Marijuana and Reformed Health Insurance

I have to admit I had much more hope in Obama addressing the drug wars going on than what he has shown so far.

And not just the drug wars, but of opening up discussion and putting forth real effort in even more scientific and medical research about marijuana. We need overkill to wake up some people that make policy on things they don't understand.

The LaGuardia Report just isn't believable to some people nowadays and I don't understand why. But then again, people will believe what they believe, even when facts stare them straight in the face.

Is Obama afraid to shake things up too much right at the beginning? He's already shelved immigration discussion. He had the momentum in the beginning, now that that moment has passed it is all uphill from now.

Even without the narco wars marijuana is long past due being looked at and discussed on an intelligent level.

But, with the healthcare overhaul looming, do you really think big government is going to start accepting prescriptions for medical marijuana for Medicare patients if states were to pass it's acceptance for medicinal purposes? Not even to mention recreational?

I think not.

Will Medicare or any government funded insurance drop patients that have valid prescriptions for marijuana? Will they be dropped if they go and buy it at a store and pay taxes on it but go and get piss tested by their doctor and it's found in their system? I think we all know the answer to these questions. Big government will stick their 2 cents in, not in the best interest of the patient, but for themselves. Big government will become (even more so than now) the new 'insurance" company that looks at oudated notions and beliefs as factual and not at scientifically proven facts.

Many people I know who are severely disabled and/or in chronic pain receive prescription drugs for their conditions through Medicare. I'm talking powerful drugs and in huge doses that would kill the average person not using drugs. Are they addicted? Well, yes. Do they build a tolerance to these drugs? Yes again. But there is a HUGE difference in most of these patients compared to the everyday addicted drug-user that goes out and commits crimes to get his drugs. Alot of these patients I know actually take less than the dose recommended because they want to be as lucid as possible and not be a vegetable. They even put up with pain to a degree we can't even imagine just so they can be productive, useful and coherent human beings.

So why is it ok to prescribe very heavy drugs in pill form (or sometimes by injection) but it is taboo to smoke a drug? If marijuana came in pill form would that make it more acceptable to the ignorant?

Some I know that have chronic and breakthough pain would definitely benefit from using a small amount of marijuana. These patients are on heavy drugs yet they still wake up from a deep sleep because of their pain. Being able to use marijuana for it's medicinal benefits would help them with their pain and to sleep. It would give them a more quality life. So to drop many of our poor and government-insured patients for their use of marijuana would be shameful and against their civil rights (if state and/or medicinally accepted), let alone against basic human rights. Doctors have to be in the forefont of this issue and should not have to be afraid of non-payment or penalty by the insurance company for their actions based on the Hippocratic Oath and (possible) law. Who has the patient's best interest at heart- a doctor or our government/insurance company?

Do I smoke marijuana? No. Do I believe in alcohol, a legal drug to users of age, being used for medicinal purposes? Rarely. Tho I have been known to have a few beers when my back was hurting and after a couple I was able to move around more easily. But going to a chiropractor helps, too. And so would taking prescribed medication - but I don't like taking pills- too hard for me to swallow and I am cognizant of the possibility of becoming addicted. I believe in marijuana's medicinal qualities based on fact and research. Alcohol cannot be used in conjunction with most prescribed pills to help alleviate pain or induce sleep- the combination can kill- we hear about it all the time. Based on fact and alcohol's makeup. But marijuana CAN be used in conjunction in alot of instances without ill effects. Alcohol is a far more dangerous drug and with more ill effects than marijuana. But the people that drink alcohol already put in their protest years ago and finally won their right to drink for whatever reason. It's time marijuana users have that same right. And it's time people who could benefit from medicinal marijuana have that same right. And without fear of prosecution or being dropped by their doctor or insurance.

We need more updated scientific and medical research studies to diminish the stigma marijuana holds over many. Doctors, scientists, professors need to take this ball and run with it to give it the credibility needed for intelligent analysis. This is one issue that has been so blown out of proportion that I don't even think AARP or other large groups can tackle this alone without these other professionals in their corner.

Gimme 3 Winks

I know I know... I've been saying this for a few days BUT- I will post some new info and other stuff later today and over the next few days but I can't get into it at the moment. I wanna try and get a couple more hours' sleep in to add to the 3 I got last night- then it's off to a meeting with ADAPT/Pact and Walmart/Trans Mtn then pool league tonight, tomorrow is an LRC meeting.Yesterday was the CAC meeting and pool practice, let alone I work full-time. This stuff used to be a drop in the bucket for me but I'm getting older and have more aches and pains and it takes me hours to travel around to these meetings via mass transit and the heat sure doesn't help any!
Ok I'm done feeling sorry for myself... talk with ya'll soon...

