be spent integrating current immigrants into our economies instead of spending large amounts of money in attempt to identify and deport them, and that we should change our policies to prevent future waves of undocumented immigrants. We should make use of our current immigrants and improve our economy, before we are the ones who are knocking at the doors of other countries in search of work.

Are young people losing faith in democracy?

In response to the article....

I don't think so.  The article portrays young people as blaming the current global situation on the shortcomings of democracy.  I believe that young people around the world are upset at the distortion of democracy in many countries.  Although I cannot speak for those in other countries, I can certainly give my observations of our own. 

I believe that many people are beginning to realize that what we have is not a true democracy.  We elect politicians to represent us, but that rarely seems to be the case.  Our politicians are heavily influenced by big corporations such as the oil and pharmaceutical industries.  It seems more and more that politicians are more concerned with staying in office or holding power than actually addressing the needs of the day-to-day citizen.  I was shocked when I heard that there is a proposed constitutional amendment that would require all laws passed by congress to actually apply to members of congress themselves.  Wtf?  Is this seriously not already assumed?  How can I be expected to trust our leaders when questions like this are brought to light?

I think that many people are now beginning to recognize that our representatives are not doing their jobs.  The economic crisis that has emerged from the poor decisions of our leaders, as well as prolonged, expensive and unethical wars, unconstitutional abuse of power, and a culture war have all amounted to widespread dissent among average citizens.  Members of the emerging generation of many other countries have shown similar frustrations with the corruption among their leaders.  To me it is clear that it is not democracy that young people are losing hope in, but the way in which it has been twisted to benefit a select few powerful individuals.  It is from this realization that we see uprisings like the Occupy Wall Street movement, among other uprisings globally.  It is clear that working people around the world are tired of the system that politicians and powerful corporations have established.  Although there may not be one perfect solution to the problems of our current political atmosphere, it is obvious that something needs to change, and that there are many people who are ready to set this change in motion. 

hard rain falling..

           So this one's gonna be kinda rantish, but it effects me directly, and has me thinking quite a bit.

September 10th- 7:00 am.  Heading down highway 46, on my way to Cuesta College to take the ACT.  I'm running late.   I start to slow for the 101 entrance, and then...  boom.   Sirens and flashing lights in my rear view mirror..  pulled over.  At first I didn't even think it was for me- I couldn't think of anything I had done worth getting pulled over for.  So it went:  "Hey officer, whats the problem"?  "Blah blah blah 74 in a 65.."  I couldn't believe it.  I was getting a ticket for going 9 miles an hour over the speed limit.  Seriously? 

Not even a month prior, my neighbor- a bond hair, blue eyed woman, 40 something, got off with a warning (from the same officer) for going 80 mph on the same road..  But that's a whole other issue I'm not even going to bother carrying on about.  It speaks for itself.

What really got me thinking was the question of where was my money even going?  And for what purpose?   Why penalize the student who's on his way to take a test?  Why not spend that same energy busting a meth lab somewhere? Or gaining a lead on one of the seven armed robberies that have occurred in Paso this year?  Then i realized why.. because it was easy.  The city draws revenue from infractions and misdemeanors, and from "wine country tourism".  No money is made when a gang member is arrested, or when publishing crime damages the city's reputation among wine-snobs.

So I am now supposed to pay a fine of three-hundred and thirteen dollars.  Man, its a good thing I have a college book fund to pull that from.... and I hope to god that no single parent has to rush on their way to a second job or anything like that- how is someone in that sort of situation supposed to be able to sacrifice 300 bucks and a day off of work to go to court?  I fail to see our authorities looking out for the true common good.

And what will my money be spent on?  Will it be on a construction project, or on improving roads?  Will it be spent on a teacher's salary?  Or will it be on something else..  Will it go straight into some fat-cat congressman's retirement?  A crate of ammunition to be shipped to Iraq?  A bomb to Libya?

Our society's real problems are simply not being addressed by the authority's current policies.

What is the government’s role in helping people during economic hard times?

During economic hard times, the role of the government must adopt to ensure that the public good is looked out for.  It may become necessary that the government change policy and economic goals to re-inforce local economies and to look out for the interests of the middle class.  When a government finds itself in debt or in an economic crisis, it should look to restarting the economy above any other goal.  In many cases, economic recessions can serve as great opportunities for development and reconstruction, through national public works and involvement in local economies. 

9/4/11 Identifying Political Roots and Attitudes

Political attitudes can come from a multitude of sources.  Parents often make an effort to ensure that their children grow up to endorse like-minded political ideals.  Parents with strong political views may even teach their children that those who oppose their own views are automatically wrong or misinformed.  My parents have never seemed to be politically charged or informed.  As a child, when I asked them questions about who they were voting for, they would tell me that those sorts of questions were private, and leave me without an answer.  Now that I am forming my own political opinions, I consider myself somewhat lucky that I grew up politically neutral.  Because of this, I am able to form opinions from an objective standpoint, and make decisions based on what I believe to be true, rather than blindly tuning into television, party politics, or family affiliations.

1.  Is outsourcing jobs to other countries good or bad for America?

  In recent years, major corporations in the automobile, communications, and manufacturing industries have moved overseas to take advantage of cheap labor and lower wages.  Although this practice benefits foreign workers and may help to keep major companies afloat, outsourcing jobs is ultimately bad for the American economy.   The current un-employment rate in America sits at 9.1 percent.  Every job shipped to India of Ireland or wherever else is a job that could have belonged to an American.  Every factory that has been moved to China could have employed hundreds of Americans, not to mention produce quality assured goods that are made to last, rather than cheap products that wear out but are designed to sell for low prices.  If every major company that has moved overseas focused on the American economy and employing Americans, rather than focusing solely on profits and income, it is probable that the consumer approval alone would keep the company afloat.