What: MARIJUANA REFORM: A Continuing Conversation
        

• Next Steps Southern California
• A statewide conference to discuss the future of marijuana policy reform efforts in
  California.

When:

• Saturday, March 19, 9:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.

Where:

• Ricardo Montalbán Theatre
• 1615 Vine St, Los Angeles, CA 90028

Sponsored by CaNORML, Drug Policy Alliance, and the Marijuana Policy Project, this conference builds on the success of a similar gathering in Berkeley in January, and will feature a public discussion with drug policy reform leaders, medical marijuana advocates, legislators, attorneys, physicians, and marijuana reform activists from across the state. Your participation and input are welcome!

Registration, ticketing, and parking information will be available by March 1.
(A modest registration fee will be charged.)

Event sponsorship opportunities are available. Please contact Susan Soares, Vibenation MultiMedia LLC at or 310-923-3857, or Sarah Lovering, MPP or 310-351-2639.

Hope to see you there!

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Or so it seemed… As the New York Times reported this Saturday, during the final days of the contest, Chase rigged their own system to obscure the vote count and then revoked the winnings of a few groups, including SSDP and the Marijuana Policy Project!

Clearly, Chase can’t be trusted to handle our money. This morning, Micah canceled his credit card account with Chase, and he hopes you’ll join him. Please make the Chase Boycott Pledge at http://www.ChaseBoycott.com

To be clear, this isn’t sour grapes over not receiving a grant – this is about demanding honesty and accountability of a corporation that handles billions of dollars of American assets. The banking giant had every opportunity to disqualify SSDP from the start if they disagreed with the charity’s mission. Instead, Chase Bank used popular social networks to generate free advertising for their brand, and then revoked the winnings after the contest was over without providing an explanation. When asked by SSDP and the New York Times to produce a vote tally, they smugly refused.

Chase executives are not only out of touch with the principles of honesty and transparency, but they are also out of touch with the majority of Americans when it comes to drug policy. Are you aware that 75% of Americans think the bogus War on Drugs has failed and that 53% support legalizing marijuana? This is a mainstream issue that’s gaining more support every day.

By boycotting Chase, you’ll be sending a message to corporations that they need to earn your trust before they earn your money. http://www.ChaseBoycott.com

And by making a donation to SSDP today, you’ll be sending a message that excellent organizations like theirs don’t need to rely on grants from big banks so long as they can rely on the generosity of supporters like us.

If you donate $25 today, and 999 others take a stand with you, SSDP will raise the $25,000 that Chase revoked. With more than 400,000 supporters on SSDP’s e-mail list and Facebook networks, we can make that happen. I’m in. I hope you are, too!

Will you step up and help the Students for a Sensible Drug Policy reach that goal by making a donation of $25 right now? http://www.ssdp.org/donate

It’s up to us to fight the good fight, when there stakes are high. We are a country governed of the people, for the people, and by the people. Let’s not give it away to the reckless and unconscionable mega-corporations. Donate today. Your support is greatly appreciated and needed.

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Not only does Mr. Babka contend that Real ID is not good for America, but he also believes it is anti-American. He is not alone. He’ll provide a great many details about what’s going on in the fight because we’re now at the point where we need to turn up the pressure at a national level. This will be a show featuring some good news.

For the last two years the battle has shifted to the states on this issue and he wants to hear from the activists working in the states. What’s happening in your state?

Please let him know at CALL at DOWNSIZEDC dot ORG (we ask that you type that address in as it sounds because if we provide a hyperlink, spam harvesting programs will snag the address, and make a headache out of it).

To call-in during the show the toll-free number is 1-800-259-9231.

And, by the way, if you want to send a message to Congress asking them to repeal the Real ID Act, you can do so at the website, DownsizeDC.org.

The best way to hear the program is on the Genesis Communications Network website.

And previous episodes are available as mp3 “attachments” to posts on our DownsizeDC.org blog.

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