Moving On
So the activity on this blog is about to slow down dramatically (as if it hadn't already with the recent holiday-related silence). The reason: I recently was hired for a full-time+ gig as the webmaster for the Committee to Regulate and Control Marijuana, here in Las Vegas, Nevada. The CRCM is working toward passing an inititiative on the ballot this upcoming November -- you can read about it here. This is my first time working on a political campaign, and I expect it to keep me very busy for the next eleven months.
I still plan to post to the blog, but expect to see fewer "asides" -- those brief posts that usually consist of a link and a pithy comment. If you really enjoy those, I suggest becoming a regular of kottke.org. I know many of you have enjoyed this site as a place to converse with the wide net of people I'm connected to, so if there's enough interest, I'd consider giving accounts to some people who would be interested in keeping this space going (e.g., doorframe, jonmay, etc.).
Lastly, when I was at midnight mass on Christmas, the priest had something like this to say during his homily: "For those of you who think Christians differentiate among people, that they don't view everyone equally -- blow me
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the initials remind me of your moniker...committee to regulate crazy monk is more like it...
Why do people in Nevada think they can pass this? Why spend money on something the feds will step in and quash? Like Rumsfeld I will attempt to answer my own hypotheticals, although I expect to be mightily contradicted by those with more knowledge (cm, who has the job, for starters). As far as support, my guess is except for the mormons nevadans are largely small government types and free living types, and in the case of vegas, there's a bunch of wealthy sin-loving types. And even a bunch of the mormons are splinter groups and don't want the government messing around. If something like this wasn't the case I'm not sure the point of having the initiative - utah sure isn't going to any time soon.
Now as far as this being a political gesture vs. Nevada becoming potland: from what I hear, nevadans are not too thrilled about the feds shoving yucca mountain down their necks. And this is a rare case where I imagine bipartisan opposition for this within nevada and bipartisan support for this in washington. Typically the federal government forces states to do its bidding by withholding federal highway funds. Cf. 18 drinking age in Louisiana, and no speed limit in Montana.
But they sure aren't going to do that now! "No federal funding for highways? Have a good time trucking that waste in!" Plus, the casinos are so profitable Nevada could levy sufficient taxes on them to fill the highway coffers and it would be a drop in the bucket. So if all my assumptions are correct this could actually happen - plus it is resilient to political climate shifts in Nevada and in Washington, unless of course yucca mountain gets scrapped. Which means it's sort of win-win for Nevadans.
I prefer my pithy with a side of Marco and the soundtrack of Billy Joel.
how 'bout this? instead of slowing down the blog, you just tell us everything we need to know--and everything you'll be learning--'bout the holy herb?
[...] The Daily Regulator, the blog representing the Committee to Regulate and Control Marijuana in Nevada, has launched. CRCM is supporting an initiative on the state ballot this November to remove all penalties for marijuana use for adults 21 and over, to create a system for the legal cultivation and sale of marijuana, and to double the penalties for DUI charges and providing marijuana to minors. Full disclosure: I am the site’s web developer. [...]
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