REO Speedwagon's "Golden Country" says it all

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cjqjZsw66DE

It Ain't Over til the Fat Lady Sings

I'm waiting to post some more items about the CAC but I am waiting until certain things become public knowledge at upcoming meetings, sorry folks.

So between that and the ongoing glitches with Time Warner, it's going to be a boring few days.

Just be happy I'm not singing- it could be worse!

Is Your Refrigerator Running?.....

Remember when we were like 9-13 years old and we thought it was hilarious to crank call people (some we knew, some we didn't) and ask them "is your refrigerator running?- well you better go catch it!!" and hang up laughing our behinds off?

Well, seems it's still going on nowadays only it's a bit different.

Crank texting is the new crank call.

And it seems 9-13 yrs old isn't the case anymore- this guy looks a little older.

The guy in the pic above texted me this morning around 3:45 am.

And he wouldn't leave it alone or give up bugging me even though I texted him that I didn't know him.

You see, I have 'Bev's old cell phone number and her friends that haven't talked to her in over a year and a half are still trying to get ahold of her. Bev is a pretty popular girl it seems- this guy texted me he had a dream about her and wanted to see her.

The guy finally gave it up after I threatened to go to the police with all his info- the sucker even sent me a pic- what a dork!

So it really wasn't crank texting, but it became a nuisance after I told him repeatedly I wasn't Bev and she hasn't had this number in years.

When are we going to have some kind of cellphone directory? I know it'd be a helluva job updating that list- can you imagine?!!!

Maybe Obama can stimulate the economy by creating a national cellphone list and all the people without jobs can work from their home computers doing data entry, with insurance to cover their carpel tunnel syndrome. Moms and Dads can stay at home and do this job and the kids can have both parents home to keep an eye on them. Wow- what a concept!

Looks like this kid in the pic could use a little supervision.

Anyway- these are things that make me go hmmmmm.

Can You Hold it for Another Year and a Half?

2 of 3 Sun Metro coach operators waiting for the single unisex bathroom at the Northgate Terminal.

It'll be at least another year and a half until we get a new terminal and new bathrooms in the NE.

If you're sick and tired of being treated this way and don't want to take it anymore, please call 533-3333 and voice your complaints and suggestions.

Or do it in person at the Union Depot at 700 San Francisco. The Sun Metro offices are to the left and back of the building.

Or come to the CAC (Citizen's Advisory Committee to Mass Transit Dept Board/Sun Metro) meeting every 3rd Tuesday of the month- all the big guys are there. 2pm.

Or see how long you can just hold it.

"Welcome to Progressive..."

This is just one cart of about 10 carts I saw lined up at Walmart a couple weeks ago when I visited early in the morning. They were lined up by customer service, waiting for employees to put away. The perishable items (the ham, frozen pizzas etc) were being thrown out.

Now I know where to go next time my pantry gets low, which is most of the time.

What a wasteful society we have become.

Let's see- why are these items being thrown out?

On the consumer end, we go shopping for food for an hour or more, wait in line to pay for what we picked out and when they give us the magic number we find we don't have enough money. So we put things to the side, probably thinking someone will put them away for us. Or we change our minds in mid-shop and instead of walking a football-field's length back to put it away we say to ourselves "oh they'll put it away- I'm giving them job security".

On the store's end, this is a bare-bones-no-customer-service kinda store (as far as baggers go- remember them?) and this waste is just a cost of doing business. Why should they hire another employee at $7.25 an hour to put away (if salvageable) a $10 ham? They can just write it off to waste.

Yes, there's always going to be the r-e-a-l-l-y lazy shoppers who decide not to buy an item and just stick it anywhere on the shelves no matter if it's perishable or not (there's always a 'bad apple' among us). Whatever the reason- it's a waste and it's a shame.

I wanted to call up this Walmart and ask them just how much they throw out in a day. I also wanted to ask them how much they donate to the local food bank. But I knew that I'd probably still be waiting for that answer to go through corporate and back and blah blah blah. I'm still waiting for the accessible pathway promised last year.

And I'm still waiting for the carts to be cleared from the bus stop.

Told ya- I'm available to gather carts, and I can even check food for proper temperature and try to salvage it by placing it back on the shelf to be sold.

But now I'm multi-tasking, so you need to pay me $14 an hour.

And give me a cool title with a tricked-out name tag (like Flo's). It can say "Hello, my name is Suzanne and I give a sh*t".